The Cradle Conspiracy

His gut filled with panic until one mind-blowing thought intruded. Raven was vulnerable, and he couldn’t help her from in here—or from the psycho ward.

He’d tried not to let her get to him.

Who was he kidding? She already had.

Daniel gritted his teeth, sat up and stared through the bars, clenching and reclenching his fists, his knuckles turning white. His hands were clammy, and he fought the urge to rock in place. He rubbed his wrists. At least the sheriff had finally removed the cuffs. Just in time. Daniel had been ready to throttle Galloway to get the keys.

He hadn’t done it. He’d maintained control.

Barely.

When the bars had clanked closed, the crisscross of scars on Daniel’s back had started to burn. He’d promised himself he’d never be in this situation again. Never be incarcerated. Never be captive and powerless again.

He wiped the sweat from his eyes, restless, edgy, like he was jumping out of his skin. He should have left Raven at the clinic and moved on. He didn’t even know her. She was none of his business.

An image of her pain-filled eyes haunted him, though, hitting him harder than the echoes of remembered screams in his mind. Stronger than the memory of his torturer’s laughter. The snap of the whip. The sound of bones breaking. Those were all trumped by Raven’s small whimper of pain and the way she’d looked at him with such trust.

Good God, lady, don’t depend on me.

Unable to sit still any longer, Daniel rose and grabbed the cold steel bars and shook them, testing the lock. Nothing gave at all. He was trapped. Trapped again. He crumpled to his knees, unable to fight his demons anymore. His fingers ached from gripping the bars, and an animal sound of terror rose within him.

His shoulders shook, and he struggled not to break. Not that it mattered anymore.

The other cells were empty.

“Help me, Lord,” Daniel prayed. “Don’t let me crack. Don’t let me become like my father.”

The doorknob separating the sheriff’s office from the jail twisted.

Daniel stood swiftly, bracing himself to bear his full weight, despite his legs shaking. He froze his emotions inside, hoping his face had gone blank.

The sheriff stepped inside and stared at Daniel.

Galloway leaned his shoulder on the jamb, his relaxed stance feigned. Daniel recognized the tension in the guy’s body. Militarylike awareness. Maybe Special Forces.

“Well, Adams, Milly at the diner verified your identity as someone she served yesterday—solo. Said you were a lone handyman looking for work. She didn’t have anything for you, so she sent you down the north county road to ask at one of the ranches on the outskirts of town.”

Daniel shifted his feet, the urge to shake the bars nearly overwhelming, so he just nodded.

Galloway rested his hand on his gun. “I also had a very interesting conversation with Blake Redmond, the sheriff in Carder, Texas, who said he knows all about you.”

“Fantastic.” Even a good friend like Blake couldn’t have vouched for him with all the rumors flowing during Daniel’s disappearance. He’d been called traitor until he’d been rescued from his captivity, and now he’d just gone for a walk—across the country. Blake could very well have told Galloway to throw away the key.

“Actually, in your situation, it is. The man vouched for you. Said you’re a lot more than a regular handyman. Said you possess some serious skills in a lot of areas. Not that I’m surprised. Your whole vibe says ex-military or mercenary. Doesn’t necessarily say sane.”

Daniel gritted his teeth.

The sheriff crossed one boot over the other. “I know men like you, Adams. I know about the nightmares. The panicked look when you’re trapped in a cell.” He strode over to the door and yanked out an impressive set of keys. “I’m letting you go—”

Daniel’s heart slammed in his chest.

“—but there’s a condition.”

Daniel stared down the sheriff. “Name it.”

“There are no missing person reports filed on Raven, or Jane Doe, or whoever the hell she is. Milly swears you couldn’t have had supper at the diner and made it to the mine fast enough to hurt the woman. Now me? I’m harder to convince, but my gut says it’s not you.”

Galloway stood with the key in his hand, just inches from the lock. Daniel’s breath caught. Open the damn door.

The sheriff turned the key in the barred door. “But, Adams, I think you should keep drifting through. Just because my town’s name is Trouble doesn’t mean I ask for it. And something about you smells like trouble.”

Daniel walked through the cell door, not letting Galloway see his enormous relief or his shaking hands. He grabbed his duffel bag off the floor from where Galloway had tossed it earlier. Daniel slung it over his shoulder, then turned to the sheriff.

“Whether you believe me or not, Raven is in serious danger. Somebody left her to die. She couldn’t have escaped on her own.” If it hadn’t been for Trouble, she might never have been found. She wouldn’t have survived. The thought made him shudder. “I hope you’re better than good at your job, because when the killer discovers she’s alive, he’ll track her down.”

Galloway nodded. “She’ll be taken care of.”

“Because if something happens to her, I’ll—”

Galloway stilled, his stance poised and coiled like a dangerous animal. “You’ll do what, Adams?”

“I’ll be back to find out why,” Daniel warned.

Just then a skinny young man slammed into the room, his cheeks red, huffing and puffing. His new uniform, creased pants and bit of peach fuzz on his chin screamed rookie.

“Sheriff.” The nervous deputy skidded to a halt in front of Galloway. “Sheriff, that Jane Doe from the hospital...someone just tried to strangle her.”

* * *

LIGHTS FLASHED THROUGH the night sky, and the siren rang out. The few people on the streets of Trouble turned their heads to stare as the sheriff’s car raced by. This time Daniel rode in the front seat.

“You said she was safe,” Daniel accused, his biting words cold as he attempted to tamp down the fury building in his gut.

“I didn’t expect someone to attack her in the middle of the emergency room,” Galloway snapped.

“You’re paid to expect the worst. She should never have been left alone.”

Galloway yanked the steering wheel hard to the right, and the car squealed into the parking lot.

Daniel leaped out and ran toward the building, despite the pain in his leg. He raced inside the clinic, to the desk. “Where is she?” he demanded. “Where’s Jane Doe?”

The shaking nurse pointed to the same examining room Raven had been in before. Daniel flung aside the wall of fabric, the squeal of the curtain rings barely registering this time. “Raven!”

She lay on the bed, her eyes closed. Bruises encircled her neck.

At the sight, rage erupted in his gut.

He sat down next to her and gently touched her hand. “Oh, darlin’. I never should have let the sheriff take me.”