Ryan shared a smile with Clayton. “I like my job. A lot. I like the people I work with, I like Clearview, and I’ve made some incredible friends.” He nodded to Clayton. “Like you. It’s not an easy thing to find people you trust with your life. I had it with my SEAL teammates, and I’ve found it again.”
“No matter where you live or what you do, we’ll still be your friends.”
“I know. But the dream I once had doesn’t mean as much anymore.”
“I think it means more than you think. It shifted without you realizing it.”
Ryan chuckled as he looked at the floor and realized that his friend was absolutely right. He met Clayton’s gaze. “If I joined the Rangers, who the hell would keep all of you in line? Danny can’t handle it by himself.”
Clayton let out a loud laugh. He had a smile on his face when he said, “I’ll tell you what I told Brice, Caleb, Cooper, and Jace—as well as my own kids. Follow your gut. It’ll never lead you wrong. In anything.”
“Thank you.”
Ryan stood when Clayton got to his feet. They clasped hands and shook. Clayton flashed him a smile and walked out after putting the Stetson back on his head. When Ryan took his seat once more, he didn’t feel as if he carried the weight of the world any longer. He still hadn’t made a decision, but the path to it was clearing.
He hadn’t lied to Clayton. He loved his job, and if he joined Jace and the others on an unsanctioned raid on one of the businessmen in Fort Worth and things went badly, Ryan’s life as he knew it would be over. He would no longer be a cop, much less the chief. The Rangers would no longer want him. Everything he held dear would vanish.
But if he didn’t help his friends … he’d never forgive himself.
Chapter 21
The dream was always the same. She tried to wake herself, but just like the many times before, she couldn’t. Ice filled her veins when Boyd’s man Brick bound her hands behind her and motioned for two men to take her.
Taryn struggled to get away, but it did no good. No matter how many times her feet connected with them, they didn’t so much as flinch. She knew she was being brought to her execution. This wasn’t supposed to happen. Her life was supposed to be with Jace. She wasn’t supposed to end up selling drugs to help her father and brother pay back a debt that shouldn’t have become hers.
Lightning flashed in the sky, followed immediately by a long rumble of thunder. The warehouse loomed before her as the men hauled her inside the darkened building. Her rapid heartbeat slamming against her ribs drowned out the sound of Brick’s boots on the concrete.
Brick looked back at her, his dark brown eyes meeting hers briefly as he walked beneath a couple of lights. Then he halted and turned to face her. She tried to catch his attention again, hoping that she might convince him to help her. A form took shape out of the darkness behind Brick. Then the men holding her stopped.
And Boyd came into view.
He had his hands behind his back as he stopped beside Brick, and the two of them exchanged whispers. Taryn tried to hear what they said, but she couldn’t make out anything. Her once easy life had turned into one of fear and dread.
“If you’re going to kill me, get it over with,” she told them.
Boyd’s head snapped to her as he halted mid-sentence. Brick’s look of shock made her wonder if she had lost her sanity. Only a fool would bring attention to themselves in this scenario. Maybe she had gone mad. All she knew was that she couldn’t live like this any longer. If she couldn’t be free, then there was no reason to keep living.
“I’ll get to you,” Boyd replied.
Taryn heard a sound behind her. She twisted to see two others being dragged in, though they weren’t fighting like she had been. Her curiosity turned to shock when she realized that the other two were her brother and father. They were shoved to their knees on either side of her.
“Dad,” she whispered when he and Ben were settled.
One of the men holding her yanked down on her arm. She fell to her knees so hard she feared she had cracked her kneecap. Her father wouldn’t look at her. His head hung so low, his chin touched his chest as tears ran down his face.
Taryn then looked at Ben. He glanced at her, and the terror in his eyes sent her into an all-out panic situation. That’s when she knew. Boyd was going to kill all three of them. All Taryn could hope for was that they’d spare Payton. She was the most innocent of all of them. The more time that passed without her arrival, the more Taryn hoped that her prayers might be answered.
“Someone has betrayed me,” Boyd said.
Taryn squeezed her eyes closed. She knew this part. This was where Boyd killed her father in front of her. She couldn’t watch it again. She wouldn’t. She kept telling herself to wake up, that she was reliving a nightmare. But nothing she did untangled her from the dream.
“Haven’t you, Taryn?”
Her heart dropped to her feet as her eyes snapped open. She found herself looking into Boyd’s blue eyes as he aimed the gun at her face. This wasn’t the usual nightmare. And that alarmed her even more. “No.”
“You went to Jace. You told him who I was. I warned you what would happen if you betrayed me.”
She shook her head furiously, unable to comprehend what was going on. “No. No, please. I-I didn’t do anything.”
“You think you can be free of me? Never. For this betrayal, I’m going to take your sister’s life.”
He swung the gun to the side. Her father no longer kneeled beside her. Instead, it was Payton, tears coursing down her face.
“Taryn? Help me. You said you would protect me.”
Taryn swung her head to Boyd, trying to think of something to say, when he fired the gun.
* * *
Taryn jerked upright as she came awake at the sound of the gunshot in her dreams. She was breathing heavily, her heart racing.
“Easy,” Jace said as he sat up. “You’re safe, darlin’. Everything is fine.”
Taryn dropped her head into her hands. Nothing was fine. She might be safe, but her sister wasn’t.
“It was just a dream,” Jace said as he pulled her into his arms.
She crumpled against him and let the tears flow. A long time passed before she stopped crying. He held her through it all. When she finally raised her head and wiped at the tear streaks on her cheeks, Jace didn’t ask her to tell him what had happened. He offered her a smile and a box of tissues. Taryn found herself grinning as she took a tissue to wipe her nose.
“It’s dawn. You hungry?” Jace asked.
She shrugged. “A little.”
“How about one of Velma’s blueberry donuts?”
They were her favorite, but of course, he would remember that. “I’ve not had one in forever.”
“I’m craving one of her cinnamon rolls myself.” He tugged on her hand. “Come on. Let’s treat ourselves.”
She let him pull her from the bed. “I need to stop by the drugstore.”
“No problem.” He kissed her before turning to get dressed.
The dream began to fade, and with it, her fear. At least, for now. She pulled on her jeans and a sleeveless shirt before she wound her hair up in a messy bun. Then she went into the living room to find her shoes she had kicked off the previous night. Jace was waiting for her near the garage door by the time she grabbed her purse.