Forgotten Secrets (24 page)

“Do you think they’ll stay put?” she asked, her voice weary.

“They may be mischievous, but they know how serious the situation is. They’ll behave.”

At the top of the stairs, Riley fumbled for the key in her satchel. He pushed her hands aside and took it from her, unlocking the room and taking her inside before shutting and locking the door behind him.

Except for the made bed, the room was exactly as she’d left it, crime wall and all. She stood in the center of the room, never feeling quite so awkward.

“Take a shower,” he said softly.

Glad to escape, she headed to the bathroom, shucked her clothes, and stood beneath the water, letting the jets pulse into her back and neck. Steam rose, and by the time she was finished, she felt partly human again.

She slipped into a chemise and boxers and padded into the bedroom. Thayne had turned down the covers, and a cup of tea and a cinnamon roll sat beside the bed. She perched on the side of the bed and took a sip.

“Did you read my mind?” she asked.

“Nope, just got two of everything.” He waited expectantly in the center of the room.

“Oh good grief, you don’t have to ask. Hit the shower,” she said.

“I didn’t want to presume too much,” he said with a wink.

Her mouth dropped open. If she’d had something to throw at him, she would have. The sound of the water acted like white noise. Her mind seemed to have shut down. She bit into the cinnamon roll, and by the time Thayne strode into the room in a pair of sweats, she’d consumed the last bite.

“Before you ask, no, I didn’t bring a go bag. These are Kade’s,” he said, heading to the closet and grabbing an extra blanket.

Riley sat on the bed and tucked her knees to her chest. “Why does this feel so awkward?”

“Because a year ago, we burned hot and passionate for a week, without looking to the future. Now we know each other too well. And in some ways, not well enough.” Thayne stood beside the bed. “And the future isn’t so clear.”

“You should be a profiler.” Riley rubbed the base of her neck, groaning with the tightness.

“Let me,” Thayne said. He climbed on the bed, his fingers toying with the hair at the nape of her neck before brushing it aside. “Try to relax.”

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

He pressed against the tension that had settled at the base of her skull. His fingers unfurled magic on the knotted muscles. Riley groaned.

Immediately he removed his hands. “Did I hurt you?”

“Don’t stop.” She bowed her head forward.

He worked his way on either side of her vertebrae to a twisted pressure point, capturing the tangled nerves. They fired like sharp needles jabbing from the inside out. She gasped. He paused, but she didn’t ask him to quit, and so he kept pressing.

Riley didn’t know if she could stand the stabs any longer when suddenly they unfurled, relaxing in waves through her shoulders down to her ribs. A sigh escaped her.

“Lay down,” he whispered.

She couldn’t refuse. She sank into the mattress. Thayne rose and flipped off all the lights, except for the bathroom.

He’d remembered.

A few moments later, he climbed under the covers, pulling her back against his chest and the down comforter over them. For a moment, she stiffened.

“Don’t worry,” he whispered in her ear. “We both need sleep, but I love holding you, Riley. I always have.”

Warmth cocooned Riley. For a few moments, sleep banished the horror of the world, and her body sank into oblivion, secure in Thayne’s arms. She was home.

Fifteen Years Ago

“Time for bed, girls. I’ll be upstairs in five.”

Madison threw on her pajamas and made it to her bed just in time. Her mother opened the door. Madison feigned sleep. She planned to make a paper fortune-teller before she really went to bed.

Her eyes grew heavy. She was almost asleep when the bathroom door cracked open. Her sister tiptoed in.

“Maddy?” Riley whispered.

Madison didn’t answer.

Instead of slipping into bed next to Madison, though, Riley tugged a pillow off the bed and lay down beside it.

Madison opened one eye. Riley had brought in her blanket. She was afraid of the dark, and Mom wouldn’t let her have a night-light.

Madison reached over the bed and plugged in the little night-light she’d rescued from the trash when her mom had tried to throw it away.

“Thanks, Maddy. I’m still mad at you,” Riley said with a yawn.

“Me, too.”

Madison closed her eyes. Little sisters sure were a pain.

A lone owl hooted, its eerie cry drawing Madison out of a sound sleep. A soft breeze blew across her cheek. She shivered and drew her blanket tighter around her.

A cricket chirped, its song loud and close, as if the insect had found its way into the bedroom.

Strange. Normally the night noises weren’t so loud.

A soft slide and faint click sounded from the window. Madison stilled, squeezing her eyes tight. Her heart pounded against her chest.

A whimper echoed from behind her bed.

Riley.

Madison’s eyes snapped open.

A large figure bent over her bed. He placed his finger over his lips. Madison opened her mouth to scream. The man shook his head. “If you scream, she dies.”

The man had Riley, one hand covering her mouth. Riley’s eyes were wide with fear.

The scream died in Madison’s throat. She nodded.

“Get out of bed. Put your shoes on.”

Madison shook at her very core. The man’s grip tightened on Riley’s neck. He bent down and whispered something in Riley’s ear.

Riley nodded.

Without a choice, Madison scurried across the room. She paused a few feet from the closed bedroom door.

“You’re too smart to make that kind of mistake,” the man hissed. “I’ve been watching you, Madison. IQ of one sixty. You try to fit in, but you don’t. You look out the window, crying, most every night. You had your first drink tonight. And your first kiss. You are headed down a destructive path, but you have been chosen.

“Your destiny awaits. Now put on your shoes.”

Madison could hardly tie her tennis shoes, her hands shook so much. Her half-heart sister bracelet tapped against her wrist as she finished tying the bow.

She looked over at Riley. Her sister was getting that angry look on her face. Madison wiped her eyes.

With her entire body trembling, she stood and faced the large man.

He smiled. She could see his white teeth. He wore a knit cap on his head. She couldn’t see his hair.

“Go to the window,” he said. He picked up Riley and sat her on the bed. He bent down to her ear. He whispered something, then pulled out a knife. He turned her hand over and ran the knife across her palm. She whimpered. He placed his hand over her mouth.

Madison wanted to jump onto his back, but she knew deep inside if she did, Riley would die.

“Lay down,” the man said.

Riley started crying.

“Do it, Riley,” Madison whispered. “Please. For me. I’ll be fine.”

She knew it was a lie.

The man smiled at her and stroked Madison’s cheek. “You are a very intelligent girl. I knew I wasn’t wrong about you.” He tightened his grip on Riley’s throat. “Close your eyes. Count to fifty. Don’t open your eyes until then.”

He leaned over the bed, his gaze meeting Madison’s. He whispered in Riley’s ear again.

She clenched her eyes tight.

He released his grip from around Riley’s neck. She didn’t move. Thank goodness.

The man opened the window. He held a sweet-smelling cloth to Madison’s nose. “Breathe.”

She took a deep breath. The world went fuzzy and tilted. Her knees gave way.

The man scooped her into his arms against his chest. His mouth touched her ear. “You belong to me. If you do exactly as I say, I won’t come back for your sister.” He nodded at Riley. “If you disobey, your punishment will be severe. And your sister will pay the price. Am I clear?”

Madison blinked up at him. She couldn’t see his face any longer. Her head flopped over. She saw only her sister.

She hummed a few bars of “Puff the Magic Dragon.”

Riley lay still as death.

The world faded to black.

Madison didn’t want to wake up. She prayed she never would.

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

“Madison!” Riley shot straight up in bed, her heart thudding against the wall of her chest, each beat racing through her mind. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

“Shh. It was just a dream.” Thayne wrapped his arms around her and stroked her back in long, rhythmic circles.

At first Riley pushed at his chest, wanting to escape, but he refused to let her go; he just held her tighter.

The dim light from the propped-open bathroom door allowed her to see his face. And him to see hers. He cupped her cheeks and wiped away the tears with his thumbs.

“Madison’s abduction wasn’t your fault,” he said softly.

“You don’t know,” Riley whispered. “I’ve gone over that night in my mind so many times. I should have screamed, but I stayed quiet, just like he ordered me to. I let my sister be taken by a madman, and I did nothing to stop it.”

“You were ten years old. What would you tell a victim’s sister in the same circumstances?”

Riley closed her eyes against the truth. “Damn you.”

“Be kind to that ten-year-old child who lost her sister. She deserves it.”

Riley blinked once, then again. She wouldn’t cry. She couldn’t make herself weak or vulnerable to anyone. She clenched her fists against his chest.

She tried to avert her gaze from the tenderness in his eyes, but he refused to let her. Silent and still, he stared at her, unyielding. They lay together, bodies a whisper away from each other. She breathed in, and his scent wafted over her. He smelled so good. Her heart slammed against her chest. Her hands unfurled against his bare skin.

His eyes darkened, and his nostrils flared.

Desire. This she understood.

She clasped the back of his head and pulled his lips to hers. The passion between them exploded. She could feel his hardening desire, but before they lost themselves, he wrenched back.

“I want more,” he whispered. “More than we shared in this bed a year ago; more than all the phone calls; more than the most erotic dreams. I want it all, Riley. I know that now.”

“I thought I was enough.” She couldn’t keep the hurt from her voice.

“You’re enough, Riley, but I want everything, with nothing held back. We keep telling each other it’s not the right time, not the right place, but will it ever be? I’m tired of waiting for the right moment. Brett Riverton taught me that lesson today.
Now
is the time.
This
is the place.” He stared unblinking into her eyes. “I love you, Riley Lambert. With all of me.”

She could never have imagined hearing the words Thayne spoke. Not for her.

He loved her? Her gaze shifted from his.

“Look at me,” he growled. “Don’t hide. Not anymore, because I’m not. I want a Blackwood kind of love. I want everything you are.”

Thayne lifted her chin with his finger.

“When your parents called and I saw your face, I hurt for you. I wanted to wrap you in my arms and protect you from a past I could do nothing about. When you went into Cheyenne’s office and saw the crime scene with new eyes, I was in awe of your ability. You have a gift that I don’t fully comprehend, but more than that, I witnessed your heart, your compassion. You represent the victims who can’t speak. You put all your energy, everything you have, into finding my sister.

“You’re special, Riley. And if you give me half a chance, I think we could find the love my parents had, the love my grandparents have.” He bent down, his lips hovering just above hers. “Accept my love, Riley. Let me show you how it could be between us. Not just with passion. With tenderness. In good times. And in bad. No matter what. Unconditional, never-ending. Forever.”

A shuddering breath expelled from her lungs. He was offering her everything she’d been afraid to dream of, and she wanted to feel an emotion she’d never believed possible.

With a trembling hand, she touched his cheek. His eyes burned hot with need, making it hard to breathe. Her heart raced even faster. The emotions that had been threatening to overwhelm her erupted with terrifying strength, washing through her mind and soul, destroying the walls she’d erected to protect herself from the hurt and the pain, laying her open and vulnerable.

She should be terrified, but when Thayne held her, she felt safe and whole. He evoked something rare and precious she’d thought had been crushed a long time ago. Faith and trust.

Sinking into the pillow, Riley gazed up into his eyes. They crinkled at the corner with a smile.

Ever so slowly, he lowered his head, his lips barely brushing across hers. Her mouth tingled; her breath caught in her throat. She licked her lips.

A groan rumbled in his chest. “Do you accept my love?”

She closed her eyes and nodded.

“Can you give me your love in return? All your love, all your faith, all your heart?”

She froze in his arms.

Riley had no doubt that she wanted Thayne or that she needed him. He could very well be the best person she knew. How could she not love a man who danced the waltz with his grandmother just to calm her?

When was the last time someone had believed in her and her abilities as much as Thayne? She didn’t believe in herself that much.

What he asked was impossible. Wasn’t it? Love didn’t just go on forever. People fell out of love all the time. Love had conditions. What were Thayne’s?

He sighed, long and slow. “You don’t have to answer yet,” he said, stroking his fingertip down her arm, eliciting a shiver from her. “Someday I hope you will.”

Riley looked up at him, tears clinging to her eyelashes. “I can’t . . . I don’t know how to be what you want.”

“I just want you.” He tucked her against his body. “I’m all in with you, Riley. I’m seizing the moment and jumping in with both feet. I can wait.”

The August dawn sprinkled in through the curtains. The bed was cool. Thayne reached out across the mattress.

Riley was gone.

He propped himself up, listening for the shower. He heard nothing.

He padded across the bedroom and gently opened the bathroom door. A slight hint of steam lingered on the mirror’s edge, but she was nowhere to be seen.

He looked at the bedside table. A small scrap of paper was propped against a cup of coffee. He picked up the note.

Gone to sheriff’s office.

His attention turned to the plate beside the cup. One half of a cinnamon roll.

Thayne bit into the gift with a small smile. They’d shared the gooey treat together most mornings during their first week together. She’d remembered.

It gave him hope. Riley was a woman who had sacrificed her life to protect others, who had sacrificed her dreams to heal her family. Who would stop at nothing to finish what she’d started. It was one of the reasons he’d fallen in love with her in the first place. Which was why she’d left. But she hadn’t forgotten.

With a quick prayer they would find his sister alive and well today, Thayne dressed quickly. He studied himself in the mirror. The SEAL still existed beneath the deputy’s uniform, but right now he was needed here.

He strode down the B&B steps.

Fannie poked her head through the kitchen door. “Could you watch for Kade? He didn’t come home last night.”

“Sure thing.” Thayne nodded over his shoulder.

Within five minutes, he’d arrived at the sheriff’s office and walked in the door. Ironcloud gave him a quick nod, still watching over Riley.

She was in the conference room, deep in conversation with Agent Nolan. He headed toward them when his phone buzzed. He looked at the screen in surprise. “Blackwood. What’s up, Wolf?”

“I heard about your sister, Cowboy. Anything we can do?”

“I appreciate the thought, but that’s not why you called, Commander.”

Wolf sighed. “They want a decision on re-upping. We’ve got a long-term op to prepare for, and they want me to finalize my team.”

“You want my decision now? When would I have to report?”

“Three days.”

“Three days?” Thayne repeated the impossible date.

A voice behind him gasped. Thayne turned. Riley had walked out of the conference room. Her face had paled.

He stared into her eyes. “I can’t make that decision with my sister missing. If they won’t give me more time, I’ll have to go for retirement.”

“I don’t want to lose you,” Wolf said. “I’ll see what I can do.”

Thayne would’ve thought the decision to leave the Navy would be more difficult. “Don’t bother. I have people who need me here, not clear across the world. And I need to be there for them. Put the request through.”

Wolf said nothing for several seconds. “We’ll miss you, Cowboy. I wish I had someone I’d make that decision for. Good luck.”

“Don’t get dead, Wolf.” Thayne ended the call surprisingly serene about the momentous decision.

Riley blinked, her expression stunned. He could tell she wanted to ask questions. They’d have time for talk and more. Later.

“Did Nolan find something?” he prodded.

She shook her head slightly and then refocused. “He discovered only three Cadillacs were identified at the abduction scenes. All different models and colors. It’s a dead end.”

Hell of a way to start the day. “Any good news at all?” Thayne asked with a frown.

“Actually, yes.” She bit her lip, and her brow furrowed.

“You don’t look happy.”

“Because I don’t like what I’m thinking. We ran Gina Wallace’s DNA searching for a potential match with her father. I thought he might be a lead, if not the kidnapper.”

“You found him?” Thayne stood up and motioned his father into the room. His father rushed in and stood by his side.

She shook her head slowly. “The lab discovered something very interesting. Gina Wallace and Brian Anderson are related.”

Thayne steepled his hands beneath his nose as the news settled over him. “How is that possible? I specifically remember reading that Carol had no living relatives in Gina’s file. Gina is alone in the world except for her unknown father.”

“None that we knew of,” Riley corrected. “Until now.” She let out a long, slow breath. “Gina and Brian are half siblings. They share the same father.”

The sheriff’s office went dead silent.

Riley rubbed the back of her neck. “Gina is easy enough to explain. Her mother had a one-night stand with someone who stalked her throughout the years—if we can believe Ed. And I do. Brian is another story altogether. From his file, we discovered he was conceived through in vitro fertilization with a
sperm
donor.”

“Gina’s one-night stand is Brian’s IVF sperm donor?” Thayne met his father’s stunned gaze as he restated Riley’s pronouncement. “What the hell have we stumbled on?”

“They’re family,” his father said.

“Which explains their similar features.” Thayne walked over to the window of the conference room and scanned from photo to photo to photo the series of images—of very similar images—hanging on the wall.

“And the others on the crime scene board?” his father asked.

Riley leaned back against the wall. She pinched the bridge of her nose. “We discovered that more than half the parents of the victims went through some type of fertility treatment. When I first read the file, it just wasn’t something we believed to be significant in regard to the kidnappings. Now . . . well, Agent Nolan is calling the other parents.”

“This doesn’t explain Cheyenne’s abduction,” Thayne said. “Do you have a theory?”

Riley squirmed under Thayne’s gaze. “She has a similar hair color,” she rushed out.

His father straightened, and Thayne caught the twitch of his right hand and the bristling irritation just beneath the surface. “I don’t know what you think you’re implying, young lady.”

“Look, Sheriff, maybe you’d prefer we discuss this alone . . . ,” Riley suggested gently, her eyes knowing.

Thayne’s father met Riley’s gaze, then he glanced at Thayne. A slight tinge rose in his dad’s cheeks, and he cleared his throat. What exactly had Riley discovered?

“Fine. Lynette and I had trouble conceiving early on. She underwent a small procedure before Hudson was born, but after that, the babies came one after the other.”

How many more secrets that had been forgotten or withheld would they uncover during this investigation? “You never mentioned anything to us,” Thayne said, surprise evident in his voice.

His father shrugged. “It’s not something we discussed with you kids. It didn’t matter. She had some fibroids in her uterus, and Doc removed them. It’s one reason she had a hysterectomy so young.”

Thayne remembered his mother going into the hospital while he was in elementary school.

Riley looked down at her feet. Thayne could tell she really didn’t want to ask flat out.

His father straightened. “Let me be perfectly clear, Special Agent Lambert. Cheyenne is my biological daughter. Her hair color is not a coincidence; she comes by it honestly. From my father. End of story.”

“OK.” Riley obviously didn’t want to argue in public.

But Thayne suspected she’d already requested Cheyenne’s DNA be run, which would be on file since his sister had served in the military.

“I want to run comparisons on as many other kidnap victims as possible,” she said. “All of them have some sort of DNA and fingerprints on file. They were just beginning to be collected as standard operating procedure when Gina and Madison went missing.”