INSEPTEMBER,STEFANIEwent with Campbell to visit his father and ride horses. It was just her second time ever getting on a horse. The first was a month earlier when they visited the ranch and she and Campbell went on a trail ride on Appaloosas. Though a bit sore, she truly loved the experience, as the horse was gentle and it gave her an opportunity to spread her wings in further bonding—notonly with Campbell, but with Mason and his lovely partner, Sally. They made her feel welcome, as though part of the family.
Stefanie relished this, eager to have the same type of strong connection she once had with her own mother and father, whom she missed more than she could say, though feeling they were always angels on her shoulders. Just as Edward was, in wanting her to be happy in life. Which she was, knowing how precious each day could be, when it so easily could be taken away.
Campbell was just as thrilled that she had warmed to his father—and she was delighted to see that the two men had put aside any differences they may have had through the years and were forging stronger ties themselves.
In Stefanie’s mind, knowing that a cold case and current case between father and son had merged into one and been closed, more or less, made their relationship that much stronger.
It seemed as if Bella, on the advice of expensive lawyers, had cut a deal in confessing to her part in the deaths of Mia O’Dell and Jasmine Roxburgh.And the intent to kill me with the same fentanyl poisoning, Stefanie thought as her horse trotted across the meadow. As a result, instead of spending the rest of her life behind bars, Bella would still have the opportunity to one day go free. But would still pay a very high price for the bad decisions she made. Her family legacy—thanks in part to Stuart Reston’s journal and the testimony of his former gardener, Sidney Sedwick—was now in tatters and likely never to be fully repaired as the town’s namesake.
Juan Barrientos didn’t get off nearly as easily. With his case transferred to federal jurisdiction and a solid caseagainst him for serious drug-related offenses, including two drug-induced homicides—and the willingness of drug trafficker Luther Valdez to testify against him—Juan confessed. Even with that, he would not see the light of day again with a sentence of life imprisonment.
Stefanie found solace in that, knowing Juan had tried to kill her and would never get that opportunity again. In spite of him having been used by Bella to achieve her own objectives—with frequent phone calls and spicy text messages to Juan that were produced as evidence to illustrate the romantic nature of their relationship—it was Juan who acquired the deadly fentanyl and carfentanil from Valdez that nearly sent Stefanie to an early grave.How can I not hold him responsible to a slightly higher degree?she asked herself, as a part of her wanted to believe that in an alternate reality, she and Bella could have truly ended up as real friends.
“Are you all right?” Campbell asked in earnest, riding alongside her.
Stefanie gazed at him, looking every bit the cowboy with his cowboy hat on and clothing to match. She flashed a genuine, loving smile and answered, “Better than ever! Race you back?”
He laughed. “You’re on.”
She chuckled as her horse trotted off ahead of him, pretty sure he would catch her. As surely as he had captured her heart. And she had captured his.
Epilogue
Founder’s Day was gorgeous, in terms of the perfect June temperature and not a cloud in the baby blue sky to be spotted. The annual celebration didn’t miss a beat as the locals and visitors alike gathered in Reston Hills Park, following a big parade down Hepmore Avenue, where floats, dignitaries, marching bands, riders, walkers, students and onlookers came together to make it the best parade ever in town.
Stefanie and Campbell were joined by Mason and Sally as they moved about by the river, where many of the carnival rides had been set up for children and adults to enjoy, while viewing the boats out in the water that were taking advantage of ideal conditions.
“I can’t believe it’s been a year since I found Mia’s body,” Stefanie said, sharing a bag of walnuts and pistachios with Campbell. She hated to be on a momentary down note, but was sure that the anniversary of the tragedy—as well as one from twenty-one years earlier—did not go unnoticed by him. Or Mason, for that matter.
“Yeah, I know,” Campbell muttered, a slice of remorse in his voice. “It was definitely a day to forget for most of us in town—as if anyone ever could,” he said truthfully.
Mason looked at him and said earnestly, “We all had to endure a rough patch, son—spanning more than twodecades—but we’ve dealt with it and come out stronger, each and every one of us.”
Campbell nodded. “True. It’s brought us closer together, Dad, and for that, I’m forever grateful.”
Mason grinned, tapping his shoulder. “I feel the same.”
“Me too.” Sally smiled, holding Mason’s hand. “Absolutely, I know that we’re stronger because of it,” she told him, “and I wouldn’t want it any other way.”
“Neither would I,” he voiced affectionately.
Campbell turned to Stefanie and said candidly, “For me, even with all that went down—including seeing Bella and Juan held accountable for their crimes—the silver lining was meeting you, Stefanie. One thing might never have happened without the other. Can’t imagine you not being in my life now.”
“Me neither.” She blushed, pushing past the misfortune that befell Mia O’Dell and Jasmine Roxburgh, in favor of a perhaps once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get to know him on a deep level that grew deeper over time. “The good thing is, you don’t have to imagine that. I’m not going anywhere.”
“Actually, there is somewhere I’d like you to go—with me,” Campbell said, gazing down at her intently.
“Oh?” She met his blue eyes curiously. “Where would you like to go?” Perhaps back to his place for some afternoon delight? Or hers for the same?
“The Ferris wheel,” he told her bluntly.
She raised a brow in surprise. “The Ferris wheel?”
“Yeah. Haven’t been on one of those since I was a kid.” Campbell flashed her a grin askew. “Guess you bring out the kid in me. So what do you say?”
“Go on,” Mason prodded her lightheartedly. “Live dangerously—just a little.”
Sally chuckled. “I say go for it, Stefanie. We’ll go, too, if it makes you feel more comfortable.”
