Hearts Unleashed Read online

  They got to the equipment barn and entered the small, cramped office. Immediately he went to the vertical cabinet in the corner and pulled out Linda’s employee file. “Here’s her new number. Do you want me to make the call?”

  “No. He’s my dad.” She might be thankful for his presence, but she was not about to let him know. She valued the way he treated her like he did anyone else on the ranch. Too much to risk ruining it with pity—or worse, disgust at her weakness. She grabbed the phone on the desk, and punched in the number.

  After seven rings, someone finally answered. “Hello?”

  “Linda! It’s Katie. Um, I was wondering if you know where my dad is.” Her eyes fell upon John’s, even as she listened to Linda’s reply, instinctively seeking support.

  “…poker game with some of the other men—”

  “I’m sorry, what?” She struggled to hear Linda’s words over the pounding of her heart.

  “He went off with some of the other men after the banquet. Said they’d be playing poker at the hotel.”

  “Okay,” she whispered. “Sorry I woke you up.” She gnawed at her inner cheek, hanging up the phone.

  “What did she say?” he asked.

  “He stayed up at the hotel with some of the other men at the banquet last night. Linda heard something about a poker game. His truck was still there when she left.”

  He relaxed, his weathered face giving way to a grin. “There. You see? He’s fine. Just a little poker game he probably doesn’t want anyone to know about.”

  “But—it’s not like him.”

  “Are you sure?” He grinned down at her, as if he hadn’t even noticed her scars. “Look, your father works way too hard around here. He’s allowed a little time to himself once in a while. Okay?”

  His words seemed to buzz around her like a fly you couldn’t swat. “You think I’m overreacting, right? But I’m telling you, I know him better than you do, and—”

  “I don’t think you’re overreacting. If it were my mom, I’d be doing the exact same thing. I think you’re tired. And stressed.” To her astonishment, he put his arm around her shoulders and began to steer her back toward the house. “That makes everything seem worse. Let’s go back inside where it’s warm, and I’ll cook us some breakfast.”

  “You cook? Don’t remember seeing that on your job application.”

  Koda walked just behind the two of them. She barked, her tongue hanging out, as if in appreciation of her quip.

  “Yes, Ms. Locke. I can cook. And I can make a mean Bloody Mary, too, while I’m at it. Let me prove it to you.”

  She shrugged. Why not let John make breakfast? After the eventful night they’d shared, they could both do with some food. And if she didn’t hear from her dad by the time they finished eating, she’d hop in her car and start looking.

  They got to the front door of the house. John stepped aside to let her enter first, an old fashioned gesture that reminded her of her dad. She heard a ringing phone and sprinted into the kitchen, sending Nickel and Two Bits scattering in her wake. She fumbled with the receiver of the old mounted phone, mentally cursing the fact she hadn’t tried harder to convince her father to swap the fifty-year-old phone for something easier to handle. If she lost the call . . . “Hello?”

  She listened—or tried to—as her breath caught in her throat.

  “This—this is Katherine Locke.” She nibbled at the frayed edges of her nails like a famished mouse.

  “Ms. Locke, this is St. Vincent’s Hospital. We are calling to inform you that your father, Mitchell Locke, is here. He suffered a minor heart attack. We need you to come down as soon as possible.”

  The news crept down her spine like a careful spider leaving a trail of silk, descending until she was almost frozen to the spot. The words the nurse spoke left her stomach full of lead, and her feet set in concrete. She stumbled backward, her legs beginning to buckle. Her body fell against John’s warm, broad chest. But it did nothing to ease the pressure in her own chest.

  “Yes. I understand.” The receiver slipped through her fingers.

  “What is it?” His large hands spun her around. “Katie, what happened?”

  The sympathy in his eyes was too much to bear. “I told you,” she whispered, burying her face into his flannel shirt. “I told you.”

  “Told me what? Katie, who was it?”

  But she could not make herself say anything more.

  A tiny echo came out of the receiver. She went to reach for it, but he was faster. “Hello?” His usually calm tones were breathless.

  Her fingers gripped the extra material of his shirt as she pushed her face against his body. “Ms. Locke’s unable to speak to you at the moment.” The matter-of-fact tone was back in John’s voice. “She’s upset. Yeah, I’m a family friend. Tell me what’s going on.”

  She drew in a deep breath. The faint smell of beer still lingered on his clothing. But she also smelled him. His scent. And a bit of sandalwood cologne.

  “We’re on our way.” The receiver clicked as it connected with its cradle. His muscular arm shifted around her waist as he grabbed her keys off a nearby hook steering her out the door. “Come on. We’re going to see your dad.”

  Tears blurred her vision, and her chest heaved. It felt as if an elephant was sitting on her. She barely registered her legs moving or what was going on around her. Until the car door slammed. She jumped, her hand flying out. She sank into the seat when the car engine rumbled. Though she’d cleaned the vomit from the floor mat, a faint odor lingered, making her already unsettled stomach churn more.

  Dad, please be all right.

  Chapter 18

  John navigated the red hybrid through the twisty mountain roads to the main highway, hoping to reduce the normal hour and fifteen-minute ride into Billings by thirty minutes. But his attention was on the woman in the passenger seat beside him, slumped over with tears flowing down her cheeks. His stomach knotted. He should say something, but her grief made him squirm. How was he supposed to comfort her? If there was one thing he was terrible at, it was comforting the afflicted—or whatever you called it.

  When his mother had her heart problems, he’d taken a practical approach. Getting her healthy before his deployment had been his only goal. There hadn’t been time to analyze his feelings about the situation. Maybe Katie could benefit now from his experience.

  “It’s not like he’s dead,” he blurted.

  But as the words left his mouth, he wanted to kick himself. Her hanging jaw only supported what an asshole he came off as.

  “I mean—um.” He swore silently and tried again. “My mother had some heart issues, too. I was about to deploy again so I just focused on getting her healthy before—”

  She gasped. “That’s where I know you from!” She whipped around in her seat, staring at him. Her tears had stopped.

  “Huh?”

  “Yes.” Her voice was an echo of its usual self, but there was growing confidence as she continued. “I met you at the hospital during my clinical rounds. It’s been bugging me since you started working at the ranch. This feeling that I knew you, but I couldn’t place how.” She sank back in the seat again. “At least I know I’m not crazy. Not entirely, anyway.”

  “Shit. Seriously?” He tossed the information around for a moment, trying to remember the details of his mother’s last hospital stay. Things were hazy, but bits and pieces began to come into focus. He remembered a nurse with dark hair and a pretty face. Maybe she had been Katie. He glanced over at her again, lingering on her profile. “I think I remember you, but it’s a bit fuzzy.”

  “It was you. But your head was shaved.”

  “Buzzed,” he corrected. “I’ve never had a shaved head.”

  “Whatever. It was short.”

  His brain continued to work overtime trying to figure out how to make her feel better without getting all soft and sappy. When his mother had suffered from chest pain and dizziness, he’d panicked at the thought of losing her. The gushing
reassurances of his mother’s well-meaning friends only irritated him. She was the only family he had. Platitudes, no matter how well intentioned, didn’t cut it. He knew Katie would feel the same way about her father. If only I could take away some of her pain, even for a little while.

  They pulled into the hospital parking lot. Once the car stilled, she began to shake, looking like a wild horse just arriving at the ranch for schooling, not even knowing what people are. He laid a hand on her back when she doubled over, hands on knees, struggling to regulate her breathing.

  “I—I—”

  He cursed silently to himself. For all his experience, he was just like any other man—frozen, feeling powerless he couldn’t come up with a solution to comfort her. “What can I do?”

  “I can’t go in there.”

  Not the response he was expecting. “What are you talking about? Your father is in there. He needs you. As his next of kin, you’re going to have to sign papers and stuff.”

  She shook her head, gasping sharply as she held onto the seat.

  “I brought you all the way out from the ranch so you could see him.”

  She swiped at the tears flowing down her cheeks. “You wouldn’t understand. I just can’t.” Her words slurred together.

  “Look. I’ll go with you. I’m not much good at this kind of stuff, but I’ll at least go in with you.”

  “No. You go. Don’t ask me again.”

  Anger seared through his veins. He wanted to grab her by the shoulders and shake her. You don’t leave family behind, dammit! The image of Dirk’s broken body flashed through his brain and he closed his eyes, but couldn’t shut out the sight of his mangled friend.

  “Fine.” His voice was shorn of all sympathy. “I’ll go in and tell your own father his darling little girl can’t be bothered to visit him.” He slammed the car door and stalked toward the hospital entrance.

  He heard Katie’s sob as he walked away, but he didn’t look back. She could drown in her tears for all he cared.

  The brightly lit lobby of the emergency room and the smell of antiseptic gave him pause. Am I being a jerk? Her father just had a heart attack. But, damn! The girl couldn’t act like a simpering child when her father needed her. She was his only blood relative.

  He glanced over his shoulder toward the automatic doors, hoping she’d followed. No one there. With a sigh, he ran a hand along the back of his neck and went over to the reception desk.

  A nurse looked up at him and smiled. “What can I do for you, sir?”

  “I’m here to see Mitch Locke,” he said.

  She glanced at her clipboard. “Are you family?”

  “No. I work for him.”

  “Mr. Locke is in intensive care right now. I’m sorry, sir, but unless you’re a relative I can’t let you see him.”

  He resisted the urge to huff. “Look. I’ve got his daughter out in the car, but she won’t come in. She’s terrified of seeing him, or of coming inside a hospital, or something. I don’t know what her problem is.” He took a deep breath. “Mitch just had a heart attack. All I want is to let him know she’s here. I won’t stay more than two minutes.”

  “I believe he’s awake. If he gives me permission, you can see him. Just fill this out.”

  He counted to ten slowly under his breath. You need to calm down and stay calm. Mitch needed someone he could rely on—and that wasn’t Katie. And, if he didn’t manage to restrain his temper, it wasn’t going to be him, either. The form was tedious, but he scrawled his information and signed his name as quickly as possible.

  “Thank you, sir.” The nurse disappeared down the hall with the sheet.

  The white walls, sterile chemical smell, and blinking florescent lights made him feel like he was hooked up to a cattle fence—not enough voltage to kill but sufficient to keep things uncomfortable. A movement outside caught his attention. A guy in the uniform of an ambulance driver leaned against a tree and lit a cigarette.

  He slumped back, disappointed, shaking as if he were over caffeinated. He really thought Katie would come in. There was still time for her to change her mind.

  The nurse returned and signaled him to follow her. Maybe it was just as well Katie stayed in the car. The guy just had a heart attack. Last thing he wants is more stress. And if the sight of her all panicked had such a strong effect on John, who knew what it’d do to Mitch?

  The hospital hallway was like something out of a space movie. Everything that could shine, did shine. There was stainless steel, sleek floors, and the artworks on the walls were all natural images in colors as bright as spring flowers. The air had a pure fragrance, not sterile, just clean. In the background, a myriad of beeps from monitors created a symphony.

  “Here we are,” she said, pushing open the subdued blue-green door.

  John found the room plainer than the hallways. Simple cream walls, not peeling or dirty, surrounded Mitch who was lying on crisp but thinning sheets. His normal gruff exterior had been replaced by pale skin barely clinging onto his bones, dwarfed by the mass of tubes and wires attached to him. His eyes were closed; only the faint rise and fall of his chest indicated he was alive.

  John cleared his throat.

  Mitch opened his eyes and squinted. A second later, the older man cracked a wry smile. “Hey, there.” He let out a weak cough. “I figured someone would be down here soon enough.”

  “How are you feeling?”

  “Better. Though, they’re holding me prisoner a few more days for observation and testing.” Mitch coughed again. “How’s Katie doing?”

  An awkward feeling came over John. He ran his hand along the back of his neck. “Yeah. Well, you see, Katie came with me, but—she decided to stay in the car.” The sight of Mitch so helpless made his frustration surge back. “She said she just couldn’t come in. If you ask me, she was acting like a spoiled…”

  Mitch slowly hoisted himself into a sitting position and held up one hand, cutting John off.

  “Sit down,” he said, motioning to the chair beside the bed.

  He sat. Mitch had stopped him before he said “brat.” But this was Katie’s own father, lying in a hospital bed. How could she refuse to come in and help him?

  Mitch took a moment to settle himself. “I didn’t expect Katie to come at all.”

  Now he was really confused. “Not come at all?”

  Why the hell not?

  “I’m going to tell you something in confidence,” Mitch said slowly. “And only because you have to work with my daughter and the doctors believe I’m going to need the two of you to keep the ranch running while my old ticker recovers. You can’t share this information with anyone.”

  “Understood, sir.” He leaned forward, his eyes fixed on Mitch’s face.

  “Back in July, Katie was attacked right here in this hospital.” Mitch closed his eyes tight. Despite his obvious illness, John could see the pain and anger on his face.

  The words hung in the air. All his suspicions. The one conclusion he’d hoped he’d been wrong about. Fuck. He’d been right.

  “Attacked? How is that possible?” he asked. “I mean, it’s a hospital—”

  “Katie was working as a nurse in the community clinic. It was after hours. From what she told me, a patient came back in and attacked her while she was finishing up some paperwork. He beat her up. No one knows why he did it. Apparently, he just took one look at my daughter, and—” Mitch looked away.

  John remembered what his boss had said to him the day they’d met.

  “Katie’s been working on the ranch her whole life. Even during college and nursing school. But—things didn’t work out. Now she’s back here full time.”

  He’d never given a thought as to why Katie gave up nursing. He just figured she’d decided it wasn’t for her, that she liked working on the ranch better. “They catch him?”

  Mitch set his jaw again. “No. The guy used fake identification at the clinic and the police haven’t been able to find him. He covered his face so the footage fr
om the security cameras didn’t help much either.”

  “So, he could be anywhere.”

  “That’s right. I don’t think Katie’ll ever get past her fear until he’s caught and put away for good.”

  He closed his eyes. He had to ask. “Did this guy—”

  “No. He didn’t. The head nurse and the janitor heard a commotion. Scared the guy off. But Katie was badly beaten, nonetheless. There’s no way she’ll ever step into this place again. Not even for me.” Mitch collapsed back onto his pillow, exhausted.

  Silence encompassed the room, the faint beeping of the hospital monitors rhythmically breaking it. I’m such a jerk.

  “So if they haven’t caught the guy by now, what are the chances they actually will?”

  Mitch shrugged. “Not good, I suppose. Don’t think I haven’t wanted to grab my rifle and go hunting myself. Not that it would do any good. The cops are sure he’s long gone by now.”

  “Yeah. Maybe.” Now was obviously not the time to tell Mitch about their possible intruder.

  “Listen,” Mitch said. “Obviously, I’m going to need you and Katie to keep the ranch running while I’m stuck in this place. And after I come home, too.”

  “You can count on me.”

  “She’ll be fine once she’s on the ranch and gets back to work there. We can talk about specifics tomorrow. Come by in the afternoon. I know Katie’s glad to have you living out at the ranch. Between you and Koda, things’ll be plenty safe.”

  He nodded. His mind was already busy, making a mental list of all the things needed to keep the place running.

  “You’ll probably need to hire another hand or two,” Mitch said. “I’m sure Katie can tell you if it can fit into the budget. Though I’m nervous about the weather holding—”

  “Don’t worry about a thing, Mitch.” He stood, leaning forward to carefully navigate the maze of tubes and pat the man on his shoulder. “You just take care of getting better. Katie and I will handle everything else.”