came home.”
Paul frowned. “That means the intruder had only a small window of time to do this. There could have been more than one of them.”
“That means he was probably outside watching. He—they could have...” Tory curled her hands.
Despite what happened in the past, Cade wanted to hold her, reassure her, especially when he saw the color drain from her face in the dim light from the porch. He stopped himself before he did that. Instead he clasped her upper arm, the touch familiar to him and yet strange.
“Michelle is looking,” she said.
He slid his hand away, not wanting to give his daughter any ideas about their relationship. He was only concerned for Tory in a strictly professional capacity. They might both work in the justice field, but that was all they had between them now.
No, we have Michelle between us.
“What should we do? I have to protect my daughter.”
The quavering in her voice reminded Cade of when Tory as a teenager had told him her mother died. That day their relationship had deepened. The year before he’d dealt with his dad passing away. He’d known what she was feeling at the time. “I’ll protect you and your daughter at my ranch until we know what’s going on for sure. And I think that Michelle needs to know what’s possibly happening here. It’s too important to keep her in the dark.”
“At your ranch! I’m sure Derek’s parents would take us in for a few days.” Panic laced her whispers. “I know they live in San Antonio but it isn’t too far—”
“Can they protect you two?” Cade cut in. “Do you want to put them in danger too if someone is truly after you...or your daughter?”
Tory shook her head. “Doesn’t your uncle live at the ranch?”
“Why do you think I wanted to be a Texas Ranger? I grew up thinking I’d follow in Uncle Ben’s footsteps. He knows what he’s doing. He used to protect the governor.”
Paul shifted toward him. “That’s a good suggestion, Cade. When she’s at the county courthouse, the police and the sheriff’s departments can protect her.”
“What’s taking y’all so long? I’m starving.” Michelle rose, one hand on her waist, reminding Cade of Tory when she was upset with him back when they dated. “What’s all the whispering about?”
“You need to tell her what’s going on. If you don’t want to, I can.” Cade stressed the last two words.
Tory glared at him. “I’m her mother, and I’ll tell her. But I prefer not to do it on the front lawn. I’ve seen Mrs. Applegate peeking out her window. I’m surprised she hasn’t come outside trying to listen to our conversation. What happened here will be all over town soon, and I don’t want to add to it.”
Paul backed away a few steps. “We still need to figure out what’s going on. Most likely it is one or more members of the Mederos gang. I think y’all need to talk in private. Call me when you’re settled in, Tory.”
“Chicken,” Cade said with a chuckle.
Paul grinned. “Yep. Reminds me of when y’all were dating in high school. Two strong, opinionated people clashing.” He tipped the brim of his cowboy hat and nodded at Michelle, still at the other end of the porch.
“You two need to pack your clothes. Let’s go into the living room to talk, then you should get what you both need to take to the ranch.” Cade glanced at Michelle. “She’s coming over here.”
“Mom, I’m almost an adult. What’s going on? Is this connected to the Mederos-gang case?” She set both fists on her waist.
Tory faced Michelle. “Let’s talk in the living room.” She slid her arm across her daughter’s back.
Michelle shrugged away, her eyes large. “You’re scaring me.”
Tory pushed the front door wide. “Inside first.”
Michelle huffed and plodded into the living room, then whirled around, both hands on her waist again. “Why was the police chief here? Why did you take me out of the game?” She fluttered her hand at Cade. “Why is he here?”
Cade clamped his jaw tightly together before he said something he would regret. He wished he had the right to step in.
“Someone broke into our house today right after you went to the game. They smashed your window in and trashed your room and...” Tory swallowed hard. “And the bathroom. When I came home, whoever did it must have run before he could do any more damage to the rest of the house.”
Michelle’s hands slipped from her waist, and her arms dangled at her sides. “He could have hurt you.”
“Yes. We’ll be staying at Cade’s ranch for a few days while the police process the crime scene and I get a top-notch alarm system. So until then he was kind enough to offer us a place to stay.”
Michelle threw a narrowed-eye look at him. “Why him? Why can’t we stay at Papa and Grandma’s house?”
Tory’s eyes closed, and she took a deep breath. “Because they live in San Antonio and you have school.”
“It’s only twenty-five miles away. You could drop me off at school before going to work. Or how about the hotel downtown not far from the courthouse? We could stay there.”
When Cade fixed his blue eyes on Tory and cleared his throat, she quickly added, “Also because this could be connected to the Mederos case I’m prosecuting right now. Cade will be there for our protection. This trial shouldn’t last too long. This could be just a prank, or the man I’m prosecuting right now may be behind it. I can’t take the chance and ignore what happened.”
Tears welled into Michelle’s eyes. “Someone is after you? Mederos is the head of the biker gang. I’ve heard stories...” Her voice caught on a sob.
“I don’t know what’s going on yet, honey, but as a Texas Ranger Cade will be working with the police on finding out what’s going on in addition to making sure we’re all right.”
A tear ran down Michelle’s cheek. “I don’t want to lose you too.”
Cade’s heart ripped in two at the thought of his daughter’s anguish and the years he’d missed. Anger he’d shoved down in the dark recesses of his mind surged to the forefront. Tory should have trusted their love. He should have returned home and claimed his daughter despite Tory’s marriage and what she and Derek had told everyone in town. Now it was too late.
“Baby, you aren’t going to lose me.”
“You don’t know that.” Michelle’s voice rose several levels.
“I’m not going to let anything happen to either one of you.” The words came out of his mouth before he could stop them.
“Y’all can’t say that for sure. Quit treating me like a child. I’ll be fifteen soon.”
Tory released a long breath. “We’ll talk about this later. Give Chief Drake—and Morgan
