One Man To Protect Them

“Poor kids can’t catch a break,” her mother said. “But do you think it’s fair to only say he might be dead? They did find his watch on an arm.”

“Until they’ve got DNA confirmation, we don’t know Eric’s dead.”

Evette shook her head. “I think we know. And now when it’s confirmed, you’ll have to do this all over again.”

Her mom was right. It wasn’t likely that Eric was off enjoying himself somewhere while an appendage with his watch on it was buried near Cypress Landing. She twirled a napkin while her mother finished eating.

“Why didn’t anyone tell me what was going on?”

Taking a sip of her coffee, Evette studied her. “What do you mean?”

“You know exactly what I’m saying. These idiots writing slurs on the garage and calling the kids names—why did Caitland and Robert stay? Why didn’t they move when they adopted the kids? They should have known there’d be trouble when they tried to raise mixed-race children here.”

Evette pushed the empty bowl away. “They stayed because this is their home and they didn’t care what people said. The boys will have to confront those attitudes their whole life.”

“But it’s worse here because of that damn Militia. I can’t believe they’re still harassing people like that.”

“What did you think when you left? It would go away?”

“No, but I thought the law would put those people in jail.”

“They do put them in jail, then others take their place. And then they get out of jail anyway. But why am I telling you this? You were part of it. You understand how it works.”

The air went out of Jayden as if she’d been punched. She expected comments like that now that she was home, just not from her own mother. “I was not part of that. I’ve told you a million times. I would never have been part of it.” She squirmed in her chair. She didn’t want to have this conversation again. It wouldn’t change anything.

“That’s not what I meant. Mark Dubois lived in it and you were his girlfriend.”

“And because of that I’m as guilty of murder as he was.”

“I didn’t say that.” Her mother patted her leg.

“No, I did, because I know how people in this town think.”

“It doesn’t matter now. These two boys need us, you and me. That’s more important than people’s theories.”

“I guess I wasn’t prepared to deal with the Militia and the past right now.” Jayden went to the sink and clunked the last bowl in the dishwasher. “I better go to work.”

Evette followed her. “None of us want to have trouble with the Militia. But we’ll get by.”

Jayden yelled for Kasey and the two of them hurried to her brother-in-law’s old farm truck. The door creaked when she opened it but she didn’t care. It was handy for taking to work, especially if she had to drive to someone’s farm to treat a sick cow. Besides, it had belonged to Robert and she wanted to keep it for the boys.

JAYDEN PERUSED THE TABLE covered with plastic bottles, syringes and whatever else she could think of that might be needed to stitch a few cuts on a horse. She was waiting in the barn where they worked on large animals, which was attached by a breezeway to the main clinic. She could see Jeffrey Sabine at the rear door of the office talking on the cordless phone. He went into the building and she tapped her foot, fiddling with the disinfectant for the tenth time.

“He’s on his way with the horse,” Jeffrey said as he crossed the breezeway. “Says he has several bad cuts.”

“How did he let his horse get cut?”

Jeffrey regarded her skeptically.

“Sorry,” she added. “I don’t mean to sound negative.”

“Right, but you did and it would be better if you got rid of that attitude before he gets here. I didn’t ask what happened. If I need to know I’ll ask later.”

He inspected the supplies. “Did you get the twitch?”

She groaned before starting for the storage room. Naturally, she’d forgotten something.

“Relax, Jayden. After you’ve worked with the big animals more you’ll get used to them. I know you’re used to working with dogs and cats, but I need you to do small and large here.”

She placed the sticklike object with a chain on the end on the table. It resembled a torture device more than anything else. Of course, Jeffrey wouldn’t use it unless he had to, if the horse wouldn’t stand still. But Jayden hated it.

“Come on, J. What happens if I go on vacation and a client has an emergency with a horse or cow?”

“They could always use another vet.”

“Oh, yeah, that’s a great idea. A plus for business, don’t you think?”

“You have to admit I’m getting better. It’s only been a few weeks.”

He grinned. “You’re much improved. In the country you can’t afford to be so specialized. That’s the difference between Cypress Landing and Beverly Hills. You’ll get used to it.”

She gave Jeffrey an answering grin, even though she knew there were many bigger differences between Cypress Landing and Beverly Hills. He was right about one thing, she would adjust. She had to. When she’d arrived home after the accident, Jeffrey had been one of the first people to stop and see her. They’d been friends since grade school. He’d immediately offered her a job in his clinic if she decided to stay. Like she’d had a choice. Her mother had gawked at her as if she’d suggested moving to Mars when she’d wanted to move the whole family back to California. And Jayden couldn’t make it without help. If she had to meet the challenge of raising two kids, she needed to do it where she had plenty of support, and that was here.

A truck, towing a horse trailer behind, roared into the drive.

“This will be a nice test for you.” Jeffrey laughed as he hurried toward the vehicle.

She couldn’t wait.

HE COULD SEE HER in the door of the barn. Luke knew when he left his house that Jayden Miller would be at the clinic. He remembered every detail from yesterday: her line of work, the color of her hair with the sun on it, the shine in those baby blues, that she was raising two kids, that she was Caitland’s sister. The red stallion kicked the side of the trailer as Luke eased him backward. When his feet hit the ground, he danced sideways and half reared.

“I see Thor’s happy to be here.” Jeffrey smiled and gripped the halter when the horse finally settled all four feet on the ground. Luke grunted and the vet let go, so that he could lead the horse to the treatment area.

“What have you done to this animal?” Jayden demanded.

He looked at her standing in the entryway of the building and wished he didn’t feel that twinge in his midsection simply because she was there. His horse had three cuts that would definitely need stitches. But for her to assume he was at fault made his skin itch.

“I didn’t do this to him. He managed to figure out the new lock on the gate and took off early this morning. He got into a neighbor’s barbed-wire fence.”

She glared at him, and he felt guilty, as if he should have known the horse could open the gate, even though the guy at the farm store had promised him it was escape proof.

“He’s underweight, too. Aren’t you feeding him?”

Luke glanced at Jeffrey, who grimaced at his partner’s words. “Yeah, I’m feeding him.” The horse skittered along, nearly bumping the barn door as Luke led him in. He caught the halter and put a steadying hand on the animal’s neck, making low clucking noises in his throat until the horse was calm. He frowned at her. “Do you think we can save the interrogation until we get done?” he snapped.

She was definitely as attractive as he remembered. Thankfully, she had an attitude that would make her easy to resist. Right now he wanted to get away as quickly as possible and maybe find a new vet, even if it would mean a forty-five-minute drive. Jeffrey held a syringe, and Luke noted the grim look he gave Jayden. She seemed to struggle briefly for her composure and finally ignored them to focus on the horse.

Jeffrey examined the cuts. “He definitely needs stitching together.” But when he began cleaning the first wound, the horse snorted and plunged to the side, hitting Jayden with his shoulder. She stumbled and went to one knee. Luke reached to help her, but she waved him away.

“Hang on to the horse.”

Across from him, he saw Jeffrey take hold of the twitch.

“No!” He and Jayden said it at the same time. Jayden scrambled to her feet.

“Let me get him settled.” Luke glanced at her then he rubbed the horse’s head.

The two vets waited as he rubbed Thor’s ears, talking to him in a low voice. For several minutes no one moved, then the stallion sighed audibly, and Luke motioned for Jeffrey to begin. He heard Jayden mumble “horse whisperer” and he winked at her. She came closer and stroked the animal’s neck.

“What’s his name?”

The horse flinched as Jeffrey went to work on him and Luke made a soft grunting noise near his ear.

“Thor.”

She touched the dark red coat. “God of law and order, champion of the people. Not a name I’d have expected you to choose.”

He tried not to wince. Normally, Luke didn’t care what people, especially a woman, thought of him. But something about her bothered him, maybe even touched him. He couldn’t afford to think like that.

“I didn’t name him. He was found by the humane society. I took him in.”

“So you’re a horse rehabilitator and defender of scum. Those two don’t seem to go together.”

“Jayden!” Jeffrey groaned. “Sorry, Luke. Jayden’s had a tough month. She’s on edge.”

She stared at the floor after Jeffrey’s reprimand. As rude as she’d been to him, Luke felt bad for her. Maybe it was because she was so perceptive. Of course he’d named the horse himself.

“Don’t worry, Jeffrey. I don’t mind Ms. Miller. We met yesterday and I’m more than happy to hear her opinions.”

She gaped at him. He didn’t plan on smiling at her, but he did. And he certainly hadn’t expected to see her smile back at him. For the next few minutes while Jeffrey finished closing the cuts they remained on each side of Thor’s head, stroking him.

“All right, I’m finished and Thor was great.”

Luke ripped his attention from Jayden back to Thor. “Bill me, will you. I’m off to find a new lock for my gate.”

He led the horse to the trailer and loaded him. Jeffrey and Jayden were still standing at the barn door when he got in his truck. Even with his back to them he could feel her watching him. He tried to convince himself it was his training that made him so perceptive of her.

CHAPTER THREE

THE OUTBOARD MOTOR reverberated through the night air, and he wondered if the entire world could hear it. He always wondered that, but no one ever seemed to notice him. Luke steered toward the opposite side of the Mississippi. When the bank came into sight he slowed and nosed the boat into a tributary that emptied into the river. He went upstream a few hundred feet to a sandy spot then bumped ashore and tied off to a nearby tree. He didn’t bother with a flashlight. He didn’t need light to get where he was going. He preferred it to be darker—in fact, he wished there were clouds to cover the moon’s glow. After ten minutes, the path he was following opened into a clearing with a wooden shack in the middle. A thin stream of light shone from under the door. He climbed the steps and knocked. Hearing a low voice answer, he went inside, wishing it didn’t feel so natural, so normal.

“Damned mess we got now.”

Joseph Bergeron sat in a metal folding chair in the dim glow of the light bulb hanging from the ceiling, a red plastic cup on the card table in front of him within easy reach. He grabbed the cup and spit, his lower lip bulged slightly with freshly ground tobacco.

Luke dropped into the metal chair across from him and it gave a squeaky protest. “I told you to leave the reporter alone, that he wouldn’t disappear so easily.”

“You think I gave the okay for this? Hell, I’m not that stupid. I’d at least have gotten everything he had on us before I did away with him.” Joseph rested his arms on the table. “And I would have known better than to get that idiot Duke Swayze to tend to business.”

“He’s a member of the Militia and he doesn’t mind doing a piece of work. Why wouldn’t you use him?”

“Come on, he’s crazy as a Betsy bug. Look at what we’ve got now. They found how many bodies at his place?”

“Four.” Luke tried to stay calm. The memory of that day made him sick, and also brought to mind that damned goddess of a vet, the woman he was doing his best to forget.

“Right, four. Now doesn’t that make your job a lot harder?”

“Yeah, it does. But if you didn’t tell him to do this, who did? I doubt he came up with the idea on his own.”

Joseph watched him, and Luke met his stare without faltering. He’d had enough practice at this. Besides, the Militia trusted him.

“There are others who didn’t want that reporter to get away from here with whatever he might have found. We’re working on a big project with another Militia group. We don’t need this kind of attention. We haven’t brought you in on this yet.” Joseph scrutinized him for several seconds. “Maybe later.”

Luke dipped his head slightly in agreement. Okay, they didn’t trust him that much. These things took time.

“Do you think you’ll be able to get ole Duke off?” Joseph asked.

“I don’t know. He’s not much help, spouting off crazy stuff every time the police question him, but I’ll do what I can.”

Joseph tapped the table before getting to his feet. “We’ll take care of things on our end. We like having you in the community helping us.”

“Glad to do it. I only wish I could do more.”

Joseph went to the door, cracked it open and checked outside.

“You’re doing what we need right now.” He glanced at Luke. “Give me five minutes then leave.” The man closed the door and was gone.

Luke sank deeper into the chair. What kind of project were they planning? He had a hunch who they were working with, but he couldn’t get deeper into the ring of secrecy that surrounded the Acadian Loyalists, not yet. The Militia made their base camp across the river from Cypress Landing. Their members were scattered around the area. Some were like him, businesspeople doing whatever job they could to aid the cause, but keeping their affiliation hidden. Others, such as Duke Swayze, were open with their zealous beliefs. The leadership had a use for each. He stretched to switch off the light, letting his vision get accustomed to the dark. His watch gave an eerie glow, reading one in the morning. Ten minutes had passed and he had another meeting to make on the other side of town.

FIFTEEN BASEBALL PLAYERS, all about ten years old, fidgeted in front of him. When most kids were playing soccer or enjoying the first few months of school with absolutely no other activities, those truly dedicated to this sport started a new season. Luke hadn’t been able to help pick the team a few days ago, but his coaching partner, Pete Fontenot, appeared to have done a nice job. They’d gotten several of the best players in the area. He knew because he’d coached both seasons for two years. The fact that his usual coaching partner was a sheriff’s deputy had been a stroke of luck for him. Joseph Bergeron had been pleased when Luke and Pete had started coaching together…as soon as he stopped laughing. “You’re good, Taylor, really good,” the man had said. And he was, but he worked hard at being good. It kept him alive.

As Pete told them their practice and game schedule, Luke waited quietly beside him. Five of the boys on this team had been with them in the spring. At the rear of the group he spotted Elliot Casio. He was big for his age and Luke was glad to see him. After his parents died, the boy hadn’t been sure if he and his little brother would stay in Cypress Landing. Elliot was a polite kid and bit of a star in the league, but Luke was positive he dealt with mean-spirited comments at school, especially from kids whose parents were deeply ingrained in the Militia. Elliot’s parents had adopted him and his brother and their racial origin was mixed—white, black, American-Indian, Asian. But the Casios had been doing an excellent job raising them, and the community, at least the real community and not the Militia, never gave their race a second thought. They were the Casio kids, the end. Unfortunately he’d been assigned to the case of the drunken idiot, a Militia member, who’d caused the crash that killed Caitland and Robert. Luke would have loved to see him in jail for vehicular manslaughter, but the evidence that the guy had been drunk disappeared and there was no case to be won or lost. It wasn’t his fault…but the kids’ aunt obviously thought so.

He whipped his head around, looking toward the fence where the parents sat in lawn chairs waiting for practice to begin. He didn’t breathe, then he took a gasp of air and let it go. Pete glanced at him in mid-sentence but kept talking. Sitting in a chair next to Pete’s wife was the object of several recent late-night dreams, Elliot and Garrett Casio’s aunt.

Pete finished his speech, and Luke realized it was time to start the practice. He made a mental note not to let Jayden Miller distract him as he instructed the boys on what positions they’d be playing.

A FEW HOURS LATER, Luke waited at the front of his sprawling single-story house. It was way more than he’d expected when he arrived in Cypress Landing. It wasn’t a restored antebellum like a lot of the homes in the area, but its wide porch with huge columns and multiple French doors across the front made it a nice mix of old South and old Acadian. He passed money to the pizza-delivery boy and, with Pete’s help, hauled the boxes to his patio, spreading them onto several tables he’d arranged poolside. The late sun still had plenty of summer heat left in it, and the boys were enjoying what would probably be their last swim of the year.

“So, this is tradition for you, huh?”

Jayden appeared beside him, dropping a piece of pizza onto her paper plate.

“I guess. We do it every season.”

“A heated pool, too. The public-defender business must be booming—or were you an ambulance chaser before you came here?”

He glared at her. Nearly everyone in town knew this house had been repossessed by the bank because the owner had gone to jail on a drug conviction, which explained how he had acquired such a nice home.

“I defended a guy and got him off. He started a business selling solar panels. He came and put this system in to heat my pool for free.”

She didn’t respond immediately, but picked at her slice. General bedlam surrounded them, fifteen boys yelling over the pizza as their parents tried to talk loud enough to be heard. Gradually the noise faded to a low hum. He noted the dark circles under her sea-blue eyes.

“I’m being rude, aren’t I?” she asked.

“Yes, you are, but I get that periodically.”

She shook her head. “My mom would have a stroke if she knew I’d talked to you like that. She says what happened with my sister isn’t your fault.”

Luke grinned. “If you promise to be nice, I won’t tell her.”

“So you know my mother. I should have guessed. She makes it a point to meet everyone in town.”

“And she comes to most of the games.”

Jayden took a bite of pizza and chewed for a minute, washing it down with a drink of soda from the can she’d set on the table next to them. “I didn’t think of that, but I should have.”

“She also cuts my hair.” He fingered the slight curl above his ear. “I’m due for a cut, too. I haven’t been to her since before…” He stopped himself, not intending to lead the conversation to that topic.

She must have noticed the flash of panic on his face because her lips swept into a slight smile. “Since before the accident, it’s okay. We don’t shy away from discussing it, especially since we didn’t feel like justice was done.”

Swallowing the groan that rose in his throat, he wished for the millionth time he hadn’t been assigned to represent the guy who’d caused the Casios’ crash.

“Your sister and her husband were good people and I hated that it turned out like it did, but I had no control over what happened to the evidence.”

“It’s still kind of hard to stomach.”

“I don’t like it any better than you.”

She eyed him skeptically, then turned her attention to her soda.

“I’ve heard rumors that you get a lot of people off using questionable tactics.”

Luke didn’t want to guess what gossip around town had fueled her anger with that statement. “I imagine a few people think that. I do my job and I do it well because I owe it to the client.”

“No matter what they’ve done.”

“I don’t get to pick and choose.”

“I guess not.”

“Elliot and Garrett are good boys, and I wouldn’t have done anything to hurt them, if I’d had a choice. I hope they know it. The sheriff’s office should take better care of their evidence.”

“You’re right about that. And don’t worry, the boys don’t hold what happened against you.”

“So you’re the only one.”

She shrugged. “Guess so.”

They watched the kids playing back in the pool. For now he could forget his purpose here and enjoy being part of the community. He found himself thinking again that if his life were different, Cypress Landing would be the kind of place he’d want to stay, to marry, to raise a family. Too bad his life wouldn’t ever be like that.

“So, my mom cuts your hair.” Jayden studied him as she tapped her empty plate.

“Yep, I met her a week after I moved here, and she informed me I needed a haircut and told me to be at her place at four that afternoon. I’ve been going ever since.”

Jayden laughed aloud. A sound that made his body hum.

“Leave it to her to get the business of a good-looking man when he comes to town.”

Luke’s grin widened. Did she realize what she’d said?

“So you think I’m good-looking, huh?”

No, she hadn’t realized, until now. She colored a light shade of pink and her eyes darted downward, refusing to meet his.

“I’ve got to throw this away.” Nearly stumbling in her haste to leave, she tossed the paper plate in the garbage then hurriedly pulled an empty chair next to Leigh Fontenot. Jayden Miller thought he was good-looking. He tried not to puff out his chest and grin as he sauntered to the edge of the pool to join Pete.

“What do you think of Elliot’s coach?” Leigh Fontenot tilted her head expectantly toward Jayden, awaiting her reply.

“You know I like Pete. I told you that when you first dated him and when he proposed, and when I came home for your wedding, and fifty other times.”

Jayden ignored Leigh and tried to get comfortable in the lawn chair, but knew she never would. Not because the chair was too firm, but because she wanted to melt into the concrete beneath her feet. She’d admitted to a man she fully intended to dislike, that she thought he was attractive. A fact he’d probably heard from most of the women he’d come in contact with. Since he was Elliot’s coach, she couldn’t completely dislike him, but she had no business getting silly over him.

“Jayden.” Fingers snapped in front of her. “I’m talking to you, okay?”

She focused on Leigh. “I’m listening.”

“What did I say?”

“Fine, I wasn’t listening, but I am now.”

Her friend laughed. “Don’t worry. Luke has that effect on most women, maybe all women. And he’s the coach I wanted your opinion of, not Pete. But I’m sure you knew that.”

Jayden squirmed again, sliding lower in the chair. “I don’t have an opinion of him. I just met him, except of course he makes his living setting criminals free. I don’t know how Pete can coach with him.”

Leigh feigned shock. “And here I thought he was responsible for defending people who couldn’t afford to pay for their own council.”

“Well that, too, but don’t forget he’s the one who let Caitland and Robert’s killer go.” Jayden couldn’t let that rest, not yet.

“Come on, Jayden, it wasn’t like that. After the police report and lab work went missing, there was no case.”