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For her son’s sake.
The interior of the cabin warmed up to the point she could take off the bulky jacket and the dark sweatshirt, wearing just the long-sleeved crew neck T-shirt. She stripped off the sheets draping the furniture, sneezing as the dust ticked her nose.
When Nick and Joey returned a few minutes later, they were both grinning from ear to ear. “We did it, Mom!” Joey exclaimed as he and Nick stamped their feet on the mat inside the doorway. “We primed the pump and now we have water.”
“Great,” she said, forcing a smile when her son looked up at her. “I’m going to clean the place up a bit, and then I thought we’d have the canned beef stew for dinner.” Lowering her voice, she slanted a quick glance Nick’s way. “Don’t forget, we need to change the bandage on your arm, too.”
“Plenty of time for that... Let’s eat first,” Nick said. “We’re lucky to have electricity. Apparently my parents are still paying the bills.”
“The cabin belongs to your parents?” she asked, curious in spite of herself.
“To my mother,” Nick corrected. “I’m going to hike back to the car to get my laptop.”
“Can I come, too?” Joey asked.
She opened her mouth to protest but was interrupted by the sound of Nick’s phone ringing. He scowled at the display and then walked down the hall, obviously seeking privacy as he answered. “Yeah?”
She couldn’t hear much of the conversation and was still trying to figure out a way to prevent Joey from following Nick around like a lost puppy, when Nick came back to the main room, his expression grim.
She tensed, fearing more bad news. “What’s wrong?”
“They found the Jeep and, Morales, uh, is no longer a threat,” he said carefully, glancing at Joey in a way that told her the man who’d kidnapped her son was dead. “But I’m afraid there’s no sign of the duffel bag or the cash.”
Her heart squeezed painfully in her chest and she couldn’t think of anything to say.
“Unfortunately,” Nick continued, “whoever hired Morales appears to have gotten away with it.”
TEN
Nick mentally kicked himself as Rachel’s expression froze at the news. He felt helpless knowing that Morales had been killed and all of Rachel’s money was gone. The chance of finding out who had set up the kidnapping was slim to none at this point, now that their best lead— Morales—had just become, literally, a dead end.
After a long moment, Rachel let out a sigh and shrugged, avoiding his direct gaze. He knew she had to be upset at losing her company like this, but if that was the case, she didn’t let on. “I’m glad Morales won’t be able to hurt anyone else ever again,” she murmured. “Maybe it’s wrong, but I can’t help thinking he ended up getting exactly what he deserved.”
It was on the tip of his tongue to explain how God expected them to forgive those who trespassed against them, but there was a tiny part of him that tended to agree with her. He could forgive Morales and even the guy who’d hired him, but he also knew that those who sinned often paid the price.
If they were alone, he’d go into more detail about the crime scene, but since Joey was listening, he chose his words carefully. “The man behind all this is a professional, but we can’t give up. We’ll figure out who it is sooner or later.”
“I know,” she agreed, although her expression didn’t exactly radiate confidence.
“Do you want to come for a walk with us to the car?” he offered. Oddly enough, he didn’t want to leave her here in the cabin alone, especially after giving her such depressing news. “Shouldn’t take us more than fifteen minutes or so.”
She hesitated but then nodded. She put both her sweatshirt and the jacket back on and crossed over to join them. He held the door as they trooped outside, and he sniffed, appreciating the woodsy scent intermingled with fireplace smoke that lingered in the air, bringing back fond memories of the good times he’d spent up here with Uncle Wally and with his family.
Joey grabbed a small branch that had fallen from one of the trees and swatted the brush as they walked. Rachel stayed next to Nick, and his hand accidently brushed hers, making him wonder what she would say if he took her hand in his. She’d never said a word about the kiss, although he hadn’t mentioned it, either.
