Thirty-One and a Half Regrets (18 page)

“I don’t understand. Why would someone want my files?”

“Not
someone
. Crocker. Or more likely, his men.”

I sat bolt upright, and he did too. “Why would he want my files?”

“I don’t know. To find out what you’ve said about him? To get more information on you? Because he’s obsessed with you? I’m not sure, but one thing is certain: files are gone.”

I tried to absorb the information. “Why were you away for so long?”

“Because my office was trashed… And because Crocker left a note.”

I gasped. “What did it say?”

“‘Smart men don’t take what is mine.’”

I felt like I was going to be sick. “He threatened you because he knows we’re together…”

He stood and pulled me off my cot, taking me into his arms. “It’s going to be okay.”

“But they still don’t know where he is.”

His tightened his embrace. “No.”

“He’s going to hurt you, Mason. Because of me.”

“No, Rose. Jeff’s worried enough that he wants me to go into protection with you.”

I buried my face in the nape of his neck. Was it wrong that I was relieved that he was going with me? Even if his life was in danger? I pulled back to look at him. “Where will they take us?”

A hesitant smile lifted his lips. “Your farm.”

Not my farm. My
mother’s
farm. Fear washed through me, not of Daniel Crocker but of the unknown from my past that awaited me there.

“I told Jeff about the farm and he had two deputies he trusts check it out yesterday afternoon. It’s perfect because so few people know it exists. But we’re only telling a few key people. We think there might be a leak in the department.”

“
What
?”

“Jeff and I have suspected as much for a couple of months. Our lunch date the other day was just one of many meetings we’ve had to try and piece it together. Even though the Henryetta safe house wasn’t so secret, the sheriff thinks Crocker’s men might have gotten a tip from someone inside the Henryetta or Fenton County law enforcement departments.”

“Then how can we trust them to protect us?”

“Because Jeff has handpicked a handful of men whom he’s positive he can trust.”

I struggled to breathe.

“By going to your farm, we’ve added an extra layer of protection. It’s not one of their usual safe houses and no one knows anything about it. We’ll hide there with the detail and wait for them to catch Crocker.” He cupped my cheek and leaned down to kiss me. “I know you’re scared, but trust me.”

“Always.” I grabbed his face and kissed him to show him not only how much I needed him, but how much I wanted him.

He wrapped his arms around my back and pulled me to him, kissing me until I was breathless.

He groaned and pulled back, staring at me with eyes full of longing. “As much as I want this to go further, a cot in the back room of the sheriff’s department doesn’t seem like the best place.”

I rested my cheek on his chest. “Is it wrong that I want you on the farm with me?”

His hand stroked my arm. “No. It would be wrong if you didn’t.”

The door opened and Jeff appeared in the doorway. “Oh, good. You’re awake. It’s early, so half the county’s still asleep. Now would be a good time for us to head to the safe house.”

“Yes, we’re eager to get settled,” Mason said.

“Then let’s get going.”

After ordering his men to pull two unmarked cars behind the building, Jeff led us to the back door, stopping with his hand on the door handle. “I’ll be in contact a couple of times a day. You’ll have one guard during the day and two at night. Here’s the list of guys who will be watching you.” He handed Mason a folded sheet of paper. “Hopefully, we’ll catch the bastard soon and you won’t have to be out there for very long.”

Mason shook Jeff’s hand and pulled him into a guy hug, thumping him on the back. “Thanks. You have no idea how much I appreciate all your help.”

“Don’t mention it.”

We followed Jeff into the parking lot. “You’re going to take separate cars just to be on the safe side.” He opened the back door of the first car and I slid onto the seat, then looked back to watch as Mason climbed into the other car.

Mason’s car pulled away from the curb immediately, but Jeff still hadn’t closed my door. He squatted down in the opening. “Rose, I’d like to apologize for yesterday. I think we got off on the wrong foot. When we were in Mason’s office last night, he confessed that he’s had feelings for you for months and that you two have been friends for even longer.” He took a deep breath. “I was just being an overprotective friend and I jumped to the wrong conclusion. No hard feelings I hope?”

“No. Of course not.”

“I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t mention yesterday’s talk to Mason.” His face reddened. “It’ll make him angry and he has enough to deal with right now. Maybe we can all sit around and laugh about it someday.”

“I don’t see any reason to tell him. And I appreciate that you’re such a good friend to him.”

“Thanks. And don’t worry. We’ll catch this guy.” He stood and shut my back door, thumping the roof with his hand.

I watched out the back windows, the rising sun casting a warm glow over the pine trees lining the county road. Of all the times I’d thought about visiting my birth mother’s farm, I had never once considered going there in the back of an unmarked sheriff’s car.

I glanced at the front of the car and noticed the deputy was watching me in the rearview mirror.

He smiled. “It shouldn’t take much longer.”

“Thanks.” I leaned my head against the window.

“I’m Deputy Miller and I’ll be on watch today.”

“Nice to meet you, Deputy Miller. I’m Rose.” But he already knew that. I took another look at him. It was hard to get a full-fledged impression, since I could see little more than the back of his head, but his eyes looked kind in the mirror and he didn’t seem to hate me. Both were steps in the right direction.

Neither of us spoke as he drove for several miles on the two-lane road before turning onto another county road and driving for several more miles past a few farms and sections of untouched woods. Finally he turned onto a one-lane gravel road, the entrance nearly hidden by overgrown tree branches.

“So far, so good,” the deputy said, looking in his rearview mirror. He dropped his speed to keep from flinging gravel. “It’ll work in our favor that the drive is so hard to find.”

My stomach twisted into a knot as the tree branches thinned and a clearing spread out before us, a war of emotions stirring inside me. With all the commotion and stress, I hadn’t really had time to absorb the fact that this would be my first visit to my birth mother’s home.

A two-story, white clapboard, Victorian-style farmhouse sat at the end of the drive, the other sheriff’s car parked in front of it. A large red barn with a wooden fence enclosure was situated several hundred feet behind the house on top of a small hill. Several acres of overgrown fields lay to the left of the farmhouse and several acres behind the house was a gently sloping hill covered in evergreen trees.

The deputy pulled up next to the other car. I climbed out and shut the door, staring at the front porch that wrapped around the right side of the house. Mason was already standing on the porch, surveying the land, but he came down the steps and wrapped an arm around my shoulders. “What do you think?”

I had wanted to hate it out of anger. Dora hadn’t chosen to die, but my childhood had been ruined after her death. I recognized the ridiculousness of my reaction, but that didn’t change the way I felt. Still, as I stared at the peeling paint of the Victorian-style house, my anger started to fade. “I’m reserving judgment.”

“Fair enough.” He spun around and took in the circular drive. “But this is an amazing safe house. We’re completely secluded here with open space all around the house. And from the looks of it, there’s only one way in and out. It couldn’t be more perfect,” he said and whistled.

Well, I was glad something was going our way.

When we walked onto the porch, I realized we had a problem. I turned to Mason, who was still looking all around, absorbing the details of the place. “I don’t have the keys.”

“I’ve got a couple of sets,” Deputy Miller said, walking up behind us. “Once we determined it was a safe location, we had a locksmith come out to change the locks.”

I got my first full look at him. He was young, but not as young as Officer Sprout, and he had an air of confidence and competence the other man had lacked. His dark hair was cropped short and his dark brown eyes still looked friendly.

Mason joined me on the porch. “Let’s check out the inside and then investigate the barn.”

The deputy swung the screen door aside and unlocked and opened the door. He moved aside so that I could be the first one to enter the house. I took a couple of steps into the foyer and stopped in my tracks, barely aware that Mason had followed me inside. The exterior of the house didn’t do the interior justice. We were standing in an entryway across from a large wooden staircase that led to a landing with a wood banister. To our left was a dining room with white wood paneling halfway up the wall, furnished with a long ornate dining room table and chairs, a buffet stacked with china, and a glass cabinet stuffed full of crystal. To my right was a living room filled with old Victorian-style furniture. A small baby grand piano resided in the back corner. A brick fireplace was flanked on each side by four-foot-tall bookcases with windows above them. Much to my amazement, books still filled the cases. Jutting off the living room was a library with wood-paneled walls, a large desk, and more bookcases crammed with books.

I continued toward the back of the house, Mason trailing behind me. We passed through a swinging solid wooden door into a large kitchen. The walls were painted a pale yellow and white cabinets and appliances lined two of the walls. A large farmhouse-style table sat at the back of the room, beneath a pane of windows that looked out onto the backyard and barn. A door to the left led to a small powder room.

“When you said farmhouse, this isn’t what I was expecting,” Mason said.

“Yeah, I know.” I’d expected rustic, and although the house wasn’t ostentatious, it was far from a simple farmhouse.

We went upstairs next, and filed into the first bedroom on the right. A full-sized four-poster bed was pushed against one wall and a huge armoire filled another. The other two walls featured huge windows that looked out onto the land.

Mason parted the sheers, sending dust flying into the air. “Rose, I can see the county road at the end of the drive from here. This house really is the perfect place for us to hide out.”

I could only stare, trying to sort out my confused emotions. As if he could read my mind, Mason gave me a hug and said, “I’m going to give you a few moments alone while I check the other rooms.”

I nodded and he left me staring out at the acres and acres of land that belonged to me. While I’d used some of the money from my inheritance for the nursery, I’d ignored the farm until a shortage of liquid assets had made me consider selling it. But as much as I hated to admit it, I felt an immediate sense of belonging here.

“There are three more bedrooms and two bathrooms,” Mason called out. “You can pick whichever room you’d like to use, but there’s a bigger bedroom in the back that looks like it’s the master with a canopy bed.”

“Muffy would love it here,” I said, looking down at the overgrown bushes in the yard. I was already starting to come up with a landscape design.

Mason pulled me into his arms, searching my face. “What about you? How do you feel about being here?”

“I’m not sure yet.”

A car came down the gravel drive, sending dust flying into the air. I tensed, but Mason kissed my temple. “Don’t worry. That’s probably just one of the deputies with our things.”

I looked up at him in surprise.

“After I finished at my office last night, a deputy took me to my condo and your house to get some clothes and personal items. I called the sheriff’s department to ask you what you wanted but you were already asleep and I didn’t want to wake you. So I guessed.”

“Don’t worry. I’m sure you did fine.”

“We’ll find out soon enough. Let’s go on down. There’s a surprise for you.”

I couldn’t imagine what it might be, but when we descended the stairs and I opened the front door, I saw a brown streak bolt from the car and head straight for an overgrown azalea bush.

“
Muffy?
”

I pushed the screen door open and ran outside, right past Deputy Miller. My little dog’s head popped up and she bolted to me, jumping onto my lap when I squatted.

Mason followed me and stopped at the bottom of the steps. “I knew you were missing her, so I asked Jeff to have someone pick her up from Violet’s house.”

Muffy licked my face and I stood, holding her in my arms. “Thank you,” I pushed past the lump in my throat.

His smile faltered. “Rose, you should know that the sheriff put Violet and her kids into protective custody.” He saw the panic in my eyes and put a comforting hand on my shoulder. “They weren’t threatened in any way, but he wants to be on the safe side.”

I took a deep breath and nodded. “That’s good, right?”

“Yes.”

The new deputy opened the trunk of his unmarked car and lifted out a box. I noticed the car that had brought Mason was already gone.

Mason smiled down at me. “Why don’t you let Muffy learn her way around, and I’ll help the deputy take our things in?”

“Okay.” I put Muffy down and followed her around the entire perimeter of the house while Mason and the new deputy carried in boxes and a couple of pieces of luggage. I recognized one of them as my own.

Deputy Miller was still standing on the front porch, dividing his time between watching us and the drive. “Your dog is cute. What’s his name?”

“Muffy. And she’s a she.” I put a hand on my hip, wondering if he was making fun of her. “You really think she’s cute?”

“Well, yeah.” He looked confused by my question.

I was fairly certain he was the first person to ever have called her cute. I liked him already.