BIG SKY SECRETS 03: End Game (21 page)

She closed her eyes briefly, barely aware of the pain in her hand any longer as she tried to process the blessing standing before her—the answer to her desperate, silent prayers for help. “There’s nothing to forgive, because you were right all along. It’s me who should be sorry.”

“I called 911 the minute I saw what was happening here, so they should arrive any minute. Why don’t you call the vet and tell her that we’ll be bringing Buddy in, and after the deputies haul away this guy, we can talk. Deal?”

Already she could hear the distant, discordant wail of sirens. At least three of them.

She nodded. “Believe me, there’s nothing I want more.”

Hal handcuffed Rex immediately, then he and Jim stuffed him in the backseat of one of the cruisers, where he had no chance of escape. It took nearly an hour more for the EMTs to examine and dress Megan’s hand, and for Scott and Megan to finish answering questions.

“You need to get down to the hospital for X-rays,” Scott said when they had left Buddy at the vet clinic for sutures and observation. “I can’t imagine how much that hand hurts.”

“It did, but now I guess it’s sort of numb. All I can think about is how you appeared—perfect timing. Without you, I’d be dead right now, and Rex would be going after Kris and Erin. I can’t tell you how hard I was praying.”

“It looked to me like you were holding your own, despite everything,” he said with a tender smile. He curved his arms around her in a gentle embrace, and lowered his mouth to hers for a quick kiss, and then one that was much, much longer. “I think I lost ten years of my life when I saw him going after you. The thought that he could have ended your life fills me with such…such anger, such a sense of loss, that I can’t even fathom it.”

“But now it’s all over.” She started to pull back, knowing that the high emotions of facing danger made people say things they wouldn’t mean tomorrow. Since Scott had come into her life she’d discovered a hundred ways in which he seemed like the perfect man for her, but she knew he didn’t feel the same. Not really. And sometimes, it was just better to cut your losses and run. “I guess we’d better get going.”

He caught her uninjured wrist and gently pulled her back into his arms. “
Wait
. I once told you that I didn’t think God was listening to me. I don’t believe that anymore. I was driving to the airport when I had the worst sense that something was wrong. I knew I
had
to come back here, or I’d regret it forever. And the closer I got, the faster I drove, because I just knew that every second counted. I was praying every mile of the way that you’d be safe.”

“Sometimes He answers us in different ways than we expect and in His own good time. Sometimes the answers aren’t the ones we want.” She felt her eyes burn. “But He brought you back to me, right when I needed you most.”

“Tell me before we leave for the hospital, because if I have to wait much longer, I don’t think my ole heart is going to make it. I know it’s early days for asking this, but I just have to know. Do you think there’s a chance for us? Despite everything?”

She smiled up at him, searching the depths of his eyes for what she’d hoped to find all her life. Acceptance. Understanding. And the tender beginnings of love. Her heart swelled until it seemed to fill her chest when she saw all of that and more—an echo of everything she was feeling, too.

“Absolutely.” She wobbled on her tiptoes to give him a kiss, wishing the moment could last and last.

T
he warm Montana sunshine could be fickle up in the mountains, even in late July.

But now the late-afternoon sun sent a glittering array of diamonds dancing across the sapphire waves of Big Bear Lake, and a soft breeze through the towering trees filled the air with the sweet, sweet scent of pine. Fluffy white clouds rested in a robin’s-egg-blue sky, at the tops of the mountain peaks to the west.

“No cathedral could be as beautiful as this,” Megan murmured to Scott as they stood on a hill watching the people gathering at the lakeshore, where Erin and Jack would soon say their vows. Max, Jack’s young nephew, stood near them, playing with his puppy Molly and Buddy, who had recovered from Rex’s blow with only a scar.

Nearby, Trace stood with Kris, his arm around her shoulder as they talked to his sister Carrie, who had told everyone at the bridal dinner last night that she’d be moving away from her brother’s ranch on Monday.

“Poor Kris,” Megan murmured. “I know she and Carrie have become close as sisters. And now she’s suddenly moving away.”

“Did she say why? I thought she had a good job at the high school.”

“That was the odd part—she wouldn’t talk about it. She just insisted that the dinner was meant to be a night for happiness, and to let it go at that.” Megan bit her lower lip. “It won’t be easy for Kris to see her go…she’s never given up on finding her sister Emma, and now this.”

Scott gave her shoulders a gentle squeeze. “But things can work out, in God’s good time. You taught me to have faith in that. So for today, let’s just be happy for all the things that are good, okay?”

Megan stood on her tiptoes and brushed a kiss against his cheek. “You’re absolutely right.”

She still couldn’t believe how well things had turned out after the Full Moon Killer has been brought to justice.

Hal had suffered a light heart attack the next day. He was doing just fine after surgery, but had decided it was the wake-up call he’d needed about finally taking the retirement he’d longed for. He’d be able to be with his wife all the time now, and both were happy sharing every day they had left.

Despite her long-standing reservations, Megan had agreed to step in as interim sheriff until the next election, and she was finding the job more rewarding than she’d expected. With the deputies all at work once again, the department was fully staffed, and Scott had finally made his trip back to Chicago.

It hadn’t taken him long to uncover the truth—that the late drug dealer, Rico Mendez, had been involved with the crooked cops Scott had identified. To destroy Scott’s credibility, he’d paid off a rookie cop to plant the ten grand in Scott’s bank account and steal key evidence from the evidence room. Worse, he’d bribed the rookie to romance Scott’s fiancée, trying to ferret out enough information about Scott to destroy him. The shallow woman had fallen for the guy in the process, though they’d both been fired and were facing charges.

Now that he was back in Montana after clearing his name, Scott seemed happier and more settled. He’d even agreed to a 50-percent position as a deputy, which would still give him time to write.

Better yet, he and Megan had been seeing each other every day, and each passing week had brought them closer.

Brimming with happiness, she clasped Scott’s hand. “God’s glory,” she whispered, looking out at all of the friends and family assembled. “I see it in this beautiful place…and in all the love that’s here today for Erin and Jack. It’s all just so breathtaking—absolutely perfect.”

“Not quite.” He gently turned her around and rested his hands on her shoulders, locking his gaze on hers. “This day could be even more perfect.”

She looked up at the depth of love in his eyes and felt her heart warm and expand in her chest until she could barely breathe, too afraid to speak and risk shattering the moment.

He lowered his mouth to hers for a long, exquisite kiss that sent shivers through her and turned her knees weak.

“I hope you’ll be my wife, Megan. If I could be with you until my last breath, I’d be the happiest man on earth. But think about it…don’t answer until you’re ready.”

“Oh, Scott,” she managed to say when she could at last catch her breath. “The answer is
yes
.”

He kissed her again, and this time she kissed him back with all of the love in her heart, until she felt swept away toward a future she’d never imagined possible.

Only the gentle notes of a harp and violin duet at the water’s edge broke their embrace. “Guess it’s time to go,” she whispered.

Thank You, Lord, for everything that happened today—for everything that turned out so right.
A sense of peace drifted through her…as if He had just blessed the two of them with a promise of forever afters.

And with her heart overflowing with joy, she let Scott lead her down the hill to the waiting crowd.

Dear Reader,

I hope you’ve enjoyed your visit to the Montana Rockies in
End Game
, the third book of my BIG SKY SECRETS series. I have loved exploring the ways the three young heroines of these stories have dealt with the tragedy that occurred while they were growing up—how it changed them, how they overcame their emotional wounds, and along the way, how they found deeper faith. I hope you’ll join me again later for two more Love Inspired Suspense novels in this series—Emma’s story and Carrie’s story. But before that,
Winter Reunion
will be out in November 2010, for the Love Inspired line.

All of us have encountered difficult times in life, and sometimes it’s so hard to go on—to find peace, to find a way to forgive ourselves and others. I have found such comfort and support in the following verses, which are among my favorites…and perhaps you will, too!

Don’t worry about anything. Instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. If you do this, you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Jesus Christ.

—Philippians 4: 6–7

I love to hear from readers at P.O. Box 2550, Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52403. If you are online, you can visit my Web site at www.roxannerustand.com, e-mail me at [email protected], or even better, visit my blog, “All Creatures Great and Small” at http://roxannerustand.blogspot.com, a place where readers and authors exchange humorous and poignant stories about their animals.

Wishing you many blessings.

1. Megan Peters was driven to a career in law enforcement by a tragedy that occurred when she was young. Did situations in your own youth shape your own career choices as an adult?
   
2. In
   Fatal Burn
   , the second book in this series, Kris establishes an animal shelter, and in
   End Game
   , Megan adopts one of the older dogs at that shelter. Have you ever adopted a homeless animal?
   
3. Megan is absolutely focused on her goal in life: to capture criminals who victimize women. In looking at your own life, have you had a long-term goal or desire that has influenced your life?
   
4. Who was your favorite character in the book, and why?
   
5. Megan has long since given up on finding a happy, permanent romantic relationship, while Scott has been hurt recently by an unfaithful fiancée. How do you think those past experiences will affect the romance between Megan and Scott? What will it take for them to have a happy, solid relationship that can last for a lifetime or is that possible?
   
6. Megan is a believer, and in her personal life would never frequent seedy taverns and flirt with the men in them, but does this in an effort to try to find the killer before he strikes again. Have you ever had to do something that was against your personal values, in order to help someone?
   
7. Scott comes back, at the end of the story, because he senses that something is wrong and is worried about Megan—and he is right. How does God answer our prayers? Would this be an example of a way in which God answers prayers, or not?
   
8. Which person in your life would you call on if you were in trouble, and why?
   
9. Who did you think was the murderer? Were you surprised when his true identity was revealed?
   
10. Scott is a believer, yet he has lost his confidence about God’s love and concern for him in his daily life. What evidence of God’s caring do you see in your own life and how your prayers are answered?
    
11. Scott’s engagement ended when his fiancée abruptly ran off with someone else, leaving him certain that he didn’t want to risk his heart again. Have you ever had a romantic heartbreak? What were your feelings about it, and how long did it take you to heal? How do you feel about that person now?
    
12. The next book in this series will involve Emma, Kris Donaldson’s sister, who has been missing for many years after leading a troubled life as a teenager. Has there ever been a falling-out between you and another family member? Was it possible for everyone to forgive and forget, and become completely accepting?