Someone’s Out to Get Us
Sutton
“Don’t leave town, Sutton.”
Rodie’s tone was aggravated, and he looked as tired and as angry as I was. He’d lost his hat and unbuttoned the top buttons of his typically pristine uniform hours ago. He was stressed out, and the slick lawyer that Cyrus hired hadn’t made things any easier on him. The guy in the tailored suit and shiny shoes was probably close to Lane’s age. He took one look at Rodie and decided he was nothing more than a small-town sheriff who was trying to hold me on trumped-up charges and a bunch of circumstantial evidence. The lawyer was quick with his words and seemed to have an answer for every question Rodie threw at me. He didn’t let me answer anything he thought was leading or tricky. If I wasn’t furious at my old friend, I would have told the younger man not to underestimate him. Rodie was a former Marine and extremely dedicated to his job; there was nothing small town about him when he was in his element.
However, there was no way the sheriff could fight the facts. My hat might have been found at the scene of the woman’s murder, but when Rodie finally asked me where I was during the night Cyndi was murdered, I had an airtight alibi. I’d been balls deep in Em. When the sheriff gave me a skeptical look, knowing the history Emrys and I had between us, I took great pleasure in informing him that I’d also bumped into one of Lane’s conquests early that morning on the way back to my room. If he thought Em might lie to cover my ass that was one thing, but there was no reason for some chick my brother had screwed to take up for me. The lawyer seemed pleased to have witnesses to my whereabouts in place. Rodie appeared concerned because it meant he still had someone out there mercilessly dropping bodies on his watch.
It was clear I was the common denominator between the two murdered women. Rodie poked and prodded trying to find any way I might be connected to them. I repeated that I had no idea who Cyndi Hammond was; I’d never even met the woman. I couldn’t fathom how my hat ended up at the crime scene, especially since the damn thing had been missing since the night at the bar. The young lawyer jumped on that and asked if Rodie had bothered to look at video surveillance from that night since it was the last place I remembered seeing my hat. He asked if anyone checked to see if Joel Hammond might have grabbed the hat in the shuffle when the paramedics showed up to rush me to the emergency room.
Rodie had the good grace to flush. He replied that no one was aware the hat was out of my possession until they picked me up at the funeral. He’d sent a deputy to the Big Horn to ask Burke for the tapes of the fight, but the bartender had yet to hand them over. In fact, Rodie’s guys were having a hard time tracking Burke down. After the funeral, the man had gone missing. They figured he was out at his favorite fishing spot or camping on his family’s land somewhere. That was what most of us did around these parts when we wanted to get away for a few days of R & R.
It was obvious at that point that Cyndi’s husband could be another viable suspect, and I was being held as the scapegoat. Rodie couldn’t have the folks in town hearing about another dead woman and not appear like he was taking care of the situation. He’d been doing his job by hauling me in and asking about my hat and my whereabouts, but doing it after Alexa’s funeral and making a production of holding me and raking me over the coals had been all for him. First, the drug dealers had torn apart the mountains and scared off a good number of tourists. Now, major crime had found its way into town and the natives were restless. It was his job to keep the streets safe and the inhabitants secure. Lately, that task had been harder and harder. There was no doubt Rodie was feeling the pressure and thinking about how all the recent activity would affect his reelection when the time came. He was covering his ass, but after my lawyer was done with him, it was clear I was going home and that he better not come at me again unless he had some rock-solid evidence.
Cy clapped a meaty hand on my shoulder as he glared at the sheriff. My older brother was in full-on protector mode and I vaguely wondered if Rodie had considered what it would be like to run for sheriff without Cy’s support. People in this town listened to him, and if he didn’t back Rodie, there was a good chance the man was going to lose the career he was working so hard to maintain.
“Sutton isn’t going anywhere. He’s going to be right here, waiting for you to bring Alexa’s killer to justice.” The message was clear. Rodie needed to quit chasing his tail and get on finding the real suspect. “If you have any more questions for my brother, contact Mr. Scott.”
Rodie muttered something under his breath and plowed his fingers through his messy hair. He looked chagrined when our eyes met but I was no longer feeling any loyalty born from a lifetime of knowing one another. I’d been locked in an interrogation room overnight and hauled away from my ex-wife’s funeral. I was already battling small-minded opinions and big-mouthed bullies. He’d purposely given them more fuel to feed the gossip inferno so I didn’t owe the man anything, including patience and understanding. He hadn’t done me any favors.
I shook hands with the young lawyer and let out a relieved breath when he assured me there was nothing that Rodie could feasibly hold me on. The sheriff’s case was weak and we all knew it. He told me he would need to follow-up and get witness statements from the women I mentioned. I’d never been so glad to have given into the temptation that was Emrys. The woman always seemed to be pulling me out of whatever mess it was I found myself in.
As soon as we stepped out into the bright afternoon sunshine, we were greeted by angry shouts and a furious cowboy who looked like he hadn’t slept in a week.
Joel Hammond stumbled out of his truck where he had clearly been waiting for me to be released or led away in handcuffs. He was breathing hard, sounding like a bull that was about to charge at a waving red flag. His eyes were bloodshot and he smelled like a brewery. All his anger was directed right at me and I put up a hand up when Cyrus automatically moved to stand protectively in front of me as Joel stormed across the parking lot in our direction. I heard Rodie swear from behind me, but before he could interfere, I held up my hands and took a step down so I could face off with the enraged man.
“Before you take a swing, you gotta know I never met your wife. I couldn’t pick her out of a line-up if my own life depended on it. I didn’t sleep with her and I didn’t hurt her.”
The other man roared, my words having no effect on him at all. This time when he lunged at me I was ready for it, not drunk and doped up. He was a big guy, but not nearly as big as my brother, so I managed to keep upright when his arms locked around my waist and he tried to barrel me down to the ground. I braced my feet and put a hand on the center of the man’s back. I felt him shaking uncontrollably under my palm. His wife may not have been faithful but that didn’t stop him from caring about her . . . loving her. I knew all about that.
“I lost someone who was important to me as well, Hammond. She didn’t always treat me right, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t hurt like hell to say goodbye to her. I would never wish that on anyone else. I would never put another man in that position. I swear on my daughter, I didn’t have anything to do with what happened to your wife.”
The man shook even harder and suddenly crumpled to his knees at my feet. He put his head in his hands and his shoulders were shaking for a different reason altogether. He was crying, loud and uncontrolled. I patted his shoulder awkwardly and took a step away from where he had fallen.
I was getting ready to step around him and let Rodie deal with him when his head lifted and his tear-streaked face turned toward me. He sucked in a breath and ran a rough hand over his haggard face. “I know you weren’t the one she was fooling around with. I talked to her after that night at the bar. I told her we needed to get things straight. Cy told me if I didn’t get my shit straight he would make sure none of the ranches around here did business with me anymore, which was way scarier than him threatening to kick my ass. Bad enough my marriage was falling apart, I didn’t want to lose my livelihood, as well.” He sucked in a breath and slowly climbed to his feet. “Cyndi told me she reconnected with her college boyfriend on Facebook. The asshole got a job up in Billings and they started seeing each other behind my back a couple months ago. I’m pissed because I was the one who tied the two of you together, Warner. I’m the one who made a scene and called you out in front of half the town. If I hadn’t done that, maybe she would still be alive. Maybe whoever killed the last woman you cared about wouldn’t have gone after Cyndi next. I fucked up.”
It was my turn to suck in a sharp breath as Cyrus and I exchanged a look that spoke volumes. It sucked, but there was a good chance Joel was right about his wife. The only reason anyone would harm her was to try and frame me, and the only people who would know about his accusations had been at the bar that night.
Cyrus shifted and shot Rodie a hard look. “You need Burke to get you those videos from the bar.” Alexa and Cyndi’s killer was on that surveillance tape somewhere.
Rodie nodded stiffly and offered Joel a hand up. He patted the other man on the back and gave me a look that was part apology and part frustration. “I’ll be in touch once I track Burke and the tapes down. Joel, come inside with me and clean up. After you have a cup of coffee, let’s talk and see if you can remember anything else about the night you tried to take Sutton down. Sometimes even the smallest detail can break a whole case open.”
We all split off without any unnecessary goodbyes.
It was quiet in the car on the way back to the ranch. Cyrus was silently seething and I was wondering about that damn hat. I vaguely remembered pulling it off my head and putting it in my back pocket. But everything after that last shot was a blur. It probably fell out when I hit the floor or when the paramedics hefted me up onto the stretcher. I knew there were mostly regulars hanging out that night, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t pull up any faces other than Burke’s and the angry cowboy. Certainly, there was no one there who had it in for me. I hadn’t pissed anyone off that badly, at least not that I could recall. There weren’t any strangers I could place who were seeking revenge. All the bad guys I’d run up against lately were either in jail or dead.
“Maybe getting out of town is exactly what you need.” Cy’s voice was raspy and low, like each word was weighed and carefully chosen.
I snorted and leaned my head against the cool glass of the passenger window. “Yeah, right.”
“I’m serious, Sutton.” He used the big brother tone that indicated he wanted me to pay attention to what he was saying and not blow him off like I tended to do when we disagreed about something. “You haven’t been happy here for a while now. Things were never the same after Dad died and left me in charge. You never approved of the direction I wanted to take the business in and we both know you’ve been phoning it in for years.”
I stared at my brother in shock. I wasn’t exactly quiet about my disinterest in the tour business, but I’d always pulled my share of the weight when it came to getting the job done. He’d never seemed like he was anything but appreciative for my help. It stung to hear him say he thought I was slacking. “What are you talking about, Cy? I show up every single day and break my back, the same as you and Lane. Sure, I’ve been laid-up lately but I’m almost back to normal. I’ll be out on the trail before you know it.”
Cy grunted and cut me a sharp look from under his dark eyebrows. “I’m not talking about the ranch. I’m talking about half-assing it in when it comes to living your life. When was the last time you had a really good day, Sutton? When was the last time you woke up excited about everything waiting for you? Somewhere along the line you started going through the motions and I want more for you than that. I don’t want you to resent me or your legacy. I want my family to be happy and I think you’ve forgotten what that feels like. There is more to living than mouths to feed and bills to pay.”
I let out a snort. “You’re the foremost expert on happiness now?”
He gave me another hard look. “I am, now that I know what real happiness feels like. From the minute I open my eyes until the second I close them, I relish the fact that I have a woman like Leo in my life. I revel in the fact that she picked me and she let me keep her. I’m amazed to wake up and have those brown eyes looking at me, and I savor the fact that I get to fall asleep with that lion’s mane of hers spread all over the pillows. Not every day is a good day, but even on the bad ones, I’m happier than I’ve ever been because I get through them with her.”
I knew he was head over heels for the redheaded spitfire, but I’d never heard him talk about Leo like that. My brother has always come across as unflappable. He was always the one who held everything together. He was the pillar of strength. It never occurred to me that he might need someone to help him bear some of the weight he carried on his shoulders all the time. Leo was my brother’s support system. She was the one who lifted the world up off his shoulders from time to time so he could rest. She was his sunshine and no amount of cloudy days was ever going to dull that glow.
Fuck me.
Now that I understood, I could see wanting some of that brightness in my own life.
I sighed and closed my eyes. “I love my kid more than anything. I want her to have the best childhood she can. I want to give her everything she needs and raise her to be strong and independent but know when to forgive and how to have compassion for others. I want her to love the land and appreciate hard work. I hope and pray that she knows she’ll always have a place on our ranch and that it’s as much her legacy as it is mine. But you’re right,” I rubbed my eyes with my fingers. Tired from the questioning and exhausted from this conversation. “I haven’t felt at home on the ranch or in this town in a long time. Some things changed so fast I couldn’t keep up and some things won’t ever change . . . and that makes me feel like I’m stuck. Everyone knows you’re the boss and Lane is the face of the new business. I’m just the guy who happens to be good with horses. I was out of step before getting shot. Now, I’m not just out of step, I’m walking backward and getting nowhere, but at the same time, this is my home, Cy. This is where my family is. This is all I know.”
My brother reached out and clapped a hand on the back of my neck. His heavy fingers squeezed and it was his turn to sigh. “You know a lot more than you give yourself credit for. You know everything there is to know about horses. You know how to run a ranch and raise cattle. You’re a great dad and you are the only man alive who has ever been brave enough to be the peacekeeper in our family. This ranch will always be in your blood and belong to you. But you don’t necessarily need to be here to be successful or to find your own version of happy. There’s a big ol’ world out there, little brother. I’ve been fortunate to see some of it. That’s what made me realize the only sky I wanted to live under was this one right here. You need to go find the sky you really, truly want to spend your days under.” He gave me another squeeze and his tone dropped into a teasing note. “Think you might have already found the girl who makes those skies sunny no matter how rainy the weather gets.”
I shook him loose and curled my hands into fists on the top of my thighs. My jaw clenched involuntarily at the thought of holding onto Emrys, especially now that there was another dead woman with ties directly to me hovering on the forefront of my mind. “I can’t leave town but I’m going to tell Em to go. You should talk to Leo so she can be vigilant, as well. Someone is clearly out to get me, and any woman who’s connected to me is a target. I think I’m going to ask Brynn to take Daye up to the McKenna place for a few days until this all gets hammered out. Ten has an arsenal up there.”
Tennyson McKenna was a forest ranger and Cy’s former booty call. The woman was as lethal as she was stunning and she was one of the few people outside of my family whom I could trust to keep my daughter safe.
Cy flashed me an incredulous look and then slowly shook his head. “Someone has it out for us, Sutton. We are all in this together. No one comes after just one of us. That isn’t how it works. We will always be stronger when we stand together, and that includes our women. If you want Daye to stay with Ten for a few days, I can see that being a good idea. But if you try and shut out Leo and Brynn, and if your dumbass gets it in your head to send Em away again, you are digging your own grave. Those women will bury you under a pile of your own stupidity.”
I choked on a laugh I didn’t see coming at the image his words conjured up. “Leo and Brynn are family, but Emrys isn’t. She doesn’t need to be caught up in this. She’s barely put back together from the last time I couldn’t keep her safe. I can’t worry about her and focus on finding who’s fucking with my life at the same time. She is all I can think about when she’s around. She fills up every thought and feeling. She’s a distraction.” In the best ways possible. He didn’t need to know that her soft skin and gleaming gold eyes forced me to concentrate on making her feel good and helped me to forget to punish myself for sins I couldn’t remember committing.
“It’s good to have a woman in your life who distracts you. That means you’re thinking about her instead of yourself. You forget to be miserable when you’re thinking about all the ways the right woman makes your life beautifully complicated.” He gave me one last look that felt like it had a lifetime of lessons learned and life lived inside of it. “When you find the person you are willing to change everything for, the person you are willing do anything for, the woman you try and become a better man for, you don’t let them go. When that woman tells you that she doesn’t need you to do anything differently, when she says you’re already doing enough, and that you are already the man she needs you to be . . . not only do you not let her go, you do your goddamn best to give her every reason under the sun to stay right by your side. Be the kind of man she wants to stand next to even when things are uncertain and scary.”
When I looked up, I noticed we were at the house. I got lost in the wisdom he was imparting and missed that we had pulled onto our property. It was the middle of the day but things seemed quiet without the retreat customers milling about. When we climbed out of the big truck, Leo was already making her way down the front steps, concern etched on her freckled face. Her chocolate eyes scanned me from head to toe before she threw her arms around me and hugged me tightly enough that I had to hold back a grimace. She held on until my brother came around the front of the truck and gently pried her loose. He tucked her against his chest and rubbed his cheek against the top of her head. I could see the way he pulled strength and reassurance from her. The redhead was half his size, but right then and there I could see the way she held my brother up.
He met my intense look over the top of Leo’s head and gave me a knowing grin. “I told you, when you find the right one you hold on with everything you’ve got.” Leo let out a squeak as he squeezed her, and I could see her blush when one of his hands landed on her backside with a resounding thwack.
I shook my head and yawned. “Where is Daye? I need to try and explain to her what’s going on.”
“Lane took her out for a ride a little while ago. She had a little moment yesterday. Em talked her down, but it wasn’t pretty. Daye and Lane needed some one-on-one time to smooth things over.” Leo gave me a critical look. “You look like you need a hot shower and a nap. Go take care of yourself and we’ll all sit down and have a family meeting when they get back. Everyone is going to know what we’re dealing with so we all have a game plan when it comes to protecting our own.”
Cy was right, someone was out to get us and there was no way in hell this family was going to let them get away with harming one of our own. Not the members who were bound by blood . . . or those who were bound by love.