The Texas Ranger

“Do you know about what happened to her some years back?”

Puzzled, Sam said, “I guess not. Was she involved in a crime?”

“She was a victim, one of several victims of a kidnapper, but she was the only one who lived. Remember the coed kidnappings?”

“Oh, my God. The papers were full of it for months. That was Skye? Gabe’s never mentioned a word about it to me.”

“Take these files and read over them,” Heck said. “We have to decide if we can find any reason to reopen the case. It’s been stone cold for a long time. If we could get some help from Skye Walker, it could make all the difference.”

“Skye’s a really nice woman,” Sam said. “I’m sure she’ll be glad to help any way she can.”

“Maybe. Maybe not. Read the files first, then we’ll talk some more.”

Chapter Four

Sam read through the files that covered a period beginning ten years before and became more concerned as he read. In each case, a young woman had been kidnapped from a university in Texas and her family contacted for ransom money. The money had been paid in every case but one, the third abduction, where a girl had been taken from Rice University in Houston. She’d been on scholarship, and her mother couldn’t afford to pay. Coeds, from freshmen to grad students, had been taken from seven major schools: SMU in Dallas, Rice in Houston, University of Texas in Austin, Stephen F. Austin in Nacogdoches, Baylor in Waco, North Texas in Denton and, finally, Texas A&M in College Station. All except Pamela Fairchild, the junior at Rice, were from well-to-do families. None were ever seen again. Except one.

Skye Walker. The seventh case.

According to the file, Skye had left that morning for a run with her dog. When she didn’t return, her roommate became concerned and went looking for her. She’d found the dog, a German shepherd, unconscious from a tranquilizer dart. She’d called the police. Later that day, Gabe had been contacted by phone and instructed to pay a ransom for Skye’s return. An FBI comparison determined that the calls and ransom procedures were the same as in the previous coed kidnappings. Gabe had paid the ransom, but Skye wasn’t returned as promised.

The next day her dog had somehow located her and attracted attention by digging and barking. Skye had been found in a plywood box in a shallow grave in a secluded area about a mile from where she’d been abducted.

“My God!” Buried alive. Sam rubbed his hand over his face and swung his chair to face the window. She must have died a thousand deaths in that box. No wonder the security around her was so tight. And they’d never caught the bastard. He was still out there somewhere. Sam wondered if he’d moved to another part of the country to keep up his abductions. Of course he’d netted a fair amount of money. Maybe he’d just retired to Mexico.

He turned around and went back to his reading.

Skye had been dehydrated, severely traumatized and hoarse from screaming when they’d found her. Her fingers had been bloody from trying to escape. And she hadn’t been able to remember a thing about her abductor. She’d had total amnesia for the incident, but had worked with psychologists and hypnotists trying to remember.

Nothing.

Of course her abductor hadn’t known that she couldn’t remember. Sam figured that when had news hit about Skye’s recovery, the perp had made tracks.

Bastard. Sorry bastard.

Without information from her, the cases had gone nowhere. He gathered up the files and went into Heck’s office.

“Well, what do you think?” his lieutenant asked.

“I think the chances of ever finding the guy who did this are pretty slim unless Skye gives us something to go on. Looks like every lead at the time was exhausted.”

“I agree. I’d like for you to talk to Skye Walker again and see if you can come up with anything that would warrant us reopening these cases. She and her brother were cooperative at first, but they later pulled back, and he’s been very protective of her.”

“I’m not surprised,” Sam said. “If it had happened to my sister, I’d do the same. Sure, I’ll talk to her. But I’ll check with Gabe first. I’ll call him now.”

Sam caught Gabe at his office.

Gabe was guarded when Sam brought up the subject of the coed kidnappings and his unit’s interest in reopening the case.

“Sam, Skye can’t remember the man. The last thing she remembers is leaving her apartment that morning. She was in therapy for years afterward, and she’s still traumatized over what happened to her. Her life is workable now, and I don’t want to rock the boat. You can’t imagine what it was like.”

“I’ve just read the case files. It blew me away that she managed to live through it. Seems to me it might help her if we could reopen the case and nab this guy. Do you mind if I ask her?”

“Let me talk to her first,” Gabe said. “I’ll get back to you tonight.”

SKYE’S FIRST REACTION WAS SHOCK, then anger. Was this the reason that Sam had been so interested in her? Was she simply an interesting bug under a microscope and a means for him to become big dog by solving an unsolvable old crime? “So much for my sex appeal,” she muttered.

“Whoa,” Gabe said as they sat alone in his study after dinner. “I hope you’re not thinking that Sam’s only interest in you is because you were a victim.”

“Sure sounds that way.”

“Skye, he didn’t even know about your abduction until this morning.”

“And you believe that?”

“Of course I believe it. Sam’s an honorable man. And, from the looks of him last Saturday, one who’s interested in getting to know you better in lots of ways. If you don’t want to talk to him, just say the word, and I’ll tell him. He’ll respect that. But I should warn you, if it’s not Sam, it may be another ranger from his unit. I gather that the team has been asked to review the series of abductions for further investigation. It’s what they do—reinvestigate cold cases. Need some time to think about it?”

Skye didn’t answer right away. She looked down at her hands, fingers laced and gripped in her lap. Tension sent every muscle in her body into its knotted mode. Was this any way to live? Locked in, a bodyguard at her side, jumping at the least little thing? For the longest time, all she wanted to be was safe. All she wanted to do was forget. But she couldn’t completely forget. She had a feeling that the nightmares she’d been having were repressed memories trying to surface.

And they scared her.

Terrified her.

But living the rest of her life in limbo was just as terrifying. And knowing that Gabe deserved to be out from under the responsibility of keeping her safe weighed heavily on her thoughts. She was a drag on his happiness, his and Belle’s. She knew that. Security had become a prison of her own making.

A prison? Maybe so. But was she ready to leave its safety? She didn’t know. But she knew that talking with Sam could be the beginning of a monumental change in her life. He would want to drag it all out. Every last bit. Even the parts she had buried so deeply that not even she knew what terrible things were there. No psychologist, no hypnotist had been able to reach it. It must be horrible.

Skye took a deep breath and looked up at her brother. “Tell him that I’ll talk to him tomorrow afternoon. Does he know that I have amnesia for the…event?”

Gabe nodded. “He knows.”

She left, went to her room and threw up.

SKYE DIDN’T SLEEP MUCH THAT night. Gabe had to come into her room twice to awaken her from a nightmare. An intercom connected her bedroom to his, and her screaming or Gus’s barking always brought him to soothe her back to sleep.

She’d been distracted at yoga class with Belle and at lunch later with Belle and Gabe.

“You don’t have to do this,” Gabe said as they drove home from town.

“Yes, I do. It’s time.”

She’d gone up to her sitting room to read, but she was still on the same page a half hour later when there was a knock on her door.

Startled, her heart pounding, she said, “Yes?”

“Skye, it’s me. Sam.”

Rising quickly, her book fell from her lap, knocking over a vase of gerbera daisies on the coffee table. Water went everywhere. “Oh, damn!”

Another knock came.

“Just a minute!” she yelled and ran for a towel from the bathroom.

Unsettled, Gus ran with her, barking.

Sam knocked again. “Skye, are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” she called. “Just a minute. Gus, sit!”

Gus sat, but he obviously didn’t like it and snarled at the door while she mopped up water from the table and tried to blot it up from the floor. “Oh, double damn!” She stuck the flowers back into the narrow-necked vase and tried to replace it on the table, but without the water to balance the weight, it kept listing, and she’d have to grab it to keep it from falling over.

Finally, holding the vase, she stomped to the door and swung it open.

Sam grinned and glanced at the flowers. “For me?”

“I—I had an accident. Let me put some water in these. Have a seat.” She gestured to the couch and chairs in her sitting room. “I’ll be right back.”

By the time she’d returned with the vase, Sam was sitting on the couch, his white hat in his hand. Gus still sat where she’d ordered, but he made low rumblings in his throat as he eyed Sam. Sam stood, and Gus’s ears went back.

“Gus, down. Stay. Quiet.”

Gus followed her commands, but he kept an eye on Sam. What was it with that dog and Sam?

“Sorry that Gus is being rude, Sam. I got upset over this blasted vase of flowers, and I suppose that he associated my agitation with you.”

“No problem.” Sam laid his hat on the coffee table. “Skye—”

“May I get you some coffee? Or a Coke?”

“No, thanks. Skye—”

“I’ll bet that there’s some juice in the fridge if you’d rather have that.”

“I’m fine, thanks.”

She jumped to her feet. “I think I’ll have something.” She hurried to the mini-fridge disguised as a small chest and opened it. Grabbing a bottle of orange juice, she said, “Sure you don’t want something?”

“I’m sure.”

She opened the bottle and took a couple of swigs. Her hands shook, and she dribbled juice down the front of her blouse. “Triple damn! Excuse me.” She hurried to the bathroom again and blotted at the juice stains. They still showed on her white shirt. Quickly she changed her shirt and left the juice in the bathroom.

“Sorry,” she said when she returned. “I’m such a klutz sometimes.”

“I think you’re nervous.”

She took a deep breath. “I think you’re right.”

“I won’t bite. I promise.” He grinned.

How could she resist that expression? It was the epitome of the term boyish grin. She smiled. “I know you won’t.”

“Do you mind if I take notes and record our conversation?”

“No, but you won’t have much. I don’t remember anything.”

“Nothing?”

She shook her head.

Sam set a small tape recorder on the table and took a pad and pen from his pocket. “What was the date?”

“May 8. Six years ago.”

“See. You remembered that.”

She made herself take deep breaths and unlace her cramped fingers. “The last clear memory that I have is waving to my neighbor as Kaiser and I began our run.”

“What was the neighbor’s name?”

“Mrs. Howard, I think. I’m sure it’s in the police report. She said she was baking some gingerbread and that I should stop by for some after my run. I love gingerbread, and I can remember the smell of it.”

“So you can’t remember the man who grabbed you?”

She shook her head. “Not really. Sometimes I think I see his face in my dreams, but when I wake up, it’s gone.”

“Do you remember any of your time…before you were rescued?”

“I have vague memories of fear and panic, that terrible fear of being trapped and unable to escape. It’s not clear. Nothing is clear except the feelings. They’ve never left me. If I could remember anything helpful, Sam, I’d tell you. God knows, I’d like to know that the man responsible is locked away behind bars. He needs to pay for all the horror he inflicted on the other women he abducted. The ones who didn’t escape. If it hadn’t been for Kaiser…”

“Kaiser?”

“Kaiser was Gus’s sire. Somehow he managed to track me. I remember hearing him bark, and I screamed and screamed. And I can remember suddenly seeing the sky. Then nothing until later in my hospital room. Gabe and Mother were there. Big blocks of time are gone. The doctors say it’s not uncommon and that I may never remember.”

“Did you see a therapist afterward?”

“For years. Two different ones.”

“Did you ever try hypnosis?”

Skye nodded. “Early on. It didn’t help.”

“Would you be willing to try again now?”

She hesitated and swallowed down the bile building in her throat. “I would need to think about it. It’s not that I don’t want to be helpful. It’s simply that I became extremely agitated during the hypnosis and I had terrible nightmares afterward.”

“I’m certainly no expert in the area, but I understand that we can secure one of the best in the state who has helped in numerous cases.”

“But any information that I might give you while under hypnosis isn’t admissible in court, is it?”

Sam frowned. “I’m not sure about that. But I do know that right now we have absolutely no leads at all. Any information you could give us would be better than what we have now. Maybe we could build a case without your testimony. Let me ask you something. Do you remember anybody hanging around your apartment before that morning? This guy had to have been watching you.”

She shook her head. “Sorry, I don’t.”

Sam asked her several other questions, and she answered as best she could, but mostly she was a blank. Her head began to pound. She hadn’t had a migraine in a while, but she could feel one coming on.

“Sam, I’m sorry, but I don’t think that I can talk about it anymore. I’m getting a splitting headache.”

He closed his notebook and turned off the recorder. “I understand. I’ll leave now. Maybe we can get together this weekend.”

“I don’t think I’ll have any more to tell you.”

“I wasn’t talking about the case. I meant maybe we could go out or something.”

That should have pleased her, but the pain in her head took all her attention. “Call me,” she said, and fled to her bedroom for medication.

SAM TALKED WITH GABE for a while about Skye’s kidnapping, but he didn’t have anything to add that wasn’t in the reports he’d read. Except recounting the horror of it.

“Was Skye able to tell you anything helpful?” Gabe asked.

“Not really. She was nervous as a cat, and just talking about it gave her a bad headache.”

“A migraine. Damn. It’ll lay her low for several hours. She hasn’t had one in a while.”

“Man, I’m sorry about that. But I had to talk to her.”

Gabe shrugged. “I’m not blaming you for doing your job.”

After Sam left, he headed downtown to see Belle’s office. He’d been promising her that he’d drop by sometime. Wimberley was a pretty little town full of old rednecks, an artsy crowd plus a new influx of retirees and folks attracted to the charm of a small town and the bucks to be made with the booming tourist trade.

He followed Ranch Road 12 toward the square, passing over the bridge where Cypress Creek had smoothed the limestone boulders along its bumpy path. Not that he could see anything square about the square. There was a crooked Y in the road and a couple of streets off to one side with a bunch of shops and restaurants painted different colors. His mother would call the town picturesque.

He found the Wimberley Star office down one of the side streets and parked out front. Belle liked it here. Mostly he figured that Belle liked it here because Gabe was here.

Gabe was a good guy.

And Skye…

Skye was spectacular. She didn’t deserve what had happened to her. Sam wasn’t exactly sure how he was going to do it, but somehow, some way, he was going to track down the bastard who had screwed up her life and put him behind bars.

Chapter Five

On Friday morning, Skye was just finishing up a surgery when Napoleon said, “You have a phone call on line two. That Ranger man. You want to call him back?”

“No, I’ll take it. I’m done here. Would you put Buster back in his cage?”

Napoleon nodded and gently lifted the cat while she stripped off her gloves and picked up the phone.

“Hi, Sam. This is Skye.”

“Hope I didn’t get you at a bad time.”

“No. I have a minute, but I have to tell you that I haven’t made a decision yet.”

“I’m not pressuring you,” Sam said. “And the call isn’t business. It’s personal. Belle was telling me that she and Gabe often go dancing at a place called Fancy’s on Friday nights. I was wondering if you might like to go tonight. With me. And with Gabe and Belle.”

“Oh, Sam, I don’t know. It might be fun, but I haven’t been dancing since—Well, I haven’t been in a long time. I doubt if I remember how to two-step. I don’t go out much.”

“Well, darlin’, it’s time you started. And I’m a two-steppin’ terror. It’ll all come back to you. I’ll be there about seven. Maybe we can grab a bite somewhere. Listen, I gotta run. See you tonight.”

He hung up before she could protest further. She couldn’t go out dancing. There would be a mob of people there. Just the thought of going out into such a setting was enough to make her break out in hives. It had taken her months to be comfortable going to church surrounded by her whole family and sitting in the balcony with Gus and two bodyguards. She could handle lunch with Gabe and Gus at a small, familiar café, and she’d come a long way in going to yoga class with Belle and Gus, but dancing at Fancy’s? A zoo would be calm and quiet compared to that place on Friday night. No way. She’d have to call him back and cancel.

But she didn’t know where to call, and she got busy. The next thing she knew it was noon.

Everybody usually congregated at the house for lunch, even Napoleon, who could eat more than any three men, and there was always a big spread, plenty for drop-ins. Belle had picked up Flora from the Firefly, an art gallery that displayed her soul paintings, and joined them for the meal.

When Skye was about halfway through her salad, her mother said, “I’m definitely buying the Firefly. Mason and I are signing the papers this afternoon, and I’m taking over on Monday.”

“Fantastic!” Belle said.

“Mom,” Gabe said, “are you sure that’s not too much for you? Running an art gallery is demanding.”

“Oh, fiddle, there’s nothing demanding about it. Mostly I just sit there and paint until someone wanders in. I’m hiring Grace Winslet to work part time, including some weekends, and her daughter is going to help out, too. She’s a junior over at Texas State and needs a job. Misty, her name is. Very responsible girl.”

Skye said, “Mom, I think you should do what makes you happy.”

“This makes me very happy. I love being downtown in the thick of things, and I really enjoy people coming in just to watch me paint. It’s good company. I’m not cut out for painting in a lonely garret.”

“I’m excited for you,” Skye said. “It sounds like a wonderful new venture, Mom. And by the way, Belle,” she added, trying for a casual tone. “Sam called this morning. He asked me to go dancing tonight at Fancy’s.”

Everybody stopped eating. Except Napoleon.

Belle’s eyebrows went up. “Did he now? And what did you say?”

“He didn’t really give me time to say anything before he hung up. But I don’t see how I can go.”

“Sounds like a fine idea to me,” Suki said as she passed the potatoes to Napoleon.

“Oh, Skye,” Flora said, “I think it would be great fun for you. And a wonderful experience. Why, Belle and Gabe will be there. And Sam certainly can protect you with that gun he wears on his belt.”

“And I’ll take my gun if you want,” Belle said. “Not that there’s any need of it. I’m sure you know almost everybody there.”

“I don’t want you to do anything that makes you uncomfortable, Skye,” her brother said. “Don’t let anybody pressure you into something that you’re not ready for.”

Belle rolled her eyes. “We’re not talking about going into a war zone in a foreign country. It’s downtown Wimberley, for gosh sakes. What are you going to wear, Skye?”

“I hadn’t thought about it. Do you think the place will mind if I bring Gus?”

“I’m sure they won’t,” Flora said. “Gabe, why don’t you call to be sure? And for good measure, perhaps a couple of the guards could be there, too.”

Gabe hesitated for a moment. “Skye, if you’d like to try it, I’ll make the arrangements.”

Inside, her stomach felt as if she’d swallowed a handful of marbles, but she fought to contain her nervousness and managed a smile. “Maybe I could try it for an hour.”

Gabe nodded. “I’ll take care of things.”

WHEN SAM OPENED THE DOOR to his place, Pookie met him, dancing around his feet and yapping until he picked her up. “How’s it going, girl? You keep the burglars out?”

She wiggled and licked his face.

“Not on the mouth, Pookie. Not on the mouth.” He held her away, then put her down, but she wasn’t deterred. Excited, she circled his feet as he made his way to his bedroom, where he dumped a handful of junk mail into the trash.

The light was flashing on his answering machine. He hoped it wasn’t Skye canceling their date tonight.

It wasn’t Skye’s voice he heard on the playback. It was Gabe’s. And from all the arrangements he’d made, you’d think they were preparing for a presidential visit instead of going dancing at a local honky-tonk.

“And you’ve been invited,” Sam said to the dog. “Want to go play with Tiger tonight?”

Pookie barked. She seemed to be ready and willing.

Sam took a quick shower, put on his dancing duds and pinned his star on his shirt. He clipped his gun on his belt and scooped up the dog. “Let’s boogie.”

SKYE CHANGED CLOTHES four times. And her hair wouldn’t do anything right, even though the short cut had always suited her fine. She could step out of the shower, towel it dry, finger comb it and be ready to go. Wouldn’t you know that her mop had picked that evening to act up? It looked as if she’d stuck her finger in the proverbial light socket—except the left side, which was flattened to her head.

She’d finally settled on a pink patterned tee with a sprinkle of sequins that her mother had given her for her birthday last year and a comfortable pair of jeans and boots. But her hair! How could she go anywhere looking the way she did?

There was a tap on her door. “Skye?” her mother said. “Are you dressed? Sam’s here.”

She flung open the door. “I can’t go. My hair is a mess. Just look at it.”

“Calm down, dear. I think your hair looks cute, except for right here.” She patted the left side. “Do you have any gel?”

“Heavens, no.”

“I’ll be right back.” Her mother hustled out, stopping long enough to shout downstairs, “We’ll be down in a minute.”

Skye felt so foolish—like a teenager on her first date. The idea of going out into a mob of strangers was nerve-racking enough. Add the fluster of trying to dress for the evening, and her anxiety level was off the chart. Why had she ever agreed to such a thing?

That was easy. Sam Outlaw. The thought of him made her toes tingle.

She could do this. She could.

Her mother returned with a basket of stuff. “I thought you went after some gel.”

“I did,” Flora said. “Sit down here.”

Skye sat down at the desk in her sitting room, and her mother squirted and sprayed gunk on her hair and picked and poked at it.

“Finished?” Skye asked.

“Not quite. Wait a minute until that dries. It looks really cute.”

“Let me see.” Skye started to rise, but Flora put a hand on her shoulder.

“Be patient for a moment, dear. Close your eyes.”

She felt a brush across her lids. “What are you doing? That’s not eye shadow, is it? I don’t wear eye shadow.” She felt another brush across her cheeks. “Or blush. I don’t want to look like a clown.”