He started the engine and pulled out of the spot, hating leaving his Jeep behind. Since they’d tampered with his vehicle, they would be able to find his name through his registration. Fortunately, the address was still on the outskirts of Austin. Even if they had someone on the inside who could run his plate, they wouldn’t get the ranch.
Hunkering down in his seat to make himself appear shorter, he navigated onto the main street that was thankfully crowded with vehicles. This was the first and only time he would see Austin traffic as a blessing instead of a curse. The white sedan was the most common color and would blend into the environment perfectly.
He glanced into the rearview and then the sideview mirrors. He scanned the vehicles around him, searching for the SUV or anyone who seemed a little too interested in everyone around them. He came up empty.
“It’s probably safe for you to sit up now,” he said to Carys.
“I’ll stay in the back seat so, at first glance, it’ll seem like you’re a hired driver and I’m a fare.”
“That’s a good idea,” he said. “It’ll be safer for you to buckle in in the event we’re chased again and it’s safer anyway.”
She did.
“We need to get in touch with Raiden or Kit,” he said, keeping a close eye on the road ahead as well as his surroundings. “I need to have my Jeep towed. I’d hate to leave it sitting outunattended. Who knows how long it’ll be before I can get back to it.”
“What about the note?” she asked. “Do you want me to read it now?”
With everything that had happened since leaving Rumi’s, he’d tucked the note somewhere in the back of his mind. “Might as well.”
“Okay. Just a sec.” She fumbled around in her handbag before producing the yellowing card-sized envelope. “Here goes.” She used a key to open the envelope, then pulled out a folded piece of paper. “Are you ready?”
The secret of how Stephanie/Sharon knew him was about to be revealed. “I guess so.”
“It says, ‘You probably won’t remember me even if you see me again. I’m going red instead of blond, and I’m changing the way I make up my face. I overheard you talking about losing your wife, Lynn, at Deep Roots, and I knew right then and there you were the person I wanted to take care of my baby. I’m starting to show and have to get out of my situation before it’s too late and he knows. Anyway, you seem like a nice guy. Like the kind of person my Lark deserves. I’ve made mistakes. Big ones. But I’ll figure something out. If I don’t, well, I guess you came looking for answers like I hoped you would. Don’t be mad. Whatever happens, please don’t let him get hold of her.’”
“There’s only one other person I mentioned Lynn to, and that was at Deep Roots not long after she died.”
“Guess Sharon was there, too,” Carys said.
“Seems so,” he said.
“Who is this man anyway?”
“You haven’t heard of Silus Vexler?” He figured everyone knew the man, or to avoid him at the very least.
“Why? Should I?”
“His name gets around in Austin for leaning on business owners for so-called protection,” he said.
“I didn’t realize that was a thing,” she admitted. “I just went to school here. I moved away when I got the job in Maverick Pass.”
“That’s possibly why you would never have crossed paths with him. I used to manage a custom saddle business, and my suppliers had trouble with him since they sourced across the border. I knew he was bad news, but he didn’t come knocking on my door.”
“Do you still work there?”
“No. After Lynn passed, I spiraled. Went to a dark place. Gave up my job because I couldn’t go into work every day and pretend everything was fine. My employees deserved better.”
“Do you mind if I ask how you survived financially?”
“By that point, I had stock in the company. Sold most of it to pay for Lynn’s treatments that insurance decided not to cover. There was enough left over to live on for a while. That’s what I’ve been doing.” He choked out a laugh. “Funny thing about it is that I was about to head back to work. Finally got my head on straight and decided it was time to make some money, pick my life up and find a way to move forward. Then I got the call about Cormac dying. Seems like every time I set off in a direction, the universe laughs and throws me a new twist.” He would have said it always went from bad to worse, but then he met her. He couldn’t regret that one bit. It also brought him Rue. “If I changed my mind and told you that I’m the little girl’s father, would you believe me?”
She sat in silence for a long moment, giving away nothing.
Before she could answer, his cell buzzed.
“Can you answer that for me?” he asked.
“Sure.” She leaned forward enough to grab the phone from the cupholder. “It’s Raiden.”
