Spurred (Steele Ranch 1)

“I’m not scared of you,” I told him, pointing my finger at him. Took in his intelligent gaze, saw the experience there. Life lived. “This whole...quiet, brooding thing you’ve got going is to, what? Keep people at a distance?”

His hair was cut short, neat. Threads of silver were at his temples. I guessed him to be late-thirties. I could see a tattoo peeking out from beneath the cuff of his shirt. He was handsome, but hard looking. Rugged, like a cowboy, but with rough edges as if he’d been through rough times. Survived.

“Good. My job is to keep you safe, not have you fear me,” he countered.

I put my palms on the table, leaned forward. “You’re a big softie.”

One dark brow winged up, the one with the scar through it.

“Don’t tell anyone.”

Jamison’s cell pinged, indicating a text. It was sitting beside his right arm on the table. He pulled it closer, read the display.

“They’re at the station. It’s over.”

“They got them?”

“Yes. They’re going to question them, but Archer wants you there.”

Adrenaline shot through me. I was glad they were in police custody, but I was worried for Beth. No matter what I said or what the others tried to tell me, I loved my sister and worried about her. It wasn’t going to go away, no matter what she did. I loved her. Not her actions.

But, her actions were what put her in jail and it was time to find out her reasons. To get to the bottom of all this.

I stood, my chair sliding across the wood floor. “Let’s go.”

Thirty minutes later, I walked into the Barlow station, Jamison at my side. I was a mixed bag of emotions. Excitement at seeing Cord and Riley, knowing they weren’t hurt. Nervous at seeing Beth, not sure how she would behave. Scared of hearing David Briggs’ intentions. But while they might be in jail, there was no closure. Yet.

Cord and Riley were talking with Sutton, but when they saw me, they left him behind. And like the first time I saw them, my heart skipped a beat.

Riley pulled me in for a hug, then a quick kiss before passing me off to Cord for more of the same. Their touch, their scents were reassuring. Loving. Now wasn’t the time to go all mushy.

“Jamison said they’re in custody.”

“Your sister’s in a meeting room and Briggs is in a cell,” Riley said, angling his head in the direction I assumed were where they were kept.

“It’s over, just like that, while we played Scrabble?”

Riley smiled, glanced up at Jamison who stood just inside the doorway. “Scrabble, huh?”

“Thanks for coming in, Kady,” Archer said, coming over to us. Here, in the station, he was more imposing, more official. While I didn’t doubt he had experience with all kinds of crimes, Barlow wasn’t Philadelphia. Having someone arrange a murder-for-hire didn’t happen every day.

“I would think you’d want to see the back of me. I changed the crime statistics of the county in the few days I’ve been here.”

He smiled at that. “True. But Barlow would be boring without you. So would these two.” He looked pointedly at Cord and Riley.

“What do you need me to do?” I asked, resolved to make his life easier

. I had no doubt he had tons of paperwork to deal with before he was able to go home. Since it was already after ten, it was going to be a long night.

“Mr. and Mrs. Briggs aren’t ruthless masterminds. We caught them easily, just flashing our lights and pulling them over.”

“Really?” I asked. “I envisioned stun grenades and Tasers or something.”

Cord laughed. “You definitely watch too much TV or we need you moved out of Philadelphia as soon as possible.”

“Briggs is a sociopath, no doubt about it,” Archer continued. “He didn’t—doesn’t—think he’s done anything wrong, that he was within his rights to come to Montana and meet his new sister-in-law. True criminals hide from the cops. Only the crazy ones believe they can’t be caught. Briggs made a very clear path for us to follow, to easily tie him to the crime. Same rehab as your sister. Hell, he married her. Wire confirmations to the dead guy. Airline tickets to Montana, even a rental car with a GPS that puts him on the road to Steele Ranch. I’d hate to be his defense attorney.”

“And Beth?” I held my breath.