Page 22 of Protecting the Newborn

“No.” He huffed, and when he repeated it, there was plenty of frustration in his voice. “I think the shots came from the west. There are a lot of trees in that area, so check and see if you can spot a sniper.”

Because Gracelyn was watching Ruston so closely, she saw when he shifted his attention in the direction of the road. “A Saddle Ridge cruiser is coming,” Ruston relayed to everyone just as his phone dinged with a text. “Duncan says it’s Luca. Deputy Luca Vanetti,” he spelled out, no doubt to inform Charla and Tony. “And Duncan is Sheriff Holder. He’s here inside the house.”

“I don’t see a sniper,” Tony said. “In fact, the only people I see are the deputy in the cruiser and some cowboys with rifles back behind the house. You’re sure they’re not the ones who shot at us?”

“I’m sure,” Ruston snapped, and this time there was some anger in his voice. “I’m not a dirty cop, and I didn’t set anyone up to be murdered.”

Before Ruston could add anything to that, he got a text. “Duncan says one of the hands spotted someone in that area by the trees. It’s probably the sniper, so the hands are going in pursuit.”

That gave Gracelyn a jolt of both hope and fear. She wanted the ranch hands to catch the guy, but they weren’t cops. And they weren’t killers like the sniper almost certainly was. The ranch hands could be hurt. Or worse. Still, if they managed to capture him, then they might learn why these attacks were happening.

Or if this was actually an attack.

After everything that had happened, Gracelyn wasn’t about to dole out any automatic trust to Charla and Tony simply because they’d been shot at. One of them could have arranged this, knowing their odds of being hurt while sitting in a cruiser were slim.

Slater got another text. “Luca will escort the two SAPD cops to the house. They’ll stay downstairs,” Slater added, glancing at Gracelyn, probably to try to reassure her that Charla and Tony wouldn’t be a threat.

And they probably wouldn’t be, in a house surrounded by lawmen. No, this wouldn’t be an optimal time for them to try to tie up loose ends. If that was what one of them was actually trying to do, that was. But Gracelyn very much wanted to see their faces so she could maybe tell if they were trying to hide their guilt.

“We’ll talk once Charla and you are inside,” Ruston said to Tony, and he ended the call.

Gracelyn turned to Joelle. “Would you be able to stay up here with the baby?” she asked.

Joelle didn’t jump to say yes. She looked at Ruston, and he gave her a nod. Only then did Joelle ease Abigail into her arms.

“I’ll stay up here with Joelle,” Slater immediately volunteered, “but if things get dicey downstairs, let me know.” He looked Ruston straight in the eyes. “Are those two cops killers?”

Ruston held his brother’s gaze. “I don’t know. They might both be clean, but I can’t trust either of them until I know for certain they aren’t behind this. Right now, I’m nowhere near certain.”

Slater nodded. “Let me know if you need help,” he repeated.

Ruston turned to Gracelyn, studying her, and she thought maybe he was looking for any sign that she, too, wanted to stay put. She didn’t.

“I’m armed,” she let him know. “And I want to hear what they have to say.”

He didn’t try to talk her out of it. Probably because he understood she needed to do this as much as he did. “We shouldn’t accuse Charla or Tony of anything right now. Nothing to put them on the defensive. Agreed?”

Gracelyn huffed. She did agree, since the pair were more likely to talk if they thought they were all on the same side. “All right,” she finally said. “I’ll play nice if they do.”

Ruston didn’t challenge that either. “I’ll text Duncan and let him know that, while both Charla and Tony are suspects, we don’t have anything concrete on them. Not enough to treat them like criminals, anyway.” He stopped. “I’ll ask Duncan if he wants to go tough on them to try to get some answers. Duncan’s instincts are good,” he added. “If he senses trouble, he’ll shut it down.”

That was a lot of trust to put in Duncan’s hands, but she reminded herself that if Ruston believed in the sheriff, then she should, too. Plus, there was that whole deal about this being a bad time for Charla or Tony to try to come after Ruston and her.

Ruston sent the text and then motioned for her to follow him. After she brushed a kiss on the baby’s head, Gracelyn did just that.

Ruston didn’t put away his gun as they started down the stairs, and Gracelyn kept her hand on her own weapon. There were some footsteps and movements in the foyer, and she heard Duncan.

Ruston and she followed the sound of his voice and those footsteps and found Duncan, their two visitors and a black-haired man she figured was Deputy Luca Vanetti. All four still had their weapons drawn, and it gave Gracelyn an immediate jolt. Her instincts were to take out her own gun, to be ready to defend herself, but she forced herself to stay calm.

Both Charla and Tony immediately turned to Ruston and her, and Gracelyn tried to interpret their expressions. They were both a little wild-eyed, perhaps cranked up on adrenaline from the attack. Of course, it could be a pretense, and Gracelyn wished she knew for sure.

Both Charla and Tony were what many people would call average and nondescript. Charla was five foot six with brown hair and brown eyes. Slim but not overly thin. Attractive but not beautiful. Tony was about five foot ten and had sandy-blond hair and a face that sported no scars and no unusual features.

Nothing about them stood out, which was an advantage in undercover work, something Charla still did. Tony, however, with his promotion to lieutenant, was a “suit” these days and didn’t do fieldwork.

Gracelyn had always felt as if she, too, fit into that average and nondescript category. But not Ruston. No, he had one of those faces that people definitely noticed. Handsome. Hot. That should have been a disadvantage for him, but it hadn’t been. He’d always managed to alter his looks just enough for undercover work, and sometimes, he’d even used those good looks to coax his way into places and situations.

“Gracelyn,” Tony muttered as a greeting, and he shifted his attention to Ruston and said his name as well. “Are you two all right? Were there shots fired into the house?”

---