“When she wakes up I’ll tell her. I promise.”
The call ended and Tory started crying. Josh sat down beside her and drew her into his arms. “Easy, honey. I’m right here, okay?”
She looked up at him and the tears in her eyes rolled down her cheeks. “The police think Lisa was abducted, Josh. Whoever did it, shot her. Who would . . . who would do something like—”
Her heart jerked and her head shot up. “Oh, my God. Oh, my God, Josh, what if it was Damon?”
“Hey, wait a minute. You don’t know he had anything to do with this. You can’t jump to conclusions.”
“Damon knows she’s my closest friend. Maybe he thought she knew where I was. Maybe he took her so he could force her to tell him.” Fresh tears welled. “If it was him, what happened to Lisa is my fault.”
Josh gripped her shoulders. “Whatever happened, it wasn’t your fault. None of this is your fault. If you’re right—and we have no reason to think that yet—the only person to blame is Damon Bridger.”
“We have to tell the police. We have to call them.”
“You can’t do that, Tory. You don’t have any proof.”
He was right. Damon was cunning and he was extremely smart. If he had abducted Lisa, he would have taken every precaution, done everything in his power to hide his identity.
“I have to get to Phoenix. I’ve got room on my credit cards. I was afraid to use them, but now—”
“I’ll take you to Phoenix. I’ve got money. There’s no need to use your cards.”
“I can’t do that, Josh. This isn’t your problem. It never has been.”
His features turned hard. “I’m making it my problem—as of right now.”
Tory made no reply. She needed his help. Desperately. Aside from that, you didn’t argue with a man like Joshua Cain once his mind was made up.
Chapter Fifteen
They decided to leave Ivy with Mrs. Thompson. It was a difficult decision, but the thought of dragging her little girl through long hospital corridors, or keeping her for hours in waiting rooms that smelled like antiseptic, seemed a far worse option.
“She’ll be fine,” Mrs. Thompson said when Tory explained what had happened. “We’ll play games and bake cookies. We’ll have a pajama party. You just take care of your friend.”
Tory managed to smile. She was grateful that Ivy was so caught up in playing with Mrs. Thompson’s antique dollhouse, she barely noticed when Tory and Josh left the house.
“I know it’s stupid,” she said, fighting the urge to cry as the pickup headed for town. “But we haven’t been apart since I got out of the hospital.”
“She’ll be fine,” Josh said.
“I know.” She turned in the seat to look at him. “What about the ranch? Do you think Cole and Noah can handle it? The cows seem pretty self-sufficient. What about the horses?”
“They’ll be fine. Cole’s staying in the house at night. He knows a kid who’ll take the job as a stable hand, boy about nineteen who loves to ride. He’ll get paid but he’ll also be able to ride on the weekends whenever he wants. Cole thinks he’ll be a great fit.”
“That’s one problem solved, but—”
“Noah and Cole will both be there in the daytime to look after the livestock. If there’s a problem, one of them will call and we’ll figure a way to handle it.”
Tory leaned back in her seat. She thought of the man sitting next to her, a slightly different Josh than she had seen before. This man was completely in charge, more assertive, totally in command of the situation. Odds were this was Josh the marine.
Her thoughts returned to Lisa as the pickup rolled toward town. Shelly had called early that morning. Lisa had been medevaced to the hospital in Scottsdale. Mr. and Mrs. Shane were flying in from New York but they couldn’t get there until tomorrow.
Lisa had never been close to her family, who had wanted her to marry one of her dad’s wealthy friends instead of having a career. But Lisa was still their daughter, and they had to be sick with worry.
Tory really needed to get there.
“Airport security’s going to be a nightmare after the terror attack in Houston,” she said.
