Page 81 of The Last Dance You Saved
Lauren inhaled sharply just as Rafe barked out, “What are you talking about?”
Fallon darted me a glance, as if amazed I’d kept quiet about what she’d told me. “He wanted me to sign over half the ranch to him once I turned eighteen. He kept saying Spencer had promised to right the wrongs of the past by giving him a share and that Spence had agreed it was as much Hurly land as it was Harrington.”
Lauren shook her head. “It’s what Adam wanted, hoped for, but Spencer never agreed to it. He was going to change the trust so Adam and I were executors, but he was never giving away the land.”
Rafe’s face was thunderous, and his head whipped back toward Lorenzo. “How much does he owe you?”
Lorenzo ran a hand through his hair, a tell showing just how much he’d also been rattled by tonight’s events. “I never said he owed me money.”
While I’d believed what he’d said about not being responsible for the gunman tonight, I didn’t believe him now, and the fury in Rafe’s face said he didn’t either. “Have you been helping him steal from the ranch? Scurrying the money away to some offshore account?”
Lorenzo tugged at his suit jacket, regaining his control. His voice was calm, returning to that mocking condescension he’d used when he’d lobbed the insinuation about Rafe not protecting his family, as he said, “The only thing I did was try to help. Once I realized it was impossible, that Adam was still burning through more money than the ranch earned, it was easier to just wait for it all to crumble. I’d be able to buy the land for pennies on the dollar. It would have given me great pleasure to own what you’d tossed aside.”
Rafe practically vibrated with barely contained animosity, and I fisted the back of his shirt, holding him back, because I knew if he lost control now, he’d despise himself later for it. He didn’t want to give Lorenzo the power of his emotions any more than he wanted his daughter to see him react in violence.
Lauren and I shared a look, and she stepped in between Lorenzo and Rafe. “If you want your money back for the wedding, if you want to move it away from here, I’ll understand. I’ll do whatever I can to find a place nearby that can accommodate you tomorrow.”
“My family wasn’t the target tonight. If Marquess leaves, we’ll all be fine,” Lorenzo said casually as he straightened his suit lapels and pulled himself together even more.
“I’m not leaving my family with threats hanging over them,” Rafe snarled.
“He’s right, though, isn’t he?” Lauren said. Her words struck me like a dart to the chest, and if they stung me, I knew they’d sliced into Rafe. “You’ve been the target.”
“A man was in your room, smothering you!” Rafe shot back.
She paled. “I…that was just a nightmare. We don’t know…”
But we all did.
Lorenzo pulled his phone from his pocket. “There’s no need for us to leave. I’ll send for my security team, and we’ll have men all over the ranch protecting my family and our guests.”
Rafe laughed. It was brutal and harsh. “You’re crazy if you think I’m letting your men on my property. I can handle the extra security.”
Lorenzo didn’t even look in Rafe’s direction as he raised a brow at Lauren and said, “If you want me to stay and not demand you give back every dime we’ve spent here, you’ll letmymen protect us.”
“Lauren.” Rafe’s warning was gritty and deep, but she shot him a defiant look that matched the ones I’d seen from her daughter.
“No, Rafe. Spence may have left you in charge of the money and legal aspects of the ranch, but he left me in charge of the operations. You don’t get a say in this. As far as I can tell, we need all the help we can get.”
Rafe swore under his breath.
The office door opened, and Jim Steele and Barry came rushing in. Their faces were set and grim.
“Tell me you found him,” Rafe demanded.
Steele shook his head, dropping a handful of shell casings he’d wrapped up in the bottom of his shirt on a side table. “We found where he’d holed up. He had a clear shot of the field and the back of the house.” He waved at the shells. “I didn’t have gloves, but I was careful, so we might get prints.”
“He had a truck of some sort parked nearby that left tracks in the dirt and the grass. I’ll get a mold kit, and we can trace the vehicle,” Barry added.
Rafe dragged a hand over his beard. “Let’s call the sheriff and see how he’d like to proceed.”
Lorenzo made a noise of disgust. “Of course, running to the police is your answer.”
Rafe’s fists clenched, and his lips flattened, but he acted as if Lorenzo hadn’t spoken. “We’ve had three attempts on our lives now, and from what I can tell, Adam has stolen—at a minimum—three hundred thousand dollars from the ranch in just the last five years.” Lauren and Fallon both gasped. “The authorities need to be involved, and they need to reopen Spence’s case.”
Lauren’s hand went to her chest, rubbing, and she sank down into the nearest chair. Surprisingly, it was Fallon who tried to comfort her, leaning over the back of the chair to hug her. “It’s not your fault, Mom. Uncle Adam was good at hiding things.”
Lauren brushed a hand over Fallon’s hair and then looked up at Rafe. “He’s been angry many times over the years. It’s not like I didn’t know it. As kids, he wanted the two of us to leave and start new somewhere else. He hated that I stayed, but when he came back to help after your dad died, he seemed at peace with it. He even seemed happy here…”
