The Soldier's Redemption

It wasn’t a fancy church. As many of the congregation members wore jeans as dresses and suits, and seating for the meal was open. That meant there was no distinction between those who’d come just for the food and those who’d come for the service first. Nice.

The children burst into the room and took over one corner, stocked with toys and a big rug. Kayla waited a minute and then went to check on Leo. She found him banging action figures with another kid in a zealous pretend fight.

“Hey, buddy,” she said quietly, touching his shoulder.

He flinched and turned. She hated that he did that. No matter what, she was going to make sure he gained confidence and stopped feeling like he was at risk all the time. Mitch had never hit him, to her knowledge, but yelling and belittling were almost as bad. And that last time, when he’d broken into their place and beaten Kayla, she’d looked up from the floor to see Leo crouched in the doorway, pale and silent, tears running down his cheeks.

“Leo is quiet, but he seems to fit in,” said the woman who’d run the children’s program. “He’s a very polite little boy. I understand he’s going to do the day camp, too?”

Kayla nodded. “Thank you for taking care of him.”

“He’s welcome to sit at the kids’ table and eat. Most of the children do, though a few go sit with their parents.”

Kayla turned back to Leo. “What do you think, buddy? Want to sit here with your new friends, or come sit with me and Miss Penny and Mr. Finn?”

Leo considered.

The other boy whacked his action figure. “ATTACK!” he yelled.

Leo made his figure strike back, and the other boy fell on the floor, pretending he’d been struck.

“I’ll stay with the kids,” Leo said and dived down to the floor to make his action figure engage in some hand-to-hand combat with the one the other boy was holding.

Kayla watched them play for a moment as realization struck her. If she did, indeed, build a better life for Leo, it would mean he’d become more and more independent. He wouldn’t be tied to her by fear. He’d have regular friendships, sleepovers at other boys’ homes, camping trips.

And where did that leave her, who’d centered her life around protecting her son for the past five years?

It’ll leave me right where I should be, she told herself firmly. It would be good, normal, for Leo to gain independence. And if that made her nostalgic for his baby years of total reliance on her, that was normal, too. She could focus on the healthy ways parents and children related, instead of walking on eggshells to avoid offending Mitch.

The lunch went quickly, partly because the serving staff ate in shifts and then hurried back to the kitchen to help with refills and cleanup. Kayla didn’t mind. She liked the camaraderie of working with others. And she liked having her stomach—and her son’s—full of delicious, healthy food.

She was washing dishes when Mrs. Barnes came up beside her, towel in hand. “I’ll dry and put away,” she said. “Where are you from, dear?”

“Arkansas,” Kayla said vaguely. “Small town.” Mrs. Barnes seemed harmless, but Kayla didn’t want to get into the habit of revealing too much.

“And what brought you to Esperanza Springs? We don’t get a whole lot of newcomers.”

Kayla was conscious of Finn nearby, carrying big empty serving dishes back to the sinks to be washed. “I was looking for a change,” she said. “I’ve always loved the mountains, so we thought we’d take our chances in Colorado.”

“And what did you do back in Arkansas?”

Kayla didn’t see malice in the other woman’s eyes, only a little too much curiosity. “I worked for a cleaning company,” she said. “Cleaning houses and offices and such.” No need to mention that she’d started it, and that it had been doing well. She hoped Janice, who’d taken it over, was managing okay. She’d been avoiding calling her, afraid word would get back to Mitch, but she needed to stop being afraid. She’d call Janice tonight.

The kitchen was getting hotter, and Kayla dried off her hands and unbuttoned her sleeves. As she rolled them up, Mrs. Barnes went still. Behind her, Finn stared, too.

Too late, she looked down and saw her arms, still a traffic wreck of bruises.

“Oh, my, dear, what happened?” Mrs. Barnes put a gentle hand on Kayla’s shoulder.

She didn’t look at either of them. “I fell.”

It wasn’t a lie. Each time Mitch had hit her, she’d fallen.

Someone called Mrs. Barnes to the serving counter. She squeezed Kayla’s shoulder and then turned away, leaving Finn and Kayla standing at the sink.

He frowned at her, putting his hands on his hips. “If someone hurt you—”

An Eighty-second Airborne tattoo peeked out from under the sleeve of his shirt. The same tattoo Mitch had.

She took a step backward. “I need to go check on Leo,” she said abruptly and practically ran out of the kitchen, rolling down her sleeves as she went.

Leo was drawing pictures with the same boy he’d been playing with before, but he jumped up and hugged her when she approached. “Mom! Hector goes to the day camp here, too! He’s gonna get me the cubby next to his and bring his Skytrooper tomorrow!” He flopped back down on the floor, propped on his arms, drawing on the same large piece of paper as his new friend.

“That’s great, honey.” Kayla backed away and looked from Leo to the kitchen and back again. She was well and truly caught.

Her whole goal was to provide a safe, happy home for Leo. And it looked like maybe she’d found that place. The ranch, the dogs, the church people, all were bringing out her son’s relaxed, happy side—a side she’d almost forgotten he had.

But on the other hand, there was Finn—a dangerous man by virtue of his association with Mitch’s favorite, dedicated social circle. She knew how the Eighty-second worked.

She grabbed a sponge and started wiping down tables, thinking.

Finn had seen her bruises and gotten suspicious. If she let slip too much information, he might just get in touch with Mitch.

On the other hand, maybe his tattoo was old and so was his allegiance. Maybe he’d gotten involved in broader veterans affairs. Not everyone stayed focused on their own little division of the service.

She had to find out more about Finn and how committed he was to his paratrooper brothers. And she had to do it quickly. Because Leo was already starting to get attached to this place, and truthfully, so was she.

But she couldn’t let down her guard. She had to learn more.

As she wiped a table, hypnotically, over and over, she concocted a plan. Once she’d finalized it, she felt better.

By this evening, one way or another, she’d have the answer about whether or not they could stay. For Leo’s sake, she hoped the answer was yes.

Chapter Three

Late Sunday afternoon, Finn settled into his recliner and put his legs up. He clicked on a baseball game and tried to stop thinking.

It didn’t work.

He kept going back to those bruises on Kayla’s arms, the defensive secrecy in her eyes. All of it pretty much advertised a victim of abuse.

If that were the case, he was in trouble. His primary responsibility was to the veterans here, and some angry guy coming in to drag Kayla away would up the potential for violence among a group of men who’d seen too much of it.

That was bad.

But worse, he was starting to feel responsible for Kayla and the boy. They were plucky but basically defenseless. They needed protection.

If he sent them away, he’d be putting them at risk.

His phone buzzed, a welcome break from his worries. He clicked to answer. “Gallagher.”

“Somethin’ curious just happened.” It was Long John’s voice.

Finn settled back into his chair. “What’s that, buddy?” Unlike Willie, Long John had no family, and with his Agent Orange–induced Parkinson’s, he couldn’t get out a lot. He tended to call Finn with reports of a herd of elk, or an upcoming storm, or a recommendation about caring for one of the dogs.

It was fine, good, even. Finn didn’t have much family himself, none here in Colorado, and providing a listening ear to lonely vets gave him a sense of purpose.

Long John cleared his throat. “That Kayla is mighty interested in you.”

“What do you mean?” For just a second, he thought Long John meant romantic interest, but then he realized that wasn’t likely to be the case. Kayla was young, pretty and preoccupied with her own problems. She wouldn’t want to hook up with someone like him. Long John was probably just creating drama out of boredom.

“She came over for a little chat,” Long John said. “Talked about the weather a bit and then got right into questions about you.”

“What kind of questions?”

“Where’d you serve. How active are you in the local chapter. How many of your military buddies come around. Did you ever do anything with the Eighty-second on the national level. That kind of stuff.”

“Weird.” Especially since she’d seemed to have an aversion to all things military.

“Not sure what to make of it,” Long John said. “She’s a real nice gal, but still. All kinds of people trying to take advantage. Thought you should know.”

“Thanks.” He chatted to the older man for a few more minutes and then ended the call.

Restless now, he strode out onto his porch. The plot thickened around Kayla. If she’d been treated badly by someone, why would she now be seeking information about Finn? Was she still attached to her abuser? Was he making her gather information for some reason?

As he sat down on the porch steps to rub his leg—today was a bad day—he saw Kayla sitting with Penny at the picnic table beside Penny’s house. Talking intently.

More information gathering?

Leo played nearby, some engrossing five-year-old game involving rocks and a lot of shouting. Kid needed a playmate. They should invite the pastor’s little girls up here.

Except thinking of the widowed pastor hanging around Kayla rubbed him the wrong way.

And why should any of that matter to him? Impatient with himself, he got down on the ground and started pulling up the weeds that were getting out of control around the foundation of his place, like everywhere else on the ranch. Kayla wasn’t his concern. She was here on a temporary pass. And even if they did give her the full-time job—which he still questioned—he didn’t need to get involved in how she ran her life and raised her kid.

Penny stood and waved to him. “I’ll be inside, doing some paperwork, if anybody needs me,” she called.

He stood, gave her a thumbs-up and watched her walk inside. That was how they ran the place, spelling each other, letting each other know what they were doing. It’d be quiet on a Sunday, but they liked for at least one of them to be on call, phone on, ready to help as needed.

From the garden area just behind him, he heard a thump, a wail—“Mommy!”—and then the sound of crying. Leo. Finn spun and went to the boy, who was kneeling on the ground where Finn had been digging. His hand was bleeding and his face wet with tears.

Finn beckoned to Kayla, who’d jumped up from the picnic table, and then knelt awkwardly beside the little boy. “Hey, son, what happened?”

Leo cringed away, his eyebrows drawing together, and cried harder.

“Leo!” Kayla arrived, sank down and drew Leo into her arms. “Oh, no, honey, what happened?”

“It hurts!” Leo clutched his bloody hand to his chest.

“Let me see.”

The little boy held up his hand to show her, but the sight of it made him wail louder. “I’m bleeding!”

Kayla leaned in and examined the wound, and Finn did, too. Fortunately, it didn’t look too serious. The bleeding was already stopping. “Looks like he might have cut it on the weed digger. Is that what happened, buddy?”

The boy nodded, still gulping and gasping.

“I have bandages and antibiotic cream inside, if you want to bring him in.” He knew better than to offer to carry the boy. Only a mother would do at a time like this.

Kayla got to her feet and swung Leo up into her arms. “Come on. Let’s fix you up.”

There was a buzzing sound, and Finn felt for his phone.

“It’s mine,” Kayla said. “I’ll get it later.”

“You can sit in there.” Finn indicated the kitchen. “I’ll grab the stuff.”

Moments later, he was back downstairs with every size of Band-Aid in his cupboard and three different types of medical ointment.

Kayla had Leo sitting on the edge of the sink and was rinsing his hand.

Leo howled like he was being tortured.

“I know, honey, it hurts, but we have to clean it. There. Now it’ll start feeling better.” She wrapped a paper towel around the boy’s hand and lifted him easily from the sink to a kitchen chair.

She’d been right. She was stronger than she looked, because Leo wasn’t small.

“Let’s see,” Finn said, giving the little boy a reassuring smile.

Leo shrank away and held his hand against his chest.

“I won’t touch it. I just want to look.” To Kayla he added, “I have first-aid training from the service. But it’s probably fine. Your call.”

“Let Mr. Finn look, honey. Let’s count one-two-three and then do the hard thing. Ready?”

Leo looked up, leaned into her and nodded. “Okay.”

Together, they counted. “One, two, three.” And then Leo squeezed his eyes shut and held out his hand.

Finn studied the small hand, the superficial cut across two fingers. He opened his mouth to reassure Kayla and Leo.

And then memory crashed in.

He’d put a Band-Aid on Derek’s hand, not long before the accident. He’d cuddled the boy to his chest as he held the little hand—just like Leo’s—in his own larger one. Carefully squeezed the antibiotic on the small scrape, added a superhero Band-Aid and wiped his son’s tears.

“It looks fine,” he said to Kayla through a suddenly tight throat. “You go ahead and dress it.” He shoved the materials at her, limped over to the window and looked out, trying to compose himself.

Normally, he kept a lid on his emotions about his son. Especially his son. Deirdre, yes, he grieved losing her, but she was an adult and she’d made a lot of bad choices that had contributed to her death.

His son had been an innocent victim.

“There. All fixed!” Kayla’s voice was perky and upbeat. “You keep that Band-Aid on, now. Don’t go showing that cut to your friends. It’s a big one.”

“It is big,” Leo said, his voice steadying. “I was brave, wasn’t I, Mommy?”

Finn turned back in time to see her hug him. “You were super brave. Good job.”

Leo came over to Finn and, from a safe distance, held up his hand. “See? It was a really big cut!”

“It sure was,” Finn said and then cleared the roughness out of his throat. “Sorry I don’t have any fun Band-Aids. Not many kids come around here.”

And there was a good reason for that. Having little boys around would tear him apart.

Change the subject. “You want to watch TV for a few minutes, buddy? I need to talk to your mom.”

Leo’s head jerked around to look at Kayla. “Can I, Mom?”

She hesitated. “I guess, for a few minutes. If we can find a decent show.” She looked at Finn pointedly. “I actually don’t allow him to watch much TV.”

“Sorry.” He headed into the living room and clicked the TV on, found a cartoonish-looking show that he remembered his son liking and looked at Kayla. “This okay?”

She squinted at the TV. “Yeah. Sure.”

Her phone buzzed again, but she ignored it.

In the kitchen, she looked at him with two vertical lines between her eyebrows. “What’s up?”

“Why’d you grill Long John about me?” he asked her abruptly.

* * *

At the sharp question from Finn, Kayla’s mind reeled. “What do you mean?” she asked, buying time.

She knew exactly what he meant.

Long John must have gotten on the phone the moment she’d left his cabin. And wasn’t that just like a soldier, to report anything and everything to his military buddies.

They’re friends, an inner voice reminded her. She’d just met Long John, while Finn had probably known him for months if not years.

Finn let out a sigh. “Long John let me know you were asking all kinds of questions about me. I wondered why.”

She studied him for signs of out-of-control anger and saw none. In which case, the best defense was a good offense. “You have a problem with me checking my employer’s references the same way you and Penny are checking mine?” she bluffed.

He looked at her for a moment. “No. That’s not a problem. It’s just that some of your questions seemed pointed. All about my military service.”

“That’s part of your background,” she said.

Finn shook his head. “I’m just not comfortable with having you here if you have any sort of attitude toward the military,” he said. “The veterans are the most important thing to us, and believe it or not, they’re sensitive. Especially the ones we get here. I don’t need a worker who’s cringing away from them or, on the other hand, overly curious.”

She nodded. “That makes sense.” She should have known this wouldn’t work. It was too perfect.

The thought of going back on the road filled her with anxiety, though. Her supply of money was dwindling, and so was Leo’s patience.

This place was perfect for Leo.

She tried to hang on to the pastor’s words from this morning. What was the verse? I know the plans I have for you...

God has a plan for us.

She straightened her spine. “We’ll get our things together tonight and move on tomorrow.”

Her phone buzzed for about the twentieth time. Impatient, she pulled it out. She read through the texts from her friend Janice, back in Arkansas, her anxiety growing.

Don’t come back under any circumstances.

He tore up your place.

He’s raving that he’s going to find you.

Get a PFA, fast.

She sank into a kitchen chair, her hand pressed to her mouth, her heart pounding. What was she going to do now?

“Listen, Kayla, I didn’t mean you had to leave this minute,” Finn said. “You can stay out the week, like we discussed. We can even help you figure out your next step. I just don’t think...” He paused.

There was a brisk knock at the screen door, and then Penny walked in. “I called the last reference, and they raved about you,” she said to Kayla. “So as far as I’m concerned, you’re hired.”

Kayla glanced up at Finn in time to see his forehead wrinkle. “Temporarily,” he said.

“Long-term, as far as I’m concerned.” Penny gave him an even stare.

“We need to talk,” he said to Penny.

“All right.” She put a bunch of paper in front of Kayla. “Start signing,” she said. “Look for the Xs.”

Finn and Penny went out onto the porch, and she heard the low, intense sound of an argument.

From the living room, she heard Leo laughing at the television.

Finn didn’t want to hire her. That was clear, and it wasn’t only because she’d been nosy. Something else about her bothered him.

Which was fine, because he kind of bothered her, too. She didn’t think he was dangerous himself, but he was clearly linked up to the veteran old boys’ network. If Mitch started yelling at one of his meetings about how they were missing, the word could get out. Paratroopers were intensely loyal and they helped each other out, and a missing child would definitely be the type of thing that would stir up their interest and sympathy.

She needed to be farther away, but for now, the protection offered by the ranch was probably the safest alternative for Leo. A week, two, even a month here would give her breathing room.

Or maybe Mitch’s rage would burn out. Although it hadn’t in the year since the divorce he’d fought every inch of the way.

Finn didn’t want her here, but she was used to that. She’d grown up in a home where she wasn’t wanted.

And Penny had seemed to intuit some of her issues when Kayla had probed about Finn and the ranch during a lull before the church service. She’d said something about men, how women needed to stick together. Penny was on her side.

She could deal with Finn. She didn’t need his approval or his smiles.

And she didn’t want to depend on anyone. But here, she could work hard, pull her weight.

Finn and Penny came back in. Finn’s jaw jutted out. Penny looked calm.

“You can have the job,” Finn said.

“However long you want it,” Penny added, glancing over at Finn.

Kayla drew in a deep breath, looking at them. “Thank you.”

Then, her insides quivering, she picked up the pen and started signing.

Chapter Four

Finn headed for the kennels around eight o’clock the next morning, enjoying the sight of the Sangre de Cristos. He could hear the dogs barking and the whinnying of a horse. They only kept two, and Penny cared for them up at the small barn, but she sometimes took one out for a little ride in the morning.

Up ahead, Kayla’s cabin door opened, and she and Leo came out.

He frowned. He wasn’t thrilled about her working here, but he was resigned to it. He just had to stay uninvolved, that was all.

He watched her urge Leo into the car. Leo resisted, turning away as if to run toward the cabin, but she caught him in a bear hug.

Uh-oh. Wherever they were going—probably down to the church day camp—Leo wasn’t on board.

She set Leo down and pointed at the back seat, and with obvious reluctance, the boy climbed in. Through the car’s open windows, he heard Leo complain, “I can’t get it buckled.”

She bent over and leaned in, and he noticed she didn’t raise her voice even though Leo continued to whine. She spoke soothingly but didn’t give in.

Finn looked away and tried to think about something other than what it would be like to parent a kid Leo’s age.

Derek’s age.

When she tried to start the car, all that happened was some loud clicking and grinding. A wisp of smoke wafted from the front of the vehicle.

She got out and raised the hood. From inside the car, Leo’s voice rose. “If I have to go, I don’t want to be late!”

By now, Finn had reached the point where her cabin’s little driveway intersected with the road. He looked out over the valley and sniffed the aromatic pines and tried to stay uninvolved. She hadn’t seen him. He could walk on by.

He tried to. Stopped. “Need a jump?”

She bit her lip, its fullness at odds with her otherwise plain looks and too-thin figure. She looked from him to Leo. As clear as the brightening blue sky, he could see the battle between her desire for independence and her child’s needs.

“I think my starter’s bad.”

“You need to call for a tow?” He stood beside her and pretended to know what he was looking at. Truth was, despite the fact that he’d sold farm machinery in one of his jobs, car repair wasn’t in his skill set.

She shook her head. “I can fix it, if I can get down to town and get the part.”

He looked sideways at her. “You sure?”

She blew out a pfft of air and nodded. “Sure. Just takes a screwdriver and a couple of bolts. Trouble is, Leo needs to get to camp.”

His glance strayed to her mouth again but he looked away quickly, glancing down to the cross around her neck. She wasn’t a girl up for grabs, obviously, and even if she were, he couldn’t partake. One, because she was sort of his employee—Penny was technically her boss, but he was her direct supervisor. And two, because of what he’d done. He didn’t deserve to connect with a woman. He needed to remember his decision in that regard.

No one had ever tested it before, not really.

But there was nothing wrong with giving her and the boy a ride, was there? Any Good Samaritan would do that.

“I planned to head down into town anyway,” he said. “I can move up my schedule. Come on. Grab his booster seat and we’ll hop in my truck.”