Chapter Eleven

It seemed like forever, but was probably only twenty minutes, when Bryce saw a tall man in a khaki shirt with a badge pinned to it, enter the office. He wore jeans, cowboy boots, and hat. He nodded at her, then squatted down in front of her, and removed his hat.

"Ma'am? I'm Sheriff Sam Garrett. Tell me what's going on."

Bryce took a deep breath and told the sheriff everything, including the man she thought was following her this morning.

"Did you get a good look at him or the vehicle?"

"It was a blue mid-size Ford. I could see the emblem on the front of it. He looked to be tall, but I can't be sure. He wore dark sunglasses. Oh, and I think he was partially bald."

"That's good. Did you see any front tags, by chance?"

Bryce gasped. "It was a Minnesota plate."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I lived there, I know that plate."

"Great. Okay, let me call this in." He stood, stepped from the office, and talked on his cellphone, then reentered the office.

"That was good information, Bryce," Piper said.

"I didn't think about it when he was behind me, but I remember it."

When her cellphone buzzed, she jumped, then removed it from her purse. She looked at it to see Luke's number.

"It's Luke. I have to take this."

"Give me Leah, and you can step out of the office," Rita said as she reached for Leah.

"Thank you." Bryce handed the baby to her, then walked out of the office. She cleared her throat. "Luke…"

"Hey, baby, you're not busy, are you? I wanted to let you know that I'm on my way home." Tears rolled down her face as she tried to talk but no words would come. "Bryce?"

"Luke—" her voice caught.

"Hold on, let me pull over. Bryce, what's going on? Are you and Leah alright?"

"I think he found me, Luke. There was a man following me this morning. The sheriff is here…"

"Sam?"

"Yes."

"Let me talk to him, please."

"Okay." Bryce entered the office and looked at the sheriff. "Sheriff, Luke would like to speak with you."

"Luke?"

"McCallister."

The sheriff nodded, took her phone and left the room. She watched as he talked to Luke, nodded, and reentered the room, then handed her the phone.

"Luke?" she said into it.

"I'll get there as soon as I can."

"Please be careful. I don't want anything to happen to you. I'm safe right now."

"I know you are with Sam there. Do you want to go to my parents' place? Beau could stay with you."

"I don't want to put them in harm's way. I'll be fine. The sheriff has his deputies looking for the man."

"I know. He is also sending someone to Burns' house in Minnesota. Sam has a lot of connections. Although he'd call anyway, he has a good friend there in the sheriff's department. They'll pick up Burns."

"I can't lose Leah." She sobbed.

"Baby, you won't."

"But he's the father, Luke."

"I know. Please, don't worry about it. Sam is a damn good sheriff. He won't let that man near you."

"Okay. I love you," she said.

"I love you back. I'll see you soon, baby."

"Ms. Spencer? I want you to go home. I'll follow you, then have a deputy stay with you. You'll be safe," the sheriff told her.

"Alright." She looked at Rita. "Will I lose my job?"

"No. Do not worry about that." Rita smiled.

"Alright. Let's go," the sheriff said.

They left the hospital, and he walked her to her SUV. She noticed he kept glancing around the parking lot. Once she settled Leah in her car seat, Bryce climbed into the front seat, and started the car. She looked over to the sheriff's SUV cruiser to see him nod, and she drove out of the parking lot.

When she stopped beside the steps at the back of the diner, she looked into the rearview mirror and saw the sheriff pull in behind her. He opened his door and stepped out, then walked toward her. She opened her door, stepped out, got Leah out, and reached for the bags, but the sheriff got them, then they walked up the steps. She unlocked the door, stepped inside, and he followed. He set the bags on the sofa.

"Would you like a cup of coffee, Sheriff?"

"No, thank you, and please, call me Sam. Do you mind if I look around?"

"No, please do whatever you need to."

"Yes, ma'am. I just want to make sure it's clear."

Bryce removed Leah's coat, then her own, and placed Leah in her bouncy seat and wound the mobile. She smiled as Leah reached for the teddy bears.

"She's adorable," Sam said when he entered the room.

Bryce noticed the wedding band on his finger.

"Do you have children?"

He grinned. "I do. We have a three year old girl, and a son who just turned one."

"I don't suppose you have photos?" Bryce tilted her head as she smiled.

"Nah, why would you think that?" Then he looked through his phone and showed her photos.

"They're beautiful. Is this your wife?"

"Yes, that's Tessa."

"She's gorgeous." Bryce looked at the handsome sheriff. "I can see where your babies get their looks."

Sam grinned. "From their beautiful mama."

Bryce laughed. "I'd say their daddy had a hand in that too."

Sam seemed embarrassed but grinned. "Thanks. I'm going to step out and call Sheriff Beckett in Hartland County. He needs to know about this. I've already contacted the MSP, the Minnesota State Police."

"Alright." Bryce watched him walk out the door and close it behind him.

She sat on the sofa and prayed it was all a misunderstanding and that man had been lost or something. She shook her head. The Minnesota plates was too much of a coincidence.

When Sam reentered the apartment, she saw another man behind him, dressed the same way. Khaki shirt, badge, jeans, cowboy boots, and hat.

"Bryce, this is Deputy Logan Townson, Logan, meet Bryce Spencer."

"Ma'am," the deputy said. "I'm the one who pulled Luke over that night you were with him, but Luke didn't introduce us."

Bryce laughed. "Hello."

"Logan will be here until noon, then one of the other deputies will take over. They'll be in three-or four-hour shifts. They will let you know when another takes over."

"I'll be in my vehicle, but you can send me a text if you need something. Do not come out of the apartment," Deputy Townson said.

"Okay."

Sam nodded. "I'm going to take a drive around town and see if I can find anything. I'll check with the local hotels. You'll be fine, Ms. Spencer. I don't like trouble in my town and once we find this man, it'll be over. Have a good day." Sam handed her his card. "If you need anything, do not hesitate to call any of those numbers." He touched the brim of his hat, and left the apartment.

"Deputy Townson? Would you like a cup of coffee?"

"If you wouldn't mind, ma'am."

"I don't and please call me Bryce."

"Thank you, I will."

She watched him walk toward the window and gaze out. Did all the good-looking men live in his area?

"That's a hell of a thing to think of at a time like this," she murmured as she made him a cup of coffee. She noticed he wore a wedding band too.

"Ma'am?" The deputy looked at her.

"Nothing. Talking to myself." She handed him the cup.

"Yes, ma'am. Thank you."

"Do you mind if I change my clothes?"

"Of course not. Just act as if I'm not here." He smiled.

She mentally snorted. Like that would happen. Like she'd have a deputy in her apartment every day. Shaking her head, she entered her bedroom, closed the door, and changed into a T-shirt and comfy jeans. When she entered the living room, she saw the deputy squatted down in front of Leah, and she was grinning at him. Luke was right, she was a flirt.

"Do you have children, Deputy?"

He grinned. "No, ma'am. I haven't been married very long, but we hope to one day." He looked at Leah. "She's a beautiful little girl. That's a lot of hair."

Bryce laughed. "I think that's the first thing people notice about her."

He straightened up and looked at her. "Do you need anything?"

"No, thank you. I'm just going to sit here and try to relax."

"Yes, ma'am." He handed her his card. "Call or text me if you do. I'll be in my cruiser."

"Thank you, Deputy Townson."

"Yes, ma'am. Call me Logan." He placed his empty cup in the sink, touched the brim of his hat, walked to the door, then looked at her. "Lock this behind me." He looked at the locks. "All of them." Then he left, closing the door behind him.

****

Mick picked up the phone when he saw Craig's number. "Did you get her?"

"No. We have a problem. I think she saw me because the sheriff showed up at the hospital."

"Son of a bitch! You idiot. Get the fuck out of there."

"What about the baby?"

"I don't give a rat's ass about that kid now. I'll deal with Sally." Mick ran his hand around the nape of his neck. "Damn it. You weren't supposed to let her see you! You stupid motherfucker," he muttered.

"Look, I did what you told me to do and I'm sick of you calling me names. I'm telling you now, Burns, if I go down, you're going down with me." Craig hung up.

Mick stood up, making his chair roll back into the wall, then he threw his phone. He hoped it would break this time.

When he moved to sit down, his ass hit the floor. "Son of a bitch!"

He pulled himself up as the door opened and Sally entered.

"What are you doing on the floor?"

"Nothing," he snapped.

"Okay. Any news?"

"Yeah, we're probably all going down for this."

"What?"

"Craig said the sheriff was at the hospital this morning."

"What hospital?"

Mick gritted his teeth. "The one Bryce works at." He sighed. "Craig thinks she saw him and called the sheriff. It's over, Sally. I'm done."

"Yeah, you're done alright." She turned to walk to the door.

"So are you," he said quietly, making her turn around to face him.

She shook her head. "Oh, no you don't. There is no proof of me being involved."

He smirked. "Don't bet on it. Now, get the hell out of my office."

She opened the door "And you get the hell out of my house."

Mick jerked when she slammed the door. It was time he got the hell out of Minnesota.

****

Luke wanted to go straight to Bryce's apartment in Clifton, but he knew he had to stop at Fred Hancock's place first. It was important for Fred to know that his son had been arrested. Luke was relieved knowing that Bryce was safe, and Sam would make sure of it.

He slowed the truck down as he pulled into the driveway of the Hancock ranch and stopped by the porch. He got out of his truck, walked up the steps, across the porch, and knocked on the door.

Mr. Hancock greeted him with a smile. "Luke, come inside, son."

"How are you feeling? How did the surgery go?"

"I'm doing great; they were able to remove all the cancer. I can live without one ball."

Luke chuckled. "Sure, you can."

"Coffee?"

"No thank you. Can we sit?"

"Of course. I have a feeling you're not here just to catch up." They both took a seat.

"I'm sorry, Fred. I had to arrest your son for stealing your horses."

"Damn it." Fred shook his head. "I don't understand where I went wrong with him."

"You didn't do anything wrong. He's a grown man; he made this decision himself." Luke took a deep breath. "Do you know why his wife divorced him?"

"He told me she was cheating on him. I never believed it though. I knew Maggie well enough to know she wouldn't do something like that."

"He... he hit her. In fact, he'd been arrested for domestic abuse three years ago, but he got out on a technicality. I don't know much more about it."

"That son of a bitch! No, I won't call my own son that and disrespect my late wife. He's a prick. It pains me to say that about my own flesh and blood, but it's true. Somewhere along the line, something went wrong with him. If I had known he was hurting Maggie, I would have kicked his ass myself." He shook his head. "I can't believe him."

"We still don't know where the horses are, but we're looking into a phone number. He was on the phone talking about selling them for ten thousand dollars each. He didn't realize I had entered the room."

Fred chuckled. "I bet he nearly pissed himself when he saw you."

"He did, but then he asked for a lawyer. We'll get access to his phone records and go from there."

Fred shook his head. "Well, I'm glad you found out who stole them, but I hate that it was my own son."

"He even told me he'd have money once you passed away and he inherited the ranch."

"Damn. I'm glad I made the right decision on this place then."

"I'm glad you did too." Luke stood. "I'll be in touch when I find out more. Hopefully, I'll be getting all your horses back for you."

Fred put his hand out and Luke shook it.

"You're a damn fine agent, and a better man, Luke. I appreciate all you've done."

"You're welcome. If it's alright with you, I'd love to stop by once in a while, to catch up," Luke said with a grin.

"I'd like that very much."

"Take care." Luke walked out the door, then down the steps. He saw Rafe standing at the barn doors and waved. Rafe touched the brim of his hat and disappeared into the barn.

Luke climbed into his truck, started it, and drove to town. He called Bryce.

"Luke?"

"Hi, darlin'. How are you holding up?"

"I'm okay. Deputy Shelton is outside now."

"Good. Hey, are you hungry? I'm coming there anyway, but I haven't eaten."

"I'd love a burger from the diner."

"Sounds good, baby. I'll be there soon."

"Did you get the horses back?"

"No, but I'll explain all that once I get there, which should be in about fifteen minutes."

"Okay, I'll be waiting."

"Bryce, it'll be fine. You can trust Sam to get him."

"I know. I trusted him the minute I met him."

"Good. I'll be there soon."

"I love you, Luke."

"I love you back, Bryce. See you soon."

He hung up, then drove to the diner, and around the back. He exited the truck and saw Nevada sitting in his SUV cruiser and walked toward him.

Nevada opened the door, stepped out, and they shook hands.

"Luke, are you doing alright?"

"I'm good, Nevada. You?"

"I'm good. I'll be here until five, then Mark and later, Paul."

"Sounds good. I appreciate Sam doing this."

Nevada grinned. "You know how he hates trouble in his town."

Luke chuckled. "Yes, he does. I'm going to grab some food, then head upstairs. Do you want anything? It's on me."

"No, thanks, Luke. Courtney and I are going out to dinner later."

"Okay. Tell her I said hello. Thanks for this, Nevada."

Nevada shrugged. "Just doing my job."

Luke smiled, then walked to the entrance of the diner and entered. He placed the order and sat at the counter to wait. As he glanced around, everything seemed normal. No one had a clue about what was going on and he hoped it would stay that way.

Connie placed the bag on the counter and Luke paid her, refusing to take the change. He grabbed the bag and walked out of the diner, heading toward the apartment. He nodded at Nevada as he passed him in his cruiser, then quickly made his way up the steps and knocked on the door. After a few clicks, Bryce opened the door and immediately ran into Luke's arms, sobbing.

"It's okay, baby. I'm here now. I've got you. I won't let anything happen to you or Leah." He kissed her softly. "Where is she?"

"She fell asleep just a little while ago."

"I still need to see her. I promise not to wake her." Luke gave Bryce a quick kiss on her forehead before putting the bag of food on the counter and walking down the hallway to the bedroom. He gazed at her sleeping peacefully. As he stroked her hair gently, Bryce entered the room and hugged him from behind, resting her cheek against his back.

"Do you have any idea how much I love this little girl?" he whispered.

"She loves you just as much," Bryce replied.

Luke turned to face her. "I want to adopt her."

Bryce smiled. "We would have to be mar—"

"Exactly."

"You want to marry me?"

"Yeah, but only because I want to adopt Leah." He tried not to laugh.

"Lucas Andrew McCallister," Bryce said sternly.

"Uh oh. Did I piss you off again?"

"You'll make it up to me."

"Yes ma'am." He kissed her lips. "Will you marry me, Bryce?"

"Yes. Once we get through this, I will marry you and you can officially become Leah's daddy."

Tears welled up in Luke's eyes. "All I want is both of you in my life."

"Let's eat before it gets cold." Bryce took his hand and led him to the living room. "Did you see Deputy Shelton?"

"Yes, I talked to him for a bit."

"So, you know him?"

Luke grinned. "I know him very well. We used to work together before he became a deputy."

"He used to be a livestock agent?"

"Yep." Luke placed the bag on the coffee table, sat down and began unpacking the food.

"He's quite handsome."

"Hey now."

"I'm just teasing. But seriously, Deputy Townsend is also attractive, and don't even get me started on the sheriff." She fanned herself. "Why did Nevada leave the agency?"

"To make a long story short, he was shot while not wearing his vest, which is against protocol. He had to go through an inquisition and knew they were going to fire him, so he resigned first. But he loves being a deputy now."

"I'm glad he's okay."

"He almost died. The bullet was close to his heart."

Bryce gasped. "Oh my! Thank God he survived."

"We were all relieved." Luke handed her a burger.

"Thank you." She unwrapped it and took a bite, savoring the flavor. "I'm definitely going to gain weight from this."

Luke chuckled. "I'm sure we can find ways to work it off." His expression turned serious again. "Tell me more about the man you saw."

As Bryce described him, Luke clenched his jaw and swore under his breath.

"What?"

"I saw him. I actually talked to him." He shook his head.

Bryce's eyes widened in disbelief. "When?"

"Before I made the trip to Whitefish the first time. I shared an elevator with him at the department. He was tall but not as tall as me, with a sharp jawline and brown eyes that seemed to look right through me. He asked me if that was where the police department was, nodding at my gun. I didn't get a good vibe from him but thought maybe I was wrong. Damn it. I always trust my gut. Well, most of the time. Shit."

"Why would he be there though?"

"Probably looking for information on me. He had to have seen us together and wanted to find out what he could about me. I'd bet a year of my salary that he was working for Burns." Luke stood up. "I'm going to call Sam to give him a better description. There's a camera in the elevator."

"Alright, but eat first, Luke. Please."

"Bryce, I have to call Sam first. Just give me a minute, please."

"Okay, but I'm not waiting for you," she said before she took a bite of her burger.

After hanging up with Sam, Luke sat on the sofa, set his phone down, and reached for his burger, but his phone buzzed again. He picked it up to see Creed's number.

"Hey, Creed."

"Hey. I know about what's going on with you Luke, but I thought you'd want to know that we found the Shires. All fifteen in perfect condition."

"Man, that is great news. Where are they?"

"In Whitefish at an abandoned ranch. Killian and I are making the trip tomorrow."

"That's fantastic, Creed. I'll call Mr. Hancock and let him know."

"Alright. Hey, you be careful. I mean it."

"I will, Creed. Thanks again." Luke hung up and looked at Bryce. "The horses were found and they're fine. After we eat, I'll call Mr. Hancock."

He sat down beside her, kissed her lips, and was happy that Mr. Hancock would get his horses back. Now, if they could just get to Burns and the man working for him.