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There had to be something she could do. But if she did the wrong thing, it could mean Rowdy’s life. She prayed, sobbing in terror as she watched the two men grapple until the knife was between them a second before Rowdy jerked the other man closer to him.
They both froze.
A whimper left Kelly’s throat as the front door crashed inward, and as though in slow motion, she watched Deputy John Barnes-Carlyle slide slowly from Rowdy’s grip to collapse on the floor.
His head turned toward her, his hazel eyes filled with shock and surprise.
“My good girl…” he whispered before his gaze dimmed and his body went limp.
Kelly stared back at him, the sounds of police filling the room receding to the background as adrenaline began to crash inside her. She lifted her head as the gun dropped in her lap, watching as Rowdy began to move toward her, only to have the sheriff block him as the room continued to fill up. She could hear her mother, or was it merely wishful thinking? Rowdy was yelling and Sheriff Mayes was barking orders.
She knew she should get up, knew she should do something. But all she could do was turn her gaze back to the dead deputy as she heard his final words ringing in her ears. “My good girl…”
She wasn’t his good girl. A sob tore from her throat as she pushed to her feet, fighting past the shock winding its way through her. He was dead. He was dead, and Rowdy was surrounded by the police.
“Let him go!” she screamed out hoarsely, fighting past Sheriff Mayes as she struggled to get to Rowdy. She kicked at someone, her fist landed against another, but they parted, staring back at her in shock as she flung herself into Rowdy’s arms.
“Thank God! Baby. ” Rowdy’s arms closed around her as his voice whispered in her ear. “Sweet Lord, Kelly. Don’t ever terrify me like that again. ”
She was crying and couldn’t stop. She could feel the sobs shaking her body as her arms tightened around his neck.
She could hear Rowdy explaining the deputy’s insanity as he held her close. Somehow, he had managed to regain consciousness and call the police, informing them of who was there and what was going on as he slipped down the stairs.
They were prepared, but questions had to be answered. Dawg and Natches were brought around by the medics and the house continued to fill with people. But Kelly refused to leave Rowdy’s side.
She held on to him through the evening, answering questions when she had to, but otherwise remaining silent as the knowledge slowly filled her mind that it was over. The stalker had been John Barnes-Carlyle, and he was gone. He was dead. It was finally over.
TWENTY-FOUR
Kelly stared around the living room the next morning, amazed that there was nothing left, not so much as a speck of blood, to prove that the night before had been no dream.
The only proof left was the egg-sized knots that had been left on Dawg’s, Natches’s, and Rowdy’s heads. John Barnes hadn’t come to the front door, he had known about Dawg’s back entrance through his father, who had spent years spying on the Mackay cousins, and used it to slip into the house.
He had gotten Dawg first, while Natches was outside getting the last supplies from his truck. When he came in, he had seen the same thing Kelly had, what appeared to be Dawg napping on the couch.
He had moved into the kitchen with the supplies, where the deputy had moved in behind him and knocked him unconscious as well. He had waited until Kelly had left the bedroom upstairs, hiding in the other room until she started down the stairs, before he had disabled Rowdy. Or thought he had.
Rowdy had been coming out of his nap as he was struck; the blow had dazed him, taking precious minutes for him to get his bearings enough to struggle from the bed.
The sheriff had called that morning after running a night-long investigation on his dead deputy. He had indeed been Loren Barnes’s son, kidnapped by his father several years before the Mackay cousins had become her lovers.
There was a long history of abuse as a child, foster homes, and disappearances that hadn’t been followed up on at the time. As the full story emerged, everyone who had known him on the force had been shocked. His father had molested him for years, punishing him for the supposed crimes his mother had committed. Richard Barnes, the father, had been insane, and his insanity had been forced upon his son until it had warped his view of women.
Four women had paid for that crime.
“Feeling better?” She turned her head as Dawg moved from the kitchen, followed by Rowdy and Natches.
She stared at the three men, feeling the tension that suddenly filled the room, the intensity in their eyes. She had known this was coming, had known Rowdy’s cousins would soon put his decision to the test. She could see it in the ready tension of their bodies. There was none of the expected anger in Rowdy’s expression though. His body was relaxed, easy, his gaze simmering with amusement.
“Do we have a problem?” She crossed her arms over her breasts and stared back at the three curiously.
“Rowdy’s being greedy,” Dawg grunted. “How do you feel about that?”
?
?I’m rather greedy myself, Dawg,” she informed him fondly. “I can’t do it. ”
“We wouldn’t hurt you. ” She could see the frustration in his face. “Hell, Kelly, our cousins in Texas have survived just fine. ”
