A Cowgirl's Pride (3 page)
Authors: Lorraine Nelson
“I didn’t. Apparently, Roddy dumped her long
before I appeared on the scene. She laughed off helping me as being her revenge.
I didn’t care about that, but at first I did wonder if I could trust her. In
the end, I didn’t have a choice.”
“Because you’re pregnant?” asked Zakia.
“Yes. I don’t want my child to grow up calling a
murderer daddy.”
“How likely is it that he’ll follow?”
“I don’t know, Luke. We talked about the ranch
off and on at first, but I haven’t mentioned it since that night. He often teased
me about being his country girl, but I’m not sure he’d remember the name of the
ranch or where it is.”
“We need to alert the police on this,” said
Luke.
“I know, but what will they do to me?”
“You’ve done nothing wrong, Lee. You’ll be
fine.”
She twisted a napkin beyond recognition as she
posed the next question. “Roddy has friends everywhere. What if he finds out?”
“For what he’s put you through, I only wish he
would.” He pushed away from the counter. “Excuse me while I make that call.”
Luke left the room, and Zakia rose to fill their
mugs.
“I’m sorry for landing all this in your lap,
Zakia. If I’d known you and Luke had kids, I probably would’ve gone to Dad’s
place.”
She laughed. “Well, as it happens, I came back
when I was in trouble last summer.”
“You did? Dad mentioned you were back when I
called, but I’d had to ring off. What kind of trouble could you have possibly
gotten into?”
“A stalker, following, threatening, leaving
horrid messages everywhere I went. The worse they got, the more scared I was, for
myself and for the boys. The only place I could think of that was safe, was
here, with Luke.”
“Wow! I’m sorry about that, but Luke obviously
still loves you. I’m glad it’s worked out for you two. They did catch the guy?
Right?”
“Yes, but it’s complicated.”
“How?”
“The stalker turned out to be Winnie’s oldest
son, Roy.”
“Dad’s wife? Oh, wow! How did she take it?”
“Not good at first. Blamed herself, as most
mothers would. She and your father had a rough go of it for a while, but
they’ve worked things out.”
“Good, Dad deserves a little happiness.”
“Speaking of which, shouldn’t you call and let
him know you’re home?”
“Yeah, about that. I was wondering if we could
invite Dad and Winnie to dinner tonight, surprise him?”
“What a great idea! I’ll do that now,” Zakia
said, rising to her feet.
“Isn’t Luke on the phone?”
“Oh, yeah. I forgot.”
She plunked back down in the chair, and they
giggled as both reached for a cookie instead.
* * * *
Luke’s features registered concern as he
rejoined the women.
“Were you able to reach Michael?” Zakia asked.
“No, he’s out on a call so I left a message for
him to stop by. I didn’t want to alert anyone to the fact that Leah is home.
Too easy for word to spread.”
“Don’t I know it,” said Zakia.
He placed a hand on hers to still her shaking.
“You’re safe now. Let it go.”
“I’m trying, Luke, but it isn’t easy.”
“I know.” He turned his attention back to Leah.
“So, what else is this guy into? Who is he?”
“His name is Roderick Kendall. He owns Le Club
Rouge Sang, where I worked, a few small businesses, some apartment complexes,
and a resort on
“Thinks himself important, does he? Did you see
or hear of anything else illegal or criminal he might be involved in? If he’d
murder a friend in cold blood, I can’t help but think he’d done it before.”
“He’s well-respected among his peers, but most
of them are seedy characters dressed in suits. You know what I mean?”
He nodded. “Yeah, go on.”
“Well, when a man does good, or a woman for that
matter, there’s always talk. Some say he’s into drug trafficking, protection
for hire, murder for hire. He just laughed at it all, never admitting or
denying any of it.”
“What do you mean, protection for hire. Like a
bodyguard?”
“No, more like enforced protection for
businesses. If the businesses don’t pay up a share of their profits, they get broken
into, trashed, and/or burned to the ground. Sometimes, the owner turns up
dead.”
“Oh, Leah! What did you get yourself involved
in?” asked Zakia.
“I swear I didn’t know any of this at first. He
kept all that away from me, until after Alex’s murder. Then he didn’t care what
I knew. He felt he had guaranteed my silence.”
“Have you proof of any of this?”
“Sort of, and I can name all his ‘friends’ as
they met at the house quite regularly. Dinner and private dances either before
or after their meeting.”
“Private dances?” Luke asked. His hands balled
into fists where they rested on the table.
Leah hung her head for a moment, ashamed to
admit what she’d done. Then she straightened her backbone and met his angry
stare head-on. “Yes, Luke. Private dances. Strip tease. I had to perform for
those men.”
Chapter Two
“My God, Leah! Why didn’t you call?” Luke asked
as he paced the room. “I would’ve gotten you out of there in a heartbeat.”
“No, you would’ve stormed in there and ended up
dead. Roddy and his friends do not play nice. I couldn’t take that chance. I’d
made my bed.”
“I wouldn’t have gone in alone.”
“Maybe not, but I didn’t want anyone else
getting hurt because of me. Alex’s death was enough on my conscience.”
“
jealousy and lack of self-control led to Alex’s death. It was nothing you did.”
“He made me feel that it
was
my fault.”
“Well, it wasn’t. You were paid to dance, and
you danced. And he went from jealous possessiveness to making you do striptease?
Unreal!”
“Yeah, after Alex touched me, he said I was
tarnished goods. He called me vile names and abused me verbally and, ah,
sexually, just nothing that would show when I danced. You see, I, uh, drew a
good crowd.”
“Of course you would. You’re a beautiful woman,
Leah. I may be your brother, but I’m not blind. With that long platinum hair,
dark brown eyes, and a decent figure, what man wouldn’t want to watch you
dance?”
“Thanks, Luke. So what do we do now?”
“We wait and see what the expert advises.”
“Who’s Michael?”
“Michael Grayson, Winnie’s middle son, remember
him?”
She nodded. “Yes, I think so.”
“He recently moved back home and took over
Blake’s position with the R.C.M.P. detachment in
He’s in charge.”
“Oh! Okay. Blake’s a cop? I remember him better than
Michael, because you two were inseparable back then.”
The phone rang, and Luke rose to answer the
kitchen extension. “Hello…yes, I did. Can you come over…? Yeah, but it’s kind
of urgent and I’d appreciate your input…okay. I’ll explain when you get here.”
He replaced the receiver in its cradle and stood looking out the window for the
longest time. “That was Michael. He’s coming right over. I think I’ll go check
on the boys.”
“Okay, dear,” said Zakia, watching him go.
“He’s angry at me, isn’t he?”
“He’s angry
for
you, Leah. There’s a big difference.”
“Well, he must be disappointed in me, bringing
trouble home and pregnant to boot.”
“You’re certainly not the baby sister who left
here five years ago. It’ll take a little adjusting on his part.”
“I needed him and Daddy so bad, Zakia, but I was
ashamed to ask for help after the way I’d left here and how I was making a
living. I’m not proud of myself, but I needed to get away, to see a little more
of this beautiful country
and
grow up.
Here, I would always be ‘Baby Girl’ to everyone. Out there, I could be
me
and at least try to fulfill my
dreams. Then when trouble hit, I was terrified to tell them and have them rush
out there…maybe lose them for good.”
“Yes, I can see the dilemma you were in, but no
matter what, you’re family. They would’ve helped if they’d known.”
* * * *
A vehicle drew to a halt beside the house, and
Zakia crossed to the window. “It’s Michael. I’ll go call Luke down.”
“No need,” he said as he entered the kitchen. “I
heard him pull up.”
“All right. I’ll tend to Casey and Cammy, so
they don’t run in and interrupt.”
“Okay. Good,” he said as he opened the door to
admit the Mountie.
She wouldn’t have recognized Michael if she
hadn’t already been told who was coming.
“Leah, you remember Michael?”
“Leah? Little Leah? Geesh, girl, you’ve gone and
grown up on us.”
“Thanks, Michael. You’re definitely a lot bigger
than I remember.”
“Wowee, girl! You’re sure are a looker.”
She smiled at him, surprised at the changes. He
was gorgeous, but he seemed harder somehow, his smile not quite reaching his
baby blues. “You’re not so bad yourself. Is that your way of trying to relax
the people you intend to interrogate?”
This time the smile made his eyes twinkle and
the dimple on his cheek more prominent. “Not all, just the women.”
Amused laughter followed the bantering.
“Seriously, though, is this an official visit or
a welcome home party?”
“It’s official, Michael,” said Luke. “Leah’s in
trouble, and we need your help.”
That “we” was the most beautiful word she’d ever
heard. She wasn’t alone in this anymore.
Michael’s smile disappeared as he sat down
across from Leah, digging a notebook and pen out of his pocket.
Luke also sat. Being surrounded by men was
nothing new to Leah, but for some reason, she felt nervous. Or was that shame
and guilt rearing its ugly head? Having to expose her sordid life to this man
who’d been a family friend for years wasn’t going to be easy. “Where do you
want me to start?”
Michael smiled. “The beginning is usually the
best place. Would it help if I asked questions?”
“No, not really.” She glanced at Luke, and he
nodded for her to go on, so she related her tale again. When she’d finished,
there was complete silence.
“Phew! You went after trouble big time when you
got involved with
“You know him? How?” she asked.
“Until I returned home a few weeks ago, I’d been
a vice-cop in
He featured in a lot of our cases, but we could never prove his involvement.”
“I didn’t know.”
“How could you when you just returned home
yourself. I find it funny, though, how your name never came up in connection to
his during any of the investigations.”
“Roddy likes to keep his private life private.”
“Apparently so. Same as his club. When I was
working undercover, they wouldn’t allow me in.”
“No, it’s members only. He prefers a very elite
clientele. No offence.”
“None taken. Why do you think he’ll follow you
here? Because of Alex’s murder?”
“Partly.”
“Surely, there are other women he could have
without coming after you.”
“If only it was that simple. Roddy is
possessive, very possessive. He doesn’t like to lose anything or anybody he
considers his. And besides, I know things, like Alex’s murder. He’s not about
to let go willingly. With the minions he has under his control, he can find out
anything. He
will
find me, the only
thing I don’t know is when.”
“So all of this happened four years ago?”
“Yes.”
“How is it you found a way to leave now and not
then?”
“Incentive. I’m pregnant, and I want a better
life for my child.”
Michael sat back and stared at her, his face
registering disbelief. She’d shocked him. She could tell he hadn’t expected to
get hit with that one.
“So
that’s
why you think he’ll come here.”
“Not at all. He doesn’t know. He’ll
never
know.”
“Okay, that’s your decision to make, but what
now? I can arrange a safe house for you,” he offered.
“I feel safe here, but I don’t want to put Luke’s
family in danger,” she said as she fiddled with her badly crumpled napkin.
“Let me worry about that. You’re my family,
too,” Luke said, covering her hand with his own and giving it a squeeze of
reassurance.