Page 57 of Single Mom for the Mountain Men
Chapter thirty
CHAPTER 30: Tanner
“This way,” I tell the small group of police officers that I’m leading with me up the slippery, snowy hill toward the abandoned Jesperson house. I wish that I had thought of this bit of property when we were pondering where on Earth Lena’s ex could have been hiding. All of us had forgotten about this place after it was abandoned. There hadn’t been anyone living here since well before we moved into our cabin.
I glance up at the clear sky, thanking the stars and the moon for making an appearance. Their light is helping guide us toward Lena and Sophie. I just hope that we aren’t too late. I had already confirmed with the police that the other two men who we left on the ground outside our house after the fire were gone. That can only mean that they came back up here to meet up with their boss again. Those aren’t great odds for Aiden and Brody.
“Tanner?” The voice is Brody’s, and I speed up, eager to be reunited with him and find out what’s happened.
“Is everything okay?” I ask as Brody materializes from the brush. As soon as I see the stricken look on his face, I know that things are definitelynotokay.
“Lena has been shot,” Brody says, his voice tight. “Someone needs to take her down the mountain and take her to the hospital.”
“I can do that,” I say quickly, my heart racing. I can’t stand the thought of Lena being injured all because I was selfish and didn’t go to the police when these men first started trying to collect on the debt that I owed them. I feel sick to my stomach as I stumble after Brody toward the remnants of the house.
“We subdued the two men who came to our house during the storm,” Brody tells the officers. “Lena hit her ex over the head, and he’s still out cold inside of what’s left of the house.”
“We’ll go check it out,” one of the officers says, trudging off with a companion toward where I can see Aiden hunkered over the forms of two tied-up men, sitting in the snow.
The last officer comes with me as we approach Lena’s form. Brody has laid her on the remaining wooden floor, tucking her into the corner under the overhang so that she will stay as warm as possible. He also clearly took off his sweatshirt and draped it over her. Her lips are still blue as I crouch down beside her and press my palm against her cheek.
“The snowmobile is just back down the trail,” I say, my heart breaking as I look at Lena. “I can take her back down the hill and get her help if someone can help me carry her there.”
“I can help you with that,” Aiden says and steps away from the men he was guarding now that the officers are cuffing them and starting to ask them questions.
“I’ve called for backup,” the head officer says from his position by Brody. He is placing handcuffs on James after rolling him over onto his face in the snow. “There should be paramedics right behind us.”
“Okay,” I say in a small voice, hunkering down beside Lena and covering her with my body, hoping to keep her warm.
“Tanner?”
The little voice has to belong to Sophie, and I turn in time to catch her as she throws herself against me. She’s sniffling, but being very brave for a small child who has been through some terrible things in the past few hours.
“Hi, little love,” I say to her, the guilt over what I have caused to happen to everyone I care about eating me up. “Cuddle with me, and get warm.”
“Is Mommy going to be okay?” she asks me in a thready, little voice as she leans against me.
“Yes,” I tell her, although I don’t know if it’s true. She looks very pale to me, and I can see the blood that is seeping through the temporary bandage that Brody made over her wound.
“I’m so sorry, Lena,” I whisper to her. “I never meant for any of this to happen.”
“You have to make this right,” Aiden says to me as he joins me. He starts rubbing Lena’s legs and arms, trying to help keep her warm. “You have to.”
I nod, my throat thick with tears. “The police said they will get me a lawyer so that I can sort out any debts that I owe and to help make sure that these scumbags go to prison for what they did.”
“Good,” Aiden says with a tight nod. “No more lies between us?”
“No more lies,” I promise.
“Shake on it,” Brody says from just over my shoulder, and I awkwardly reach behind me to shake his hand. Then, I lean over Lena’s form to shake Aiden’s hand.
“Let’s do better about helping each other in general,” I say to both of them, my voice tight with emotion.
“Sharing is caring,” Sophie says quietly from under my arm, and we all laugh, despite our fear.
Just then, the paramedics arrive, and they hustle over with a stretcher and a medical bag to start examining Lena. As they are shifting her around to check on her wounds, she moans, and her eyes flutter open. She looks around in confusion, then smiles softly when she meets my gaze.
“Oh, hello,” she says dreamily to me.
