A Bridge Unbroken (A Miller's Creek Novel) (26 page)

Chance chuckled softly. "What's wrong? Did Hank and his wife not feed you?"

"Well actually, I was out for a few days."

His eyebrows rose, but he didn't speak.

"They said I was running a fever and delirious, I guess from my hike in freezing temps." She downed a bite of the fluffy baked potato, loaded with butter, sour cream, cheese, chives, and bacon.

Chance laid his fork on his plate, his forehead creased, his eyes dark and troubled. "Why did you do it?"

Eyes down. No more eye contact. Her nerves couldn't take it. "Do what?"

"Leave the other night."

She closed her eyes, focused on the memory of all Hank and Emma had encouraged her to do. "I don't trust policemen." Dakota took a sip of her water, gathering courage and words. Might as well just get it out there. "Just so you know, I was in an abusive relationship for several years."

"The guy you lived with?" The words were low and full of emotion.

She nodded, but kept her eyes down.

"Why didn't you just leave?"

"I did. He had a lot of power and influence. The kind of person others would never suspect. The first time I left him, he had the police take me straight back to him."

A hushed gasp fell from his lips, but still she stayed true to her vow to avoid eye contact. "And then what happened?"

"He almost killed me." There. She'd said it. Let him know the hell she'd endured.

His groan captured her gaze. He rested his forehead against his fist. "I'm so sorry, Dakota. To think of someone hurting you..."

She blinked back tears. His compassion on top of her weakened emotional state just might be her undoing. With slow steady breaths, she willed herself back to a place of control.

Silence ensued. Chance took small nibbles of food, lost in thought. Finally he laid down his fork, his eyes once more boring a hole through her head. "Had a lot of time to think over the past few days, and I have some questions."

Uh oh. Was she ready for this?

"I know you mentioned seeing me with my cousin and thinking the worst, but something else must've played into your decision to leave." He worked his lips back and forth a minute, before he looked back her way. "Was it because of the way I acted?"

How could she answer truthfully without hurting him? She couldn't. "Partly."

He grimaced and lowered his head. "I'm so sorry. Any other reason?"

She couldn't answer. Couldn't force the words past her clenched teeth. But why? Wasn't this part of the story that she most needed and wanted to tell him?

"You might have spared both of us a lot of hurt."

A tinge of condemnation colored his comment, slicing through her heart. So he still blamed all this on her?

Without warning, he reached over and lifted her chin, his face a hair's-breadth from her own, his eyes once more toying with her emotions. "Tell me the truth, Dakota, no matter how painful. I can't help you if you don't trust me." His lips claimed hers.

Though a struggle ensued within, in the end she allowed the kiss. Kissed him back, her heart aching for him to know the truth and understand why she'd done the unthinkable.

No!
This wasn't fair to either one of them. Dakota pulled away, once more refusing eye contact.

The tension between them was palpable.

"What is it, Dakota? What is it that you have locked up inside you?" Hurt and pain oozed from his voice, as though she'd dealt a lethal blow.

In a heartbeat, sudden understanding dawned within, and she shut her eyes against the pain it produced. She loved him. Had never really stopped loving him. But if he knew the truth, this brief respite from the wounds of the past would vanish like yesterday's blossoms. He would hate her, a thought she just couldn't bear. "I can't." The sentence fell from her mouth in a hushed whisper, full of anguish. "Maybe one day, but right now..." The monstrous knot in her throat gobbled up the rest of her words.
If only...

For the rest of the evening Chance remained silent, not a word slipping from his lips. The silence forced Dakota from her self-promise to avoid looking at him. His lowered head, slumped shoulders, and especially the sorrowful expression on his face all combined to reveal his troubled hurt.

Dakota shivered against the cold as they left the restaurant a half hour later. She crawled into the pickup cab through the door Chance held open for her.

Chance closed the door and made his way to the driver's side, his sullen features lit softly from the parking lot lights.

Dakota released a slow breath. His unusual silent treatment was wearing her down and fast. Okay. Maybe she should tell him and get it out. Let the chips fall wherever it was that chips fell. Just as she opened her mouth to release the final bit of truth, Chance turned left on the farm-to-market road, headed toward Miller's Creek rather than the farm. "Where are we going?"

His troubled sigh flowed through the darkness toward her. "I don't want to do this, but I have to. Hopefully, you can trust me to do what's best." He hesitated briefly. "And forgive me."

The contents of her stomach curdled instantly. Forgive him? For what? "You're scaring me, Chance." Her voice trembled as proof of her fear. "What are you talking about?"

"I have to turn you in to the police."

Chapter Twenty-Four

A
sick feeling landed in the pit of his stomach, but Chance clenched his jaw and pressed on in the same direction. This was absolutely the right thing to do, but inside it killed him. Not only would Dakota never trust him, she'd never forgive him. Never give him the second chance he'd hoped for.

Dakota slouched beside him in the pickup seat, one hand on the door handle as though waiting for an opportunity to escape. Angry tears brimmed in her eyes, her lips pinched and taut.

"Please trust me, Dakota. I know y--"

"You know nothing!" She glared at him, her lovely green eyes glistening with tears. A sarcastic laugh fell from her parted lips as she shook her head from side to side. "All this time I thought you'd changed. Thought you might actually be a nice guy after all. You've just been waiting for your chance to betray me, haven't you?"

Anger roared up inside him at the injustice of her accusations. "That's not true!" His fury subsided with the realization that hurt and anger fueled her comment. He inhaled a slow breath to steady his emotions and nerves. "I'm doing this because it's the right thing to do."

"The right thing to do? Don't you realize the danger this puts me in? What will happen if..." She burst into tears and buried her face in her hands, the gut-wrenching sobs clawing at his heart.

Fear clamored into his chest and shoulders, tightening them like a rubber band about to snap. Was he endangering her life? He gnawed the inside of his lip. Or had her former boyfriend done such a number on her that she was frightened and upset for no reason? "Please don't cry, Dakota." Chance reached a hand across the seat and caressed her arm.

She jerked away, plastering herself to the door to get away from him.

Lord, give me the words to help her understand.

"I have a plan, if you'll hear me out. This former boyfriend of yours has another APB out for your arrest."

Dakota didn't seem surprised by the news, but at least she stopped crying long enough to listen.

"That's why I'm taking you to the Miller's Creek police rather than the Sheriff's Department. They'll be a little more lenient. I'm also gonna speak with Andy, to get his advice and hopefully his representation."

She still didn't speak or look at him, still balled up in an unyielding, defensive posture.

Chance reached in his pocket and grabbed his cell phone to call Carter.

His friend answered quickly. "Hey, Chance, what's up?"

"I have Dakota with me. Would you mind calling Ernie, Andy, and Matt, and have them meet us at the police station?"

"Will do, buddy. See you there."

Dakota, still stone silent, now wore a look of weary resignation.

A few minutes later they pulled up outside the police department. Ernie and Carter met them at the door. "Hey, Chance. Dakota." Ernie nodded to both of them and held the front door as he pointed to the end of the hallway. "Why don't we meet down here? There's a little more room to spread out."

Dakota walked down the hallway sullenly, arms crossed, looking very much like a cornered criminal. Once inside the room, she plopped into a chair. Chance took a seat across the table.

Clamor outside the room let them know that Andy and Matt had arrived. The two brothers entered the room together. Andy took a seat on Dakota's right, while Matt chose the chair to her left. The younger Tyler brother leaned close to Dakota and patted her arm. "You okay?"

She shrugged. "That remains to be seen."

"We'll do all we can for you, Dakota." Andy attempted to reassure her, then turned his attention to Chance and Ernie. "Okay, guys, fill me in."

Ernie related the details of Dakota being wanted for theft. Chance filled in the rest of the details with the story of her abusive ex.

Andy peered at Dakota, and she made eye contact. "All that true?"

She nodded. "He'll kill me this time."

The softly-spoken words cast a deathly pall over the entire room.

Chance leaned forward, for the first time able to capture her gaze. "I'm not gonna let that happen. But you've got to trust me."

Something flickered in her green eyes. A spark of hope, maybe? She turned her head to Ernie. "Am I going to be arrested?"

He nodded, his moustache firm. "I don't have a choice."

Chance's heart wrenched at the pitiful expression on her face. He swiveled his chair in the direction of Ernie and Carter, who stood at the far end of the table. "I don't feel comfortable with her staying here overnight, especially with that note stabbed to her front door Monday night. Aren't there other options, like an ankle bracelet or house arrest or something?"

Ernie considered the question, his lips and moustache puckered into a small 'o.' He shook his head briefly. "Wish I had another answer for you, but no. I'll do what I can to get the judge to grant her a bond hearing first thing in the morning."

Chance grimaced. He obviously hadn't thought this through well, and now Dakota would be forced to spend the night in the holding cell. And to make matters worse, someone out there still had it in for her. "I'm still worried for her safety."

Carter shifted his weight and leaned against the wall. "I think Ernie and I can handle it. This is really the safest place for her to be."

The police chief nodded his agreement.

Dakota shifted in her seat, her face especially pale. "Will I have to go back to Houston for the arraignment?"

Clearly the thought terrified her.

"Depends." Andy scribbled something on a legal pad, then faced Dakota. "I'm going to do everything in my power to get the charges dismissed, but I need to know what all you took when you ran away from your boyfriend."

Dakota shifted uncomfortably. "Only his car and a little cash, but I left the car at a bus station. I'm sure he got it back."

Andy nodded and wrote some more. "That's enough for now, but sometime early next week I'll need to ask you a few more questions."

The flicker of hope Chance previously glimpsed in her eyes now sparked to a full-blown flame as she smiled timidly at Andy. A flare of jealousy shot through his system as two questions rose to the forefront of his mind. Would she ever look at him with that same hope and admiration? And would she ever forgive him for putting her through this?

* * *

Familiar feelings of shame washed over Dakota, her head and shoulders headed south as Ernie read the Miranda rights and then stepped from the room to prepare the holding cell. When she gathered the nerve to lift her gaze, Matt sent an encouraging smile.

In spite of her predicament, Dakota smiled back. "Matt, thanks for coming down here tonight. Please send Gracie my appreciation for sharing you."

"My pleasure. Just so you know, you and Gracie have more in common than either of you realize. I'm sure when she learns what has happened, she'll be down here in a heartbeat."

The policemen and Tyler brothers owed her nothing, but here they were doing all they could to help. And Chance, too, in his own bumbling way. But still the truth remained. She wouldn't even be in this situation if it weren't for him.

Chance closed the distance between them, his expression one of sorrow, fear, and pleading. He engulfed her in a hug.

Dakota let her arms dangle, her neck and back stiff.

He pulled away, both hands on her shoulders. "Please don't do this, Dakota. I had no choice."

She didn't answer, but instead turned her head toward Matt.

A frown darkened Matt's expression as he stepped around her and took hold of Chance's arm. "Give us a sec, Dakota." They moved to a far corner and talked for several minutes, too far away for her to hear. A few minutes later Chance left the room without looking her way.