Justice Inked (Cowboy Justice Association 7) (18 page)

“I was on the phone when you were attacked, which is why I didn’t get to you immediately after you yelled.” He sighed heavily and stood, sliding into the booth next to Rayne, his arm around her shoulders. “I was talking to Deputy Billy, hon. Someone broke into your house tonight. Coupled with what happened here? I don’t think this purse snatching was an accident. Somebody wants something you have or they think you have.”

Fuck me. This seriously can’t be happening.

Chapter Twenty

R
ayne’s home looked like a tornado had run through it. Cushions on the floor, drawers pulled open and the contents tossed, and every item in her closet thrown on the floor. They’d even stripped her bed and cut into her mattress, pulling out the innards.

What in the hell were they looking for?

There was no doubt now that the person in her shop had been searching for something in particular. Something they thought she had and they wanted enough to kill another human being for it. But she had no idea what it could be.

Thankfully the burglar hadn’t hurt Spartacus, who she found crouching under the bed. It had taken both her and Dare to coax – make that drag – him out. The feline had added a few scratches to her bruised body, but he was now nibbling on some cat food and allowing one of the deputies to pet him.

She hadn’t even realized tears were running down her face until Dare was dabbing at them with a big white handkerchief. “Easy there, babe. It’s going to be okay. I promise you.”

“Liar,” she whispered, shoulders shaking as powerful emotions welled up and came out in the form of sobs. “This is about as awful as it gets. They’ve fucked up my house, shop, and they’ve stolen my purse. I’m pissed off. They don’t get to do this to me.”

She cried when she was angry, so it looked like she was sad when in actuality she wanted to punch someone in the dick. It didn’t help that every step she took was pure agony after the body slam she’d been subjected to in the ice cream parlor. Her left side hurt like a bitch. She was going to sport a lovely mixture of purple, blue, and black tomorrow.

“You need to sit down and I still think you need to see a doctor. You can barely move, woman.”

He was growling again but she didn’t argue as he led her to a chair in the kitchen. Her sofa and recliner were destroyed, long cuts in the fabric and the stuffing thrown everywhere. Her gut clenched painfully at the thought of some stranger pawing through her belongings, including her lingerie.

Assholes. Perverts.

There was a special place in hell for whoever did this.

Rayne cupped Dare’s jaw and turned his face so she could look into his icy blue eyes, almost silver-gray in this light. “I want you to find who did this and kick their ass.”

“I promise. But you can’t stay here tonight. The forensic team is really just getting started and your bed is destroyed anyway. I can take you to my place or I can call your sister.”

Camy would have kittens if she saw Rayne beat up like this, but staying at Dare’s seemed so…intimate. She was already panting after him and sleeping under the same roof wouldn’t make things any better. “I can stay at a motel.”

“You cannot stay at a fucking motel.” Dare’s brows were pulled down and his forehead wrinkled. “You need someone to keep an eye on you. If you don’t want to worry your sister then you’re staying with me.”

Rayne didn’t have the energy to argue and she simply nodded, gathering her sweater around her more closely, suddenly feeling cold and vulnerable. She didn’t know what these people wanted, and if they didn’t find it she didn’t know what they’d do. Tonight they’d only knocked her down but later she might not be so lucky.

“Why don’t you pack a bag? You might be at my place for a few days. It may take awhile to get this all cleaned up.”

That was an understatement. It would be easier to bulldoze the place down and start again.

Carefully she stood, putting most of her weight on her right leg before slowly walking back to her bedroom. One glance at the utter devastation and her stomach lurched dangerously, sending her directly to the bathroom to hurl her hot fudge sundae, buttered popcorn, and bacon cheeseburger into the toilet. Sliding down to the floor with her back propped against the bathroom vanity, she grabbed a towel and wiped her mouth, groaning at the acrid taste on her tongue.

Gross. She hated throwing up and avoided it all costs.

“Jesus, I’m taking you to the doctor right now. No arguments.”

Tears leaked down her cheeks and it was hard to breathe with the feeling of helplessness weighing down on her chest like a lead balloon. The fight had leaked right out of her and all she wanted to do was curl up in a ball on her bed and sleep for a week.

Except her bed was demolished. Shit, she didn’t even have a place to be depressed. How sad-sack was that? Right now she was a big old loser.

Dare scooped her up again just as he had at the ice cream parlor and carried her back into the bedroom, setting her on the torn-up mattress. This was becoming a habit and she kind of liked it. He was so much bigger and stronger than she was he could literally pick her up and put her anywhere he wanted to and she hadn’t given him a whisper of protest either time. She had a feeling it was something that was going to happen quite a bit.

“I’m fine. Whenever I’m upset it goes straight to my stomach. What I need to do is brush my teeth.”

Standing in the center of the room, Dare’s gaze darted to each corner of the devastation and then back to her.

“I can pack for you if you like. What do you want to take?”

Rayne reached out her hand and he placed his in hers, their fingers tangling together. His hand was big and warm and just the thing to make her feel slightly sane in the midst of all this chaos. She was glad she was going home with him. It was truly the only place she’d feel safe.

“That…person who was here touched everything. That’s what made me boot my dinner and snacks. I can’t wear clothes that he’s fondled. I have a gym bag in the trunk of my car with a change of clothes and some toiletries in it. I’ll just take that. Tomorrow I’ll buy new clothes.”

The way she felt at the moment there wasn’t enough detergent in the world to get her clothes clean enough to wear again. They were tainted and held bad memories. As far as she knew there wasn’t a stain remover strong enough for bad karma.

“It’s going to be okay.” Dare knelt down in front of her, his hands resting on her knees. “I know you’re freaked out right now but I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”

Scraping her hands down her face, she sniffled at the tears she was trying to hold at bay. “What in the hell do they want? What are they looking for?”

“We’re going to find out.” He swept a few stray tears away from her cheek. “I’m going to ask something of you, Rayne, and I know it’s going to be hard but I want you to try. I need you to trust me. Can you do that? Can you trust that I’m going to keep you safe and find out who did this?”

Experience with men in the past told her that ultimately she couldn’t depend on anyone but herself to take care of things when the shit went down. Hadn’t her mother constantly harped on the fact that a woman had to stand up and take care of herself? It had been ingrained from an early age.

But her heart was telling a different story. It wanted to extend that trust Dare was asking for and believe when he said he would protect her. As an adult woman, it wasn’t often she needed to ask for safety but this was an exceptional moment. She couldn’t do this on her own and even if she could, it wouldn’t be easy.

“I trust you. I do. It’s just not my normal behavior to hide behind someone like a scared little girl.”

“It might not be normal but, honey, it’s smart. You’re being targeted and we don’t know why. Until we do, I’m going to have a guard on you every moment of the day. You’re going to get good and sick of my company.”

“Not before you get sick of mine. I’m used to living alone and I probably have some anti-social habits.”

For one, she snored. She also liked to eat right out of the refrigerator and she was bad about cleaning up after herself. She also liked to fall asleep watching cheesy television. None of these behaviors would endear her to a roommate.

“Me too,” he agreed. “As I said, you’re going to run screaming from the house within twenty-four hours. Just wait. Sophie says I’m like a bear with a sore paw in the morning.”

“How about we agree to not speak to each other until our second cup of coffee?”

“Sounds like a good plan. Now let’s get you back to my place. You can soak in a hot bath and have a drink. A big one.”

It was the best offer she’d had all night, and that included the ice cream and popcorn.

Chapter Twenty-One

R
ayne wrapped the terry cloth robe around her still damp body, covering up the black and blue bruises that had already formed on her hip, thigh, and shoulder. The hot bath had helped the initial soreness but she was going to be hurting for a few days at least. She needed to ask Sophie or Dare if they had any ibuprofen. Or a rubber mallet to smack herself in the forehead so she’d sleep. Either one would work fine.

There was a small knock on the door and Rayne tightened the belt on the borrowed robe. By the sheer size it had to be Dare’s, as it swamped her smaller figure but she didn’t have much in the way of clothes in that gym bag. A pair of panties, socks, jeans, bra, and a sweater were the only items she had to put on and she needed them for the morning. The robe would have to do for what was left of the evening.

Rayne cracked open the door cautiously. “Yes?”

Sophie held out a handful of clothes – yellow with daisies. “Dare thought you might like something to wear to bed so I brought you one of my pajama sets. It should probably fit you okay.”

Opening the door wider, Rayne gave the younger woman a big smile. Sophie had been more than welcoming when Dare had informed her that Rayne was spending the night and perhaps longer. In fact, Rayne would even call Sophie’s reaction excited, exclaiming that the balance of estrogen and testosterone in the house had shifted. Rayne had giggled along with Sophie and Dare had glowered.

He’d worn that same expression when he’d questioned Tim and Sophie about the day they’d been in the same restaurant as the murder victim. Sadly neither one of them remembered the man or had any information that would help the case.