Renewing Lost Love (12 page)

“Pinky, you don’t understand. Where we are,
up on this mountain, we don’t have a way out until the weather
warms up. We have plenty of wood and food but we can’t take a
chance on the trail until the ice melts. It was hard enough getting
up here with my bum leg before last night’s storm. Now everything
is iced over again.”

“We can come and get you with the helicopter,
just tell us where you are,” responds Pinky.

“You mean you’re here, in Tennessee?” asks
Sam.

“Yeah, we got here late this afternoon. If
you don’t turn yourself in we’ll have to start tracking you in the
morning. Please, Sam, where are you?”

Samantha hesitates for a long moment then
responds, “All right, I have a GPS locator, like skiers use. I’ll
activate it at first light. We are in the southern quadrant. I’ll
be watching for you, and Pinky, thanks.”

“Great Sam, we’ll see you first thing in the
morning,” says Pinky smiling with relief.

******

The following morning at dawn the three
members of the Drake Security team are making a series of passes
over the southern quadrant trying to locate Sam and the boy. When
they finally zero in on the GPS signal and lock the coordinates in
the helicopter’s computer, a collective sigh of relief passes
through the group. It is not long before they spot Sam waving from
the mountain top. Goose positions the helicopter directly above
them and lowers Pinky on the cable to the ground. He attaches Sam
securely to the cable and signals Bear to raise her up.

As Pinky and the freckle faced boy watch Sam
ascending into the air Timmy says, “Wow, are we going to do that
too?”

Pinky says, “Yep, are you ready?”

Timmy shakes his head and says, “No, I don’t
want to, I’m scared.”

Pinky kneels beside the boy, “Timmy, did you
know that I am the man that scaled down that cliff and put you in a
basket that was raised into that same helicopter the day you
fell?”

Timmy’s eyes round with wonder, “You were?
You saved me when I fell off the cliff?”

Pinky says, “I sure did and I would never,
ever let anything happen to you. Do you believe me?”

Nodding Timmy says, “I believe you. That was
a tall cliff and if you climbed down to save me you can do
anything!”

When Bear sends the cable back down Pinky
straps the boy to his chest, tells him to hold on tight to his neck
and they ascend into the helicopter. Once inside the helicopter
Timmy grins at Pinky as he straps him into a seat. Timmy says,
“Wow! That was fun! Can we do it again?”

Pinky grins back at the cute little boy and
says, “Yeah, it is fun. Maybe we’ll do it again another time.”

When they land at the airport in Gatlinburg,
Sam is immediately taken into custody by the FBI and charged with
kidnapping. As the boy is taken by Child Protective Services he
looks back over his shoulder at Pinky and says, “Bye Mr. Pinky!
Thank you.” Pinky waves back at Timmy. That is one cute kid.

Sam looks at Pinky and says, “Thank you
Pinky. I’ll be all right. Once they hear Timmy’s story they will
understand why we left. You know, Timmy doesn’t have any family
now, I hope he will be adopted by somebody that will love him.”

At her words Pinky’s heart clenches. He looks
across the parking lot to where Child Protective Services is caring
for six year old Timmy. He turns and strides toward them making a
decision he hopes Jasmine will understand. Goose and Bear look at
each other and smile. Boy, when Pinky decided to open his heart, he
opened it completely.

He approaches the CPS representative and
says, “Ma’am, when will you make a decision about placing Timmy? I
would be very interested in having him join my family on a
permanent basis.”

Timmy looks up at Pinky and a broad smile
crosses his face. He says, “Yes, please, I want to live with him.
Did you know he is the one that saved my life when I fell off the
cliff?”

Surprised by the boy’s words the woman says,
“Mr. Williams isn’t it? Do you live in Tennessee?”

Pinky shakes his head and responds, “No
ma’am, I live in Wyoming. Will that be a problem?”

“Well, no, it shouldn’t be a problem. We have
to get Timmy checked out and released by his doctor. Plus we have
some forms you’ll need to fill out and we’ll have to do a
background check although it appears you are well respected by the
FBI and ATF agents here. It is in your favor that you are the one
that rescued him from the cliff after his fall. Are you married Mr.
Williams?”

“Not yet, I’m engaged. I live on a ranch with
several other families so he would have a lot of other children to
grow up with. Where can I get those papers? How long before you
will make a decision?”

The CPS representative says, “Here are the
papers. It shouldn’t take you more than a few minutes to fill them
out. The doctor should be here momentarily to check on Timmy and
decide if he’s well enough to be released. If our preliminary
background check goes all right and the doctor releases him, you
should be able to take him home with you tonight.”

Grinning Pinky says, “Awesome. I’ll bring
these back in a few minutes.” He winks at Timmy and walks back
across to the helicopter where he fills out the papers and then
calls Jasmine.

“Hey, Sweetheart how is everything at the
ranch?” he asks.

“Oh Keith, everything is great. I’m learning
to shoot! Skye is teaching me how to use a semi-automatic so I can
get a license to carry one in my purse!”

“That’s wonderful and a very good idea too.
Listen Jasmine, I need to ask you something. How would you feel
about adopting this little guy? He doesn’t have any family and I
feel sort responsible for his safety. He even has red hair almost
the same color as yours.”

“Well, I haven’t thought about adopting a
child. I guess it would be all right. I’m not sure I will be able
to have children now after all of the abuse, so yes, I would like
that a lot. How old is he?”

“His name is Timmy, he’s six, and as cute as
he can be. If everything goes like I think it will, I’ll be
bringing him home with me tonight. Thank you Jasmine, I love
you.”

Pinky walks back across the parking lot and
hands the papers to the CPS representative. He says, “I listed my
cell phone number so if you need me you can always get me. We’re
going to get some breakfast and we’ll be back in about an
hour.”

The lady says, “That will be fine. I should
have you an answer by that time. The doctor just signed Timmy’s
release papers. Would you like to carry him with you to breakfast?
I don’t think he’s had anything to eat either.”

Grinning, Pinky says, “Sure, Timmy, do you
want some breakfast?”

Nodding Timmy jumps up and grabs Pinky’s hand
and they head across the parking lot to meet Bear and Goose.

The Drake Security team arrives back at the
Rock Springs Ranch well after midnight and little Timmy is sound
asleep when Pinky tucks him into bed in his bedroom above the barn.
Smiling tenderly, he leans over and kisses the youngster on the
forehead before heading to the shower. A son, Timmy is going to be
his son. It’s absolutely amazing how much his life has changed in
the last few months. First, learning that Jasmine is alive and then
being able to rescue her from Bixby and now to have a son. He
doesn’t ever remember being as happy as he is now.

Early the next morning, Pinky is awakened by
Timmy leaning over his shoulder on the bed, patting him on the
cheek, saying, “Mr. Pinky? Are you awake?”

Smiling, Pinky opens his eyes and stares into
the curious green gaze of his future son. He sits up on the side of
the bed, “Hey big guy, are you ready to meet your new family?”

Nodding his head vigorously he says, “Is this
where we’re going to live Mr. Pinky? Is this the ranch? Where are
all the other kids?” asks Timmy.

“Hey, hold on, one question at a time. Yes,
this is the ranch and this is where we’re going to live. Let’s get
some clothes on and I’ll take you over to the house and introduce
you to Eric. Damian is at his house over across the pasture but I’m
sure he’ll be here soon. Later today, we’re going to have to go
into town and buy you some new clothes and get you enrolled in
school. What grade are you in Timmy?”

“I’m going to get to go to school? I’ve never
been to school, Mr. Pinky. Is that where I can learn to read?” asks
Timmy.

“You haven’t been going to school? Aren’t you
six?” asks Pinky.

“I’m six but my Mommie and Daddy didn’t send
me to school. Mommie was teaching me to read when Daddy worked
though. Does Miss Sam live here too? Is she going to have to stay
in jail for a long time?”

As he helps Timmy put on his clean clothes,
Pinky tries to answer his questions, “No, Miss Sam doesn’t live
here and I’m not sure how long she will have to stay in jail. I
imagine that’s going to depend on what you tell the police about
what happened to your Mommie and Daddy. How did they end up in the
car at the bottom of the lake?”

“That mean man shot them. I was scared
because he was mean to my Mommie and Daddy. That’s why I ran away
and fell off the cliff. Did you know I had an operation? See,
here’s my scar!” exclaims Timmy.

“Wow! That’s quite a scar! Are you ready to
go get some breakfast?” asks Pinky.

As they are walking across the yard to the
main ranch house Timmy is looking around curiously. “Are those
horses over there? Can I ride one?”

Patiently Pinky says, “Sure, I’ll teach you
to ride. Timmy, did you see the mean man shoot your Mommie and
Daddy?”

Timmy answers, “Yes, he and my Daddy were
arguing about money and Daddy wouldn’t give him any so he shot
them. Then he put them in the car and drove it into the lake.”

Pinky asks, “Where did you and your Mommie
and Daddy live?”

He thinks for a minute, “Well, we use to live
in Texas with my Grandpa but we left Texas a long time ago after my
Grandpa died. Then we stayed in Colorado for a while and we were
moving to Tennessee when that man shot them. My Mommie loved the
mountains and she wanted to live on a mountain top but Daddy didn’t
like the taxes in Colorado.”

When they enter the house, they find Melanie,
Barry, Eric, and baby Jonathan in the kitchen having oatmeal. Pinky
introduces Timmy and then asks, “Timmy is oatmeal all right for
breakfast?”

Timmy says, “What’s oatmeal? I’ve never had
any of that before.”

Eric says, “Oatmeal’s good if you put butter,
sugar, and raisins in it. Here I’ll show you.”

Pinky is grinning while he watches the boys
eat their oatmeal when I enter the kitchen and say, “Good morning
everyone. Oh, Keith, you’re back!” She leans in for a warm kiss and
asks, “Is this Timmy? He is precious!”

Pinky says, “Timmy, come here for a minute.”
The little boy shyly walks toward Pinky staring curiously at
Jasmine. Pinky says, “Timmy, this is Miss Jasmine. She’s going to
be your new Mommie.”

Timmy’s green eyes are as big as saucers as
he looks Jasmine over from head to toe. He says, “You sure are
pretty, Miss Jasmine, and your hair is the same color as mine! Are
you really going to be my Mommie?”

Laughing Jasmine says, “I’m really going to
be your Mommie. Come here and give me a big hug.” She wraps her
arms around his little body and squeezes him gently with tears
gathering in her eyes. A forgotten memory tugs at the back of her
mind but doesn’t surface. Then she helps him back into his chair to
finish his oatmeal.

A short while later Barry’s cell phone rings.
Barry answers, “Farrady.”

“Mr. Farrady, there is an FBI agent here at
the gate. He is looking for Mr. Keith Williams.”

Barry says, “Let them come in. Mr. Williams
is at the main house”

A few minutes later, the doorbell rings and
Barry calls from the foyer, “Pinky, you have a visitor.”

When he walks to the front door Pinky he sees
the FBI agent, Richard Dean, standing in the foyer and his heart
starts pounding with dread, “Mr. Dean, what brings you out here
this morning?”

Smiling Richard Dean says, “Well, two
different things actually. I need to speak with your new guest,
Timmy Thompson, and then I want to update you on the Bixby
investigation.”

Barry asks, “Would you like to record your
interview with Timmy? We can set you up in the study and record it
on our security cameras.”

Richard Dean replies, “Yes, please, that
would be wonderful, Mr. Farrady. Thank you for thinking of it.”

After the FBI agent finishes questioning
Timmy and is satisfied with the story the boy told him, he says,
“Well, that should give us enough information to file charges
against John and Adrian Fisher. I’ll keep you in the loop about
when we’ll need Timmy to come to Tennessee for the trial. Mr.
Farrady, would you send the video to the office in Cody
please?”

Then Richard Dean, Barry, and Pinky discuss
the Bixby investigation. Richard Dean tells them, “Well, we haven’t
seen any sign of Bixby since I called you a few days ago. We
located the truck driver that gave him the ride from Nebraska and
he told us he dropped him off in Amarillo. Bixby told the truck
driver he was headed to Louisiana to visit relatives. We have our
agents in Louisiana looking for him but so far they haven’t found
any sign that he is in the area. You still need to be careful and
be alert here. I doubt he has changed his mind about killing all of
you.”

Pinky asks, “Do you have agents monitoring
Jasmine’s brother’s home? I think that might be where he heads to
try and flush her out.”

Richard Dean replies, “We are staying in
touch with Leaf Leblanc. He was thrilled to learn that Jasmine is
alive and wants to see her as soon as possible. We have two
undercover agents living in the house next door monitoring the
situation. Let me ask you this, have you considered using her to
flush him out? I mean, if the two of you went to see Mr. Leblanc,
Bixby might show himself and give us the opportunity to capture
him.”