Chapter 14

I've been doing a lot of writing this weekend so here's another installment. Hope you enjoy it!

She woke up and saw him sitting by her hospital bed, her hand in his own. She tried to move her head, but she felt strapped down. Tubes attached to an IV bag and wires attached to a heart monitor tugged on her arms and chest when she did move.

Matt woke with a start and looked down at C.J. who had regained consciousness after surgery to remove a bullet. He had sat in the waiting room for hours awaiting word from the surgeons who struggled to save her life. Finally, a man in teal scrubs with a face mask lowered around his neck opened the double doors into the waiting room and had told him that she had pulled through but that the next 24 hours or so would determine her fate. The wound had gotten infected and it had started spreading. Matt had asked to see her, the surgeon had nodded and said, for a few minutes because she needed her rest.

But they had allowed him to sit with her longer and he had fallen asleep.

"Hey you," her voice said weakly.

His head lifted up.

"You're awake," Matt said, "I should get the doctor."

"How's Peg doing? Is she back with her family?"

"I'm going to find Mercer and bring her back as soon as I know you're okay."

C.J. reached her hand up to stroke his cheek.

"I'm better now that you're here," she said. "What happened? I don't remember much."

He took her hand. It felt cold and he wrapped it up in both of his hands.

"You got shot by one of Mercer's men, but you're fine now. The doctor said you'll be back as good as new."

"I remember being walking out to the helicopter with Peg's blood sample for testing. Then something slammed into me and I fell. We were inside a van?"

Matt nodded.

"This young man, he had medical training. He kept you alive until we reached the hospital."

"You did that," C.J. said, "Now you have to leave and go save Peg before they kill her."

"As soon as I know you're fine."

She reached up to touch the stubble growing on his face with her fingers.

"I'm fine, now go on and do what you have to do. I'll be waiting here when you get back."

And so he did.

Matt woke with a start and faced the darkness of the room. He sank back on the bed, his mind thinking now that he was awake. Was the dream an omen? Was she hurt, sick some place? He rubbed his eyes with his hands.

Would he ever get any answers to what had happened to her while he had traveling around the world searching for himself? He had left a woman he loved at the altar and blamed himself for that and for putting her in harm's way. When she had told him the night she left him that his life had pushed her away, his first response had been defensive but now he wondered if there hadn't been truth in her words. And not just about Elizabeth. And if so, what was he going to do about that?

He got out of bed, flipped on the lamp and walked to his dresser, where he saw the box that Rhonda had given him that belonged to C.J. He picked it up and looked at it, wondering when C.J. had created it and why she had hidden it away in the cabin.

He walked back to his bed to take a better look at it.

Thea joined Kelly in the kitchen and brought them both a piece of pie and some tea.

"I hope I didn't wake you up," Kelly said, "I woke up and couldn't get back to sleep."

"Another nightmare?"

Kelly shook her head.

"Actually this one was nice," Kelly said, "Sometimes I think I hate those more."

"What was it about?"

"I was in a hospital bed and Matt was sitting by my side, talking to me."

"Was it based on any memory?"

Kelly smiled.

"Yeah, both of us have our share of battle wounds from our line of work. On one case, a girl from a wealthy family was brainwashed by a religious cult. We were hired to bring her back but she wouldn't leave. So we took some blood to prove they were drugging her but the cult leader didn't like that much so his men took a shot at us while we were leaving."

"And you were hit," Thea said, "How awful."

"We were held captive and Matt never left my side. It felt like being burned by a poker. I couldn't forget it no matter how much I tried. At one point, I felt myself slipping away and that pain disappeared. I saw myself lying on a cot and this young man doing CPR."

"You had an out-of-body experience," Thea said.

"It happened so quickly, then I felt Matt's hand in mine again. And I knew I had to hold onto it even if it meant the pain coming back."

Thea sipped her tea.

"I think your dream's telling you to just that," she said, "To hold on and don't let go no matter what."

Kelly closed her eyes.

"It's hard…I don't know if I'm ever going to be myself again."

"You'll find a way, as long as you remember to hold onto what you want and fight for it."

C.J. sat in the chair, waiting for her friend and Andre's man to return with Scott. Minutes slipped into hours and still they hadn't returned. Jonathon sat there, looking scared but trying hard not to show it. Andre had left them alone to conduct some business out of view.

"It's going to be okay, C.J.," Jonathon said, "We're going to get out of this."

"It's been hours. They should be back by now."

"They will be," Jonathon said, "Maybe they're having trouble finding him."

"Scott, what did he get himself into," C.J. said, putting her head in her hand.

"Whatever it is, it's pretty damn serious," Jonathon said, "These men are professionals who will kill anyone as soon as look at them."

"Scott, he's just a law student like Julia and me. I've known him for years. At least I thought I did."

"He's young, and young people, we do stupid things sometimes," Jonathon said.

"I hope Julia's okay with that man."

"She's safe right now because she's the only one who can find Scott."

C.J. looked at the young man she'd just met that evening.

"I'm so sorry about this," she said, "If I had known…"

"You would have come on your own to help your friend," he said, "No, I'm glad you weren't alone to deal with this."

"Thank you for that," C.J. said, "I just don't understand what Scott could have that's worth killing over."

"Or dying over," Jonathon said, "If it's true he has what they want, he must have known that put him in danger, not to mention his friends."

C.J. looked at her hands.

"Scott's a great guy, he's popular and very smart," she said, "But I don't know, his judgment's not always good."

"This is more than bad judgment if he's willing to endanger his friends for any reason," Jonathon said, then looked at her, "I'm sorry, I know he's your friend and I've never met him."

"We're not great friends. I know him through Matt mostly. But the two of them are so different from each other."

"Ah, your best friend," Jonathon said, "The one in the military."

"Yeah, he would never do anything to risk anyone's life, especially those he cared about."

"Including you."

C.J. shrugged.

"He's got lots of friends and people to care about," she said, "That's the kind of person he is."

Both of them looked up to see Andre enter the room, with a tray of food and some soda poured in glasses.

"I brought some refreshments," he said, "I hope you enjoy them while we continue our conversation."

"Why would we eat anything you give us," Jonathon said, "You could have drugged or poisoned it."

"True," Andre said, "but if I did either, this evening would be over before it just got started and the party's just begun."

Matt looked at the box, while sitting on the bed. It wasn't heavy but when he opened it up, he found that it was filled with papers, many of which had been folded up into smaller pieces. He didn't know what he was looking for or why he had taken the box. Right now, it was the only connection he had to her.

He pulled out a post card of some snow capped mountains and flipped it over.

C.J.,

Thanks for your post card. Here's one from my home state. We have mountains like this around our ranch just off the path towards Silver Lode. We're readying the cattle for market and my mom is hosting one of her big parties to celebrate the 4th. Everyone in the valley will be coming out for it. You know you're invited. It would make my mom really happy if you'd come.

I think I missed the ranch more than I thought I would. I know I don't want to be a rancher but I guess I had more of it running in my blood than I thought.

Take care,

Love, Jonathon

He discovered that most of the contents were letters that she had received from other people, including Julia. He caught snatches of what had been written but stopped reading after a few lines because it made him uncomfortable before moving onto the next.

Dear C.J.,

I'm glad your summer job is working out. I think I found my summer gig. I'm volunteering at a women's crisis center and I love it. I don't need the money so it's great.

I think this is what I really want to do with my life and going to Harvard and getting the JD will make a big difference in what we can do. I can't wait until we start our first year in the fall…

*****

Hey girlfriend,

I'm off to the law library to do some studying for finals. Hopefully, I won't see you know who. I can't even say his name right now. I hope your dinner with Jonathon goes well. He's a great guy and very cute. No, you didn't get off to the best start but I think things could work out between the two of you.

Thanks for the herbal tea. It helped a lot. I really wish this cold would go away.

******

C.J.,

Thanks for your letter and phone calls as always. I'm doing much better. The chemo's taking my hair but the doctor says it's helping get rid of the cancer. The first tests have come back good. I might be down for a while, but I'll be back. Maybe even returning to Harvard some day and finish law school.

I really hope you don't give up and reconsider quitting law school. I know you're having a tough time with what happened to us but the world needs lawyers like you. Even if our dream of a law firm doesn't work out, I'll be cheering you on every step of the way. Don't let what happened take that away from you or else they win.

And don't be afraid to tell him what happened and what you're feeling. I know he genuinely cares for you and you need to tell him the truth like you told me. We've got one life that's given us like a gift and it's up to us to make the most of it…

******

Quitting law school?

C.J. had never mentioned that to him. In fact, she had tackled her Harvard education with an almost single-minded determination. And what had happened to her and Julia? He hadn' t seen much of her during that summer after her first year because he hadn't gotten much military leave. And when they had spent time together, she focused her attention on him and what he had been doing. Come to think of it, she hadn't shared much about herself. He remembered trying to elicit more information out of her about law school but she had changed the subject.

And who was she afraid to talk to? He and C.J. had kept few secrets from each other, as long as they knew each other. However, she clearly had kept some tucked away for a long time inside a small box hidden inside the cabin his father had given him. Was it Jonathon that she had been afraid to be honest with?

Back then, she had been going out with a man by that name who worked at the same restaurant she had. She hadn't talked much about him either. They had double dated a few times when Matt was in town to visit and Jonathon had been very nice and treated C.J. well. Still, the two of them never really became friends.

Matt was about to return the letters to the box where they belonged until he saw something else at the bottom of it. It was an envelope written with C.J.'s name on it. He picked it up and for some reason he couldn't explain, put it aside on the bed side table.

Kelly and Thea made breakfast as Jed and the other ranch hands wandered into the kitchen.

"Smells good," Jed said, "You make the best Denver omelets."

"My husband taught me," Thea said, "We used to go to this diner while on our honeymoon. The cook there gave us his own recipe after Gordon delivered his mare's foal."

"You can never get away from the ranch no matter where you go," Jed said.

"I've not been away from it much since I married Gordon," Thea said, "But there's no other place on this earth I'd rather be."

"It's beautiful here," Kelly said, "A lot different from Texas."

"We're all ranchers underneath no matter where we're from."

The men nodded, as Thea scooped up the omelets to put on their plates.

"So what's up today," she asked.

"I think we're going to start bringing in the quarter horses and some of the yearlings," Jed said, "The storm's still a ways off but better safe than sorry."

"What about the ones on the far side?"

"They can wait a day or so," Jed said, "They're mustangs after all."

"I'll help," Kelly said, bringing her food to the table.

Jed nodded.

"The more hands, the better."

"I talked to Bonnie yesterday in town," Kelly said.

"How's she doing?"

"Just fine, we thought we someone who looked like you leaving the diner," Kelly said.

Jed paused.

"I was in town for a spell, doing some errands," he said, "I ran into an old friend."

Matt poured himself another cup of coffee and returned to the living room where Chris was sitting at her lap top computer.

"Have you found out anything else," Matt said.

She shook her head.

"Nothing specific to any known gang or organization," she said.

"Maybe it's a new one," Matt said, "Maybe that's what the chimera means. Maybe each animal represents a separate entity."

"I could try to look up each one," Chris said.

"I was looking through the items in the box that Rhonda found at the cabin."

Chris looked up.

"You mean the one that belongs to C.J."

"Yes," Matt said, "I read parts of some of the letters that she received from her friend, Julia."

"The one who died about a year or so ago?"

Matt nodded.

"I think the time C.J. was in law school and I was in the military were the only times that we weren't really in touch with each other."

"You were on opposite ends of the world," Chris said, "The important thing is that you did reconnect when you both came home."

"I know, but it's clear in the letters that there were some major events in her life that she's never told me about."

"Were they bad things?"

"She was thinking about dropping out of law school for a while after her first year," Matt said.

Chris frowned.

"That doesn't sound like her at all," she said, "But from what I've heard first year law is pretty tough especially at a school like Harvard's."

"I think something else happened that year," Matt said, "Julia wrote that if C.J. quit law school, it would be letting them win."

"Who's 'they'?"

"I wish I knew the answer to that question," Matt said.

Jed took out his cell phone while walking into the barn and made a call.

"Hello Jed, if you're calling about…"

"No, not that. She saw us outside the diner yesterday."

"Did she tell you this," the man said.

"Yes, she was at the grocery store and she and the owner, Bonnie both saw us."

"Did she say anything else?"

"No, I told her I had in town running some errands and ran into an old friend."

"Damn, I told her when I ran into her the other day that I was in town on business."

"I think I need to talk to her," Jed said, "And explain what's going on."

"It's too soon for that," the man said, "You can't lose your perspective. If you tell her the truth now, it might do more harm than good."

"I know that, but I think she trusts me and I don't want to lose that."

The man sighed.

"You've gone soft, Jed in your retirement," the man said, "And that could cost a couple of lives if I'm right and there's some agents on the payroll of these thugs who are trying to find her."

Jed heard footsteps behind him of someone coming into the barn.

"Someone's coming, I'll talk to you later," Jed said, shutting his phone.

"Hi Jed," Kelly said, "I thought I'd get Sienna ready and start with the yearlings."

"Frisco's out in the far pasture," Jed said, "We probably won't get to him today."

"He'll be fine, at least he can't wander off anymore since the fence's been fixed."

"Oh he'll figure out another way to escape soon," Jed said, with a laugh, "We'd better get going."

Matt was ready to leave the house to head to the office when his cell phone rang.

"Hoyt, do you have good news?"

"It depends on which you want to hear first."

"Okay shoot," Matt said, "I'm on my way to the office to meet again with Murray over some tax forms."

"I got a fix on where that dropped call that you received originated."

"Where?"

"It came from a payphone in a an old mining town, Silver Lode," Hoyt said.

"That sounds familiar, where is it?"

"Southern Colorado, in a valley surrounded by mountain ranges."

"Thanks, I'll see what I can find out with that information," Matt said.

"It might have been a wrong number and had nothing to do with C.J."

"I know, Hoyt but I have to start somewhere. "

"In my other news, another round of forensic tests came back on the explosive device from the DOJ lab."

"Are they closer to identifying the organization that's responsible?"

"Yes, like I told you, it's one that the FBI and other agencies believed they had busted a while back."

"I guess they know now they were wrong," Matt said.

Hoyt hesitated.

"Houston, it's not that simple."

"What do you mean it's not that sample," Matt said, "Who's responsible?"

"It might be a name that's familiar to you or at least the man who was in charge of the terrorist group."

"Who is it," Matt asked.

"Marquis Duval Jr."