Tool Belt Defender

She’d been by Alex’s side when Linda had died, and he knew the anger she’d felt toward her daughter, an anger that still burned inside Alex when the grief wasn’t filling him up. But Rose had hidden her anger well as she’d tended to her daughter in Linda’s last days.

When Rose disappeared from his sight he turned and went back into the house. As he climbed the stairs to Emily’s room, he checked his wristwatch. It was only a little after four.

He found Emily sitting at the child-size table and chairs in her room. Lady Bear sat in the chair opposite her and there was a coloring book open not only in front of Emily, but also in front of the bear.

“Hi, Daddy. We decided to color you a picture,” she said as Alex folded his long legs and sat in the little chair next to hers.

“You know how much I love your pictures,” he replied. In fact, the front of his refrigerator was laden with Emily’s artwork. He watched for a few minutes as she colored a blue sky and a pink house. When she started in on the yellow sun he spoke.

“You know, I was thinking, maybe since you were such a good girl for grandma while I was gone, we might have ice cream before dinner.”

Emily’s green eyes opened wide and the yellow crayon rolled out of her small hand and across the table. “Before dinner? Like right now?”

“Like right now,” he replied. He laughed as Emily was out of her chair with Lady Bear in her arms before he could blink his eyes.

“Now, that’s a good plan,” she exclaimed.

“But only one scoop. I don’t want to completely ruin your appetite for dinner.”

“Okay, maybe one scoop before dinner and one scoop after,” Emily replied, making Alex laugh.

Ten minutes later they were headed down the sidewalk to Main Street where Izzy’s Ice Cream Parlor had quickly become their favorite shop in town. He’d managed to convince her that Lady Bear didn’t need to come with them, that she’d much prefer some pretend honey when they got home than an ice cream cone now. As they walked Emily regaled him with stories about her day in school.

Thankfully, Emily had adjusted well to changing schools, loved her teacher and had already made new friends. She also loved having a backyard and had begun making noises about getting a dog. So far she’d adjusted to the move far better than Alex.

Although he’d been ready for the change, looked forward to a new occupation, a new lifestyle, he hadn’t expected the loneliness.

In Chicago there had been business dinners, fundraisers and late nights at the office to keep the loneliness at bay. Here most evenings existed of a bottle of beer and the sound of crickets from outside the window. He definitely hadn’t expected this kind of aching loneliness.

But he didn’t intend to ever marry again, and was reluctant to even date. The last thing he wanted to do was invite a string of women into Emily’s life, women who would never be more than temporary.

As they walked by Brittany Grayson’s house his thoughts returned to her. According to the local gossip she’d been strong and courageous during her captivity, and the other women who had been held captive had given her credit for keeping them sane.

If he did ever decide to marry again, which he seriously doubted he would, he would choose a strong woman. He’d loved Linda, but it hadn’t taken him long into the marriage to realize she was childlike in her fears of life and that fear was ultimately what had led to her death.

Still, even though he told himself he had no desire to get involved with any woman right now, he couldn’t help the anticipation that swept through him as he thought of seeing Brittany again.

He couldn’t help but wonder if she was the fearless heroine everyone called her or just a damaged victim of a heinous crime.

Chapter 2

“Maybe you moved back here too soon,” Brittany’s eldest brother, Tom, said to her the next morning. He’d stopped by on his way into work as sheriff of Black Rock. He was a handsome man in his khaki uniform, but he had that stern big-brother look on his face that drove Brittany crazy.

“I mean, if the sight of a balloon threw you for a loop, then maybe you weren’t ready to be out on your own,” he added.

“It was time for me to get out of Benjamin and Edie’s place. They’re newlyweds and need their own space and it was time for me to get on with my life.” Brittany got up from the table to refill her coffee mug. “Besides, it didn’t throw me for a loop. I just wondered who had tied it to my mailbox and why.” She topped off her coffee and then rejoined him at the table. “It was just natural curiosity.”

Tom smiled at her knowingly. “Most people’s voices don’t quiver when expressing their feelings of natural curiosity.”

“I’m sorry I even mentioned it,” she retorted ruefully.

“You know you could always stay with us if you aren’t ready to be out on your own. Peyton wouldn’t mind having you with us.”

Love for her brother surged up inside Brittany. He and his wife were newlyweds, as well, and had Peyton’s little daughter, Lilly, to dote on. Besides, Brittany didn’t want to live with any of her brothers anymore. She wanted … needed to be out on her own.

“Thanks, but I’m fine here. In fact I’m having a new deck built.”

“Chad doing it?” he asked.

Brittany shook her head. “He was busy so he recommended a friend of his, Alex Crawford.”

Tom frowned. “I don’t think I’ve met him.”

“He’s only been in town about six weeks. He moved into the Walker house.”

He nodded. “Have you given any thought to coming back to work?” he asked.

Before her kidnapping Brittany had also been a member of the Black Rock law-enforcement team. She’d worked beneath Tom as a deputy along with her other brothers Benjamin and Caleb. Her brother Jacob had worked for the FBI in Kansas City, but during the time Brittany had been kidnapped he had returned to Black Rock and was now also a deputy for the town.

“I’m not ready yet,” she replied. “I hate to leave you shorthanded but to be perfectly honest, I’m not sure I want to return.” The words formed a lump in the back of her throat.

Tom lifted an eyebrow in surprise. He leaned back in his chair, his eyes studying her. “You don’t have to come back if it doesn’t feel right, and don’t worry about leaving me shorthanded.”

“But isn’t Benjamin leaving in a week or so?”

“Two weeks.”

Brittany’s brother Benjamin had for years divided his energies between the jobs of working as a deputy and ranching on the family homestead. He’d finally decided to ranch full-time and was quitting his duties as deputy.

“Have you given any thought to what you’d rather do if you don’t come back?” Tom asked.

“Not really. I thought I’d take some online college classes and keep my options open.”

“What about money? Are you okay?”

Brittany smiled. “I’m fine. I had some savings and I’m using some of my inheritance for the deck.”

“I figured you’d already spent all that money on shoes and purses,” Tom said teasingly and then checked his watch. “I’ve got to get out of here. If I don’t check in soon, Caleb will be sitting in my chair with his feet up on my desk.” He downed the last of his coffee and then got up from the table and carried his cup to the sink.

Brittany walked him to her front door where he turned and touched her lightly on the tip of her nose. “You’ll be okay. Go shopping, buy yourself something completely frivolous. That’s always made you feel better in the past.”

She watched him as he walked toward the path to his patrol car parked at the curb. She knew he meant well. All of her brothers did, but they all interacted with her as if she were the same person she’d been before the kidnapping, and she wasn’t.

She closed the door and locked it, then returned to the kitchen and grabbed her coffee cup. She walked to the back window and stared out at the patio.

A little over eight months ago, before she’d been taken captive, she’d been a spoiled, indulged princess. She’d loved hanging out with her friends at Harley’s Bar, a rough-and-tumble tavern that boasted live music on the weekends. She’d loved shopping and lunch out and dating men that weren’t necessarily husband material.

She’d often been late to work, knowing that her brothers would cover for her, and living each moment without thought for the next had been her specialty.