Texas Baby Cover-Up Read online

  “At least he has the opportunity to be raised by another mother who loves him...”

  Zeke was speaking about her. Tears filled Kellyanne’s eyes and she blinked them away. “I—I can’t.”

  He reached for her hand and gripped it. “Kelly, you would be a wonderful mother to Brady. It’s obvious how much you care for him.”

  She did. She’d loved this little boy since the first moment she’d seen him.

  He pulled his hand away and stood and stretched. “Why don’t I go find us some coffee or hit up the vending machine?”

  She couldn’t have endured all this without Zeke by her side but allowing him to get this close was dangerous to her heart.

  The door opened again and, at first, she thought Zeke must have forgotten something. She wiped her face, needing to pull herself together. But when she looked up, she caught only a glimpse of a man’s face beside her chair before he slammed something into her.

  She fell off the chair and hit the floor, pain ripping through her head.

  Her vision blurred but she fought losing consciousness...just long enough to see the man grab the baby and rush from the hospital room.

  Virginia Vaughan is a born-and-raised Mississippi girl. She is blessed to come from a large Southern family, and her fondest memories include listening to stories recounted around the dinner table. She was a lover of books from a young age, devouring tales of romance, danger and love. She soon started writing them herself. You can connect with Virginia through her website, virginiavaughanonline.com, or through the publisher.

  Books by Virginia Vaughan

  Love Inspired Suspense

  Cowboy Lawmen

  Texas Twin Abduction

  Texas Holiday Hideout

  Texas Target Standoff

  Texas Baby Cover-Up

  Covert Operatives

  Cold Case Cover-Up

  Deadly Christmas Duty

  Risky Return

  Killer Insight

  Rangers Under Fire

  Yuletide Abduction

  Reunion Mission

  Ranch Refuge

  Mistletoe Reunion Threat

  Mission Undercover

  Mission: Memory Recall

  Texas Baby Cover-Up

  Virginia Vaughan

  And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you.

  —Joel 2:25

  To Sami. Thanks for being a great writing partner and a wonderful friend.

  Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Epilogue

  Dear Reader

  Excerpt from Held for Ransom by Kathleen Tailer

  ONE

  Kellyanne Avery pulled into her parking space at the apartment complex, disappointed to see her friend’s car missing from its spot. She frowned. Lisa wasn’t answering her phone, which wasn’t like her, and she’d failed to pick up her four-month-old son, Brady, from day care. They’d had Kellyanne’s number on file for emergencies, but this was the first time they’d had to use it.

  Kellyanne glanced up at the window to Lisa’s apartment where a light shone. She had to be home. But where was her car, and why hadn’t she picked up Brady? Kellyanne had just gotten out of the car and opened the back door to retrieve Brady from his car seat when she spotted movement in the darkness and the outline of a man approaching her. Instead of unbuckling Brady, she reached inside her purse for the can of pepper spray she kept there. She was a single woman living alone in Austin, Texas, plus her job as a social worker meant she often went into the worst areas of town. With a father and five brothers in law enforcement, she knew how to protect herself, but that didn’t stop her pulse from pounding in her ears as she backed out of the car. As he grew nearer, she raised the can and spun around to face him.

  “Whoa, Kellyanne, it’s me. It’s Zeke.”

  As the man stepped into the light, she spotted the familiar handsome features of her old flame, Zeke Tyler. She almost hadn’t recognized him without his cowboy hat, but she could never forget that Texas drawl. He’d filled out since the last time she’d seen him, but the kindness in his easy smile and the gentleness of his soft green eyes remained, even as they widened in surprise.

  Zeke Tyler, the man she’d loved since high school.

  Relief flooded her, and she lowered the can of pepper spray, trying to slow down her racing heart. “Zeke, you scared me half to death. What are you doing here?”

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to frighten you. I knocked on your door and no one answered, then I saw you pull up. I promise I wasn’t lurking around.”

  No, Zeke wasn’t one to lurk about. She hadn’t noticed him because she’d been concerned about her friend. “It’s not your fault. I wasn’t paying attention like I should have.”

  And deputy sheriff Zeke Tyler belonged to her hometown of Courtland, not to her life here in Austin.

  She leaned into the back seat, unbuckled Brady and settled him on her hip before closing the car door. Zeke’s eyes widened with surprise and then his brows furrowed. She saw his mind doing mental calculations. Those calculations would come surprisingly close to Brady’s age, but she didn’t want him to go there or ask her the question she saw on his face.

  “This is my friend’s son. She didn’t pick him up from day care, so they called me. I’m the only other person authorized to get him.” The last time she’d seen Zeke, during a visit to her family’s Texas ranch, her on-again, off-again relationship with him had taken a turn, and she’d wound up pregnant. She’d lost the baby before she’d even had an opportunity to tell him. He had no idea he’d been a father for four precious months.

  “Oh.” Relief flooded his expression, but he looked like he was ready to bolt.

  There hadn’t been a good time to tell him about the pregnancy and miscarriage. At first, she’d been so devastated by the loss that she couldn’t even comprehend telling him. She hadn’t been back home since then and had decided this was something she needed to tell him face-to-face. Now was as good a time as any. “Why don’t I take him to his mother and then we can talk.”

  He nodded and followed her up to Lisa’s apartment across the breezeway from her own place. She’d met Lisa when she’d moved to this complex a year ago, and they’d become fast friends. Kellyanne had grown especially attached to four-month-old Brady, and it didn’t take a genius to figure out why. He was close to the same age her own child would have been had he lived.

  She raised her hand to knock but noticed the door wasn’t fully closed, and the wood on the doorjamb splintered. Zeke noticed it too, and he pushed her aside, drawing his gun from a holster under his jacket before elbowing open the door and stepping inside.

  Kellyanne moved behind him. The apartment was eerily quiet, but the place had been ransacked. Drawers stood open and their contents were scattered on the floor. Brady’s toys were strewn and even the TV had been pulled down from the wall and thrown to the floor.

  Zeke checked down the hallway and returned. He slid his weapon back into its holster and shook his head. “No sign of anyone.”

  She glanced around at the chaos and clutched Brady tightly. Who had done this and why? And more important, where was Lisa? “I don’t like this.”

  Br
ady began fussing in her arms. She pulled his stuffed bear from the diaper bag and gave it to him. When she did, she spotted something protruding from behind the couch. She took a few steps closer and gasped. It was a foot.

  She neared the couch, and her stomach dropped to her feet at what she saw.

  Her friend was lying unmoving in a pool of blood, a gunshot wound to her head.

  * * *

  Zeke moved past her to the body on the floor. The woman was obviously dead, but he made a show of checking for a pulse anyway, since this was Kellyanne’s friend. The body was cool to the touch, indicating she’d been dead awhile.

  He stood and pushed Kellyanne toward the door. “We need to be careful not to contaminate the scene.”

  She clutched the baby against her, but let Zeke move her back outside into the breezeway. He pulled the door closed as best he could, took out his cell phone and called 9-1-1. “We need the police. A woman has been murdered.” He rattled off the address and ended the call.

  “Murdered? You think she was murdered?” Kellyanne’s face went colorless, but her bright, blue eyes stared up at him. Must be the shock that made her ask that question.

  “It looks that way. There’s no gun.” The absence of a weapon close to the body ruled out suicide. He’d seen his share of violence during his time as a deputy sheriff. More than he cared to admit. The police would come and have questions for Kellyanne. But first, she looked like she might be sick. He took the baby from her, and she leaned her arms against her knees, trying to catch her breath. She needed to sit down before she fell and also calm down if she was going to be able to answer the police’s questions. He had a few of his own too. There were bruises on Kellyanne’s face and arms. They were crystal clear in the sharp glow of the overhead light.

  Someone had put those bruises there, and now her friend was dead. What had she gotten herself into?

  “Why don’t we wait for the police in your apartment,” he suggested, and she nodded. They moved down the breezeway before she took out her key to unlock the door. Her hand was shaking, so he took it from her and opened it.

  Zeke entered her apartment and spotted a portable crib pushed back into a corner. “Is this for him?” he asked, motioning to the child in his arms.

  She nodded. “I babysit for Lisa sometimes.”

  He placed the baby into the crib and turned back to Kellyanne. Her entire body was trembling with shock and fear. He pulled her into a hug, soaking in the familiar feel of her petite frame against his body. He stroked her dark hair and she didn’t pull away. After a moment, she buried her face into his chest and sobbed.

  “I can’t believe this. Who would do this?”

  He had no answers to give her. Murders were rare in their small hometown but not unheard of. He’d had firsthand experience with that particular crime at a young age, having witnessed his father murdering his mother while he hid in the pantry. The slots on the door had given him a front-row view of the brutality and his father’s suicide minutes later. He did his best to be dispassionate, yet every dead woman he saw took him right back to that terrible day.

  But Kelly needed him, and that brought him back to the present. “I’m sure the police will do their best to find out. What can you tell me about your friend?”

  She pushed away tears as she leaned against the counter. “We met when I moved here last year. We became best friends. She was a paralegal at a law firm downtown.”

  “What about her husband?”

  “She wasn’t married.”

  “The baby’s father?”

  She turned to glance at Brady. “I don’t know who he is. She wouldn’t talk about him. I sensed it was some big secret. He was probably married. But she loved Brady very much.”

  “I’m sure she did.”

  Sirens outside announced the local police’s arrival. Zeke told her to stay inside while he walked out to meet the police and show them the scene. He watched as they cordoned off an area and called in a detective. When one arrived, he examined the body then asked to speak to the ones who’d found her.

  Zeke showed his sheriff’s deputy badge and introduced himself.

  “Courtland County. What are you doing in Austin?” the detective named Shaw asked him.

  “A buddy and I are in town for the Law Enforcement Expo.”

  He nodded. “I know some guys that are attending that. How did you know the victim?”

  “I didn’t. I know her neighbor Kellyanne Avery. We grew up together in Courtland.”

  “Okay. Take me through what happened and then I want to talk to her.”

  There wasn’t much for Zeke to tell, but he explained about approaching Kellyanne and walking with her to her friend’s apartment and finding the body.

  “Any chance she already knew the victim was dead?”

  He shook his head and bit back an angry retort. He knew Kellyanne. This detective didn’t, and he had a job to do. “Her shock was real. She’s still shaken by seeing her friend dead.”

  She was scared, and she had every right to be. A woman, her best friend, had been murdered only a door down from her. If this was random, it was terrifying to think about how close she’d come to being a victim.

  The detective took down Zeke’s information and headed inside to ask Kellyanne many of the same questions. Zeke followed him into her apartment but stood back as he sat at the table. Since Zeke had already spoken to him, it wouldn’t matter much if he listened in, and Detective Shaw didn’t ask him to leave.

  Instead, Detective Shaw stunned him by recognizing Kellyanne “I know you. Don’t you work for DFCS? We’ve had to call you in a few times.”

  He shouldn’t be surprised that they had at least a passing recognition of one another. He knew Kellyanne worked for the Department of Family and Children Services, and social workers often came into contact with police officers.

  Shaw continued. “You responded last month to the Finley case, where the parents were killed during a home invasion, didn’t you? You came by and picked up the kids.”

  She nodded. “Yes, I remember you, Detective.” She reached out and shook his hand. “It’s nice to see you again.”

  “Too bad it’s under these circumstances.” He eased back in the chair opposite her. “What happened to those kids?”

  “Their maternal aunt has taken custody of them. They’re going to be all right.”

  “I’m glad to hear that. I understand you were friends with the victim across the breezeway?”

  Kellyanne nodded and reached for a tissue as her eyelids moistened. “Yes. Her name is Lisa Adams. We met when I moved in last year.” She motioned toward the portable crib. “This is her son. The day care called me when she didn’t pick him up this evening.”

  Detective Shaw smiled at Brady and then asked Kellyanne to walk him through what had happened. Zeke listened as she went over the same events he had. He liked that the detective was being thorough.

  “And how did you get those?” Shaw asked, pointing at the bruises on her face and arms.

  Kellyanne’s hand went instinctively to the dark spots on her skin. Zeke knew what they were. He’d seen bruising like that before. Someone had grabbed her and dug his fingers in, probably as he was dishing out the mark on her cheek. He wanted to step in front of her and stop the detective’s questions, but he also wanted the answers too. If Kellyanne was involved in whatever had gotten her friend murdered, they needed to know about it.

  “Lisa and I attended a fundraiser last night for Congressman Richardson. I was trying to find her to tell her I was ready to leave when I saw her arguing with a man. They were getting loud, and he grabbed her arm. When I tried to intervene, he grabbed me, too, and shoved me into the wall.” She touched the bruise on her cheek. “That’s where I got this.”

  Zeke’s jaw tensed at the image of someone putting his hands on Kelly, but he kept silent and le
t the detective continue with his questioning.

  “And who was this man?”

  “I didn’t know him, although it was obvious Lisa did. We didn’t stick around to make introductions. She hurried to help me and we left.”

  “Did she tell you what the argument was about?”

  “Not at first. She tried to insist it was nothing, but I could tell she was shaken. She finally told me it had something to do with Brady’s father.” She picked at her fingernails, a habit Zeke knew meant she was nervous. She had good reason to be.

  “Brady is her son?” When she nodded, he continued. “And who is his father?”

  “I don’t know. She never told me. It was some big secret. I assumed he was married, but I overheard her tell this guy she was arguing with that she had proof, and that she was going to expose him.”

  “Expose him for what?”

  “I don’t know. That’s when I interrupted them and he pushed me.”

  Zeke walked out. He didn’t want to know any more. It was almost a blessing she couldn’t identify the man who’d shoved her, because he wasn’t sure he could have stopped himself from marching over there and hammering the guy, given the opportunity.

  He pulled out his cell phone and called Greg Frasier. They’d driven to Austin together to attend the LEO conference, and Greg would want to know where he was. They’d made plans to have dinner together at the hotel’s restaurant, but Zeke was going to have to cancel. He needed to make sure Kellyanne was going to be okay before he even thought about leaving her.

  His next call was to his boss, Josh Avery, the sheriff of Courtland County and Kellyanne’s big brother. He would want to know about this.

  “Is Kellyanne okay?” he demanded once Zeke explained the situation.

  “She seems fine. She’s shaken up, but she’s okay.”

  Josh gave a loud sigh of relief. “I don’t like this. I don’t like knowing she’s there alone. I’m glad you’re there now.” He paused and then asked the question Zeke had been dreading. “Why are you there?”