Autumn's Lawman (Season's of Love Book 3) Read online

  Autumn’s Lawman

  Joy Wild

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Epilogue

  About the Author

  Also By Joy Wild

  Autumn’s Lawman

  Copyright © 2021 by Joy Wild

  All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereinafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher, Wild Hearts Publishing LLC, 107 Walter Payton Dr. #104, Columbia, MS 39429.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Created with Vellum

  Dedicated to my family and friends who have supported me on this journey. To my best friend Tamie, who has been my sounding board and assistant throughout this amazing journey. I couldn’t have done it without all of you.

  1

  Autumn was watching everyone ooh and ahh over Spring’s new baby. Lizzie was adorable, but Autumn had other things on her mind. She wanted to leave, but she didn’t want to hurt Spring’s feelings. Summer kept picking on her about not holding Lizzie until she finally gave in and decided to hold the baby. Autumn reached to take the sweet baby girl from Sam, who was currently holding her. As she went to lift Lizzie from Sam’s arms, her sleeve slid up on her arm. There was a bruise on her arm that was clearly fingerprints. It was black and blue with yellowing and showed fingers wrapped around her wrist. Summer gasped, Sam looked up at her, and Mark grabbed her arm.

  “What the hell is this?” Mark asked her, the tension evident in his voice.

  “Nothing, mind your own business,” Autumn told him as she yanked her arm free. She released Lizzie.

  “This isn’t nothing," he said.

  “Yes, it is. Not everything is a case for you to work," Autumn said. She pulled her sleeve down and turned away. She picked up her purse and headed out the door, Mark following right behind her.

  “Leave me alone, Mark. Stay out of my business," Autumn said without ever looking back at him. She climbed into her car, and as she started it. Winter jumped in the passenger seat.

  “Girlfriend, you ain't leaving me behind," Winter said.

  "I’m sorry, I have to get out of here," Autumn told her. She backed out and headed toward the highway.

  "It’s okay; I need to get home anyway. I need to feed the horses." Winter sighed.

  2

  "Well, I’m glad you went with me. I have a headache and want to go home," Autumn confessed.

  "I’m glad I came too, but you know me. I don't like a lot of people," Winter reminded her.

  "I wish I knew why you are so quiet," Autumn remarked.

  "We all have our secrets, Autumn. That isn’t always a bad thing," Winter retorted.

  "That's true. Sometimes though, it can be," Winter said quietly.

  Neither said anything else the rest of the drive home. It didn't take long for Autumn to pull up to Winter's beautiful ranch. Winter got out and before closing the door, thanked Autumn for the ride. She closed the door and headed inside.

  Autumn pulled out of Winter's driveway, starting her drive home. As she drove the long winding roads, she couldn't help but think about her life and how it had gotten to this point. In her twenty-four years, she never would have believed her situation.

  3

  All she ever wanted was a love like her mom and dad's. Being an only child, she was close to her parents, and she watched how much love her parents had for each other. They always did small things for each other. There were always smiles and gentle touches. They weren’t afraid to show affection. They had their disagreements, and Autumn knew her parents weren’t perfect, but they never spoke in anger. Her dad always brought gifts to her mom, a flower here and there or a surprise piece of jewelry. He didn’t need a reason. Her mind drifted to the house she grew up in, in the suburbs of Baton Rouge. It was a quiet and comfortable neighborhood. Her parents sent her to the best private school and kept her sheltered most of her life. She was young and naïve when she met Blake. He was the handsome hometown football star, and she fell hard for his blond hair and blue eyes. For her, it was love at first sight, and he doted on her for months. She gave him everything, including her virginity. Her parents told her he was much too old for her. He was twenty-two, and she was seventeen. She found out she was pregnant, and when she told Blake, he insisted they get married. Her parents refused, so the moment she turned eighteen, they eloped. Her parents were upset with her and closed her out of their lives. Blake was rich beyond her wildest dreams, and she never wanted for anything. He showered her with love and attention. She gave birth to their beautiful baby girl, Abigail Renee Daze. They called her Abby, and she became Autumn's whole world.

  The first couple of years were happy years, and then one day, out of the blue, Blake came home and packed his stuff. He said he didn't want to be married anymore. Autumn's world fell apart. Blake tried to take Abby with him, and Autumn refused. That's when her world went to hell. She shook her head to pull herself out of her memories. As the memories started fading away, Autumn pulled up to her lavish home. If a stranger drove up, they would think that she was rich, but that was not true. The only money that was hers was her paycheck, and it was tucked away in a savings account that no one knew about. He controlled everything else; she only had the privilege of living here.

  "Yea, some privilege," Autumn muttered. "No one knows what a prison it is."

  She took a deep breath and swallowed hard. She steeled herself for what was to come, and inhaling deeply one more time, she grabbed her purse, closed the door, and headed into hell.

  As she walked up to the front door, it opened.

  "It's about damn time you decided to come home," a voice said. "Get in here."

  Autumn bowed her head and stepped into her own private prison.

  4

  Mark was furious. Those marks on Autumn's arm were fingerprints; they were evident. Deep bruises, black and blue with yellowing, like someone, had grabbed her hard and held her. She was also very defensive, which told Mark that whoever did it was close to her. The yellowing told him that they occurred within the last 24 hours.

  Sam, Steve, Caleb, and Mark were all huddled in a circle with a phone in front of them.

  "I'm telling you something is not right," Mark reiterated to Gene.

  "Mark, you can't start jumping in on unassigned cases. I have a backlog of work I'm sending out to teams. If Autumn wants your help, she will ask for it," Gene said.

  "Gene, I'm telling you that I am going to find out what is going on and help her w
hether she wants it or not," Mark growled. "With or without you."

  "If you were anyone else, I would fire you," Gene huffed.

  "No, you wouldn’t. We are all good at what we do," Steve chimed in.

  "Fine. I'll investigate it and get back with you on what I find out," Gene said, and the phone went dead.

  "Dammit, I hate when he hangs up like that," Mark said as he put his phone back in his pocket.

  "Mark, you know Gene is right. Autumn doesn't want help. She told you to mind your own business. I don't mean this bad, but maybe she has a boyfriend, and they are into the rough stuff," Caleb said.

  "I doubt it," Mark said. "Autumn is way too sweet."

  "Remember you can’t judge a book by its cover," Sam added. "We were all taught to always expect the unexpected."

  5

  "If Gene finds anything, we will all be here to help. Forever family," Steve said. "For now, I’m going back inside to my gorgeous wife and daughter."

  "I’m going to say good night to Spring, Lizzie, and Summer, then head home. I have some research to do," Mark said.

  Mark was furious at the thought of the bruises on Autumn's arm. His mind rolled back to his past and the abuse that his mother had hidden so well. Mom tried to keep his older brother, Luke, and him safe from their father's ire. They grew up on a vast ranch in Colorado, so no one ever saw the abuse. They were always busy with their two-thousand-acre horse ranch, so Mom rarely went to town. She was a Christian woman who would never leave her husband no matter what he did, and his dad had a severe drinking problem. There was almost always a drink in his hand, and it didn't take much to make him angry. Mom paid the price. Mark would never forget the horrible day when they came home from school, and the police and the coroner's office were there. He never got to say goodbye to his mom. The one person in his life that he adored was gone in an instant.

  Mark was fourteen, and Luke was seventeen when their dad had found her in the barn, apparently crushed by her horse. No one ever questioned the bruises on her body because everyone assumed it was an accident. Somehow, Mark knew it wasn’t, but no one would listen to a fourteen-year-old, and he didn't want his father to be any angrier.

  Life with his dad was only bearable because Luke was there. Luke was bigger than their dad, and so he was saved from the abuse. Luke spent a lot of time with the horses; they were the one thing he loved on that ranch. Mark helped Luke every day until one day when his world was turned upside down again.

  6

  At age fifteen, Mark watched his brother Luke leave for the Navy. His leaving left Mark to fend for himself against his dad. He tolerated the abuse for three years. He’d learned to stay gone as much as possible for school and get home late. He’d do his chores, cook dinner, eat, clean up, and go to bed. He avoided his dad when at all possible. The last time he saw his dad was when he packed his bag and headed off to the Army. The last thing Mark told his dad was that he hated him. As he walked out the door, he heard a glass break against the door. He never looked back.

  A horn blew, bringing Mark out of his memories. He realized he was sitting at a green light. He quickly shook his head to clear the memories, and he continued his drive toward home, but his mind kept going back to the bruises on Autumn's arm. Every instinct he had was telling him that Autumn was in trouble. He was determined to find out what was going on, and he was even more determined to help her.

  7

  “Run, Abby, run!" Autumn was screaming.

  “I’m running, don't leave me," Abby cried.

  “I will never leave you, Abby," Autumn vowed.

  The fire was raging around them. Everywhere she looked, Autumn could see fire. She knew they were going to die, and her heart clenched at the thought. She was out of breath and tired of running. Her legs felt like jelly, and she knew she couldn't go on much more. Suddenly, they ran into a clearing. It was a large circle of dirt as if it had been put there for her.

  “Abby lay down in the middle," Autumn yelled. She watched as Abby did what Autumn told her to. Autumn ran to her and dropped to the ground, pulling Abby into her arms.

  "I am so sorry I couldn't protect you, Abby; I tried," Autumn told the precious girl.

  "It’s okay, Mommy, don't cry. I love you." Autumn's heart was breaking. She loved her little girl with all her heart. Autumn curled her body over Abby's.

  "God, please save Abby; I don't care about me. She has her whole life ahead of her. Please, please save her from this fire and her dad. She deserves so much better." Autumn prayed with all her heart as she listened to the fire rage. She could feel the intense heat, and she knew the end was near. She held on to Abby as tight as she could and let the darkness overtake her.

  Suddenly there was so much noise and heat. She tried to scream for Abby, but nothing came out of her mouth. Autumn knew she was dead. She could handle hell if Abby were safe. Nothing meant more to her than Abby. She needed to know she was safe.

  "Abby!" Autumn kept yelling repeatedly.

  "Mommy! Mommy, wake up!" Abby cried.

  8

  Autumn opened her eyes and blinked as her surroundings came into focus. Her arms went around her daughter.

  "Mommy, are you okay? Did Daddy hurt you again?" Abby cried.

  "I’m okay, baby girl. I had a bad dream. That's all." Autumn did her best to console her daughter. Suddenly, Autumn's alarm clock started going off.

  "It’s time to get up, love," Autumn told Abby. "Go get ready to go to Ms. Lela's, and I have to take a shower."

  "Okay, Mommy. I love you."

  "I love you too, baby girl," Autumn said as she watched the little girl bounce out of the room. Abby was a six-year-old bundle of energy. Her soft, red hair and her bright green eyes reminded Autumn of her childhood. Autumn wanted Abby to keep her innocence as long as she possibly could. She didn't need to know the bad in the world or this house.

  Autumn winced in pain as she got out of bed. She made her way to the shower. No one would ever know what her life was like. She dried off and dressed. Her uniform would hide the bruises, then she put on her usual happy face and opened the door.

  "Time to go, baby," she yelled for Abby.

  "Coming, Mommy," she heard Abby yell. Her heart soared at those words. She was proud to be Abby’s mommy.

  Autumn buckled the squirming Abby into her car seat and got in the driver's seat. Buckling up, she started the car and cranked up the AC. Damn, it’s hot. It took fifteen minutes to get to Lela's house. Lela babysat Abby whenever Autumn had to work. Abby adored Lela and Autumn trusted Lela to keep her daughter safe.

  "Bye, Mommy," Abby said, hugging Autumn.

  "Bye, my love," Abby said, hugging her back. "I will see you in the morning."

  9

  "Okay," Abby said and ran off to find Rocco, the dog.

  "Thank you, Lela, you are amazing," Autumn told her babysitter.

  "You’re welcome, and I’m just an old grandma. I get to spoil her," Lela laughed.

  "You are not old, and I love that you spoil her as if she were your granddaughter," Autumn said. "I will see you in the morning."

  "Have a good shift, dear," Lela said, closing the door.

  Autumn got back in her car and started making her way to work. She turned on her radio to take her mind off her dream. Glancing around her, Autumn noticed how dark the sky was getting. It looked like a thunderstorm was coming in fast. She passed the football stadium and shuddered. Football season was beginning, and so was her nightmare.

  Mark was watching the storm roll in as he drove around the city. It has been too quiet lately. He felt as if it was the calm before the storm. Judging from the sky, that is probably true. Mark knew Autumn was working today and was hoping he would see her.

  Turning downtown, Mark was headed to the police station when he looked over just in time to see a car run a red light and collide with another vehicle. He flipped on his lights and siren to get to the vehicles.

  "Dispatch, this is 321. We have a motor vehicle collision at
the corner of Third and Main. Roll additional police units, fire, and ambulance," Mark said into his mic.

  "10-4, Unit 321," a voice answered.

  10

  Mark jumped out to render aid. He checked the driver of the car that ran the red light. He was slumped over the steering wheel, unconscious, but had a steady pulse. He went to the second vehicle and found a woman lying over toward the passenger seat. She was breathing, but Mark couldn't get to her. The car door was crushed in. He looked in the backseat and saw a baby in a car seat. He knew the baby should be crying but instead was silent. He heard the sirens before he saw any units rolling up. Unable to get to either the woman or the child, he had no choice but to wait for help.

  It only took moments for the fire department and ambulance to arrive. Mark saw Autumn jump out of the passenger side of the ambulance and head to the back. He knew she would grab her “go bag,” as they called it. Everyone in the military had a go bag and most police and EMS personnel had one too. It was a bag that contained everything needed for a short-term emergency. It was designed based on their job. The medic bag contained a blood pressure cuff, stethoscope, IV supplies and bandages. It kept the medic from having to run back to the ambulance for items. He watched as she checked the first car driver, and the fire department started working on getting him out.