Page 50 of Some Cowgirls are Worth Protecting

“If you believe that,” he said and coughed, “then you’re dumber than I thought you were.”

Her jaw dropped open. “Tell me you didn’t just call me dumb.”

He looked away.

“You want to know why this is my fault? Because I didn’t leave when I had the chance. I didn’t take their threats seriously. I should have walked.”

Hudson’s eyes snapped back to Rachel’s. He couldn’t tell if she was just venting or if there was a deeper meaning to what she was saying. She couldn’t possibly be suggesting that she wanted to give up the sanctuary.

Could she?

Rachel paced at the foot of his bed. “I don’t know where that other cigarette box is, but I’m hoping you were smart enough to put it somewhere safe so the sheriff can compare the two.”

It was in his room. No, he hadn’t been careless enough to put it in his pocket when he’d left the house to sleep out in the barn. But he wasn’t going to give it up that easily. He had his own investigation to conduct.

She let out a sigh and her pacing slowed. “Maybe it’s time to take a step back and accept that I don’t know what I’m doing. This was all new territory to begin with. Perhaps I made a mistake in staying here—in starting this sanctuary without knowing what I would be coming up against.”

“You don’t mean that.”

She shrugged, wrapping her arms around her as she glanced toward him. “It’s for the best, Hudson.”

Wait a minute. That sounded final. Had she already made the decision? How long had he been out? It didn’t feel like more than a day, but he’d been asleep for most of it. “You’re not selling,” he insisted louder this time.

“Not yet. But I have a meeting lined up with a few potential buyers and with the guy who wanted me to run that charity?—”

Hudson slammed his fist down into the mattress, but it made less of an impact with his already weakened state. “You can’t sell. That’d be like running away. You’re not a coward.”

“Maybe I am. How much do you really know me, Hudson?” She looked away. “I have to go. I’ll let Liam know you’re awake.” She moved toward the door, and he called after her.

“Rachel, wait?—”

But she was already gone.

24

Rachel

Rachel stared at the steaming cup of tea that Athena placed in front of her and fought back the emotion she’d been holding in since the fire. The building was a pile of rubble, but at least it had stopped smoking. Now, it was just a reminder of the wreckage of her dream. She glanced up at her sister before grasping the cup. “Have you heard from him?”

Athena glanced toward Henry and then back to Rachel. “We haven’t.”

Rachel shot a look toward Liam, who also shook his head.

Her heart sank. Each passing day that they hadn’t heard from Hudson made her anxiety that much worse. She couldn’t believe he would just up and leave like that. He’d been so adamant about how wrong it was for someone to just take off. He wasn’t a hypocrite. So where had he gone?

“Do you know where he might be?” she asked.

Henry was the one to answer this time. “All I know is that he took a small camper trailer from Wade’s father-in-law and left with just a duffle bag and his truck. No one has heard from him or seen him since he got discharged from the hospital.”

“I don’t like it,” Rachel snapped. “Who in their right mind would let a guy just take off and leave without having to check in every couple of days? Smoke inhalation is really dangerous. What if something happens and he passes out? There’s no one who can keep an eye on him and call a paramedic.” She hated how her voice got sharper with each word she spoke. She hated how her vulnerability had become so transparent that she might as well have a wall of glass around her instead of the stone wall she used to have protecting her heart.

“We’re all worried, Rachel. No one faults you for that.”

“But they fault me for dragging you all into this, don’t they?”

Athena reached out and touched Rachel’s knee. “No one is thinking that either.”

She gave her sister a look of disbelief. “Really? You can honestly tell me that Wade is living his happy-go-lucky life? Because the last time I saw him, I got the distinct impression that he was judging me so deeply it almost hurt.”

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