Page 12 of Carlos

But there was only one man who had caught her eye recently. Even if she wasn’t in hiding, she’d never get involved with a cop again. Never.

“It’s been almost a year, Clara. No one’s looking for you. No one’s come here for you. I think, maybe, it’s time to consider building a life here.” Jenna indicated her head towards where Kyle was running and jumping like he didn’t have a care in the world. “Go out into town and let him meet kids his own age.” At Zoe’s horrified expression, Jenna amended, “Or just hang out more with the club. You never have to leave club property if you don’t want to. We’ve expanded the number of club kids by a lot since you joined us. I think it’ll do both of you some good, Clara.”

Not knowing what else to say, but also knowing that she wasn’t ready yet to consider expanding her safe space, Zoe said, “I’ll think about it.”

The look Jenna gave her told Zoe that she knew very well what Zoe was really saying. “You’re coming to lunch. That’s a good start.”

Kyle and Zoe entered Jenna’s familiar home. They’d lived in this house for over six months before moving into the trailer. Kyle ran right up to the fridge and asked for a cup of lemonade. Zoe started helping Jenna get out the supplies for sandwiches. She had made homemade potato salad, coleslaw, and bean salad too. Jenna always seemed prepared to feed an army.

They brought everything out into the back porch. Zoe thought they were just waiting on Steel to join them—until she saw others crossing the backyard towards Jenna’s house.

Zoe swallowed nervously. She knew who most of them were, but had not spent any time interacting with them. Jenna was the only person she’d really spent time with over the past year, and that was only because Zoe didn’t want to be rude when the woman was giving up her house for them.

Women and children started to fill the porch. Zoe was about to grab Kyle and make their excuses when she saw an older boy with Down syndrome—Scotty, she thought his name was—start up a game of tag with Kyle. Her son’s loud laughter froze Zoe in place. She didn’t get to hear that sound often enough.

Jenna met her eyes from across the patio. She gave Zoe a kind and patient smile, her eyes encouraging.

Zoe hadn’t realized she’d backed herself to the paneled siding of the house until she stepped away. She could tell the other women were watching her but were allowing Jenna to take the lead. Feeling like she was entering a lions’ den, Zoe slowly stepped forward to meet Jenna by the food table.

Jenna took her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. Then she turned to the ladies present. “Everyone, this is Clara. Her son, Kyle, is the little one playing with Scotty.”

And that was it. Like Zoe and Kyle hadn’t been hiding out on their property without socializing with any of them for nearly a year. Jenna just introduced them like this was her first day here. Neither Tessa nor Harper pointed out that she’d been invited to their weddings and had turned down the offer.

A little girl joined Kyle and Scotty when their game of tag brought them to the playground equipment, which was in the center of the communal backyard. That must have been added after Kyle and Zoe had moved out of Steel and Jenna’s house—or she never would have gotten Kyle off of it. Even now, she was anticipating the fight to come when it was time for them to leave.

Sorrow pierced her. Maybe she was a bad mother.

Zoe was making a plate for herself and Kyle when movement out of the corner of her eye made her freeze. A middle-aged police officer in a beige uniform stepped onto the back porch. He was carrying his wide brimmed hat and chatting with one of the club’s members.

The plate fell from between her hands as fear gripped her. Kyle! She had to get Kyle! The police had found her!

CHAPTER 4

Carlos followed his brother through the gate that had recently been built between Bulldog’s and Steel’s houses. They could hear the voices of the VDMC women and children as they walked around the house on the grass. Just as they reached the corner that would allow them to see Steel’s back porch, a loud crash rang out, followed by a hushed silence that only lasted a second, and then panicked voices.

Bulldog and Carlos exchanged a looked before they hurried around the corner and towards the porch. Carlos reached the wooden stairs first.

Jenna’s niece, Clara, was trying to push her way through the crowd of people gathering for lunch. A broken plate was on the patio floor by the food table. Others tried to get her attention, but Clara ignored them. She was keeping her head down as she made to leave—and ran headlong into Carlos at the top of the stairs.

The two of them seemed to be suspended in midair for a heartbeat until gravity got the better of them and they went tumbling down.

Carlos instinctively wrapped his arms around Clara and tried to take the brunt of the many impacts. His knee collided with something sharp, his chin clipped something solid, and his back smacked down hard onto the steppingstones on the grass where they came to a halt. Additionally, his utility belt was digging painfully into his hip.

Voices and shouts arose as everyone tried to reach for them. Wincing, Carlos released his hold on Clara when he realized she was trying, quite frantically, to get off of him. They were a tangle of limbs as she scrambled to stand. In her haste to rise, her knee collided with his balls.

Raging hot fire radiated through his entire body. Carlos grunted and groaned, rolling into the fetal position. Nausea roiled and somehow Carlos did not throw up. All air left his lungs and he could not get his body to recall how to breathe for several seconds.

At twenty-eight, Carlos could proudly say he’d gone through his life without having ever felt a man’s greatest fear. Christ, he never wanted to feel this level of pain again. It was agony incarnate.

He felt hands try to get him upright and then he saw Bear in front of him. The giant man was a registered nurse and his wife a doctor. But Carlos knew there was no magic cure or medication to help him through this pain. Only time could help.

Bear reached behind him and grabbed something from one of the guys. It took Carlos a second to figure out Bear was trying to get him to move his hands away from his throbbing jewels to put an icepack there.

Carlos glared at Bear as the man let out a small chuckle. “What the fuck, man?” It came out more as a whine than a complaint.

Bear grinned wider. “How’s your first day on the job going, Sheriff?”

Carlos could only groan.