Free Stockyard Snatching by Barb Han

that she hadn’t done something to put herself at risk.
    For her sake as much as his, Dallas needed to know what had happened to her and the baby she’d given birth to.
    As he started toward the door, he realized that he had no means of transportation. He also realized he had a shadow. Kate was buttoning up her coat as she followed him.
    He stopped and she had to put on the brakes in order to avoid walking straight into him. Her flat palms on his back brought a jolt of electricity.
    Dallas turned around quickly and Kate took a step back. “My pickup is at the supply store parking lot. Can you take me to it?”
    “For the record, I don’t like either one of you anywhere near the attempted kidnapping site or Safe Haven,” Tommy interjected.
    Dallas shot his friend a telling look. “I’m going to talk to Stacy first.”
    “While you do that, I’ll investigate the crime scene,” the sheriff conceded. “Keep me posted on what you find out from her and let her know that I’ll be stopping by her office for a statement later today.”
    * * *
    K ATE HATED THE thought of being separated from Jackson, to the point her heart hurt. If leaving to find answers wasn’t a trade-off for his ultimate safety, then she wouldn’t be able to go, not even knowing he’d be with someone as competent as Abigail. His security had to be the priority.
    For a second, Kate considered calling her babysitter, but after this morning’s kidnapping attempt there was no way she would risk putting Mrs. Zilker in danger.
    Abigail stopped at the doorway, Jackson resting peacefully in her arms. “Walter Higgins is refusing to answer questions without an attorney present.”
    “He’s always been a stubborn one.” Tommy shook his head and shrugged. “We’ll give it to him his way. Send Deputy Lopez to pick him up and bring him in. I doubt he’ll be useful given the turn of events, but I’d like him to know that we’re aware of his antics with Ms. Williams.”
    “Yes, sir.”
    “Any news about the other incidences?” the sheriff asked.
    Her gaze bounced from Kate to him, making the hair on Kate’s arms stand on end. “So far, we’ve been able to make contact with one of the families.”
    “And?” Tommy asked.
    “They adopted their son from Safe Haven almost three months ago,” Abigail stated, with an apologetic glance toward Kate.
    Kate struggled to breathe as anxiety caused her chest to squeeze.
    “Any other obvious connections to our current case?” he continued.
    “Other than the fact they’ve all occurred between Houston and San Antonio?” Abigail asked.
    Tommy nodded.
    “That’s all I have so far,” she replied. “We’ll know more as we hear back from the other families.”
    Kate stepped forward and kissed Jackson, praying this would not be the last time she saw him. Then she walked out the door and toward her car.
    “We need to switch to my pickup at some point today,” Dallas said, once they were in the parking lot.
    “Hold on a second. I have a few questions before we leave.” She stopped cold. She’d been so distracted by her own problems, she hadn’t stopped to really think about everything she’d heard at the sheriff’s office.
    Dallas turned around and faced her.
    “What is your connection to Safe Haven?” she asked.
    “I’ve been helping a close friend figure out if he’s a father or not,” he said, and something told her there was more to that story than he was sharing. “He wants to keep his identity out of the papers, so he asked me to help. I hired Morton to investigate and you know the rest from there.”
    Kate tossed him her keys. No way could she concentrate on driving in her current state.
    “My adoption was legal,” she said, once she was buckled in. “I followed all the right channels.”
    Kate pressed her fingers to her temples to stave off the headache threatening.
    Dallas glanced at her and then quickly focused on the road again. “When was the last time you ate?”
    “Last night,