My Salvation (11 page)

“What’s wrong, honey?” Adeline asked.

“Just sad to leave is all.”

Owen reached over and took her hand in his,
caressing the back with his thumb. His touch alone was soothing.
She had a feeling one day she would see the view again.

~ 11 ~

They left in the early morning for the long
flight home, having to stop a couple of times for fuel along the
way. Everyone slept on and off throughout the flight. The time
difference would really mess with them once they landed. Owen knew
he would be dragging at work on Tuesday, but the trip was all worth
it. The time he spent with Cali, just thinking about it made his
cock twitch.

Once the plane came to a stop, Owen stood and
stretched. He was the last one off and thanked the pilot for his
help flying to and from Hawaii. He got a free vacation out of it
too. Owen put the pilot up at a local hotel since it was such a
short time they were gone.

They descended the plane steps and went to
Owen’s truck. Cali hugged Steven and Adeline goodbye. Owen shook
Steven’s hand and gave his wife a kiss on the cheek. He adored her
and was happy to have them both on the trip.

He told Steven to take Tuesday off and he’d see
him mid-week. The drive to the cabin felt like it took forever
since he was beat. All he wanted was to go inside, strip and curl
around Cali in bed.

Pulling into the drive between the cabins, Owen
shut the truck off and strode to the passenger side. He helped Cali
out and grabbed the bags from the bed. Walking to her front porch,
she stopped dead in her tracks and he almost ran smack into
her.

“Why did you stop?”

She said nothing so he walked in front of her to
look at her face. Her jaw was hanging open and she pointed toward
the Jeep. Then she moved her hand and pointed at the front door to
her cabin. Owen turned and noticed all four of the Jeep’s tires had
been slashed and her cabin’s porch light illuminated a big red X
spray painted on the front door.

“What the fuck? Cali, get back in the
truck.”

“Owen, I want to go,” she said, but was
cut-off.

“No! I don’t know if it’s safe. Now,
Caliana!”

His blood was pumping and he was pissed. Pulling
out his cell phone he dialed Steven. He asked to him to get over to
the cabin immediately. Owen hung up and dialed the police next.

Owen jumped into the truck to wait for the
police. He didn’t want to disturb anything in case there might be
evidence, plus he didn’t know if someone was still inside. Looking
over at Cali he could tell she was becoming mad.

“Who would vandalize my property? I’ve never
done anything to anyone.”

“I don’t know, but we’ll get to the bottom of
it.”

Within a few minutes, the police arrived and
took statements from both of them. Since they had been out of town
the statements were short. Both were asked if they had any enemies
or any idea who would do that. The answer was no. After the
questioning was finished and the cabin was thoroughly checked, the
police told them even though the door was shut, someone did enter
the cabin and ripped it apart.

They were told dishes and glassed were broken,
pieces were scattered all over the kitchen. The couch had been
sliced open, the bedrooms were ripped apart with clothes strewn
about in the one room. The police said someone really did a number
inside. They weren’t sure if the suspect was someone looking for
something or just went in to trash the place.

The police did allow Cali to go inside, only
briefly, and with an escort. She started to cry when she saw the
destruction and Owen’s jaw hit the floor. He told her they would go
to his other house and she was going to stay with him.

He had a high fence, security system and Steven
lived on the property as well. Owen had the house built and made
sure a separate residence was constructed to house his security. At
the cabin they were out in the open and more vulnerable.

Back outside, Owen took her over to the truck so
she could rest. He told the police he had cameras all around the
cabin next door and would review the footage. The police said that
would be helpful and asked him to give them the footage as soon as
possible.

Owen had the place wired to transmit to his main
home therefore nothing was stored at the cabin. He never mentioned
the cameras to Cali, it slipped his mind until the moment with the
police. He had been so engulfed in her he didn’t think to say
anything. He did it as a security measure. Every one of his
properties were outfitted with top of the line surveillance. As
soon as he got a good look at who the suspect was, he would tell
her.

He glanced over to her and could see the tears
streaming down her face. He went to her and wrapped her in a tight
embrace. “Don’t worry, we’ll figure this out,” he said and kissed
the top of her head.

She nodded. “What about my Jeep, my clothes,
everything that was destroyed inside?”

“Steven should arrive any minute. I’m going to
ask him to call a tow truck and your Jeep will be fixed. He will
also secure the cabin and we will make sure everything gets
replaced. I’ll have someone come in to clean and we can come back
out here over the weekend to take a look and grab all of your
belongings. Then we’ll lock both cabins up for the season.”

Her grip on him tightened as she whispered,
“Thank you. Thank you, for taking care of me and all of this.”

“Of course, Caliana.”

Just then Steven pulled in. He drove a black,
tinted, fully armored Cadillac Escalade. You couldn’t tell from the
outside, but the SUV could take a beating and would keep on going.
The Caddy looked like every other one on the road. It was one of
the vehicles he had at the house. Owen knew when he called Steven
that he would drive it. The SUV was the safest vehicle he
owned.

Steven walked over to him and Owen gave a quick
rundown of the situation. Steven would stay until Cali’s Jeep was
taken to be fixed, the cabin was secure and would then drive Owen’s
pick-up to the main house.

Owen asked Cali to hand her keys to Steven and
instructed him to do a sweep of both cabins once the police were
finished. They had been interviewed and were free to go. He knew no
one had been inside of his place since the alarm wasn’t tripped,
but he wanted to be sure. They both thanked Steven for his help and
climbed into the Escalade.

As they pulled out of the drive, she asked, “Why
are the windows funny looking?”

“The windows are bulletproof as is the rest of
the vehicle.”

Her eyes bugged a little. “Why do you need a
bulletproof vehicle?”

“You can never be too safe, beautiful. And when
you are worth a lot of money, people take notice. I have the Caddy
for the same reason I have Steven on my team. And with you, I won’t
take any chances.”

She nodded and he reached over to take her hand
in his. Cali sniffled and he could tell she was fighting to keep
from crying.

The rest of the drive they remained silent. Owen
kept tossing ideas in his head trying to figure out who would have
done something to her. It could have been a robbery, but something
in his gut was telling him it wasn’t.

Finally they approached the front gate to his
house. He punched in the code causing the gates to slide open. He
was tired and just needed sleep. He’d text Steven to review the
video footage tomorrow while at work.
No day off for him after
all,
he thought.

Winding up the driveway, he hit the button on
the visor to open the garage door. He glanced over to Cali and
kissed the smooth back of her hand.

“Everything’s going to be fine.”

“Easy for you to say. You weren’t the one who
had their tires slashed and entire cabin trashed.”

“No, it wasn’t me, but what hurts you hurts me.
I don’t like to see you upset and I will do everything in my power
to figure out who is behind this. Now, let’s go inside and get some
sleep.”

They both stepped out of the Escalade and into
the house. Entering into a small hallway with a utility closet on
one side and the stairs leading to the second floor, he put the
bags on the floor and led the way to the kitchen. He was surprised
to see Adeline waiting for them.

“Hi you two. Would you like something to drink
before bed? Maybe some hot chocolate to help you relax? I’ll even
put a little something extra in it,” she said with a wink.

“Sure, Adeline, thank you. You didn’t have to
come over to do this,” Owen said.

“Nonsense. I know I didn't, but you two need a
little comfort so I’m here to provide it. Now sit and I’ll bring
the mugs over to you.”

* * * * * * * *

Once the steaming mug was placed in front of
her, Cali seemed to snap out of the numb state she was in. She was
scared to the point of shaking. No one came to mind who would want
to harm her. She thanked Adeline and took a long look around the
kitchen.

“Owen, your home is beautiful.”

The house had a U-shaped kitchen with white
cabinets and on the top of the upper ones were smaller glass door
cabinets for more storage. The under cabinet lighting showed off
the different browns and tans in the granite countertops and the
matching subway tile backsplash.

All of the appliances were stainless steel and
appeared to be commercial grade. There was a large center island
where a second, smaller sink was located. The floors throughout
were a light wood. It was her dream kitchen.

Owen and Cali were seated at a breakfast nook
located right off of the kitchen. She looked over to him and
noticed he never even heard her. Lifting her hand, she ran it
across the stubble on his cheek. He leaned into the warmth and
closed his eyes for a minute.

He finally stood and said, “Come on, let’s go
shower and try to get some sleep.”

Cali followed his lead, walking up the flight of
stairs. They walked into the master suite and he dropped the bags
on the floor. She was exhausted, but not too tired to notice the
sheer size of the bedroom.

He had a large, California King bed set on a
dark mahogany frame and large headboard. The bedding was a deep
sapphire blue and the floor was a darker shade of wood than
downstairs. The ceiling was recessed and had lighting built within.
Near the large bay window was a seating area with two overstuffed,
light tan chairs and ottomans.

Owen walked to Cali and pushed her hair from her
face. He cupped her cheeks in his hands before gently kissing her.
“Go jump in the shower. There is a hair dryer underneath the sink
if you want to use it. I’ll take one when you’re done. We need to
get some sleep.” She hugged him tight and whispered another thank
you.

She stepped into the master bath and took a ten
minute, hot shower. None of the clothes she had were clean and she
wasn’t allowed to disturb the ones in the cabin. She dried her hair
quickly and walked out of the bathroom completely naked. Owen had
been checking his phone, but quickly glanced up when she entered
the room. His eyes roved all over her.

“I don’t have any clean clothes. Do you have a
shirt I can borrow?”

“I do, but you’re not getting it. I want to feel
your body against mine when we sleep.”

A slow smile crept across her face. “Okay, but
don’t get any ideas. I’m so tired I can barely stand.”

She climbed into the bed and slid underneath the
soft, cotton sheets. Sleep overtook her before Owen finished in the
shower.

The next morning when Cali opened her eyes to
see she was alone in bed, but laying on the pillow next to her was
a folded piece of paper. It read:

Stay in bed all day, rest. Your clothes
should be clean and outside of the door by the time you wake. If
you need anything at all, Adeline will be downstairs. She takes
care of the house for me. Call when you can. I want to hear your
voice since I’m not able to see your beautiful face.

XO

OLM

Cali smiled at the hug and kiss he wrote on the
note. She sat up and her eyes swept the room for her purse.
Standing, she realized she was still completely naked, but a black
robe was lying across the bottom of the bed.

She grabbed the robe and put it on. Pulling up
the collar, she inhaled deeply. The robe smelled like Owen. A mix
of aftershave and a smell that was unique to him. It was a clean,
crisp smell and reminded her of being in his arms at night.

Bending, she pulled the phone out and called
him. He answered on the first ring. “Hi, beautiful.” The smoothness
of his voice sent a shiver through her.

“Good morning.”

“Morning? You do know it’s one in the afternoon
right?”

Cali’s eyes widened. “Shit! I slept half of the
day.”

He chuckled. “You were tired, plus the time
difference doesn’t help. Go downstairs when you’re hungry. Bagels
are on the counter, cream cheese and butter are in the fridge.”

“Thank you. Owen, I can stay at my house if this
is too much trouble.”

“No. You are staying with me until we find out
who broke into your cabin. That is not up for debate.”

Cali sighed in defeat. By the tone of his voice
she knew he wouldn’t change his mind. “Fine, but I need to go to my
house and grab some more clothes. I don’t want to keep having to do
laundry every couple of days.”

“You won’t, Adeline can.”

“No. I have plenty of clothes. I want to go home
and get them if I am to stay with you.”

Owen took a few seconds to respond and when he
did, he said, “If we’re going to your house then Steven is going
with us and sweeping the place before we go in. I don’t know if
whoever did this knows where you live.”

“Deal.”

“And tomorrow I’m having a security system put
in. This is also not up for discussion, so don’t even try.”

Cali didn’t know whether to be irritated or
thankful.
Was all of the precaution really necessary?
she
thought.
But what if Owen is right? What if they found out
where I live by going through all of my belongings? Shit!