Cowboy In The Crossfire(51)

"Thanks, Logan."

"Just find the kid."

"I will."

They ended the call, and Blake felt Amanda's chilled body shiver against him. He walked to the closet. "Bastard took my grandad's Colt," he said, as he grabbed an extra blanket.

"I'm sorry."

"Granddad wouldn't have liked anyone but a Redmond touching it."

Amanda picked up the phone. "It has a dial tone. How long will it take them to call?"

"They'll want us to sweat. They want us to worry."

"I already am."

"Me, too." He sat down beside her. "Let me check the bullet wound."

She nodded, and he lifted her shirt probing at the gash in her side. "It's improved. Not so inflamed. Looks like we treated it enough to fight off the infection." Keeping his touch as gentle as possible, he cleaned the area. "Seems like I spend all my time trying to get you out of your clothes. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind the job," he tried to joke, but the world didn't seem funny right now. He sighed. "I hate seeing you hurt."

He stripped off his sweater, then the flannel shirt beneath it.

"Blake," Amanda began. "I don't think I--"

"As much as I want to make love to you every second of every day, I know that's not what you need," he said quietly. He threw aside the torn sweatshirt and eased her arms into the sleeves of his shirt, rolling them up until her hands peeked through. "This will keep you warm."

He helped her button up, and finally tucked the blanket around her. He slipped into his sweater, then settled on the bed next to her and pulled her against him. He kept his Glock within reach. "Try to rest," he said quietly.

He stroked her auburn hair, the blue in his flannel reflecting in her eyes. "You really are amazing. And beautiful."

She shook her head and pushed back her hair probing her swollen eye with her fingertips. "You're a liar."

"Amanda," he said quietly. "I don't lie."

She ducked her head into his chest. "Do you think Ethan's okay?"

He refused to take her bait. He honestly didn't know. "Ethan's smart. He has more courage than any kid I know."

She gripped his sweater. "There's only one way for this to end, isn't there?"

"The lawman in me wants to arrest the bastards and have them pay for what they've done. The father and lover wants to send them to hell in short order."

She shivered. "I keep seeing that man taking Ethan. They put him in a trunk, Blake. Ethan hates the dark."

She hid her face against his sweater and finally let her tears fall. Each sob wrenched a piece of Blake's soul. He couldn't do anything but wait. Wait on Logan. Wait on the kidnappers. Wait on Rafe.

His prepaid phone rang.

Blake picked it up.

"It's Logan. You got TV, Blake?"

He grabbed the remote. "Yes."

"Turn it on. Oh man, I'm so, so sorry."

Blake's gut turned over. The picture flickered. A photo of his mother's neighborhood stared back at him from the small screen.

"Minutes ago, a charred body was discovered in the smoldering remains of a home in the small community of Carder, Texas. Sources from the fire department say the home belonged to the mother of the local sheriff, Blake Redmond, who is one of the subjects of an ongoing manhunt by the Austin Police Department."

"The body is burned beyond recognition." Logan let out a sigh. "God, I'm sorry."





Chapter Twelve


Amanda's stomach heaved as Blake turned off the television. Her heart shattered into a million pieces. She couldn't think. Couldn't feel. It had to be a mistake. She gripped Blake's sweater. This couldn't be happening.

"Blake, you there?" Logan's voice sounded through the phone.

"Are you sure it's her?" Blake asked, his voice too steady. "Can you find out?"

"I'll try."

"What about Parris? He was with her." Blake shoved a hand through his hair. "I want to know who's responsible."

The ice in Blake's voice made Amanda shudder. His face had gone hard as stone. His eyes turned cold, his arms dropped from around her, he sat on the side of the bed, his back to her. He'd closed off, and she didn't blame him. The world had collapsed around him.

"Blake--" Logan began.

"Don't start. You know what I have to do."

The man on the other end of the phone whispered an order she couldn't make out. "I understand. Rafe's on his way."

"I need to know what happened, Logan."

Blake ended the call and stared at the phone, unseeing. To some he might appear to be perfectly in control, but Amanda knew better. His jaw throbbed and his hand shook. He cared more than any man she'd ever known. He'd put his life and family on the line for her and Ethan. Her eyes burned with tears. Nancy couldn't be dead.

She touched his shoulder, her stroke tentative. "Maybe it's not--"

"Don't." He shrugged her away and stood up.

Amanda had seen Blake angry and frustrated, but she'd never seen the fury vibrating from within in quite this way. He paced the floor like a caged animal, stopping beside Leo, who lay huddled against the wall.