Losing Ladd (34 page)

Nick and Malcolm exchanged a glance, a
mutual doubt regarding an old man’s memory. Cal shared their
skepticism but didn’t much care whether his daddy had been pining
away all these years or not. So long as he was doing what was right
by his momma today was all that mattered. “Is Troy around? I’d like
to give him the good news in person.”

“
I think he’s up at the
barn,” Malcolm said.

“
Good.” Not scheduled to
work today, Cal turned to go

“
Cal,” Nick stopped
him.

“
Yes?”

“
Thanks.”

Clasping Nick’s hand in a firm
handshake, he grinned, pleasure filling him clear up to the brim.
“You’re welcome. Give Delaney my best, will you?”

“
Sure thing.”

“
Now if you don’t mind,
I’m going to deliver the good news.”

“
Where’s Cal?”

Nick, Malcolm and Cal stilled as the
familiar voice bellowed through the lobby. A sliver of rancor split
Cal’s excitement as the anticipated confrontation with his brother
Jack loomed front and center. Inhaling a deep breath, he winked.
“I’ll take this one.”

Walking out of the office, Cal settled
his gaze squarely on his brother’s shoulders across the lobby desk.
Jillian Devane hovered by his side, her cat eyes smoldering with
carnal pleasure. “What do you need, Jack?” Unwilling to allow any
barriers between them, Cal circled out from behind the desk, noting
Nick and Malcolm did the same. For the moment they hung behind
him.

“
What the hell did you do
to Momma? She’s dropping her support for my case and threatening to
pull her money if I don’t drop the charges against the Parker
kid.”

“
Wise woman.”

Jack stepped toward him and shoved a
finger in Cal’s face. “You’re the cause.”

“
What? Momma finally came
to her senses and you’re giving me the credit?” Cal shook his head
and knocked Jack’s finger from his personal space. “I’m only glad
to see she finally tossed you and your lies into the garbage where
you belong.”

“
Don’t get cute with me,”
Jack hissed, bridling on the verge of losing control. “I know you
had something to do with it, and I want to know what.”

Cal laughed, mocking him openly.
“Looks like you’ve lost your touch, brother. Soon enough, Ms.
Devane here will see through your façade as well, though it won’t
matter much, not with you in jail and all.”

“
I’m not going to jail,”
he snarled. “That punk Parker kid is.”

“
Don’t think so. Not with
Delaney up and around and ready to testify against you.”

Surprise lit up in both Jack and
Jillian’s expressions.

“
That’s right,” Nick said,
flicking an insulting glance toward Jillian. “Delaney is only too
ready to put your butt behind bars where it belongs.”

Jack didn’t back down but he didn’t
rebut. Jillian did. “Too bad,” she said to Nick, pushing out her
glossy lips. “She really is a waste on your time and
energy.”

“
Keep it up Jillian,” Nick
warned. “Keep poking until I bite, because when I do, it’s going to
hurt. Really hurt.” He leaned down and came to within inches of her
face. “I know you had something to do with the fire. It has your
fingerprints written all over it. And when I figure it out, I won’t
stop until I see you in prison right along with your boyfriend,
here.” Straightening to his full six-foot-four stature, Nick
taunted, “Oh, wait. There won’t be any men where you’re going. Only
big, mean women who would love to get their hands on the likes
of
you
.”

A flash of horror graced
her face before she revived the nasty beast within, retorting, “You
will never have the pleasure,
amorzhino
. I am not going anywhere
near a prison.”

“
Don’t be so sure about
that. Jeremiah’s in custody and will start singing like a canary.
Bet your name comes up.”

Jack locked onto Jillian. “What’s he
talking about?”

Ignoring him, she replied smugly, “I
have admirers everywhere, you know that. It means
nothing.”

Jack grew more agitated by the second.
Aiming all barrels at Jillian he repeated, “What the hell’s going
on? What’s Jeremiah in jail for?”

Cal chuckled under his breath, amused
by his brother’s complete and total shock. Seems Jack might have
been nurturing a real affection for the woman, a woman who clearly
didn’t return the sentiment. Nick might be onto something, putting
her and Jeremiah together. It was his cell phone they used to
detonate the bomb. Fire was her specialty. “Haven’t you heard?” Cal
asked his brother. “Jeremiah and the Ladd boys have been up to
their old tricks.”

Jack looked as if he’d been
sucker-punched. “The Ladd boys? Robby and Billy?”

“
You betcha,” Cal replied.
At least Jack had been smart enough to avoid getting wrapped up
with Jeremiah and those boys, though Jillian made up for the three
of them and then some.

“
That’s right, Jillian,”
Nick added. “Seems the explosive device was detonated with
Jeremiah’s phone. Any idea why that might be?”

She tilted up her face.
“None.”

Nick crossed arms over his chest,
staring down at her with a wry smile. “Guess we’ll see what the
police come up with, huh?” She simply smirked in response. “Oh, and
don’t go anywhere,” he added, his smile gaining steam. “The police
will surely want to question you at length.”

The lobby door opened and Officer
Griffin breezed in, stopping cold. The sight of Jillian Devane had
lassoed his complete attention. Kicking into gear, he marched over
and said, “Ms. Devane. Glad to see you’re still here.” She glared
at him, all pretense of politeness extinguished as he said, “I’d
like to ask you a few questions.”

“
See.” Nick leaned down
and murmured close to her ear, “Told you so.”

“
What do you want,
Detective? I believe I’ve already spoken with you regarding my
whereabouts on the night in question.”

“
Yes, yes you did and your
alibi checks out. The boy at the bar said you were with him all
evening. Jeremiah said you were with him the next night, and that’s
when he lost his cell phone.”

Jack stepped away from
her, drawing an unmistakable line of separation between the two for
the officer to take note. Jillian brushed a haughty glance over
Jack and replied thinly, “It is not a crime to enjoy the company of
men, nor is it a crime to enjoy a
stupid
man.”

Officer Griffin cocked his head and
pursed his lips. “That might be so, but there’s something else. We
found scraps of a bag at the site of the explosion. A fancy bag.”
He looked at the leather purse slung over her shoulder. It was a
name brand designer style. “Kinda like the one you’re carrying
now.”

Pulling the bag more snugly against
her body, Jillian replied, “That proves nothing. Many people carry
a bag exactly like this one.”

He smiled, nodded cordially. “Cost a
pretty penny from what I understand.” Officer Griffin ran his
tongue over his teeth, then smacked his lips. “Yep. So expensive,
they tag them with serial numbers.” He looked Jillian square in the
eye and asked, “Did you know that?”

She said nothing, simply stared at
him. “Yeah, seems they register the serial numbers at time of
purchase. So you know it’s not a fake.” With a roll of his eyes, he
said, “Well, I’ve never heard of such a thing. You know, we don’t
have much of a market for those fancy bags around here, but they do
in Chattanooga. Seems you recently purchased a purse in a mall over
there.”

Nick, Malcolm and Cal
turned their eye on to Jillian.
Wasn’t
that interesting
?

“
Now why would you do that
when you already have a nice purse?”

Jillian laughed. “I have hundreds of
purses, Officer. I buy them like you buy your French fries.”
Touching her gaze to his oversized midsection, she added, “But then
we all have our addictions, don’t we?”

“
So you won’t mind going
to your room to get the purse in question? It’s brown leather
material, unlike the black one you’re holding there.”

She stilled, drawing her black purse
close. Amber eyes heated as they sharpened on Officer Griffin.
Jillian held him in her gaze, as though she were hypnotizing him
into submission, before she replied coolly, “Of course. It is no
problem at all.”

“
Wonder if it’s the same
purse you were carrying when you paid Delaney that little visit the
day before the fire?” Nick posed, his pleasure barely
concealed.

Cal fully expected claws to flash from
Jillian’s fingertips and slash the skin from Nick’s
face.

“
I’m leaving,” Jack
announced, heading for the door without awaiting a
response.

Noting the utter loathing in his
brother’s gaze as he took stock of the group, Cal chimed in, “I’ve
got a few things I need to do myself.”

There was nothing more for him to do
here. Nick would see that Jillian followed instructions. Malcolm
would manage the hotel, freeing him to seek out Troy and deliver
the good news. Good news Cal couldn’t wait to share. Catching the
door from his brother’s exit, he said, “Don’t go anywhere, Jack. We
plan on pursuing trial as scheduled.

Chapter Thirty-One

Felicity remained a fixture by Travis’
bedside. Leaning back in the hard-cushioned chair, she stared at
Travis’ inert figure outlined beneath the thin white blanket. The
breathing apparatus had been removed, but the tubes in his arm
remained. A feeding tube. Because Travis wasn’t able to eat for
himself. He was still considered critical. Stable, but critical.
Felicity didn’t care much about the terminology of his condition.
She only cared that he was alive and going to get
better.

Waiting for him to regain
consciousness was the hardest. There were so many things she wanted
to say to him, so many things she wanted to share. The horse that
had been hurt during the stampede was doing well, the one burned in
the fire was on the mend. Hotel Ladd’s veterinarian had been
ministering to the animal since the blaze, asserting his wounds
would leave scars, but they’d heal. Anger pricked at her heart.
Because a selfish woman had it out for Nick and her
mother.

“
Felicity?”

The feather voice cut through her
reverie. Felicity bolted forward. “Travis?”

His eyes were closed. Long
brown lashes fluttered softly against his lightly tanned skin.
“Felicity...” he breathed the word. “
Felicity
.”

Tears sprang to her eyes as she
reached for his upper arm. “Travis, it’s me. I’m here,” she replied
eagerly.

He offered a subtle nod of his head.
Did he know where he was? Did he remember what happened? How close
he’d come to dying?

For her. On her behalf. Travis almost
lost his life because, once again, he’d stepped in to protect her.
“Travis, can you hear me?”

Nodding slightly, he turned his head
toward her.

“
How do you
feel?”

“
Hurt.”

A lot, she wondered? Was he in severe
pain? Did he need medicine? Should she call for someone? Thoughts
and fears tumbled over one another as she watched him open his
eyes.

“
Travis,” she murmured,
clamping her palm around his arm.

Concentrating on her face, he seemed
to struggle to get her in focus. “Felicity. You’re
okay.”

She drew back.
Travis was worried about her
? Did he not know what happened?

“
I’m so glad...” Travis
closed his eyes and her heart stopped.

She squeezed his arm.
“Travis.”

He smiled, opened his eyes again. “I
was so worried about you,” he said drowsily.

“
I’m okay. I’m totally
okay. How are you?”

Reaching down, she laced her fingers
through his, closing her hand over his. “Do you need pain
medicine?”

“
Nah.”

Felicity was disturbed by his slow
speech but reassured herself it was normal. He’d been shot, he was
worn out from the surgery. The doctor said his recovery would take
some time. Patience. But Felicity didn’t have any more patience!
She wanted him well and she wanted it now. “Have you seen your
parents?” she asked, giving him space to regain his strength. She
knew they had but wanted to see if he remembered. “They’ve been
here the whole time.”

“
Yeah... My mom was
cryin’.”

Of course she was! You can’t see
yourself. You look awful, horrible. Felicity completely understood
why his mother would break down and cry. She couldn’t stand to see
Travis this way either. His strong body was motionless, draped in a
pajama-like gown, his chest beneath covered in gauze. Felicity
feared to touch him. A guy who was strong and muscular, yet she
feared she’d hurt him somehow. Brushing building tears from her
eyes, Felicity forced tears from her eyes. She wanted to be the
strong one. She wanted to be brave for Travis like he’d been for
her. “Do you remember what happened?”