Midnight Abduction, page 19
part #1 of Finnegan First Responders Series
“Easy, Grace.” Brady slipped his good arm around her waist. “Asking questions and gathering information is part of the job.”
Her flash of anger dissipated, leaving her feeling weak and shaky. Still, she wasn’t at all satisfied. “If that’s the case, they should be nicer about it. We are not the bad guys here. Neal is. And if you ask me, he got exactly what he deserved.”
The officers looked at each other as if unsure what to say.
The corner of Brady’s mouth curved up in a smile. “Don’t poke the mamma bear.”
Rhy joined them, Neal’s blood staining his hands. He gestured to the ground. “That’s my weapon, you’ll need it to compare it with the bullet embedded in Josling’s chest.”
“Yeah, thanks.” The one officer looked happy to have something constructive to do.
“Oh, and Josling’s weapon is in the brush near the tree,” Rhy added. “I kicked it out of the way.”
“I think we have enough information for now,” the officer who’d taken the lead said. “I appreciate your cooperation. It’s clear Josling was trespassing and that he had a gun. I would ask that you stick around and provide your contact information. We may need to clarify a few details later.”
“I live here,” Rhy said. “Brady and Grace will be staying for the next few days too. And of course, we’ll provide our phone numbers. We’re happy to cooperate in any way.”
“Thanks.” The officer turned away just as Colin and his partner wheeled Neal past them. The grim expression on their faces indicated Neal’s condition was tenuous.
She couldn’t bring herself to care. Maybe that made her a horrible person, but it was difficult to forgive him for terrorizing her son.
“Another day at the Finnegan homestead,” Rhy drawled. “Never a dull moment around here.”
Brady chuckled. “Yeah, no kidding. I feel bad about this, Rhy. But I thank God you came out when you did.”
“Glad to help. Let’s get your arm taken care of.” Rhy grimaced. “We can ask Elly to take a look, although I get the sense she is still a bit squeamish about bloody wounds.”
“Squeamish?” Grace frowned. “Isn’t she an EMT?”
“Yeah, my point exactly.” Rhy shrugged. “If this career doesn’t work out, she can try something else.”
“This is her fourth career choice,” Brady pointed out. “At some point she needs to settle into a role and stick to it.”
“I know, but she insists on joining the family legacy of being a first responder. I’ve tried to convince her that other careers are just as noble.” Rhy sighed heavily. “Not everyone is cut out to bolt toward danger rather than running away. And I’m afraid that is the core of Elly’s problem.”
“I’m not cut out for that type of work either,” Grace said. “But I am used to doing first aid on kids who fall and cut themselves all the time. I’ll clean up your arm, Brady.”
“Thanks.” Brady opened the door for them so Rhy wouldn’t have to touch it with his bloody hands.
As Rhy washed up at the kitchen sink, Devon came over. “I heard the gunfire but stayed inside the way you asked.” Her eyes widened at the blood swirling in the sink.
“It’s not mine,” Rhy hastened to assure his wife. “Brady suffered a minor wound, but otherwise, we’re okay.”
“Thank You, God,” Devon whispered.
“Amen to that,” Brady added. He dropped into a chair at the kitchen table. “Devon, will you grab the first aid kit Alanna put together for us?”
“Yes.” Devon disappeared, returning a few minutes later with a large plastic box. It was twice the size of the first aid kit she kept at the Rising Star day care center, but that one hadn’t been put together by an ER nurse.
Brady peeled off his shirt, revealing an ugly gash on his arm. Thankfully, it wasn’t as deep as she feared. Keeping her gaze averted from his muscular physique wasn’t easy. She cleaned the wound, applied antibiotic cream, then wrapped gauze around his upper bicep.
When she finished, she sank into the chair closest to him. “It’s finally over,” she whispered.
“Yes.” Brady put his uninjured arm around her and pulled her close. “I can’t believe you were going to sacrifice yourself, Grace.”
“I had to.” The reality of the near miss hit hard. At the time, she had been determined to keep Neal from shooting Brady. “I took some comfort in knowing Caleb would be safe with you and the rest of the Finnegan family.”
Even if that meant leaving Caleb forever.
The way Grace had stepped toward Neal had shaved ten years from his life. He had not been prepared for that.
“Grace.” He turned in his seat so he could draw her closer. “I told you I would never take Caleb away. Not now, not ever.”
“I believe you.” Her simple admission warmed his heart. “But seeing Neal only reinforced that this mess started with me. With my brother. And obviously with my brief and ill-fated relationship with Neal.”
“He’s no longer a threat, Grace. You and Caleb are safe now.” He wanted to check with Callahan to see if Neal’s mother and stepfather had been found yet, but he didn’t want to let go of Grace long enough to make the call. “I would have given my life for you because Caleb needs you. He doesn’t even know me.”
“Not yet, but he will.” Grace shook her head, her expression pained. “I should have let you tell him the truth earlier. I guess deep down I wanted one more night to have him all to myself.”
“We can wait as long as you like.” It wasn’t easy to give that up, but telling Caleb he was the boy’s father wasn’t nearly as important as Grace. “I want you to be ready. To have faith that we will work together to care for him.”
“You would do that for me?” She looked up at him in surprise.
“Grace, haven’t you figured out yet how much I love you?” He hadn’t meant to sound so exasperated. “You are very important to me. And so is Caleb. I take responsibility for not coming to check on you seven years ago when I was finished with my training. Especially after I was assigned to work here in the FBI Milwaukee office, the way I’d requested. I should have headed to Chicago to find you.”
“Are you sure?” There was a hint of hope in her green eyes, yet her tone conveyed doubt. “I’m finding it hard to believe you’ve forgiven me for what I’ve done.”
“I was very angry at first.” There was no reason to lie about that. “I did resent you for keeping me from knowing my son.”
“See? That’s exactly what I mean.”
“You didn’t let me finish,” he chided. “God asks us to forgive those who trespass against us. And, Grace, I very much believe God brought us together now for a reason. Partially so I could help support you during the kidnapping and assist in getting Caleb back. But even more so, it’s possible we weren’t ready to be together back then. That we both had to grow up a bit more before coming together.”
She searched his gaze for a long moment. “I want to believe you, Brady. But I keep thinking that none of this would have happened if I hadn’t kept Caleb a secret.”
“You can’t think like that. It’s not for us to question God’s plan.”
She frowned. “Okay, but we haven’t been together for seven years. We’re different people now than we were back then.”
“Yes, we are. We’re older, wiser, and hopefully better equipped to provide Caleb the love he needs.” He was getting the impression she did not love him the way he loved her. “It’s okay, Grace. You don’t have to make any sort of commitment to me, I understand this is all very sudden. Just agree to one thing, that we’ll work together to create a loving atmosphere for our son.”
“I promise,” Grace whispered. “Caleb needs a father figure in his life. And I know he’ll benefit from being part of the Finnegan family.”
He wanted so badly to assure her she was part of their family, just by being Caleb’s mother. But he didn’t want to push any more than he had. It wasn’t Grace’s fault she didn’t love him. You couldn’t force that on someone.
“Thank you.” Brady pressed a chaste kiss to her temple. “We should try to get some sleep.”
Grace rested against him without moving. He held her close, in no rush to leave. If this was as much as she was comfortable with, he’d take it.
Gladly.
His phone rang, interrupting the moment. Seeing Marc’s name on the screen, he quickly answered. “Hey, Marc. Did you find them?”
“Sure did.” Satisfaction rang in Marc’s voice. “You were right, Helen and Steve Singer were on the victim list. Our Chicago team found them at home watching television. It doesn’t appear as if they were involved in the kidnapping plot, but the Chicago feds took them in for questioning.”
“That’s the second best news all night,” Brady said. “I hope Neal Josling pulls though long enough to spend the rest of his life in prison.”
“Yeah, I’m with you on that.” Marc was silent for a moment. “I’m glad it’s over, Brady. I hope Grace and Caleb can get through this.”
“I hope so too.” Grace lifted her head to look up at him. Maybe she’d heard Marc’s comment. He smiled and said, “Thanks again, Marc. I appreciate the way you’ve had my back today.”
“I called Donovan to let him know,” Marc said. “I told him you were injured and would touch base with him tomorrow. He’s already mentioned wanting our reports first thing.”
The bureau was ever fond of its paperwork. “I will get those reports done, thanks.” Calling his boss had never crossed his mind. His main concern was Grace and Caleb.
“Chat with you tomorrow.” Marc disconnected from the call.
“It’s really over.” Grace sounded relieved. “Neal’s mother wasn’t part of it after all, even though she was the one to lose all that money.” She sighed and ran her fingers through her hair. “I’m glad Neal dreamed this up on his own.”
He was glad to know Neal would never hurt anyone ever again. “You’re exhausted. Let’s head upstairs. I’ll walk you to your room.”
She rose, then turned to face him rather than going for the stairs. “I love you too, Brady.”
“You do?” He sounded like an idiot. “I don’t want you to say that just because I did. Your feelings one way or the other won’t change how we co-parent Caleb.” He didn’t want her to feel as if she had to stay with him because of their son.
“That’s not it,” she said. “I couldn’t make myself care about Neal; our relationship ended within weeks because I couldn’t get you out of my mind. He said it was fine to remain friends, which was a huge relief.” She shook her head. “I know I’ve made a complete mess of this, but one thing has never changed. My feelings for you.”
He desperately wanted to believe her. “We’ll take things slow and easy. No reason to rush. We have plenty of time, Grace. I want you to be sure about this.” He flushed and added, “I rushed you once seven years ago, the night we created Caleb. I won’t make that mistake again.”
Her low, husky laugh caught him off guard. “It’s sweet that you think you rushed me that night.” She wound her arms around his neck. “The truth is I wanted you, Brady. I was an equal partner that night. And I don’t regret a minute of it because Caleb is an amazing little boy.”
He wasn’t sure what to say, he knew he should have been more responsible, but she was right. Their son was amazing.
He kissed her. This time there was no evil kidnapper to interrupt. But Elly soon found them. The constant family members coming and going was one of the reasons he’d left the homestead as soon as he could.
This was a perfect example.
“Oh, hey.” Elly smiled cheekily. “Sorry to barge in without knocking.”
Brady sighed. “There’s no door on the kitchen, El.”
“Yeah, well, what can I say? I have rotten timing.” His sister laughed. “I thought I’d let you know Caleb is still asleep. He hasn’t suffered any nightmares yet.”
“Thank you, Elly.” Grace turned in his arms. “You were wonderful to stay close to him.”
“Hey, what’s with Alanna’s first aid kit?” Elly’s gaze darted to the gauze Grace had wrapped around his upper arm. Elly paled, and for a moment, Brady feared she’d faint. “You were hurt? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I’m fine, it’s just a scratch,” he assured her. “There was no need to bother the new family EMT for something so minor.”
“I—uh, am glad to hear it.” Elly visibly swallowed hard.
“The danger is over,” Brady continued, thinking it was the aspect of danger that had hit her so hard. “The bad guys are gone and never coming back. No need to be concerned, okay?”
“Great news.” Elly’s smile didn’t reach her eyes. “I’m heading upstairs. Good night, you two.”
“Good night,” Brady and Grace answered at the same time.
When they were alone again, Brady sneaked another quick kiss. After being away from her for so long, he couldn’t seem to get enough of her. “I love you so much, Grace. I thank God for bringing you back into my life.”
“I love you too,” Grace whispered. She smiled and kissed him again before stepping back. The sound of a boy crying out in fear had her whirling toward the stairs. “Come with me, Brady. Caleb will need both of us to reassure him that he’s safe.”
A sweet offer that he quickly grabbed with both hands. “Absolutely. Let’s go.”
Together they rushed up the stairs to comfort their son. As Grace tucked Caleb between them on the bed, Brady lifted his eyes to the ceiling and silently thanked God for this special gift.
His family.
Epilogue
Four weeks later . . .
Grace closed the Rising Star day care center for the day as Caleb played with the Thor action figure Brady had gotten for him the day he’d been rescued. It had soon become his favorite, to the point he’d gotten into a fight with his best friend Charlie when the other boy had tried to take it.
“Mine,” Caleb had said, snatching it back. “My daddy gave it to me.”
“You’re supposed to share,” Charlie had protested. “You can play with my Aquaman.”
“Don’t wanna.” Caleb thrust his lower lip out in a pout. “I like Thor better than Aquaman.”
“Your father would want you to share, Caleb,” she’d told him. “Remember?”
Caleb had acted as if he hadn’t heard her, clutching Thor to his chest protectively. Charlie had given up and walked away.
The three of them—Caleb, Brady, and Grace—had attended family counseling twice a week since the incident. Over the past four weeks, Caleb’s nightmares had dwindled from being a nightly occurrence to every other week.
Soon, she hoped, they’d go away forever.
“Daddy!” Most days, unless he was involved in a big case, Brady came to pick them up at the end of the day. Fridays were extra special because they had dinner together.
“Hey, champ.” Brady swung Caleb into his arms for a hug and a kiss. “I hope you were a good boy today.”
Caleb looked back at her, then hung his head. “Charlie wanted to play with Thor, but I wouldn’t let him.”
Brady sighed. “Caleb, we had this discussion. You need to share your toys with your friend Charlie. And the other kids too.”
“I know,” Caleb mumbled. Then the little boy perked up. “But I didn’t tell Mommy our secret.”
Secret? She raised a brow as Brady winced. “You’re not supposed to mention the secret, remember?”
Caleb comically clapped his hands over his mouth.
“Ready to go?” Brady asked. He held Caleb as Grace grabbed her purse and pulled out her keys.
Outside, she locked the door, then walked with Brady and Caleb to his SUV. “What secret?”
“You’ll see.” Brady frowned at Caleb. “We’re not going to tell until we get to the restaurant, right?”
“Right.” Caleb grinned. “You’re going to love it, Mom.”
“Come on, kid, you’re killing me,” Brady muttered as he put the boy in the booster seat.
She hid a smile at his frustration. The past four weeks had been wonderful, with Grace and Caleb spending two nights during the week at Brady’s condo, along with the weekends. Her apartment had been repaired, with a new security system installed, but she couldn’t deny that living in the small one-room place wasn’t nearly as nice as spending time with Brady.
Their favorite restaurant, one that served pizza as well as nicer Italian food, wasn’t far. They were becoming Friday night regulars; the staff always brightened and welcomed them by name when they arrived.
“This way, please, Mr. Finnegan,” the hostess said as she carried their menus to a small booth in the back. “Tina, your server, will be with you shortly.”
“Thank you,” Brady said.
Grace had Caleb crawl in first, before sliding into the booth. She’d no sooner taken her seat when Brady abruptly dropped to one knee and pulled out a small ring box.
“Grace, since Caleb pretty much spilled the beans, I figure I should ask now rather than wait for dessert. Will you please marry me?”
She ignored at the looks they were getting from the other patrons of the restaurants. She couldn’t imagine a more perfect proposal. “Yes, Brady. I’d love to marry you.”
“I told you she’d like it.” Caleb bounced in the seat. “I knew she’d like the sparkly ring.”
Brady laughed ruefully. “I asked Caleb for permission to marry you. You should know he heartily approved.”
“Oh, Brady.” She stood, drew him up, and kissed him. “I can’t wait until we’re all Finnegans.”
“I can’t wait until we add to the Finnegan family,” Brady whispered. He kissed her, then slipped the ring on her finger. “I love you, Grace.”
“And I love you too.” She turned to look at their son. “We can add to the family if I get a little girl next time.”
