--Garrett
Riley grinned and lay back against the pillows, recalling every detail of their night together. They lay in bed and cuddled for a while after their lovemaking. Then, Garrett rolled out of bed and returned with a plate of cheese and crackers, cut-up apples, and pepperoni slices. Garrett covered her cast and they showered inthe hallway as he promised. Well, they got to that part later, she thought, grinning.
The front door of the cabin opened, and Tara called out, “Riley, I’m home.”
Shit, she forgot about Tara.She hastily rose from the bed and threw on her nightgown. Her sister knocked on the door.
“Riley? You in there? It’s nearly eight, you never sleep in,” she called.
“I’ll be there in a sec,” Riley answered. “How did your sleepover go?”
“Oh my gosh. We had such a great time. Rebecca and Julio played board games with us after they put Megan to bed. She’s sweet. Do you know what happened to her?”
“No, I don’t,” she said, opening her bedroom door, shutting it behind her.
“Did you just get out of bed? Have you eaten yet? Delaney sent us homemade donuts. She made too many of them. Do you want one?” Tara asked, opening the box and picking her selection.
“I need coffee first,” she grumbled, while hobbling to the coffee pot.
“Oh yeah. Let me grab you a cup. What did you do while I spent time with Kara?” she asked.
“We went to the horse sale, and Garrett bought two horses. They’re beauties,” she said as she sat at the kitchen table. Tara brought her a cup of steaming coffee. She inhaled the scent before she sipped the steaming fluid. “Thank you.”
Tara rolled her eyes. “I know you went to the sale. You didn’t spend the evening alone, did you?”
“No. On our way home, Garrett took me to a barbecueplace. They made the best brisket I’ve ever eaten,” she informed her.
“I like him. He’s super nice,” Tara said, hopping up to grab napkins.
“Yes, I agree,” she said, taking a donut from the box.
“Have you thought about staying here? Dad can’t get on the ranch, and I thought it might be nice if I went back to public school,” Tara hedged.
Riley set her donut down and gave her sister her full attention. “Did you forget about the biker gang? What about Dad waylaying you at the apartments? It won’t keep him from taking you from school, and I don’t know how I’ll get you back if he does.”
“I didn’t forget,” Tara said, scowling. “Spending the day with Kara reminded me of when we lived a normal life. I’m tired of running. You seem to like it here, too. Why can’t we stay?”
Riley shook her head. “It’s not a simple answer. There’s too much at stake. Maybe when we settle in Corpus Christi, we can enroll you,” she suggested.
“Yeah. Then Dad will come and ruin it all. I don’t even want to call him my father. He died the same day Mom did,” Tara said miserably.
“Try to remember the man he was before Mom’s death,” Riley suggested. “It doesn’t make it any easier, but I want to believe he’ll get help one day.”
Tara rose from her seat. “He’ll never be the same. He’s full of hate and alcohol. He chose his path. When you learned about the accident, you didn’t blame me. He did.”
“It’s the alcohol talking, not him. I’m not saying it’s right. We held each other up when Mom passed. I imagine it might’ve felt lonely losing your spouse and having two daughters to raise,” Riley surmised.
“Yeah. Especially one he hated,” Tara said, sadly. “I wish you’d stop defending him. He hurt you, too.”
“I know.” Ten years older than Tara, Riley recalled the loving home she grew up in. After the accident, everything changed rapidly. She found it difficult to reconcile this angry version of her father to the loving man who raced into her room to chase the monsters away after her nightmares. It seemed he became one overnight. Riley slowly walked around the table and held her sister. No words could erase their father’s words and actions. She hoped by moving to a bigger city, he’d have trouble locating them and leave them alone. After all, he disowned Riley for taking her sister’s side and Tara for her mother’s death. Why did he continue to run after them?
Garrett finished his rounds early,anticipating returning home. Brutus whinnied from his stall this morning when he entered to saddle Gus. The strong temptation of taking him for his first run grew strong, but he held out, wanting to share the experience of riding the horses with Riley.
A scream echoed across the field, making Garrett glance up and scan the area. It sounded like a woman. Turning Gus in the direction of where he heard it, he galloped across the field. A row of cabins came into view, and he heard the woman call out in anguish again. Pulling his gun, he went around the back and inched his way forward.
Fury filled him as young women held each other and sobbed while Matthew and Julio held the screaming lady down, while someone in scrubs bent, giving the woman a shot. A few minutes later, the woman went limp, and Julio carried her inside the cabin.
What the hell was going on? Did he misunderstand why Matthew made him sign an NDA? He glanced around, seeing the children and women. Obviously, they kept them under duress and drugged them. He stalked forward as Matthew urged the women back into their cabins.
