by Debra Kayn
"I have to be, don't I?" she said.
She stepped into the hallway, and he spotted her cell on the counter in the bathroom. "Don't forget your phone."
"My phone?" She looked behind her. "Oh, I must've held on to it after my mom gave it back to me when I felt sick to my stomach."
His body stiffened. "Your mom had your phone?"
"Yeah, she took it..." Carly's eyes widened at the realization of what could've happened, and she grabbed her phone and tapped the screen.
He moved closer, peering at the screen as she pulled up the call log. Carly gasped, and he grabbed her hand, pulling her through the house. At the door, he took out his pistol.
"Stay inside," he said.
"I'm going out to my mom." She grabbed his arm. "Please. I need to find out why she'd call my father after all we've done to help her get away from him."
He gritted his teeth, wanting her safe, yet knowing she would be the only one to control her mother. "Stay behind me."
Pushing out the door, he instantly spotted Evie sitting in a lawn chair. He scanned the area, and everything appeared normal.
Carly moved to go around him to her mom, and he held out his arm, blocking her way. He slipped his pistol back in the holster and walked her to her mother.
Evie opened her eyes as they approached. Carly cut in front of Mark and sat in the chair beside her mom.
At the last second, Carly looked up at Mark. He nodded, letting her know she could be the one who asked the questions. She knew her mother better.
All he saw was a woman who'd betrayed him and the others. A woman who'd put Jaster first in her life. A woman who Jaster had manipulated and still controlled.
"Why did you call dad?" asked Carly.
Evie's knuckles turned white with her hold on the arm of the chair. Mark widened his stance. He wouldn't allow Evie not to answer. Her going behind all their backs put each of their lives in danger, including her daughter.
"I didn't tell him where you and I are staying." Evie frowned before accepting that she'd made the call. "I only wanted to find out how he is doing."
Carly gawked at her mom. "God, Mom. Why would you even care after everything he's done to you?"
Evie looked at her lap and picked at the material of her jeans. "He took care of me. He might've gone about it wrong, and the things he's done are bad, but he treated you good."
Carly whipped her gaze up to Mark, frustration etched around her eyes. He couldn't explain her mother's connection to her kidnapper. After twenty-five years of living with a man who used a child, his child, to keep Evie from leaving, he couldn't understand what Carly's mother had gone through every single day and what that'd done to her psyche.
"Aw, Mom." Carly hung her head and reached over to squeeze her mom's fidgety hands. "I wish you wouldn't have called. He knows we're here."
Mark looked away. There was that mother-daughter connection he failed to understand. That unbreakable love, despite their differences and ideas, that bonded them.
"I'm, uh, going to check on the others. Update them on what's going on," said Mark.
"I'll go with you." Carly stood and pulled on her Mom's arm. "Come on. A walk will do us good. Clear our heads."
She shared a look with Mark. He wanted to understand Carly's sense of responsibility toward her mom. Not now, but later.
As they walked, Carly slipped her hand into his. With his right hand free, he adjusted his holster, checking to make sure the safety was still off. A habit he'd developed over the years.
He rounded the garage door opening and stepped inside. Not seeing Quint or Anders after the shakeup over the phone call, he let go of Carly's hand.
Something wasn't right. The others knew he was going in the office. They'd be in view of Evie, keeping an eye on things.
"Carly?" he said quietly. "Change of plans. We're going to turn and go straight back to the house. I want you and your mom in the bunker."
Once he had them safely away from any danger, he'd come back and search the garage. Quint and Anders couldn't be far, but since they never informed him of leaving the garage, he'd rather play it safe.
She stepped closer and put her hands on his back. "What's wrong?"
"I don't know yet." He kept his hands free and motioned for her to walk.
Evie hung back. He turned to see what she was looking at and found Michael Jaster stepping out from behind the UTV, pointing a gun toward the inside of the garage.
He instantly knew who stood at the other end of the pistol. Daring not to move in the chance he killed Quint and Anders, he said, "Carly?"
"Y-yes?"
"Take your mom and run to the house. Go to the bunker." His shoulders broadened.
He wanted to make himself the biggest target possible in hopes he could stay between her and her father.
Chapter 36
"Evie? Carly? Come and stand by me." Jaster looked Mark in the eyes. "I want you, over with those two. Make a move for that gun at your side, and I won't hesitate to shoot your friends."
He let his gaze travel to the others. Jaster had removed their weapons.
Mark stood his ground, knowing it was up to him to keep his pistol and make sure everyone but Jaster got out of this alive. "Let the women go."
He needed time to think of what to do. It wasn't only him whose life was at risk.
"They're not yours to take care of, DeLane." Jaster's gaze narrowed. "Evie, move it. Now."
Carly hissed her mom's name. Evie stepped into Mark's peripheral vision, going to Jaster.
"If you don't want me to kill the three men in front of me, you'll come to your daddy, Carly." Jaster never wavered. "Or, don't, and I'll punish your mom."
"Don't you dare touch her." Carly hurried to her mother's side.
Mark gritted his teeth. There was no way he could reach her. Save her. Protect her from her father.
"Now, your turn, DeLane." Jaster shifted his weight, aiming at Anders. "The longer you wait, the more I want to shoot your friends here. Maybe, I should bring the women up from the bunker to join our little party." He laughed from an evil place. "Yeah, you thought I didn't know where you'd hide them. This time, I'll succeed in killing Iliana. I missed my chance last year because of the damn snowstorm. And, what's the new woman's name? Katelynn...yeah, she's a beauty."
Mark walked. He couldn't have Anders and Quint losing their shit at the mention of the ladies in the bunker and making a move. Not yet.
Jaster paced in front of all three of them. Mark kept his attention on the man while being aware of Carly at her father's side. He should've made her wear her pistol and not worried about Jaster's reaction to seeing his daughter armed. At least she'd stand a chance at saving herself.
He stopped beside Quint. Trying to stay calm, he kept his arms at his sides.
"Why are you doing this?" Carly held on to her mom. "Just go away. Haven't you done enough?"
Jaster's eyebrow lifted. "It seems I've neglected my daughter and allowed one of you to get close enough to fill her head with bullshit."
"I know everything you've done," said Carly, spitting the words out. "All the people you killed. How you've used me to keep my mom in your life. How you kidnapped her."
Mark's eyes burned, willing Carly to look at him. She needed to stop. Riling Jaster would get her killed. It wouldn't matter that she was his daughter.
"Shoot him," whispered Quint.
His muscles tensed. "He'll shoot Anders. I can't risk it," he whispered back.
"I've given you everything." Jaster stepped forward, closer to the three men. "Now, you'll see firsthand what I'm capable of and watch me kill the men who've ruined my life."
"Ruined?" Carly's voice got louder. "You stole them! Just like you kidnapped mom."
"They were orphans. Nobody wanted them." Jaster tilted his head. "The dogs should've killed them when they were young. Instead, I lost men. Good men."
At the mention of the men they'd killed to save their own lives, Mark fisted his hands.
He had no other choice.
"They are more of a man than you," screamed Carly, sobbing.
Jaster's arm flew out to the side. The skin on skin contact reached Mark's ears at the same time Carly fell away, going silent from her father hitting her. Enraged that anyone dared hurt her, he moved forward only to have Quint grab his arm and pull him back into place.
"Pick your time," whispered Quint. "Have patience."
He focused on Jaster's gaze, knowing Carly's father kept his sight on Anders. Knowing that as long as he threatened one of them, Jaster had him and Quint bent over backward.
Looking for the opportunity when Jaster looked away, or he lowered his arm, Mark remained attentive. It would only take one bullet. He wouldn't miss.
"Put your weapon on the ground, DeLane." Jaster shifted, aiming his pistol at Mark. "Nice and easy."
Anders exhaled loudly. It wasn't lost on Mark how his friend handled being the target better than seeing one of them in danger. They'd spent a lifetime protecting each other.
He rather be in Jaster's sight than the others or Carly and Evie. Judging the man, his gaze never wavered. Seeing determination and hatred in Jaster, Mark took his time. He wanted that sadistic asshole to focus on him.
"We spent over thirty years wondering why you kept coming after us." He kept his voice soft, forcing Jaster to listen carefully. "And, all this time you were afraid of us finding out your dirty secret."
"Last warning. Put your pistol on the ground." Jaster waved his weapon.
Mark slowly reached to his side. Calmness came over him. To save Anders. To save Quint. To save Evie. To save Carly, he could end it here.
"Carly?" He watched Jaster.
There were only a few precious seconds to tell her everything he wanted her to know, and he hoped like hell Jaster was paying attention. He had to rely on Carly's claim that her father treated her right growing up. He had to hold on to the hope that she would be okay.
"I want you to know that your time here with me was the best thing I've had in my life. You gave me that, Carly. I wish I had more time—"
"That's enough," said Jaster.
"I wish I had a lifetime to show you how much you mean to me and—"
"No." Carly's sobs choked her.
His chest squeezed. Forcing himself to keep looking at Jaster, he wrapped his fingers around the nine-millimeter strapped to his side. He had to trust Carly. He had to trust that she was falling in love with him.
"You'll be okay, Carly." He lifted the pistol, the barrel pointed up and bent down to place it on the ground. "I promise, you'll be okay without me."
Carly screamed her anguish and flew in her father's direction. Mark took the distraction, brought the pistol up, and—
Bang.
The gun firing echoed in the garage. Mark stayed squatted.
Jaster weaved on his feet and fell to his knees. Blood spread on the front of his shirt.
Carly's screams broke through the partial deafness left behind from the gun blast. He gazed down her body and back up again, making sure she wasn't hurt.
Quint and Anders rushed toward Mark. He held his hand out, stopping them.
"I never got the shot in," he said at the same time he turned and found Evie holding a pistol. A pistol he recognized as the one he'd had Carly leave in the bunker.
He quickly looked back at Jaster and stood. Not trusting him until there was no breath coming out of his body, Mark strode forward aiming his gun at the man.
Studying Jaster's unmoving chest for several seconds, Mark squatted and put his fingers to the man's neck. There was no pulse.
Carly, on her knees a few feet from Jaster, stared blankly at her father. Mark put his pistol in the holster.
"Someone take the gun from Evie." He moved over to Carly and picked her off the ground, wrapping her in his arms to keep her father out of her view.
Only then could he inhale deeply. It was over.
Chapter 37
The sun peeked over the mountain range, and Quint rode into the parking lot of Discover the Bitterroot on his ATV. Mark stood outside the house with Anders, a coffee cup in his hand. Without contacting each other that morning, they'd both shown up.
Mark waited until the quad shut off and said, "There's coffee in the office."
"Brought my own." Quint opened the duffle on the rear rack and pulled out a thermos, pouring the steaming liquid into the top cup. "The women still sleeping?"
"Carly was when I walked out." Mark rotated his stiff shoulders, a reminder of sleeping on the couch. "Evie...probably not."
It'd been a long fucking night. Not only had he needed to comfort Carly but Evie went into shock, refusing to look at any of them or talk to her daughter. Quint and Anders had their hands full consoling Iliana and Katelynn who only viewed what happened with Jaster over the security monitor and were beside themselves with worry.
Only when they could rely on Iliana and Katelynn to take care of Carly and Evie, the three of them had taken Jaster's body and got rid of it on the mountain. For the first time in his life, he enjoyed digging a six-foot hole and covering the son of a bitch with dirt.
He hoped Michael Jaster rotted.
Riding in after two o'clock in the morning after getting rid of the body, he'd barely sat on the couch after taking a shower, and Carly curled up against him and cried the rest of the night. Only during the early morning hours had she calmed enough to sleep.
Evie, on the other hand, had sat on the bed wide awake all night. Far as he knew, she still remained in the bunker not aware of the world going on around her.
The three of them watched the sun fall down on the trees, sipped their coffee, and breathed. They needed no shared words to understand how each of them was feeling about yesterday's events.
For the first time since they were fifteen years old, there was nobody trying to kill them. No dogs snapping their jaws around their legs, their arms. No reason to look behind them.
He was forty-seven years old, and he had no idea what to do with his life now.
"How's Iliana and Katelynn this morning?" he asked.
"Iliana has big plans to go for a run by herself on the trail today." Anders tossed the dregs at the bottom of his cup.
Quint huffed. "Katelynn talked about how she wanted to close headquarters early and float in the river."
Mark swallowed the last of his coffee. "Are you guys going to let them?"
"Hell, no," said both of them together.
The pressure in Mark's chest eased. He could no more let Carly run around without a care in the world just because her father was no longer a threat.
There were all kinds of evil out there, on the mountain and off. Even those with the best of intentions would often find themselves with no other option than to hurt someone else. If Carly wanted to go somewhere, he'd go with her. Wherever. Whatever. Whenever.
"Mark?" called Carly.
He turned and walked toward the office, toward Carly. Hoping she'd sleep most of the day away, he'd turned off the security monitor downstairs and closed Discover the Bitterroot for the day.
"I thought you'd want to sleep in." He lowered his head, catching her gaze. "Everything okay?"
She shook her head. He lifted her chin with his finger, concerned over the dullness in her eyes. Understandably, she struggled with the changes in her family.
No amount of preparedness could cushion the shock of seeing her father murdered in front of her.
If it hadn't been her mother who put the bullet in Jaster's chest, it would've been him. He'd been ready to protect those he cared about.
"Mom doesn't want to stay here." Her voice broke, and she pressed her lips together.
"Why?" The moment he asked, he knew the answer.
Evie had loved Jaster, despite sneaking the gun out of the bunker in the pouch of the borrowed hoodie she wore and shooting him. She'd protected the one person she loved more than the man who'd sheltered and kept her. Her daughter.
But, he understood. Ever
ywhere Evie looked, she would be reminded of Jaster. That included being around Mark.
"She wants to leave and go home." Carly stared at Mark's chest. "I've told her that Jaster's house wasn't her home. They weren't married. Her name isn't on the deed. Without a way to support herself, it wouldn't take long for the utilities to be shut off, not to mention we have no idea what kind of people will be trying to contact Jaster when he..." She swallowed hard. "When he doesn't answer those who contact him."
Mark assumed the women would stay with him. There was no time limit for their stay. When Evie was able to think straight and figure out what she wanted to do with the rest of her life, he'd help her.
"What would you like me to do?" he asked.
"I was going to ask if you think it would be okay if I ask Anders if we could rent a cabin behind the Lair." She rubbed her forehead. "I don't know for how long, but I can pay. It's quiet there, yet people are around if she wants to go outside. She might feel safer there."
He turned his head, put two fingers in his mouth, and whistled, grabbing Quint and Anders attention. "Anders." He motioned his hand above his head. "Come here a sec."
"Thank you." Carly crossed her arms and cupped her elbows.
Anders approached them. "What's up?"
Carly talked, and Mark stepped away, giving her privacy to ask her question. It wasn't lost on him that she'd suggested both of them would stay in one of the cabins. She planned to leave him.
His day had started out looking pretty damn good. Just as suddenly, it'd gone to shit.
Anders walked back to join Quint by his ATV. Mark watched Carly stare off into the distance. Her shoulders expanded and then sagged forward.
Going back to her, he wanted to help her get through the upcoming days. It would take time for her to come to terms on what happened. He couldn't expect her to accept that her mother had shot her father and he and the others buried him in an unknown location without anyone knowing.
Carly kept looking out at the trees. "Anders said we could stay in a cabin for as long as we needed. He even told me we wouldn't have to pay but I will."
