Read the book: «Sheltered By The Soldier»

ONE

Gabriella Kensington balanced her eleven-month-old daughter Mia on her hip while fighting to get the key into the sticky lock of the back door of her townhouse. The next time she went out, she was going to have to buy a can of WD-40 and fix it. She considered setting the two plastic grocery bags hanging from her wrist down on the porch, but the three inches of snow that had blanketed the city last night from a late fall cold front had left the mostly uncovered surface both slippery and wet.

But she’d worry about that another day.

She wiggled the handle, heard the click, then finally opened the door. Heat from the house rushed out and filled her lungs with warmth.

Gabby stepped inside as an unexpected chill sliced through her. Setting the two plastic bags of groceries onto the counter, she glanced around the kitchen, managing to knock one of the bags over in the process. A grapefruit rolled off the counter and onto the floor, but she hardly noticed.

Instead, she stared into the living room that opened up from the kitchen. The entire room had been trashed. Papers had been dumped from her desk. Drawers pulled open and their contents dumped. Books and photos lay scattered across the hardwood floor. Mia started fussing. Gabby had no idea if whoever had done this was still somewhere in the house, but there was no time to find out.

This can’t be happening.

But the frightening text she’d received two days ago, demanding her to stop asking questions and threatening her and her daughter, only served to confirm her worst fears. Adrenaline pumping, she hushed her daughter who was struggling to get down. She couldn’t take any chances in case someone was still in the house. Not with Mia. Instead, she raced back to the car, fumbled with the straps on the car seat while Mia’s fussing grew louder.

“It’s okay, sweet baby. Nothing’s going to happen to you. Mama’s going to make sure of that.”

A lump swelled in her throat as she slid into the car. She wanted to pray, except she knew God didn’t always answer prayers. If someone was after her, she was on her own.

Hands shaking, she turned the key in the ignition. The car refused to start.

No...no...no...

“Not now. Please...not now.”

She glanced back at the house, terrified that at any moment someone was going to burst out of the back door and come after her. If someone had still been in the house, she had no doubt that they’d heard Mia crying. She turned the key again to start the engine. Her father had tried to convince her to replace her jeep with something more reliable, but it was going to take her another year to save up. Now she couldn’t help but wonder if she should have tried to make it work.

A third try and the engine caught.

Letting out a strong huff of relief, she pulled out of the driveway, her heart still racing. Calling 911 was the logical option, but something made her hesitate. The letters her husband had written her before his death while still deployed had left her shaken. And this happening so soon after she’d questioned his commanding officers made her wonder if she’d managed to ask the wrong person, triggering something she was at a loss of how to handle. Which meant if someone was after her, she had no idea how far their arm might reach. She stopped at a red light, then glanced at the leather bag with Will’s letters on the floorboard of the car. That had to be what they were after. She swallowed hard. No. She was sounding paranoid. But Will had been paranoid, too. So maybe her fear stemming from the last letter he’d written her wasn’t that far off after all.

I think they realize I’ve been looking into the paper trail. I need to go to someone with what I have, but I have to make sure the evidence is solid. Some of these contractors are the kind of people who wouldn’t hesitate at defrauding our government. The kind of people who wouldn’t blink at killing anyone who got in their way.

The light turned green and she headed north toward the freeway. She’d memorized the details of Will’s letters. They had mentioned contracted workers, so she’d assumed that going to someone in the military was safe. But clearly, she’d been mistaken. And now she couldn’t afford to trust the wrong person again. It wasn’t worth risking her daughter’s life. But either way, she needed a plan and the best option seemed to be to get as far away from here as she could.

But where? The digital clock on the dash said it was a quarter to three. She could call her parents, but what could they do? They were currently enjoying Florida’s balmy weather and couldn’t exactly help her. She had friends that would take her in, but there was no way she was going to put someone else’s life at risk. And until she figured out who was behind this, she’d never be safe. Will was dead, and she had Mia to protect.

Her mind shifted gears as she upped her speed and merged onto the freeway. There was one person who might be able to help her. She glanced at the phone laying in the console next to her. One person who might have the answers to whoever was behind this.

Liam O’Callaghan.

She tried to push the name out of her mind, and instead glanced at the line of cars behind her as each mile took her farther way from danger—and closer to the town of Timber Falls near where he lived. She hadn’t heard from Liam for several weeks. He and Will had been deployed together, then Liam had spent months in both inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation with injuries from the blast that killed her husband. Over the past year and a half, he’d called at least once a month to check on her and make sure she was doing okay and had even come to see her several times. But she hadn’t missed the hint of guilt in his voice each time. As if what had happened to Will was somehow his fault. And she was clearly a reminder.

She placed the call on the cheap smart phone she’d picked up yesterday before she had a chance to change her mind again. But instead of him answering, it switched to voice mail.

“Liam, this is Gabby.” She paused, wondering if she was doing the right thing. Wondering why she felt so hesitant in asking for his help. She tried to shake off the tension in her voice. “Listen... I need to talk to you. It’s important. Please. Call me back as soon as you can on this number.”

Gabby hung up the call, then glanced into the rearview mirror at the back seat where Mia sat in her car seat, playing with her stuffed giraffe. At least she’d stopped crying. When Gabby had found out she was pregnant, everything had seemed so perfect. She’d had the perfect marriage, perfect family, perfect life. Then in one life-altering moment, two uniformed officers had shown up at her front door and everything changed.

Her phone rang, pulling her back into the present. She pushed the call-answer button on the steering wheel. “Liam?”

“Gabby...are you okay?”

“Not really.” She didn’t want to tell him what was going on—that would only make the situation more real—but neither could she put the life of her daughter at risk. “I need help, and I didn’t know who else to call.”

She glanced back into the rearview mirror. Mia had thrown down the giraffe and was fussing again, but Gabby couldn’t stop the car. Couldn’t take any risks that might jeopardize her baby’s life more than she already had.

“What happened?” he asked.

She swallowed hard, trying to dismiss the feeling she was being followed. “I got home this afternoon and discovered someone had ransacked my place.”

“Wait a minute... Have you called 911?”

“I was scared and panicked. Afraid someone might still be in the house.”

“I understand, but you need to call the authorities.”

She hesitated. “I can’t.”

“Why not?”

The last thing she wanted to do was get Liam involved, but what other option did she have?

“Gabby...what’s going on?”

“There’s something I need to talk to you about. There have been other threats—”

“Threats? Is that why you have a new number?”

“I was afraid someone might have been tracking my phone, but I’d rather discuss everything in person.”

“Where are you now?” he asked.

She glanced at the clock. “I’m about twenty minutes from Timber Falls. If you could meet me in town—”

“Of course. Or you could come out to the ranch.”

“I don’t want to get your family involved.”

“Will was my best friend. I promised him if anything ever happened to him, I’d make sure you and Mia were okay. I owe him my life. My family understands that.”

She looked around, her chest still heaving. Sirens wailed from a wreck on the other side of the highway.

“Is there a chance anyone is following you?” he asked.

“I don’t think so, but I can’t be sure. Traffic’s pretty heavy, and it’s starting to snow.”

“I’m out at the ranch, but I’ll head to town now. It will take me at least thirty minutes, but you can wait for me at the sheriff’s office on the edge of town. It’s well lit. You can’t miss it.”

“Okay.”

“Do you remember meeting my brother Griffin?”

“Yes.”

She’d met his entire family at Will’s funeral, and while most of that day was a blur, she remembered being impressed with the four brothers and their parents, whose ancestors had first settled in this area three generations ago.

“I’ll call him. Griffin’s a deputy and on duty today. I’ll give him a heads-up.”

She drew in a long, slow breath, trying to gather her nerves. “I’m scared, Liam. I don’t know what’s going on, or what I’m supposed to do.”

“Don’t worry. We’re going to find a way to make sure you and Mia are safe until we figure out what’s going on.”

She glanced in the rearview mirror, thankful that Mia was finally sleeping. Poor baby was missing her nap and was exhausted. Her gaze shifted slightly as something else caught her attention. There was a black pickup behind her, following too close. Had she seen the same vehicle earlier?

Her fingers gripped the steering wheel. Five seconds later, the road straightened and headed down another narrow mountainous stretch. She pressed harder on the accelerator as she sucked in a deep breath and tried to talk herself down. No one had followed her out of her neighborhood. This was nothing more than her imagination playing tricks on her.

She gave the car all the gas she could and flew back up the hill. A stab of pain shot through her head, and she realized she’d been clenching her jaw. The stress from the last few days had managed to consume her. She kept her eyes on the road, her hand steady on the wheel as she passed a sign to Timber Falls. All she had to do was get to the sleepy tourist town and she would be fine.

“Gabby? Are you...there?”

The call was breaking up.

She glanced again in the rearview mirror. The black pickup was still there. “Liam...”

“What’s...on... Gabby...”

The car behind her smashed into her bumper. She fought to keep the car on the road as she pushed on the pedal. Mia woke up and started crying.

For the first time in months, Gabby prayed God would intervene.

* * *

Liam pressed on the gas pedal, pushing the speed limit down the narrow two-lane road that led from the O’Callaghan Ranch toward Timber Falls, the nearest town from his family’s ten-thousand-plus acre ranch. He called Gabby back.

Nothing.

He tried to ignore the list of uncertainties simmering beneath the surface. He needed to stop worrying. Phone service around the ranch and the road leading into Timber Falls had always left holes of no reception in spite of recent upgrades over the past couple years. It didn’t mean something had happened. This had been his life the past few months. Waiting for the ball to drop, dumping another tragedy on him. His mother kept reminding him that he wasn’t living. And yet, he knew he hadn’t really been living for a long time.

Not since Will had died and Liam had been life-flighted to Germany, almost losing his own life alongside his best friend.

He tried to shake off the memories and instead focus on the road. The last thing he needed to do was run into a deer on the long stretch of winding road toward town. Gabby was fine. One of them had just gone through a no-service patch. He’d meet up with her, see what she needed, then go on with his own life.

Because if he were honest with himself, seeing Gabby was the last thing he wanted to do. Months of therapy had finally gotten him to the place he needed to be physically, but emotionally the scars were yet to completely heal. And seeing Gabby again... He knew it was only going to be a reminder of what happened that night to his best friend. But he couldn’t let emotion rule his thoughts. He owed Will his life on more than one occasion and if that meant ensuring Gabby and her baby were safe, then he planned on doing anything in his power to keep them that way.

Memories from the night of Will’s death refused to leave him alone, bringing back the all-too-familiar panic. They’d been ambushed that starless night only a few miles from the base while out on a routine patrol in Afghanistan. But there was nothing routine about what had happened that night. By the time he got to Will, his friend was already dead.

Mercifully, his memories of that night were few and far between. The following minutes and hours had dragged by as comrades fought to get him to safety. Over a year later, there were still moments when he wished he’d died instead of his friend. Will had a wife and daughter. He should have lived. And yet, for some reason God had taken Will and let Liam live. The guilt of that loss had yet to let go of him completely. But if he could help Will’s widow, it seemed the least he could do to make amends.

He tried to call her again, but for a third time, the call wouldn’t go through. This time he called a different number.

“Griffin?”

“Hey,” his older brother said. “I was just planning on calling you. Are we still on for tomorrow night—”

“Yeah, but listen. I’ve got a problem, and I’m going to need your help. Do you remember Gabby Kensington?”

“Of course. Will’s wife.”

“Yes. She’s on her way into town now to see me. I’m not sure exactly what’s going on, but apparently her house was burglarized. She’s scared, and our call got disconnected.”

“You know how sketchy phone service is in the passes leading up here. I’m sure she’s fine.”

“I know, but I’m still worried. I’m on my way into town now, but you’re closer than I am.”

“What kind of vehicle is she driving?”

“She owns a yellow jeep.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll head south out of town right now and see if I can find her. Keep me updated on your location and we’ll meet up. In the meantime, try to keep calling her, but send me her number so I can try as well.”

Twenty minutes later, Timber Falls began to show above the horizon. He’d grown up in this town. Graduated from the local high school. And for the past few weeks, it had been the place where he could work on the family ranch alongside his older brother, Caden, while he continued to heal. He wanted to go back to active duty, but the doctors still hadn’t approved him. Which left his future in the military hanging in the balance.

Liam’s phone rang, jerking him from his thoughts. “Griffin?”

“I found her.”

“Where is she?”

“First of all, she and her daughter are both fine,” Griffin said, answering Liam’s next question before he had a chance to ask it. “We’re heading back into town now.”

“What’s going on?”

“You did the right thing to call me, because there are a couple things you need to know before you see her.”

Liam felt a shot of adrenaline rush through him. “What do you mean?”

“I haven’t had time to take an official statement yet, but someone rammed into her from behind while she was on her way here.” Griffin hesitated. “From the way she described it, this wasn’t an accident.”

“But she’s okay?”

“She’s fine. Just meet me at the sheriff’s office.”

Five minutes later, Liam parked in front of the square brick building on the edge of town, then hurried inside.

“Liam...” Angie Baker, the department’s secretary, looked up from her computer as he stepped into the lobby. “I just got off the phone with Deputy O’Callaghan. He’s almost here.”

“Thank you.”

He started pacing the white tiled floor while Angie went back to her computer. The clock on the wall ticked by the seconds. But he couldn’t find a way to shove aside the guilt. If anything happened to Gabby, he’d never forgive himself.

“You’re going to wear a hole in the floor.” Angie stood up and grabbed a file from a tray. “Can I get you some coffee?”

“No. I’m fine.” He stopped pacing and forced a smile at the offer. “But thanks.”

Ten minutes later, Griffin finally walked into the lobby from the back. The two of them might be brothers, but while Griffin had brown hair, brown eyes and a knack for management, Liam had blond hair, blue eyes and an affinity for strategizing and problem solving. Though their looks and even personalities might be different, there was one thing they had in common. They both had a strong sense of duty and justice neither could ignore.

“Griffin...” He didn’t even try to curb his impatience as he crossed the room. “Where are they?”

“I took them directly through the back door to the conference rooms. Thought she might be more comfortable there. I also asked Mom to come over from the clinic, so she could check them out.”

“But Gabby’s really alright?”

“She’s shook up, but yes. Apparently, the car that hit her spun out in the snow, and she managed to lose them.”

“Do you have any idea who hit her?”

“I’ve got a deputy looking into the incident, but the chances of us finding them are slim in this weather. What about you? She didn’t say much except that she’d been threatened before. Did she give you any clue as to who might be after her?”

“No. That’s why I need to talk with her.” Liam weighed his options, then made a decision. “I’m going to take her out to the ranch until we can figure out what’s going on. A burglary is one thing, but almost getting run off the road means all of this isn’t random. And from what I can tell, she doesn’t think so, either. I’ve known Gabby for several years and she’s not the kind of woman to borrow trouble. Something is very wrong.”

“I agree.” Griffin pulled off his deputy hat and scratched the back of his head. “You can come back with me now. Then as soon as she’s given her statement and Mom has cleared them medically, you can take them out to the ranch. If we need her for anything else, I’ll know where she is.”

And he’d be able to ensure she stayed safe.

A minute later, Liam walked into the small conference room where Gabby was standing near the window. He crossed the room, then pulled her into his arms and hugged her. “Gabby... I’m so, so sorry.”

“I’m fine, really. Just shook up.”

She looked at him with those big brown eyes of hers. He’d gone to visit her half a dozen times since Will’s death seventeen months ago, but his own physical therapy had kept him out of the loop for the most part. She’d changed little on the outside, but he knew the emotional toll had been high.

“Wow...she’s grown up so much.” He knelt down next to the car seat where Mia slept, with her chubby fingers wrapped tightly around a stuffed orange giraffe. “She’s adorable and so much bigger than the last time I saw her.”

“That’s what babies do. They tend to grow up. She turns one this month.”

“It’s hard to believe that much time has passed.” He stood up and faced her again. “Griffin told me you were hit from behind. Are you sure you’re fine?”

“Yes, though I’ve been told that your mother’s on her way to check us out.”

“We’ll need to have your car looked at as well, and what about the phone you thought they might be using to track you?”

She pulled it out of her purse and handed the phone to him. “Maybe I’m just paranoid, but I saw something a while back on TV about apps that can be installed to track someone without their knowledge. I didn’t want to take any chances.”

“You did the right thing. I’ll pass this on to Griffin and see if someone who works with their IT can look at it. And Gabby... I promise we’re going to find out what’s going on.”

She nodded, but he didn’t miss the fear in her eyes.

“Do you have any idea who’s behind all of this?” he asked.

There was a long silence before she answered. “I think this has something to do with Will’s death.”

Liam worked to process the information, surprised at her answer. “Will’s death? He died in an explosion halfway around the world a year and a half ago. How can this be related?”

She shrugged. “I recently went through the rest of Will’s footlocker. I found some letters he wrote that I’d never seen before. He was worried about something. What if it wasn’t just another attack? What if it was just meant to look that way?”

“Wait a minute. You mean that someone—other than terrorists—wanted him dead?”

“I think he stumbled upon something illegal while he was over there. Will hinted that contractors where involved, but I think he was afraid of the repercussions without solid proof of what was going on. And whatever it was got him killed. Because when I start asking questions...” A tear streamed down her face. “Liam, I think they’re after me.”