The Sheriff Catches a Bride

Chapter Thirteen



FILA RAN FOR HER LIFE through the thick forest. Trees whipped past her. She leaped fallen branches, darted around thickets she couldn’t penetrate, fell, got up and ran some more. To her mind, the sound of her mad dash through the forest echoed as loud as thunder. She knew they’d trace her. Knew they’d find her.

She had to hide.

She spotted the tree house first and nearly tripped in shock at the sight of the high structure. Too exposed to hide in, she thought, but a few moments later she stumbled on something else. A green tarp half-hidden by layers of evergreen branches covered something someone didn’t want people to see. Panting, a stitch in her side making every breath torture, she listened for pursuers, heard none, and lifted the plastic sheet.

Lumber.

Someone was storing lumber out here in the woods. She had a memory—a flash of a childhood visit to a friend of the family just outside Simsbury. Climbing a rope ladder into their tree house. Eating sandwiches and telling stories.

No one who built a tree house could be all bad.

And no one would look for her under a tarp hidden in the woods. She slid underneath the cold, clammy surface and lined up her body parallel to the pile of boards. Pressed up against them, already shivering as the cold, autumn night drew in, she tucked the tarp around herself and tried to erase any signs of her passage under it. Then she lay still and held her breath. She’d wait a few hours, think up a plan, and escape again.

ROSE WAS GLAD she’d taken the time to collect a flashlight from Cab’s house before heading into the woods. She hoped the woman hadn’t gotten too far a head start because of it, but she figured two of them plunging headlong into the trees in the dark was most likely to end in the need for two search parties.

All she had to go on was the direction she saw the woman run, but Rose felt certain she knew where she would end up. She wasn’t dressed for racing through the woods, so she’d have to go to ground somewhere. The tree house made a likely place.

Ten minutes later, however, she flashed her light through the small structure and conceded that it was empty. Maybe it seemed too exposed. She climbed down the ladder slowly and ran the light over the surrounding ground. Where would she hide if she didn’t want to be seen?

Anywhere in these woods.

“Hello?” Rose called. “Is anyone here? It’s safe to come out—I’m the only one here.”

She listened, but only heard the rustle of leaves in the chill autumn air. When she let out a breath, the air fogged in front of her. Had the woman been wearing a warm coat? Her head had been bare. Pretty soon she’d be awfully cold.

“I mean it. It’s safe. Their fight had nothing to do with you, anyway. It was about me.” Her voice broke and she lowered the flashlight.

Cab and Jason had fought over her. Cab had shoved her fiancé into his truck and hauled him off to jail.

Jason cared enough about her to come to blows over losing her.

She shut her eyes and took a deep breath to try to calm her pounding heart. She’d been so convinced he didn’t care. She’d moved on from him. She’d given herself to Cab.

Did it make her a bad person that she’d slept with another man so soon after breaking off her engagement? Did she still love Jason?

No.

The answer came loud and clear. Not because he’d done something awful, or cheated on her, or neglected her, but because she’d simply moved on. She was different now than when she’d been eighteen. She was grown up. She wanted different things.

And she knew what she wanted. Art school. Marriage. Children. A job in academia.

Cab.

She wasn’t confused at all about who she was and how she felt about the future. She didn’t need more time to figure things out. It might take practice before she got good at stating specifically what she wanted, or could gainsay Cab when he got too protective, but being with him would give her that practice far faster than staying away from him. She’d think of it as a crash course in setting boundaries.

Smiling just a little, she returned her attention to the dark woods around her. “Hello? Are you there? It’s just me—I’m all alone. I’d love to help you if I can.”

When no answer came, she decided to check near Hannah’s corral. She paced forward carefully, not wanting to trip in the dim light. She saw the green mound that was their unused building supplies. She and Mia had covered them carefully with a tarp and pine boughs earlier in the day.

Now the tarp was exposed in one corner.

Rose halted. The woman was under there. She knew it. How to get her out without scaring her, though…

“Please let me help you,” Rose said quietly. “It will be okay. I promise.”

She held her breath as she watched the tarp. At first nothing happened. Then it rippled, shook and flipped back, revealing a disheveled woman underneath with huge, frightened eyes.

“The men are gone; it’s just me,” Rose said, holding out a hand. She tilted the flashlight away so its beam didn’t blind the woman. “Come on, let’s get you cleaned up and warm.”

The woman ignored her hand, pushed up to her knees and stood unsteadily. She patted her clothes into place and lifted a hand to her hair. Finally she spoke. Her voice was low and unsteady, with a trace of an accent Rose couldn’t place.

“Are you Claire Cruz?”

“No. But I’m her friend. Is that who you’re looking for? I can get you to her.”

The woman nodded. “Please.”

Rose ushered her back through the woods. The woman stuck close to her, rigid with tension. She continually scanned the area around them as if convinced Cab and Jason could jump out at them at any moment. Rose understood why the fight between them might have startled her, but her fear seemed to go beyond what the situation called for. She wondered where she came from and why Jason had brought her here.

Was she his new girlfriend?

Then why would he attack Cab?

“Is that yours?” the woman asked when they passed the tree house.

“Yes.”

“It looks… safe.”

Rose nodded. “It’s secret. No one knows about it. At least, no men know about it.”

“No men,” the woman said thoughtfully. “That’s good.”

Twenty minutes later, Claire, Morgan and Autumn stood at Carl’s front door. Rose let them in, saying, “She’s really spooked so go easy on her.”

“Jamie nearly didn’t take no for an answer when we told him he couldn’t come, too,” Claire said. “He was dying to tag along and find out why we were coming over here unexpectedly. Why is she so afraid of men?”

“I don’t know. She hasn’t told me much. Just that she’s come a long way to meet Aria’s daughter.”

“Aria’s daughter?” Claire’s face lost some of its color. “Is that how she put it? She knew my mother?”

“Our mother,” Morgan said softly. The two women glanced at each other, and Rose knew they were remembering the day Morgan had arrived in Chance Creek on a similar mission. Back then Claire didn’t know she had a half-sister. Morgan didn’t know Aria had died. Their first meeting hadn’t gone very well, from what Rose had heard.

Rose nodded and led the way into the living room. Claire and Morgan followed with Autumn trailing behind. Rose was glad Autumn had come as well; she always was a voice of reason when Claire’s hot temper flared.


“Fila, this is Claire Lassiter and Morgan Matheson. Claire and Morgan are both daughters of Aria Cruz. And this is Autumn Cruz. She married Aria’s son, Ethan.”

Fila stood and searched each woman’s face with her worried gaze. “I… Thank you so much. Your mother—she was a wonderful woman. She did so much…”

Rose thought Fila might faint and she hurried to her side and then helped her back to the couch.

“Are you from… Afghanistan?” Morgan said in wonder, moving to sit across from her. “I know my mother did some work there, helping women.”

“Your mother did much work there.” Fila leaned forward earnestly. “Great work. When we heard she died, the mountains themselves cried out with our sorrow.”

Rose couldn’t get over how American Fila looked, but how foreign she sounded. The mountains cried out? “You came all the way from Afghanistan? Just to thank Aria’s daughters?”

“No,” Fila looked down at her hands. “I should have; we all should have come just to say thank you, but no—it’s more than that. I… escaped.”

Comprehension dawned on Morgan’s face. “You were to be married? To someone you didn’t choose?” she prompted.

Fila nodded vigorously. “Yes, to a very bad man.”

“And you got away? You escaped all the way here? How is that possible?” Claire’s harsher tones made Rose want to jump in and protect Fila from her. Claire meant well, but she wasn’t always the softest touch.

“I know it sounds unlikely.” Fila looked from one to other. “But it wasn’t all the way here. They brought me to America. To marry a man here.”

“Someone brought you here to get married in America?” Claire sounded like she didn’t believe it.

“To reward him for his patience. For the service he was doing for his country.”

Rose got a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach. “Let me get this straight. There was an Afghani man here, being patient, and you were his reward?”

“Yes.” Fila watched her, as if willing her to understand.

“Oh, my God,” Morgan said, turning a stricken gaze toward the rest of them. “A terrorist?” She turned back toward Fila. “Was this man a terrorist?”

Fila nodded, her eyes bright with tears. “Yes, I think so. He’s a bad man.”

“How did you get away?” Morgan asked. “You must have been terrified!”

“Are you hurt?” Autumn said. “Should we call a doctor?”

“Wait,” Rose said, feeling like she’d lost the thread of the story somewhere. “Are you talking about the Taliban? Are you one of them?”

A tear spilled down Fila’s cheek. “I am an American,” she said, her voice breaking. “I was born here, I grew up here until I was twelve. I never wanted to leave. My family went back to Afghanistan for a visit.” She held her hands up in a pleading gesture. “My parents were killed by the Taliban. I was taken. I was raised by them. They thought they had made me one of their own. You have to understand how badly I wanted to come home. I waited so long.” Emotion clogged her voice and Rose wanted to comfort her but she knew they needed to hear it all. “I finally got my chance. When I learned I was coming to America, I knew I could get free.”

Rose was speechless. But Claire remained focused. Once again her sharp voice pierced through the rest of their murmurs. “Do these terrorists know where you are?”

Fila shook her head. “They don’t know what I look like. The men who brought me here are not my relatives, so they have not seen me without my burqa.”

“What burqa?” Claire pressed.

“How did you get away?” Rose asked, finally able to speak again.

“In the airport in New York. I said I needed…” she waved a hand as if struggling for the words. “I went to the ladies’ room, I took off my burqa, and…” she shrugged expressively. “They did not know who I was when I walked out!”

Rose laughed in disbelief. “That’s amazing.” Claire looked skeptical.

“I took trains, a bus, a car…” Fila said. “I kept coming until I made it here.”

“Because you wanted to see my mother?” Morgan said.

“No, I knew she had passed and I am so sorry for this. Many women in my country are sorry. But I had to thank the daughter who made a donation in her name. Without it, I would not be here today. I would not be free.”

The women looked at each other. “That was me,” Morgan said slowly. “When we found out what Mom had been doing when she traveled each year, I sent a donation to the organization she worked for over there. I thought she’d want me to.”

“Looks like it paid off,” Autumn said. “What will you do now, Fila? Do you have somewhere to go?”

Fila shook her head and dropped her gaze to her lap again.

“She’ll stay here in Chance Creek, of course,” Claire said, her voice hard. “She’s not going back, that’s for sure.”

Hope swelled inside Rose. If Claire approved of that plan then it was bound to work out.

“It’s not going to be easy, though,” Autumn warned. “Do you have any right to be in the United States?”

“Yes,” Fila said softly. “I am a United States citizen.”

“That’s why you speak English so well,” Morgan said. “Because you grew up here.”

Fila’s relief at being understood was evident.

“You have to tell someone about those men, though,” Rose said.

They all turned to Fila and she nodded. “Of course,” she said softly.

“Won’t that be dangerous?” Autumn said.

No one answered.

“I’M TELLING YOU I saw them. Four Middle Eastern men driving right through town, as bold as can be.”

Cab resisted the urge to haul Kevin inside and lock him up in a cell beside Jason. He’d almost made it out the door of the jail when the old man came hobbling in looking for him.

“Why shouldn’t four Middle Eastern men drive through Chance Creek? It’s a free country last time I looked.” He had to get back to Rose and sort things out with her, before she drove herself wild with recriminations and self-doubt. He had to find the woman Jason managed to lose, too. This Fila person.

“Because they were looking for trouble. Anyone could see that.”

“Four men driving through town does not mean trouble,” Cab said, “or there’d be trouble every day of the week.”

“They were looking for something,” Kevin said. “Probably looking for the best place to plant a bomb.”

“Time to call it a night, old man.” Cab was pushed to his limit.

“Who you calling an old man?”

“No one.” Cab sighed. “Let’s get you home.”

“Aren’t you going to look for them?”

“No, I’m going to go home and check on Rose. She’s had a rough day.”

“Home. You mean Carl’s place? You left her there alone?” Kevin said. “At night? With all that fancy art and stuff he’s got in his house? I bet those crazy foreigners are heading out there to rob the place. How do you think they buy those bombs?”

“For the love of God.” Cab turned on the older man. “There are no terrorists in Chance Creek. There will be no attacks. I’ve been on my feet all day and I’m tired. Maybe if you did a lick of work you’d know what that’s like.” He regretted the words instantly and reached out as Kevin turned away. “Now, hold on there, Kevin. I’m sorry…”


“No.” Kevin shook his head, leaning heavily on his cane. “I know I’m not good for much these days, Cab. You don’t have to pretend otherwise. I do what I can. I like to think I’m watching out for the town if nothing else. Lived here my whole life.”

“I know that, and I’m sorry I was tense with you. Let’s get you home.”

“Let’s go to Carl’s first. I’ll help you check it out.”

“Not tonight.” Cab helped the man to the front seat of his truck and drove him home through the quiet streets. First Jason’s appearance, then his insistence on the existence of a woman in Alan’s cab who obviously was never there, now Kevin’s nonsense. What a night. He couldn’t wait to get home.

He hoped Rose was still there.

When they reached Kevin’s house he helped the old man up to his door and saw him inside. As he returned to his truck, his cell phone rang. “Yeah? What is it?”

“Cab? It’s Alan. You’re not going to believe this. I’ve been debating for an hour whether to call you or not. I feel like an idiot…”

“Spit it out, Alan,” Cab said, but he had a sinking feeling he knew what the man was going to say.

“Did you happen to see a woman at your house after I left? I totally forgot about her, what with Jason taking a swing at you and all the hullaballoo. I didn’t think to even check the back seat until I was back to town and then she wasn’t there.”

“Who wasn’t there?”

“The woman with Jason. The one who was supposed to go to the Cruz ranch. Said she was looking for Claire?”

Hell. “No, I didn’t see her, but Jason mentioned her, too. I’ll go look into it.”

“Let me know when you find her,” Alan said. “I should have called earlier. I should have gone back.”

“Don’t worry. We’ll sort it all out.” Cab clicked the phone closed. A knock on his window nearly startled him out of his skin. He bit back a swear word as he rolled the window down. Kevin leaned inside, gesturing to Cab’s phone.

“Was that about the terrorists?”

“SHE SHOULD STAY HERE,” Rose said. “Cab’s the sheriff; she’ll be safe with him.”

“At the ranch we’ve got Rob, Jamie and Ethan,” Morgan countered. “We can call Rob’s brothers, too, and the hired hands. We can have an army over there to protect her.”

“She should be in town,” Claire said. “That’s much safer than on one of the ranches.”

“What does Fila want to do?” Autumn broke in.

All eyes turned to where Fila sat sipping the hot tea Rose had made for her. Fila scanned their faces. “I know I must speak to the police. I will… tomorrow.” She turned a pleading gaze to Rose. “I have traveled so far. I am tired.”

“Of course,” Autumn said. “You need a good night’s sleep and then you can face everything in the morning. I’ll call Ethan and get all the men together. You’ll be surrounded by guards,” she assured her.

Fila shook her head, tears gathering in her eyes again. “I have been surrounded by guards for more than ten years. Please… let me have one night…”

The other women glanced at each other. “But you need to be safe,” Morgan said gently.

“I know where to take her,” Rose said, and Fila lifted her gaze to hers, relief flooding her face. She nodded and Rose knew they were thinking the same thing.

“Where?” Claire said.

Rose took a breath. “That’s what makes it perfect; even you won’t be able to guess where it is. But it’s safe, I guarantee it. No one will ever find us there.”

Autumn frowned. “Why can’t you tell us?”

“Because I’ve been surrounded by guards for years, too,” Rose said. “I have to have one place I can run to when I need to be alone. Somewhere I can think things through without anyone influencing me. I just found this one. I’m not ready to give it up yet.”

After a long moment Autumn nodded. “I guess I understand that.”

“I don’t,” Claire said.

Autumn put a hand on her arm. “Rose knows what she’s doing.”

Rose set about gathering supplies, hoping Autumn was right. “The only thing is, I need a car. My truck is still in the shop.”

“Take mine,” Morgan said and handed her the keys.