Margaret Daley - Her Baby's Protector

He looked away to take in the crime scene. The tree trunk hadn’t been there yesterday when he’d jogged this path. Had the assailant set this up? It had looked like he was trying to take the judge’s child. A foiled kidnapping or something else?

After the judge placed her now sleeping son in the stroller, she walked toward him. “Did he get away?”

Chase nodded, noting she was about a foot shorter than her attacker. Impressive that she’d managed to fend him off until he’d arrived. “I’m Detective Chase Walker with the Cimarron City Police Department. I got the car’s license plate number and called the station. That information has gone out to the officers on duty. There’s a chance one of them will spot him before he ditches the vehicle.”

“Undoubtedly, it was stolen.”

Probably. But not always. “Tell me what happened. I’m going to record this since I don’t have anything to write on. Start with your name.” Chase punched the record button on his cell phone.

She looked back at her son, then rubbed her temple and said, “I’m Kate Forster. Oh, you already know that.” She grinned but couldn’t maintain it. “I had my son, Jamie, with me in his stroller while I went for a run. It happened so fast. I’ll do my best to tell you everything, but can we do it at my house? It’ll be dark soon, and frankly I don’t want to be here when it is.” She rubbed her hands up and down her arms.

“That’s fine with me. I’ll take some photos then we can leave. Which lot are you parked in?”

“The second one.”

“That’s where mine is. I’ll follow you back to your house.”

“I appreciate it. I’ve seen you at the courthouse. I thought you might be an attorney.”

He started snapping pictures. “Nope. Just testifying in court.”

“Can you show me your badge?”

“Yes, it’s in my car.” He smiled. “I’m glad you asked. You can’t be too careful.”

“Sadly, I’ve discovered that in my job, and today only emphasized it.”

So had he—both as a Marine and a police officer.

When they left, the judge pushed her stroller, gripping the handle so tight her knuckles whitened. “I’ve never felt unsafe here. I come to the reserve a lot. This is one of Jamie’s favorite places.”

“If you’re going to continue coming here, don’t come alone.”

She slanted a look at him, flipping her ponytail over her shoulder. “You don’t have to warn me. I might have to content myself with swimming in my pool instead.”

“Where do you live?”

She gave him her address.

“That’s a nice area of town. Isn’t that a gated community?”

She nodded and stopped at a blue luxury car. “Maybe until I open my pool, I’ll jog in my neighborhood. We have private security that patrols.”

“Or find someone to go with you besides your child. My SUV is in the next row. I’ll get my badge and be right back.”

As he made his way to his vehicle, he favored his leg. Each step flooded his mind with thoughts of his last time in battle. He still didn’t understand how he’d survived when everyone else on the recon mission had died. He should have died, but he hadn’t.

* * *

Kate pulled into her garage and carefully lifted Jamie out of his car seat. He was still asleep. She stared down at his peaceful face looking so much like her deceased husband, James, even down to the cleft in his chin. The only thing of hers in him was the shape and color of his eyes.

When her husband died in a plane crash while flying to Dallas, her life had fallen apart. Then in the midst of mourning, she’d discovered she was pregnant again and weeks further along than any of her earlier, unsuccessful pregnancies. Somehow she managed to pull herself together for Jamie, but today when she thought she might lose him, too, that feeling of devastation had swamped her momentarily. She’d hung on to Jamie in a tug-of-war with her attacker. Had he been after her or Jamie? Maybe he’d intended to hold her child for ransom? Her husband had left her a wealthy woman.

“Is everything okay?” Detective Walker’s deep, baritone voice cut into her musings.

She blinked and centered her attention on the man who had saved her and Jamie. “Just trying to figure out why that guy attacked me. Let’s go inside. I’ll have Rachel put Jamie to sleep.”

“Who is Rachel?”

“My live-in nanny. She has been a lifesaver this past year.”

“How long has she worked for you?”

“Since Jamie was born fifteen months ago. She came highly recommended, with a great résumé. If you’re thinking she had anything to do with what happened at the reserve, you can stop. She didn’t.” Rachel was more like a little sister than an employee. Kate headed for the door into the utility room.

“Do you have a dog?”

When she entered the home, her big white cat was waiting for her. “No. I only have Boss.”

He chuckled. “I’m not sure I want to know why you call your cat Boss.”

“Because he thinks he runs my house. It’s easier letting him think that than fighting with him all the time.” He was ten years old and a present from her husband.

“So you don’t have a watchdog?”

“No, but I have a state-of-the-art alarm system.”

“A guard dog is one of the best protections.”

“Do you have one?” Kate lifted Jamie out of the stroller.

“Yes. But no place is one hundred percent safe.”

“That’s not very comforting.”

“I say that to stress the importance of vigilance.”

Could she have avoided the confrontation at the reserve if she had been more in tune with her surroundings? The jogger had nearly been at the downed tree before she’d heard and acknowledged his presence in her mind.

Rachel entered the kitchen, took a look at Kate and asked, “What’s wrong?” then fixed her gaze on Chase Walker.

“Detective Walker stopped a man from attacking me.”

Rachel moved across the room. “Are you and Jamie okay?” She peeked at the child, his head lying against Kate’s shoulder.

“Yes. He wore himself out. Please put him to bed while I talk with the detective.”

Rachel took Jamie from her. Her son’s eyes fluttered open but then closed again when he saw his nanny.

While Rachel left the kitchen, Kate walked to the cabinet. “Do you want something to drink? Water? Iced tea?”

“Actually, water sounds great after jogging.”

“I agree.”

Kate fixed two glasses, handed him one and then made her way into the hallway. “Let’s talk in the den.”

She lived in this room filled with photos, books and comfortable furniture. In the corner was Jamie’s toy box, which he usually made a beeline for every time he came into the den. Kate settled onto the overstuffed maroon-and-navy couch while the police detective took the chair across from her, giving her a good view of him, all six feet. His short black hair, damp with sweat, lay at odd angles. But what drew her was his silver-gray gaze, alert, intense.

Earlier she’d noticed he was favoring his left leg. “Did you hurt yourself running after the attacker?”

He kneaded his thigh. “Not really. I was injured three years ago, and occasionally it’ll flare up when I push myself.”

“I’m sorry you had to do that for me. No doubt you were off duty.”

“A police officer is never totally off duty. There’s something in our makeup. We can’t ignore a person in trouble.”

“And for that, I’m grateful.” She reclined back and relaxed for the first time since the attack. There was something about Chase Walker’s presence that was reassuring. She looked into his eyes and felt safe. “What do you need to know?”

He fished out his phone again, setting it to record. “Tell me what happened.”