After the Storm (32 page)

She turned to Eve, casting a wary eye at the gun in her hand. She damned the fact that the surveillance cameras were capturing it all on film. Just more trouble for Eve, who was already a wanted criminal. She cringed knowing there was little to be done this time. It was all there in vivid detail.

Why the hell was she sympathizing with a woman holding a gun on her? She needed her own head examined.

“Empty the register and get the money bag from the safe,” Eve said quietly. “And tell your father I’m sorry. Truly I am. I haven’t met him, but he’s obviously a good man and he doesn’t deserve this from me. But I don’t have a choice. I have to survive. I won’t go back to my stepfather. I’d do anything in the world to keep Cammie and Travis safe, but Donovan will protect them. I won’t be the sacrificial lamb. I wouldn’t survive a day back in his power.”

Rusty moved slowly toward the cash register, opening it even as she reached down and unlocked the safe that held the cash reserves. Money she would have taken to the bank this morning when she came in to open. It was telling that she had no compunction about giving it to Eve. There was something about her quiet desperation and the fact that she kept apologizing that got to Rusty.

Her brothers would say her heart was too soft and that she had no sense of self-preservation. It wasn’t that at all. She saw a woman completely and utterly devastated and fighting to keep her sanity intact. And to survive. Because whatever she thought, she was convinced that she was being given up to her stepfather.

She didn’t have all the pieces to the puzzle yet, but she’d heard enough from Eve to realize that Eve believed Donovan was going to turn her over to her stepfather. And keep Cammie and Travis. Jesus, but this was one twisted-up mess.

She stuffed the cash from the register into the bag holding the other cash and then carefully slid it along the counter toward Eve. And then Eve, regret simmering in her eyes, motioned for Rusty to sit so she could tie her up.

“Eve? Can I ask you what happened? What this is all about? I’m not fighting you. You can talk while you’re tying me up. But I deserve that much, don’t you think? I helped Travis. I like him a lot. He was me when I was that age. I’m worried about him—and you.”

Eve’s features tightened, anger replacing some of the regret. “Donovan has a weakness for women and children but
especially
children,” she quoted. They were words Rusty had heard many times over the years. It was frequently said about Donovan. “In this case he has a weakness for Cammie and Travis. He loves them. I believe that or I wouldn’t leave them with him where I know they’re safer. He’ll protect them.”

Left unsaid was the fact that Donovan’s weakness only extended to Eve’s siblings and not her, and Rusty knew that was absolutely untrue. But how to get Eve to see that? What the hell had gone wrong? How could she so horribly misunderstand Rusty’s brother? Couldn’t she see the man was not only in love with Cammie and Travis but Eve as well?

“It’s what everyone says—what everyone knows,” Eve continued before Rusty could protest. “Children are his weakness. His Achilles’ heel. And I was just the means—collateral damage—to get what he really wanted. Children. A family. One that doesn’t include me.”

She broke off, grief choking her words, and Rusty could see her fighting tears with her every breath.

“That’s crazy! Donovan would damn well protect you too!” Rusty said fiercely. “If you gave him the chance. It’s not just those kids he wants, Eve. He wants you too!”

Eve held up a hand after securing the knot around Rusty’s ankles. “Don’t! Just don’t. You’ll only defend him, and his actions are indefensible. You’d side with him. I’d expect you to. He’s your family—your brother. I’m not. I know where your loyalty lies and it’s not—and
shouldn’t
be—with me.”

“Bullshit!” Rusty snapped. “I’ll help you. Whatever you need, Eve. We’ll work this out. Let me help you if you won’t let Donovan. But you taking off like this is not the answer and you know it! You’re scared shitless. You don’t want to hurt me. You sure as hell don’t want to shoot me. You keep apologizing, for Christ’s sake. Hardened criminal you aren’t, and you sure as hell aren’t mentally unstable. That’s bullshit and I don’t believe it for a minute.”

Eve’s expression saddened and the anger left as she gazed thoughtfully at Rusty.

“Even if I thought I could trust you, I couldn’t—
wouldn’t
—put you in any danger. You’re right, Rusty. You were kind to Travis and I’ll always appreciate that. You have a good heart, but I can’t let you help me. It’s too dangerous. My stepfather would kill you without thought. And as I said, your loyalty belongs to your family. Not me.”

“That’s bullshit!” Rusty repeated, frustration grinding her jaw until her teeth ached from it. “No matter what you think you know, there is
no way
Donovan would throw you under the bus like you’re saying he has. No fucking way! What can I say to make you believe that? If you won’t believe in him, will you at least believe in me? You have to trust someone, Eve. Nobody can make it alone. We all need someone at some point. God, I learned that lesson the hard way, and thank God the Kellys were too stubborn to let me throw their kindness back in their faces.”

Eve smiled faintly as she wound the rope around Rusty’s wrists, tying her hands behind her back. Rusty craned her neck, staring up at Eve, looking for any sign that she was getting through to her. God, she couldn’t let Eve walk out that door and into God only knew what kind of hell awaited her.

“I wish Donovan were as admirable as you in his loyalty,” she said sadly. “Donovan is only loyal to
his
cause and
his
interests. And in this case, his interest is in my brother and sister. He’s ruthless. Oh yes, he’s utterly ruthless when it comes to protecting what he considers his. I could admire that if it weren’t aimed at me and at my expense. It’s the
only
reason I’m leaving Cammie and Travis with him. I can’t protect them. God, I wish I could. I’d do whatever I could to ensure their safety and well-being. But I can’t. You’re right that everyone needs someone. And Travis and Cammie need
him
. I
do
know he cares about them and he’ll protect them from Walt. Even if he sacrifices me in the process. And that hurts, but it’s at least a relief that he’s willing—and able—to take care of them when I can’t.”

She went silent a long moment as she finished securing the bonds around Rusty’s hands and feet. Then she stood, reaching for the money bag on the counter.

Rusty was trying to process Eve’s impassioned speech. The conviction—and resignation—in her words. She couldn’t wrap her mind around what the hell Donovan had done to drive Eve to such a desperate—and selfless—act. Eve was utterly convinced that she was being handed over to her stepfather by the only person she’d allowed herself to trust. Rusty couldn’t even imagine the pain Eve was experiencing. True or not, Eve believed it wholeheartedly, and it broke Rusty’s heart for this fragile woman who’d been handed far too much hurt in her life already. This was, Rusty believed, the final straw. Eve looked utterly defeated. Hopeless. And resigned to an uncertain fate.

“Do me one favor, Rusty,” Eve said in a husky voice laced with tears and knotted with emotion. For a moment she remained silent, obviously grappling with the words she wanted to say. “Don’t let Cammie and Travis forget how much I love them. Don’t ever allow them to think I left them willingly. Make sure they’re happy and loved.
That’s
how you can help me.”

Tears burned Rusty’s eyes as Eve walked toward the back of the store. Never had she felt so helpless. Not even when she’d been a surly teenager on her own, desperate for her next meal and fearful of the lengths she’d have to go just to survive.

Eve was utterly devastated. She was broken and defeated and she left with the weight of the world on her shoulders. She believed—absolutely believed—that Donovan had betrayed her.

Had he? An uneasy sensation crawled up Rusty’s spine. She knew well that Donovan could be ruthless, as Eve had just said. But how ruthless? Could he really have planned to sacrifice Eve in order to ensure Cammie and Travis’s safety?

She shook herself from her thoughts and leaned back, stretching her bound legs upward toward the button that triggered a silent alarm. Now wasn’t the time to ponder the what ifs. No matter what Donovan had done—or what Eve thought he’d done—Rusty had to get help and fast. She couldn’t let Eve walk into the hands of a monster.

She just prayed that Donovan had already taken care of the matter and that Eve’s stepfather was no longer a threat. Because now Eve was alone and vulnerable, and worse, she thought that she’d been betrayed by the man she’d put all her faith in.

CHAPTER 33

WALT
Breckenridge watched with smug satisfaction as Eve ducked out the back of the hardware store and slid behind the wheel of the Jeep that she and the other woman had arrived in.

He’d known the little bitch had lied about her involvement with his children and Eve. He hadn’t swallowed that bullshit story about Travis working a few days and then disappearing. And now, Donovan Kelly had arrogantly demanded a meeting with Walt in which he planned to discuss handing Eve over to him in exchange for Walt backing off Travis and Cammie.

Kelly had fed him a bullshit story about how he feared for Travis and Cammie’s safety. That he was well aware of Eve’s history of mental illness and that she’d gotten worse and he feared—as did Walt—that she was a danger to not only herself but others.

He played the sympathy card, commiserating with Walt about his troubles with Eve and expressing his regret over the loss of his wife, made worse when Eve went off the deep end and kidnapped his children and how desperate he must be to get them back.

And yes, it had been Eve he’d offered up, claiming he wanted her to get the help she needed from her caring stepfather and that once he was assured that Eve was taken care of and he knew it was safe for the children to go back, they’d meet and arrange for Travis and Cammie to return home with Walt.

Complete and utter garbage.

Did they think him a fool? He’d researched the Kellys and their do-gooder organization, KGI.

It was a trap, no doubt inspired by Eve’s lies and accusations. He wasn’t falling for it and now Eve, the dumb bitch, had fallen right into his lap. She was making things far easier than he’d even imagined. But she’d never been that intelligent. Stupid. Tenacious. But not smart. Certainly no match for his superior intellect. And now he had her.

Now he’d have what he most wanted. Revenge. He’d make her pay for all she’d done. He’d put her away and ensure no one ever believed her outrageous accusations. Then, and only then, would he get his children back from the Kellys. He had far more power than they would ever dream of having. Money bought a lot of privilege. And it sure as hell bought protection.

Eve would have neither of those things, and by the time he was done with her, she’d wish she’d never crossed him. And he would hear an apology from those lips, right before he wrapped them around his dick.

Satisfied that, for now, Cammie and Travis would wait, he climbed into his car, his focus on his immediate goal. Eve. A rush invaded his veins at the thought of her at his utter mercy. He’d enjoy every single moment. Eve? Well, he doubted she’d enjoy it as much as he would. But she didn’t matter. She never had.

He wanted her to suffer.

He wouldn’t be as easy on her as he was on her pathetically weak mother. Her killing had been too easy. No challenge whatsoever. Eve, on the other hand, had proven to be more of a challenge than he’d imagined. He’d underestimated her once. He wouldn’t make the same mistake again.

He wouldn’t kill her because, as with her mother, that would be too easy. He wanted her to pay. And pay she would. He wanted him to be what she saw when she closed her eyes. What she dreamed. And know that there was no escape. That her fate was solidly in his hands.

With a satisfied smirk, he pulled out of the area that had provided cover for his vehicle—a rental that couldn’t be traced back to him—and fell in behind the Jeep.

She was being careful. Not speeding. No, she wouldn’t want to draw undue attention to herself or risk being pulled over by the police, and that wouldn’t fit his plans at all. He had no desire to involve the law. Not here. Not where he had no influence and power.

A wreck. An abandoned vehicle. It would appear as though she wrecked and then ran. And then he’d make his meeting with Donovan Kelly and he’d play by Donovan’s rules. For now. After Eve was taken care of and was in a place where she wouldn’t be discovered, no record of her whatsoever, he’d return for his children.

Eve would simply disappear. Another person lost in the system. An unexplained disappearance blamed on the fact that she was on the run and mentally ill. The Kellys would likely investigate, but even they wouldn’t be successful in uncovering her whereabouts.

And with her out of the picture for good, there was nothing to stop Walt from reclaiming his children.

Travis would also pay for his part in aiding Eve, but he would be brought to heel with the threat of Cammie. He wouldn’t do anything that would cause her harm. In that, he and Eve were alike. A product of their weak, mindless mother. But Cammie was younger and more easily molded into what Walt wanted. And when Travis was older and less manageable, well, tragedy would strike the Breckenridge family once more. Travis would succumb to the same mental illness that Eve had been diagnosed with. An unfortunate hereditary trait passed to them from their mother. And then he and Cammie would be alone, and he’d mold her into the perfect daughter.

CHAPTER 34

RUSTY
breathed a huge sigh of relief when she heard a noise from the rear of the store. The police would have responded to the alarm she triggered, though they wouldn’t just waltz in the front of the store without knowing what they were walking into.

“I’m up here!” she yelled out. “It’s clear. This is Rusty Kelly. My dad, Frank Kelly, owns this store. I’m tied up behind the register. I’m the only one here.”

She knew they wouldn’t take her at her word, because for all they knew she had a gun to her head and was being forced to call out to them. But maybe it would speed the process along a bit if they at least knew where she was.

She struggled to right herself so she could at least shove herself up to a standing position so they’d see she was alone when they entered the sales area. She could lean against the counter if she could just manage to get there!

It took considerable squirming and leg bending to achieve her goal, but she was finally able to hoist herself, nearly falling just as she gained her feet. She pitched herself sideways so the counter would break her fall and winced when the edge hit her squarely in the ribs.

Sucking in a breath to steady herself, she called out again. “I’m here and alone. I’m standing behind the register.”

A few moments later, Sean appeared from the back. He cut the corner sharply, his gun raised. He quickly glanced in Rusty’s direction and she saw a flash of relief in his eyes before he rapidly did a thorough sweep of the area, gun still up and grasped tightly in his hand.

Evidently satisfied that there was no danger, he strode behind the counter, fury registering in his eyes as he saw she was bound hand and foot.

“What the fuck?” he growled. “What the hell happened, Rusty? Are you hurt? Did that son of a bitch hurt you?”

“I’m fine,” Rusty said in a calm voice. “But, Sean, I need you to hurry. Eve is in terrible danger.”

Sean’s brow furrowed even as he started yanking away the ropes that secured her wrists. As soon as her hands were free, he knelt and untied her legs as she rubbed feeling back into her numb fingers.

When he was finished he grasped her shoulders, forcing her to look squarely at him.

“What happened? I want to know everything, and don’t leave a single word out.”

He paused a moment and stared harder at her.

“Are you sure you’re all right? Goddamn it, Rusty. You scared the ever-loving fuck out of me. I thought . . .”

He broke off with a shake of his head. As if he had said too much or was going to.

“It’s a long story and we only have time for the abbreviated version, but yes, I’m all right. She didn’t hurt me.”

“She?” Sean asked incredulously.

“Eve,” Rusty murmured, cringing in advance for the explosion that would surely follow.

Sean’s eyes darkened with fury. “Are you telling me
Eve
tied you up and left you in the store? How? And why?”

Then his gaze lighted on the still-open cash register and then down to the safe that was wide open.

“No,” he said, shaking his head. “No fucking way. She robbed you?”

“At gunpoint,” Rusty muttered.

Sean went white. For a moment Rusty worried he might do something crazy like hit the floor. His knees buckled and then he reached out to touch her again. He feathered a hand over her face, his fingertips softly grazing her cheekbone.

Then he closed his eyes and when he reopened them, his gaze was haunted and filled with regret.

“This is going to kill Van,” he said quietly.

Rusty blew out her breath. “There’s a lot you don’t know. Hell, that I don’t know, for that matter. But we have to get in touch with Donovan like now. He’s going to lose his mind when he hears this story. I know he was going to deal with Eve’s stepfather today and I hope to hell he’s already done whatever it is he was going to do because if not, Eve is in a lot of danger.”

Sean’s gaze narrowed. “You sound awfully worried about a woman who held a gun on you while she robbed the store of all its cash.”

“It’s complicated,” Rusty said with a sigh.

“Then uncomplicate it and tell me the whole story.”

She gave him a quick, condensed rundown of the morning’s events, starting with when she walked into Donovan’s house and found Eve pointing a gun at her. But when she got to the last, she paused and grabbed Sean’s arm.

“She thinks he betrayed her, Sean. I have no idea how in the hell she got that idea, but you didn’t see her. You didn’t hear her. And she kept apologizing, for fuck’s sake. For taking my Jeep. For stealing money from a man she hadn’t even met.”

“Whoa, wait. Back up a minute. Eve thinks Donovan was going to turn her in to her stepfather?”

He sounded as aghast as Rusty had felt when she’d listened to Eve’s accusations.

“She believes it,” Rusty said quietly. “God, Sean. I hurt for her. She was devastated. Completely defeated. She loves him and yet she thinks—she knows—he betrayed her.”

“That’s crazy,” Sean refuted.

“To you and me, yes. But Sean, she absolutely believes it. I don’t know what happened to make her think it, but I saw the conviction in her eyes. I heard it in her voice. She was destroyed, and even more destroyed that she was leaving Travis and Cammie behind. And yet she trusted that Donovan would protect them. She thinks that she was just the means of Donovan getting what he really wanted. Kids. A family. One that didn’t include her. I’m telling you, Sean. If you could have seen and heard her, you wouldn’t be pissed over what she did. I knew she had no intention of shooting me. I was more worried that she would do it accidentally. I offered to help her. I wanted to help her. Because I couldn’t stand to look into her eyes and see so much pain that it took my breath away. And you know what she said?”

“What?” Sean asked gently.

Rusty hadn’t even been aware that he’d pulled her closer to him and that even now his hand was stroking up and down her back in a gesture of comfort. She had the ridiculous thought that she’d like it if he pulled her into his arms. But she shook off that moment of insanity and refocused on the matter at hand.

“She said that she couldn’t, that she wouldn’t involve me because it was too dangerous and she didn’t want anything to happen to me. When I asked her why she was leaving her brother and sister, she said that of the two, her stepfather or Donovan, whom would I prefer they be with? That she knew her stepfather would hurt them, but she didn’t believe for a moment that Donovan would do anything but love and protect them even if she wasn’t included in the picture. Damn it, Sean. She walked away because she thought Donovan was going to work a trade. Eve for the kids, and she was just collateral damage. She believes that with all her heart. And it breaks mine.”

This time Sean did pull her into his arms and hugged her gently. She could feel his breath against her hair and she closed her eyes, savoring the warmth—and comfort—of his body.

“This is going to destroy Donovan,” Sean said in a grim voice. “How long ago did she leave, Rusty? How much of a head start does she have?”

“I hit the alarm the minute she left. You got here in about five minutes, I’d say, so she hasn’t had that much of a head start.”

“Okay, then here’s what I want you to do. You get in touch with Donovan. Figure out how to tell him. I’ll put a BOLO out for your Jeep and Eve and get everyone I can on the case so we locate her as soon as possible.”

“Thanks, Sean,” she said softly.

His brow wrinkled in confusion as she pulled away.

“What for? For doing my job?”

She shook her head. “For not jumping to conclusions when you learned what Eve had done and for looking for her instead of swearing out a warrant for her arrest.”

His eyes narrowed. “Do you think so little of me, Rusty?”

She shook her head even more adamantly. “No. But you’re a cop, Sean. Your duty would be to arrest her for a crime that she did, in fact, commit. Kidnapping. Armed robbery. I’m sure there are a dozen other charges that I’m not even considering. Someone else wouldn’t have listened to me and they wouldn’t have just accepted what I said as fact. And they would have adhered to the letter of the law and arrested her as soon as she was located. You won’t do that. Not until you have all the facts.”