Page 67 of Protecting the Newborn

“I think nearly dying must have given her some clarity,” Slater suggested.

Yes, Gracelyn knew all about that. Being near death did have a way of pinpointing everything. Of making you see what was important.

She certainly had.

And Abigail and Ruston were at the very top of her list of important things.

“I alerted SAPD about Allie coming out of surgery,” Slater went on a moment later. “Duncan agreed that they’ll be the ones charging her. Conspiracy to kidnapping, human trafficking, obstruction of justice, child endangerment and accessory to attempted murder, including the attempted murder of a police officer. The last two are because she was involved in hiring Zimmer and Robert Radley, who attacked you at Gracelyn’s place.”

Gracelyn mentally repeated all those charges. With Devin dead, Allie wouldn’t have any bargaining power for a deal, which meant she would likely spend the rest of her life in prison.

“See you in a few minutes,” Slater said, ending the call.

Ruston gave her hand another gentle squeeze and then brought it to his mouth and brushed a kiss on her fingers. “Are you okay?”

She sighed. “Part of me aches for my sister, but this means Allie won’t be able to endanger Abigail again.”

Ruston nodded, kissed her hand again. She wished the kiss had been on her mouth. While he’d been holding her. She needed that right now.

She needed him.

Soon, she wanted to tell him that, but for now, she sat in silence, mourning the loss of a sister. Yes, Allie had done some unforgivable things, but she’d also given her the greatest gift. Abigail.

Ruston took the final turn to the ranch, and Gracelyn pushed aside her thoughts to prepare herself for what felt like a homecoming.

She was pleased when she spotted the still-armed ranch hands at the end of the road. Standing guard. Keeping Abigail safe. Gracelyn would owe them all a deep gratitude that she’d never be able to repay. The same was true for Duncan, his deputies, Ruston and his family.

Ruston pulled to a stop in front of the house, and Gracelyn hurried out of the cruiser. Slater was already opening the door before she reached it.

“Uh, are you sure you’re okay?” Slater asked when he saw her face.

She nodded, though Gracelyn figured she looked pretty bad for him to have that reaction. However, that was yet something else she’d put on the back burner. For now, she raced up the stairs and straight to the guest room. Carmen and Joelle were both there.

And so was Abigail.

She was sleeping, but Gracelyn picked her up anyway and held her close. The tears came. The tears she’d fought so hard to hold back. But there was no holding back now. Abigail was safe. She was also a little riled at being awakened, and she let out a protesting wail that made Gracelyn smile. She hadn’t given birth to Abigail, but this child was hers in every sense of the word.

Gracelyn kissed her cheek and looked back at Ruston when he stepped into the room. He went to them, sliding his arm around Gracelyn’s waist and delivering his own kiss to the baby’s cheek. Abigail immediately stopped her fussing and smiled at him.

“You’ve already charmed her,” Gracelyn muttered.

“One down, one to go,” he muttered back.

Their gazes met for a moment, and Gracelyn saw the love. Well, maybe that was what it was. Love for Abigail, anyway, but what had he meant?

His phone rang, and she saw Duncan’s name on the screen. Since Gracelyn wanted to hear what he had to say, she eased the baby back in the crib, thanked both Joelle and Carmen and then stepped out into the hall with Ruston.

“You two back at the ranch yet?” Duncan immediately asked.

“We are,” Ruston answered. “Just a couple of minutes ago. Slater filled us in on Allie.”

Duncan sighed. “Yeah,” he muttered like an apology that Gracelyn knew was meant for her. “I have some good news,” he added. “The techs located Zimmer’s online file.”

Gracelyn saw the surprise flash through Ruston’s eyes. “How? They said it’d be a needle in a haystack.”

“It would have been, but Zimmer had a clue to the storage site in the password, so the techs were able to narrow it down. They not only found the file, but they were also able to access it.”

Something Devin would have certainly been able to do had he gotten the username and password.

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