For Love of Charley (18 page)

Cole gave him a curt nod. “I will.”

* * * * *

The sun’s scorching heat had turned the
inside of the rental car into a furnace, and Cole flipped the air onto high as
he backed out of the parking lot. How was Charley going to react when he told
her that he’d been wrong? Would she give him a chance to apologize?

And how was she going to take the discovery
of Victor’s illegitimate son and the fact that he might be trying to kill her?
It was going to be a shock no matter how gently he broke the news.

His cell phone beeped urgently, and Cole
steered with his injured arm while he fumbled it open. “Jordan.”

“Cole!” Frannie’s voice sounded edgy and
worried.

“What’s up, Frannie?”

“I’m at Charley’s. And I’m worried. She
told me not to call Ben, but she’s been gone too long. I have a bad feeling
about this, Cole. I tried to call her a few minutes ago and no one answered the
phone. I don’t know what to do!” The last words were almost a wail, and Cole
felt a chill run over him.

“Calm down, Frannie, and tell me what’s
going on. I’m already halfway to Charley’s.”

“No! Don’t come here. Charley went to
Victor’s. She wanted to find something that would prove he was innocent. She
called me about thirty minutes ago and said she had, but I’m afraid something
happened.”

Brakes squealed and horns blew as Cole made
a sudden U-turn and headed in the opposite direction. “Frannie, hang up and
call Ben. Do it now. Tell him what you just told me, and tell him to forget the
warrant and get out to Victor’s. I’m on my way there now. And tell him to
hurry!”

Fear raced along every nerve ending in his
body as he accelerated the Taurus, images of Charley alone with Douglas
spurring him on. No matter how hard he pushed it, the car wouldn’t go over
eighty, but even at that speed the landscape seemed to fly past.

An old pickup loomed in front of him and
Cole laid down on the horn, then shot into the oncoming lane, narrowly missing
a car before he cut back in front of the truck. He had a blurred impression of
the driver shaking his fist, and then they were gone.

He didn’t slow until he reached the long
driveway leading to Victor’s house. Breaking abruptly, he took the turn then
slammed the car into neutral and shut off the motor, letting it glide to a stop
halfway to the house.

Everything looked normal from here. He
could see Charley’s Blazer sitting by the front porch, but there was no sign of
movement. Stepping out of the car, he eased the door shut. If anyone happened
to look out, he’d be clearly visible, but there was nothing he could do about
that.

For a moment, he considered his best course
of action. No doubt the doors were locked, and he couldn’t very well knock. The
windows, he decided. He’d try to locate Charley first and see exactly what the
situation was.

Boldly, he walked to the house, then slid
into the shrubbery, pausing to look in each window he came to, making sure to
stay well to one side. If they hadn’t seen him yet, he wanted to make sure they
didn’t.

The house seemed eerily silent and Cole’s
fear went up another notch. The sound of pots and pans rattling as Lettie
prepared diner were absent, and when he peered into the kitchen there was no
sign that anyone was cooking. He moved on, around the corner of the house.

Instantly, he became aware of the muted
sound of voices. They were coming from the open French doors of Victor’s
office. Moving faster now, he made it to the doors in two strides, then
stopped.

Charley was standing at Victor’s desk, a
bundle of papers clutched her in hand. Her eyes were huge, seeming to take up
most of her face. And they were locked on the man in the room with her.

Cole shifted slightly to allow for a better
look, and Douglas came fully into his view. His back was to the French doors,
but Cole had no trouble seeing the gun in his hand. And it was pointed at
Charley.

If only Douglas were closer to the doors,
he might rush him, but the man was too far away. He’d hear Cole coming and have
plenty of time to fire the gun. Cole’s only hope was to distract him until Ben
got there.

Taking a deep breath he stepped casually
into the room and spoke. “I always did hate being late to parties.”

“Cole.” His name was a mere whisper on her
lips.

“It’s okay, Charley.” His gaze flicked to
hers as fear and relief mingled inside him. She was still alive and unhurt. So
far. He had to make sure she stayed that way.

At his first words, Douglas had spun
sideways, positioning himself so his gun could cover both Cole and Charley. For
the first time in Cole’s memory, Ashton’s face was showing some emotion.

“Jordan.” The word was a snarl of anger.
“You just couldn’t stay out of it, could you?”

“Why don’t you put the gun down, Douglas,
and let’s talk about it?”

“Oh, you’d love that wouldn’t you?” His lip
curled up in a sneer. “Besides, there’s nothing to talk about. I’ve been
playing second fiddle to my dear cousin long enough.”

Cole took a step closer, but stopped when
the gun swung in his direction. “I guess it was pretty hard, having your father
refuse to acknowledge you, wasn’t it?” He kept his eyes on Ashton, but in his
peripheral vision he could see Charley, still standing frozen at the desk.

“Hard?” Ashton’s laugh sent the hair erect
on Cole’s neck. “No, Jordan. Hard was watching my mother go quietly insane over
the years. Hard was watching her sit in an empty field, rocking back and forth
while she crammed handfuls of dirt in her mouth.” His voice caught before he
continued. “Hard was seeing the men that came to our shack almost every night.
And she wasn’t even aware of what they were doing. She just laid there, humming
to herself while they used her. Oh, they always left money. A dollar or two. It
was the only thing that kept us from starving.”

Charley covered her mouth in horror, and
the gun immediately turned at the movement. Silently, Cole moved another step
as Charley spoke.

“Oh, Douglas. I can’t believe Uncle Victor
knew about this.”

“He didn’t want to know. He’s worse than
the men who visited her. Victor Channing made her think he loved her. He got
her pregnant, destroyed her life, then left without so much as a goodbye. At
least the other men gave her money. All Victor gave her was me.”

“But why didn’t you tell me? Douglas, I
could have helped. Do you think I would accept a penny from Uncle Victor
knowing you were his son? It all should be yours, the house, the money,
everything. I never wanted it.”

“Could you make my father care about me?
Don’t even answer. It would be a lie.” The gun shook in his hand. “I was so
sure he’d be happy to learn he had a son. But he didn’t believe me. He made me
take a blood test to prove it, and when it did, what did he do? Welcome me with
open arms? No, he made me his damn butler, fetching and carrying, waiting on
him hand and foot. But you. You were his little princess. Nothing was too good
for you. I had to watch all these years, as he showered you with the love I
wasn’t good enough for.”

Ashton glanced at Cole. “I wouldn’t advise
coming any closer, Jordan.” The gun shifted again. “You know what the highlight
of my life has been? Knowing that Victor ruined things for the two of you.
Watching her suffer because she thought you betrayed her, and knowing that her
precious uncle was the one responsible. But you had to spoil it, Jordan. You
had to come back—”

He broke off, tilting his head to listen
and Cole heard the same sound. Footsteps that hesitated outside the door.

“Well, this is turning into a real family
gathering. You may as well come in, Victor, and stop lurking in the hall. I
know you’re there. Unless, of course, you’d rather I just ended it all right
now.”

He waited until Victor stepped into the
room, then gestured with the gun. “Over there, by the desk. You know, this
could get real interesting. Now, how shall we do it?” His eyes squinted in mock
contemplation. “Ah, yes. It’s really quite simple. Jordan came here to tell his
beloved Charley the truth about her uncle. And you, naturally, couldn’t have
that, could you Victor? So you pulled a gun on him. Jordan jumped you, and
during the struggle, several shots were fired. Jordan was killed, and
unfortunately a stray bullet hit your niece. In remorse, you took your own
life. All neat and tidy.”

Cole inched a step closer.

“Douglas, son, listen to me. Don’t do
this,” Victor pled. “Your plan won’t work. The sheriff knows everything. Right
now, he’s outside with half his force, waiting. I asked him to give me a chance
to talk to you first. I was wrong, Douglas. I know that now. Give me a chance
to make it up to you. Just put the gun down. Right now, they’re willing to
negotiate, but if you pull that trigger you won’t stand a chance of getting out
of here alive.”

“You’re lying! Just like you always do.”

“No,” Cole shifted again. “He’s telling you
the truth, Ashton. I was at the sheriff’s office earlier when Ben found out. He
was on his way, even before we knew Charley was here.” He was so close. Just
one more step and he’d be within range. He raised one hand placatingly and took
that step. “Why don’t you listen to Victor, Douglas? None of us want to see you
hurt. We can get you some help.”

“Stop!” Ashton’s scream contained pure
rage. “Stop it! All of you!” Suddenly, he levered a shell into the breech and
assumed the classic shooter’s stance, the gun pointed right at Charley. “Do you
think I care if I die? The only thing I’ve lived for the last few years was the
chance to make you pay. And now you’re going to! Starting with your precious
Charley. I want you to watch her die and suffer. Suffer like you’ve made me
suffer.” His finger began to depress the trigger.

“No!” The cry of anguish was torn from Cole
as he lunged. Even as his cast connected with Ashton’s arm, the gun went off.
Charley’s scream filled the room, rang in his ears as agony ripped though him.
Not Charley. Please God, not Charley. With adrenaline-enhanced fear, he swung
at Ashton again, his fist connecting solidly with the man’s jaw.

Ashton’s head snapped back and his arms
windmilled, the gun flying from his hand and skidding across the floor. His
large frame followed with ground-shaking force. Even stunned, Ashton kept
moving, scrabbling for the gun.

“Freeze, Ashton!”

Cole abruptly stopped his own forward
motion, almost losing his balance in the effort. Ben Zimmerman stood in the
open French doors, his revolver trained on Ashton.

Cole threw himself to one side as Ashton’s
hand closed around the gun.

“I said hold it!”

Seemingly in slow motion, Ashton rolled to
a sitting position, arm rising, gun ready.

A steady stream of curse words issued from
Ben’s mouth as the revolver bucked in his hands. The stench of gunpowder filled
the room as a red flower bloomed in the center of Douglas Ashton’s chest. With
a look of mild surprise, his face relaxed and he slumped to the side.

As Ben kept his gun trained on Ashton, two
deputies approached the man and one knelt, checking for a pulse. “He’s dead.”

“Charley!” Cole bolted to his feet and
turned toward the desk, his heartbeat thundering in his throat. She wasn’t
there. “Charley!” Panic echoed in his voice as he raced around the desk.

Charley was on her knees, huddled
protectively over her uncle’s body. Blood pooled on the floor beneath him,
staining the hardwood boards.

She lifted her tear-ravaged face. “He
stepped in front of me, Cole. When Douglas fired, Uncle Victor stepped in front
of me. I should be the one lying here, not him.”

“No, not you. Never you.” He squatted next
to her and checked for a pulse in Victor’s neck. There. Thready and weak, but a
definite beat. “Charley, he’s not dead. Do you hear me? He’s alive.”

Cole looked over the desk. “Ben, we need an
ambulance. Victor’s been shot.”

The sheriff grabbed a phone and Cole heard
him mumbling instructions into it.

“You wouldn’t believe me.” The anguish in
Charley’s voice tore him apart.

“Charley, I’m sorry. I should have
listened.”

As though he hadn’t spoken she continued.
“You wouldn’t believe me and now he’s going to die.”

In the distance sirens wailed and the sound
echoed though Cole’s soul. He lifted a hand to her face, but she flinched away
from him. “Charley, please,” he whispered.

“No!” Her face was pale but a thin sheen of
sweat stood on her forehead. “Don’t touch me!”

Someone dropped a multicolored throw around
her shoulders and Cole raised his eyes to Ben’s.

“She’s in shock, Cole. She doesn’t know
what she’s saying. I’ve seen it before. Give her time.” Ben pulled Charley away
from her uncle, explaining when she protested that the paramedics needed her
out of the way.

Cole watched her go, the despair that
curled in his stomach wrapping icy fingers around his heart. Not once did she
look back at him. Ben was wrong. Charley would never forgive him for not
believing her.

* * * * *

The brake lights of the ambulance flared
briefly before it turned at the end of the driveway, and Cole watched until it
vanished down the highway. It felt like his whole life was in that vehicle,
driving away from him. And there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it.

The sheriff stood next to him in the fading
light, his gaze also fixed on the ambulance.

“What did the paramedics say?” Cole kept
his voice even.

Ben glanced at him. “It’s going to be touch
and go. Victor’s in pretty bad shape, and he’s lost a lot of blood. You don’t
have to worry about Charley, though. She’ll be fine.”

“Will she?”

“Yes.” Ben paused. “Wouldn’t hurt you to
run by the emergency room, yourself.”

“I’m fine.”

“Probably. But you need to have that taken
care of,” he gestured toward Cole’s arm.

Cole looked down at the cast on his left
arm. When he’d hit Douglas the plaster had broken, exposing the gauze wrapping
beneath. “Maybe later.”

Ben nodded. “Well, I’ve got to get back to
work. You can take off, if you want to. Not much sense in hanging around here
while we tie up the loose ends. If I need you for anything, I’ll call.”

Each step back to his car seemed to take a
year, but he finally reached it and slid wearily into the seat. He had to dodge
police cars and the county coroner to reach the highway, their flashing lights
a garish contrast to the glorious sunset that stained the western sky.

Douglas was dead. Victor Channing was
fighting for his life. Charley had almost been killed. And the only thing that
his mind seemed to grasp was that he’d lost her. For good this time. He’d had
his second chance. There would be no third.

Kristy was waiting when he pulled up in
front of the house, worry etched on her face.

“You know what happened?”

“Yes.” She closed the door behind him.
“Frannie has a police scanner. She’s been keeping me updated, but she left for
the hospital a few minutes ago to be with Charley.”

Cole rubbed his eyes tiredly. “Good.
Charley doesn’t need to be alone right now.”

“So why aren’t you at the hospital with
her?”

“She doesn’t want me there, Kris. She
thinks this is all my fault because I didn’t believe Victor was innocent.” He
shook his head. “She actually flinched when I touched her. It’s over. I’ve lost
her.”

Kristy rubbed his arm. “What are you going
to do?”

“Do?” His laugh sounded unnatural. “There’s
nothing
to
do.”

“Mrs. Paulson has dinner ready. Why don’t I
get you something to eat?”

“I’m not hungry.” He stopped with one foot
on the stairs. “If you hear anything about Victor, let me know?”

“I will. Frannie promised to call as soon
as they know anything.”

Cole went straight to the bank of windows
that lined his bedroom and gazed out at the gathering darkness. In the distance
he could see the twinkling lights of Canyon Bend. Charley was there, somewhere
in that maze of brightness.

He glanced down at his arm. The cast was
well and truly ruined. He might as well go have another put on now, before any
more damage was done. With his right hand he ripped it the rest of the way off,
and flung the pieces across the room. Soon, he would have to decide what to do
with the rest of his life, but for now his brain shut down at the very thought.
Nothing mattered anymore. Not his business, not his money. He had done it all
for Charley. Without her the rest had no meaning.

* * * * *

Charley lay still while the nurse checked
her blood pressure yet again. Even with all the activity around her, her eyes
kept drifting closed. She forced them open as the cuff was removed from her
arm.

“It’s coming back up nicely, dear. I think
it will be safe to remove this now.” The stout nurse gestured toward the IV line
feeding into her arm. “There’s someone here to see you. Feel up to company?”
Deftly, she applied a cotton ball to Charley’s hand, slid the needle out from
under it, and taped the cotton in place.

At her words, Charley’s gaze went to the
door. Frannie stood in the entry, shifting her weight from foot to foot. At the
sight of her cousin, Charley’s chin quivered, but she bit down on her lip to
stop the tears welling in her eyes. She refused to break down now. Uncle Victor
needed her. “Tell her to come in.”

The nurse patted her and moved to Frannie,
but Charley could hear their voices. Frannie’s contained a worried tone.

“Is she going to be all right?”

“She’ll be fine,” the nurse reassured her.
“It was just a mild case of shock, compounded by the concussion she’d already
suffered. She might be a little sleepy and disoriented for another hour or so,
but that’s already starting to fade. You can see her now.”

Frannie tossed her purse onto a chair, then
leaned on the bed rail. “Hi there. I hope you feel better than you look.”

Charley forced herself to smile. “That bad,
huh?”

“Well, let’s just say you don’t have to
worry about vampires right now. Doesn’t look like you’ve got enough blood left
to interest one.”