Beneath the Texas Moon
Elle James
DARKNESS HIDES NOTHING WHEN THE MOON IS FULL…Eve Baxter thought tiny Spirit Canyon, Texas, was the perfect place to escape her nightmares and be alone with her son–but the drought-ridden town had more than its share of secrets and skeletons. Eve's isolated ranch quickly went from haven to hell, driving her into the strong arms of brooding rancher Mac McGuire. But even Mac was dangerous, as he represented everything Eve was running from. As the temperatures soared and tempers fl ared, Eve feared that not even her cowboy protector could save her from the fate Spirit Canyon had in store….
Welcome to Spirit Canyon, Texas
Nestled in the hill country, it’s the kind of town where no one locks their doors, where neighbors stop and chat. At least that’s what most people think. But there are secrets lurking in this tiny town. Secrets that harken back decades to unnatural events, unmentionable evil. And now that evil is about to be unleashed again.
In between potluck suppers and harvest festivals, people go missing. From behind ranch fences, livestock are found slaughtered, as if by an angry wolf. And in the cedar brush, strange chants echo in the moonlight. Is it the work of feral four-legged creatures, as they say, or fearless humans?
As the evil comes closer, centering on the good folk of Spirit Canyon, who will live to tell the tale? And who will believe it?
Beneath the Texas Moon
Elle James
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
To my parents Charles and Phyllis Hughes
For always being there for me and showing me that hard work
and perseverance pays off. Thanks for loving me unconditionally,
teaching me to care about others, to laugh and play and to go after
what I want with all my heart. Thanks, Dad, for being the rock in
my life and a man I’ll always look up to. Thanks, Mom, for being
my sounding board and my best reviewer. You two helped to make
me who I am. I’ll love you always.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
2004 Golden Heart Winner for Best Paranormal Romance, Elle James started writing when her sister issued the Y2K challenge to write a romance novel. She managed a full-time job, raised three wonderful children and she and her husband even tried their hands at ranching exotic birds (ostriches, emus and rheas) in the Texas hill country. Ask her, and she’ll tell you, what it’s like to go toe-to-toe with an angry 350-pound bird! After leaving her successful career in information technology management, Elle is now pursuing her writing full-time. She loves building exciting stories about heroes, heroines, romance and passion. Elle loves to hear from fans. You can contact her at ellejames@earthlink.net or visit her Web site at www.ellejames.com.
CAST OF CHARACTERS
Eve Baxter—A woman who moves to Spirit Canyon in hope of getting her son’s life back on track. Has she derailed into a terrifying nightmare?
Joey Baxter—The traumatized four-year-old who witnessed his father’s mauling death by a vicious dog.
Mac McGuire—A battle-scarred ex-soldier determined to protect his home and the people he cares about.
Clinton Logan—Local attorney and mayor of Spirit Canyon. He rose fast in local politics. Is he too good to be true?
Toby Rice—Spirit Canyon’s bully who’s not above hitting a girl, but is he mean enough to kill?
Art Nantan—The man who loved Mac’s mother and would have done anything to have her. How far did he go?
Addie Shultz—General store owner and grandmother Eve never had. Is there any truth to the stories she tells?
Daniel Goodman—Ranch foreman who took care of the ranch while Mac was away in the army.
Molly—Mac’s Australian shepherd who protects those who can’t protect themselves.
Contents
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Prologue
Thirty years ago
“Thanks for bringing me home, Addie.” Jenny reached to open the door to the pickup. “I’ll see you tomorrow to finish the cleanup.”
“You sure you don’t want me to take you all the way up to the house?”
“No, thanks.” Jenny patted her friend’s hand and smiled, then she stared out at the night through the windshield of Addie’s old truck. “George will be expecting you home soon. Besides, with the moon so full it’s almost like daylight out here. And I could use a little fresh air after the festival.”
Addie’s face creased in a frown. “I’m gonna have a talk with Art. He had no right to be so rude to you. He knows you and Frank are crazy for each other. Even though he owns the notes on every piece of property in town, he doesn’t have the right to be so rude.”
Jenny sighed. “Don’t worry about it. Go home. That’s where I’m headed.” She climbed down from the truck to stand in the caliche gravel and waved as Addie backed out onto the highway, easing her truck back toward town.
With a deep breath, Jenny inhaled the pungent scent of scrub cedar and dust. Although she enjoyed the clear, dry warmth of the night, she knew if it didn’t rain soon, many of the ranchers would be devastated. Which would play right into Art Nantan’s hands. He’d gone too far threatening her with foreclosure on her husband’s ranch. But to threaten his Indian spirit magic was utterly ridiculous. Just because Art was of Apache descent, didn’t make him any more intimidating in Jenny’s mind. Nor did his magic talk scare her one iota.
As far as she was concerned, a man who threatened a woman wasn’t much of a man. And why couldn’t he understand that she was happy with her family? She was completely in love with Frank and her little boy, Mac. Her feet moved of their own accord, carrying her down the half-mile road to the house that had been part of her husband’s family ranch for over a hundred years. Forward to her husband and son. Mac would be asleep already, but she still wanted to kiss him good-night.
After only a few steps Jenny sensed, more than heard, something in the scrub brush lining the gravel road. The hair on the back of her neck stood at attention and she strained her hearing to pick up even the slightest movement. Perhaps she’d been too quick to dismiss Addie’s offer to drop her at her door.
Hadn’t the ranchers been complaining about missing animals? Speculation had ranged from coyotes to wolves, and even the possibility of a mountain lion.
Her pace quickening, Jenny tried to shake off the uneasy feeling threatening to overwhelm her. She only had a half of a country mile between her and her family. She’d walked this road many times before in the moonlight.
As she rounded a bend on the gravel road, a dark shape leaped from the bushes, blocking her path.
Her heart clogging her throat, Jenny had to gulp in air before she could scream. Then she was running through the scrub cedar, the prickly branches tearing at her skin, slapping her in her face. But she ignored the pain. She had to get away. She’d never seen anything like this creature. And she knew beyond a doubt that if it caught her, she’d never see her family again.
Chapter One
Present
Black, billowing storm clouds churned the western sky, crowding in on the small town of Spirit Canyon. With a sigh, Eve Baxter parked her SUV next to the building with the words General Store etched into the stone facade across the top.
The surrounding shops and homes reassured her that, despite the threatening skies, this town was exactly what she’d hoped for. Clean sidewalks, white limestone structures and window boxes filled with purple and yellow pansies welcomed her. If the pansies were wilting and the paint fading on the store signs, she didn’t care. At least she was away from the coastal storms of Houston and tucked securely in the Texas hill country. Spirit Canyon was a place Eve could feel safe—a place to call home.
When she opened her door and slid to the ground, a blast of wind whipped her hair into her face. She stretched her road-weary muscles and opened the rear door. “Come on, Joey. We’re almost there. I just need to get the key from Miss Addie.”
She wrapped a sweater around her son’s thin shoulders and lifted him out of his booster seat. Once she’d set him on his feet, she tucked his hand in hers and gazed down into his face. She willed him to feel the hope, the chance to start over.
He held tight, his expression guarded—too intense for a four-year-old child.
“This is our new town, Joey. What do you think?” Eve smiled.
Joey crowded closer to her legs and didn’t answer.
With effort, Eve forced herself to keep smiling. She’d give him time. Maybe in this new environment, Joey would snap out of his long silence and she herself could forget the dreams.
When she pushed open the rusty screen door, a bell jangled, the cheerful sound echoing through the building. Eve ushered Joey across the threshold into the store, standing for a moment to gain her bearings.
She inhaled the musty smell of ancient timbers and the dust of a century. She felt as if she’d stepped into another time.
The hardwood floors were worn with age, and rows of shelves held everything from canned goods to bolts of cloth and fencing nails. Against the back wall stretched a long counter with an old cash register, three old bar stools and candy jars filled with jelly beans, gumdrops and licorice sticks.
She’d been right about Spirit Canyon. Her chest swelled with optimism.
“Don’t just stand there, come on in.” A white-haired woman, whose face was etched with a road map of wrinkles, counted change into the hands of a teenage girl. With a friendly flap of her hand, the older woman waved Eve and Joey toward the back where she stood.
A dark-haired, burly young man dressed in black, with silver chains draped from his pockets, stepped out from an aisle, grabbed the girl by the elbow and jerked her toward the door. “Let’s go.” He pushed past Eve and Joey, dragging the girl behind him, without a word of greeting or acknowledgment.
The girl smiled weakly and hurried to keep up.
Okay, so maybe her quaint new town had a dark side.
“I don’t know what she sees in that boy. He’s always up to no good.” The older woman’s frown followed the pair out the door. Then she looked up and smiled at Eve.
“Addie Shultz?” Eve asked as she tugged Joey past rows of dry goods.
“Yes, ma’am. You must be Eve Baxter.” The older woman looked at Joey and her gaze softened.
Eve cringed. She hoped Miss Addie wouldn’t mention the jagged, red scar slashed across her son’s face from his eyebrow up into his hairline.
Addie’s short perusal shifted into a broad grin and she planted her fists on her narrow hips, staring down at the little boy. “And you must be Joey.” She leaned over the counter and swept her hand in front of the treasure trove of sweets contained in old-fashioned jars. “Would you like some candy?”
Joey’s eyes widened. He looked to Eve in mute appeal, his expression nervous but questioning.
Eve smiled and patted his hair. “Go ahead, baby.”
“What will it be? Licorice, gumdrops, jelly beans…” Addie stopped listing candies when Joey pointed at the jellybean jar. “Good choice. Can’t go wrong with a pocketful of jellybeans.”
With a small metal scoop, she measured a generous portion of candy into a paper bag, twisted the top and handed it to Joey. “There you go, young man.” She waved her hand to the left. “Why don’t you sit by the game board while your mamma and I talk?”
Joey clutched his candy to his chest and shook his head violently, reaching up to grab Eve’s hand.
“It’s okay, sweetie. I’m not going anywhere without you.” Eve led him to the table. “I’ll be right over there. Sit and eat your candy while I talk with Miss Addie.”
Eve stood next to Joey until he opened his bag and selected a bright red candy to pop into his mouth. While her son fished for another jelly bean, Eve slipped over to the counter.
“What a sweet little guy.” Addie clucked her tongue. “Why does he look so sad and scared?”
Eve stared at her son, her thoughts on another day, not so long ago. The day the police had shown up on her doorstep. Even now the memory made goose bumps rise across her skin. Almost scarier than the police were the images she’d seen prior to the accident. The mauling had happened in her nightmares, and yet she had scoffed at them, thinking they were nothing more than aberrations.
“I’m sorry, it’s none of my business.” Addie ran a rag across the wooden counter.
With a shake of her head, Eve dragged her gaze back to Addie, her lips curving upward slightly. In a hushed voice she hoped Joey couldn’t hear she said, “No, don’t be sorry. The images are so vivid, sometimes I feel as if I’m still standing at my front door when they told me Joey and his father were at the hospital.”
“Goodness.” The hand pushing the old rag across the counter paused and Addie glanced up. “What happened?”
“A dog mauled them.” Eve glanced back at her son’s scarred forehead. “Joey only had superficial wounds and a few stitches.”
Addie’s eyes widened. “Dear God.”
Her voice dropping even lower, Eve continued. “Joey saw his father mauled to death by the dog.”
“You lost your husband? Bless your soul.”
Eve shook her head. “My ex-husband. We’d been divorced for almost two years.”
“Your decision or his?” Addie asked, then waved her hand. “That’s too personal. Forgive an old lady’s curiosity.”
“No, that’s okay. It was my decision.” Eve shrugged. “He loved his dogs more than his family, and I had a son to raise.”
The older woman picked at a button on the front of her shirt, her brow furrowed. “How long has it been since the mauling?”
Joey chewed quietly, his deep green gaze never leaving his mother’s face.
“Six months.” Eve smiled reassuringly at her son, although the strain of forced cheerfulness made her face hurt. Six months of pain. Six months of silence. Since the attack Joey hadn’t spoken a word.
“The therapist said it’d take time.” Eve turned her weak smile to Addie. “Speaking of which, I’ll need to find a psychiatrist closer to Spirit Canyon.”
“Should be some to choose from in Johnson City or Fredricksburg. If not, you could go to Austin or San Antonio.” For several moments, Addie stared across at the little boy, tears welling, but not falling. Then shaking back her shoulders, she reached into her apron pocket and handed Eve two sets of keys. “I—” Addie cleared her throat and started over. “I went over earlier to open windows and air out the house. The place sure needs some work.”
“I know.” Eve swallowed past the lump blocking her vocal chords. She liked the way Addie had of getting back to business. The woman didn’t wallow in the past. Thank goodness.
“What are your plans for that old house? Isn’t it a bit large for just two people?” Addie sprayed furniture polish on the counter and rubbed a shine into the smooth wood.
“I was thinking of turning it into a bed and breakfast.” Eve stared down at her purse. “I don’t really need the money. My ex-husband left me as beneficiary to his life insurance policy. But I need the activity.”
“You could work for me, just to keep you busy.” Addie said.
Tears sprung into Eve’s eyes. “You don’t have to do that, Miss Addie. Besides, you hardly know me.”
“Oh, fiddle.” Addie waved her fingers. “We’ve talked so much on the phone, you’re like one of my own younguns.”
A lump rose in Eve’s throat. Family was what she and Joey needed most. Eve twisted her purse strap. “I appreciate the offer, but I’ll be busy fixing up the old place. If you know anyone who could help with the heavy stuff, let me know.”
“Sure will.” Addie slid the cloth further along the counter. “You know, our annual Harvest Festival is only a month away. If you get the bed and breakfast up and running by then, you shouldn’t have any problem filling it.”
Eve grimaced. “That’s pretty close. I’m sure renovations will take longer than a month.”
“I suppose that is a bit too soon.” Addie tapped a pencil to her chin. Then her eyebrows rose and she smiled. “Since you won’t have the place opened by the Harvest Festival, how about helping with the preparations for the event?”
Eve hesitated. Being new to town, she’d hoped to ease into a quiet existence. “I don’t know.”
“I’m sure you’ll have your hands full setting the old house in order,” Addie continued, “but you’ll have a chance to meet some of the townsfolk.”
Eve hated to disappoint the woman when she’d done so much to welcome her. “You’re sure I wouldn’t be in the way?”
Addie waggled her fingers. “Not at all. And Joey is more than welcome. Other young mothers bring their little ones to the meetings. Joining the group will give Joey a chance to meet a few of the local children.”
Eve glanced at Joey, his serious expression cutting through her reservations. He needed to learn how to be a child all over again. How better than to meet others his own age? Spirit Canyon was her new home, and she might as well get started by becoming a part of the community. “Addie, I’d love to help. Somehow I’ll make the time.”
“Good,” Addie said. “I’ll tell Sandy Johnson and she can let you know when the next meeting will be.”
The bell over the door jingled. Eve turned toward the sound.
A tall, broad-shouldered man stepped across the threshold. Poised in the doorway, with his face cast in shadows, he looked like the devil in a black Stetson.
“Mac? Is that you?” Addie called from beside Eve. “Better get inside before the heavens open up and dump on you, son.”
“Yes, ma’am.” His voice rumbled deep and resonant, filling the rafters of the store as he strode across the room.
Now that he’d moved into the light, Eve had to adjust her first impression. He wasn’t the devil, especially when he smiled at Addie, with full lips, a rock-hard chin and eyes the pale blue-gray of a summer sky.
But the smile was short-lived. As he turned to face her, his penetrating gaze seemed to read her most intimate thoughts.
A chill stroked her spine.
He broke his eye contact and looked back out the screen door. “When did Cynthia start seeing Toby?”
“A couple weeks ago,” Addie answered. “More’s the shame.”
The cowboy shook his head, turned and strode across the floor, closing the gap between himself and Eve.
She took a reflexive step backward.
“Mac, say hi to our new neighbor,” Addie said.
He pulled his Stetson from his head, revealing dark brown hair with a hint of red, the rich color of molasses. He held out his hand. “Mac McGuire.”
“Eve.” Her voice faltered as she grasped his outstretched hand. Strong, work-roughened fingers engulfed hers, sending a startling jolt like an electrical current throughout her body. What was wrong with her? He was just a man.
Without his hat, he wasn’t quite as intimidating. Until Eve saw the ragged scar slashed across his forehead.
Just like Joey’s.
She dropped his hand.
Mac shifted his hat to his other hand. Besides the slight narrowing of his eyes, he didn’t display any other indication that her reaction fazed him.
Eve stared around the room grasping for something to say, coming up with a blank. Then a gentle tug on her jacket changed her focus.
MAC GAZED DOWN at the little boy, whose fingers snuck into the hand of the auburn-haired woman. Eve. A woman with troubled green eyes.
With the same colored hair, the boy had to be hers. A sharp stab of disappointment raced through Mac until he noticed her naked left hand. She had a child, but no ring. Interesting.
The woman glanced down at the top of the little boy’s head, brushed a hand through his hair and smiled. “Mr. McGuire, this is my son, Joey. Joey, say hello to Mr. McGuire.”
Joey shook his head and buried his face against her legs.
Mac squatted next to Joey and spoke in a quiet tone. “Hi, Joey. Nice to meet you. You can call me Mac.”
Joey peeked around his mother’s leg and his eyes widened, his gaze zeroing in on Mac’s scar. The boy moved toward him, instead of shrinking in fear. As one hand loosened its grip on Eve’s jeans, he reached out to touch the mark on Mac’s forehead.
Mac resisted the urge to flinch, holding steady while the little guy leaned toward him. When Joey’s face cleared the fabric of Eve’s jeans, it was Mac’s turn to be startled. The child had a matching scar on the same side of his forehead.
A flash of memory assaulted Mac. Young men under his command moving through the darkened streets of Fallujah. Mac closed his eyes, shutting out what had come next. When he opened them, Joey was staring at him as if he could see what Mac had seen. Mac frowned. What would a child know about the terrors of war?
While Joey ran his fingers over Mac’s scar, Mac touched a finger to Joey’s. “I see we have something in common.”
He and the little boy had more scars in common than just the visible ones. By the serious look on Joey’s face and the dark circles beneath his eyes, Mac knew the child had suffered.
With a grave but gentle nod to the boy, Mac straightened and looked at Joey’s mother, noting the worry in her eyes. A long silence stretched between them. He sensed she was sizing him up while he did the same.
“Eve’s looking for someone to help renovate the old Felton house.” Addie sliced through the tension with her cheerful tone. “How about it, Mac? Could you spare time away from the ranch?”
Mac shifted the hat in his hand, staring at the broad brim. He had enough ghosts to chase without taking on more. What good would he be around this woman and her child who looked like they had their own problems to overcome?
With “no” poised on his lips, he looked up, his gaze meeting Eve’s.
Her expression was wary and she hurried to say, “Oh, please, don’t worry about it. I’m sure I’ll find someone.”
Although he’d been prepared to tell her he couldn’t help, her quick rejection struck him in the gut. “Daniel and I could help her.” Mac jammed his hat on his head. “He’d appreciate the break from ranch work.”
“Great idea.” Addie turned to Eve with a wink. “His foreman, Daniel, is so good with his hands. I swear he’s renovated practically every house in the county at some time in the past forty years. He’d make a lot more money if he’d move to a bigger city. Not that I want him to leave. Just seems a waste.”
“He claims he doesn’t want to leave the ranch,” Mac said. “And I couldn’t function without him.”
Addie sighed. “What’s he gonna do when he runs out of houses to fix up around here?”
“Don’t know. I guess he’ll figure it out,” Mac said. “Can I get some shotgun shells?”
Addie turned to a shelf behind the counter, calling over her shoulder, “What size?”
“30.06” he said.
“Ain’t huntin’ season.” Addie placed the box of shells on the counter. “Got varmints? Huckabee and Leider said they’ve been losing some of their young livestock lately. Think there might be a coyote or something pickin’ ’em off. Funny thing is they ain’t finding the carcasses.”
“Yeah. I heard.”
Eve’s brows furrowed. “Should I be worried about…” She nodded toward Joey.
“Since we don’t know what’s doing it, I’d say it doesn’t hurt to keep an eye on him.” Mac stared down at the little boy who stared back at him, his look guarded.
“I will.” Eve scooped Joey’s hand into hers. “Well, I have a lot to do before bed tonight. I better get to it. Addie, I’ll see you tomorrow.” Eve waved and tugged Joey toward the door.
As the woman and the little boy walked away, Mac noted the view and couldn’t help his instinctive tightening in reaction to a beautiful woman.
Before the door closed behind them, Addie cleared her throat. “Do you want these shells or not?”
“Huh?” Mac shook his head and dragged his gaze back to Addie. “Oh, yeah.”
“She’s a pretty little thing, isn’t she?” Addie said, ringing up the purchase. “She and that little boy have been through some hard times.”
When he handed her a twenty, he couldn’t help asking, “What happened?”
Addie shook her head and sighed. “Little Joey and Eve’s ex-husband were mauled by a dog. That little boy watched the dog kill his dad.”
Mac turned back toward the door as if he could still see the little boy. He knew the pain of watching the people you cared about die. Worse, the guilt of being the only one who survived.
Mac shook his head and tried to imagine what Joey had gone through watching his father be killed by a dog.
Dog.
Mac dropped the shells on the counter and raced for the door.
“What’s wrong, Mac?” Addie asked.
Just as he grabbed the handle of the door, an earsplitting scream rent the air.
Too late.
Without slowing his pace, Mac flew through the door and toward the cries. After rounding the side of his pickup, he ground to a halt. His forty-pound Australian shepherd, Molly, lay on the ground with her chin touching the pavement, a worried expression on her wolfish face.
Standing between the dog and her SUV, Eve clutched Joey to her chest. The boy’s body shook with the force of his screams.
Mac rounded the vehicles, scooped Molly into his arms, jerked open the door of his truck and deposited her onto the floorboard. He pointed a finger at her and ordered, “Stay!”
After shutting the door, he turned back to Eve and Joey, his heart hammering in his chest.
“It’s okay, sweetie. The dog’s gone. Mamma’s got you. It’s okay,” Eve crooned, her voice wobbling. With her arms hugging Joey close, she backed away from the truck and hurried into the store, whispering words of assurance as she went.
Mac took a deep, steadying breath and ran a hand through his hair, then followed Eve. At the rear counter, he found Joey surrounded by the two women as if they shielded him from further attack.
Although Joey had stopped screaming, his eyes were red and puffy, and his body shook with silent hiccups and an occasional sob.
With a compelling need to make things right again, Mac removed his hat. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”
Eve looked over the top of Joey’s head and smiled bleakly. “It’s not your fault. There’s nothing you could have done. He’d have seen a dog sooner or later. I had hoped it would be after we settled in.”
“I’ll keep Molly away from Joey in the future,” he said.
“No, don’t do that,” Eve said. With her hand rubbing in steady strokes down her son’s back, she stared into Mac’s eyes. “He needs to get used to dogs. He can’t avoid them forever.” She rested her cheek against Joey’s hair, a tear easing out of the corner of her eye.
The single tear slipping down to Eve’s chin caused a meltdown in Mac’s insides. For so long, he’d been plagued by self-recriminations, regret and sorrow.
Enough.
He straightened his shoulders, nodded and turned to leave. Maybe he could help Joey. And perhaps by helping the boy overcome his demons, Mac could shake a few of his own.
THE HOUSE WAS LARGE, the lighting dim, and it needed a heck of a lot of work, but it was hers. Eve pulled the sheet up to Joey’s chin in the queen-size bed she’d share with him until his room was painted and ready. The air conditioner was on the fritz, and the night temperature was only a few degrees lower than the sweltering heat of the daytime.
Eve slid the window a little higher hoping to catch the breeze she’d enjoyed earlier that day. But the overcast night air was still in the Texas hill country, shrouding the terrain in deep shadows. Shadows that could hide a coyote bent on preying on small animals.
Eve stared out the window. Her room faced out onto open scrubland and a nearby ridge, but the darkness was so dense, she couldn’t make out anything past the light cast by the lamp in her bedroom.
When she pushed aside the sheet to lie down next to Joey, an eerie cry drifted in through the open window. Was it a coyote, a wolf or just a lonely dog?
Thank God, Joey didn’t wake from his sleep. Even a dog’s bark sent him into hysterics. Eve could imagine his reaction to howling in the night.
Inside her house, tucked safely behind sturdy walls, Eve couldn’t stop the tremor that ran from the base of her skull down the length of her spine. The conversation she’d overheard between Addie and Mac McGuire about the missing animals resurfaced, settling like a knot in her belly. With a full day of work ahead, she lay still, willing her eyes to close and dreamless sleep to come.
Chapter Two
The rumble of an engine and the crunching sound of tires on gravel sent Eve to the front door. She shielded her eyes against the morning sun, staring up the driveway at the approaching charcoal gray pickup truck. Her heart sped up when she recognized it as the one Mac had driven the day before.
She touched her fingers to her hair then brushed away imaginary flecks of dust from her faded jeans and baggy T-shirt. Why was she getting all fidgety over the men scheduled to work on her house? Yet she couldn’t stop the errant flutter of her heart as she stepped through the doorway to stand on the front porch.
Joey remained behind the screen door, peering out from the safety of the house.
“Aren’t you coming out?” she asked. “It’s Mac. The man from the store yesterday.”
He shook his head, a frown denting his brow.
Eve sighed, but she didn’t push him. The doctors had told her he’d come out of that shell on his own, given time and patience.
The truck stopped in front of the house, and Mac and another man climbed down. The two men were as different as storm clouds and sunshine—one dark and brooding, the other quite a few years older, but sunny and grinning.
With a deep, calming breath, Eve stepped from the porch and approached the men.
“Ms. Baxter…my foreman Daniel Goodman.” Mac’s voice contained as little expression as his unreadable face. “Daniel, Eve Baxter.”
Eve held out her hand to the older man. With a leather tool belt draped around his hips, complete with tape measure, hammer and other tools hanging from loops, he looked the part of the capable handyman. His features were sun-dried, weathered lines boring into the corners of his eyes from squinting in the sun.
Daniel’s hair had been dark perhaps in his youth, but now was heavily salted with gray, growing longish around his ears, as if he’d forgotten to get it cut. He smiled at her as he gripped her hand and pumped it. “Nice to meet you, Eve,” he said. “I can’t tell you how long I’ve wanted to get my hands on this house. Old lady Felton never wanted to change a thing.”
“It looks like it.” Eve laughed at Daniel’s exuberance, caught up in his excitement. “I think the kitchen predates World War Two.”
“I’m sure it does.” Daniel glanced behind Eve. “And who do we have here?”
Eve turned and almost stepped on Joey. “Hi, sweetie,” she said. “Come meet Daniel.” She nudged him forward.
Daniel knelt to eye-level with Joey and stuck out his hand. “Nice to meet you, little buddy.”
Joey stared from Daniel’s hand to his face and back.
Eve held her breath, hoping he’d take the hand.
Her son had other plans. Joey turned to Mac, lifted both arms and stood on tiptoe.
Without missing a beat, Mac swung the child up in one arm. “Hey, big guy, what do you say you and I check out the yard while your mom and Daniel talk about the house?”
Joey nodded and hooked his arm around Mac’s neck.
As Mac strode toward the gnarled live oak in the middle of the yard, Eve marveled at the contrast between Mac and Joey—one small and fragile, the other larger than life and powerful. For a child still displaying residual signs of the trauma he’d suffered, Joey had taken to Mac like a long lost friend. Eve wasn’t sure how she felt about that. On the one hand, Joey’s alliance with Mac could help bring him out of his long silence. On the other hand, Eve didn’t want Mac hanging around.
He disturbed her.
“I see I have some work to do with Joey,” Daniel said. “Mac sure has him won over, though. But that’s Mac for you. He doesn’t even try, and people are ready to lay down their lives for him.”
“I’m amazed it’s happened so fast.” Despite her reservations, she knew a friendship with Mac could only be good for her son. “Joey could use a friend right now, and those two clicked from the start.”
“Actually, Mac needs someone as well.”
Daniel’s words were spoken so softly, Eve thought she might have imagined them. Besides, Mac appeared very much in charge of his life. What benefit could he gain from a four-year-old?
The man in the black Stetson seated Joey on a low-hanging branch and pointed up into the leaves.
Eve thought this was how a father and son should look. She sighed at the futility of the idea. Mac wasn’t Joey’s father and never would be. The closest he could get was stepfather. And Eve was determined to spare Joey from the same kind of pain she’d experienced while living under her stepfather’s roof.
“How’d Joey get the scar on his forehead?” Daniel’s question cut into Eve’s thoughts.
She hesitated, her mind still mulling over the picture Mac and Joey presented.
Daniel hurried on. “You don’t have to answer if it’s too personal.”
“No, I don’t mind,” she replied. “He was attacked by a dog. The same dog killed his father.”
“Damn.” Daniel shook his head. “Poor little guy.”
Tearing her gaze from Mac and Joey, Eve asked, “How’d Mac get his scar?”
He tipped his head in Mac’s direction. “Didn’t he tell you?” He shook his head in answer to his own question. “Of course, he wouldn’t.”
“I just met Mac yesterday. We’ve barely said more than a few sentences to each other.”
“Mac was in the Army up until three months ago.” Daniel examined his boots then he glanced up into her eyes, his gaze seemed to look beyond her, beyond Texas.
“Was?” Eve sensed Daniel’s reluctance to go on.
“Yeah.” He stared at Mac’s back. “He was so proud to serve his country. He was in the Special Forces.” Daniel inhaled deeply and blew out through his nose.
“What happened?” She touched a hand to his arm.
Daniel glanced at her, his eyes narrowing. Then, with an imperceptible nod he answered, “From what I could get out of him, his unit was ambushed while on a mission in Iraq. Mac took a bullet to his forehead and one in the leg.”
Eve covered her mouth to hold back a gasp.
“The man’s hardheaded. Only knocked him out.” Daniel nodded in Mac’s direction. “The leg wound meant he would never again go into battle. Next thing I know, he’d resigned his commission. Quit the Army.” Digging his hands into his pockets, Daniel rocked back on his heels. “If you ask me, he hasn’t been the same since. He works till he drops every day. I quit trying to keep up with him.”
“How awful,” Eve said. No wonder Joey and Mac were drawn to each other.
“Hey, don’t say anything to Mac,” Daniel said. “He’d kick me from here to tomorrow if he knew I’d told you.”
“I won’t say anything.”
Daniel rubbed his hands together. “I came to renovate one very old and needy house. Where do you want to begin?”
Eve forced herself to concentrate on the task and led Daniel through the house. From one room to the next, she told him what she envisioned, and he gave her pointers and suggestions. When the tour was complete, they left through the front door.
Daniel marched the length of the weathered porch bouncing on the balls of his feet. “Some of these boards are warped and need to be replaced, and this column is practically rotted through. I’m surprised the roof isn’t sagging. The good news is that the electricity was replaced fifteen years ago, the bad news is the exterior paint’s peeling and the plumbing needs work. This renovation is going to cost.”
“I expected as much. I’ve got the money set aside.” Eve’s gaze scanned the yard for her son. “Let me check on Joey.”
“Great. I’ll be just a minute,” Daniel said.
While Daniel measured the boards, Eve ambled around the side of the house in search of Joey and Mac.
They squatted in a corner of the yard staring at the dirt.
Mac pointed down and talked in a low, steady tone, his words inaudible at that distance.
Joey listened, his eyes round and eager.
Mac reached over, pressed Joey’s foot into the dust and lifted it straight up. He pointed to the print Joey’s shoe had made and to something in the dirt next to it.
Joey eyes lit with excitement at Eve’s approach. He ran to her side, grabbed her hand and tugged her in Mac’s direction. When they reached him, Joey poked a finger toward the powdery white dirt typical of the dry Texas hill country.
A perfect track of tiny shoe treads was set in the limestone dust.
“Is that your print, Joey?” Eve smiled at her son.
His head bobbed, and he pointed to the indentations next to his shoe print.
“What is it?” Eve asked.
“A deer track.” Mac stood and brushed his hands along the sides of his jeans.
Eve’s heart stirred. Mac had been showing Joey how to read tracks in the dirt. It was one of those man-things she would never have thought to teach her son. She frowned. This was the first time she’d considered how much Joey would miss by not having a father in his life. But a father was totally different from a stepfather. A father usually cared. Although, Joey’s father had cared more for his dogs than his son. The odds were even worse with a stepfather. Hers hadn’t cared, and he’d proven it over and over.
She straightened and looked up into Mac’s eyes, immediately wishing she hadn’t. This man had an effect on her, and she wasn’t so sure she liked it.
“If you’re through with my foreman, we have livestock to tend.” His voice was low and resonant.
Assimilating his words, Eve looked up and repeated, “Livestock? What kind of livestock?”
“Cattle and goats. One of our breeder nannies disappeared some time over the past two days.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” she said.
Mac shrugged and rubbed a hand over Joey’s head. “See ya later, big guy. Bet if you look around, you’ll find more tracks.”
Joey hugged Mac around the kneecaps, and not two seconds later, he darted across the yard, stopping every two or three steps to check the ground.
Eve smiled at Mac. “I’m impressed.”
A frown settled between his eyes. “About what?”
“I haven’t seen Joey this carefree in months.” Eve swallowed the lump in her throat. “Thanks.”
“He’s a great kid.” Mac’s gaze followed her son around the yard.
“I’m ready when you are.” Daniel said as he sauntered over to the corner where Mac and Eve stood. He smiled and nodded toward Eve. “I’ll see you tomorrow, bright and early.” The foreman climbed into the truck.
As Mac turned to follow, Joey raced up and grabbed his hand, tugging him back toward the house.
“I have to go now, Joey,” Mac said. But he allowed the child to drag him a few more feet.
Joey pointed at a dry patch of dirt, and then looked up at the cowboy.
“Another track?” Mac squatted next to him. “Looks like a dog’s print.”
Joey’s little body stiffened, and his glance darted from side to side as if he expected to see the dog. Then he spun and raced for the house.
Mac straightened and planted his hat on his head.
“Don’t worry.” Eve said. “He’ll get over it.”
Mac frowned down at the track. “Do you own a dog?”
“No,” Eve answered. “Why?”
“This track is recent and fairly large.”
“I heard an animal howl last night and it sounded pretty close.” That eerie sound had echoed in her head until the wee hours. “Do you think it was the same one that left the print?”
“Most likely. You might want to keep an eye out for it.”
“Do you think it could be dangerous?” A trickle of fear edged into her belly.
“Any strange animal could be dangerous. Wild animals usually don’t stray close to town, but with you being on the edge, they don’t always know the boundaries.”
Mac nodded toward the house where Joey stood behind the porch rail, staring through the slats. “Just keep an eye out.” He climbed in beside Daniel and the truck rumbled away.
Eve stared down at the dog track. Despite the heat of the Texas sun beating its late morning rays through the breaks in the clouds, goose bumps rose on her arms.
She shook back her concerns and took off for the house and the mountains of work awaiting her.
On the porch, she gathered Joey in her arms and hugged him close, inhaling his little-boy scent of dust and baby shampoo.
As she reached for the doorknob, the roar of an engine drew her attention back to the driveway, and she glanced up, half hoping Mac and his foreman had forgotten something. Instead of a truck, a shiny black Lexus pulled into the yard.
A man dressed in a gray suit stepped out of the car, brushing the fabric of his jacket smooth of wrinkles. Although of similar height and build to Mac McGuire, this man was strikingly handsome in a polished way, unlike Mac’s rough exterior. His pale blue-gray eyes shown beneath sooty black brows and hair sprinkled with gray. Yet, despite the gray, he appeared to be about thirty.
He smiled, his grin engaging. He looked every bit the confident and successful businessman. “Ms. Baxter?”
“That’s me.” Eve returned his smile.
“Hi, I’m Clint Logan, mayor of Spirit Canyon.” He held out his hand. “Welcome to our little town.”
Eve shifted Joey onto one arm and reached out to shake the mayor’s hand. “Nice to meet you.”
Clint enveloped her hand in both of his and squeezed, holding on longer than necessary for a simple handshake.
Eve shrugged it off as the typical politician. When he finally let go, she rubbed her hand down the side of her jeans and stepped back, inserting a little distance.
With his cheek pressed against her neck, Joey clutched the front of her shirt.
“As the mayor, I like to welcome new members of our community. I make it a habit to get to know all my constituents on a personal basis.”
Eve’s mouth quirked up on one side. “In a town the size of Spirit Canyon, that can’t be too hard.”
“True.” Clint chuckled. “I hear you’re helping with the Harvest Festival preparations. Did Addie strong-arm you into it?”
Defensive of her new friend, Eve hurried to reassure him, “No, no. I’m looking forward to helping. Addie said it would be an opportunity to meet some of the other people in the county.”
“I’m sure a pretty lady like you won’t have any problems meeting people. Folks love newcomers. Shoot, they welcomed me with open arms not five years ago, fresh out of law school.”
“So, you’re not a native of Spirit Canyon?” Eve asked.
“No, unfortunately. I’m from farther south, down by the border, outside Laredo.”
“That’s very impressive to be elected mayor after living here only five years.”
“I think I got voted in because no one else wanted the job,” he said with a wry grin.
Eve smiled. Clint was charming and good to look at. A very polished businessman. Quite a contrast to Mac McGuire.
“What are your plans, now that you’re here?” he asked her. “Do you need a job?”
“No.” She waved a hand toward the two-story house with the sagging porch. “I’m hoping to turn the old house into a bed and breakfast.”
“That’s wonderful.” Clint clapped his hands together. “The town could use a new bed and breakfast. Why don’t we discuss your business plans over dinner? Perhaps I can give you some pointers, maybe even some legal advice on how to get started.”
Eve hadn’t expected a dinner invitation and she stammered a reply, “Thanks, b-but, I can’t.”
“Can’t?” Clint’s eyebrows rose.
Eve hurried to clarify her refusal. “I have so much to do to get the house in order so that I can open by Christmas.”
“Surely you can spare some time to eat a bite?”
“Maybe another time.” She wasn’t sure she really meant it, but at least it bought her time to think about his offer. She could use the legal advice, but she’d rather not be in a one-on-one situation with a man.
Then why did her mind instantly recall that little intimate jolt of electricity she’d experienced the day before with Mac? She shook aside the memory and smiled at the mayor. “Thanks, anyway.”
“If you decide differently, I’m in the office building two doors down from the General Store.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” she said aloud. And avoid it, she added silently. Now was not the time to complicate her life.
Clint smiled again, climbed into his Lexus and rolled the window down. “Nice to meet you, Eve.”
“Uh, Mayor Logan?” She walked toward his car.
“Ma’am?”
“Are wolves native to this part of Texas?”
His brows rose and he tipped his head to the side. “We don’t get a whole lot of them this far south. We have been known to have coyotes around here, though. Why?”
“Just curious. What with all the problems the ranchers are having.”
“I wouldn’t worry about it. You’re in town. Most animals won’t come near a town. Now, if there’s anything I can do for you, don’t hesitate to ask.”
“Thanks.” Eve forced a smile and waved. Clint’s answer to her question hadn’t made her any less nervous. With Mac telling her to keep an eye out and Clint saying not to worry, she leaned toward the more cautious advice. That creepy howl still plagued her memory. She’d sure like to know what it was.
THE STEADY CLIP-CLOP of horses’ hooves provided background noise in an otherwise still environment. Mac and Daniel had ridden over two hours, combing the four-hundred-acre ranch and finding nothing. They’d started by heading east away from town, dodging through brush, scrub cedar and live oaks. Molly had padded alongside Mac the entire way, keeping the pace set by the horses.
When the eastern side of the property hadn’t turned up a goat or a rift in the fence, they headed west.
Each time the horses’ hooves touched the ground, dust rose like a puff of smoke. A whirling gust of wind lifted the powdery soil and twisted it around the horse and rider, reminding Mac of another sandy day back in Iraq.
They’d been hunting the men responsible for the attacks on occupying American troops.
Mac inhaled deeply. The dust stung his lungs, but not like it had in Iraq. Too many times he had to inform himself he was in Texas. He was home. Thank God for Daniel. The only family Mac had left.
When he’d joined the Army, he’d found a family in his troops. Only to have them ripped away in an ambush. The same ambush in which he was hit in the leg and the forehead, knocked out cold and left to die. But fate had played a cruel trick. He’d woken up just as another convoy of American troops happened on the ambushed soldiers. As the soul survivor, he was destined to watch the cleanup of the dead young men—his men—who were little more than children themselves.
The medics had doped him up with painkillers and packed him off to a medical staging facility. They’d evacuated him from the country without giving him a choice. He’d wanted to stay and continue the fight.
At the Fort Bragg hospital, the doctors told him his knee was wrecked from the shrapnel. He’d never see battle again.
Several months had passed since he’d come home to the ranch, but Mac’s memories were no less vivid.
Clouds hung low, pregnant with rain, yet holding back as if waiting for a signal from God to let loose. Mac was glad the rain held off. Two hours in the saddle was hard enough without the added aggravation of sliding in mud. He had a nervous feeling that had nothing to do with being on horseback for so long.
The feeling had a hell of a lot to do with one red-haired, green-eyed woman on the other side of the ridge in front of him.
His land bordered the edge of town. The last house on Main Street, Eve’s house, was located next to the property line. He couldn’t see it from where he rode, but he knew it was there. Eve and Joey were probably at home.
Mac and Daniel had ridden separately, but within shouting distance, for most of the search. As Mac neared the hill blocking his view of Spirit Canyon, Daniel joined him.
“Anything?” Daniel asked, reining in his horse beside Mac’s.
“No.” Mac scanned the countryside around them, searching the brown and green brush for the white goat.
The horses plodded along steadily, the tattoo of their hooves a soothing rhythm to Mac’s heightened senses.
“It just doesn’t add up.” He stared out across the brush land.
“What?”
“Leider lost a couple lambs less than a week ago. Huckabee’s missing a two-month-old Hereford calf. You’d think they’d at least find the carcasses.”
“Yeah. Kinda hard to lose an entire calf without finding a carcass.” Dan removed his straw hat and combed his fingers through his hair. “At least with a body, you have half a chance of figuring out what ate it. Hard to protect your livestock when you don’t know what’s stalking them.”
“We lose the young all the time. But we’re looking for a full-grown goat. You’d think we’d have found her by now.”
“Don’t look now, but I think we have.” Daniel nodded ahead.
Molly bounded to a spot a few hundred yards in front of them, barking wildly, scattering a half-dozen buzzards clustered on the ground. She sniffed the pile of skin and bones, and then tipped her nose skyward and howled, a long, eerie sound, shattering the stillness of the day.
The clumsy birds flapped their wings, heaving themselves from the ground into the air. Once aloft, they rose gracefully to circle and wait for the humans to move on.
With a sharp tug on his reins, Mac stopped his horse several feet from the picked-over carcass and swung to the ground. The smell of blood and dust assailed his senses, rendering useless his ability to block the memories of other bloody bodies strewn in the sandy streets of Fallujah. Mac’s gut clenched and churned, lifting the bile to his throat.
“What a waste.” Daniel’s words cut through Mac’s thoughts. “She was a good producer.”
With the toe of his boot, Mac nudged at something in the dirt. It was a yellow plastic ear tag with the number twenty-one on it. Mac studied the rocky ground around the goat, but the birds had disturbed any loose dirt. He couldn’t discern animal prints in the dust.
“What do you suppose got her?” Daniel asked.
Mac shook his head and widened his search in a growing circle. Nothing. Not a footprint, pawprint, disturbed grass or droppings from anything other than the greedy birds and Molly.
“I heard Mr. Largey say they’d seen a cougar around these parts last year,” Daniel said as he scanned the surrounding hills. “I hadn’t heard any more about it this year. I know they can have a pretty wide range.”
“You think a cougar did this?” Mac asked.
“Who knows? Could be anything. Been a rumor about some kind of cult in the county sacrificing animals and all. Suppose they got hold of her?”
“No.” Mac shook his head. “An animal did this.” Maybe a cougar. His gut clenched. Or maybe a dog. A big dog.
With her nose to the ground, Molly trotted away from the carcass.
Mac followed the dog until they reached the crest of the hill overlooking the little town. Molly paused and stared down the steep incline. Then she looked back at him and whined.
Spirit Canyon sprawled quietly in the meager, late-afternoon light, a few cars ambling along Main Street toward the Community Center. Addie had mentioned something about today being the annual Harvest Festival planning committee meeting. Should be a lot of people crowded into the Community Center. Mac could see Eve’s house, the old tire swing hanging from a tree in the backyard.
“Damn.” Mac frowned.
“Did you find anything?” Daniel joined Mac and followed his gaze. “Damn.”
“No kidding.”
Daniel shook his head. “Awful close to town.”
“Yeah.”
“You don’t suppose whatever animal did this would attack during the daylight?”
“Most predatory animals are nocturnal,” Mac said. But he knew animals with rabies would attack day or night.
A movement caught his eye. Eve and Joey left the house and were walking down the street toward the Community Center.
“Whatever it was took out a pretty big goat. Almost as big as a man,” Daniel said.
Definitely larger than a child Joey’s size.
Mac looped the reins over the saddle horn and swung up into the seat. “Better warn the neighbors.”
Chapter Three
Exhausted from a full day of scrubbing floors and windows, Eve hung up her cleaning rag. With Joey in tow, she left the house and walked to the Community Center, only four blocks away.
With her head tilted toward the troubled sky, Eve ignored the oppressive cloud cover and let the ambiance of the small Texas town wash over her. What a wonderful feeling to be in a place where she could walk anywhere she wanted or needed to go. To belong to a community where she could get to know everyone on a first-name basis. How different from Houston where she didn’t even know her next-door neighbor.
Yet, after the discovery of animal prints in her front yard, she wasn’t foolhardy enough to go without some protection. She tapped the end of the long walking stick on the ground with each right footstep. If something were to attack her, she’d come out swinging with enough ferocity to scare it back into the hills.
Halfway to the Community Center, she passed a five-foot-tall wooden fence. Behind it, an animal sniffed the base as they walked by. A gap at her level revealed a large black and tan rottweiler. Eve didn’t make a big deal about it, afraid Joey would freak out if he suspected a dog lurked behind the wooden slats.
Still, she couldn’t help wondering if this dog had left the pawprints in her yard, assuming the owners let him loose. She’d ask Addie.
Before reaching the door to the concrete block building painted the color of white limestone, she could hear the hum of voices from within. Excitement and nerves tweaked her stomach.
Joey dropped her hand and hooked his arm around her knee.
With a pat to her son’s head and a deep breath, Eve pushed through the screen door and stepped into the crowded building. She scanned the room for a familiar face and was about to give up when she spotted Addie.
The older woman smiled and waved. “Howdy, neighbor!” Addie weaved through the men and women to reach Eve’s side. “Glad you decided to join us.”
“I’m not so sure this was a good idea.” Eve tipped her head toward Joey.
“Give it a chance.” Addie patted her arm and drew her farther into the large room.
Walking was difficult with Joey clinging to her leg, but she managed to maneuver to the back of the building near a large serving counter. Men and women stood or sat in the available chairs, smiling and chatting in the way old friends do.
Like an outsider looking in, Eve wondered if she’d ever be this comfortable with the locals. She hadn’t grown up here, why should they accept her? Her mother and stepfather had moved every three or four years while Eve was growing up. She’d never felt like she belonged anywhere.
The same young man she’d seen yesterday in the General Store sat on the counter with the same teenage girl trapped between his knees. Today, he wore a muscle shirt exposing his broad shoulders. Tattooed on one was the face of a fanged wolf.
Eve fought a shiver. The guy was just creepy.
Without slowing her pace, Addie said, “Get off the counter, Toby Rice.”
Toby sneered. “You gonna make me?”
She tucked in her chin and glared up at him with a “don’t mess with me” look. Then her attention turned to the teenage girl. “Your daddy know who you’re hangin’ out with, Cynthia?”
“Yes, ma’am.” Cynthia smiled back at her.
Eve was surprised at the contrast between the insolent bulk of a young man and the slip of a sandy blond-haired girl who couldn’t be more than sixteen.
“Man ought to have his head examined.” Addie planted a fist on her hip and stared up at Toby. “You gettin’ off that counter or am I gonna have to have the sheriff remove you?”
“Ooo. I’m so scared.” Toby shot her a narrow-eyed look, his voice dripping sarcasm.
“Good thing your mother ain’t alive to see how rude her boy turned out.” Addie shook her head. “That woman was a saint. She didn’t deserve the likes of a bad-tempered, bad-mouthed, snot-nosed punk like you.”
Toby shoved Cynthia away and hopped off the counter to stand toe to toe with Addie Schultz. “Don’t you say nothing about my mother, you hear me?”
To her credit, Addie showed no fear, even though the big guy could have snapped her neck with one hand. “Grow up, Toby.”
“You’ll regret messin’ with me,” Toby rumbled in a low, menacing voice.
Cynthia stood to the side, her forehead creased in a frown, her hands clenched together. Toby grabbed her arm and jerked her toward the door. “Come on. This place sucks.”
“But I wanted to see Aunt Lois,” Cynthia said, her voice sounding soft and slightly apologetic.
“Forget it. We’ve got plans.” Toby jerked her arm again.
Cynthia leaned away. “I don’t want to go. Why don’t you go without me?” She twisted her arm, trying to loosen his hold.
“No way. You’re expected to be there with me. You’re going.” His hand squeezed tighter until Cynthia winced.
Tired of Toby’s bullying, Eve stepped forward. “She said she didn’t want to go with you. Perhaps you should let go of her arm, Mr. Rice.”
The young man towered over Eve and snarled. “Who are you, anyway? And who made you the law?”
She refused to be intimidated. “Eve Baxter, and no one made me the law. But you should treat her with respect, not like some piece of meat to jerk around.”
“She’s my girl. I treat her any way I want.”
Addie crossed her arms over her bosom. “Not if she don’t want it and not with me around.”
“Don’t piss me off.” Toby warned, his eyes tapering to a squint.
Eve and Addie stood their ground, refusing to back down.
Toby glanced from one woman to the other, and then snorted, turning toward the door. “Had enough of this place.” When he passed Cynthia, he shot over his shoulder, “You comin’ or not?”
Cynthia frowned at Toby’s back and then shrugged at Eve and Addie, her gaze cast down. “I’m coming.” Before another word was spoken, the two disappeared out the door.
Addie clucked her tongue. “I don’t know what a sweet girl sees in that good-fer-nothin’. I’ve a good mind to talk to her daddy.” Then she shook her head. “Never mind him.”
She took Eve’s hand and led her over to a couple closer to Eve’s age. At their feet, a girl about the same size as Joey played with a plastic bag full of rocks.
“Tom, Laura and Katie Taylor, this is Eve and Joey Baxter. They just moved to Spirit Canyon.” Addie turned to Eve. “Tom and Laura moved from Amarillo last January.”
The little girl shoved chubby hands toward Joey. “See my fossil?” In her palms was a chalky white rock the size of Eve’s fist.
Joey stared at the rock and then up at Eve.
Eve held her breath, hope rising like adrenaline in her system. She prayed Joey wouldn’t shy away from this attempt at friendship.
“Don’t you like fossils?” Katie tipped her curly blond head to the side.
Joey nodded but didn’t let go of Eve’s leg. At least he hadn’t hidden behind her.
“Here, you can have this one,” Katie said. When Joey still didn’t move, she set the rock on the floor and dug in her bag for another.
The boy sat on the floor and reached for the rock and held it in his hands.
“I got ’nother one. See?” Katie held out her hand.
This time, Joey took the rock.
Katie stared up at the scar on Joey’s face. “You got a booboo.” She went to Joey and pressed a kiss to his forehead. “I kiss it better.”
Joey didn’t shrink back. He scooted closer to Katie’s bag of rocks.
Eve straightened and smiled at Tom and Laura. “Nice to meet you,” she said, and meant it. Addie was right, Joey needed other children to remind him how to act like the child he was.
“It’s hard moving to a new place and starting over. I imagine it’s even harder when you’re a single parent.” Laura squeezed her husband’s hand.
Tom laughed. “I’m beginning to wonder if we picked the wrong year to come. What with the drought, we’ll be lucky if we can pay back our loans at the end of growing season.”
When a familiar voice spoke in a low, rumbling tone to a group of folks behind Eve, every hair on the back of her neck rose in salute. Without looking in that direction, she could sense Mac had entered the Community Center. She couldn’t resist easing her head around, just enough to see him through the corner of her eye.
Just like the day before, Mac stood with his hat shading his face from the overhead lights. He moved through the crowd, stopping to shake hands with fellow ranchers.
Heart rate speeding up, Eve turned to Addie, hoping her face would cool by the time Mac reached the back of the store.
“So, Eve, are you up for a little meddling from all your new neighbors?” Addie winked at Eve. “Most folks around here see a single female as a challenge.”
Eve shook the man out of her head and concentrated on what Addie was saying. “What kind of challenge?”
“We’re still in the old-fashioned mind-set. A woman can’t possibly be happy unless she’s married.”
Eve’s stomach knotted. “Been there, done that, got the scars and the divorce decree to prove it.”
“I’m sorry to hear that. It must have been hard.” Laura leaned into her husband. “Not every marriage ends in divorce, though. Right, sweetie?”
Tom squinted, a smile toying with the corner of his mouth. “Is this the place where I’m supposed to answer ‘Yes, dear’?”
Laura dug an elbow into his ribs, but Tom pulled her close for a loud, smacking kiss.
Eve smiled. She wished she’d had such a relationship with her husband. But he’d been more interested in himself and his dogs than her and Joey.
“I take it you’re not on the market?” Laura asked Eve. “Officially or unofficially?”
Eve blushed. “Unofficially. I’m not interested in dating right now.”
“What a shame. And I’d hoped to convince you otherwise.” Warm hands gripped her shoulders to turn her around.
Eve stared up into Clint Logan’s blue-gray eyes. “Like I said, I’m not interested.”
“I can be very persuasive. Am I right?” He winked at Addie.
Eve shook her head. “I have Joey to consider.”
“And why would your dating be a problem for Joey?” Clint asked.
“I’m not in the marriage market and I won’t force a stepfather on Joey,” she said.
Addie tipped her head to the side. “Don’t you think a boy needs a man in his life?”
Years of heartache surfaced, blocking Eve’s throat. All the times she’d tried to do just as her stepfather wanted in order to gain his respect and love. As she had in the past, she swallowed her disappointment. “Not always. Depends on the man.”
Joey jumped up from the floor and raced past Eve.
“Hi, Joey, whatcha’ got?” Deep tones rumbled immediately behind her.
Tingly surges raced across her nerve endings. That voice could only belong to Mac.
Eve turned as Joey launched himself into Mac’s arms and waved his rock beneath the cowboy’s nose. The two looked as though they belonged together, like father and son. How she wished Joey could have had a father like Mac. But Mac could never be his father; the best he could be was a stepfather. And Eve wasn’t going there.
“I don’t see anything wrong with a son being raised by his mother.” Clint stepped closer to Eve and laid a hand on her shoulder. “A mother loves and protects her children. She stands by them and defends them no matter what.”
Mac’s head jerked up at the words. His jaw tightened and his brows dipped slightly.
“Did I say something wrong?” Clint shrugged his shoulders.
But Mac only stared hard into Clint’s eyes and then broke the visual contact to look down at Joey. “I like your rock, Joey. Keep your eyes open, and you’ll find lots of sea fossils in the hill country.” Mac set the child on his feet, tipped his hat at Addie and strode over to a group of men.
Addie shook her head at Clint. “Wish you hadn’t said that to Mac.”
“Am I missing something?” The mayor gazed after Mac, an apologetic frown creasing his brows.
“No. You’re not missing anything. Why don’t you go do your politicking with the ranchers?” Addie pushed Clint away from the little group. “Go on, shoo!”
“Okay,” he said, moving away. He glanced back at Eve and smiled. “But I still want to take you to dinner, Eve.”
“Thanks for the offer, but I’m—”
“I know. Not interested.” Clint nodded. “I’m patient, I can wait.”
MAC HALF LISTENED to the local ranchers and businessmen discussing plans for the Harvest Festival. He’d never been one to join in the planning, choosing to help out when the time came to build booths and make repairs to the community building where the dance would be held.
Out of the corner of his eye, he watched Eve smiling and talking with Tom and Laura. Her laughter floated to him, hitting him in the gut. Mac turned away before he started thinking of something as ridiculous as white picket fences and a yard filled with children remarkably similar to Joey.
When talk about the festival tapered off, Mac brought up the topic he’d come here to discuss in the first place. “I found one of our breeder goats just over the hill from town.” Everyone within hearing distance turned toward him. “Wasn’t much left for the buzzards.”
“That’s too bad, Mac.” Bernie Odom looked up from playing checkers with Hank Bleumfeld. “Have anything to do with the drought?” he asked.
“No.” Mac glanced down at his hat and back up to Bernie. “Looked like an animal attack.”
“Any idea what?” Sheriff Hodges twirled an unlit cigarette in his fingers but didn’t light up. He’d told Mac he was in the second week of his campaign to quit smoking after thirty years in the habit. “We’ve had several reports come in about missing animals in the area. Might be a pattern.”
Mac shook his head. “Too dry for tracks. But whatever it was had to be big enough to take down a goat weighing more than a hundred pounds.”
“I’m missing a lamb, haven’t seen her since the day before yesterday,” Tom said. “Thought maybe its mother wasn’t feeding and left it laying somewhere out in the brush. I looked, but didn’t find a carcass. Not even any buzzards.”
“I lost a calf last week,” Bernie Odom said. “I found it, but the buzzards had taken care of the remains. Didn’t think much of it at the time. You tend to lose the small ones for one reason or another. Especially as dry as it is out here. But a breeder is an entirely different story.”
“Kinda reminds me of way back when we had the big drought some thirty years ago. Animals kept disappearing all mysterious like,” Bernie mused. “Think it ended up being a wolf. Isn’t that right, Hank?”
Hank’s hand hesitated over a game piece, and he glanced over at Art Nantan, the feed-store owner. “That’s right. Got quite a few lambs, goats and a couple calves.”
“Took one of my prize Merino lambs that year my breeder came in first at the state fair,” Art said and shrugged. “Happens when you’re in ranching. Thank God I’m not ranching anymore.”
“Nor are a lot of us,” Jack Adams grumbled. “If it weren’t for droughts and the animals dying, the big farming and ranching conglomerates were going to put us out of business eventually. Sure miss the old place, though.”
“What are you complaining about?” Art asked. “You telling me you don’t want to work at the feed store?”
“No, no,” Jack said. “You know I appreciate havin’ the work. I just hated losing land that had been in my family for a century.”
“Probably better off. Those of us who’ve managed to hold out are barely makin’ ends meet.” Hank scratched his head and shrugged. “The drought ain’t helpin’, and if there’s something out there pickin’ off the livestock, won’t be a lot to show at the market next year.”
“Yeah. Guess I’ll have to bring in the lambs and goat kids at night,” Tom said.
“You gonna bring in the breeders, too?” Bernie pulled a round can from his back pocket, pinched a wad of tobacco and shoved it just inside his mouth between his bottom teeth and gums. When he’d pushed it into place, he spoke over the lump behind his lip. “Can’t figure. Haven’t seen wolves in these parts since that last time. Maybe it’s just a coyote.”
“Maybe. Wolves don’t normally come this far south.” Hank studied the game board. “You gonna play or flap your gums?”
Ignoring his partner, Bernie nodded toward Mac. “That last time was bad because Jenny McGuire was attacked by the critter. That’s how come we know’d it was a wolf.”
Mac’s stomach tightened. He didn’t want to hear the story he’d heard all his life. It always ended the same.
“She’d been Homecoming Queen the year she graduated high school. I remember. I was captain of the football team, so I got to escort her down the aisle at the coronation.” Sheriff Hodges stared at a corner of the room as if seeing into the past. “She was the most beautiful girl in the county, with all that long, black hair and those blue eyes. A guy could see all the way to China in ’em.”
“She was a pretty little thang, until that wolf got hold of her,” Bernie said, concentrating on the checkers.
Mac almost turned to leave when he noticed that Eve, Laura and Addie had joined the group.
“She never was the same after that.” Bernie chewed on his tobacco. “Left town a few months later. Mac was too young to remember most of it. Ain’t that right, Mac?”
Not young enough to forget, Mac thought. His mother had left her husband behind to pick up the pieces. Mac’s only response to Bernie’s question was tightened lips. The pain and anger had long since evolved into a dull ache that never seemed to go away. Even after thirty years. “Point is,” Mac said, interrupting Bernie’s story, “whatever got that goat did it over the past two days, not thirty years ago.”
“Think whatever done it might still be out there?” Addie asked.
“Yes, ma’am.” Mac inhaled deeply and let it out. He hadn’t realized how tense he’d gotten. “Although predators come out mostly at night, it doesn’t hurt to keep an eye on the little ones.” His glance rested on Joey and Katie where they sat on the floor just beyond the group of adults, sifting through the collection of fossils. Here in the Community Center they could play happily, oblivious to the danger that lurked near town. Outside the limestone block walls, who knew?
Eve’s voice pulled him back. “You don’t think Joey’s in danger from whatever killed the goat, do you?” Her words wobbled and her face paled.
“It doesn’t hurt to be overly cautious. Keep an eye on him and don’t let him wander far from the house.”
“Speak of the little devil, looks like someone’s getting tired.” Addie nodded toward Joey.
He set the rock he’d been holding on the ground and stood, rubbing bunched fists into his eyes.
“Come on, Joey, we should go.” Eve smiled at Tom and Laura. “It was really nice meeting you. Let me know what I can do to help with the Harvest Festival.”
Mac found himself envious of that smile. Would she ever turn to him with such a smile? Did he really want her to? She’d pretty well stated her stance on relationships. She wasn’t interested in another man in her life. Not that he was the one for her. His mother had left him and he’d watched as his father died of a broken heart. Not to mention, Mac had failed his men in combat. How could he possibly add any value to Eve’s life?
Joey walked out the door ahead of Eve.
“Joey, wait a minute.” Mac moved to snatch Joey up in his arms.
Mac’s chestnut horse stood next to the curb tied to a lamppost. Molly lay on the ground next to the big beast, her stumpy tail flicking side to side.
Eve eased up beside Mac, a questioning expression on her face until she spied the horse and dog.
Joey buried his face in Mac’s black T-shirt, his hands clutching the fabric, turning his knuckles white.
“It’s okay, Joey,” Mac said in a low, steady tone, coaxing the little boy to look up. “Molly won’t hurt you. Watch how her backside wiggles when she’s excited. That means she likes you.”
Joey peeked through one eye at the dog. The Australian shepherd wagged her stump and spun around in a circle.
“Molly’s special,” Mac continued, his voice smooth and calming. “She takes care of our little animals. She’s like a babysitter. When a baby goat or lamb loses its mother, Molly takes care of them. And she’s different than most dogs. If you look close, she has one blue eye and one brown.”
Turning his face more so he could see the animal with both eyes, Joey stared down at the dog dancing in the light from the lamppost.
While Mac held Joey, Eve stepped closer. He could smell her subtle fragrance between the few inches separating them. When his body tightened in response to her nearness, he shifted away.
Molly stopped dancing and sat, her ears perked, tongue lolling. The animal’s long coat was a mix of black, brown, silver and white smeared and spotted in a unique pattern.
The odd-colored eyes made some people think she was strange and maybe dangerous. But Mac knew there wasn’t a vicious bone in the dog’s body. “She may look mean, but she’d give her life for her family.”
Eve looked up into his eyes. “And family’s important to you, isn’t it?”
Her words shot straight to his gut, reopening old wounds, exposing him to her intense stare. Caring for someone had only left him vulnerable. Before he could think too much about his mother, his father and the troops he’d let down, he raised the shield around his heart. “You better get him home. He’s all done in.”
Even with the dog standing in front of him, Joey was falling asleep in Mac’s arms. His body felt warm and soft. Soft was something Mac couldn’t afford to feel or be.
Without another word, he handed Joey to Eve. “If you’ll wait just a minute, I’ll walk you home.”
“No need,” she said a little too quickly. “I’ll be fine. It’s only a few blocks.”
Apparently, he made her as uncomfortable as she made him. But the thought of her walking alone with some killer animal that close to town made his skin crawl. “Wait here. I’m going to walk you home. But first, I need to make sure Daniel follows me with my mount so I’ll have a way to get back to the ranch.” He tipped his hat and ducked back into the building. He’d walk her home despite his internal warning bells telling him to stay clear of this woman.
EVE DIDN’T WAIT for Mac to return. She could be halfway to her house by the time he rejoined her. Before she’d gone a block, Joey was fast asleep on her shoulder, deadweight in her arms. The rain remained only a promise, for which she was temporarily thankful. But the cloudy skies kept any hint of moonlight from illuminating her path. And, as she was learning was typical of small towns, streetlights were nonexistent.
With care for uneven sidewalks and pavement, she made her way toward her house at the end of Main Street.
When she passed the fence with the rottweiler, the dog followed them along the fence line, sniffing like he had before. Almost at the end of the row of slats, the dog snarled menacingly. Eve held her hand over Joey’s ear to keep him from waking to the sound. When she’d cleared the fence and hurried on, the dog slammed against the boards. His maniacal barking stirred Joey from his sleep.
“It’s okay, Joey, go back to sleep,” she said, picking up the pace to increase the distance between her and the crazed dog.
Then the rottweiler squealed like a scared pup, and quiet resumed.
Eve breathed a sigh of relief, wondering why the dog shut up, but more interested in getting Joey home than finding out.
Two blocks away from the house, she heard a twig snap. She’d been walking on the street to avoid the ups and downs of the sidewalk in the dark. And the street was clear of all sticks and leaves. A shiver shook her body from the base of her neck to the small of her back. Had the dog gotten loose?
Eve spun around, fully expecting to come face-to-face with an angry canine. In the little bit of light from the windows of nearby houses, she could see nothing. No dog, no bogeyman, only deep, menacing shadows. She really needed to get a grip on her overactive imagination.
The story about Mac’s mother must have shaken her more than she cared to admit. That, coupled with Mac’s warning to watch out for Joey, gave her the creeps. He’d said the animal stalking the community’s livestock might be nocturnal. Surely it wouldn’t venture into human territory, like right here on Main Street. She lengthened her stride, just short of a jog. Home never seemed so far.
Another twig snapped and leaves crunched behind her.
Eve stopped dead in her tracks. If there was a wolf or coyote out there, she still had to get to her house. Should she go back to the center and wait for Mac or continue on? If she went back, she’d have to pass in front of the rottweiler. Was the animal still behind the fence? She stomped her foot when she realized she’d left her walking stick back at the Community Center. Not that she could have held it and a sleeping Joey at the same time.
Where Eve stood, the houses lining the street were dark. With no moon and no other lights available, Eve hesitated in the gloom debating her next move.
A low rumbling stirred the air. Too near for thunder and too much like a growl.
Straining her eyes, Eve stared into the shadows, clutching her son tighter. Nothing. No movement, no eyes staring back. Then the rumbling sounded again, deeper and more drawn out.
The second repetition was enough. Eve spun on her heel to race back to the Community Center. But she hadn’t gone two steps when she plowed into a brick wall with sufficient force to jolt Joey awake. Eve sucked in enough breath to fill her lungs twice and opened her mouth to scream.
Chapter Four
Mac staggered back a step to absorb the full impact of Eve, armed with Joey, barreling into his chest. He grabbed Eve’s shoulders to steady her as she stumbled backward.
Her mouth opened, but she looked up into his face and the scream died before it was born. “Oh, thank God.” She collapsed against him.
Squashed between the two adults, Joey whimpered and glanced around, blinking. When he spied Mac, he reached out.
Mac tucked him against his side, holding on with one arm. The other wrapped around Eve’s shoulders and pulled her close.
Beneath his fingers, he could feel tremors shaking her body. He pressed her face to his shoulder, stroking her hair. “It’s okay. Shh. I’ve got you now. Everything will be okay.”
She didn’t pull away, but rested her cheek against his chest, clutching the fabric of his shirt.
Almost as shaky as Eve, Mac willed his heart to slow to a normal pace. When he’d exited the Community Center and she hadn’t been there, he’d had the closest thing to a panic attack he’d ever admit to. The same gut instinct that told him he and his men were walking into a trap hit him with enough force to knock him back a few steps before he could get his feet moving in the right direction. He couldn’t be too late this time. He couldn’t let Eve and Joey down like he had his troops.
When she’d walked right into his arms, all he could do was press his face against her soft hair, inhaling the scent of herbal shampoo. She smelled like spring, a sharp contrast to the dry, sandy heat of Fallujah. Thank God she was all right.
As soon as his heart returned to normal, his protective instinct warred with past experience. What right did he have to hold this woman and promise her things would be fine? Though he’d found her unscathed, hadn’t he proven he couldn’t take care of those he loved?
Without opening his eyes, Joey nestled his face into Mac’s neck and fell asleep, his head tucked beneath Mac’s chin.
Eventually Eve stopped shaking and rested in the circle of his arm. She lifted her face and smiled, her bottom lip trembling. “I’m sorry. It’s just…” She stared down at her fingers knotted in his shirt. A moment later she released her grip and stepped back. “The stories, your warning… I don’t know. I started hearing things and the next thing you know, I’m running back the way I came.”
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