Lizzy peeked around his shoulder. “James, what are you talking about?”
“Shut up, bitch!” Spittle flew from Carr’s lips as he shouted. The gun shifted, pointing over Dade’s shoulder.
“Hey.” A dark surge of protectiveness rose inside him. He stepped to the side to once again cover Lizzy with his body. “You don’t talk to her like that.”
The stocky man laughed like a goddamn comic book villain. “I can talk to her any way I want to, asshole. I’m the one with the gun here. That means I have the power.”
True, but Carr was running on pure rage. Dade tried to keep his mind calm and focused. Letting emotions take control usually led to mistakes in high stakes situations. Good thing he had years of practice being a cold, emotionless bastard. He was already strategizing ways to take Carr out. He just needed the right opportunity. First though, he needed to get the lunatic to focus on him and not Lizzy.
“You’re right. You have the power. So, why don’t you tell me what you want?”
An evil grin curled the angry man’s lips. “I want that bitch to die. You, too, cowboy. I was going to go to your ranch. Maybe set off a bomb or something, but you’ve made things so much easier. Two birds with one gun. Nice and easy.”
A bomb? Wow this guy really hated them, but why?
“You know how to make a bomb?” Lizzy asked incredulously, poking her head out again.
He wanted to strangle her. Why was she making herself a target? And why in the hell was she antagonizing the angry guy with the huge freaking gun?
“The internet can teach you all kinds of things.” Carr sneered, his hand gripping the black death cannon tighter. “Pipe bombs are so easy to make. I bought everything I needed down at the local grocery store.”
How long has the guy been in town?
Dade sure hadn’t seen him around. Couldn’t have been long. Usually, a newcomer was the talk of Peak Town, but he hadn’t heard a word about Carr from anyone. Hell of a time for the rumor mill to stop working.
His cell phone rang from his pocket. Carr jumped, startled by the noise. The man’s finger was so close to that damn trigger. Dade tensed, puffing up as big as he could to block Lizzy’s body with his own. He would not lose her dammit.
“What’s that?” Carr demanded.
The man was so jumpy.
Holding out his hands in a calming manner, he answered, “It’s my phone.” He indicated his pocket with a finger.
The gun turned on him, and he breathed out a sigh of relief. He would much rather have the deadly thing pointed at him than the woman he loved.
“Take it out, but don’t answer it.”
Slowly, he did as the man demanded. He wanted to peek at the number to see who it was—maybe someone who could help, somehow—but with Carr so edgy, he couldn’t risk it.
“Now, slide it over to me.”
He hated to move and make Lizzy vulnerable to this madman, but if he didn’t do as Carr said, the guy might start shooting anyway. Bending as little as possible, he slid the cell across the floor. The man glanced down at the phone, which was still ringing.
“Who the hell is Jake Ryder?”
Ryder? Why would he be calling? The only reason he even had the man’s cell number in his phone was because of the troubles Maggie had a few months back. He’d wanted to save time dialing if he ever needed to call the sheriff, so he programmed the number in his phone.
“Just a buddy of mine,” he lied. He didn’t dislike the guy—okay he hadn’t until Ryder started hitting on Lizzy—but they didn’t go out for beers or anything. No way in hell would he tell him Ryder was the sheriff. The guy was spooked enough already.
Carr brought his foot up then slammed it down, smashing the phone into bits. The ringing died along with Dade’s hope of outside help. Fine, he could handle this jerkoff on his own anyway. He just wished Lizzy wasn’t there. It’d be a lot easier to deal with Carr if he didn’t have to worry about her getting hurt.
“Your buddy is going to have to wait.” Carr raised the gun again. “Indefinitely.”
“Wait!” Dade held up his hands. Time for a last ditch Hail Mary. “Don’t you want to tell us why you want to kill us? I think we deserve at least that much.”
If he kept the guy talking, it gave him more time to figure something out. A long shot, but it worked in the movies. Villain soliloquies were always their downfall. He hoped Carr was stupid and vain enough to fall for it.
A smug little smile creased the rotund man’s face. “Sure. I’m not such a monster that I won’t give you a last request.”
Holy crap, the guy is that stupid.
“My cousin and I had a nice little scheme going. A lawsuit here and there, nothing huge, just twenty to fifty thousand depending on the business. No one got hurt. It was just money. Money these places could afford. I mean, charging someone two hundred dollars a night for a room? That’s ludicrous!”
So, that’s how he and Dornes picked their marks. By targeting business who overcharged their patrons? Then why the hell did he try to sue the ranch? They made sure their prices were fair market value; they even gave discounts and coupons on a regular basis.
“Sometimes, we just ran with an opportunity. Like with you.” Greedy eyes narrowed. “When I fell from that damned horse, I figured I might as well milk it for all it’s worth. I called up Mike, and we drummed up a plan.”
Victim of opportunity. Didn’t he feel special.
“Then she had to go and ruin everything!” Carr pointed to Lizzy who—damn it to hell—had come out from behind and was standing next to him.
“Lizzy, get behind me,” he warned in a low voice.
She ignored him. Shit. This was not the time for her stubbornness to show up.
“You,” Carr snarled.
She blinked, eyes going wide and innocent. “Who me?”
Great, the sass joined in. How was he supposed to protect her when she was being so obstinate?
“First, you made me lose the Atlanta deal. That was huge money, and I had to let it go because you got some hot shot cop with a hard-on for me and Mike after us.”
She shrugged, affecting a bored expression. “Not my fault. You and your cousin are sleazy con artists.”
What the hell is she doing? Does she want to get shot?
The crazy man was so enraged his face turned purple. “Screw you!”
“You tried that.” Her lips turned up in a smarmy grin. “How’d that work out for ya?”
Seeing Carr was about to lose what little cool he had, Dade took a step forward. The man noticed and immediately brought the gun up. Good, at least his focus was on Dade again and not Lizzy. Now, if only the woman could keep her mouth shut, he could figure out a way to get them out of this.
“So, you’re mad at Lizzy for Atlanta?”
Carr’s gaze shifted back and forth between the two of them. They settled on Dade as he continued. “No. I mean, that was the beginning of all this, but I could let that go. We’ve had to run out on other scores before.”
“Then, why the gun? Why now?”
Sausage fingers gripped tighter, round face puckering with rage. “Messing up one score is forgivable, but two, make that three? What the hell is she even doing in this tiny shithole of a town anyway? I thought she lived in LA.”
“I did. I moved.”
Dade closed his eyes and swore. Did the woman have any self-preservation instincts? He had to keep Carr’s focus on him, but it was damn hard to do with her piping up every few seconds.
He pushed her behind him again. “So, you come here, sue me. Then Lizzy shows up to ruin yet another lawsuit.”
Carr latched onto his explanation. “Yeah. Me and Mike figured she needed to be taught a lesson. So, we went to her old boss and convinced the idiot to sue her for breach of contract.”
“You little weasel,” she screeched as she fought to get at Carr from behind Dade’s back. “I knew you were behind that.”
Carr’s lips pulled back into a snarl as he
swung the gun in her direction. Dade grabbed Lizzy, shoving her back. He whispered fiercely to her from the side of his mouth, “Elizabeth, shut the hell up and stop antagonizing him.”
“Screw you, Dade. I’ll say what I want.” She punched him lightly in the back, but then clung tight to him. He could feel the trembles wracking her body. She was terrified, but putting up a front with sarcasm and anger. That was his Lizzy; never let them see her sweat. God, she was amazing. He loved her so much. Now, if he could only keep them alive so he could prove it to her.
“So then, you sued Lizzy,” he said, trying to get Carr to continue. The longer the man talked, the longer they were alive and had a chance to escape.
“Yeah, but it didn’t stick. She got some fancy lawyer to look over the paperwork. Bitch said we had no case and threatened to counter-sue with a harassment suit if we didn’t drop it.”
“And that’s when you came up with this plan?”
“No.” The man’s jaw clenched, making him resemble an angry bulldog. “Me and Mike were in Nevada at some rundown motel when the cops found us. Not just the cops, but the FBI. Stupid bastards grabbed Mike out of the shower.”
“How come they didn’t arrest you?”
“I was around back getting ice. Saw the whole thing happen and hightailed it out of there before they could catch me.”
Saved his own skin while sacrificing his cousin. Guess blood wasn’t thicker than Carr’s desire to stay out of the clink.
“You left? And just threw your cousin under the bus like that? Wow aren’t you a prince,” Lizzy mumbled from behind Dade.
Carr exploded with rage. “It’s your fault they were looking for us. You and that bitch lawyer. After I finish with you two, I’m going to find her and blow her smartass little head off!”
“You sure you want to do all this?” Dade asked, as calmly as he could. “That’s an awful lot of people to kill. If you let us go now, I’m sure the prison sentence won’t be too long.”
“I’m screwed no matter what I do. Thanks to that bitch and her stupid lawyer, the cops are hot on my ass now.”
The guy had the appearance of a man with nothing left to lose. A bad look at the trigger end of a gun.
“Yeah, but murder is a whole lot worse than con schemes. Think about it, Carr. We have the death penalty in Colorado. You shoot us, and you’ll likely get the chair.”
Probably not. No one in the state had been executed in years, but he’d say anything to make the guy think twice about pumping them full of lead.
Carr raised the gun. “I’m not going to prison. I won’t. They’ll have to kill me.” His finger settled on the trigger of the gun. “But not before I take out all the people who put me there first.”
Shit! They were out of time. He could see it in the other man’s crazy eyes. The guy was done talking. Now, he just wanted to kill. The gun was only feet away and pointed straight at Dade. Lizzy was behind him. At this range, the bullet would go through him in to her. He only had seconds to make his move.
The door suddenly slammed open, saving him from any shitty plan making its way through his terrified mind—but just the distraction he had been waiting for. As Carr glanced over his shoulder to the door, Dade turned and grabbed Lizzy, taking both of them to the floor. He tried to cushion the fall as best as he could, while covering her body with his. A loud gunshot sounded followed by a scream.
He held Lizzy tight. Who had been shot? He didn’t feel like he’d been shot. He’d never been shot before, but he guessed it would hurt like a bitch, and since he didn’t feel pain, he assumed he wasn’t shot. Lizzy?
Oh God, no!
Dade levered his body up, running his hands along her, searching for wounds. Nothing. Relief filled him, and he sucked in a big gulp of air. His heart damn near stopped in the seconds he thought she might be hit. But, if she was okay and he was fine, who the hell got shot?
It was either the person who kicked in the door, or Carr.
Please let it be Carr.
Looking over his shoulder, Dade saw Ryder standing in the doorway, gun out and pointing at Carr, who lay still on the living room floor. Blood seeped out of a wound in the fat man’s chest.
“You two okay?” Ryder asked, his attention never leaving the body on the floor.
“Yeah, I think so,” he answered.
The sheriff carefully approached Carr. Bending down, he checked the man’s pulse. His head shook, and he grabbed the radio off his belt. “Dispatch, we need an ambulance out at 1257 Main Street. We have a suspect down, gunshot wound to the chest.”
“He’s alive?”
Ryder nodded. “Barely. Looks like the bastard might just get his wish.”
Chapter 32
In a frenzied few minutes, an ambulance had shown up and taken Carr away. The EMT’s didn’t think he would make the trip to the hospital. Lizzy had a hard time feeling bad about that. The man tried to kill her and Dade. Hard to feel sympathy for someone who tried to murder you.
A few more officers had shown up. Ryder instructed them to secure the scene and handed over his gun. Protocol, he said, for an officer-involved shooting. Lizzy and Dade had given statements to a young deputy who blushed when he talked to her. Dade mean-mugged the kid, but she was too shaken up to care either way. A man had just pointed a gun at her. The life of her unborn baby had been threatened, not to mention the life of the man she was having very conflicted emotions about. How was she supposed to care about some kid giving her the googly eyes when her heart still raced from having everything she held dear in this world almost taken away?
Maggie’s shortbread cookies were in serious danger of joining the toilet bowl barf parade.
“How did you know he was here?” Lizzy asked Ryder.
“My sister got a call from a friend in the FBI. She was the one who tipped them off about Carr and Dornes. They got Dornes, but Carr slipped by them. Her friend called to warn Julie.” The sheriff rubbed the back of his neck. His long, braided hair moved with his hand. “She called me. I guess Chelsea Tate was working her shift down at the grocer and saw a suspicious looking newcomer in the store the other day. She mentioned it to my sister when she went in today.”
Hard to hide in a small town. Carr should have thought of that. She was glad he didn’t.
“I tried calling you, but you didn’t answer.”
She shifted on her feet. “I turned my phone off.” Avoiding Dade’s avid stare, she focused on Ryder instead. “I didn’t feel like talking to…anyone.”
Ryder glanced back and forth between the two of them. His face grim. “When I couldn’t get ahold of you, I tried Dade. Figured he’d know where to reach you.”
The two men stared at each other, or glared really. Ryder looked like he wanted to take Dade’s head off. Why? Dade glared right back as if egging the sheriff on. She sighed. Men and their vagaries. All she wanted right now was a hot cup of tea and a bed. Her head was spinning. Questions of “what if” circled her brain. What if Ryder had not shown up? Would Carr have shot them? What if Dade hadn’t come over? She would have been all alone with a mad man.
Maybe it was just all the hormones, but she couldn’t stop imagining the worst-case scenario. Carr could have shot her or Dade. And it wasn’t just her life on the line anymore. Her hand went to her stomach, rubbing protectively as tears welled. Strange to fear for the life of someone you haven’t even met yet. She could have lost everything before she had a chance to experience it.
“Are your guys almost done?” She rubbed the rising ache at her temple. “I could really use a nap.” This whole growing another human being thing was exhausting. Add that to a near death experience and she was pooped.
The sheriff glanced around at his men. “Looks like, but are you sure you want to stay here?” He gestured around. “After all the stuff that happened to Maggie at this place, and now you, I’m beginning to think this apartment is cursed.”
She was, too, but she had nowhere else to go.
“You can come to the
ranch. Stay with me,” Dade said softly, placing a warm hand on her shoulder
She stiffened, shrugging off the inviting but offending appendage. “No. Thank you.”
“Dammit, Lizzy—”
“Don’t you talk to me like that, Dade Denning. I am not coming to the ranch, and I am not marrying you just because—” She glanced at Ryder, who was watching with rapt attention. “Well, we can discuss that situation later, but for now, I’d just like you to go. Please.”
“Okay,” the sheriff said, rocking back on his heels. “I’m clearly out of the loop here. I think I’ll just go check on my deputies. Let you two talk.”
He stepped away, going over to the young officer who took her statement. As the two men talked, Dade slid closer, placing a hand on her arm. Even as mad as she was, his touch still sent tingles racing up and down her spine. Crap. Why did she have to feel this way about this man?
“You can sleep in the guest room, Lizzy, please. I wouldn’t feel right about leaving you after what happened.”
She shook her head. If she let her guard down now, who knows what she’d agree to? Probably everything he wanted from her. Then she’d regret it later when he realized he didn’t truly love her.
“You know, once Maggie hears about this, she’ll be freaking out until she sees for herself you’re okay.”
Oooh, he plays dirty. “Low blow, cowpoke.”
Solemnly, he said, “I’ll do whatever it takes to keep you safe.”
Oh damn. When he said things like that, she started to believe he actually might love her.
“Fine. I’ll come to the ranch, but I want to sleep in the guest room, and you are not invited to sleep there with me.”
He grinned as if he’d won some big victory. “Whatever you want.”
After checking with Ryder and receiving the all clear, she quickly packed a bag, making sure to pack only her granny panties. Because she would absolutely not be needing any sexy undergarments. She would stay strong. No matter how tempting the sexy cowboy out in her living room was with his sweet words and promises. She reminded herself the baby was the only reason he acted this way.
Love on the Wild Side Page 19
