Lawman From Her Past
Delores Fossen
Together again…But far from safeWhen Lauren Beckett is nearly killed and discovers her son was switched at birth, she knows there’s only one man to turn to for protection her ex, Deputy Cameron Doran. But as they seek the truth, someone else is hunting them.
Together again...
But far from safe
When Lauren Beckett is nearly killed in a home invasion and discovers her son was switched at birth, she knows there’s only one man she can turn to for protection. Deputy Cameron Doran isn’t expecting to find his ex-lover on his ranch, claiming the unthinkable about the nephew he’s been raising. But as they seek the truth, someone else is on the hunt...and wants them dead.
Blue River Ranch
From USA TODAY bestselling author Delores Fossen!
DELORES FOSSEN, a USA TODAY bestselling author, has sold over fifty novels, with millions of copies of her books in print worldwide. She’s received a Booksellers’ Best Award and an RT Reviewers’ Choice Best Book Award. She was also a finalist for a prestigious RITA® Award. You can contact the author through her website at www.deloresfossen.com (http://www.deloresfossen.com).
Also by Delores Fossen (#u0d5d373d-fe9f-598e-8e39-52e1c91d3203)
Always a LawmanGunfire on the RanchLawman from Her Past GraysonDadeNateKadeGageMasonJosh
Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
Lawman from Her Past
Delores Fossen
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
ISBN: 978-1-474-07869-6
LAWMAN FROM HER PAST
© 2018 Delores Fossen
Published in Great Britain 2018
by Mills & Boon, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF
All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, locations and incidents are purely fictional and bear no relationship to any real life individuals, living or dead, or to any actual places, business establishments, locations, events or incidents. Any resemblance is entirely coincidental.
By payment of the required fees, you are granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right and licence to download and install this e-book on your personal computer, tablet computer, smart phone or other electronic reading device only (each a “Licensed Device”) and to access, display and read the text of this e-book on-screen on your Licensed Device. Except to the extent any of these acts shall be permitted pursuant to any mandatory provision of applicable law but no further, no part of this e-book or its text or images may be reproduced, transmitted, distributed, translated, converted or adapted for use on another file format, communicated to the public, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher.
® and ™ are trademarks owned and used by the trademark owner and/or its licensee. Trademarks marked with ® are registered with the United Kingdom Patent Office and/or the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market and in other countries.
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
Contents
Cover (#u1d89ec38-164c-5619-908c-79acb826933c)
Back Cover Text (#u5635be70-a4ca-53b2-bda3-e56eeb957f2f)
About the Author (#u32e33291-64d9-5fdb-8477-cd76bbee22ed)
Booklist (#u78b043ab-d71d-59a5-8531-c094fe683f1d)
Title Page (#u624b97aa-d7bb-54ff-a4f8-b1a3d4f6fb60)
Copyright (#u75296b5f-2821-5eb3-b6d6-467e0b105730)
Chapter One (#ubae748c1-9c76-5943-8baf-df22312ecfd8)
Chapter Two (#ubf2ab910-e87e-5172-90eb-2799e6bb1afb)
Chapter Three (#u58bd6aae-c994-5985-b4bf-e500ac721ab3)
Chapter Four (#ue7826aa7-455f-5a27-979e-34b7053477ac)
Chapter Five (#ubd637923-c548-5ea7-91f2-dd76ff267599)
Chapter Six (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Seven (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Eight (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Nine (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Ten (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Eleven (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Twelve (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Thirteen (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Fourteen (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Fifteen (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Sixteen (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Seventeen (#litres_trial_promo)
Extract (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter One (#u0d5d373d-fe9f-598e-8e39-52e1c91d3203)
Someone was watching him. Deputy Cameron Doran was certain of it.
He slid his hand over the gun in his waist holster and hoped he was wrong about the bad feeling that was snaking down his spine. Hoped he was wrong about the being watched part, too.
But he knew he wasn’t.
He’d worn a badge for eleven years, and paying attention to that bad feeling had saved him a time or two.
With his gun ready to draw, Cameron glanced around his backyard. Such that it was. Since his house was on the backside of the sprawling Blue River Ranch, his yard was just a smear of grass with the thick woods only about fifteen feet away. There were plenty of trees and underbrush. The edge of the river, as well. However, there were also trails that someone could use to make their way to his house.
Someone like a killer.
You’ll all die soon.
That was what the latest threatening letter had said. The one that Cameron had gotten just two days ago. Not exactly words anyone wanted to read when they opened their mail, but he’d gotten so many now that they no longer held the emotional punch of the first one he’d gotten a couple of months ago. Still, he wasn’t about to dismiss it.
Cameron had another look around, trying to pick through the thick clusters of trees, but when he didn’t see anyone, he finished off his morning coffee and went inside. Normally, he would have made a beeline to the nursery so he could say goodbye to his nephew, Isaac, before heading off to work at the Blue River Sheriff’s Office, but this morning he went to the window over the sink and kept watch.
From the other side of the house, he could hear Isaac fussing, probably because the nanny, Merilee, was changing his diaper. Isaac was only a year old, but he got up raring to go. He objected to the couple of minutes delay that the diapering caused.
Just when Cameron was about to decide that the bad feeling had been wrong after all, he saw it. Someone moving around. Since those particular trees butted right up against an old ranch trail, the movement got his complete attention.
“Merilee,” he called out to the nanny. “Keep Isaac in the nursery a little while longer. And stay away from the windows.”
Cameron knew it would alarm the woman, but there was nothing he could do about that now. If this turned out to be a false alarm, then he could smooth things over with her. But for now, Isaac’s and her safety had to come first.
He drew his gun, and as soon as he opened the door a couple of inches, Cameron spotted more movement. And the person who was doing the moving.
A woman peered out from one of the trees, and even though she was still pretty far from him, he caught a good enough glimpse of her face.
Lauren Beckett.
She stepped out in full view of him so he got an even better look. Yeah, it was Lauren, all right. She still had the same brunette hair that she’d pulled back into a ponytail. The same willowy build. The last time he’d seen her she’d been a teenager, barely eighteen, but the years hadn’t changed her much.
If he’d ventured a guess of who might have been lurking around his place, he would have never figured it would be her. Especially since he’d built his house on Beckett land. Her family’s land. Of course, Lauren hadn’t considered her siblings actually family—or him a friend—in nearly a decade.
Cameron felt the punch of old emotions. Ones he didn’t want to feel. He and Lauren had parted ways long ago, and he hated that the tug in his body was still there for her.
He looked at her hands. At her wedding ring. She was still wearing it though he knew her husband had died from cancer a year and a half ago when Lauren had been pregnant. Of course, she might still be wearing the ring because she and her late husband had a child together. A son, if he remembered correctly.
Who was he kidding? He remembered, all right. Little details about Lauren just stuck in his head whether he wanted them there or not.
“What are you doing back there?” he asked.
He started to reholster his gun but then stopped when she fired glances all around her. Lauren had her teeth clamped over her bottom lip, and she motioned for him to come to her.
Hell.
He’d been right about that bad feeling. Something was wrong.
“What happened?” he demanded, but she just kept motioning.
Cursing under his breath, Cameron stepped out and locked the door behind him. Judging from Lauren’s nervous gestures, someone else could be out there, and he didn’t want that person getting into the house. Keeping watch around him, Cameron gripped his gun with two hands and started toward her.
More memories and emotions came. It’d been ten years since he had seen her. Since he’d kissed her. Ten years since their worlds had turned on a dime. Her mother and father had been murdered. Butchered, really, and even though their killer had been convicted and was behind bars, Lauren hadn’t thought justice had been fully served.
Because she also blamed Cameron for not doing enough to save her folks.
That was okay because Cameron blamed himself, too.
All of those thoughts vanished for a moment, though, when he made it to her and stopped about two feet away. Still close enough to catch her scent and see those intense blue eyes. She didn’t say anything. Lauren just stood there, staring at him, but he could tell from the tight muscles in her face that this wasn’t a social visit.
Not that he thought it would be.
No. Lauren had said her final goodbye to him a decade ago, so it must have taken something pretty bad to come to him this way. Unless...maybe she wasn’t here for him.
“Your brothers probably haven’t left for work yet and are still home,” he told her. They didn’t live far, either. “Gabriel lives in his old place, and Jameson has a cabin about a half mile from here.”
She didn’t seem the least bit surprised about that, which meant maybe Lauren had kept up with her family, after all. Good. Because Cameron wasn’t the only one who thought of Lauren often. So did her brothers and her sister, Ivy.
“I can’t go to them.” Her voice was raw and strained.
“Because you broke off ties with them,” Cameron commented. “Don’t worry about that. You’re still their sister, and they’ll help you. They love you,” he added, hoping that would ease the tension he could practically feel radiating off her.
Lauren blinked, shook her head. “No. Because their houses are on the main road and someone might see me.” She turned, glancing around again, and that was when Cameron spotted the gun tucked in the back waist of her jeans.
He cursed again. “What’s wrong?”
A weary sigh left her mouth. The kind of reaction a person had when there was so much wrong that she didn’t know where to start. But Cameron figured he knew what this was about.
“We’ve all been getting threatening letters and emails,” he volunteered. “I’m guessing you got one, too?”
She nodded and dismissed it with a shake of her head. “You’re raising your sister’s child?”
Again, she’d managed to stun him. First with her arrival and now with the question. It didn’t seem the right thing to ask since this wasn’t a “catching up” kind of conversation.
“Gilly’s son, Isaac,” Cameron clarified. It had been a year since his kid sister’s death, and he still couldn’t say her name without it feeling as if someone had put a meaty fist around his heart. “What about him?”
Lauren didn’t jump to answer that. With her forehead bunched up, she glanced behind her again. “Is he...okay?”
Isaac was fine. Better than fine, actually. His nephew was healthy and happy. That wasn’t what he said to Lauren, though. “Why are you asking?”
“I need to see him. I need to see Gilly’s son.”
That definitely wasn’t an answer.
Cameron didn’t bother cursing again, but he did give her a flat look. “I’ll want to know a lot more about what’s going on. Start talking. Why are you here, and if you’re in some kind of trouble, why didn’t you call your brothers? Because I think you and I both know I’m the last person on earth you’d come to for help.”
She didn’t disagree with that, but another sound left her mouth. A hoarse sob. And that was when tears sprang to her eyes. “Please, let me see him.”
He wasn’t immune to those tears, and it gave him a tug of a different kind, one he didn’t want. “Tell me what’s going on,” Cameron repeated.
Lauren frantically shook her head. “There isn’t time.”
Cameron huffed in frustration. “Then make time. Is someone after you? And what does that have to do with Gilly’s son?”
She stared at him, her mouth trembling now, and those tears still watering her eyes. “Someone tried to kill me.”
That put him on full alert, and he automatically caught on to her arm and pulled her behind him. Cameron positioned himself in between her and the area where she kept glancing.
“Keep talking,” he insisted. He didn’t see anyone out there, but the woods were fairly thick here. “When and where did this happen?”
Again, no fast answer. Which it should have been. After all, a murder attempt should have been fresh enough in her mind that Lauren could have rattled off the details.
“Last night,” she finally said. “Two armed men broke into my house in Dallas and shot me.”
The profanity flew out of his mouth before Cameron could stop it, and he whirled around just as she pulled back the collar of her dark blue button-up shirt. There was a bandage there. A bandage covering what had to be a sensitive wound judging by the way Lauren winced when she moved her shoulder.
“I’m okay,” she added. “Well, physically anyway. The bullet only clipped me, and I was able to get away from them.”
Good. But that didn’t cause Cameron to feel any relief. “What about your son? Was he hurt?”
“No. There was a panic room in the house, and I had his nanny take him there right after the burglar alarm went off. I didn’t manage to get in there in time before they got to me.” She paused, choked back a sob. “I heard them say they had orders to kill me. And it wasn’t a case of mistaken identity or anything. They said my name.”
That did it. He took hold of her hand. “Come on. I’m taking you to Gabriel right now.”
But Lauren pulled away from him. “No. Not yet anyway. Not until I know it’s safe. I also heard the men say they were cops.”
Cameron stared at her. “Cops? Maybe. Criminals don’t always tell the truth, but even if they had, your brother’s not dirty.”
Even though she didn’t come out and say it, she’d once suspected Cameron of being just that—dirty. He hadn’t been, but Lauren had deemed him guilty by association. Because he’d been friends with the family of the man who’d murdered her parents. If that friendship hadn’t existed, then her mom and dad might still be alive.
Somehow, Cameron had never learned to live with that.
“Gabriel and Jameson aren’t behind this,” she said. “Whatever this is,” Lauren added in a mumble. “But if those men were really cops and they know all about me, then they must figure I’d go to my lawmen brothers.” Another pause, and she dodged his gaze. “This is the last place they’d expect me to come.”
True. It wasn’t exactly a secret about Lauren’s hatred for him. But that wasn’t hatred he was seeing in her eyes now. It was fear. Cameron was certain he was feeling some of that, as well. Fear for her. But there were still some very weird things going on.
“Where’s your son now?” he asked.
That was concern number one. Once Lauren and the child were safe, then he could work out the rest with her. The rest would include bringing in her brothers on this. No way would Gabriel and Jameson want to be left out when someone was gunning for their kid sister, and it didn’t matter if they were estranged from Lauren.
She fluttered her fingers in the direction of the trail. “He’s in the car with the nanny. That’s why I can’t stay. I have to get back to him.”
Yeah, she did, and Cameron would go with her. “Take me to him, and I can bring all three of you inside while we work this out.”
She did more of that frantic head-shaking. “Not yet. Not until I know. Not until I’m sure I can trust you.”
Cameron pulled back his shoulders. Trust had indeed been an issue between them in the past. Her trust for him anyway. But from what he could see in the depths of her eyes, this went beyond their past.
“If you didn’t trust me, why come here?” he snapped. And he hated how much it stung that this bad blood was still between them.
“I didn’t have a choice.” Her voice cracked. “I need to see Isaac.”
There it was again—something else she’d said that didn’t make sense. Or maybe it did. Cameron hadn’t been with Gilly when she’d died from a blood clot less than twenty-four hours after giving birth. He’d still been on the road trying to get to her in Dallas. Lauren had been there, though. Maybe had even spoken to her since Lauren and his sister had remained friends. Not only that, they’d lived in the same city.
“Did Gilly tell you something before she died?” It was the same tone he used to interrogate a suspect. Not an especially friendly one, but he wanted answers, and Lauren was going to give them to him now.
Lauren’s mouth opened a little to let him know the question had surprised her. Well, welcome to the club. He’d been surprised by a lot of what Lauren had said.
“No,” she answered after several long moments. “This isn’t about Gilly. This is about her son. Does he look like her or like his father?”
Now it was Cameron’s turn to take a moment before he responded. “I never met his father, Trace Waters. Never wanted to meet him.”
She made a sound of agreement, which meant Lauren knew that Trace had been abusive. Something that Gilly hadn’t told Cameron until it was too late for him to go to Dallas and beat the living daylights out of the moron for laying a hand on his kid sister. By the time Cameron had heard, Trace had disappeared. Then, several weeks after Gilly had died, someone else had taken it beyond the beating stage and had killed Trace in a drug deal gone wrong.
“Trace’s mother, Evelyn, came to the ranch once,” Cameron explained. “She pulled a gun on me and demanded her son’s baby.” He felt his mouth tighten. “I don’t like it when people pull guns on me so I had her arrested. The moment she made bail I slapped her with a restraining order.”
“And that worked? Evelyn stayed away?”
He shook his head. “She tried to get on the grounds a couple of times, but the hands spotted her and stopped her. After the third time, she ended up in jail, where she’s spent the last four months.”
Cameron hoped the woman would do something behind bars that would keep her there. He wasn’t concerned about losing custody to her. Gilly had made it clear to the hospital staff that she’d wanted Cameron to raise her son. But he didn’t want Evelyn to be a free woman so she could try something else stupid.
“Does Isaac look like Gilly?” Lauren pressed. “Or anyone else in your family?”
Cameron nearly said no, but Lauren wasn’t getting answers until he had some from her. “Let’s get your baby and the nanny into the house, and we can talk.”
“He doesn’t look like Gilly,” she said like gospel. “Or Trace.”
Cameron lifted his shoulder. “Lots of kids don’t look like their parents. Plus, he’s a baby. Only thirteen months old.” He huffed, scrubbing his hand over his forehead. “Look, I don’t know where this is going, but I can have Gabriel come out—”
Only because he wasn’t expecting it, Cameron didn’t see Lauren pull that gun from the back of her jeans.
And she pointed it at him.
His heart slammed against his ribs. Damn. He should have been able to stop this before it’d even started, but Cameron fought the instinct to lunge at her and snatch that gun from her hand. He sure as hell wasn’t pleased about this, though.
“What do you think you’re doing?” he demanded once he got his teeth unclenched.
“I’m saving my son.” Lauren used the barrel of the weapon to motion toward the house. “And you’ll take me to him. I want to see Isaac now.”
Chapter Two (#u0d5d373d-fe9f-598e-8e39-52e1c91d3203)
Lauren saw exactly what she’d expected to see in Cameron’s eyes.
Anger.
There was plenty of it, too, along with the shock of having her pull a gun on him. This certainly wasn’t the way Lauren had wanted all of this to play out, but she hadn’t exactly had a lot of options. The seconds were ticking away.
“Move,” she ordered Cameron in the strongest voice she could manage. Which wasn’t much. She didn’t feel strong at all. Just terrified.
This couldn’t be happening.
Over the past decade, she’d accepted that she could be in danger from the lunatic who kept sending those threatening letters, but she couldn’t accept that two innocent babies could now be in harm’s way.
“Put down the gun,” Cameron warned her. And it was indeed a warning. Unlike her, he had managed the strong tone, and it had a dark edge to it. An edge that reminded her that she was holding a cop—an experienced one—at gunpoint.
“I can’t.” She tried to make that sound like an apology and failed at it, too. “I need to see Isaac.”
Of course, Cameron would want to know why, and Lauren would tell him. First, though, she had to see the baby.
“Can’t?” he repeated, that edge in his voice going up a notch. It went up in his smoke-gray eyes, too.
When she’d been a teenager, the girls had called them bedroom eyes because he was so hot. Still was. With that dark blond hair and natural tan, he’d always had rock-star looks. Those looks were still there in spades, but there wasn’t a trace of his bedroom smile.
“Please,” Lauren tried. “Just let me see him, and I might be able to clear all of this up.”
“You’ll clear it up now.” Again, it was a warning. “And if you don’t, you won’t get anywhere near my nephew. However, you will get to see the inside of a jail cell.”
She had no idea if that was a threat or not. He certainly had grounds to arrest her, and the fact that they’d once been lovers might not be enough leverage to stop this situation from snowballing.
Cameron still had hold of his gun, but he used his left hand to reach for his pocket. For his phone, she realized. He was going to call one or both of her brothers, and she didn’t want them involved in this yet. Not until she could at least try to make things safe.
“No!” she said.
It was the only thing she managed to get out of her mouth, though, because Cameron didn’t take out his phone. He lunged at her. Fast. Before Lauren could even react and get out of his way, he rammed into her and sent them both to the ground. While they were still falling, he knocked her gun from her hand.
“Start talking right now,” Cameron growled, and he pinned her hands to the ground so she couldn’t reach for her gun. He pinned her, too, with his body since he was on top of her.
Lauren’s heart was racing. Along with that, she got a new hit of adrenaline. Something she definitely didn’t need since her nerves were already firing in every inch of her.
She looked at Cameron, their gazes colliding, and for a moment she remembered what had once been between them. The intimacy.
The love.
Yes, once she’d loved him, and she thought maybe he’d felt the same way about her, but it was obvious those emotions were long gone. Well, maybe not the heat that had first drawn them together, but he definitely wasn’t having any warm and fuzzy feelings about her now.
Lauren struggled, trying to force him off her, but when it was obvious this was a losing battle, she knew she had to say something.
And that something was going to shatter the life Cameron had built here.
“Did I hurt you?” he asked, the question surprising her.
Only then did she remember the wound on her shoulder. That part of her hadn’t hit the ground, thank goodness, and since it was a constant throbbing pain, it had become a sort of white noise. Something she was trying to push aside so it wouldn’t cause her to lose focus.
“No. I’m not hurt.” But in hindsight, she probably should have lied. Maybe then, Cameron would have let her go.
“Talk to me,” he snapped. Obviously, he was over his concern for her injury. Of course, she couldn’t blame him when there were so many other things for them to discuss.
“We’re in danger,” she started. Lauren had to clear her throat and repeat it so it’d have some sound. “Those men who tried to kill me got away, and I believe they’ll be looking for me. Maybe for you, too.”
Because he was right in her face, it wasn’t hard to see the doubt go through his eyes. Despite the doubts, though, he still had a look around them. A cop’s look. Good. Lauren didn’t want anyone sneaking up on them. Or worse—trying to sneak into the house.
“What do those men have to do with me?” he snarled.
“Maybe everything.”
She tried to gather her breath. Couldn’t. Cameron wasn’t overly muscled, but he wasn’t a lightweight, either, and with his chest pressing against her, she couldn’t get enough air. He must have realized that, but he didn’t move. Probably because he thought she would go for her gun again.
Which she would.
Since there was no easy way to say this, Lauren just blurted it out. “I believe someone swapped my baby with Gilly’s.”
She gave him a moment to let that sink in, but she couldn’t give him the time he needed. She also continued to keep watch as best she could. Hard to do that, though, while on the ground.
He shook his head. “Why would anyone do that?”
“I’m not sure. Please, let’s just check on Isaac, and then we can go over all of this.”
Cameron didn’t answer. Not with words anyway. But his cold, hard stare told her that wasn’t going to happen.
“Someone started following me days ago. Two men in a dark car,” she added. “I believe those were the same men who broke into my house.”
“The men who tried to kill you.” Cameron said it as if he didn’t believe her. She couldn’t blame him. She’d had hours to try to come to grips with it, and part of her still wasn’t ready to accept it.
She nodded. “Before they found me, I heard them talking to someone on a communicator, and that’s when they said they were cops.”
“They could have lied,” he reminded her again.
“True. But they still broke in for a reason. And that reason was my son, Patrick. They wanted to kill me and take him.” She huffed in frustration because his skeptical look was only getting worse, and she wasn’t explaining this well at all. “Just please move off me so we can both keep watch.”
She saw him debate that for several moments. Lauren had lost track of how long she’d been out here with him, but Dara, the nanny, would be getting even more worried than she already was.
“If you try anything else stupid, I will put you right back on the ground,” Cameron growled.
He finally shifted his body to the side, rolling off her. He also snatched up her gun as he stood. Lauren didn’t like not being armed, but at least when she got up, she was able to better keep an eye on the trail behind them.
“Does your nephew look like your sister?” she came out and asked.
He stopped glancing around long enough to shoot her a glare. “That proves nothing. He could have inherited genes from generations ago.”
Lauren hesitated a moment. “Does he look like me?”
His quick glare intensified, but what he didn’t do was deny it. “First, you have to convince me that a swap even took place before I’ll start speculating about who my nephew does or doesn’t resemble.”
Fair enough. Or at least it would have been fair if time was on their side. She instinctively knew it wasn’t.
“I was telling the truth when I said I can’t be sure a swap took place, but the men said once they had Patrick, they could do a DNA test and go from there. Go from there,” she emphasized. “I believe that means they’ll come here next.”
Cameron cursed, and it wasn’t tame. “That’s a big leap to assume the men were talking about Isaac.”
“A leap except that I’d already started to get suspicious. Patrick doesn’t look like me or my late husband.” She swallowed hard. “He looks like you.”
She could tell from his slight flinch that Cameron reacted to that. Maybe because he saw something of her face in Isaac’s?
“Gilly could have arranged the swap,” Lauren went on. “She was afraid of Trace, and if she knew she was dying, this might have been her way of preventing Trace from getting his hands on their child.”
Though it sickened her to think that Gilly, a woman she considered her friend, would have intentionally done something like this since it could have put Lauren’s own precious son in danger.
“Gilly wouldn’t do that,” Cameron insisted. “If she was worried about her baby’s safety, she would have gotten word to me.”
“Maybe. But Gilly was dying. Scared. And they’d had trouble getting in touch with you.”
He flinched again, and she knew why. Cameron had gotten caught up in a lockdown at the prison, where he’d gone to interview a potential witness. He’d been trapped there for hours with no way to leave and get to his sister even though she’d gone into labor.
“But Gilly might not have done this,” Lauren added a moment later.
Mercy, she wished she’d rehearsed this or something because it was hard for her to put her line of thinking into words. Equally hard for her to imagine it had happened. “My late husband was Alden Lange, and his business partner or his sister could be the one responsible. They both hate me. Or at least they hate that I have control over Alden’s estate.”
The flat look Cameron gave her told her he wasn’t buying that. And she hoped she was wrong. Because both Alden’s sister, Julia, and his partner, Duane Tulley, could be very dangerous. They might have seen this as some sick mind game to watch her suffer. Of course, her suffering could also be profitable for them if it led to one or both of them getting their hands on Alden’s money.
“How would Trace or any of these other people have gotten into the hospital nursery to switch babies?” he asked.
Lauren didn’t have the answer to that, either. “It must have been an inside job since the babies wear bracelets with security chips that would trigger an alarm if they were carried out of the hospital. I’d just started checking out the medical staff when I was attacked.”
He made a sound, a rumble deep in his throat. “And why did you do that? What made you suspicious?”
“I kept thinking it was strange that I would look at my son and see you.” She waved that off before he could say anything about it. She didn’t want to talk about why the image of Cameron’s face was still so clear in her head after all these years and after all the bad stuff that’d gone on between them.
“I had a DNA test done,” she went on. “So I could compare Patrick’s DNA to mine. I’m supposed to get the results back any day now, but I made the mistake of asking the housekeeper if there was anything still around with Alden’s DNA on it.” She’d cursed herself for doing that. “I wanted to have the complete DNA results, but I think the housekeeper told Alden’s sister what I’d asked for.”
At least Cameron hadn’t simply dismissed her. He tipped his head to the trail. “We’ll get your son and sort this out.” Lauren was about to blow out a breath of relief, but then Cameron added, “For the record, I don’t believe there was a swap. Isaac is my nephew. But if Duane and Julia are bad news like you think they are, then they could have been the ones behind your attack.”
He took her by the arm again to get her moving, but Lauren dug in her heels. “I can’t risk bringing my brothers into this yet. Those thugs who attacked me could have connections to Duane and Julia, and they could find out I’m here.”
This huff was even louder than his last one. “Look, Gabriel is the sheriff, and my boss. As well as your brother. No way would he risk putting you in danger. I’ll just go inside, call him on his personal line and have him come out here.”
“No.” She couldn’t say that fast enough. “I heard those men say if my family got in the way, they would have to kill them.”
She hated when his skeptical look returned. Because she had the same skepticism. “I know those thugs could have wanted me to hear what they were saying, that they could have been feeding me information. But why would they have done that, then shoot me and try to take Patrick?”
“That’s what we’ll find out—as soon as I call Gabriel.” He tightened his grip on her arm and managed to drag her a few steps.
“They could be watching the front of your house from the road. They could be watching Gabriel’s and Jameson’s places, too. That’s why I used the trail. Only the locals know it’s there, and it’s not easy to spot unless you’re looking for it.”
Cameron couldn’t argue with that, not the last part anyway, even though it looked as if he wanted to dispute something. Anything. “We’ll go in through the back of my house. Even hired guns won’t be suspicious if they see the sheriff dropping by to visit with one of his deputies.”
Lauren wasn’t so sure of that at all. Anything out of the ordinary might trigger those men to shoot again. And this time, Isaac and anyone else who happened to be around could get hurt. If the gunmen were truly out there, they could be looking for any sign she was there, and Gabriel’s visit might give her away.
“I shouldn’t have come here,” Lauren said under her breath. She lifted her head, making direct eye contact with Cameron. “But I just had to know if Isaac’s really my son. Don’t get me wrong. I love Patrick with all my heart, but I had to find out the truth.”
Cameron hesitated, volleying glances at the house, the woods and her. Just when she thought he was about to give in and let her go inside, she heard something. Footsteps. Cameron heard them, too, because he pushed her behind him and aimed his gun in the direction of the sound.
Someone was running toward them.
Oh, God. Had something happened to Patrick?
Nothing could have kept Lauren behind Cameron. She snatched her gun from his left hand and would have taken off toward her car, but she finally saw something.
Something that stopped her cold.
Dara. The nanny had Patrick clutched to her chest, and she was running—fast. Probably as fast as she could go.
“They found us,” Dara shouted. “Run!”
Chapter Three (#u0d5d373d-fe9f-598e-8e39-52e1c91d3203)
Cameron hadn’t been sure of what he was going to do, but there was no time left to debate it now. All of his lawman’s instincts told him that the stark fear in the woman’s voice was real.
So was that baby she had gripped in her arms.
A little blond-haired boy who was about the same size as Isaac.
Cameron forced himself not to think that everything Lauren had told him was real. If this was truly his nephew, anything he felt about that would have to wait. Right now he had to get them to safety.
“Get inside the house,” Cameron told Lauren.
She didn’t listen, of course. Neither would he if that’d been his child out there. Lauren started to run toward the nanny, but Cameron hurried in front of her. The moment he got to the woman and child, he hooked his arm around them, maneuvering them in front of him, and he got them running again.
“Keep watch around us,” Cameron told Lauren.
Maybe that would stop the panic he saw rising in her eyes. It was also something that needed to be done. Because if those two armed thugs were on their tail, then they had to get inside—fast—but they also needed to make sure they weren’t about to be gunned down. If necessary, they would have to take cover before they even reached the house.
The little boy wasn’t out and out crying, but he was whimpering. Probably because he’d picked up on their fear and because the running was jostling him. Cameron tried to ignore the sounds he was making, and he got them on the porch. He had to fumble in his pocket to get his keys to unlock the door, but the moment he did that, he pushed them inside.
“Get on the floor,” he ordered.
Cameron relocked the door, set the security alarm and went to the window to keep watch. He also fired off a text to Gabriel, asking him to come over. Lauren’s brother didn’t live far and could be there in minutes if he hadn’t already left for work. If so, then Gabriel would have to drive back.
A lot could happen in those extra minutes it would take Gabriel to do that.
Cameron still had a much too clear image of the bandage on Lauren’s shoulder where she’d been shot. Those goons could be returning now to finish her off.
Lauren scrambled to the nanny, taking Patrick into her arms and pulling him close. There were tears in her eyes again, and she was trembling. The nanny wasn’t faring much better. Hell, neither was he. Cameron wasn’t trembling the way they were, but he was worried because they had two babies in the house, and he might not be able to protect them if those gunmen started shooting.
“I saw an SUV coming up the trail,” the nanny said. Her breath was gusting so hard that it was difficult to understand her. “I couldn’t drive off since there were trees blocking the way so I got out and started running with Patrick.”
Yeah, there were downed trees back there. Probably shrubs, too, since it wasn’t a trail that was often used.
“It could turn out to be nothing,” the nanny added in a hoarse whisper. “They might not be the men who were after us.”
Judging from her tone, she didn’t think that was true. Neither did Cameron. It was too much of a coincidence for someone to show up on that trail so soon after Lauren had been shot.
“Did you get a glimpse of anyone in the SUV?” he asked the woman.
“Barely. I could just make out the outline of the driver behind the tinted glass. I think there was another man in the passenger seat.”
Maybe the same two who had attacked Lauren in Dallas. If so, they’d come a long way. And they had probably had some inside help since Lauren had been right about the trail. Not many people outside the area knew it existed. Of course, a police officer might know because they could have tapped into the area maps that were in the database at San Antonio PD.
Hell, he hoped they weren’t dealing with dirty cops.
“Is everything okay?” someone called out from the other side of the house. Merilee.
That tightened the knot in his stomach. He could tell Merilee was terrified, as well. She’d been Isaac’s nanny right from the start, and since there’d already been two attacks on the ranch, she knew something was wrong.
“Just stay put in the nursery,” Cameron settled for saying. He didn’t want to unnecessarily alarm the woman even though she was probably well past the alarm stage already.
Cameron also had a second reason for keeping Merilee and Isaac where they were. This way, Lauren wouldn’t see Isaac. Of course, she would see him soon enough, but right now he needed her to focus. If Lauren saw him and truly believed he was her son, then she might fall apart.
“Hand Patrick to Dara,” Cameron told Lauren. “I need you to keep watch at the window on the side of the house.”
He hated to ask her to do that, but right now she was their best bet. Besides, he knew Lauren could shoot since he’d been the one to teach her.
She gave a shaky nod, passed the baby back to the nanny and with a tight grip on her gun, she went to the window near the breakfast table. He didn’t have to remind her to stay back. She did. Lauren positioned herself against the side of the glass so she could still peer out.
“Nothing,” she relayed to him.
It was the same from his view. That didn’t mean the men weren’t out there, though. Lauren had been out there for a while before he’d spotted her. Plus, it was possible the men were regrouping, maybe calling for their own backup so they could storm the place and take the baby.
But why?
That was something he intended to find out once they were out of any immediate danger.
Behind him, Patrick started fussing, and he made the mistake of glancing back at the boy. Cameron hadn’t been able to see his face earlier when the nanny was running toward them. He saw it now, though.
Oh, man.
It felt like someone had knocked the breath right out of him. The kid had blond hair, and those were definitely the Doran gray eyes. In fact, the resemblance was close enough that Patrick could have been mistaken for Cameron’s own son. He wasn’t.
But the boy was his nephew.
Cameron silently cursed. This was not what he wanted in his head right now, but it was a fight to keep the thoughts at bay. What the hell was he going to do?
He forced his attention back to the window just as the sound shot through the room. Clearly, everyone was on edge because both Lauren and the nanny gasped. But it wasn’t a shot being fired. It was just his phone ringing, and Cameron saw Gabriel’s name on the screen. Good. Maybe that meant the sheriff was there.
Cameron put the call on speaker, laying his phone on the counter so his hands would be free in case there was an attack.
“What the hell is going on?” Gabriel demanded the moment he came onto the line.
Since he wasn’t going to have time to get into everything, Cameron went with the short version. “Lauren’s here, and some men are after her. They tried to kill her.”
Gabriel cursed, but he quickly reined it in, no doubt because he realized his kid sister was listening. “Any reason she came to you and not me?”
Gabriel didn’t rein in his emotions on that question. Cameron heard the anger come through loud and clear. The emotion was in Lauren’s expression, too. Her forehead was bunched up, and she had her still-trembling bottom lip clamped between her teeth. With everything else she was facing, she probably didn’t want a showdown with her brother, as well, but it was going to be on the agenda whether she wanted it or not.
“I’ll explain it all later,” Cameron told him, but he had to raise his voice to speak over Patrick. The baby was fussing even louder now. “The men who are after Lauren will be in an SUV,” he added to Gabriel. “It’s possible they’re on the trail behind my house.”
“They’re not. I just spotted a black SUV coming up from the back of my folks’ old place.”
Cameron bit back a groan. The trails coiled all around the ranch, and the men had obviously found a way out of the woods. That meant they could be trying to escape so they could regroup and come at Lauren again. As much as Cameron hated the notion of that, at least it would give him a chance to get the babies, nannies and her to a safe place.
“The SUV isn’t moving,” Gabriel went on, “and I can’t tell if anyone is still inside it. They could have already gotten out and slipped onto the ranch grounds.”
Not exactly a comforting thought, but Gabriel was right. Cameron didn’t know how long it’d taken the nanny to get to Lauren and him, but the thugs could have driven off the moment she started running. If so, that would have given them plenty of time to get to the old Beckett house, and then the chance to escape.
Or sneak up on Cameron’s house.
“I’ve stopped on the road and am waiting for Jameson,” Gabriel continued a moment later. “Once he’s here, we can go closer. Why do they want Lauren?” he tacked onto that.
“She’s not sure yet.” But it gnawed away at him to think it could be because of his sister’s scummy dead boyfriend. “Just give me a heads-up if you see these clowns.”
“Will do. Is that Isaac crying?”
“No. It’s...Lauren’s son.” Cameron hadn’t meant to hesitate, but it’d just seemed to stick in his throat.
Gabriel’s silence let Cameron know it hadn’t been easy for him to hear. That was probably because Lauren hadn’t bothered to introduce her son to the rest of her family. Even though things had been strained between Lauren and him since their parents’ murders, it still had to cut Gabriel to the core. For him, it was all about family, and he’d worked damn hard to bring his siblings back to their birthplace.
Cameron ended the call, and he went to the back door to look out the small windows there. The angle was better for giving him a view of the opposite side of the yard that Lauren was watching. The SUV was the other direction, but it didn’t mean the thugs couldn’t have brought some help along.
“I think I see something,” Lauren said.
That sent Cameron running to her, and he followed her pointing finger in the direction of the far side of his barn. Since the barn was closer to the old Beckett house than Cameron’s, it would be a likely place for someone to hide.
But he didn’t see anything.
“I’m obviously on edge,” Lauren admitted. “It could have been my imagination.”
She looked up at him at the exact moment he looked down at her, and it seemed as if there was something else she wanted to say to him. An apology, maybe, but the silence said it all. Because she’d been giving him the silent treatment for the past decade. No reason for this to be any different.
He kept watch, but even though he didn’t see anything, it didn’t mean someone wasn’t out there. Which made him rethink their position. There were way too many windows in this part of the house. Plus, it was hard to hear anything with Patrick crying.
“Stay low,” Cameron instructed the nanny, “but take the baby to the nursery. It’s the first room off the hall.” He tipped his head in that direction. “Go with them,” he added to Lauren.
But she shook her head. “You need me to help you keep watch. I don’t want those men getting in the house.”
Neither did he, but Cameron had figured she’d want to be with her baby. And she probably did. However, like him, Lauren almost certainly knew things could turn on a dime.
“Merilee?” he called out. “A woman and little boy are joining you in the nursery. Once they’re in there, lock the door, and all of you get down on the floor.”
“What’s happening?” Merilee asked. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. Lauren is here,” he said after a pause.
Merilee would remember Lauren since she’d been the Beckett housekeeper all the way up until the time of the murders. Lauren’s mom was a former cop who also worked the ranch, and Merilee had been a pseudo-nanny to Lauren and her siblings.
He nearly asked about Isaac, to make sure his nephew was all right, but right now Cameron only wanted to focus on what was going on outside. Besides, if something had been wrong in the nursery, Merilee would have let him know.
“Thank you,” Lauren whispered.
Cameron was about to tell her not to thank him yet, but the movement stopped him cold. This time he saw what Lauren had almost certainly spotted by the barn.
A man.
He only got a glimpse of him, but the guy was wearing camo. Definitely not a ranch hand.
“He’s got a gun,” Lauren relayed to Cameron.
Yeah, he’d seen it, too. Again, just a glimpse, but it appeared to be a rifle. Not good because it gave the intruder a longer range that he could use to shoot into the house.
Without taking his attention off the man, Cameron pressed redial on his phone, and Gabriel answered on the first ring.
“Jameson’s here,” Gabriel explained. “We’re going to the SUV now.”
“Don’t. One of the shooters is here at my place by the side of my barn. I figure he’s not alone.”
Gabriel made a sound of agreement followed by some profanity. “Okay, we’re on the way to your place. I’ll also get some of the hands over there.”
“Tell them to be careful. The guy is armed, and he’s in position to pick off anyone who comes up the road to my house.”
And that was probably the reason he was there. Which made that bad feeling inside him go up a significant notch. If these goons knew the trail, maybe they’d watched the place. Perhaps his house. It wouldn’t have been hard to do. On any given day there were at least two dozen hands working the ranch along with deliveries and the normal traffic that came with a place this size.
There could be gunmen waiting to ambush Gabriel, Jameson and anyone else who came this way.
Because if their ultimate goal was to get the baby, then it wouldn’t matter how many people they killed.
He hated to put something else on Lauren’s shoulders, but he needed an extra pair of eyes at the front of the house. That meant he’d have to stay to keep watch of the thug by the barn. Cameron was about to give her instructions as to what to do, but the blur of motion stopped him.
There was a second gunman at the back of the barn.
Unlike his partner, this one didn’t immediately duck back behind cover. He lifted his rifle and fired. The shot crashed through the window right where Cameron was standing.
Chapter Four (#u0d5d373d-fe9f-598e-8e39-52e1c91d3203)
Lauren shouted for Cameron to get down, but it was already too late. The gunman had fired the shot, the bullet blasting through the window.
In the blink of an eye, she saw a piece of glass slice across Cameron’s arm. He was wearing a shirt, and she could immediately see the blood start to spread across the sleeve.
She ran to him, but Lauren wasn’t quite able to reach his arm. That was because Cameron took hold of her and dragged her to the floor. But he didn’t stay there. He got right back up and took aim out the now gaping hole in the window.
“You’re hurt,” she said, her breath gusting so hard that Lauren had trouble speaking.
“I’m okay,” he grumbled.
But she had no idea if that was true. She couldn’t tell if the glass was still in his arm or not because of all the blood.
From the other side of the house, Lauren heard a sound she didn’t want to hear. Patrick was crying. Probably because the noise from the gunshot had frightened him. She considered going to him, but she didn’t want to leave Cameron alone. She got confirmation that would be a bad idea when two more shots came through the window. These slammed into the side of the fridge.
“Merilee!” Cameron called out to the nanny. “All of you need to get down on the floor and stay there.” He glanced at her then, letting Lauren know that applied to her, too.
However, she shook her head. “If I go to the side window, I might have a clear shot and be able to stop the gunman.”
“Yeah, and he might have a shot to stop you. Stay down,” he repeated, this time through clenched teeth. She couldn’t tell if the tight expression was for her or because he was grimacing in pain.
Lauren huffed. She’d forgotten just how stubborn Cameron could be, but this brought it all back. Worse, he didn’t stay out of the line of fire. He leaned away from the wall, took aim out the window and pulled the trigger.
The blast echoed through the room. Through the entire house. And Lauren heard both babies cry. She prayed the nannies could keep the boys as calm as possible, but better yet, she just wanted the women to protect them so that none of the bullets could make it to them.
Her son was in danger.
Both her sons.
Because Isaac might be hers by blood, but Patrick was also hers in every way that mattered. Now the babies were at huge risk, and she didn’t even know why. That was what cut away at her right now. That, and the bullets that continued to tear into the house.
She thought of what Cameron had said earlier. About Trace’s mother, Evelyn, pulling a gun on him. And Lauren wondered if she was behind this. But she couldn’t be. For one thing, the woman was in jail, and for another, she wanted custody of her grandson and almost certainly wouldn’t put him at risk like this.
But Julia or Duane were capable of that.
They wouldn’t have nearly the level of concern for Patrick or any other child that Evelyn likely would. In fact, it would make things easier for Julia or Duane if Lauren and her son were out of the way.
That certainly didn’t help her raw nerves.
However, there was a third player in all of this. The idiot who was sending those threatening messages to her and her family. If so, they didn’t have a clue who they were dealing with, and that person might not care if everyone inside the house died in a gunfight.
Cameron fired another shot, and he followed it with some profanity. “He’s ducked back behind the barn.”
Probably because Cameron’s shots were getting too close to him. Lauren doubted, though, that the man was retreating. No. He was probably regrouping or else contacting his comrade so he could come at them from a different angle.
Cameron ran to the side of the room where Lauren had been earlier, but the moment he made it to that window, the gunman sent more bullets their way. That created yet another spray of glass over the room and caused Cameron to scramble back. Thankfully, he didn’t get cut this time, and the bleeding on his arm seemed to be slowing down. Still, he needed medical attention. That wasn’t going to happen, though, until those gunmen were stopped. No way could an ambulance risk coming to the house, since they would drive right into gunfire.
Cameron’s phone rang, the sound somehow making it through the deafening blasts. He glanced at the screen and tossed it to her. “It’s Gabriel. Let him know what’s going on and find out his location.”
Lauren cursed her trembling hands because it took her precious seconds to hit the answer button, and she put it on speaker so that Cameron could hear.
“Is everyone okay?” Gabriel asked right off.
“No. Cameron’s hurt. His arm is bleeding—”
“I’m fine,” Cameron snarled. “I’ve got a shooter by the barn and another out by the road.”
That sped up her heartbeat even more because her brothers would be coming up that road to get to them. She prayed they didn’t get hurt, or worse.
“Yeah, I’ve already spotted the one on the road,” Gabriel answered. “That’s why Jameson and I stopped. The guy’s in the ditch. If he lifts his head enough, Jameson can take him out.”
Good. Except that would mean Jameson would have to take a huge risk to do that. Lauren had no idea if that guy was firing at her brothers or not. It was hard to tell with all the bullets flying.
“What about you?” Gabriel continued. “Can you shoot the one by the barn?”
“Haven’t managed it so far, but I can’t keep letting him fire bullets into the house.”
No, they couldn’t. Each one was a huge risk to the babies. And that meant she needed to push aside her fears and do something. She was the daughter and sister of a sheriff and had had firearms training. While she certainly didn’t have experience in finishing off hired guns, she had plenty of motivation to put an end to this.
“Are there only two of them?” Gabriel asked a moment later.
Good question, and she could tell from Cameron’s frustrated sigh that he didn’t know the answer. “Two men attacked your sister last night and shot her in the arm so I’m guessing it’s the same pair.”
Gabriel cursed again, and Lauren recognized that tone after all these years. He was furious, and that fury wasn’t limited to only these men, either. As her brother and the sheriff, he would have expected her to come to him with this. Later, she’d need to explain why she hadn’t done that. But that would have to wait.
“I can try to distract the shooter by firing out the kitchen window,” Lauren offered. “That way Cameron can try to get him from the front of the house.”
That offer didn’t please Cameron. It earned her a scowl, but she gave him one right back. “As you said, we can’t let him keep firing shots.”
She could see the debate Cameron was having with himself about that, but before he could say anything, his phone beeped, indicating he had another call coming in.
“It’s from an unknown number,” she relayed to him.
“Answer your phone, Deputy,” the gunman shouted from outside. The shots also stopped. “We gotta talk.”
“The thug by the barn is calling me,” Cameron told Gabriel. “While I see what he wants, try to do something about the guy in the ditch. I don’t want him getting any closer to the house.”
“We’ll do what we can,” Gabriel assured him.
Lauren pressed the button to take the second call, and she crawled even closer to Cameron so he wouldn’t miss a word of what this snake had to say.
“Are you ready to put an end to this?” the gunman asked without any hesitation. “Because I’ve got a solution that’ll make sure your nephew and that other little boy don’t get hurt.”
“Who are you?” Cameron snapped.
“You don’t need to know my name to listen to what I got to say.”
“No, but I do need to know who hired you so I can put his or her butt in jail for multiple accounts of attempted murder.”
The guy chuckled. “Let’s just say that’s not gonna happen and move on. You want me to stop shooting up your house, then here’s what you have to do. Put Lauren on the phone so the two of us can talk this out.”
A chill slid through her. Of course the goon knew she was there, but it was still stomach-twisting to hear him say her name. She opened her mouth to tell him she was listening, but Cameron shook his head and shot her a warning glance.
“Anything you think you need to say to Lauren, you can say to me,” Cameron told the gunman.
“I don’t think so. Something tells me you’re not gonna be nearly as easy to reason with as she’ll be.” Considering his casual tone, he could have been discussing the weather, but Lauren knew there was nothing casual about any of this.
“You want money, is that it?” she asked.
That didn’t please Cameron. No surprise there. He mumbled some profanity and hurried to the other side of the window—probably hoping he could get off a shot while the gunman was talking.
“Money?” the gunman repeated as if it was a joke. “No, sugar. Money ain’t gonna fix this.”
She hated his flippant attitude and wished she could be the one to silence him. But Lauren wanted that silence only after they’d learned who had hired this monster. Then him, his partner and his boss could be arrested.
“What, then?” she demanded, and Lauren hoped she sounded less shaky than she felt.
“I want you, sugar.”
For just a handful of words, they packed a punch along with making her skin crawl. She wasn’t sure if he’d meant for it to sound sexual or not.
“All you have to do is walk out the back door,” the gunman continued. “Of course, I’m gonna want your hands in the air so I can make sure you don’t have a gun. And I’ll also want you to tell the deputy that he’s out of the picture right now.”
“You’re not going out there,” Cameron told her before the gunman had even finished.
“Figured you’d feel that way, but just think about those little kids. Do I hear them crying? Bet they’re real scared, but they’re gonna get a lot more scared when I start shooting again. Because once I start, I won’t stop until I’ve ripped your place to shreds. You got thirty seconds, or the bullets start up again.”
Lauren sucked in her breath so hard that she nearly choked, and she managed to get to her feet.
“No.” Cameron hurried toward her, catching on to her and pulling her down against the fridge. He also took his phone from her and hit the end call button. “He’ll gun you down the moment you step outside.”
She shook her head, not disputing that since she figured that was exactly what would happen. Someone wanted her dead.
“But if I don’t go out there, he’ll shoot into the house,” she reminded Cameron, though she was certain he hadn’t forgotten that.
“He’ll do it anyway.” He took hold of her chin, lifting it and forcing eye contact. Brief eye contact, just enough for her to see the determination in his eyes before he went back to the window to keep watch. “Think it through. He’ll have to kill me, too, so he can escape. In fact, this plan could be about me. A way to draw me out while using you. Because that snake knows I won’t let you go to your death.”
That last part was definitely true. Cameron wasn’t a coward, and he was married to that badge he had clipped to his holster. He would put his own life ahead of hers or anyone else’s that he needed to protect.
She tried to figure out if that was indeed what the gunman had in mind, but the thoughts were flying through her head, making it hard to think. The only thing that was coming through loud and clear was that she had to do something, anything, to save the babies.
Cameron glanced around, too, as if trying to sort out what to do, and he finally tipped his head to the front of the house. “Take your gun and go to the window in there. Stay to the side, but if you get a shot, take it.”
She didn’t thank him. In fact, Lauren didn’t say anything for fear he would change his mind. As she was leaving, she heard him make a quick call to Gabriel to tell him to do something to eliminate the guy in the ditch.
Lauren’s pulse was thudding so hard now that it was hard to hear, and her feet felt heavy, as if she was trudging through mud. Still, she moved as fast as she could and tried to ignore the sounds of the babies crying. She had to focus, had to do her part to make this right. Then she could deal with the fallout of the baby swap and everything else that her homecoming would cause.
There were three windows in the living room. A huge one that faced the front and two side ones that had a view of the barn. She went to the one that she hoped would give her the best vantage point.
It did.
She immediately caught a glimpse of the gunman, and he was lifting his rifle, pointing it right at the house. That put her heart in her throat. She hadn’t needed anything to add to the urgency of their situation, but that did it anyway.
Lauren didn’t waste even a second. She broke the glass with the barrel of her gun and took aim. The gunman shifted his position, trying to turn his weapon at her. But it was too late.
She fired.
And she was right on target. The bullet slammed into the guy’s chest. He stayed there, frozen and crouched, his rifle ready, but neither he nor his gun moved. So, Lauren shot him again.
He finally dropped like a stone.
Despite the fact that she’d probably just killed a man, she only felt relief and not the emotion of having just taken a life. That was because if he’d been given the chance, he would have killed them all.
She heard the footsteps, hurrying toward her. Cameron. From his angle in the kitchen, he probably hadn’t been able to see the fall, but he certainly saw it now. There was no relief on his face, though, because they heard something else.
Another shot.
This one hadn’t come from the barn. It had come from the front of the house, and it wasn’t a single shot, either. Three more quickly followed.
There was no trace of relief now for Lauren. Because she knew her brothers were in the general direction of that fresh round of bullets. Maybe the gunman’s partner had figured out what had gone on by the barn and was now trying to take out anyone that he could.
Lauren turned to run to the front window, but Cameron moved in front of her. “Watch the guy you shot and make sure he doesn’t get up.”
She was about to tell him that she doubted that could happen, but there was more gunfire. Then Cameron cursed when he looked out the front window.
“Change of plans,” he said. “Get down now.”
There was more than enough urgency in his voice for Lauren to drop to the floor, but she’d barely had time to do that when Cameron threw open the front door. The security system started to beep, indicating the alarm was about to go off. He ignored that, though, aimed his gun and fired. He got off four rounds before he stopped pulling the trigger.
Lauren waited, praying and afraid to ask what had happened. Several moments later she heard something she actually wanted to hear.
Gabriel’s voice.
“Is everyone okay?” her brother called out.
Since the babies were still fussing, Lauren knew they were alive, but she got up to hurry to the nursery to make sure. But she stopped when she saw the chaos in front of Cameron’s house.
Two men dressed in camo were sprawled out by the ditch. The one nearest the house was clearly dead, but the other one was still moving around. Both Jameson and Gabriel had their weapons drawn and were closing in on him.
Her stomach sank. Lauren hadn’t even known about the third gunman. He could have attacked them from the front while the thug by the barn was keeping them occupied. Thank God Cameron and her brothers had spotted him and stopped him from doing any more harm.
“I had to shoot him,” Cameron said. He pressed in the numbers on the security key pad to stop the beeping. “I didn’t have a choice.”
It took her a moment to realize why that sounded like an apology. It was because two of their attackers were dead, and the third one was injured. Maybe even dying. Dead men wouldn’t be able to tell them the person or the reason behind what had just happened.
“Stay inside,” Cameron added. “But keep watch to make sure there aren’t others.”
Lauren hadn’t exactly relaxed, but that put her back on high alert again. So did the fact that Cameron hurried outside. Where he could be gunned down like her brothers if there were other thugs hiding.
Even though Cameron had told her to stay inside, Lauren got her gun ready and stepped into the doorway so she’d have a better view of the yard and road. Her brothers were already by the injured man by the time Cameron reached them. She could see them talking, but she couldn’t hear what they were saying.
But she had no trouble seeing the alarm on Cameron’s face.
Whatever the man had said to him had caused Cameron’s shoulders to snap back. Her brothers had similar reactions, and Gabriel took out his phone as he made his way to the house. Cameron and Jameson were right behind him. That was when Lauren realized the injured man was no longer moving.
Gabriel made eye contact with her, and while he continued his phone conversation, he caught on to her arm and maneuvered her back inside the house.
“What about the man?” she asked.
“He’s dead,” Cameron told her the moment he reached the porch.
The sickening feeling of dread went through her. “Did he say anything?” But Lauren fully expected that answer to be no.
It wasn’t.
Cameron nodded. “He gave us the name of the person who hired him.” His mouth tightened when he made eye contact with Lauren. “The gunman said it was you.”
Chapter Five (#u0d5d373d-fe9f-598e-8e39-52e1c91d3203)
“I didn’t hire those men,” Lauren repeated.
It wasn’t necessary for her to keep saying that. Cameron hadn’t believed it from the moment the thug had tossed out that stupid accusation. Those men had been firing real bullets into the house as well as at Lauren and him, and there was no way she would have put her son in danger that way.
Either son.
Because Cameron was also certain she was already thinking of both boys as hers. They weren’t. But that was something they would have to sort out later.
For now, they needed to get to the bottom of why the attack had happened. Gabriel and Jameson were already on that. Lauren’s brothers were outside with the medical examiner and the CSIs. The ambulance, too. There’d been no need for medical assistance for the gunmen—they were all dead. But the medics were apparently there for Lauren and him.
Whether they wanted them there or not.
Cameron certainly didn’t. He wanted to be outside with the other lawmen, trying to get answers, but instead he was on the sofa in his living room while a medic stitched up his arm. Another medic was checking out Lauren’s gunshot wound, as well.
“This isn’t necessary,” Lauren insisted. It was yet something else she’d been repeating.
Cameron didn’t bother to voice his complaint since Gabriel had told him he wouldn’t be returning to work until the medic gave him the okay. So far, the guy wasn’t okaying anything. He was causing Cameron plenty of pain with each stitch. Of course, that was a small price to pay considering they were all alive and, for the most part, well.
“Is it okay if we come out now?” Merilee called out.
It had been well over a half hour since the attack had ended. If the thugs had brought any other hired guns with them, those guys would probably be long gone. But it still seemed too big of a risk to take.
“Let’s call this finished,” Cameron told the medic, and even though the guy gave him a hard look, he put in the last stitch and slapped on a bandage.
“Stay put. I’ll come to the nursery,” Cameron added to Merilee.
That got Lauren moving, too, and despite the fact that the medic was still dabbing something on her arm, she jerked away from him, following Cameron when he started out of the living room and up the hall. Both medics grumbled something that Cameron didn’t bother to hear. He needed to see Isaac to make sure for himself that both boys were all right.
Lauren was right on his heels when Cameron knocked on the door. Merilee must have been right there waiting because she opened up right away. She didn’t have Isaac in her arms, but Cameron spotted him. He was on the floor, playing with Patrick. Dara was next to both of them.
Cameron felt the punch of relief. Yes, he’d known the boys hadn’t been harmed. He’d gotten that reassurance minutes after the attack when he’d been able to talk to Merilee. So had Lauren. But she also must have needed more because she hurried to the boys, kissing them both.
Kisses that got Merilee’s attention.
The nanny looked at him, her eyebrow raised. “I’ll explain later,” Cameron whispered to her. “Thanks for keeping them safe.”
“Is it actually safe?” Merilee questioned before Cameron could step away.
“No,” he admitted after a pause. “We don’t know who hired those men.”
And he needed to figure out what to do about that. His house was in too vulnerable of a spot on the ranch since it was backed up against the woods and those trails. Added to that, there were now broken windows, so he would need to move Lauren, the boys and the nannies. First, though, he needed to see Isaac.
The boys were no longer fussing. In fact, they were looking a little confused—Isaac, especially—at the long hug that Lauren was giving them. When Cameron sank down on the edge of one of the chairs, Isaac scooted out of her grip and immediately went to him.
“Nunk,” Isaac babbled. It was his attempt at uncle, and it always made Cameron smile. Even more. And while he hugged Isaac often, this hug was especially needed.
Of course, Isaac didn’t let the hug go on for long. He was a kid always on the go, and the moment Cameron stood him on the floor, Isaac toddled his way back to Patrick. He dropped down next to him, where there was a huge pile of toy cars and horses.
Seeing them side by side put a knot in Cameron’s stomach. If he’d had any doubts about the baby swap, he didn’t have them now. He could see his sister, and himself, in Patrick’s face, while Isaac was a Beckett. Cameron hadn’t seen it before because he hadn’t been looking for it.
Hell.
What was he going to do now?
Lauren looked up at him at the exact moment that Cameron looked at her. She didn’t say anything, but she seemed to be waiting for something. Maybe for him to offer some perfect solution to fix all of this. But at the moment he was drawing a blank because the one thing he wasn’t going to do was give up the little boy he’d been raising for over a year. He couldn’t have loved his own son more than he loved Isaac.
Cameron automatically reached for his gun again when he heard someone coming up the hall. He stood, stepping in front of the others, but it wasn’t a threat this time. It was Gabriel and Jameson.
Lauren stood, slowly, and she rubbed her hands along the sides of her jeans. Her brothers didn’t exactly run to her, either, and Cameron figured they needed some time to hash this out. After all, Lauren had basically abandoned them, but again, that was something that would have to wait.
“Cameron told us about the possible baby switch,” Gabriel said, his voice not exactly warm and fuzzy.
She looked at Cameron, probably wondering when he’d had a chance to do that. It’d been in the yard when he’d managed to have a very short conversation with Gabriel while they were waiting for the medics to arrive. And Cameron had indeed added that word—possible. But Gabriel and Jameson were no doubt seeing what Cameron had—Patrick’s resemblance to them.
Jameson huffed, went to Lauren and pulled her into his arms. “You shouldn’t have stayed away,” he whispered to her, but since the room was suddenly quiet, Cameron had no trouble hearing.
“I couldn’t,” she answered. When Lauren pulled back, she was blinking back tears. “Not after what happened to Mom and Dad. I just couldn’t stay.”
Gabriel didn’t argue with that. Not with his voice anyway. But that wasn’t exactly a forgiving look in his eyes.
Of course, Cameron hadn’t expected there to be. Like Gabriel and Jameson, he’d stayed in Blue River. He’d dealt with the aftermath, had helped put a killer behind bars and then had tried to pick up the pieces and use them to build a new life. Lauren hadn’t done that, and it’d cut Gabriel to the core that he hadn’t been able to keep the family together.
“Uh, should Dara and I take the boys to one of the other rooms?” Merilee asked after glancing at Gabriel’s expression.
“No,” Lauren answered without hesitation. Cameron agreed. He didn’t want the babies out of his sight for now. If Lauren’s brothers were going to have words with her, they’d have to keep it G-rated.
Lauren kissed Jameson on the cheek, and she went to Gabriel. Her steps were tentative and so was the kiss on the cheek she gave him.
“I don’t expect you to understand what I did,” she said, her voice a little shaky now. “And I’m sorry for bringing this danger to the ranch.”
Gabriel stared at her, the muscles in his jaw battling each other. He seemed to be ready to start that tirade that was bubbling inside him, but he reached out, pulled Lauren to him and kissed the top of her head. It would have been a perfect moment if Lauren hadn’t winced. It wasn’t from the kiss, though. It was because of the pressure the hug was putting on her injured arm.
She stepped back, both her and Gabriel’s gazes going to the fresh bandage, and Cameron figured Gabriel would have cursed if it hadn’t been for the little ears in the room.
“You should have come to me when the trouble started,” Gabriel insisted.
Lauren shook her head. “I thought the men who did this were cops.”
“They weren’t,” Gabriel said without hesitation. “And I don’t need ID’s on them to know that.”
Jameson made a sound of agreement, went to the babies and sank down on the floor next to them. “The one who accused you of hiring him had a prison tat on his neck. Plus, this wasn’t the kind of attack a cop would do. Not a smart cop anyway. If they’d been the real deal, they could have gone to your house, flashed their badges and gained entry that way. You’re the daughter and sister of cops, and you would have let them in.”
Now it was Lauren who made a sound of agreement after making a soft moan. “I panicked. I didn’t want them to get to Patrick.”
Gabriel nodded. “Panicking is exactly what they wanted you to do because it caused you to run.”
Her brother hadn’t come out and said it, but he likely believed that it’d caused Lauren to run to the wrong man—Cameron. In Gabriel’s way of thinking, she should have gone to him, immediately, and that way he could have perhaps prevented this attack.
“So, how did this baby swap happen?” Jameson asked.
It was the question that had been repeating through Cameron’s mind. “Gilly maybe orchestrated it,” he admitted.
Gabriel looked ready to mumble some more profanity, but he bit it off when he glanced at the boys. “To protect her son from Evelyn and that scumbag boyfriend of hers.”
Cameron hated that his sister had been in a position like that, and he also hated he hadn’t been there to give her another option.
“We need to start from the beginning,” Gabriel continued a moment later. “We’ll need DNA tests on the boys—”
“I’ve already done one on Patrick,” Lauren volunteered. “I’m waiting on the results now.”
“Good. But we have to do Isaac’s, as well, and we should repeat Patrick’s, too, and compare it to Cameron’s.” Gabriel looked at Cameron as if questioning to see if he was opposed to that. He wasn’t. What Cameron was opposed to, though, was the fallout.
“I love Isaac,” Cameron admitted. He hadn’t intended to say that aloud. It was stating the obvious, and that obvious was true for Lauren, too. She loved Patrick.
Gabriel didn’t need for them to spell out where this would eventually lead. To some kind of custody issues. Maybe a huge legal battle if Lauren tried to go after both boys.
“If the DNA results prove there was a switch,” Gabriel went on, “then the next step will be to get hospital surveillance footage to see if we can spot who’s responsible. In the meantime, I can get someone to the jail to question Evelyn.”
“I can do that,” Jameson volunteered, and he stood, taking his cell from his pocket. He was about to make a call, but the ringing shot through the room. Not Jameson’s phone, though, but Lauren’s.
She looked at her phone screen as if steeling herself up for what she might see there. Probably because she thought this could be another attacker. But she didn’t look afraid. She groaned, a sound of frustration.
“It’s Julia,” she explained. “My late husband’s sister.”
Good. While it was obvious Lauren didn’t want to talk to the woman, Cameron wanted to hear what she had to say. Especially since Julia could be a suspect in this. Of course, the most obvious person was Evelyn, and it didn’t matter if she was locked up. People could do all sorts of bad things from behind bars.
“She calls you often?” Cameron asked.
“Rarely. And it’s never a pleasant conversation. We talk mainly through our lawyers these days.”
Lauren stepped out of the room, but Cameron followed her. Anything that happened right now could be related to the investigation, and he wanted to hear what Lauren’s sister-in-law had to say. Lauren obliged by putting the call on speaker. She also moved as far up the hall as she could go.
“What the hell is going on?” Julia immediately demanded. No wonder Lauren had been dreading this. The woman was clearly hostile.
“I was about to ask you the same thing,” Lauren countered without even pausing. “Someone tried to kill me, and I need to know if you had anything to do with that?”
“What? You’d better not be accusing me of something like that.”
Cameron considered holding his tongue but then decided against it. “Lauren is fine, by the way. Good of you to ask.”
“I don’t care if she’s fine,” Julia spat out. “And who the hell are you anyway?”
“Deputy Cameron Doran,” Lauren answered. If she was bothered by Cameron inserting himself into this conversation, she didn’t show it. She just gave another weary sigh.
“Your old boyfriend.” Julia said that as if Cameron were some kind of disease. “Yes, I know about you. I know everything about Lauren. She moaned out your name when she was under anesthesia after having an emergency appendectomy. Cameron, Cameron, she kept saying, so I did an internet search and found out you were a deputy in that hick town she comes from.”
Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.
Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».
Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию (https://www.litres.ru/delores-fossen/lawman-from-her-past/) на ЛитРес.
Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.