Unforgiven--Includes a bonus novella Page 3

  Hill

  Kody Lawton and I had a lot of unspoken rules between the two of us.

  She knew I was going to call her occasionally to check on her, but she never called me back.

  I wasn’t supposed to show up unannounced. She claimed she needed to brace herself to deal with me.

  We never mentioned Aaron or the past. At least not to one another, which was sad. We were the only two people in the world who knew just how great my younger brother had been…and just how troubled.

  I wasn’t supposed to ask her brothers how she was doing, and I certainly wasn’t supposed to worry about her. I broke those rules all the time. And I was breaking the “don’t show up unannounced” one right now.

  It was common knowledge to those close to the Lawton kids that their sweet and calculating mother had wanted each of them to have an out. When she was gone, she’d made sure her kids all had a way to escape the tyrannical rule of Conrad Lawton. They were supposed to use the money she left them for college, to get out of Loveless, but none of them had. Kody went into the bar business. Crew bought a stallion and a small plot of land to raise horses on. And Case, well, he lost all of his to his first wife in a bitter divorce, so he had the least to show for it. None of them had managed to escape this small town, or the long shadow their father cast.

  I’d never been inside the bar Kody purchased with the money she received after her mother passed away. I knew neither of her brothers liked the fact that she’d opened the rowdy dive bar on the outskirts of the city. I also knew Case frequently paid visits to the bar in his official capacity as sheriff in order to break up fights and keep the peace. But I always thought the occupation suited her. Kody was never cut out for the nine-to-five life. I was also proud of her for making her own way in the world. She called her own shots, played by her own rules, and lived her life on her own terms, which was ultimately the best revenge when it came to showing Conrad Lawton he’d never managed to quell his daughter’s fighting spirit.

  I tried to convince myself I was breaking Kody’s firm no–unannounced visits rule because of the murder investigation. She was the only Lawton sibling I’d yet to interview. Case had informed me she was having a rough time coming to terms with Conrad’s murder, and I was far from her favorite person on a good day. He’d warned I wasn’t in for a warm reception, but I had a job to do. And frankly, I needed to see how Kody was doing with my own two eyes. I’d never managed to convince myself that worrying about her wasn’t my problem.

  I’d assured my partner in the investigation I would handle all the interviews and questioning of the people in Loveless and those closest to the former sheriff. It was likely that the people in this close-knit community would be more open with me, since I had roots here. Not that it was any kind of secret that Conrad Lawton had courted trouble for years and was due for a reckoning of some sort. But I needed to narrow down who might have information about what Conrad had been doing in Austin, and who had gained the most from his death. This case had a lot riding on it, not only because Conrad was so well known in the area, but also because Case wasn’t going to let me breathe until he had answers he was satisfied with. I didn’t want to let him down.

  I also needed to give Kody answers. I would never forgive myself for not being more aware and proactive with Aaron when his mental state started to decline. To this day I wondered if I could have saved him, if I could have done something to prevent the agony he’d put Kody through. Her relationship with her father had been complicated and often ugly, but she was going to need closure, and the only way she could get there was for the person, or persons, responsible for Conrad’s murder to be brought to justice. It was the least I could do for her.

  As I stood in the doorway, I took in the bar. It had a decent-size crowd considering it was a Tuesday night. The mix of patrons was as eclectic as the decor. It was all very Kody. The building was an old barn, so the interior had a lot of western elements, including old whiskey barrels for tables. But there were also brightly colored artwork and neon signs brightening up the space. Instead of the big lighting fixture in the middle of the bar being made out of antlers or wrought iron, it was an intricate mix of colorful glass beads. The whole thing was very country and western meets boho chic. The people filling up the seats were mostly Loveless residents. They included the guys gathered near the bar dressed in leather, covered in tattoos, and rocking club colors. The Sons of Sorrow motorcycle club had moved into the hill country on the outskirts of Loveless years after I’d left town. Now their flashy bikes and intimidating presence were as commonplace as pickup trucks and horse trailers. It made sense they liked Kody’s bar since it was between town and their clubhouse, but I didn’t have to like it.

  I really didn’t like the way the large, dark-haired man leaning across the bar looked at Kody. I knew from Case that Palmer “Shot” Caldwell was the current president of the Texas branch of the club. I’d taken it upon myself to learn more about the man when he ended up in the middle of the last case that brought me home. Shot was a former marine, a decorated sniper, the son of the founder of the club, and someone Kody was inexplicably close to. Everything about her relationship with the biker set my teeth on edge and had me wanting to make a claim I had no right to stake.

  As I stepped forward, the heavy wooden door shut with a bang behind me and drew the eyes of the people sitting closest to me. I saw a couple of looks of recognition, and some people purposely looking away. I nodded and touched the tip of my finger to the brim of my hat in a fairly polite greeting. These people weren’t my friends. No one in this town had tried to help my brother when he needed it the most, and I would never forget that. Unlike the Lawton kids, I’d left Loveless in the rearview mirror and planned on never looking back. All of my worst memories were here. So was the one person I wanted more than anything but knew I could never have.

  Under the dim bar lights, I met Kody’s gaze across the room. She looked pale. Her wild mane of multicolored blond hair was messier than usual, and she appeared to be swaying slightly every time she let go of her hold on the bar. Her eyes narrowed, and at first I thought she was giving me a dirty look, but the next instant her entire body lurched and she toppled over, listing to the side and disappearing behind the wide, long bar.

  My heart stopped for a split second and I had to bite my tongue to stop from screaming her name. I often found myself in dangerous, deadly situations due to my job, but I couldn’t recall a single instance when I had been as terrified as I was in that moment Kody went down.

  I heard the biker shout her name and was vaguely aware of him kicking back his bar stool as he jumped to his feet. I was moving before I had time to weigh whether it was a good idea. Kody didn’t like when I was in her space. She’d told me she hated me and ordered me to leave her alone on more than one occasion, but none of that stopped me from reaching the bar in record time. It didn’t slow me down when I planted a hand near the biker’s empty drink and vaulted over the top of the bar.

  I landed on the floor in front of Kody, ignoring the shouts and commotion coming from all directions. I waved off the bartender hovering uncertainly behind Kody and quietly asked, “Are you okay, Kody?”

  The answer was obvious when, instead of biting my head off, her big, bright-green eyes flooded with tears and her shoulders started to shake with silent sobs. Having people burst into tears as I was talking to them was a pretty common occurrence considering my line of work. I’d developed a natural immunity to tears of all kinds. But not to Kody’s. Hearing her breath catch and watching her eyelashes get spiky and damp as she struggled to hold the tears back made my heart twist painfully in my chest.

  “Is there someplace quiet I can take her for a few minutes?” I asked the question over Kody’s head as the bartender pointed to a set of stairs that led to what I assumed used to be the hayloft when the building was an actual barn.

  “Her office is up there.” The bartender twisted a white towel between his hands and muttered, “Is she going to be
all right?”

  Kody gave her head a shake, but a sob broke free. Before she could fight me, or push me away, I reached for her, wrapping her up in my arms and lifting her off the scarred, battered floor.

  “She’ll be fine. It’s been a rough few days.” I was responding to the bartender, but I was also telling Kody she would be okay. I was sure she’d heard it from her family and the people who loved her, but I wanted her to hear it from me as well. She would be fine even if I had to move heaven and earth to make it happen.

  I stood, Kody clutched in my arms, her wet face turned toward my shoulder. I was getting ready to move toward the stairs when I heard a thump and was suddenly face-to-face with a pissed-off biker.

  Shot was an inch or two shorter than I was, but he was bulkier. If it came to throwing fists there was no guarantee I would be the victor. And I figured the badge I carried would do little to deter the man if he felt I was standing in his way.

  “Put her down. I’ll take care of her.” His voice was low and void of any kind of accent. His eyes were dark and unwavering. A tic jumped in his cheek, indicating he didn’t like my being close to Kody any more than I liked his easy familiarity with her.

  I lifted an eyebrow and regarded him from under the brim of my Stetson. The guy was fearless, I’d give him that. But he didn’t know me, or the history I had with the difficult woman in my arms. If he did, he would’ve known the only way I was handing her off to anyone else was if they pried her out of my grasp as I lay dying.

  “Move.” I inclined my chin and narrowed my eyes. “If you don’t get out of my way I’ll arrest you and the rest of your minions for interfering with an active investigation.”

  It was a stretch, but I wasn’t above playing dirty if I had to.

  The biker let out a snort and took a threatening step toward me. “Did you just call my brothers ‘minions’?” The words were bitten out on a growl, and the rising tension could be felt throughout the bar.

  The bartender cleared his throat and shifted uneasily behind the biker. “Umm…guys…take it down a notch. This place can get out of hand when Kody’s not on her game. If you start something while she’s out of it, the troublemakers might burn the place to the ground, and that would piss her off even more.”

  I wasn’t about to hand Kody over to the tattooed thug, and it was obvious he wasn’t going to let me get past him without a fight. I was weighing my options, trying to find a solution that would lead to the least amount of bloodshed—and property damage—when Kody suddenly let out a loud sniff and lifted her head from where it had been tucked next to the side of my neck.

  Eyes the color of a ripe Granny Smith apple gazed up at me. They were partly questioning, with a good dose of desperation clouding them. She sniffed loudly and turned her head to look at the angry biker.

  “Back down, Shot. I’m not in the mood to bail you and your crew out of jail tonight.” Her voice sounded strained, and her words were slightly slurred. Her gaze shot up to mine but flickered away just as quickly. “Put me down, Hill. You’re both overreacting.”

  The biker and I growled in protest almost simultaneously, but we both complied with her wishes. I didn’t want to let her go. It was the closest we’d been in years, and I reveled in the way she seemed to fit perfectly in my arms. Every single place where we touched felt like it was alive with an electric kind of fire. My skin sizzled and my heart raced. Letting go of her was one of the hardest things I’d ever had to do, so I held on just a little bit longer, until she squirmed to be put down.

  I gently put Kody back on her feet, keeping a hand low on her spine as she swayed slightly, leaning against me for balance. Shot took a step to the side and crossed his arms over his chest as he continued to glare at both of us. I ignored the big biker’s ire because a sudden chill skated across my skin where it had lost contact with Kody. There was a void, a consuming emptiness that only she could fill. Too bad she had zero interest in the spot inside my heart reserved solely for her.

  “Shut the bar down early, Trouble. Go home and take a day off. You can’t keep going this way, and you know it.” The effortless way the other man issued the concerned commands had my back teeth grinding together so hard I was worried they might crack.

  Kody weakly waved a hand in his direction and heaved a deep sigh. “Don’t worry about me. I already have two older brothers who think they can order me around. I don’t need another. Be good, and keep your boys in line. I’m sure Agent Gamble is here for business and nothing else, right?”

  The implication was clear. I better have a damn good reason for breaking her hallowed rules.

  I shrugged a shoulder. “I do need a couple minutes of your time.” For the investigation and for my own peace of mind.

  Kody nodded, but the movement seemed uncoordinated and sloppy. I agreed with the biker. She needed to leave work for a few days and get some rest. However, I knew that if I suggested such a thing, she’d freeze me out and ignore the advice out of pure spite. One surefire way to get Kody Lawton not to do something was to tell her she should be doing it.

  Very subtly Kody reached for my arm. I felt her fingers curl into the fabric of my shirt, showing a vulnerability she rarely allowed. The mere fact she hadn’t kicked me out of her precious bar was telling. She was putting on a brave face, but on the inside she was crumbling, finally reaching her breaking point and having to face her emotions.

  I shifted my weight just enough to block her small movement from view. These people didn’t need to smell blood in the water. If there was even a hint that Kody was no longer in control of the unpredictable crowd, all hell would break loose.

  “Let’s go to your office. I promise to keep things quick and get out of your hair as fast as possible.” It was on the tip of my tongue to apologize for showing up unannounced when she was so clearly at the end of her already frayed rope, but I didn’t. There was no doubt in my mind that she would’ve ordered me to stay far, far away from her if she had known I was coming. Then I would have been denied the opportunity to touch her, to hold her, to take care of her in some small way.

  It would have been obvious to anyone who knew her that Kody was not in her typical fighting form when she quietly nodded and wordlessly allowed me to guide her to the stairs. The woman wasn’t one to capitulate to anyone, let alone someone she openly despised.

  The wooden stairs creaked under my boots, but once the intricate barn-style door slid shut, all the sound from the noisy bar down below went quiet. The office was set up more like a living room than a stuffy place for a boss to work. There was a huge teal couch against one wall, a television mounted to the one across from it, and a wooden coffee table complete with fashion magazines and abandoned soda cans on the surface. There was also a desk covered in scattered paperwork and a fancy computer setup in one corner. Once again the design seemed to be a perfect reflection of Kody’s personality. She was determined to do things in her own way. She ran her business with little to no help from anyone else, but she was still a free-spirited, dynamic soul. She liked color and comfort, even while she was being the boss.

  As soon as we were inside the room, Kody released my arm and stumbled her way to the couch. She threw herself onto the soft-looking fabric with an exaggerated groan and covered her eyes with her arm. Her feet landed on the coffee table with a thud as she whispered, “I don’t want to talk to you about my father, Hill. I don’t want to talk to you about anything, but especially not him.”

  I took my hat off and used my free hand to pull at my flattened hair. “You’re going to have to talk to me about him in an official capacity sooner or later. Right now I think you need to get some rest and sober up. You’re no use to my investigation in the state you’re in now.”

  She let out a bitter-sounding laugh and peeked at me from underneath the bend of her arm. Her eyes were bloodshot and her skin pale.

  “You hated my father, Hill. Everyone did. Is there anyone who isn’t a possible suspect in his murder? Are you actually going to try and
find the person responsible for killing him, or are you going to say good riddance like everyone else is whispering behind my back?”

  I sighed and shoved my hat back on my head with more force than necessary. This woman…she made me want to hug her and strangle her.

  “I’m going to do my job. A victim is a victim regardless of who they were or the things they did while they were alive. My personal feelings don’t have any place in finding the truth.”

  She snorted again and re-covered her eyes. “Aren’t you a little close to this case? Do you really think you can remain impartial?” She sounded doubtful. The same way my boss had when I insisted on assisting in the official investigation.

  “I’m not the person in charge of the actual investigation. I’m just lending a hand because everyone knows people in this town are more likely to open up to a local. No matter what you think, I’m here to help.” It felt like I was forever trying to prove myself to her. I wouldn’t be the one making the arrest or getting the Lawtons justice, but I could help the process along. I was damn good at my job.

  I waited for her rebuttal or another snarky reply, but after a few seconds of silence and no response, I called her name and got nothing back.

  A moment later a soft snore drifted up from where she was sprawled.

  “Did you really fall asleep in the middle of our argument?” I asked the question to her still form, biting back a grin as her head suddenly flopped heavily to the side. “I guess you’re going to get the last word no matter what, aren’t you?”

  Shaking my head, I found a colorful blanket folded up next to the couch and grabbed it. I debated taking her boots off for her, but decided against it. She obviously needed the rest, and I didn’t want to do anything that might wake her up. Tucking the blanket up around her chin, I took a minute to look at her face. Even in her sleep there was a tiny furrow between her brows. She was always scowling at me, always looking at me with scorn and disdain. There were times I honestly felt I would give up a limb just to see her smile at me.