Meet Me In Texas

Meet Me In Texas
Sandy Steen

When Del Rickman leaves the FBI, he can think of no better place to start his new life than Crystal Creek, Texas. Years ago he worked a kidnapping case there, and he never forgot the town or the people.But he's surprised to discover that his new career and his attraction to one of the locals–a woman he met on that first trip a lifetime ago–has put him in opposition to his new neighbors!

Allison Russell could hardly believe her eyes

Del Rickman. Here, in Crystal Creek. And all she could do was stutter and stare. Great, she thought. She’d spent all these years thinking about him, hoping they would meet again, and he’d simply walked back into her life like magic. She should have introduced herself, said something. But what did you say to a walking, talking memory that suddenly appeared in front of you like a ghost from the past?

She’d had a crush on him all those years ago. After all, he’d been the strong FBI agent who had found her and delivered her into the safety of her daddy’s arms. A hero. Her hero. Del had risked his life to keep her from harm, and Allison never forgot that day or him. At first she’d idolized him, but as she matured, he became a symbol of a turning point in her life. The experience of being kidnapped changed Allie forever. She discovered a determination she never knew she possessed and a new attitude about what was important in her future.

None of that would have happened if Del hadn’t come into her life. She’d once promised herself that if she ever got the chance to express her gratitude in person, she would. And while she was delighted that she now had this opportunity, she couldn’t help but wonder what he was doing in Crystal Creek.

Dear Reader,

Years ago I was privileged to be part of the talented group of authors who brought Crystal Creek and all its wonderful characters to life. Creating two stories for the series was one of the most enjoyable experiences of my career and I am delighted to revisit our little fictional part of Texas. This trip down memory lane also gave me the opportunity to discover what had happened to two of my characters from Somewhere Other Than the Night, Allison Russell and Del Rickman.

Allison was a teenager the last time she saw Del, and he was the FBI agent in charge when she was kidnapped. They’ve both changed a lot since then and both have new lives, new dreams. Allison has become a confident, determined woman very mature for her age, and Del has left the dark world of law enforcement behind for the greener pastures of a new business. When they meet again it's no longer as victim and rescuer, but as man and woman.

I hope you enjoy this return to Crystal Creek as much as I have.

Happy reading,

Sandy Steen

Meet Me in Texas

Sandy Steen

www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)

To the memory of Sandra Canfield, a great talent

and a good friend lost much too soon,

and

To Bethany Campbell, fellow conspirator, life saver

and keeper of all things Crystal Creek

CONTENTS

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER ONE

DEL RICKMAN LEANED against the hood of his pickup truck, filled his lungs with cool, Hill Country air, then released it in a slow sigh of satisfaction. Dusk was settling in, promising a cold, starry night, and he felt good right down to his favorite pair of cowboy boots. Better than he’d felt in a long, long time. On the seat of his truck, tucked into a nice, neat legal portfolio, were three deeds. One for the house he’d bought at the edge of town. One for the lumberyard situated not twenty yards from where he stood. The third was for an acre of undeveloped land he hoped to build on one day. In the growing twilight, truthfully even in the daylight, the property wasn’t much to covet, but when Del looked at the abandoned business, he saw his future. A yard stocked with timber from environmentally managed forests, not hacked down with no thought to replanting. He saw bales of construction straw just waiting to be covered with adobe in some sprawling Southwestern-style home or new office complex. At one end of the property he envisioned a small nursery featuring native Texas plants and organic seedlings. Another section of the yard would be given over to a variety of salvaged items such as wood flooring, banisters, mantels, columns and architectural embellishments rescued from the wrath of the wrecking ball. There would also be the latest in “green” construction materials. Whatever was good for the environment would be for sale at Evergreen, Inc. This was the beginning of a whole new life for Del, and one he was anxious to start. So anxious, in fact, that even though his furniture wouldn’t arrive until tomorrow, tonight he would sleep in his new home. He was back in Crystal Creek to stay.

Almost thirteen years had sped by since the first time he’d driven into this small Hill Country town. He’d been a young agent then, barely twenty-six, confident—some said too confident—full of ambition and eager to impress the bureau his first time out as Special Agent In Charge. Twelve-year-old Allie Russell had been taken by a man out for revenge against her stepmother, Lynn McKinney Russell. Del had no trouble recalling the perpetrator, a boozy cowboy with a mean streak a mile wide. In fact, everything about that time was still clear in his mind, and not just because it had been his first case, his first kidnap victim, first time in the Texas Hill Country, but because he’d never forgotten the way the townspeople and half the countryside had turned out to help search, especially the McKinney family. Sam Russell and his wife’s father and brothers had led groups of men on horseback to look for Allie, while the rest of the family provided the moral support needed to make it through such a harrowing situation. That sense of community and commitment had left a lasting impression on Del and flavored his passion to make this part of Texas his home some day.

And so, he had returned. Only this time, he was a man with a dream. But he wasn’t so starry-eyed that he was blind to reality. At the heart of the Hill Country was a good-old-boy, if-it-ain’t-broke-don’t-fix-it mentality. Throw in lone-wolf attitudes and the result was hard heads and an even harder acceptance of anything new. If there was one glitch in his plans, that was it. Would the citizens of Crystal Creek welcome his ideas? Or would they treat him as an outsider with newfangled, unproven methods? Would the good old boys circle the wagons, so to speak, making sure he was on the outside? He’d received handshakes and pats on the back when he rescued the Russell girl, but as far as the locals were concerned, he was a “big-city boy.” These were good people, but they did tend to resist anything that challenged the tried-and-true. And that was exactly what Del hoped to do: change attitudes. Not radically, of course. He wasn’t that much of a dreamer. But if he could make inroads into traditional methods of construction and carve out a niche for himself with his “green” products, he would consider himself successful.

Del watched the last glimmer of twilight give way to night and thought about how much his life had changed in the last three years. He’d once thought the definition of success was working his way to the top of the FBI, possibly as a deputy director, living in Washington, D.C. Now he was excited about living in the heart of Texas, starting a new venture totally out of his comfort zone. But that decision hadn’t come without negative feedback from friends and coworkers. After all, they said, he’d been in law enforcement all his adult life, what did he know about running a lumberyard? And wasn’t it a big risk to sink all of his hard-earned money into the venture?

Surprisingly, the comments served to validate his decision because they proved there were only a handful of people that knew him well enough to know he had a background in woodworking and home repair, along with a deep-seated concern for the environment. Or that he had been saving and investing wisely over the last twenty years for just such a risk. Handful? What was he thinking? He could count his real friends on the fingers of one hand and have a couple of fingers left over. And that small group all agreed on one thing: Del Rickman was an intensely private person. So while his friends supported his decision, they must have seriously wondered if that trait might work against him in his new life.

And maybe their concerns were valid but that hadn’t stopped him from pursuing his dream, because he knew what they didn’t: it was either get out of the FBI or risk losing what was left of his sanity.

His last three years with the bureau had been a slow descent into utter frustration, absolute disgust and deepening loneliness. Frustration with the ever-increasing amount of legal maneuvering and paperwork required to bring a case to court, and disgust that all that work was often tossed aside in the blink of an eye because some drug dealer or rapist yelled that his civil rights had been violated or his lawyer found a legal loophole. It was bad enough to slowly lose faith in the law and a career he had loved, to look in the mirror each day and watch himself gradually burn out, but the loneliness that weighed like an anchor around his neck was even worse. While he had the satisfaction of knowing he’d done a good job for the bureau from day one, it became harder and harder to go home each night to an empty house and an empty bed. An empty life.

And then came the case that tested all his resolve and skill. The one that should have ended with a murderer behind bars for good and a little girl alive, but instead ended with heartache and pain for everyone concerned. Memories as dark and threatening as a winter storm washed over Del and he shuddered.

He knew he’d done everything by the book, but something had happened to him that day. Something snapped deep inside him and he knew he couldn’t do his job anymore. No vacation, no transfer could make it right. A child had died while he was in charge, and the suspects had gone free on a technicality. The system had failed before; it was one of the downsides to the job. But this time was different. He was different. He no longer trusted the system.

He asked for early retirement that same week, and the minute the papers were processed he was gone. No retirement party. No goodbye night out with the boys. It didn’t even matter that the suspects had sworn revenge because he’d killed two of their number, their “family.” The use of the word made Del sick to his stomach. The assortment of killers, rapists, wife beaters and thieves, all with the last name of Borden, had destroyed a real family when they murdered an eight-year-old girl whose only crime was to be born to rich parents. When it was over, Del simply wanted to put that part of his life behind him. It was easy enough to accomplish during the daylight hours. All it took was fierce determination. The night, however, was another matter. Haunted by the image of the little girl he couldn’t save, he suffered nightmares. Even when Derek, the leader of the Bordens, was caught two months later, tried, convicted of burglary and assault and sentenced to twenty-five years, it didn’t take the sting out of the fact that he’d murdered a child and gotten away with it.

Suddenly, Del shoved himself away from the hood of his truck, straightened his shoulders and drew his lightweight jacket closer. He didn’t want to think about a past he couldn’t change. He’d survived, and now he intended to live for the future, applying the same drive that had propelled him to top agent to this new venture. And dark or not, there was no time like the present to begin. Besides, it was the last week of October, and he wanted Evergreen to be ready for the spring.

He retrieved a portable high-intensity spotlight from the truck and walked off to inspect his property. But he’d better make it a fast look-see, he decided. A shadowy figure and strange light might attract unwanted attention, and he had no wish to start off his new life with an encounter with the local police.

While he’d waited for the former owner’s bankruptcy procedure to clear the courts, Del had seen dozens of photos, plot plans and diagrams of the property, but he’d only actually visited the site during a preliminary inspection almost three months earlier. The final details had been handled through an agent out of Austin. Not that Del wanted to appear devious and secretive, but it was important to keep everything low key, at least until he had officially sealed the deal. He’d simply wanted to avoid any gossip that might lead to confrontations right off the bat. Now the property was his, and Monday his crew would arrive to start renovations. Evergreen wouldn’t be a secret then. A surprise, maybe, but soon everyone would understand his commitment to the project and to becoming a citizen of Crystal Creek.

Del had spent months finding the right architect to work for him, and the building plans were just waiting for his final approval. But there was a lot of preliminary work to be done before construction began.

“A lot of work,” he said. “Beginning with…” He walked over to the real estate agency’s For Sale sign, yanked it out of the ground and tossed it into the bed of the pickup. Then he aimed his light on a pile of weathered and rotting timbers, junk metal and God knew what else, at least ten feet high and twenty feet across.

He approached the pile carefully, knowing it had been there long before his original walk-through and probably was home to any number of critters, not to mention the fact it might be unstable. Del stopped at the edge, listened for a second, then stomped hard on the ground and quickly stepped back to see what might scurry out. Sure enough, at least two field mice, a host of lizards and one good-size scorpion ran for their lives. He pulled a couple of boards from the middle of the stack to see if it would collapse. It didn’t, but something whimpered beneath it.