You're Not Safe (Texas Rangers) (20 page)

“I’ve told you I can’t tell you. We keep names a secret for a reason.”

“I need to have those names.”

“You won’t get them from me.”

“One way or another I’m going to get a list of those names and figure out if I’m chasing any kind of pattern.”

“I can’t confirm or deny what you are saying.”

Bragg shook his head. “I want to handle this as quietly as I can, Dr. Leland. I don’t want to make a fuss. Media can turn a situation sideways. Couldn’t be good for your business. But I promise you if I don’t get your help, I’ll mention both my victims were Shady Grove residents.”

The doctor paled. “I would help you if I could, but I can’t break doctor-patient confidence.”

“Tell you what. Why don’t you locate the folks in that group and find out how they’re doing?”

“I don’t have that kind of information. People scatter and move away.”

“I bet you know more than you realize. Bet their grateful families are generous donors.”

“You’re putting me in a bad position. Making calls like that could be awkward.”

“Not my worry, Dr. Leland. I need to find out what happened to the kids in that group.”

“What if there is no connection? What if I find out they’re all good and well, and you’re stirring trouble for no reason at all?”

“Well, then, I’d say it will be your lucky day. I’d say, you won’t have to worry about me anymore.” Bragg leaned forward. He grinned, knowing the effect could be menacing. “I’m not the kind of person people like having around on a regular basis. I make them nervous.”

A slight widening of the doctor’s eyes confirmed he wanted Bragg gone. “And if they’re dead? Then what do I do?”

“Then you best let me know. In the meantime, I’m going to get a court order. That might help you with your legal dilemma. But news of court orders has a way of leaking out.”

“Don’t want that getting around,” Winchester said.

Dr. Leland adjusted his tie. “You are backing me into a corner.”

Bragg rose, knowing hardball came next. “Nope, just hoping you’ll do your civic duty and help out the Rangers. But if you don’t help then you can bet we’re going to back you into a corner and make your life miserable.”

Winchester stood, as if in no rush. He grinned.

Shoulder to shoulder, the mass of the Rangers’ bodies ate a hefty chunk of floor space. They left the stunned doctor in his office and strode out the front door. On the front porch Bragg settled his hat on his head and surveyed the grounds. A flash of metal in light caught his attention. He strode across the gravel driveway and the ground toward a large tree. At the base of the tree he found a plaque. It read:

 

Bragg studied the name, and touched the tip of his hat out of respect before leaving the uncomfortable beauty of the camp.

 

 

He sat in the sunshine, his eyes closed as he drank up the warmth. He loved the Hill Country. The quiet. The trees. The slower pace. He could stay here all day.

“How much longer are we going to sit here?” she said.

He ignored her, hoping she’d go away.

“I know what you are doing and I’m not going to let you ignore me.” She’d ratcheted up her voice, adding the shrill he hated. “Open your eyes and pay attention to me!”

He didn’t need to open his eyes to picture her brown hair, peaches-and-cream complexion, and the sprinkle of freckles over her nose. When she was irritated, her eyes blazed blue and her cheeks flushed pink. “Can’t you just leave me in peace? Do we always have to be talking?”

“You don’t like talking to me?”

He didn’t have to open his eyes to know she was pouting. “Not now.”

“We need to talk now. We don’t have a lot of time.”

“We’ve got twenty-four hours. That’s plenty of time.”

She huffed. “You were never a good planner. Always putting the important matters off until last.”

The nagging raked over his nerves, shattering the day’s calm. “Leave me alone.”

“You know I can’t. You know if not for me you wouldn’t have the drive or gumption to take care of the others.”

He sat up, his jaw tight, as he stared at the distant horizon. “You need to back off. I’ve gotten us this far.”

“Because I’ve been poking and prodding you the whole time. If not for me you’d still be living that boring life in Austin lost in the mindless details of your day.”

“Those mindless details have made a lot of money. Someone has to take care of business.”

“We’ve plenty of money. We don’t need more. What we need to do is talk about the next one. We need to review the details so we don’t make any mistakes.”

He sighed. “If I go over the details with you, will you leave me alone?”

“If you go over each and every detail, then yes I will leave you alone.”

“For how long?” That’s the way it had always been with them. Endless negotiations.

“I’ll leave you be. For now. Maybe even a day.”

“Swear.”

“Don’t I always keep my word?”

He laughed. “No.”

She giggled. “You love me. Admit it.”

He hated her when she bitched at him. Hated himself more when she was nice and he acquiesced.

“Come on admit it,” she cooed. “You love me.”

“Fine. I love you. Now let’s talk about killing Sam so I can get some sleep.”

 

 

Her body still hummed with nervous energy as Greer watched the clerk ring up the feed for the two horses. She still couldn’t decide if going to Bragg had been a good idea or not.

“That will be three hundred and two dollars,” the clerk said.

She’d known taking the old horses on would be expensive, but she’d not really put pen to paper and calculated the cost. She handed the clerk her charge card and tried not to be bothered by the expense.

She stepped back from the counter looking, but not really looking, at flower seeds as Rory and Sara’s images elbowed back into her thoughts.

Beautiful Rory had been interested in her from the start. He’d been sweet and charming, and Greer had been so grateful someone showed any interest in her. She’d never noticed Joan, or rather Sara, resented the relationship. Sara had slept with Rory a couple of times at camp and she’d really liked him. But Rory being Rory had moved on to Greer, and she’d not cared about Sara’s loss. Greer thought herself in love. If only she could have seen Sara hurt as much as she had and let her have Rory.

But Greer had literally been starving for love and Rory’s paltry offering had been nectar. She’d been naïve enough to believe the youthful, hasty promises Rory and she made. Write. Talk on the phone. Friends forever. Karma had brought them together.

But of course, outside the camp walls Rory’s old life swept him away from Sara and Greer.

The clerk handed her a receipt and she signed it, tucking the card back in her wallet. “My truck’s out front. Can I get someone to load up the feed?”

“Yes, ma’am. Go ahead and pull around back.”

As she moved through the store, the hair on the back of her neck rose. It was a subtle, practically imperceptible feeling but when she thought about it there was no denying her unease.

Stiffening, she reminded herself the sensation wasn’t uncommon. When people from her past recognized her, they stared. In their minds, once a sinner always a sinner and there’s no event more entertaining than the appearance of a she-devil to brighten an otherwise boring day.

Most times she kept on walking and didn’t bother to speak. In fact, there’d been times when she’d slinked back to her truck and raced home. But since she’d met Dr. Stewart, she’d been refusing more and more to run. She had a right to stand her ground. Yes, she’d sure as hell made a lot of mistakes, but the last she checked no one could cast the first stone.

She stopped and turned, her hand gripping the worn leather strap of her purse.

Greer spotted him instantly. He was a tall lean man. Well dressed. He still carried himself with a straight-back posture. Like his sister and his parents, he’d been a rider. The family owned a stable of the finest horses in Texas and a far cry from the nags she now owned.

When she made eye contact his gaze locked on her. His hair remained dark, but gray now lightened the temples. Deeply tanned skin gave him a youthful vigor. He had to be close to forty now.

His eyes narrowed as if he wanted to assure himself she was who he thought she was. “I haven’t seen you in town in a long time.”

“No, I don’t get into town often.” He’d been wearing a suit the last time she’d seen him. They’d been in court.

His eyes darkened. “I didn’t realize you were still in the area until I heard about your party the other night. I couldn’t believe it when they told me you’d never left. Thirty miles outside of Austin the entire time.”

“Texas is my home.”

He shook his head. “It was my sister’s home, too. Until you killed her.”

Her memory jumped to Sydney Dowd, Jeff’s girlfriend. She’d been in the front seat of her brother’s car the night of the accident. When the car had hit the tree, she’d been thrown clear. Her neck had broken instantly.

Sydney’s parents had sued her parents because Greer had been driving on a learner’s permit and was supposed to be accompanied by an adult driver. Jeff had been passed out drunk, the attorney had argued, so the Templetons had broken the law by allowing Greer to drive unmonitored.

She remembered Mr. and Mrs. Dowd coming to the hospital after the accident. They’d stared at her with such a stony silence she’d wept. She’d wanted to apologize or say words to comfort them, but her mother had been in the room, and she had refused to let her speak. There’d been a heated exchange and the Dowds had left when her mother had called security. Later, Greer’s mother had warned her to stay clear of the Dowds.
Don’t make any more trouble for us, Elizabeth.

She’d known Sydney had an older brother, Rick. She saw the resemblance and tried to imagine Sydney if she’d lived.

“What can I do for you, Mr. Dowd?”

Rick Dowd cocked an eyebrow. “What do you suggest, Ms. Templeton?”

The edge in his voice had her bristling. “I’ve no suggestions. But you clearly have words for me.”

He flexed his fingers. “Not sure what either of us could say to the other. You gutted my family. Hard to come back from an obstacle like that.”

Her breathing thinned as regret knotted in her belly. “I will always be sorry, Mr. Dowd.”

“I doubt you know the meaning of the word, Ms. Templeton.”

A rush of anger and shame rose up in her, coloring her face. “That’s not true. You’ve no idea how I felt.”

“Well, your feelings pale in comparison to mine and my parents’, who lost a child.”

A pained sigh escaped her lips. “I lost a brother. I know your pain.”

He jabbed a finger at her. “Don’t pretend to know how I feel.
Don’t
.”

This was a losing battle. “What do you want me to say, Mr. Dowd?”

“Like I said, not much.” His gaze roamed over her, the anger all but snapping from his eyes.

How could she ask him to forgive when she’d not really forgiven herself? More words wouldn’t take away his pain or her guilt. “I wish you the best, Mr. Dowd.”

As she turned to leave he hurried to block her path. In a voice loud enough for her alone to hear, he said, “You aren’t sorry, but you will be.”

A chill twisted along her spine. She met his gaze. “What does that mean?”

He shrugged and smiled. “Doesn’t mean a thing.”

They both knew it would be his word against hers.

She balled her fingers into fists. “Is that a threat?”

He smelled of sandalwood and leather. “It’s whatever you want it to be.”

“I heard a threat.”

He shrugged. “Oh, well.”

The cruelty behind his grin made her want to charge him. She’d spent over a decade sequestered and locked away from the world, and she was tired of carrying this indomitable weight.

Brushing past him she hurried to her truck and slid behind the wheel. Her hands trembled as she shoved the key in the ignition and drove around to the side of the building to collect her feed.

She backed up to the loading dock and for several seconds sat still. Her nerves jumped and snapped and her breath hung in her throat. She’d stayed out of the public limelight all these years to avoid the pain she’d just encountered. Last night’s party had gone well. They’d raised thousands for the Crisis Center, and she’d lulled herself into believing people had put the past behind them. But some would never let the past go. And no amount of penance or apologies would change that.

A knock on her window had her turning. A gray-haired man with a face deeply etched grinned at her. “Got your feed.”

She blew out a breath. “Great.”

Restless, she slid out of the truck, walked around to the back, and opened the tailgate. As the men on the dock loaded her order, she took several deep breaths as she willed the stress away.

A whimpering sound caught her attention. Turning, she spotted a box on the loading dock tucked to the side. Peeking out of the box was a puppy. Short haired and small, he’d been born without a right eye, she realized even at this distance. He wagged his tail as he looked at her. Clearly the deformity didn’t bother him.

Without a thought, she climbed the stairs to the top of the dock, crossed to the box, and picked up the puppy. Excited, he wagged his tail and licked her face. And then he peed on her.

Despite her encounter with Dowd, the puppy melted her worries and allowed her to push him out of her thoughts. “This is the day for people peeing on me.”

The puppy kicked his feet and licked her face.

She grinned. “Though I don’t mind yours so much.”

The one-eyed puppy was a cross between a dachshund and a terrier, which left him with wiry hair and a long back. The patchwork of reds, browns, silvers, and blacks wasn’t wholly attractive, and she suspected once he was no longer a puppy, he’d be one homely fellow.

The dock foreman came up behind her. “He’s the last of the litter. Spunky little fellow but that eye. Damn, won’t be many folks that want him.”

“Where’s his mom?”

“She left as soon as the pups were weaned. A stray.”

“Are you gonna keep him?”

“Can’t have a dog running around the dock. Especially one that looks like it was made by a bunch of politicians.”

“He have a name?”

“‘Dog’ is all we been calling him.”

She studied Dog’s closed right eye and then the excitement in the left as his wagging crooked tail thumped. And just like that she couldn’t imagine leaving him. “They say there is one born every minute.”

The old man chuckled. “You falling for that ugly face?”

“I don’t need a dog. Especially a puppy. I don’t need it.” And she didn’t need two old horses. And she didn’t need a sullen ex-soldier working her land.

The old man chuckled. “Seen that look in my wife’s eyes. Led to a dozen dogs in our thirty-one years of marriage.”

She tucked the dog under her arm, noticed that he fit well. He hunkered down as if staking a claim. No doubt the dog was smart, saw his ticket out of here, and hoped charm overcame ugly. “She willing to make it a lucky thirteen dogs?”

“Wife passed a year ago. Can’t have no more hounds in my house. But he’s all yours if you want him. I’ll even throw in a big bag of puppy chow.”

She’d think back on this moment in the near future and truly question her sanity. “I don’t suppose he’s had shots?”

“Matter of fact he did. Got all his puppy shots and been wormed.”

The dog licked her face. “You two drive a hard bargain.”

“He’s ugly as sin, but he is the smartest of the litter. Listens well.”

“Yeah, yeah. You can quit with the sales job. Load up the dog food. Dog’s coming with me.”

His grin widened. “Good for you.”

She shook her head as she stared at the contented pup. “Yeah. Right.”

As she settled into the front seat of her truck, Dog settled on her lap, and promptly rested his head and fell asleep. For a moment she sat still, savoring the warmth of his body against hers. He’d accepted her without question. She was kind to him now and that was all that mattered to him. He didn’t care about twelve years ago or twelve years in the future. It was about now.

She rubbed him on the head and fired up the engine. As she backed out of the lot, she spotted Rick Dowd. He sat in the front seat of his Lexus staring at her. Pure hate summed up his expression.

Tightening her grip on the wheel she shifted into drive and with her hand on Dog headed back to the vineyard. She glanced in the rearview mirror and saw Dowd’s car and to her relief he didn’t follow. But she suspected this would not be the last time for them.

Even with Dog nestled close, she couldn’t shake the shock of seeing Rick Dowd today. He’d reopened the wound.

She shifted gears as she rounded a corner, moving her left leg slowly so Dog didn’t awaken. As she pulled into a straightaway, her mind drifted back to Jeff and Sydney. The two had been the golden couple. Beautiful. Smart. Funny. Greer had often called them Barbie and Ken because they’d been perfect. And then the headlights had appeared in the distance. Horns blared. Jeff cursed. And then pain, death, and an unbearable sadness.

“Possibilities, not the past,” she’d said. The slogan embraced by the camp leaders. The words they’d drilled into their young charges. Words she still held on to.

She’d not told Bragg the entire truth today, and it weighed on her mind. She had seen one of the others since she’d left camp. Two years ago, she’d bumped into Robin. Lydia and Greer had been in Fredericksburg, Texas, at a wine tasting. They’d decided to build the winery and had decided to again check out the local competition.

The small quaint town had been jam-packed with outsiders who’d come to taste the wines of local vineyards. It had been her idea to attend. Her aunt had finished her latest round of chemo and was feeling good and hopeful for the future. Greer had been feeling hopeful. Greer had wanted the world to know Bonneville grew the best grapes but also would soon be making the best wine.

There’d been close to fifty vendors that day. Not only were vineyards present, but also cheese makers, local farmers markets, pig farmers, and bread bakers.

Greer had been sampling a port from a winery near Houston when she’d heard her name.
Elizabeth.
Instantly, she’d tensed. Elizabeth signaled her old life.

She glanced up, surprised and shocked, to see Robin standing there. She had a glass of wine in her hand and judging by her flushed face she was drunk.

Greer adjusted her ball cap. “Hey, Robin.”

Robin was a tall brunette with a runner’s long lean body. A white tank-top dress set off her tanned body and her full breasts. “I thought that was you. Despite the ball cap, I couldn’t miss the set of that jaw. You always struck me as determined.”

Greer straightened and set down her glass of port, suddenly losing all taste for it. She turned from the vendor and managed a smile for Robin. “You’re looking well.”