Songbird(16)

Chapter Eight

When Greer had first suggested replacing her wardrobe, she hadn’t considered that it would mean going into Creed’s Pass. She hadn’t set foot in the town since she’d fled after Sean’s death.

Now she stood in front of the small all-purpose mercantile, her fists clenched at her sides as she glanced furtively down the main stretch of town.

Her gaze alighted on Tilly’s motel, and she flinched, closing her eyes in pain as that night came back. Her and Sean laughing. Walking along hand in hand from the corner café after dinner, returning to their room.

They hadn’t stayed at the ranch. They never did. Not since they’d married and the visits back had been so awkward. That was her fault. It was she who couldn’t bear to face Taggert and Greer and pretend that nothing had ever happened.

The man had come out of nowhere, the knife glinting in the light from the streetlamps. Sean stepped in front of her to fend off the attack and took the blade to his chest.

The attacker’s hand wrapped around her throat, squeezing as she screamed until he silenced her.

Alerted by her screams, several nearby people rushed into the street. Her attacker had dropped her but not the knife, and then he’d run. Never to be found. Was he still out there?

She’d dropped to Sean’s inert figure, her hands pressing against the terrible wound in his chest. Blood, so much of it, spilled onto the street.

He’d known. God, he’d known. He looked up at her with such love in his eyes. Then he’d told her he loved her before taking his last breath.

Her breath released in a silent stutter, and she squeezed her eyes shut, determined not to lose her composure.

“Emmy?”

Taggert’s concerned voice reached past the oppressive weight of her grief. She turned to see him standing there, his dark eyes filled with so much understanding it was nearly her undoing.

“I should have thought,” he said. “We’ve been back into town so many times that I forgot this is your first time back.”

She shook her head as if somehow she could deny the agony that stabbed as sharp and as deep as the knife that had ended Sean’s life.

“I’m okay,” she managed to get out. “Let’s go in.”

He touched her arm reassuringly, and Greer opened the door so they could walk in.

She couldn’t muster much enthusiasm for clothes shopping. She chose a few pairs of jeans and simple T-shirts and browsed the two racks of dressier clothing, which were nothing more than nicer western shirts and a few denim skirts.

Wanting to be done with it, she piled the clothing over her arm and headed for the cashier. She stopped short when she saw her father standing at the register paying for his purchases.

His gaze swept over her. There was a brief flicker of recognition, but he turned away as if she were nothing more than a stranger. No acknowledgement, no greeting.

A knot formed in her throat. It shouldn’t hurt. It shouldn’t bother her one iota that the unfeeling bastard had snubbed her. He’d made his feelings plain a long time ago. She was dead to him. She just hadn’t expected him to act as if she were nothing at all.

Why should it be easy for him? Why should he get away with acting like an ass? She’d done nothing to deserve his scorn, and she was tired of feeling guilt for perceived wrongs. There were plenty of real ones without adding the imaginary kind.

“Dad,” she said evenly.

He froze, and for a moment, she thought he’d look at her again. His shoulders stiff, he collected his sack from the counter and turned away to walk toward the door.

“Nice to see you too,” she called.

He didn’t miss a step.

“Emmy, don’t,” Greer said, his voice hard. “Don’t put yourself through that. He’s an unforgiving bastard, and he’s not worth your breath.”

Her gaze followed her father until he disappeared from view. It shouldn’t hurt. No. But it did. Her own family didn’t accept her. Didn’t want her.

Taggert stepped in front of her, blocking her view of her father’s departure. He touched her cheek with gentle fingers, his eyes soft as he looked down at her.

“Don’t torture yourself, sweet pea.”

She nodded her agreement and turned to toss her clothing onto the counter.

“Glad you’re back home, Emily,” Will Ludlow said with a smile as he rang up the items.

“Thank you, Will.”

At least the townspeople didn’t seem to blame her for bringing violence into their small, tight-knit community. In her more paranoid musings, she’d wondered if they’d welcome her back or want her to stay away. Nothing ever happened in Creed’s Pass. Until the day a crazy fan took his obsession too far.

Greer collected her bags for her, and the three of them walked outside.

“I need to drop our grocery order off and then we’ll have some time to kill before it’s ready. Want to go eat at the café?” Taggert asked.

Emily froze. Her fingers were icicles against her arms, and she gripped tight, trying to infuse them with warmth.

She shook her head. No, she didn’t want to go back there. It was the last place she and Sean had been together.

“Can we just go?” she whispered.

“I can send one of the hands back for the supplies,” Greer murmured.

Taggert put an arm around Emily’s shoulders and directed her toward the truck.