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He was still wearing his shirt and pants. I couldn’t imagine he had left Justin alone in the house. I glanced around and saw AJ and Elijah near the Captain of the Sherwood fire station. Seth was missing. He must have been inside with Justin.
Matt approached. His face was like a thundercloud read to rain down on somebody. I thought at first it was going to be me and Disa. So, did she. She stepped back until her body was touching mine. I wouldn’t let Matt blame her for this.
I started to speak. He held his hand up to me. “Hawk arrest him. You can’t prove that he did this to me, but you can damn well prove that he kidnapped and held Lilah in his basement.”
Our sheriff kicked his boot in the gravel.
Matt took a step toward him. Dad was holding Mom’s hand. He released her, just in case. I tucked Disa to my side, just in case. One of us might need to stop Matt from doing something to Hawk. He was that mad.
“Hawk, I could have lost Justin tonight.” His voice broke on the last word. He rubbed his hand across his jaw and gathered himself. “He’s all I have in this world. Arrest that son-of-a-bitch or my brothers and I will take care of him.”
Hawk’s jaw clenched. I knew he was chewing on his anger. He understood Matt’s fury. “Just hold on, Matthew. Please. Let us investigate this. I’ll present the evidence I have to the D.A. Give me time.”
Matt turned his head. His eyes were glassy when he looked back at Hawk. “How much, Hawk? How much before one of us gets killed or he gets Disa or Merci? Or Lilah? Have you seen what that bastard did to her?” Had Matthew seen Lilah’s scars?
“Now, I won’t let that happen. I promise.”
He shook his head at the sheriff. Then he looked at me. “Come inside,” he said to me and Disa.
He took Disa’s hand and led her to the porch. I realized that AJ and Elijah followed. I had forgotten Walker. He was the one holding Justin when we got into the house.
The big man was making him feel safe enough he had gone to sleep. When we entered the room, Walker held a finger to his lips. He stood with Justin and laid him with care on the other end of the sofa. He pulled the quilt off the back and covered him. Then he followed us into the kitchen.
“So, what did the Captain say?” Walker asked AJ.
“Deliberately set with an accelerant. He was surprised all three barns didn’t burn to the ground. The fire was damn hot when they got here. Luckily they got here quick and there was no wind tonight to carry sparks.” AJ leaned against the counter. “What did Mrs. Hanks say?” He asked Matt.
“She saw nothing. It was too dark, and they wore masks over their faces or hoodies, so she couldn’t even give them a description.” He went to the fridge and took out a beer. “Anyone else?”
“No, tonight at some point, I’m heading out to Heath’s cabin,” AJ replied. “I might need a clear head.”
“Suit yourself.” Matt saluted our brother with the bottle then took a long drawl from the lip. He sighed. Then he looked around the room. His eyes landed on Disa. He sat the bottle on the counter. Then he went to her and cupped her face between his palms. “After tonight, you’re as good as a Hatfield,” he told her. Then he planted a kiss on her forehead. “We won’t let anything happen to you or your sister.”
She nodded. “I’m so sorry, Matt.”
He wrapped her in his embrace and hugged her tight. “This isn’t your fault, Disa.”
“I feel like I brought this down on you,” she said, her voice catching on every word.
He shook his head no. “Ron Parson has been causing trouble for this town for a long time. It’s not your fault.”
I frowned. I didn’t know anything about Elder Ron from the Babylon First Church of God. How did Matt know? He looked over her head. “There’s all kinds of rumors about drugs and trafficking in relation to the compound. It all started when he came to Sherwood and was voted in as an Elder of their church. He’s bad news. He’s my age. Been there since he was twenty. Never took a wife because Disa Riley and her sister came of age. He was waiting on them.”
I shook my head gazing at the woman who loved me. I would do anything for her. I would protect her from this asshole with everything I had.
“AJ and Heath did the right thing,” Matt told me. “Getting Merci and Lilah out of there was the best thing for them.”
“How do we protect them?” I asked. I was at a loss.
Matt took a piece of paper off the counter. He handed it to me.
I THINK YOU TOOK SOMETHING OF MINE.
I WANT IT BACK.
Disa was still by Matt’s side. “Did you show this to Hawk?”
He shook his head no. “It was stuck to the back door. The cops didn’t see it, so AJ brought it inside to me.”
