Texan's Baby (17 page)

Sprigs would most likely know the woods, and Dawson couldn't help noting that he was positioning them away from anyone who could help them.

Randall got another phone call, which he put on speaker.

“I've got more bad news. A couple more fires have been set. One is directly in the way of the new path.” The voice belonged to Andy.

“Where are you?” Randall asked.

“We're doing our best to set a perimeter, but this is a lot of acreage to cover,” Andy said.

Dawson didn't say what he was thinking out loud. This was the perfect setup for Sprigs. He was encasing them with fire. The question remaining was whether or not he'd stay inside the circle or bolt so he could find a place to watch them burn.

Dawson hit the brake at the edge of the creek and the SUV lurched forward. They couldn't go back. Trees to the left and right were too thick to drive through. As much as he hadn't wanted to consider the possibility, they had no choice but to get out on foot.

“How about following the water?” Dawson asked. Could they allow the creek to lead them out of there? As soon as he opened his window, the smell of smoke carried in on the breeze. The crackle of fire meant that it was close.

Well, Sprigs didn't get to orchestrate the perfect murder on Dawson's watch.

Randall took the call off speaker. He listened before ending the call, closing his eyes and leaning his head back on the headrest. “The blaze is all around us. We're not getting out.”

“What about a chopper?” Dawson asked.

“By the time one gets here, it'll be too late. The dry conditions have the fire moving too swiftly,” Randall supplied.

“This is all happening too fast,” Dawson said. “There's no way he's setting these fires by himself.”

“The officers found a rig set up at the opening of the drive. He wired this place before and he's been watching,” Randall said.

Which meant Sprigs might not even be there. He could be setting these fires using a remote. Dammit. Anger burst through Dawson's chest.

He had no plans to roll over for that son of a bitch and allow the fire to consume everyone he loved.

“If we follow the water source, there might be a way to get out,” Dawson said.

“Everyone out. Grab the diaper bag,” Randall instructed.

Melanie had been quiet up to now. She got out of the vehicle and held Mason to her chest. “Dawson, I'm really sorry about—”

“We'll have time to talk about it later,” he said, his words meant to reassure her. No way was he allowing her to give up.

Randall pulled up the GPS on his phone. “Looks like the creek runs northwest. If we follow it long enough, we might be able to make it to FM 33.”

“Good. That's the route we'll take. I have emergency supplies in my trunk.” Dawson moved to the back of his SUV and retrieved his backpack.

He came back to the group and kissed Melanie's forehead.

“We're going to get out of here,” he whispered.

Chapter Nineteen

Dawson led them along the creek for a good twenty minutes before he hit a thick wall of smoke.

Moving forward was no longer an option. Mason's lungs wouldn't be able to take much more.

A wall of fire blocked any chance of moving west, so Dawson had no choice but to circle back. They were beginning to walk into fire now. It was all around them.

Dawson didn't want to separate from the creek, but there would be no choice soon.

A fiery branch fell from above. Thick smoke was beginning to make Mason cough. And they were starting to walk in circles.

And then they heard it. A man's voice. A distorted laugh from the south. Sprigs.

“Go ahead, run,” Randall said. “I'll slow him down.”

Dawson hesitated at first, but Randall insisted. Even though Dawson wanted to stay back to help the agent, there was no way he would send Melanie ahead on her own.

Grabbing Melanie's hand, Dawson ran until a fallen tree blocked the trail, forcing him to move them east again.

“Let's stop here and rest.” Dawson needed to check his phone to see if Randall had tried to reach them.

Besides, Melanie was out of breath and she needed a minute before he pushed them to keep moving again. There was a bottle of water in his emergency pack. He took it out and handed it to her.

She plopped down on the ground with Mason in her lap. He'd been such a good boy so far, taking in all the strange sights and sounds, no doubt thinking they were on a grand adventure.

On Dawson's phone was a text from Tabitha.

Abby just called. Said she'll check in with her sister tonight.

“Abby's safe. Her roommate just sent a message saying that she's been hanging out at her new boyfriend's place before the semester started and had lost her charger.” At least he was able to give Melanie good news for a change.

“Once I'm finished with you, your sister will join you in hell,” Sprigs said from behind them a good twenty-five feet away.

Dawson rounded on Sprigs, blocking his view of Melanie. The movement must've startled Mason, because he started crying.

“Randall?” Dawson shouted.

“He can't help you,” Sprigs said, agitated.

“You're not taking her, Sprigs,” Dawson said.

Sprigs fired a shot. Dawson grabbed his chest, and then he took a few steps back before falling to the ground. He felt wet and cold. He didn't move because for Sprigs to get to Melanie he'd have to run right past Dawson.

She let out a scream and, best Dawson could tell, tore off in the direction opposite Sprigs.

Sprigs cursed and Dawson could hear footsteps racing toward him. He had to time it just right...

When he caught sight of a tennis shoe six inches from his head, he twisted to his side, ignoring the shooting pain in his chest, and grabbed Sprigs by the ankle.

Caught off guard, Sprigs face-planted in the dirt next to Dawson. Another shot fired and Dawson prayed the stray bullet didn't hit Melanie or Mason.

“Run, Melanie,” he shouted.

“Come back or I'll kill him,” Sprigs threatened.

“Like hell you will. And if by some miracle you do, then I'm taking you with me.” Dawson wrestled for control of the gun.

Sprigs was one of those wiry guys, surprisingly strong for his size. If Dawson was full strength, there'd be no doubt who would come out on top. As it was, he was losing a lot of blood.

Dawson wriggled his arm free, spun around until he was sitting on Sprigs's chest and punched him.

Sprigs's nose squirted blood as he fought back, jabbing Dawson where he'd been shot.

Blinding pain nearly caused Dawson to pass out, but he fought to stay conscious. He needed to give Melanie more time to get far away and he needed to make sure Sprigs would never bother her again.

Dawson highly doubted he'd get out of these woods alive given his condition and the lack of medical support. By the time he made it out of there, he would bleed out.

So he reared back and punched Sprigs one more time, knocking him unconscious.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, he heard Mason crying.

He pushed himself off Sprigs and rolled onto his back again, staring up at the canopy of trees. The crackle of the fire was getting even closer and it wouldn't be long before the smoke lulled him into a permanent sleep.

Melanie was fine. Mason was alive. That was all that mattered.

The crying grew louder and before Dawson could sit properly, he heard footsteps.

No. No. No.

Melanie was supposed to run far away. She was smart enough to realize that.

Reality dawned.

That meant one thing. She was trapped, too.

“Melanie,” Dawson called out.

The footsteps came closer as Dawson pushed himself up to his feet, leaning against a tree for support.

“I'm here,” she said, and her voice was like an angel's.

Dawson blinked and saw two blurry figures running toward him. One was holding Mason.

“Melanie, get out of here,” he said.

“I'm not leaving you, Dawson,” she said, putting his arm around her shoulder.

“Dada,” Mason said, leaning toward Dawson. He wanted to hold his son more than he wanted to breathe.

“What are you doing? Now we'll all die,” Dawson whispered to Melanie.

“I found a tunnel,” she said. “It's how he got to us.”

Randall was standing over a still-woozy Sprigs, his foot planted on Sprigs's back.

“Leave him,” Dawson said as Melanie took Mason.

“Oh, no. This scumbag's going with us. Dying is too good for this jerk. He's got a lifetime date in a jail cell,” Randall said as he cuffed the criminal.

“You won't keep me locked behind bars for long,” Sprigs snarled.

“Yes. I will. And you know how I know you're going to have a long and painful life in prison?” Randall said, pulling Sprigs to his feet. “Because you're going to be very popular there. All those burly men in for life without parole are going to enjoy spending quality time with you. So you better plan to start talking and give up everyone you've been working with, every route you've set up.”

Melanie led them through a tunnel that had been built as a water runoff in case the creek flooded.

There were medical personnel waiting on the scene as soon as they broke through to the other side onto the farm road.

Dawson dropped to his knees, exhausted.

“I love you, Melanie. I want to be a real family with you and Mason. Marry me and make me the happiest man alive,” he said as EMTs flanked him and his eyes closed.

* * *

“T
HE
SURGERY
WENT
WELL
,
” Dr. Granger said, still wearing his surgical scrubs.

“That's good news,” Melanie said. She'd been waiting, pacing for a solid eight hours.

Andy had been kind enough to offer to stay with her and Mason. He'd said he could use the practice entertaining a toddler. And he'd been great. Watching Mason with Andy made her miss Dawson all that much more.

“You can go in and see him now,” the doctor said. “He's in room 210.”

Melanie thanked him and walked as fast as she could without running.

She looked at Dawson, lying in bed with machines beeping and tubes coming out of him, and her heart stuttered.

All she could do was pull up a chair by his side and wait for him to open his eyes.

It took another three hours.

He blinked his eyes open and said something she couldn't understand.

“Hey, there, stranger,” she replied. “It's okay.” She squeezed his hand. “You don't have to talk right now.”

He let go of hers and pointed toward the plastic cup of water.

“You're thirsty?” she asked.

He nodded.

She helped him position himself up so he could take a few sips. He blinked a couple of times and really looked at her.

“You didn't answer my question,” he said clearly this time.

She looked around. “What? I already gave you some water. Do you want more?”

He shook his head like he was shaking out of a fog and then kissed her hand.

“I asked you to marry me,” he said.

Melanie's heart filled with joy.

“Yes, Dawson, I will marry you.”

“I love you, Melanie. I always have.” He kissed her hand again.

“Confession?” she asked.

He nodded.

“It's you. It's always been you. I have wanted to marry you since we were ten years old and sat on the old stoop together.” She didn't stop the tears from streaming down her face. “I have always loved you, Dawson.”

Dawson pulled her toward him for a hug, kissing her on her forehead, her eyes, her nose, before pressing his lips to hers in a slow, sweet kiss.

He thumbed away her tears. “I understand what you were saying about Mason before and not needing to know. We don't have to get him tested.”

“You were right, Dawson. I was scared before. I'm not when you're with me. I think we need answers and I'm ready to face whatever life brings our way.”

“No matter what happens, I'll be right beside you, loving you with everything that I am. We'll make it through this life together, making our own mistakes, and you'll never be alone again.”

“I love you,” was all she could manage to say through her tears.

Epilogue

“Don't you think it's a little too cold outside to fire up the grill?” Melanie asked Dawson.

When it came to weather this time of year in Texas, anything was possible.

“It'll be fine,” Dawson reassured her. “Besides, this seems like a steak-on-the-grill kind of announcement.”

She laughed as their friends began arriving couple by couple.

Everyone already knew to come around back, where she was playing with Mason on his new swing set.

Maribel barreled around the side of the house and Mason squealed the second he saw her.

Melanie helped him out of his swing. He ran across the yard until he and Maribel locked in embrace. They crashed into each other, fell down and rolled around laughing. Dylan and Samantha followed. And then Rebecca and Brody arrived, followed by Lisa and Ryan.

It was reassuring to see how much Mason loved other children.

The town had been through so much last summer and yet everyone seemed to bounce back.

There was a renewed feeling of life and a sense of relief after both Alcorn and Sprigs had been convicted and the sheriff had been removed from office, facing corruption charges. The rest of the ring had been busted and children played safely in their yards again.

Times were changing and Mason Ridge was beginning to feel the way it used to when they were all innocent kids. Or maybe there was a new wave of innocence breathing life into the place as a heavy cloud had lifted.

Alice and Jack walked around the corner and Melanie waved to them.

“What's going on?” Dawson asked, clearly surprised to see them.

“I invited them,” Melanie said. She pushed herself up on her tiptoes and kissed her husband. “They deserve to know, too.”

Bonds were still tentative, but Melanie wanted to make an effort.

Her own parents had pulled up in their RV an hour ago. Abby's semester was in full swing, so she couldn't make it to the party. Melanie had promised to fill her sister in on everything that went on later.

“I'll go wake your folks,” Dawson said, patting Melanie's backside.

He returned with them five minutes later.

The sun cast a bright orange glow in the sky. Everyone gathered around the long wooden table.

Melanie couldn't think of a better night to share the news.

Dawson made sure everyone had a drink before taking his spot next to Melanie.

“We're glad everyone could make it tonight,” he began. “We have a special announcement to make and we wanted our friends and family to be the first to know.”

Friends raised their glasses in salute.

“Come here, buddy,” Dawson said to Mason. “You want to tell everyone the good news?”

Mason grinned and nodded. He pointed to Melanie's stomach and said, “Baby.”

Cheers rang out and hugs abounded.

Mason was right. There was a baby coming early next summer. Doctors had reassured them that both of their children were fine.

And Mason would live a long and healthy life with his little sister.

* * * * *

Read on for an excerpt from

HARD RAIN
The next installment in
New York Times
bestselling author
B.J. Daniels's series
THE MONTANA HAMILTONS.

When Brody McTavish sees Harper Hamilton's runaway horse galloping across the pastures, he does what any good cowboy would do—gives chase and rescues her. But they soon have bigger problems when they make a gruesome discovery—human remains that will dredge up old Hamilton family mysteries...and bring about a scandal that could threaten all Harper's loved ones.

Get rewarded every time you buy a Harlequin ebook!
Click here to Join Harlequin My Rewards
http://www.harlequin.com/myrewards.html?mt=loyalty&cmpid=EBOOBPBPA201602010003