Chapter 21

Monday – Tuesday July 13 – 14

Still in shock, Cindy allowed herself to be led to Matt’s truck. She was grateful Jenny was still asleep, blissfully unaware of all that occurred. Cindy was also relieved Jenny couldn’t see her mother in distress, looking disheveled and holding an ice bag to her face and lower lip.

Cindy didn’t return to her home that night. After Matt took her and Jenny to Three Corners Farm, Maria, who had been briefed by Matt, had taken charge. Jenny was a little puzzled since she was supposed to be spending the week at Cindy’s home, but when Cindy had struggled to come up with an explanation, Maria had quickly assured her that Matt and Uncle Tomás were tending to repairs of an electrical nature at the house and the problem would be fixed shortly.

Maria kept Jenny fed and occupied while Cindy tried to come to grips with what had happened. She was baffled why anyone would want to kidnap Jenny and had no idea who would do such a thing. She had a feeling the two who had invaded her house were not behind the kidnapping; they seemed almost stereotypical stupid criminals – not that they weren’t a terrifying and violent couple.

Cindy thought about them. She had killed a man, but there were no feelings of regret or remorse. They had invaded her home with the intent of stealing her child and most likely killing her – no there would be no regrets. Now they no longer posed a threat to her and her daughter, and truth be told, to the man she loved.

After Matt had delivered them to the Farm, Cindy couldn’t stop shaking. Maria insisted she lie down in one of the bedrooms, but Cindy was too restless to sleep. She kept replaying the events of the afternoon and speculating on what would have happened without Matt’s arrival. Maria made tortilla soup for dinner and Cindy tried to eat while disguising her distress from Jenny but she kept staring into space, her mind in turmoil. The film in her head would always jarringly stop when it got to the point where Cindy had retrieved her gun and fired into the back of the man who had been interrupted in the process of trying to rape her and who intended to kidnap her daughter.

The next thing she recalled was the man dead in the hallway and Matt washing her face and urging her to drink a sports drink.

Once Jenny was in bed at Three Corners Farm, Cindy took a long shower and then, dressed in robe and pajamas, wandered into the living room and sat in Harrison’s big leather recliner. Maria sat on the sofa reading a book but Cindy could feel her eyes on her. Eventually, Maria brought her a pill and a glass of water.

“This will help you sleep. Everything will be better in the morning.” Cindy just nodded and took the pill. Shortly thereafter Maria’s cell phone rang. She spoke softly in Spanish, and a few minutes later they heard the crunch of gravel under tires as Matt and Tomás returned. Tomás came in and he had a quick conversation with Maria in the kitchen and he left again. Finally Matt came in and he knelt next to the recliner. He looked uncertain as if he was concerned about how she would react to seeing him.

“Cindy, I’m so sorry that happened. I’m sorry I didn’t get there sooner. I’m sorry I didn’t do a better job protecting you...”

She pressed her fingers against his lips and said softly, “Matt, don’t apologize, you saved Jenny ... and me.” At that point her eyes filled and she couldn’t speak. He took her hand and just looked at her. At that point she was certain he loved her. She smiled ever so slightly, sat back and closed her eyes.

When she woke she discovered Maria must have covered her with a throw and just let her sleep. It wasn’t quite midnight, but she was awake. She peeked in Jenny’s room and discovered Maria, asleep, still clothed, lying on the bed next to Jenny. Jenny looked so peaceful. Cindy shuddered as the images of the day came back full force. Again it struck her that without Matt, Jenny most certainly, would have been with those two criminals in some awful place.

Without conscious thought she found herself at the door to the modular home, ringing the bell. He got to the door so quickly he couldn’t have been asleep. Cindy briefly noted he was dressed in sweatpants and a dark T before she collapsed sobbing into his arms.

She only vaguely recalled him picking her up and carrying her to the living room and gently placing her on the big cloth-covered sofa. Somehow she found herself on his lap, her arms tight around his neck clutching him as he held her. Sometime later she woke and found herself lying mostly on top of him on the sofa. He had pulled a blanket over them, and in the dim light of the room she watched his face as he slept. He looked so relaxed, and maybe content and she hoped it was her proximity that caused that. Cindy thought about what it would be like to wake to his face every day. She put her head down and went back to sleep, listening to the strong steady rhythm of his heart.

Cindy woke to the buzzing of Matt’s cell phone, which was on the low table next to the sofa. He was trying to ease himself from under her without waking her. She held him tight. “No.”

Matt stopped moving and kissed her forehead. “Cindy, I’ve got to go and relieve Tomás – guard duty.”

“Oh.” She still didn’t release him.

“You should go back to sleep. It’s almost two. If you want you can use my bed. This sofa’s not really meant for comfortable sleeping.”

More awake now she smiled down at him, “I was doing fine.” This time, despite her sore lip, she kissed him – on the lips. He hesitated for a second and gave in. They enjoyed a gentle kiss for a brief time and then she sat up. “I should go.”

Matt nodded and they both stood. “I’ll walk you.” She watched him put on his running shoes and then a shoulder holster with pistol under a light cotton bomber jacket. He grabbed his phone and a baseball cap as they walked out.

Cindy kissed him once more at the side door to the house. As she turned to go in, he stopped her and took her hand. He looked sad and concerned. “I’m sorry about what happened.”

She touched his face. “You saved us Matt. You risked your life, and I’ll never forget that.” He just watched her. “Matt I know you’ll always take care of Jenny ... us ... and that’s what I want ... always.” He pulled her to him and kissed her. “Always,” he said, and then walked into the darkness.

Cindy collapsed into her bed until her alarm jarred her awake at four. The night had gone much too quickly. The effects of her interrupted night and the trauma of the day before, coupled with the sleeping pill caused some disorientation. She finally figured out where she was, and it was Monday and she had a radio show to do. Her normal routine was to get up at four, leave her house, travel mug in hand at five, and drive the twenty miles to the radio station, where she usually had thirty minutes to prepare for her show. She briefly considered calling in sick, but she had promised Jenny she could go with her each day to see how she made her radio show. The morning show people were also ready to make a fuss over Jenny. She was also determined not to let the horror of yesterday dictate her life.

On the dot of five Matt came into the house. He looked amazingly fresh, dressed in jeans and a dark blue T that said ‘Navy’ across the chest and a denim jacket. His smile was reassuring. “I’m your driver today Cindy.”

“Oh ... right.” She hadn’t given it a thought. Of course, he would be with her and Jenny today.

“Don’t look at me, I’m a fright.” Cindy had showered to help wake up and to soothe some of the aches she felt when she moved around, but she still felt only half put together. She knew she’d be stiff for a few days from the beating she’d experienced. She’d been thrown from a horse a couple of times and it felt very much the same. Grateful it wasn’t morning television; she had washed and dried her hair, then simply pulled it back in a ponytail. Fortunately she was able to apply enough makeup to cover the bruises on her face, and she was relieved to see her face wasn’t swollen. Her lip was still sore but she applied a heavy coat of lipstick – it wasn’t perfect but it would do. A white long sleeve man’s shirt over a tank top covered the bruises on her arms.

He smiled as he stood watching her fill two travel mugs with freshly brewed coffee. She blushed and shook her head when he said, “You’re beautiful.”

Just then, a robe-clad Maria came out of Jenny’s room with a blanket-wrapped, but still sleeping Jenny in her arms. She handed her to Matt, and a tote filled with her clothes to Cindy, and then refusing coffee she headed back to bed.

Cindy was embarrassed when Matt woke her as they pulled into the radio station parking lot twenty minutes later. She hadn’t meant to fall asleep. She had wanted to ask Matt about what had happened at her house after he took them to the Farm, but had to admit that she had needed the sleep more than answers. They would wait until later. He dropped her at the door and promised to bring Jenny in once Cindy got herself settled and had a chance to get the show started.

Matt opened the door of the truck for her and she moved into his arms as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Cindy didn’t try to kiss him. She just pressed closely against him, his arms around her, and let his warmth and love fill her. She would have loved to not let go. Last night, actually early this morning, he had said, ‘always.’ She smiled as she walked into the brightly lighted building.

Cindy finished her morning show and once the adrenaline and coffee wore off she came back to the Farm and went back to bed and slept for three hours. She wished Matt had come in with her, wanting to feel him holding her again, but he said he had things to do. He smiled and kissed her tenderly as she stood in the doorway to the house. She wondered how he was still functioning, since he’d had even less sleep than she had.

Cindy thought the morning show had been almost as smooth as ever, although at times she seemed a bit distracted and wasn’t quite as quick on the uptake when she and her cohost bantered and took calls between playing country hits. She apologized to him after the show but he shrugged it off. “Cindy, don’t worry about it. You did fine as always. You should have heard me the first time my wife and kids came into the studio to watch me on a show. I was a babbling idiot!” He laughed, and winked. “Anyway your friend Matt has all the ladies around here distracted too.”

Early in the evening they finally returned to her house. The place looked remarkably normal. She slipped off her shoes and tucked her feet up on the sofa and put her head on his shoulder. He put one arm around her waist. Neither said anything. Jenny was in her room and they could hear her quietly strumming her guitar through the closed door. Matt was still wearing his jeans and Polo from the morning but Cindy had changed. She was now wearing an old pair of lightweight tan cords and a white long-sleeve cotton sweater. The bruises on her arms were turning colors and she was glad they were covered.

Matt broke the silence when he asked, “Cindy who do you know in Scottsdale, or I should say who knows you?”

A chill went through her, “Scottsdale?”

“Yes, I found a portable GPS in the truck driven by the late John Smith. At least that’s what it says on his license and on the registration on the truck, which was also licensed in Arizona.”

At the mention of the man’s name she involuntarily looked over at the hallway that led to the bathroom. Every time she walked that hallway she wanted to step over the place where he had lain as the blood pooled around him. There was no sign of anything there now. Matt and Tomás had done a remarkable job cleaning everything and putting things back into place.

The living room area rug was gone of course. Somehow they had found a replacement, and it was already on the floor. Even the bullet holes in the island in the kitchen had been patched and the whole thing repainted. The kitchen still smelled faintly of paint. The house looked so normal, were it not for the bruises and the aches from the beating, she might question the accuracy of her memory. She wondered how long it would be before the memory would fade. Could she even continue to live in this house? Time would tell.

“Jayson was from Arizona. His mother, Adele Adkins lives in Scottsdale and has an office there...” Her voice trailed off as an image of Adele intruded. “I remember meeting her once while we were performing in Reno. The meeting was less than cordial. So how is the GPS linked to Scottsdale?”

“When I powered it up I scrolled to the previous destinations screen and Scottsdale popped up. One address is for the Holiday Inn and the other was an address for a high-rise office building. Do you have any idea of the name of Jayson’s mother’s business?”

Cindy thought for a few moments. “Something like, Desert Sky Investments.”

“Hang on a second while I get my tablet from my truck.” She felt cold without his arm around her, but he was back moments later with his tablet and a GPS unit and sat beside her. She snuggled against him as he searched for Adele’s address. “Got it, Desert Sky Real Estate Investments.” He looked at the address on the GPS and compared it to the address for Adele’s office building. Then he called up the map of the area.

“Well I have to give Ms. Adkins credit for at least being smart enough not to meet kidnappers at her office. It’s an address for a building that’s three blocks away on the same street. It would be an easy five minute walk from her place of business.”

“You think Adele set this up.” Cindy waved her hand indicating the house.

“I’m asking you.”

Cindy stared past the open French doors into the back yard. After a minute she nodded. “She could. She was blindly devoted to Jayson, oblivious to his faults, an enabler, and she really disliked me. I could see where she could blame me for what happened to him.”

“What happened to Jayson? You never told me. I just know you divorced the guy and he’s dead, but that’s about all.”

Cindy hesitated for a few seconds gathering her thoughts. “After his very public meltdown...”

“That video I have seen. Not his finest hour.”

“Nor mine.” she replied softly.

“Didn’t look like there was anything you could have done differently.”

She smiled, trying unsuccessfully to keep the regret and tears out of her voice. “For starters, I could have avoided any involvement with him.”

Matt took her hand. He didn’t say anything. She was glad he avoided the platitudes she’d heard from so many others. Regardless, she’d already beaten herself up enough, and there was really no excuse for her irresponsible behavior.

“Sometimes I do wonder what set him off that night. I’d never seen him that way before ... violent. Drugs, most likely. Anyway, I ended up in the hospital for observation because of the nasty crack on my head when I fell...”

“When he knocked you down.”

“Yes, when he knocked me down.” She paused and wiped her eyes, distressed by the memory of that awful time. “The next day Adele had two attorneys from a firm in Scottsdale track me down in the hospital with divorce papers. They made me a cash offer to sign the papers and not contest the divorce. Jayson was divorcing me but what that really meant was Adele was divorcing me. I dug in my heels since they ... she, was so anxious to get rid of me. They paid me a lot of money to go away. I was glad to take it.”

“So his mother divorced you on his behalf? I guess she really didn’t like you.”

“The story from the attorneys was it was Jayson’s doing, except Jayson was in the county lockup at the time, or he may have still been in the hospital since he had assaulted some police officers and was high on drugs. The signature on the petition was definitely not his, but it made no difference to me. I just wanted him to go away. I guess you could say his mother and I agreed on one thing at least.” She said it with a tight smile.

Cindy paused, grabbing a tissue. “Then somehow the attorneys and Adele convinced some judge that he should be released to a rehab facility in Scottsdale. Not long before Christmas last year he must have walked away from the facility and he ended up at my door. Thank God I’d changed the locks, because he still had his set of keys. I called 911 when he tried to break down the door. He was crazy and threatened to kill me. I’d bought a gun and I would have shot him had he got through that door. Fortunately my neighbor, a retired cop, jumped on him and then the police arrived. They Tasered him a few times and he went into cardiac arrest. Between the cardiac arrest and whatever drugs he’d taken, he never recovered. Adele had him in a care facility in Scottsdale for a few months and then he died. I don’t imagine she pulled the plug, but I have wondered.”

“So Adele blames you for killing her little boy?”

“I think in her twisted mind that’s probably the case. I’ll bet she thinks had I just opened the door and not called the cops he’d still be alive. Interestingly, she sued just about everyone involved in the arrest except me. Last I heard some of those cases are still pending against the city of Reno, Reno PD, and the responding EMTs.”

“She’s a real piece of work.”

Cindy nodded.

“So now she thinks that the way to get back at you is to kidnap Jenny.”

Cindy stared at him appalled as she realized the implications. “Everything points to her, doesn’t it?”

“Yes. She has the motive and the means to hire people. Plus I found almost thirty thousand in cash in the truck.”

“Thirty thousand?”

He nodded. “I suspect it was her money. It seems kind of a small amount for what she wanted, although if it was me I would have given them some part of the money, maybe a third, as a down payment and hold back the rest until completion of the job. It seems appropriate to use her own money to go after her.”

Cindy nodded. “Matt, what are you going to do?”

“I’m going to make a trip to Scottsdale, although I think it’s futile to talk to her, don’t you?”

Cindy considered that. “Yes, a waste of time. I don’t think she’ll ever stop.”

“I agree. I’ll take care of it Cindy.” She had lots of questions, but instead she just moved into his lap and let him hold her.

Friday, July 24

Cindy sat on her horse near the crest of a hill and watched Rashmi and Jenny as they galloped their horses through dry grass in the valley below. They were laughing and urging their horses on to see who could get back to the ranch house first. It was surprising to Cindy that city girl Rashmi looked so at home on a horse. The big black she was riding dwarfed her but she was in control. Cindy had been riding all her life and envied the girl’s natural grace. Of course, Jenny had been on and around horses all her life and the chestnut mare she was riding seemed to know it.

Cindy had to admit the difference was that she really didn’t care for riding or horses. Horses were simply a fact of life since they were essential to daily life on a ranch, but nothing more. She much preferred the comforts of her truck.

She glanced over at Sofía who was watching the riders with a wisp of a smile. Rashmi had invited her despite Cindy’s reservations, but things had worked out. After dinner the first night at the ranch, Sofía had walked out in the warm summer evening and took a seat next to her in one of the rocking chairs on the wrap-around porch. “Cindy, you know I love Matt...” Cindy didn’t let her finish. “You’ve made that painfully obvious.”

She was surprised when Sofía just gave a rueful smile. “Sí, I’ve tried to show him and everyone else I love him. It’s not just gratitude.” She paused. “Although I owe him my life, and everything I have right now came about because of him.” Cindy wondered where this conversation was going. “Cindy, I wish he loved me like he loves you. I wish he would look at me like he looks at you. When he hugs me I want to melt, but I’m only his hermana. Cindy, you are su mujer ... his woman. Take care of him, por favor.” Sofía got out of her chair, and to Cindy’s surprise hugged her and then fled into the house. Cindy had seen the tears.

Since then, the tension had been broken and Cindy found she really liked Sofía. She was bright as well as beautiful and she was a good sport, especially around horses. Sofía had never been on a horse before and until the ranch she’d never even been close to one. Gamely and with encouragement and a little ribbing by her friend Rashmi, she had given it a try. Fortunately the Moores, who treated her like a daughter, had the perfect gentle horse for her and Sofía started riding with them for longer periods each day, although it appeared that she, like Cindy, had very mixed feelings about horses. They admitted to each other they would never be as comfortable on these large beasts as Rashmi and Jenny.

On a horse behind Sofía and Cindy was Harry Williams. He was rail thin and probably in his sixties, but he was still a handsome man. Intelligent blue eyes peered from under his battered Stetson. He was the ranch foreman for the Moores, and at present the only employee. The drought had forced the Moores, like most of the other ranchers around Red Bluff, to cut back drastically on their cattle herds. Fortunately, the Moore’s had been early on the bandwagon leasing land for wind turbines and for cell towers where their acres abutted the interstate.

She mused that the lack of California cattle on the market and the higher prices brought from that shortage would be good for the ranchers in Montana. She thought about the cattle business. It was hard work and weather was always a big factor – that and the price of beef of course. It was too bad prices hadn’t been high enough to save Harrison’s family ranch. Cindy shook her head as if trying to dispel the guilt that was there. Had she put the money she earned on the road into the ranch could it have been saved? She knew Natalie kept the books. Maybe someday she’d ask her, but not now. Their relationship was just getting back to something resembling friendship – no that wasn’t right. Maybe inching toward rebuilding what they’d had not that long ago.

Harry started down the hill keeping an eye on Rashmi and Jenny. He had a scoped rifle in the scabbard attached to his saddle and a large revolver on his hip. He was their security for today. Cindy was also armed. After what happened at her house she never went out without her Glock.

Matt had tried to assure her that the threat was probably over for now, but he had suggested she talk to Rashmi about a visit to Bonnie and Jim Moore while he was out of town. Rashmi had set up the visit and the introductions and had insisted on coming along, and inviting Sofía.

Rashmi, Jessica and Harrison had not been apprised of the whole story. Cindy had explained that she had heard from a former member of Front Range that Jayson’s mother had been making threats about Cindy and Jenny. Matt told them he would go to Scottsdale and nose around a bit to see if there was any truth to what Cindy had heard, but in the meantime, it might be a good idea for Cindy and Jenny to visit the Moores while he was gone.

Harrison and Jessica had agreed and the Moores were very willing to accommodate them. Cindy hated to lie to any of them, but Matt had explained that the fewer people who knew what had happened at her house, the better. With the two witnesses dead, there was really no direct evidence of Adele’s involvement so the police would have little to go on. They might talk to Adele, but without testimony from the couple there was little they could do and it might make Adele even more determined. She might just wait months or years and try again.

Cindy wished she would hear from Matt. He had insisted that it was safer for everyone if there was no communication that could be looked at by the police in the future. He had left his phone behind. She wasn’t sure what Matt was going to do in Scottsdale but she knew that he wasn’t going there to have a talk with Adele Adkins. He said he’d take care of things, and she knew he meant it. She just wished she could hear his voice.

As she rode down the hill she thought about the ... incident? ‘Incident’ seemed too mild a euphemism for what had happened; attempted rape and kidnapping, attempted murder on Matt and the death of the two criminals who had abducted and assaulted her in her own home. That day had been a watershed event in their relationship. Cindy had come to realize her growing affection for Matt was very real. It had sprung from their time together before the attempted kidnapping, and had become more when he had put his life on the line for them. Also, he loved Jenny, and even though he hadn’t said the words, she knew he loved her too.

Cindy gazed at the mountains in the distance trying to give order to her jumbled thoughts.

Yes, I care about Matt. He’s a wonderful man, but, do I love him?

Tuesday July 28, 2015

Adele Adkins sat near the back of the morning-crowded Scottsdale coffee shop. Anyone who approached looking for a seat got a glare for their trouble. Adele wanted to be left alone while she tried again to contact John and Ginger – if those were their real names. She stared at the throwaway phone as if she could will it to ring. Each day at this prearranged time she had tried to contact the duo, but nothing. They had initially agreed not to exchange voice mail or text messages, but there hadn’t been any contact for more than two weeks. At their last conversation on Sunday the twelfth, John had assured her that they would act soon to snatch little Jenny. So where were they?

She’d been watching the news from California and there was nothing about a kidnapping, or even an attempted kidnapping. Adele was relieved there was no news of arrests in Lodi. Not that those investigators would have discovered much from those two. The only thing they could tell police was they had met one time with a heavily disguised woman in some basement parking garage in Scottsdale. She didn’t worry about anyone tracking her there because it was a big office building with a large parking structure a few blocks from her office. She’d also carefully selected a garage where the owners had never installed security cameras.

At that meeting, she’d handed over a summary of the surveillance information provided by Burroughs Investigations along with thirty-three thousand in cash. Adele had promised the remainder of the one hundred thousand upon delivery of Jenny to certain individuals recommended by the duo, sex traffickers, who would immediately send her out of the country. The couple had assured her they’d take care of everything and notify her once the delivery had been made. She hadn’t asked for details. Now she was wondering if she should have.

It had been more difficult to find someone to do the job than she realized, then one day out of curiosity she’d checked Jayson’s phone. John and Ginger were listed under his contacts. She thought she had pretty much kept tabs on anyone Jayson knew professionally and most of his friends so she figured they were either in the drug trade or people he’d met in rehab, perhaps both. She had used Jayson’s phone to make initial contact, deliberately vague about what she wanted them to do. Without any questions they had agreed to meet her. John had claimed to be an ex-cop, but his gang and prison tattoos told a different story, and Ginger claimed to have a long association with biker gangs. Both had the hard look of drug addicts and ex-cons, seemingly eager to do anything to make some easy money.

As she sat in the morning-bright coffee shop Adele turned the phone over and over considering her limited options. Had the missing couple scammed her and taken off with the money which probably went up their noses? She shook her head. She was a hard-nosed business woman who considered herself a pro at reading people and she concluded they were in need of the entire amount so they would go through with the job. So what had happened to them? Had they been arrested and turned on Adele? Had they delivered Jenny to the traffickers and been killed by them? But why no news reports from Lodi? Were the police keeping it under wraps while they investigated? That was highly unlikely since the kidnapping of a child meant an instant Amber Alert to aid in the recovery.

Suddenly nervous, she looked up, and then caught herself. Her thoughts bordered on paranoid. She decided there was no way to trace her and to connect her to those two or to any attempted kidnapping. She figured it might be prudent though to stash the throwaway phone somewhere other than her office and then retrieve it each morning to see if they would call and to check for missed calls.

It was also going to be impossible to hire Burroughs again to do surveillance on that farm in Lodi where Jenny lived. There were other investigators, but to what purpose? She had found John and Ginger on a fluke. Where would she go to find someone else to do the job? She had purposely avoided any contact with the traffickers. Personal contact with them was out of the question even if she knew where to start looking.