Cowboy In The Crossfire(45)

"Vince's emails. He set up the account when we moved in."

"They must have his accounts tagged." Interest flared in Blake's eyes. "What did you learn?"

She glanced at Ethan who seemed distracted. "Vince sent me an email the day before he was killed," she whispered. "Just a link, but I couldn't open it." She told him about the warning message.

"That has to be the evidence."

"It's no good if we don't have a password."

"With only two tries left, we can't take any chances. I'll go pick up a prepaid cell and call Logan. He has a geek on his staff who might be able to help." Blake stroked the stubble on his chin. "Maybe O'Connor is on the up-and-up."

"We can't risk involving the cops. Please don't call him. No more secrets." She grabbed the collar of his coat. "You promised."

"The same goes for you," Blake said with an arched brow. "Deal?"

Looking over her shoulder at Ethan, she nodded.

Blake tipped his Stetson in agreement and walked out the door. Amanda stared after the closed oak, the room suddenly losing its warmth. And not because the heater had failed. How had she come to rely on him so much--his strength, his determination--that when he left she felt his loss all the way through her?

"Was Blake mad, Mommy?"

Ethan came over and leaned into her, as if sensing she needed the comfort.

She lifted him to her lap. "He's trying to catch the bad guys, and I'm trying to help."

"They keep coming after us. Maybe we should hide. Like in hide and go seek," Ethan said logically.

"That's kind of what we're doing here." Amanda focused on her son, but her mind wandered to a terrifying truth. If these guys had been able to track them in the middle of nowhere, how could she have ever expected to disappear? Really disappear. If she hadn't come to Blake, she didn't want to think about what would have happened to her, but more importantly, to Ethan.

"Blake will make it better, Mommy. He's big. He saved me from the tractor."

Ethan patted her cheek in comfort, then scurried across the room and tried to run over Leo's wagging tail with his truck.

She wished she'd had time to review more of Vince's emails. Maybe there was a clue to the password in there, and if they found the evidence, maybe Ethan would have a chance at a real life. She stared at her son. The longer this went on, the more fragile their lives felt. Amanda didn't know how long she wrestled with the unpleasant options before Blake returned, carrying three phones.

"I'm not taking any more chances. We're dumping these after each use," he said.

She looked at the man who had driven her to passion the day before. He was a warrior now, a fighter. He would keep them as safe as he could.

She bit her lip. "I've been thinking. About the future. When we catch these guys, will Ethan still have to testify?"

Blake's entire body stilled. He turned to her. "If Vince really did have that evidence, and if we can find a way to access it, maybe not. I can't promise, though."

"I want Ethan to have a normal life."

"He will."

"I've got a bad feeling, Blake. We're at a motel, out in the open. We don't have a computer to follow Vince's emails." She clutched at his arm. "If anything bad happens, you have to save Ethan first. Promise me."

His jaw clenched and his eyes grew cold. "It won't come to that."

She pressed her hand to his cheek and held his gaze with hers. "Promise me."

He glanced over at the boy wrestling with Leo. "Ethan first." The words dragged out reluctantly, but in his clear hazel eyes she saw his vow.

She let out a sigh of relief. "What do we do?"

"We call Logan." Blake pulled out one of the new cell phones and tugged her toward the bathroom.

Amanda shot a sharp glance at Ethan, but he was busy tickling Leo. "Little man, Blake and I will be in here."

Her son barely looked over. "Okay, Mommy."

Blake closed the door behind them, pressed the speakerphone button and dialed Logan's number.

"Carmichael."

Logan sounded stressed. He'd barked his name through the phone. She sent Blake a concerned glance. He frowned as if he too hadn't expected quite that reaction from his friend.

"It's Blake."

A curse sounded through the phone, and a chill ran down her back.

"What's going on?" Blake asked, tugging her toward him as if he had to keep her close.

"You really pissed off somebody with some pull in Austin. They're coming after me with both barrels. They falsified records. They're trying to shut down the ranch and confiscate everything, including my funds."

Amanda rubbed her temple. She'd brought this disaster on everyone. She raised her gaze to Blake. He leaned back against the sink and closed his eyes. "Hell, I'm sorry, Logan."

Logan let out a grunt. "Not as sorry as they're going to be once I get through with them," he said. "They have no idea what I can do. Once we find out who's behind this, my response will be...appropriate."

Blake's mouth quirked a bit. She stared at him, stunned. Who was Logan Carmichael? He wasn't someone she'd want to be on the wrong side of, that's for sure.