The - Cowboy’s - Secret - Twins (13 page)

she asked.

Henry walked over to her window and peered outside. A light snow was still falling. He turned to look at her. “Why don’t you make a decision in the morning? It’s snowing now but maybe it will stop before too long. I can call Jimmy in the morning and ask him about the condition of the roads.”

What he really wanted to do was have a repeat of the night before. But something in the way she stood with her arms crossed in front of her chest made him think she wouldn’t be open to the idea.

“You want to go back down and have a glass of wine or something?” he asked.

She shook her head. “No, I think I’ll just call it a night now. I really am hoping that we’ll be able to travel in the morning. Besides, it’s been a long day and I’m exhausted.”

He realized she was already distancing herself, preparing for the goodbye. He was surprised at the edge of sadness that took hold of him. It wasn’t like it was going to be goodbye forever, he told himself. Most likely one way or another he’d be seeing her every weekend. If she didn’t want to drive here, then he’d drive to Amarillo. But somehow he knew that once she left here things would never be the same between them again.

“Then I guess I’ll just say good night,” he said. He couldn’t help himself. He stepped closer to her with the intention to deliver a kiss to her forehead, but instead found his mouth claiming hers.

The minute their lips connected the window where Henry had stood moments before shattered. As Henry saw the device that lay on the floor in the bedroom fear screamed inside him.

He shoved Melissa toward the door and they fell into the hallway as the bomb went off.

Chapter 10

O ne moment Henry had been kissing her and the next Melissa found herself on the hallway floor with Henry on top of her. The back of her head had connected hard with the floor in the fall and she was dazed and confused.

The loud explosion still rang in Melissa’s ears, making her momentarily deaf. As Henry got off her, her hearing began to return. Above the din of the house alarm ringing she could hear the cries of her babies and her heart slammed into her chest with enough force to steal what little breath she had left.

“Check on the boys,” Henry yelled as he pulled her up off the floor. He raced back into the bedroom and tore down the curtains that had caught on fire. As he stamped out the flames, she ran across the hall to the boys’

room. They were safe, but scared by the noise.

She took them into her arms, and her heart beat so fast it felt as if it were trying to burst out of her chest. She stood in the center of the room, afraid to move, unsure what might happen next. She tried to calm the boys but with the alarm ringing discordantly it was impossible. Tears raced down Melissa’s cheeks as she tried to still her own fear.

Somebody had thrown a bomb of some kind into the window of the bedroom where she’d slept, at the window where Henry had been standing only moments earlier. Her head couldn’t wrap around it. The blast could have killed him. It could have killed her. Had Henry not reacted as quickly as he had, they both could have been seriously hurt or worse.

She hugged the boys even closer to her chest and breathed a sigh of relief as the alarm suddenly stopped ringing. Now what? Had the danger passed? Was there more to come? Too afraid to move, she remained in the center of the room.

A moment later both Henry and Mary rushed into the room.

“You okay?” Henry asked her, his features taut with tension.

“We’re fine,” she said and felt a new press of tears as Mary put an arm around her shoulder.

“Jimmy is on his way,” Henry said as he took Joey from her arms. “Let’s go downstairs to wait for him.”

By the time they got down the stairs several of Henry’s ranch hands were at the front door. Henry opened the door to allow them inside and they all gathered in the living room.

“We heard the explosion,” Charlie said, his features grim. “Then we saw the fire at the window. I’m just glad to see you’re all okay.”

“You didn’t see anyone?” Henry asked as he shifted Joey from one arm to the other.

Both Charlie and Randy shook their heads. “Didn’t hear a car, didn’t see a soul,” Charlie said. “Dammit, it’s like it’s a phantom.”

“It wasn’t a phantom that threw a bomb through the window,” Henry said, his anger rife in his voice. He handed Joey to his mother. “I want to go out and take a look around. With the snow there should be some footprints that can be tracked.”

Charlie frowned. “Unfortunately, Randy and I might have messed up any prints,” he admitted. “When we heard the blast we both ran to that side of the house. I didn’t even think about footprints.”

“There still might be some prints that don’t belong to the two of you,”

Henry said.

“Please, Henry, wait for Jimmy before you go out,” Melissa said. She had no idea what other danger might await him if he ventured outside and she couldn’t stand the thought of anything happening to him.

“Yes, Henry,” Mary spoke up, her voice filled with a mother’s worry.

“Please wait for Jimmy. I don’t want you out there.”

Melissa could tell by Henry’s expression that he was chomping at the bit, needing to do something, anything that might find the guilty party.

“If you want, Randy and I can go back out and take another look around,”

Charlie offered.

“Trust me, if there’s anyone around I’d be happy to tie him up and beat his ass until Jimmy shows up,” Randy exclaimed.

Henry clapped him on the back. “I appreciate the sentiment, Randy, but the last thing I want is for anyone to get hurt. Why don’t we all sit tight until Jimmy gets here?”

Charlie and Randy sat on the two chairs while Melissa and Mary sat on the sofa with the twins. Henry paced the room, looking like he wanted nothing more than to punch something or someone.

There was no question that somehow, someway, Melissa had to leave here as soon as possible. She couldn’t place her children at risk. The idea that the pipe bomb could have easily been thrown through the window of the bedroom where the twins slept filled her with a kind of terror she’d never felt before.

“Randy, what I’d like you to do is see if you can find a piece of plywood in the shed to put over the broken window after Jimmy takes a look around.” Henry turned to look at Melissa and his eyes were dark as midnight. “Melissa, I want you to pack a bag for you and the boys.”

She looked at him in surprise. “But where are we going?” She knew the roads were snow-packed and her tires weren’t in the best shape. There was no way she’d take off at this time of night for home.

“I’m going to have Charlie check you in to a motel until the roads are safe enough for you to travel home.” Henry looked at his mother. “You might want to pack a bag, too.”

“Nonsense,” Mary scoffed. “I agree with you that Melissa should take the twins and go but nobody is chasing me out of my home.”

Henry nodded, as if unsurprised by his mother’s decision to stay put. He returned his attention to Melissa. “The latest weather report I heard said that the snow is going to stick around for at least another twenty-four to forty-eight hours, so pack enough things to last you and the boys for a couple of days.”

“But what about you?” Melissa asked. She wanted him to come with them, to leave this place of danger and hide out with her someplace where she knew he’d be safe.

“I’ll be fine as long as I know you and the twins are safe.” He took James from her arms. “Come on, I’ll go up and help you get your things together.”

“I’m going to head out to the shed,” Randy said. “It’s been long enough now I imagine whoever threw that bomb is long gone.”

“And I’ll wait here with Mrs. Randolf,” Charlie added.

Henry said nothing as they climbed the stairs back to the room where the blast had occurred. The scent of smoke and gasoline lingered in the air.

“It must have been loaded with fuel,” he said as he surveyed the damage.

“At least it wasn’t filled with any kind of shrapnel.”

Melissa shuddered at the thought. She pulled her suitcase from the closet and quickly packed what little she’d brought with her. They then moved into the boys’ room, where she packed their clothes and diapers.

“I’ll have Charlie get you settled in at one of the motels and I’ll call you first thing in the morning,” he said. She turned to face him and saw the worry in his eyes, a worry coupled with rage.

He stepped up to her and placed his palm against her cheek. She turned her face into the warmth of his hand. “He could have hurt you tonight. He could have hurt you and the boys.”

“But that didn’t happen,” she said softly.

“Not this time, but I can’t take another chance. I thought you were safe here, but I now realize I can’t guarantee your safety. You’ll be safe in a motel until the roads are clean enough for you to go home.”

“Henry?” Jimmy’s voice drifted up the stairs.

Henry dropped his hand from her face and stepped back from her. “Come on up, Jimmy.”

Melissa and Henry met the lawman in the hallway. “You can have a look around. I’m sending Melissa with Charlie to a motel for the rest of the night. I’ll be back up here as soon as I get those arrangements made.”

Henry didn’t say a word as they went back downstairs. Once there, as Melissa and Mary began to put the coats on the boys, he disappeared into his study.

Minutes later he came out. “I’ve got you set up in a room at Ed’s Motel. It’s clean and comfortable and the owner is a friend of mine. The room is registered in the name of Hank James. Nobody will know you’re there and the key will be waiting for you in the office.”

A muscle knotted in his jaw. “Charlie will get you there safe and sound and I’ll call you in the morning.” He shoved a wad of cash into her hand.

“There’s a diner right next door to the motel. They’ll deliver whatever you need to your motel-room door.”

It was crazy, but as Melissa pulled on her coat and Charlie grabbed her bags, she had a sudden terrible fear for Henry.

“Please, stay safe,” she said as she held the twins in her arms. He kissed Joey and James on the forehead and then gently shoved a strand of her hair behind her ear. “Get out of here and let me do what I need to do.”

It took only minutes for her and the boys to be loaded into Charlie’s fourwheel-drive vehicle. While they pulled away from the house Melissa looked back to see Henry silhouetted in the front door. Once again she was struck with the strong, inexplicable fear—the fear that she was never going to see him again.

“Henry, where are you going?” Jimmy asked as Henry pulled on his winter coat. They had just spent the last hour picking through the rubble in the bedroom.

Jimmy had collected the pieces of the device to use as evidence and now Randy was hanging the plywood over the broken window.

Charlie had returned to the ranch after dropping Melissa and the children at Ed’s Motel. At least Henry had the comfort of knowing she and the babies would be safe there until she could leave town.

With each moment that had ticked by a rage had grown in Henry, a seething sick rage that begged to be released. And he knew exactly where to vent it.

“I’m going to Burke’s house.” Henry buttoned his coat but didn’t reach for his gun in the drawer. He knew if he had it on him he might use it and as much as he wanted to hurt the man he believed was responsible for the pipe bomb, he didn’t want to kill him. He was a father now, a man who had too much too lose by letting his rage get the best of him.

“Dammit, Henry, you can’t go off half-cocked,” Jimmy exclaimed in frustration.

“Trust me, I’m not half-cocked, I’m fully loaded,” Henry replied dryly.

“Just stay put,” Jimmy said. “I’ll go talk to Burke.”

“Then I’m coming with you.” Henry didn’t give Jimmy another opportunity to talk him out of it, but instead slammed out the door and walked into the snowy night.

Minutes later he and Jimmy were in Jimmy’s patrol car navigating the slick roads as they headed into town. All Henry could think about was how devastating the results might have been had that bomb been thrown into the boys’ room. The thought of such a tragedy stoked the flames of his rage even hotter.

“He could have killed my kids, Jimmy. He could have killed Melissa,”

Henry said, breaking the silence in the car.

“I know,” Jimmy said. He grunted as the back of the car threatened to fishtail out. He steered into the slide and straightened the car. “We’ll check out Tom’s alibi for the time that the bomb was thrown through the window.”

“It’s possible he didn’t personally throw it, but instead hired somebody.”

Henry frowned. “I’ve got to put an end to this.” He stared out into the dark night. “Maybe I should withdraw from the election.”

Jimmy shot him a stunned look. “You’d do that?”

“If I just had myself to worry about then I’d never quit. But it’s not just me anymore, Jimmy. I’ve got kids and Melissa and they are going to need me.”

“So they win and the corruption in Dalhart continues.” Jimmy released an audible sigh. “Just give me a few more days before you make a decision. You’re running on pure emotion right now. Give yourself time to calm down and let me sort this out.”

Henry didn’t reply. He knew Jimmy was right. He was definitely running on emotion, but as he thought of Melissa and Joey and James, he couldn’t help but be filled with emotion.

He’d wanted to be a hero to the town, to clean up the mess that had been allowed to go on for far too long. But he now wondered if the stakes were too high. He’d rather be a father than a hero.

He sat up straighter in the seat as they approached town. The only other vehicles they’d passed were snow trucks laying down salt and pushing snow.

Tom Burke lived well above his means and salary in a five-bedroom luxury home on a three-acre lot. The first thing Henry noticed was that Tom’s car was parked in the driveway. Not only was the car relatively clean of snow, but tire tracks showed that it had recently been driven. The rage that had slowly begun to wane during the drive now roared back to life inside Henry. He was out of the car before it had come to a complete halt.