Love Inspired Suspense September 2015 #2 (7 page)

SEVEN

S
eth checked his rearview mirror one more time. Tonya was right behind him as he turned onto the back road that would lead him to his family's ranch in Wrangler's Corner, Tennessee. He loved the rodeo, but he had to admit, he loved coming home just as much. He'd called ahead to make sure it was all right with his mother. She'd been slightly insulted he'd felt the need to ask. “Of course you can bring your friend here. It's not like we haven't faced down a little danger before and lived to tell about it.”

A little over eight months ago, his older brother Steven had been murdered. Clay had come home to find the killer and grieve with the rest of the family. He'd wound up taking a deputy position on the small Wrangler's Corner police force. When the sheriff and family friend had been found guilty of being behind the murder, Clay had been promoted to sheriff. And now Seth was bringing the possibility of danger back into his family's lives.

And yet he really did believe they'd be all right. After all, how would Hank know where to look for Tonya? The only connection Seth and Tonya shared was the rodeo. There was no way he would think to search for Tonya in Wrangler's Corner.

Would he?

Seth couldn't deny the sliver of unease that continued to nag at him, but Tonya needed help and he was determined to give it to her. He just wasn't ready to delve into all the reasons why.

He pulled into the drive of the ranch and angled his fifth wheel around to the spot reserved for his visits. The main house sat to his left, the barn out beyond that. There were six cottages down by one of the large ponds that his family rented out during peak season. He let his eyes move past them. Rolling green pastures as far as the eye could see immediately sent peace flooding through him. He hoped the place had the same effect on Tonya. Putting the truck in Park, he drew in a steadying breath, preparing himself for the pain of moving his leg. He supposed he should be thankful it was his left one and not the one he needed in order to be able to drive.

Taking his time, he climbed out, clenching his jaw against the jabbing reminder that it was probably a good thing he didn't have to ride today. He motioned for Tonya to park beside him.

She did and just sat there. He limped over to her and could see her fingers wrapped around the steering wheel, her knuckles white, her face pinched. Second thoughts, he figured.

He tapped the window and she jumped, then opened the door. “You okay?” he asked.

“I'm fine. Just still torn as to whether this is the right decision or not. Are you sure Hank couldn't have followed?”

“No way. Clay drove behind us, watching for any tails. At the last turn, he called and said we were in the clear. He's going into the office to see if there's anything he can find out.”

Tonya inhaled deeply and let it out slowly, then gave him a jerky nod. “All right, then.”

He took her hand and squeezed her fingers. Then let go. “Come on. I'll introduce you.” He started for the front door.

“Seth?”

He turned to see his father exit the barn, a welcoming smile on his face. “Dad. Hey there.” He took a step and gritted his teeth to keep the grimace off his face.

His father reached him and embraced him. “Good to see you.” He glanced at Seth's leg. “How's it feel?”

“Lousy.” The word slipped out before he could edit it. “I'm all right, though.” Seth nodded to Tonya before his dad could comment. “I'd like you to meet a friend of mine. Tonya Waters. Tonya, this is my dad, Ross Starke.”

His father and Tonya shook hands. “Nice to meet you, sir.”

“Likewise. I've seen you bull-fight some of Seth's rides. It's always a relief to see you in the arena with him.”

Pink crept into her cheeks. “Thank you—I appreciate that.”

“Seth? You're home!” This time it was his mother's voice calling to him. She rushed from the front porch across the stretch of dirt and stopped in front of him. He knew she wanted to grab him in one of her bear hugs but didn't want to risk hurting him.

He smiled and leaned over to plant a kiss on her head. “Hi, Mom.” She frowned and looked at his leg. He could see the question forming on her lips. “It's fine.”

“Hmm. I doubt that.” But she let him get away with it, turning her attention to Tonya. He made the introductions and his mother linked her arm through Tonya's. “Come on inside and we'll have a glass of tea and get to know one another. The boys can take care of the bags.”

“Oh, Seth said you had hookups, so I'm just going to stay in my motor home.”

The woman clucked and shook her head as she led the way into the kitchen. “You're just like Seth. He likes his own space, too.” She hustled toward the cabinet and started pulling down glasses. “Iced tea?”

“That would be wonderful, thank you,” Tonya said. It wasn't so much a matter of liking her own space; it was worry about putting Seth's family out and being an inconvenience. Although no one had even hinted at that.

“We still need to get that bathroom light fixed for you,” Seth said. He looked at his mother. “I had someone lined up to come fix it at the arena, but we left before it could be done.”

She waved a hand in dismissal. “I'm sure Larry will be happy to take care of it.”

“That's who I was thinking of.” He settled himself at the table and Tonya did the same. She leaned back in the chair and let herself start to relax. Maybe this was the right decision after all.

The door opened and Seth's father stepped into the kitchen. He went to the sink and washed his hands and face. “It's hot out there.”

“Too hot for you to be working so hard,” Seth's mother said. She handed him a glass of tea and he downed it in one gulp. While she refilled it and put together a lunch of ham sandwiches, chips and fresh fruit, he studied Tonya. Then let his gaze slide to his son, then back to her. Tonya thought she saw a glimmer of respect enter the man's eyes. “Bullfighting's a pretty dangerous job. How'd you get into it?”

In a rare moment, Tonya let her mind drift back to her childhood. “I have four older brothers. We grew up in Montana on a ranch. We had an ornery old bull and my brothers insisted on riding it when my parents were otherwise occupied.”

“Uh-oh.”

“Yes, there were a lot of ‘uh-ohs.'” Tonya smiled, the memories of her family warming her. She usually refused to allow herself to think about them as it just made her feel sad and long to go home. But sharing with Seth's parents felt good. “They're great guys, but they're all older than I am, so I never got to be the bull rider, just the clown.”

Seth frowned. “Weren't they concerned you'd get hurt?”

She shrugged and bit into the sandwich Seth's mother had placed in front of her. After she swallowed, she said, “We didn't really think about it, to be honest. I just had a good time running from the bull and flipping over the fence when I had to get out of the way. I got nicked by his horns a couple of times but, unbelievably enough, nothing too serious happened.”

She chuckled. “When I was fourteen, my mother found out what I was doing and she was livid. She'd come home from work early just in time to see my brother Grant get tossed from the back of the bull and me rush out and distract it while my other brothers got Grant out of the way. When she could speak again, she grounded the boys for about six months and enrolled me in gymnastics five days a week so I wouldn't have time to play rodeo clown.”

“But you came back to it.”

She nodded. “I love it. It's a great profession. Only I did it the right way this time. I got the training I needed to be as safe as possible. The people are interesting and I can honestly say I'm never bored.”

“She's good at it, too,” Seth told his parents. “Saved my hide yesterday.” His mother flinched and his father frowned. Tonya bit her lip and wondered why he'd blurted that out.

His mother walked over and gave Tonya a hug. “Then we're forever in your debt. Anything you need, you just ask for.”

Tonya returned the hug, missing her mom more than ever right now. “Thank you, Mrs. Starke. I'm sure I'll be just fine.”

The woman wiped her eyes. “It's Julianna. Finish your lunch.”

“And I'm Ross.” Tonya noted his voice had gone a little deeper. As though his throat had tightened with emotion and he had to force the words out. “Now, why don't you tell us a little about this trouble you're in?”

Seth cleared his throat. “Tonya has a stalker, Dad. He tried to kill her at the rodeo last night and this morning. I told her she could come here while the police try to track him down.”

His father blanched and concern knit his brows together. “Oh, my dear. Of course.”

“But at the first sign of danger, I'm gone... I promise. I would never want to do anything to bring harm to your family.”

“You don't worry about that. We'll be just fine,” Ross said. He reached over to clasp her hand.

Seth nodded. “Clay's at the office working on it even as we speak.”

“Well, then.” Ross pulled his gloves from his back pocket and stood. “I'm going to get back out to the barn and finish mucking the stalls.”

“Where's Jordan?” Seth asked. Jordan Zellis, the young teen Steven had taken under his wing before his death. Now Jordan and his younger brother and sister lived with Clay and his wife, Sabrina. The adoption was in progress and looked as if it was going to happen without any drama. Which would be a relief for everyone.

“He's at the lake with a few of his friends from the youth group.” His dad winked. “Can't be all work and no play around here, you know.”

Seth nodded and stood. “All right, I'm going to give Larry a call and see if he can get out here today.” He looked at Tonya. “Let's go get the information off your motor home so I know what to tell him to bring.”

Seth limped his way to the door and Tonya followed him. Outside, the afternoon heat hit her and she blinked at the bright sunlight. They walked over to the motor home. She pulled her phone from her pocket and stared at it. “What's put that frown on your face?” he asked. “Besides the obvious, I mean.” He had one foot on the step.

She grimaced. “I don't watch a lot of television but even I know I can be tracked through my phone. Hank knows the name I've been using for the past four years now. He can trace my phone, my credit cards. Everything.”

Seth blinked. “Tonya Waters isn't your real name?”

She shook her head. “I'm Tonya Rene Lewis.”

“Oh. So how did you get all of those government-issued cards in the name you're using now?”

She gave him a tight smile. “My brother Grant has a friend who's a US marshal. When Grant told her what was going on, she was more than willing to help me.”

“Nice.”

“I thought so.” She returned the phone to her pocket without dialing. “But now I'm phoneless and penniless. He'll be watching my bank accounts, too.”

“How can he do that?”

“He has friends in high places. And law enforcement, too. He even managed to track me down after I used a friend's cell phone to call home.”

Seth cocked his head. “He couldn't have traced the friend's number, so that means...”

“Exactly. Somehow he's watching my parents' number and tracing the calls that come in.”

“This guy is a piece of work.” He reached for her hand. “Okay, here's what we're going to do. I'll loan you whatever you need. You can pay me back when this is all over if you insist.”

He thought he saw a sheen of tears glaze over her eyes as she nodded. “Which I will. But thanks. I guess I'm going to have to take you up on that, aren't I?”

“Yes, you are.” He stepped back down. “It's hard for you to ask for help, isn't it?”

She huffed out a breath. “It is.”

“Why?”

Her right shoulder lifted. “I guess because of how I grew up. Four older brothers. Four very
protective
older brothers. Sometimes I felt smothered. I've had to fight and scrap for every ounce of independence I got. Of course, the whole thing with Hank fueled that fire.”

“Of course it would. But it doesn't sound like they were too protective if they were letting you be the bullfighter in the family.”

She gave him a wry smile. “I know. It's weird. They didn't want a boy within five feet of me. If I went out with my friends, I had to check in at the appointed time or they'd be in town looking for me. But they cheered me on when I got in the arena with a wild animal that could squash me like a bug.”

“Could they have stopped you from doing it?”

“Probably not. At least not until my parents found out. Like I mentioned, they were horrified. But my brothers thought it was awesome. They even snuck me to a bullfighters' competition the minute I turned eighteen.” She gave him a half smile. “I won and have been doing it ever since.”

“You have a definite knack for it.” He climbed into the motor home. She joined him and found a packet of information on the vehicle. Soon he had the numbers he needed and dialed Larry. “Larry owned the RV Stop and Shop about fifteen minutes outside Wrangler's Corner.”

The man answered on the third ring. “Now, I have to say I'm surprised to see your number pop up on my screen,” he said.

Seth smiled. “Come on. It hasn't been that long.”

Larry grunted. “Long enough. What you need?”

Without going into a lot of detail, Seth told him the reason for the call. He sent him the pictures he'd taken, as well. “You think you could get out here sometime today and fix it?”

“If I have the parts. Let me just take a look at the picture and get the info from your text. Hold on.” In less than a minute Seth heard the keys of a keyboard clicking. “Well, looks like you're a winner today. I've got everything in stock. It'll take me some time to get it together and get out there, though. I've got another job ahead of you. I can come see you first thing in the morning.”