Justin chuckled and clapped Ransome’s shoulder. “
I
get the right-side edge. Charity gets the rest. Guess you’ll switch off on her other side. Good luck with that because she’s a restless sleeper.”
Ransome snorted and hitched his thumbs in his jeans pockets. “Won’t be a problem. Sounds to me like she’s just not properly worn out before she falls asleep.”
Justin’s barking laughter filled the room and he gave his equipment a congratulatory squeeze. “More like she can’t help it because she dreams about me all night. I’m that good in the sack.”
“Horseshit,” Ransome replied, gripping his own nuts. “One sex-induced coma and you’ll see the difference.”
Justin gave him a friendly single-finger salute, “More like boredom-induced coma.”
Val poked his head in the bedroom with his phone held to his chest and said, “If you’re done comparing dicks and enjoying the claustrophobia in this tiny bedroom, we have a situation we could use your help with, Justin.”
“We?” Ransome said, looking confused.
They followed Val to the kitchen and into his phone he said, “Jessica, stay on the line. I’m putting you on hold for just a minute while I tell the guys, okay?” He touched the face of his phone and then laid it on the table.
Justin looked up at Val expectantly, noting his serious demeanor.
“Jessica? Is that Jessica Bright?” Ransome asked, a frown forming on his face. “Is she okay?”
“She’s okay for now, but it sounds like she’s had better days.”
“Where is she?”
Val cut him off and said, “Let me bring Justin up to speed.” Ransome nodded and Val continued. “We met Jessica a few months ago. We’d been contacted by a friend in the same line of work who was busy on another job and needed an immediate pickup on a guy he’d been trying to locate for a while. It was local for us and wouldn’t take long so we took the job. Guy’s name was Trevor Dornan. All we had to do was show up, bag him, and deliver him to our friend. We didn’t know many details about him.”
Picking up the thread of the story, Ransome said, “We showed up at this ratty-ass house outside of Houston. All was quiet and we were thinking this was a simple in-and-out operation. Dornan had warrants in multiple counties out of state and our part of his bounty fee was sizable. We didn’t plan on walking in and finding a woman shackled and cowering naked in a corner of one of the bedrooms.”
“Holy shit,” Justin breathed. “That’s her?” He pointed at the phone.
Val nodded. “We found out through our own sources that Jessica had been reported missing by her employer in Houston two months before. Dornan had kept her there, giving her barely enough food and water to keep her alive, with only sporadic access to the toilet and shower. He raped her repeatedly during the time he kept her a prisoner. We set her free and found her some clothes and fed her while we waited for him. Hang on and I’ll take her off of hold now.” He turned on the speaker-phone and said, “We’re back with you, Jessica.”
“Okay,” the soft voice said over the speaker.
“We were ready to call the authorities, the bounty fee be damned, but she wanted him to get what he really deserved, so we waited for him. He showed up and we took care of business.”
Justin heard Jessica chuckle and say, “That’s an understatement.”
Ransome didn’t exactly look proud of himself, but he nodded and said, “We let her watch while we beat the crap out of him. Once we had him ready to go—”
“Gagged and trussed up with duct tape,” Jessica inserted with a snort.
“We got on the road with Trevor and called the authorities for her.”
Justin raised an eyebrow. “You left her there?”
Before Val or Ransome could speak, Jessica said, “You have to understand, they were the ones who set me free, sir. They were there to do a job and I wanted them to get paid. If the police had been called, they’d have taken Trevor into custody and they would’ve lost their bounty fee as well as their friend’s fee. That didn’t seem like the right way to repay their kindness. I knew that where Trevor was headed he would get his justice and there was plenty of evidence in the house to tie him to my abduction. He was found guilty last December once he was able to stand trial.”
Justin said, “It sounds like there’s more to this story.”
Val answered for her when she hesitated. “He was attacked while in jail awaiting trial. Someone castrated him and he nearly bled out. We never found out all the details but he must’ve pissed off someone who had ties inside the facility he was being held at.”
“And you need my help?” Justin asked with a frown.
Val nodded. “Jessica was notified last night by the officers in charge of Dornan’s case that he escaped during a prisoner transport. He murdered a sheriff’s deputy before he got away. Jessica’s pregnant with Dornan’s baby. It was obvious when she testified against him at the trial. One of the investigators was told by one of Dornan’s fellow inmates that he planned to get his kid back from Jessica the first chance he got. Says it’s his ‘seed’ and belongs to him. They thought she should know.”
“That sounds pretty threatening,” Justin said, shuddering. It sounded crazy and obsessed but he didn’t want to risk upsetting a pregnant woman who probably already felt hunted as it was.
Jessica said, “I definitely feel threatened, sir. This is my baby and I have no intention of giving him or her up to that lunatic. Val gave me a business card and told me that if I ever needed their help to call them.”
Val said, “We followed the progress of the trial and they really put her through the wringer. She doesn’t have any family to fall back on. And Ransome and I know just how easy it is to track someone down. She needs to fall off the grid for a while.”
“Where are you, Miss Bright?” Justin asked, worry creeping up his spine.
“I just got into Divine. I’m sitting in my car parked outside…” There was a pause as if she was looking for a landmark or a sign. “Outside of Batson’s Grocery Store.”
Justin grabbed his set of keys from their hook and said, “I think I can help.”
They instructed Jessica to sit tight and to expect them in just a few minutes.
The phone tree that Charity and Grace had with the girls was nothing compared to the one the men had developed over the years. Justin called his dad and explained their delay in getting in to work, and they were at Batson’s within five minutes. An auburn-haired woman in her early thirties climbed from her compact car, revealing her expectant state, and her relief at seeing Val and Ransome had been evident when she set eyes on them.
Ransome said, “We’re taking you someplace safe, Jessica. You don’t need to be afraid anymore.”
The hero worship in her eyes was obvious as she thanked them. They told her there was no way they’d leave her to defend herself against an obvious threat.
Thirty minutes later, Jessica was sitting at Grace’s kitchen table, surrounded by Jack, Ethan, and Adam, Justin and the guys, as well as Chance and Lydia Carlisle. Charity was due to arrive any minute on her lunch hour. Justin had called the Carlisles to ask for help. He’d also called Hank Stinson, so he’d know what was going on. Hank had instructed them to just let him know where she would be and to contact him if they needed help. He’d agreed that the safest place for her was the Carlisles’ remote cabin since it was unlikely that Dornan would trace her out to Divine, and if he did, he’d never find her that far off of even the nearest gravel road. She could figure out the next step for her and her baby from there.
Val and Ransome didn’t know the Carlisle brothers that well, and when they didn’t seem certain Justin had reassured them. “Chance, Lydia, and Clayton live the farthest out of all of us, there are men at the Rockin’ C Ranch twenty-four-seven. Anyone who shows up will be seen from a distance. And they have the perfect place to safely tuck her away. No one will find her.”
Chance nodded his agreement and said, “We can take her out in the morning. The only way in is on horseback or four-wheeler. We’ve considered putting in a decent road, but sometimes it’s nice to be out of pocket.”
Lydia agreed as she put her arm around her husband’s waist. “You’ll feel very safe there, Jessica. I’ll come out and spend some time with you and help you get to know the area. Would you be okay with staying on your own?”
Looking down at her pregnant tummy, Jessica nodded but said, “Would my cell phone work out there?”
Lydia nodded. “They usually do, but if not, there is also a two-way radio at the cabin. I can show you how to use it.”
Val asked, “What about emergencies with the baby?”
Lydia grinned and said, “We can have a helicopter out there in minutes. It’ll be good to make more use of it, won’t it, honey?”
Chance nodded. “Clayton decided last year that we needed one and he’s just been dying to break it in ever since. We’ve got a couple of hands who are also licensed pilots.”
“Those are pretty versatile employees,” Ransome said with a chuckle.
Chance said, “Tank and Troy wanted to get out of the city and back on a ranch. We had just the job for them. Works for all of us pretty well. What do you say, Miss Bright? Want to come stay with us?”
Jessica looked up at all of them and chewed her lip. “Would…would it be possible to not tell anyone else about what happened to me? I mean, I don’t mind those of you who are directly involved knowing…but I don’t want it to get around town, you know? I’ve been trying to work through my issues and move on with my life and my baby. I just don’t want people looking at me—or my baby—with pity.”
Grace and Lydia shared a smile and Grace said, “The only ones who will know are the ones
you
tell. You have nothing to be ashamed of. You are a survivor of a violent crime and we want to do whatever we can to help you get better and get on with your life. Once everything blows over, you may even decide you want to stay in Divine. It’ll be up to you who knows what happened.”
Chance said, “That goes for all of us, Jessica. Far as Lydia, Clayton, and I are concerned, you could pose as Lydia’s niece who is coming to spend some downtime at the cabin while you prepare for this little one to be born. No one needs to know your private business.”
“And you’re sure it’s not any trouble? It sounds like a lot of trouble.” She gulped. “I’m not sure how well I’d do in a helicopter.”
Lydia took her hand and said, “It’s very plush inside. You’d be perfectly safe. And it’s no trouble at all. The cabin doesn’t get used often enough and we’d be happy to have you. And I could bring the girls out for a visit if you’d like,” she added, as Charity walked in and dropped her purse and jacket on Grace’s couch.
Jessica’s eyes brightened a little. “I wouldn’t mind visitors.” Her gaze roamed around the gathering and settled on Val and Ransome and softly added. “Anyone would be welcome if they wanted to come.”
Brushing her hair back, Charity went to Justin and gave him a kiss in greeting and said, “What’s up?”
They filled her in and before the story was finished, Charity had joined Grace and Lydia at the table, concern filling her eyes. “You’re going to stay, right?” she asked Jessica. Justin had known the minute the story was out that Charity would want to help Jessica somehow.
Jessica smiled and nodded. “I guess I am. Thank you all so much. I have no idea how, but I’m going to pay you back somehow.” She got up from the table and went to Val and Ransome and hugged them both at the same time. The hug was a long one and Justin glanced at Charity in time to catch the slight frown that knit her brow before she averted her gaze.
Jessica looked up at both of the men and said a heartfelt thank-you before hugging them again, and then burst into laughter. Val and Ransome both looked surprised and Jessica said, “I guess the baby thanks you, too,” she said with her hands on her abdomen. “He’s been really quiet all day up until now.”
Grace nodded as she stroked her own abdomen. “Maybe he sensed your nerves. You’re both in good hands now. I’ll contact my doctor, actually
our
doctor,” she said, gesturing around the room. “And let her know that you’re in town. I’ll see if she’d like to visit you with us to see how you’re doing medically.”
Tears filled her eyes and Jessica sniffled and nodded. “Thank you. I can have all my OB’s records transferred to her tomorrow. I’ve been so scared. I think I’ve worried this entire pregnancy that Trevor would somehow figure out where I was. He’s—he’s crazy. I hope that this doesn’t come back to bite any of you…hiding me like this.”
Chance shook his head and said, “You let us worry about all that. Just focus on taking care of that baby.”
“Yes, sir.”
Grace insisted that Jessica stay with them for the night and they could make the move in the morning after a good breakfast.
Justin stood with Charity, listening to his friends make plans and once again marveled at the way they looked out for each other, delegating the tasks that needed to be done to keep Jessica comfortable and safe.
Val and Ransome flanked him and Charity, and Val said, “Just like that, huh?”
Charity chuckled, evidently clueing in to what he meant about their friends closing ranks around them and this woman in need. “Yep. This is how it is around here, honey.” She squeezed Val’s biceps and then patted it. “We watch out for each other. And you’re part of this family now.”