Page 94 of Tempting Fate
“And given your status as the best Internet lawyer in the land, I don’t think you’ll have a problem working remotely.” She kissed him. “On the days you have to be in the Bay Area, I’ll hold down the fort here. We could even buy a small apartment there. And who knows, maybe I’ll hang out a shingle and take on a few clients here.”
“You’ve got this all worked out, huh?” He kissed her back. Damn. They were having a baby.
“I want you to be happy, Drew. I want you to feel like you don’t have to compromise when it comes to Harper, and I’m hoping you and Emily can find your way to giving her more freedom, even after what happened Sunday.”
He exhaled, because the memory of his daughter running toward them, an expression of abject fear on her face, wasn’t something he’d likely forget in the near future. But, yeah, she was right. They had to lighten up on the reins, or else Harper would grow up to be a complete neurotic.
“What do you say?” she asked.
“You’ll be okay living here full-time?”
“The tradeoff will be worth it, and I’m planning to work hard to make friends here, join some groups, maybe do some pro bono work for that foundation Gia Treadwell founded, the one that helps struggling women get a leg up.”
He started to say that Emily could introduce her around, help her find her footing, but stopped himself. Kristy needed to be independent from his ex-wife and carve out her own niche here in Nugget. He got that.
“We could always move back to the city if you hate it,” he said. “But everything you’ve said makes sense. And, Kris, the idea of being here full-time for Harper, for our new baby…” He choked up a little and had to collect himself. “Thank you. Thank you for making the sacrifice.”
She looped her arms around his neck and pulled him in until their foreheads were touching. “I’ll let you in on a little secret: it’s not much of sacrifice. I’ll get to experience full-time motherhood, something we never could’ve afforded in the Bay Area. Besides that”—she paused for emphasis—“I’ve got everything I want right here.”
And so did he.
Chapter 23
Raylene sat so close to Gabe she was practically in his lap. The fact that she’d had to identify Ferret and Tiny in a lineup was beyond ridiculous. Stringy at least had been caught in the act of trying to kill her, so no lineup for him. By the time the police got to the scene, Gabe had had Stringy down on the ground and trussed with his own belt like a runaway hog on fair day. The other two had tried to flee in their Impala, but had only gotten as far as Highway 70 before the police nabbed them.
“Just routine,” Rhys said. “Rufus Hawkins is wanted in the home invasion homicide and is being extradited to Utah. The two yahoos you identified today will remain in county until their bail hearing and arraignment. My guess is they’ll plead out and you’ll never have to testify.”
Raylene hoped so. Seeing them today had given her the willies. Gabe reached for her hand, lacing his fingers with hers. He’d stood by her side throughout both lineups. And though Tiny and Ferret were behind glass and under guard, just having Gabe there made her feel safe and confident. Sunday, he’d held her through the night, watching over her like her own personal guardian angel. Because of him she’d actually slept, burrowing into his side, feeling cocooned in his warmth and strength. At one point, she awoke, her head fuzzy from the painkillers, and thought to herself that this was love. Someone who was there for you through thick and thin.
He’d stood by her while she’d stared down a hostile town, had held her hand through awkward social events when the desire for a drink was sometimes stronger than her need to breathe, and had faced down a deranged gunman to save her life. He’d found a home for her horse and had spent hours digging for her gold when he hadn’t even believed it existed.
“Did they tell you how they knew about the gold?” Raylene asked. Bits and pieces of her captivity had floated back to her throughout the night.
“Ray apparently bragged about it in prison,” Rhys said. “Rufus’ brother, Shane Hawkins, shared a cell with your dad the first year of his incarceration. He told Shane that he’d dug up the gold not long after he killed Gus Clamper, knowing that mounting a defense would be costly, and stashed the gold in his safe. Apparently he didn’t take it out before selling the ranch to Gia Treadwell.”
Raylene was still trying to wrap her head around the fact that Ray had dug up the gold and not told anyone but his cellmate. “They kept asking me for numbers. I had no idea what they were talking about.”
Rhys nodded. “Rufus and company planned to break in to Gia and Flynn’s house, but they needed the combination to the safe.”
“The only safe I know about was Daddy’s gun safe.” By now, Gia and Flynn had to have cleaned out the safe and stored their own valuables. Raylene turned to Gabe. “I think that scrawl at the bottom of the map was the combination. But it doesn’t make sense, because we all knew Daddy’s gun safe combo, even Mom.”
“I talked to Flynn this morning, and it wasn’t the gun safe,” Rhys said. “Gia was given the combination during the sale of the ranch. The safe was empty. Your dad had already cleaned it out.”
“If he cleaned out his gun safe, then he certainly removed the gold before the house got sold,” Gabe said, and Raylene had to agree.
The whole story was bizarre. After all these years, Ray digs up the gold, hides it in a safe, and forgets to cash in before he goes to prison. Raylene wasn’t buying it.
“You have the map with you?” Rhys asked.
“It’s in my SUV,” Gabe said. “Why, you want to see it?”
“No, but Flynn does.” Rhys turned to Raylene. “As your late father’s estate attorney, he says it’s his fiduciary duty to make sure you, Logan, and your mother get the gold…if it exists.”
“You don’t believe it does?” And if it was in Gia and Flynn’s house, weren’t they entitled to it? Finders keepers…
Rhys shrugged. “Inmates are known to tell tall tales in prison. Maybe Ray thought the story would buy him friends. In prison, safety comes in the company you keep.”
“That would mean it’s still in the ground,” she said, and Gabe rolled his eyes.
