Hidden Fates (Hidden Heroes #4)

Chapter 25

Reese barely got any sleep. Even after Garrett had given her three amazing orgasms, in two different positions that had all but rocked her world, she had still spent most of the night tossing and turning. After the sun came up, she slipped out of bed and padded her way into the kitchen to start the coffee. She hoped Garrett was still asleep, but as soon as the dark liquid started dripping into the pot, Garrett emerged looking as exhausted as she felt.

“I’m sorry if I kept you up,” she said. “I just couldn’t sleep. Every time I closed my eyes, I kept seeing Russell killing you.” Just saying the words made her hands shake and her head hurt like she hadn’t slept in days.

Garrett closed the distance between them, taking her into his arms. “It’s okay. I would rather be kept awake by you lying next to me than be unable to sleep because you’re gone. We’ll figure this out.” He kissed her, slowly devouring her mouth until her knees went weak and a throaty moan escaped her lips.

A knock at Garrett’s door made Reese jump, completely killing the mood. “It’s barely seven in the morning on a Sunday,” she complained. “Are you expecting company?”

Garrett smiled. “Knowing my friends, it’s probably one of the guys checking to make sure I’m still alive.”

Reese bit back a smile and playfully punched his arm. “That’s not funny.”

Garrett went to the door. Reese followed close behind. He opened the door to find Tanner with two paper bags, a tray with three coffees, and a file under his arm. “Just wanted to make sure you were still with us,” Tanner deadpanned. “My caseload is pretty full. Not sure I’d be able to squeeze in another body right now.”

Garrett snorted and turned to Reese. “See? Told ya.”

“Still not funny,” she grumbled and marched back into the kitchen. The guys followed.

“I’m kidding,” Tanner said. “I mean, of course, I wanted to make sure Garrett was okay, but I actually stopped by for an entirely different reason.”

“Oh?” Garrett said, a bit of disappointment edging out.

“Don’t tell me someone else died,” Reese said. She really couldn’t handle any more bad news right now.

“No. I don’t think anyone else died,” Tanner assured her. “Here,” he offered up the two paper bags and tray of coffees. “I brought breakfast. Help yourselves to pastries and caffeine. The chocolate one is mine.”

Garrett peered into the bag. “I don’t see a chocolate one. They must’ve forgotten it.”

“No they didn’t,” Tanner said like someone had just threatened to take away his favorite toy. He yanked the bag out of Garrett’s hand and looked inside. Smirking, he reached into the bag and pulled out a chocolate covered pastry. “See? Mine.” He took a satisfying bite and chewed appreciatively.

Reese smiled, loving how the guys’ antics weren’t affected by the gravity of the situation at hand. “So, if no one died, what’s going on?”

“I didn’t say no one died. I said that I didn’t think anyone else died,” Tanner explained. “A hiker and his dog found a body in Sedona last week. Caden was going to have Blake tell you, but Skyla’s not feeling too hot today so he asked me. DNA came back and it’s a perfect match.”

“Molly Edgar?” Reese asked.

Tanner nodded.

“Evidence?” Garrett asked, taking one of the coffee cups for himself.

“Fingerprints and a hair,” Tanner said.

“Whose?” Reese asked.

“What’s in the file?” Garrett asked Tanner, holding out his other hand for it.

Tanner handed it to Garrett. Reese watched as he opened it and saw the photograph inside of a shallow grave along with a piece of metal lying next to it.

“What is that?” Garrett asked.

Horror suffused Reese’s voice as she struggled to speak. “It was part of the art piece Molly bought. Oh my God, she was buried there with my artwork?”

“Three guesses as to who would want to get rid of a body and a piece of artwork,” Tanner said, then took another large bite of his pastry.

“But he only left a piece of it behind,” Reese said. “Why would he do that, and where’s the rest of it?”

All three of them moved to sit at the kitchen table. “Killers like to keep souvenirs, or given Russell’s history of framing innocent people for his crimes, he might have kept it to incriminate someone, or point us away from the real murderer.” Tanner said.

“I didn’t kill her. I swear.”

“We know that,” Garrett said and turned his attention back to Tanner. “Tell her you have a plan, Tanner. Or did you just come here to scare her and piss me off.”

“I don’t and I didn’t. But we thought you should know the next knock on your door might not be a friendly face.”

“What do I do?” Reese had barely touched her pastry and had only taken a few small sips of her coffee. She couldn’t even think about eating or drinking anything now. “How could Russell do this to me? We lived in the same house. My mom loved him like her own son.”

Garrett took her hand, giving it a gentle, reassuring squeeze.

Tanner spoke up then. “If it’s any consolation, I think his only goal is to save himself. When he buried Molly and your art, he was protecting himself. But now that you’re out of that hospital, he figures he’ll kill two birds with one stone. He’ll help solve a murder case and get you put away for life. Chances are you won’t have a good alibi for her time of death.”

“This is a nightmare,” Reese said. “I can’t drag all of you into this mess. Garrett, I don’t have a choice. I have to leave. I have to go to the Sedona police and explain -”

“Explain what?” Garrett asked, frustration coloring his tone. “You go in there without a lawyer and a rock-solid alibi, and you’ll end up in an interrogation room so fast, your head will spin.”

“I’m sorry,” Tanner said. “But if I didn’t know you, and trust Garrett’s instincts about you, I’d be bringing you in for questioning right now. So would Caden and Blake. You shouldn’t even be seeing this, but we do believe you, and that’s why I’m here, sharing all this with you. So you can prepare for the worst.”

Reese felt like her insides freezing over while the blood in her veins was boiling. Her skin crawled with anxiety and she wanted to scream at the top of her lungs. “I was better off at Desert Cove,” she whispered.

“No,” Garrett said. “Do you have a dated receipt, proving when she purchased the art work?”

Reese shook her head. “No. I mean I’m sure I did at some point, but now - no, of course I don’t.”

“It’s okay. We’ll figure this out,” Garrett assured her.

“That’s what you said last night and so far, it’s only getting worse. Russell is moving ten steps ahead of us and we’re not even playing catch up. We’re just reacting to his blows and drowning in the process. I may not be able to save myself, but if I distance myself from you, then maybe you won’t be hurt in the process.”

“Are we seriously back to that again?” Garrett asked. “I thought we agreed we were in this together?”

“Okay, together,” Reese said, sarcasm dripping with every syllable. “How do you feel about aiding and abetting a fugitive? Because as soon as the cops come knocking on your door looking for me and you stand in their way, that’s what you’ll be doing. Or do you plan to just hand me over to them?”

“No!” Garrett roared. “Never.”

“Then we have a problem,” Tanner said.

“You don’t say,” Garrett snapped. “Look, we don’t know how this is going to play out.” He turned to Reese. “Let’s take this one day at a time. We live our lives and then if push comes to shove, we’ll make a plan and get you the best attorney money can buy.”

Tanner sat silent but rigid at the table.

“What?” Garrett spat out at him. “You don’t like my plan?”

“I’m not saying that. And I’m not saying I wouldn’t do the same thing for someone I cared about. But in the interest of protecting your badge, we might want to find Reese another place to stay, just in case –“

“No,” Garrett cut him off. “Wherever she goes, I go.”

“You could lose your job,” Reese said.

Garrett turned his whole body to face her and took both her hands in his. “Look at me.” He waited as she slowly raised her chin until their gazes met. “I have wanted to be a Texas Ranger since I was twelve years old. There was never any other career choice for me. I watched every television show and movie that portrayed a Texas Ranger, and I memorized the oath long before I got my badge. But let’s be clear about one thing. If I lose that badge protecting an innocent woman that I happen to be very much in love with, then it was never the badge for me. Because this job isn’t just a paycheck to me. And this badge isn’t just a hunk of metal. It means something. It stands for something bigger than myself. Bigger than anything you or I could ever truly understand. It’s sacred. And it’s all in the name of justice. If I turn my back on you now when you need me the most, then not only would I be dishonoring my badge, I would be turning my back on it.”

Her heart was near exploding with love for this man. “I can’t be the reason you lose your dream job, Garrett.”

Garrett shook his head. “I never knew it until this very moment. But you, Reese Graham, are the reason I had to become a Texas Ranger. No matter what happens, I and my badge will protect and honor you until the end.”

Reese sat stunned and speechless. “I love you too,” she said, her eyes overflowing with tears. “But you don’t have to sacrifice everything for me.”

“It’s not a sacrifice when you love someone. It’s a gift. And I give it to you freely with my whole heart.” He put his hand on her chest covering the place over her heart. “I know I sound like a broken record with how often I’ve been saying it lately, but we will get through this together.” He turned to Tanner then. “Anything else you want to share this morning?”

Tanner polished off the last bite of his pastry, and while Reese didn’t know the man well, she had a feeling he was doing his best to hide just how much this was all affecting him. “Yeah. It’s Sunday and I brought my rod. Think we can go fishing off your dock for a while?”

There was a moment of complete silence and then all three of them burst out laughing.

***

Tanner left after lunch, but Garrett wasn’t ready to call it a day. It was incredibly warm outside, and he wanted to jump into the lake for a swim. He worried how Reese might feel about that after her ordeal, but she just smiled and dove in ahead of him.

“Come on,” she said, pushing her hair back from her face. “The water actually feels incredible in this heat.”

He laughed and cannonballed in. Nothing was going to stop him from soaking up as much time with her as he possibly could. They swam around, splashing each other playfully, and racing to see who was faster. Of course, he was, but he let her beat him a few times because he never wanted her to feel like she wasn’t the strong, brave, bad ass woman he knew her to be.

“Are you sure about this?” Reese asked, a little while as he slipped a hand just under the surface of the water and cupped the back of her head while she floated on her back.

Garrett smiled, loving how peaceful she looked as she laid her head back into his hand, her eyelids nearly closed, her arms gently paddling the water. “I’ve never been more sure of anything,” he said. “I’m not going to let Russell Graham dictate how we live our lives. I’m going to close my case at the school, then get back to my day job.”

Reese smiled. “You mean you don’t want to switch careers and become a high school English teacher?”

Garrett shook his head with a laugh. “As rewarding as this last month has been, I miss the action of being a Texas Ranger.”

“I don’t,” she said. “I don’t miss worrying about you being in danger. I mean, I know you could still be in danger while you’re under cover at the school, but it’s not like you’re out there, arresting people who could be shooting at you.”

Garrett lowered his head and kissed her forehead. “They can try,” he said with a smirk. “But now that I’ve got you in my life, I have even more reasons to make sure they don’t succeed. And that includes Russell.”

Reese pushed at the water with her hands and came up to a wading position, her knees slightly bent under her as she paddled gently with her hands to stay afloat. “The only good thing to come out of all this is that I finally get to look into your eyes and not worry about what I’m going to see. Not that seeing it over and over again makes it any easier.”

Garrett pulled her toward him, wrapping his arms around her. She wrapped her legs around his waist and he proceeded to kick to keep them both afloat. He stared at her for a moment, the silence between them filled by the sounds of lapping water, rustling leaves, and a bird chirping in the distance. He had no idea when this thing with Russell would come to a head, or how it would end for him, but if all he had left in this world were a few weeks or months, there was no other place he would rather be than right here with Reese in his arms. He loved being able to look into her eyes, see the way they lit up when she laughed, or how they twinkled right before she was going to do something amazing to him in bed. But right now, her eyes were so full of questions that Garrett felt it in the pit of his stomach. He only wished he had the answers. “Talk to me,” he said. “I know I can’t fix everything, but I’m a pretty good listener.”

Reese sighed and glanced up at a bird flying overhead. “I was just thinking that tomorrow the school cafeteria is serving grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup.”

“Okay…”

She shrugged. “It’s just after last night and this morning, it’s nice to have a normal thought with you right now. Share a normal day with you, like fishing off the dock, swimming in the lake. I want more normal days and nights with you.” There was an ethereal sadness to her words and he hated knowing that her fear of what Russell might do put it there. But it only made him more determined to catch the guy and bring him to justice.

“We’ll have more. Lots more.”

“Promise?” She asked, her chin resting on his shoulder.

Garrett thought about his answer for a moment. He didn’t want to make a promise he wasn’t sure he could keep, so instead he looked up at the sky. There were purple streaks with an early waning crescent moon to the East and the same two stars that were always the first to come out every night, already shining like pinpricks in the sky. He hadn’t realized they’d stayed in the water so late, but he just smiled and said, “Look up.” Reese did, and he continued. “I don’t make promises I can’t keep, but see those two stars up there?”

“Are you about to say something that’s going to make me tear up?”

He smiled and kissed her forehead. “We might only be able to see our stars with a telescope, but those two stars are the first to come out every night. Even when they’re hidden by the light, they’re still there, together amidst the light of day and together like that they’ll shine through the night.”

“Garrett,” she whispered, her voice hitching.

But he continued. “I don’t know what’s going to happen to me, but I do know that we will always be like those two stars. Together, no matter what the world throws at us. And even if the darkness comes sooner than we want, we’ll keep shining together, just as strong.”

“How can you be so calm about all this?” She asked, a tinge of anger in her tone.

“Every day I go out and do my job, I’m risking my life. Russell Graham is no more a risk than any other perp I’ve taken down. And with our friends on high alert, I have to believe I’ll make it through this. But if for some reason I don’t, I need you to know that it’s not your fault, and my friends will make sure you’re okay.”

“Russell isn’t just another perp, Garrett. He’s a trained cop who’s gotten away with everything he’s done so far, including killing Molly Edgar.”

Garrett swam them to the dock and lifted her out of the water, then pulled himself up and sat next to her with his legs dangling over the side and his toes touching the surface of the water. “The way I see it is we can spend our time worrying about Russell, or we can live our lives and create the kind of memories we’d be proud to share with our kids and grandkids, if we’re lucky enough to have them. Now, which sounds better to you?”

He wasn’t trying to dismiss her worries, but the sadness in Reese’s eyes was enough to make Garrett want to go out and put an end to Russell right now. Seeing as how he couldn’t do that; his only other option was to try to make her feel better.

She surprised him with a genuine smile, then met his gaze in a way that had his body standing at attention. She stood and reached her hand out to him. “Let’s see what kind of memories we can make. Though I doubt they’ll be child friendly.”

Garrett barked out a laugh, stood, and scooped her up in his arms, carrying her in a fireman’s hold. Water dripped off of them as he crossed his yard and made a beeline for the shower with her still in his arms.

They tore off their swimsuits and washed each other thoroughly, then made their way to the bed where they spent the rest of the evening making the kind of memories their future kids would never hear about, but would definitely be memorable.