Lily threw back the first shot. The heat from it traveled from her throat all the way to her stomach, warming her all the way—maybe not in the same way as much as seeing Mack in that shirt and pants did—but it calmed her frayed nerves. She held out the glass, and he filled it again. Then he took her by the hand and led her to the living room.

Lily sipped on the whiskey that time, enjoying the sweet, smoky flavor. Mack sat down on the sofa, pulled her down beside him, and hugged her to his side. Having him simply hold her meant more to her than words could ever describe.

She’d snuggled up even closer to him when her phone rang. She took it out of her hip pocket, saw that it was from Wyatt, and let it go to voice mail.

“You’re not going to give him a piece of your mind?” Mack asked.

“Not until I’m ready,” she answered.

The phone rang again, and she ignored it again. Barely a minute passed before it rang a third time. On the fourth ring she picked up.

“Hello, Wyatt.” She kept her voice as calm as possible.

“Lily, have the kids called you?” His voice sounded frantic.

“They don’t have phones until summer. You’d have to let them use yours to call. So I suppose you’re not letting them use yours?” she answered.

He ended the call without another word.

“I see you’re going to let him go a little crazy,” Mack said.

“Yep, I am,” she answered. “And that’s the least of what I’d like to do to him after this stunt.”

“Mama!” Braden called out from the foyer in a loud whisper. “I’m going to get some milk and a banana.”

She moved to the other end of the sofa. “Thanks for letting me know.”

He stuck his head in the door and grinned. “I tried to be quiet so I wouldn’t wake Holly up. I’m still hungry.”

Lily’s phone rang again, and she ignored it. Only a minute went by before another call rang. She waited until the fifth ring this time. Let him stew.

“Wyatt, for God’s sake, why are you calling me again?” she asked.

“The kids are gone,” he said. “Victoria says we need to call the police, but I think they may be trying to get back to you.”

“What do you mean? Gone?” Lily asked. “Why would they be gone? Aren’t you in the room right next to them? How could they leave without you even knowing it?”

“I’m going to keep Braden company while you take care of this,” Mack whispered.

“I’m at the hotel where they were, and they’re not here!” Wyatt yelled frantically.

“What do you mean the hotel where they were? Didn’t you book rooms for them in the same one with you? God Almighty! What have you done, Wyatt?” She raised her voice.

“I was teaching them a lesson.” His tone turned cold and harsh. “I didn’t intend to leave them here all night, just until bedtime to show them how good they have it when they’re with me.”

“You sorry son of a bitch!” She’d finally had enough. “They were terrified out of their minds! They called me, so Mack and I went and got them. We had to kick the roaches and rats out of the way to get to them, but they’re safe now.” She stopped for a breath. “And just so you know, we left the cold, burned pizza there for the mice. We got them burgers on the way home.”

“Don’t you get all self-righteous with me.” His voice got louder and louder. “You took them to Comfort when they misbehaved. I wasn’t doing anything worse than that.”

“I didn’t leave them alone in a cheap motel, and I damn sure didn’t leave them to scrounge money for a nasty pizza, or tell them I wouldn’t be back to get them until checkout time the next day!” Her voice sounded like an owl’s screech in her own ears. She hoped that it pierced through his ears and into his brain like a knife.

“Tell them we’ll try again next weekend,” he said. “Victoria’s business in San Antonio won’t be over for two more weeks.”

“Over my dead body,” Lily said. “When the kids decide they want to see you again, it will be supervised visits right here at our convenience.”

“I can take you back to court for visitation or maybe even custody,” he threatened.

“Go ahead,” she told him. “Both kids are old enough now to tell the judge where they want to live. And we do have pictures of the vermin in the room where you left them. I imagine that you’ll be spending your money for nothing.”

A long silence on the other end made her hold the phone out. That’s when she found out that he’d ended the call, but Lily wasn’t finished. She called him right back.

“Hello, Lily,” Victoria answered in a cool, calm voice.

“Give the phone to Wyatt,” Lily demanded.

“What you did is inexcusable,” Victoria said. “But it has shown us that you’re a bitch. You should have called us and told us you were taking the children.”

“Is that the pot calling the kettle black? Why should I call you? You let him leave them in that dangerous place,” Lily said.

“Honey, it was my idea.” Victoria chuckled. “Those ungrateful little snots needed a lesson in manners. You damn sure don’t teach them much out there in the boonies.”

“I’ll be calling my lawyer tomorrow to file a motion for supervised visits only,” Lily threatened.

“Don’t bother,” Victoria said. “Save what few pennies you have. If I wanted those kids, I’d have them in less time than it takes me to snap my fingers, but I don’t want them and never will. Wyatt knew what he was giving up when he married me, so you won’t be hearing from him again.”

Another long silence. When Lily looked at her phone, the call had ended, again. Red-hot, searing anger filled her heart and soul. She wished she had Victoria by the throat, squeezing until the woman turned blue. Wyatt should simply be shot for letting her control him. She threw a hand over her eyes, but the throbbing pain in her head wouldn’t stop. If she didn’t get ahold of herself, she’d stroke right out. Then Wyatt would get immediate custody of her children. She took several deep breaths and let them out slowly until she stopped seeing red spots, and then she shut her eyes and imagined that she was somewhere on top of a mountain. Snow covered the ground, and there was Mack coming toward her.