Love Restored (Gallagher Brothers #1)(58)

“Ms. Brennen, this is Officer Lansing. We have Rowan.”

Her legs went out from under her, and she fell to the ground. Graham was there by her side while the others moved toward her in the next instant.

“Is she okay? Is she hurt? Can I talk to her?”

“Oh, thank God,” Owen whispered, but Blake waved him off. She needed to be able to hear Officer Lansing.

“She’s unharmed, though we still have paramedics doing a check up just in case. We’re going to bring her to your home soon and go over everything.”

Tears once again slid down Blake’s cheeks. “What happened? Who took her? Can I talk to her?” She asked the last question again, needing to hear her daughter’s voice.

“Rowan is with the paramedic right now, and then we’re putting her in the car and heading down to your place. I’m not near her, as I’m in Denver, and Rowan was found in Vail. Otherwise, I would put you on the phone with her right now.”

“Vail?” she pursued, her eyes going wide. “She was at the ski cottage, wasn’t she? Oh my God, they actually took her.”

“It’s looking that way, ma’am. But we won’t know more until we continue our investigation. Just hang tight. We will bring your daughter home shortly.”

She nodded, though he couldn’t see her, and hung up the phone after he’d given her an approximate time.

“They found her,” she whispered.

“The Carmichaels actually took her?” Graham cursed. “Are you f*cking serious?”

Blake blinked up at him. “Yeah, it looks like it. I know my lawyer called earlier about how the case might be dismissed, but I never truly thought they’d take matters into their own hands like this.”

“But what about the subcontractor, Sean?” Owen asked.

She shook her head. “I…I don’t know.”

She didn’t know much of anything except that her baby was coming home.

Thank. God.




It took almost two hours for Rowan to come home. Between the drive, traffic, and paperwork, Blake was afraid she was going to pull out all of her hair before she saw her baby girl again.

When the officer opened the back door of his cruiser, Rowan jumped out and ran full tilt toward Blake. Blake met her daughter halfway, crushing Rowan to her.

“Oh my God, Rowan. I love you so freaking much.” She bent down and cupped Rowan’s face before checking her over.

“I didn’t want to go with the bad man, Mom. I swear. But he made me.” Rowan started crying, and Blake broke for her. “I missed you so much. Please don’t make me live with the mean people. Please.”

Blake held her daughter close. “You’re never going with them. You’re only going to stay with me, my darling. You’re mine.”

When Graham stood by Blake’s side, Rowan pulled away and jumped into Graham’s arms. He looked startled for a moment, then picked her up and hugged her close.

“I’m so glad you’re here, squirt.”

“I love you, Mr. Graham,” Rowan said as she nuzzled into Graham.

Blake stood on shaky legs, her heart breaking. There must have been something on her face because Graham looked just as broken. He set Rowan on her feet and patted her back. “Go back to your mom, baby. She needs you.”

Rowan nodded and clung to Blake again.

“We’re safe now,” Blake said softly. “You can go.”

Graham met her gaze, resignation on his face. “If that’s what you want.”

“It’s what I want,” she whispered.

He pressed his lips together before giving her a tight nod and turning on his heel. Owen and Murphy, who had witnessed the entire exchange, just shook their heads and followed their brother to the vehicles.

She knew she was making a mistake, but she couldn’t think too hard about that, not when she had to put Rowan first. Her daughter would always be first. Even over herself.

Though Rowan was far too big, Blake picked her up and carried her a bit before they reached the stairs. “Let’s go get you inside while the officers talk.”

“Where is Mr. Graham going?” Rowan asked as she wiped her face.

“Home, honey. Now let’s get you home. It’s just the two of us, right? We’re a good team.”

Rowan sniffed but walked up the stairs, Blake on her heels.




It turned out, the subcontractor that the Gallaghers had brought on to replace their injured man had actually been hired by the Carmichaels. And he’d apparently had another plan in place if Owen had gone with someone else. He had also been the one to hurt Gary on the site. He’d confessed everything pretty quickly once he’d been found. He hadn’t hurt a hair on Rowan’s head, but had scared the hell out of everyone.

The Carmichaels were being brought up on charges, and Blake was told the custody issue would be off the table forever. Maybe one day she would relax about that, but for now, she needed to tuck her daughter in. Though Owen and Murphy had left with Graham, Maya and her men had stayed.

They’d helped to clean up and kept they press at bay since an Amber Alert had been issued. They’d done so much for her, and yet all Blake wanted was to be alone with her daughter.

“It’s time for bed, baby,” Blake said softly. “Do you want to sleep with me or in your own bed?”