The horrifying images spread across Savannah’s table are the result of her seeking help. As Regina said, she did everything right, yet she was still abused. If it wasn’t for the young midwife who stayed by her side when she delivered Rylee, I doubt she’d be free now. She didn’t just get out of the hospital unseen; she saved her life.
Once this all settles down, I’m going to shower that midwife with my praise. What she did makes her just as brave as Savannah in my eyes.
After pressing a kiss to Savannah’s temple, I run my finger down Rylee’s rosy cheek. The heaviness on my chest eases when the little dimple indents further from my touch.
“She couldn’t be more like her mother if she tried.”
I realize I said my statement out loud when Savannah replies, “You have no idea, Ryan. You haven’t seen her awake yet.”
It’s the fight of my life not to kiss the cheeky grin off her face, but I hold back the desire—barely. I don’t want Rylee’s first impression of me to be a lip-sucking-leech, no matter how delectable Savannah’s mouth looks.
“Go to sleep,” I request again before raking my fingers through her hair in a comforting manner.
Savannah always loved having her hair played with when she was younger. I don’t know how many times I woke up with strands of her hair wrapped tightly around my fingers, cutting off my circulation. It used to bother me—now I’d give anything to have it again.
I wait for Savannah’s chest to rise and fall in a steady rhythm before returning to my watch station in her kitchen. From where I am sitting, I can see the living room, main hall, and the front door. That’s why Savannah is sleeping on the sofa instead of her bed. It is the prime spot for me to keep an eye on her.
“Tell me what you want me to do, Ryan. Direct me. Guide me. Take everything I’ve taught you and flip it on its head, “ Regina asks when I enter the kitchen. “Give me something. Because if you don’t, I’m going to drive to Wyoming and pop a bullet between this guy’s eyes before the sun sets tomorrow afternoon.”
I smirk. I shouldn’t be smiling, but considering her thoughts match the ones I’ve had numerous times the past three hours, I can’t help but smile. If I had my gun, Keifer’s breaths would be limited.
“Weren’t you the one who told me violence never ends violence?”
Regina glares at me like I’ve grown a second head. “Yeah, but that was before any of this. He is a US Marshall, Ryan. He should have been protecting her, not beating her to within an inch of her life.” She licks her parched lips before saying, “We need to report this. You know what these men are like. When they lose one target, sometimes they put two in its place. Not only do we need to seek justice for Savannah, but we also need to make sure this isn’t happening to anyone else.”
I nod, agreeing with her. “But we need to be smart. If he is hiding them like he hid Savannah, and we go in strong, we may never find them.”
“We can do this in a way he’ll never see coming.”
Regina’s words aren’t as confident as she is hoping, but they don’t stop me from asking, “How?”
Her chest rises and falls numerous times before she breathes out, “We use Savannah as bait.”
Chapter 21
Ryan
Iwake up the next morning to a pair of bright green eyes gawking at me. Rylee is kneeling next to the sofa I am sleeping on. Her straight blonde hair is pulled into two even piggy tails, and a curious crinkle is scoured between her brows.
“Hello.”
My greeting barely leaves my mouth when she screams blue murder, darts up from the ground, then bolts across the living room floor at the speed of a bullet.
Upset that I’ve frightened her, I quickly shadow her steps. I find her in the kitchen. She has her tiny arms wrapped around Savannah’s thigh and her cheek buried in her backside. She watches me with a curious gleam in her eyes when I cautiously approach them.
“Don’t let her smell your fear, Ryan, or she’ll exploit it for all its worth,” Savannah warns, unconcerned about the worry in my eyes.
Realizing her cover has been blown, Rylee jumps away from her mother’s thigh. She holds her hands in front of her body and roars like a bear.
The squeal she emits when I return her banter sets my hearing forward by at least three decades. My heart smashes against my ribs when she races across the kitchen floor to leap into my arms. I’m so unprepared for her attack, I land on my backside with a thud. My first thoughts are to wretch her away from me to check her for damage from our collision, but the hearty giggles spilling from her lips stop me.
Rylee’s laughter grows when I tickle her ribs before lifting my eyes to Savannah. “I’m sorry,” I mouth.
What I said to Savannah last night was wrong. She did everything in her power to save her daughter from living the childhood I did. The fact Rylee is open to waking up with a stranger in her house proves this without a doubt. She is a well-adjusted nearly four-year-old who doesn't have a clue about the danger surrounding her. She is as perfect as her mother.
It is like no time at all has passed when Savannah dips her chin, acknowledging she’s aware of what my apology is about. She read my eyes—no more words needed.
My hands tear from Rylee’s ribs when she demands the use of a bathroom. After clambering onto her feet, she dashes down the hall, holding her crotch.
