Chapter 10 Calling All Citizens

The fact that the mayor and Gil would likely both be fired over tonight’s travesty wouldn’t come close to righting all the wrongs that had been done to Gil’s beloved hometown. Losing his job was the least of his worries. If Bliss couldn’t be located soon, nothing else mattered. His life would be over.

He was reeling with shock and disbelief as he called an emergency meeting of key personnel. Heart Lake deputies, business owners, tribal council members, the rez PD, and K-9 search and rescue teams from both communities piled into the massive lobby in Town Hall.

Gil took his place behind the podium, knowing it might very well be his last official act before submitting his resignation. He had to clear his throat several times before he could speak. He bent his head a few inches to reach the microphone. “Thank you for answering our call for assistance.” He and his staff, along with the mayor and her staff, had reached out to everybody they could think of who might prove helpful in the manhunt about to get underway.

“As of this moment,” he continued, “I am reassuming my duties as sheriff and relinquishing Luke Hawling from his service as acting sheriff. I take full responsibility for everything that has happened this evening and everything that will play out over the next several hours and days.” It might not be enough to save Luke’s bid for election, but Gil was going to try his level best to take the fall for him. “May the official records state that Dr. Bliss Hawling disappeared on my watch.” He withdrew his sheriff’s badge from his pocket. For some reason, the pin was missing its back. It must have fallen off at some point.

Eh, well. He lifted it to his chest and used his fist to pound it in with one harsh punch. The most burning question in his mind, other than Bliss’s whereabouts, was why his father-in-law and his accomplices had gone to such lengths to orchestrate Bliss’s kidnapping on the heels of trying to end her life. Twice. It didn’t fit. He was missing something. Something big. Whatever it was, though, would have to wait.

“Here’s what we know, folks.” As he laid out the facts surrounding Bliss’s disappearance, the doors to Town Hall opened again. Gil paused his presentation to watch one last group of citizens make their way into the room.

A collective gasp rose as Victor Cross stepped across the threshold, and no wonder. For most people present, it was like seeing a ghost. He was dressed in solid black, with one exception. The Inferno motorcycle gang logo was emblazoned across his chest. A few years back, most of his gang had been rounded up and sent to jail. He’d supposedly died during the roundup. Gil was one of the few people who knew the truth — that he was still alive due to a plea bargain following three years in solitary confinement, after which he’d been released into witness protection.

His motorcycle gang had long since been disbanded. Until this very moment, the rumors that the Inferno would ride again had been just that. Rumors. Though Gil had personally issued the summons, he still hadn’t been sure if Victor would bother showing up. He was risking a lot to do so.

However, Gil was too desperate to be cautious this evening. Time was too short, and his police department was too small. They couldn’t do what needed to be done. Not alone. It was going to require all hands on deck.

He bent his head to speak into the microphone again. “Bliss Hawling is the love of my life.” His voice broke. “And I’m going to need the help of everyone present to bring her home.” Tears blurred his vision and scalded his cheeks. He let them fall unchecked. “Everyone,” he repeated gruffly. “We need every capable person searching every inch of Heart Lake, the rez, the foothills, and the mountains beyond them. We have roadblocks on each road leading out of town, but it won’t be enough. We have reason to believe we’re looking for an extended cargo van. Possibly black. Or white. We suspect we’re dealing with removable paint, since the van seems to have the ability to chance colors and vanish at will into thin air.”

More gasps met his words.

“The century-old bodies of Iris and Jesse Hawling were driven away from the entrance of Town Hall in a black hearse, while Dr. Bliss Hawling was allegedly carried away from the rear entrance of Town Hall in the color-changing van. It’s possible she was taken in a black casket similar to the ones that contained the other bodies. So you see…” He paused to clear his throat again. “Time is not on our side.” It never was in situations like these. “We need your help and your prayers.” He raised his brimming gaze to meet that of Victor Cross.

The former motorcycle gang leader was standing against the far wall. “I’m also asking — no, I’m begging — for the Inferno to ride again, this time on the right side of the law.” He gripped the microphone with both hands. “Let’s bring Bliss home. Please.” Inclining his head, he backed away from the podium

The two K-9 units took over from there, dividing the room into groups. Victor and his riders ignored their attempts at being included. With a hard, questioning look in Gil’s direction, Victor stalked out the door. The rest of the Inferno riders followed him.

Gil strode after them. In the parking lot, most of the riders hopped on their bikes. However, they sat there, waiting.

Victor kept walking until he was well away from earshot of anyone who might be lingering by the entrance doors of Town Hall.

Gil caught up to him. “What do you want from me?” He was willing to do whatever it took to secure the man’s assistance. Anything legal, that is. He’d hand over every cent he had, if necessary.

“Is Bliss Hawling the heir?” Victor demanded.

Gil met his gaze. “It doesn’t matter.”

“Is she?” Victor pressed, unsmiling.

“Yes.”

“Good, because here’s what I’m gonna need from you guys.” Victor angled his head at his fellow riders. There were an even dozen of them. “New IDs, passports, and cash. Enough to get four of these guys out of the country. Maybe five. They’ll never survive once word gets out that they’ve shown their faces in public tonight. Like me, they were supposed to be dead.”

“Done.” Gil had a few favors left to call in. He could only pray it would be enough. “What about you?”

Victor shrugged. “I’m married now. I’m not going anywhere.”

“Vic,” Gil sighed, glancing away.

“I already have another name and another life, and it’s here. You know that. I’ll go back to hiding in plain sight just as soon as we bring Bliss home, you hear?”

Gil reached out to clasp Victor’s shoulder. “I don’t know how to thank you.”

“I’m happy to help.” Victor clasped Gil’s shoulder in return. “I owe you my life, man.”

Gil nodded at him. “This will make us even.”

“You bet your boots it will!” A flash of the old Victor glinted in the former motorcycle gang leader’s eyes. “Now, let’s ride.”

Gil started to spin toward the line of police cruisers idling beside Town Hall, but Victor stopped him. “This way, sheriff. We brought a bike along for you.”

By bike, he was referring to a glossy black Harley Davidson Road King Classic one of the younger guys was rolling their way. It had a black passenger pillion mounted behind the black touring seat.

Victor pointed at the extra seat. “For your woman.” An extra helmet was clipped to the backrest.

“I like your faith.” Gil’s voice was gruff with emotion as he reached for the handlebars of the Road King. He nodded his thanks to the guy who’d brought it to him. Slinging a leg over the seat, he donned the helmet dangling from the right handlebar.

“It’s more than faith, sheriff.” Victor raised his voice to be heard above the rumble. “Caleb Whitaker reached out to me about an hour ago. Right after he heard Bliss had gone missing. He was hoping I knew something about an old woman and a service dog his wife saw getting into a van at the post office a few days ago. Van was red at the time. Driver stayed out of sight. Something tells me it’s the same van you’re looking for, and I just happen to know where the old woman and her dog are staying.” Victor beckoned him to the front of the line of motorcycles forming up. “You’re up with me, sheriff.” He mounted his bike and gave it a rev loud enough to shake the distant mountains.

Don’t mind if I do. Gil gunned the motor of the Road King and popped a short wheelie as he joined Victor up front. A thrill of hope shot through him as the machine growled beneath him like a wild beast.

Victor suddenly threw his hand into the air. “Let’s ri-i-ide!” The sound of their engines grew to a menacing roar as they took off. The Inferno circled the parking lot in Town Hall, showboating a little in front of Gil’s deputies. The K-9 dogs pulled at their leashes, growling and barking ferociously at the motorcycles.

As Gil passed by Luke, he reached up to claw his sheriff’s badge off his chest. He tossed it to the police sergeant and rendered him a salute to let him know he was in charge of the operation again. Sorry, Luke. He’d text him an update as soon as he could. In the meantime, he and the Inferno were going off script.

Bliss gasped her way into wakefulness. Where am I? She could see nothing. Not even her hands in front of her face. She was moving, though. That much was obvious. She could feel the vibration of a moving vehicle beneath her.

Her elbows bumped into something soft. She felt around, trying to make sense of the padding surrounding her. A pillow was wedged beneath her head.

A pillow? She pushed against the top of the compartment and discovered it was padded, too. No matter how hard she pushed, it didn’t budge.

“Help!” She pummeled her fists against it, but they barely made any sound against the soft padding. “Help,” she hollered again. “Somebody! Anybody? I’m stuck in here!” She continued to shove at the walls on either side of her, but the results were the same. She was trapped inside her padded prison.

She frenziedly replayed everything she could remember leading up to this moment. Her dinner date with Gil. Their drive back to Town Hall. Her interview with the group of reporters. The voice that had called to her afterward. The man, who’d been waiting for her just inside the conference room. Beside a casket. With a cloth that he’d swiftly pressed over her mouth and nose.

Her memory stopped there, making her insides tremble.

I’m in a casket. A casket!

She had no idea why. She didn’t recognize the man who’d put her there. The only thing she could fathom was that someone had figured out she was the rightful heiress to the Hildebrand-Hawling fortune. She wasn’t sure how. She’d been so careful. There was no record of the blood test she’d taken. She’d erased it from the system.

Her breath came in short gasps, as a full-blown panic attack overtook her. That’s when her most immediate problem manifested itself. She was running out of air.

She nearly passed out on the spot. Her lips started to move. Though no sound came out, her lips formed the words of an old Psalm. It was one that her aunt had taught her when she was a child afraid of the dark.

“When I am afraid, I put my trust in You, Lord.” Saying it gave her a tiny sliver of comfort. “When I am afraid,” she repeated, “I put my trust in You.”

Another scripture popped into her head. It was even more fitting for someone stuck inside a casket. “If I ascend to heaven, You are there. If I make my bed in the grave, You are there.”

She shuddered, liking the first verse infinitely better. “When I am afraid,” she chanted inside her head as it became increasingly harder to breathe, “You are there.” Her thoughts splintered into a more panicked version of the prayer. “I need You to be here, Lord. I need You right now!”

The movement beneath her changed. It became bumpier. Much bumpier. Then she experienced the sensation of being tipped backward. Her head pressed harder against the pillow and the wall behind it.

We’re heading uphill. Since she wasn’t sure how long she’d been unconscious, she could technically be anywhere. In the foothills, the mountains, or even on an airplane. She grew dizzy again at the thought. Please don’t let it be that. Anything but that!

If her captors had stashed her on an airplane, she’d almost certainly never see Gil again.

The movement beneath her abruptly ceased, telling her she was most definitely not on an airplane. Otherwise, she’d be free falling straight out of the sky.

There was a clicking sound. Then a series of tiny lights appeared, round holes that lined one side of the casket. Air holes, maybe?

She leaned closer to the tiny holes. “Help, please! I’m stuck in here!”

“Bliss Hawling.” A sneering male voice that she didn’t recognize made a tsk-tsking sound. “If only my daughter had lived to see this day.”

Your daughter? Her brain froze. Whose daughter?

“You took everything from her,” he snarled. “Her peace, her happiness, her bracelet, and her husband.”

Her insides quaked as her brain numbly pieced his identity. “M-Mr. Brand?” She gasped out his name, fearful she might be trying to reason with someone who’d already snapped. “Can we talk?”

“The time for talk is over. You and that infernal sheriff have gotten in my way for the last time.” She heard a slamming sound, possibly a vehicle door. The light holes disappeared.

Though her fear of running out of air had been temporarily dispelled, new terrors crashed and crawled all over her like ants. Why had Mary Brand’s father kidnapped her? What was he planning next?

She spent the next several minutes drifting hazily in and out of consciousness. Maybe this was nothing more than a bad dream. Maybe she would wake up soon.

Her overwrought brain latched on to every sound she heard. An old woman’s quavering voice. The distant barking of a dog. While lying in solid darkness, she imagined she was listening to the echoes of home. Of days gone by.

The old woman could easily have been her own grandmother, announcing she had a pie in the oven. The dog could’ve been the Boston terrier her aunt had allowed her to have as a pet. Fran Beecher at the police station had agreed to foster him when her aunt had gotten sick. Shortly afterward, Bliss had been forced to leave the dog behind when she’d moved in with her grandparents. That was when the real trouble began. The mockery. The bullying. And Mary Brand.

But there’d been one bright spot in her teenage existence. Gil. Only Gil. Always Gil.

Tears dripped helplessly down the sides of Bliss’s face as she considered the very real possibility she might never see him again.

“Please, God. Just one more time.” She choked out the words. There were so many things she hadn’t gotten around to telling him yet. Knowing him, he’d probably figure out her biggest secret soon — that she was the Hildebrand-Hawling heir. She wasn’t sure why she hadn’t told him yet. She’d wanted to.

But this. The predicament she was currently in was exactly why she’d held off. She’d handled enough rare relics to understand that items of high value always attracted criminals. Fortunes like hers attracted a special breed of them. A very deadly breed, apparently.

Her thoughts dissolved once more into praying. “When I am afraid, I put my trust in You. When I am afraid…”

A distant droning sound caught her ear. It grew louder, much louder, loud enough to reverberate through the vehicle she was lying inside. For one terrifying moment, she was afraid she was on the move again. But, no. There was no movement beneath her. Just a rumbling vibration that continued to grow louder.

Shouts sounded. A dog barked again. A woman hollered something. A gun went off. Then the tiny light holes appeared again.

“Help!” Bliss resumed her pounding on the top and sides of the casket. “Help, please! I’m in here!”

“Bliss?”

She tensed at the sound of Gil’s voice. “Gil!”

“Hold on, Bliss!” Someone pounded on the outside walls of her casket. “Stand back,” Gil warned whoever was standing near him. Another shot sounded. It was much closer this time.

Then a blast of light and air surrounded her. Gil’s face appeared above her. “Bliss! Are you okay, babe?” He reached for her, gathering her against his chest and lifting her from her gruesome bed.

“I am now.” Her voice came out as a croak. Her throat was as dry as sandpaper.

“Water!” Gil barked out the order. “She needs water!”

Moments later, he was tipping her head back and trickling water between her parched lips.

As she drank, her dizziness faded. She glanced around them and saw that they were crouched in the back of a long cargo van. Her gaze returned to him and caught sight of a red stain on the front of his dress shirt. Was it blood?

“Gil!” She traced the dark stain with a finger. “Are you hurt?”

“Never been better.” He leaped out of the van with her and carried her further into the light. “I thought I’d lost you, Bliss.” His face was ravaged. The red rims around his eyes told her he’d been weeping.

She knew without asking that his tears had been for her.

“I’m sorry.” She hardly knew where to begin. “For everything. I should’ve told you about the money.” She’d convinced herself that keeping quiet about it would be the safest route for him and everyone around them. Oh, how wrong she’d been!

“I don’t care about the money.” His voice was rough. “You already made your feelings on the subject clear. Give it to charity or burn it, if you wish. All I want is you. All I’ve ever wanted is you.”

She chuckled shakily as he carried her into a circle of cheering black-clad men and women. Most of them were seated on motorcycles. To her astonishment, one of the men had George Brand draped upside down over the back of his bike with his hands and feet trussed together with rope.

The man who’d taken her had been caught. There were others who’d helped him. Accomplices. She didn’t know how many of them, but it was only a matter of time before they were caught. She was confident that Gil and his deputies wouldn’t rest until every last one of them was behind bars.

“Thank you.” Her trembly voice rang out across the clearing. No one had to tell her that every man and woman present had been searching for her. She could see it on their faces.

They clapped and cheered, popping their horns and flashing their headlights.

She tipped her head back and repeated her thanks heavenward. “Thank You, Lord!” Without her faith, she’d have probably lost her mind while sealed inside the sweltering casket.

Gil gently placed her on the back of his bike. She had to hike up her red dress to straddle it. Thankfully, she was wearing matching red shorts beneath it. Because of the mountain breezes forever whipping across Heart Lake, she’d gotten into the habit of wearing shorts beneath her dresses lately. Her red stilettos probably looked ridiculous hooked over the foot rungs of Gil’s motorcycle, but there was nothing she could do about that, either.

He grinned recklessly down at her as she got settled in. The glow in his gaze was downright…she wasn’t exactly sure what the right word was for it.

“Don’t say anything.” She yanked on the hem of her shorts. She could only imagine what the other bikers were thinking about how she looked — all sweaty prom girl and shaking like a leaf. Even though it was warm outside, she had to clench her teeth to keep them from chattering. It was just nerves, though. It would pass.

“Say what?” His eyebrows rose in mock innocence as he pushed a helmet over her head and clasped it beneath her chin. “Let’s get you home, Bliss.”

“Home,” she repeated in a wondering voice. Never before had Heart Lake felt more like her home. She’d been hearing the echoes of home for years, not just while she was stuck inside the casket. She’d been hearing them in her memories. In her thoughts. In her heart. No matter how many continents her feet had wandered across, there was only one place on the map she’d never stopped yearning for.

And one man.

As the Inferno rode back toward Heart Lake, it dawned on Gil that their group was getting smaller and smaller. As he focused on what was happening, he pinpointed that every quarter mile or so, Victor gave a silent command. Each time, another rider veered off on a side road or across a field. He was directing his troops just like the old days. Soon they were down to two riders, three counting Bliss.

Victor slowed his speed as they approached the final intersection leading back to town. Gil did the same. They came to a halt side by side in the middle of the road.

Victor let his bike idle at a low purr. “George Brand is being dropped off, as we speak, at the east barricade where Luke Hawling is posted. According to a pile of bank statements we found in the cabin, the half blind and deaf old woman is his sister. Everyone just assumed the old coot didn’t have any family left. He probably didn’t want anyone to find out since her last name was bound to raise questions. Might not hurt to send someone up there to check on her now and then.”

“Done.” It certainly wasn’t the elderly woman’s fault that she was related to a con artist. Gil held out a hand, enormously grateful that the former Inferno captain still had eyes and ears all over the mountains. “It was an honor to ride with you tonight.” There was no price he wouldn’t have paid to have Bliss’s warm arms wrapped like vines around him and her cheek pressed against his shoulder.

Victor shook his hand. “The honor was all mine, sheriff. Like I said, you gave me back my life.”

“And now you’ve given me back mine.” Gil laid a hand over the ones Bliss had clasped around him.

Victor revved his motor again.

Gil frowned questioningly down at the motorcycle he and Bliss were still sitting on. “What about this bike?” He lightly tapped his fist on the handlebars.

“Keep it.” Victor grinned. “All the paperwork is in the side saddle.”

“You’re kidding!” Gil had been under the impression the guy was strapped for cash. Apparently, he was wrong.

“Nope. The rest of the gang said you wouldn’t ride with us. I bet them this bike that you would. Consider yourself an honorary Inferno member.”

Gil’s eyebrows flew upward. “I’m a sheriff!”

“Soon to be retired. You’ll have plenty of time to ride again soon.” With a mock salute, Victor popped a wheelie and roared across the field to their left, doubling back toward the mountains.

Gil caressed Bliss’s fingers. “You hanging in there?”

“For now.” She hugged him tighter.

He continued their ride into town. Police lights flashed at the barricade they approached. Gil brought the Road King to a halt in front of it, and they were converged on by men in uniform, both police and Lonestar Security guards. Luke and Wheeler were among them.

The moment they caught sight of Bliss, the group of men started cheering. One of the security guards threw his cap in the air and caught it, dancing a little jig before he returned it to his head

George Brand was in handcuffs in the back of Wheeler’s police cruiser. He leaned out to snarl something at Gil.

Gil revved his motor to drown out the scoundrel’s words. He was officially done being the brunt of the man’s vitriol. He’d be perfectly happy if he never laid eyes on him again. The man’s sister was another story. He fully intended to check on her first thing in the morning. If she’d let him, he’d arrange to have her and her dog moved to an assisted living facility in town.

Wheeler slammed the door in George’s face as he swaggered around the roadblock to get a closer look at the bike Victor had given Gil. “Cool uncle points. Very cool uncle points.” He whistled and walked around it. “Welcome home, Bliss!” He gave her a gentle hug.

“It’s good to be back, Wheeler.” Her voice was brimming with emotion.

He abruptly swiveled around and jogged back to his cruiser. He returned with a silver mylar blanket and a bottle of water.

She eagerly accepted the water, but she waved away the blanket. “I’m fine. Really. Just parched.” She guzzled down half the bottle.

Gil shot him a grateful look. “Thanks, Wheeler.” Not everyone understood that beneath his nephew’s swagger was a heart of gold. “We’re heading to the medical center next to get her checked out. You can send someone over there to take her statement.”

“No! We’re not,” Bliss snapped. “The only thing I need right now is a shower and change of clothes. Since I got buried in this dress, I’m torching it!”

Wheeler burst out laughing.

The return of her wit and sass told Gil better than anything else that she was indeed going to be alright. He shrugged at his nephew. “Guess you can meet us at the lake cottage instead.”

“Sure thing.” Wheeler dragged the blockade aside to allow them through. “It might be awhile before we can spare anyone. In the meantime, get some rest if you can.” He eyed Bliss with concern. His last suggestion was entirely for her sake. He probably knew his uncle wouldn’t be shutting his eyes anytime soon.

Once they were back at the cottage, Bliss headed straight to her room. Gil soon heard the shower running.

While she scrubbed off the horrors from her latest escapade, he dialed Ava and wheedled her into joining Bliss for a sleepover. Bliss was probably going to scald his backside over his coddling, but he couldn’t imagine leaving her alone tonight after what she’d been through. Fortunately, it didn’t take much convincing to get Ava’s cooperation. None, in fact.

“Oh, Uncle Gil!” Her voice hitched. “You did it! You brought her home just like you said you would.”

“I’m giving the Lord the credit for this one.” Gil fully planned to hit his knees before bed tonight to do a more thorough job of expressing his monumental gratitude.

“I can’t wait to see her,” Ava babbled. “I mean, it’s just like we said, huh? We were lucky to get to know her before she got so rich and famous. Extra famous, that is, since she was already?—”

“Yeah, yeah! Just get over here, brat.” Preferably before Bliss found out what he was up to and tried to stop him.

Ava arrived in under five minutes with a backpack slung over one shoulder and a pillow tucked under the other arm. Since she lived on the lake, it wasn’t as if she’d had far to travel. Even so, Gil was impressed by how quickly she’d skedaddled.

“You can use my bedroom since I’m staying at the town house.” He angled his head toward the room Bliss wasn’t using.

“Ew! No!” Ava looked at him like he was crazy. “It’s probably infested with uncles cooties. I’ll take the couch.” She tossed her pillow on one end and dropped her backpack on the floor beside it.

Or you can do that. Gil could only hope Bliss wouldn’t object too strongly to having the living room invaded by a messy college student, at least for one night.

Bliss returned to the living room in a t-shirt dress with wet hair and bare feet.

Ava flew shrieking in her direction. “You’re alive!” She caught her in a bear hug.

“You’re here.” Bliss sent a half-laughing, half-accusing look Gil’s way over Ava’s shoulder.

He shook his head at her. “I couldn’t leave you alone, babe. Not after everything you’ve been through.”

Ava gave another shriek of elation, spinning away from Bliss. “Babe? When did this happen?” Her head spun between the two of them. “Are you two, like, getting married or what?”

“Or what.” Though Bliss’s tone was tart, her eyes were shining with adoration as they met his.

“It’s about to be something more.” Gil strode across the living room to take a knee in front of her. In that moment, every part of him was on his knees to her — heart, body, and soul.

“Yes,” she said softly before he could get another word out. She cupped his upturned face between her hands. “You’re mine, Gil. My family. My home. My entire world.”

“And you’re mine.” He stood and gathered her close to seal the promise with the tenderest of kisses.

Ava dissolved into happy tears over getting to witness such a poignant, earth-shattering moment. “I’ll, um…go make the celebratory coffee,” she quavered, disappearing into the kitchen.

Gil retreated with Bliss to the swing on the back porch, craving a little alone time with her beneath the starlight.

“I love you.” He gathered her close on the swing, hoping he didn’t smell too much like road dust and sweat.

“I love you, too.” She snuggled against his side, clearly not minding his stench too much.

Luke called a few minutes later with a report that he’d found the hearse abandoned on a side road. The two caskets were still inside with their contents intact.

Gil sent up a silent victory cheer. “You trying to save my job, son?”

Luke gave a huff of humor. “Technically, I’m gunning for your job, sir. This is my way of giving you a proper send off for the retirement you deserve.”

“You’re gonna make a fine sheriff, Luke.” Gil snorted. “Eh, who am I trying to kid? You already do!” Luke had saved his bacon tonight by catching the badge he’d tossed his way and jumping right back into the role of acting sheriff.

Deputy Lincoln Hudson checked in next. “Hey, sheriff. Just got the good news about Dr. Hawling. Congratulations!”

“It was a God thing all the way, deputy.” Gil wouldn’t feel right claiming otherwise. “The rest of the credit goes to Victor Cross and his riders.”

“If you say so.” Lincoln chuckled. “I think we both know Victor is a trophy on your shelf. You’ve never stopped helping him and the rest of the bikers who fled for the mountains after the big sting. That’s why they’re so loyal to you.”

A warm feeling spread through Gil’s chest. “It’s like that all over Heart Lake, isn’t it? We’re like one big family.” He’d never believed it more strongly than now.

“Yep. One very large, very dysfunctional family,” his deputy snickered.

“There’s that,” Gil agreed. “Whatcha got for me?”

“Some very good news, actually. Been working all evening in conjunction with Shep’s K-9 unit on the rez. Between our two teams, six of George Brand’s accomplices have been rounded up. They were attempting to escape off road on ATVs. As far as we can tell, they’re the ones who posed as the funeral detail. We’re still sorting everything out here at the station.”

“Great work, deputy. I’ll tell Shep the same thing.”

“Just doing our job, boss.” It was a job Lincoln loved and one he was very good at. He held a number of professional certifications as a dog handler and search and rescue expert. In the few years he’d served on the force in Heart Lake, he’d proven to be a real asset. One of Gil’s finest hiring decisions yet.

Luke called a few minutes later to inform Gil that another man had been apprehended by the Inferno and left trussed like a turkey at the north blockade. “Might be the second fellow in the white van the intern at Town Hall told us about.”

“Keep me posted.” Gil wasn’t sure why he always said that since his team never failed to do so.

“That’s a big 10-4.” Luke’s voice was brisk. Though midnight was approaching, he still had a mountain of work to handle. “Over and out.”

Gil felt a stab of guilt, knowing it was probably going to be an all nighter for him and the rest of their team at the station. Normally, he would’ve rushed to the station to lend them a hand. However, the best thing he could do for Luke Hawling right now was let him continue running what was turning out to be one of the most successful roundups in Heart Lake history. Talk about a ninth inning turnaround! Luke’s actions this evening could easily clinch his upcoming election.

As hard as it was, Gil mentally ordered himself to stand down. He’d planned for this day, and now it was someone else’s turn to take the baton and run with it.

“Guess that’s a wrap!” He tucked his cell phone back in his pocket, hoping to finally give his full attention to his new fiancée. However, his phone immediately started buzzing again with another incoming call. “Sorry about all this.” But too much was going down on the streets of Heart Lake tonight. He couldn’t afford to ignore his calls, even if all he had to offer was his guidance.

“I’m fine, sheriff,” Bliss chuckled against his shoulder. “Just keep holding me while you continue protecting this town and everyone in it.”

That he could do. His chest swelled over the level of confidence she still had in him. He pressed a kiss to her temple while he accepted the call.

This time, it was the mayor. “Wow, Gil!” Heavenly sounded both exhilarated and exhausted. “It’s been a long night, hasn’t it?”

“Very. You doing alright?” Now that the adrenaline was wearing off, he was starting to feel the lateness of the hour, too.

“I still have a job. That’s something. More importantly, how’s Bliss?”

Gil cuddled her closer. “My fiancée,” he informed the mayor proudly, “is safe at home where she belongs.”

“Oh, Gil,” Heavenly breathed. “You proposed to her?”

“And she said yes!”

“I’m so happy for you.” Heavenly’s voice grew thick with emotion. “So, so, so happy! Please tell her I said congratulations.”

“I could,” he drawled, “but aren’t you two best pals these days? You’ve been doing an awful lot of hobnobbing together at the Taj Mahal.” He viewed their growing friendship as one of Bliss’s biggest anchors in Heart Lake. It was something he’d been encouraging every chance he could.

“I adore her to the moon and back, and you know it,” Heavenly exploded. “She’s made it a lot less lonely at the top, if you know what I mean.”

Boy, do I ever! “Then you can congratulate her yourself the next time you see her.”

“Cranky, cranky,” Heavenly teased. “Tell you what. It’s getting late, so I’ll just give you the Cliff Notes version of what I called about. The attorney in New York reached out again to let me know the financial firm managing Bliss’s fortune has officially severed ties with the folks they jointly hired to set up that charity. You know…the one the will stipulated they’d have to set up if a Hildebrand-Hawling heir couldn’t be located. Turns out they were dealing with some shadow corporation that George Brand had his hooks deep into. It was linked to a bunch of overseas shell company accounts. Blah blah blah. Get some rest. We’ll talk more tomorrow.” They said their goodbyes, and she ended the call.

Gil’s mind was reeling. The mayor’s latest revelation certainly explained why Bliss had been taken. After his father-in-law’s shadow corporation scheme had bitten the dust, his last shot at getting his hands on her fortune had been to kidnap the heiress herself.

He’d finally gotten to the bottom of how George Brand had figured out Bliss was the heiress. He’d gone straight to the source, the Comanche’s themselves. Caleb Whitaker, who finally admitted he was the one who’d delivered the extra corpses to the morgue, had additionally offered up the name of a very old, very poor tribal council member. Apparently, George had weaseled his way into the man’s confidence, then bribed the information straight out of him. Caleb had assured Gil that the tribal councilman would be dealt with accordingly for divulging the secret they’d sworn to protect for more than a century.

It was a lot for Gil to wrap his brain around. Too much for tonight. He was still absorbing the fact that the long awaited heiress to the Hildebrand-Hawling legacy was in his arms.

Soon to be my wife. He drew a deep breath, confident that God was still in His Heaven, and all would soon be right again in his small hometown.

“Talk to me,” Bliss pleaded softly. “You don’t have to carry your burdens alone anymore.”

He grunted, knowing all the phone calls he’d been taking had probably only added to her stress. “You’re supposed to be resting, babe.”

“Being with you is better.” She tipped her face up to his in the moonlight. “The Lord is our rest, Gil.”

She possessed such a beautiful heart that it made him ache with love for her. “You are, hands down, the best thing that’s ever happened to me, Bliss Hawling.”

She ran a hand across his chest. “Then start talking.”

He kissed her first, tenderly and reverently. “Everybody who’s anybody in this town,” he informed her huskily, “pulled on their boots and grabbed a flashlight to search for you tonight.”

“Really?” She sounded so astonished that he kissed her again.

The citizens’ overwhelming show of support for the manhunt was just the beginning. Bliss was about to find out just how much folks in this town cared for each other, and that included her. It was unfortunate that her orphaned upbringing and twisted people like the Brands had made her feel otherwise.

“Yes, everyone,” he assured fiercely. “Remingtons, Hawlings, Comanches, rich, poor, young, old, professionals, and farmers. They were all out there tonight.” And a dozen former motorcycle gang members who’d really helped turn the tide in their favor. Justice, when it was administered correctly, sure had a way of coming full circle.

“I can’t believe all of those people did all of that for me.” Bliss’s voice was dreamy.

“It’s because you’re one of us, babe.”

She always had been.

They knew it, and now she knew it.