“How bad is it?” Maggie asked.
“Bad.” He had to pause, take a deep breath. He’d rehearsed this part, too, but it still sickened him to say it. “She needs a bone marrow transplant fast. We’ve all had blood tests, and none of us match.”
She repeated that, too. “And I’m a match?”
He glanced at her and met her gaze. “I hope.”
“You don’t know?” Her grip melted off him. “That’s what the test is for, Jake, you didn’t have to kidnap me. I would have done the test.”
Her eagerness to help Sunny didn’t ease the knot in his gut. That’s because he was bargaining with the devil here.
A devil he’d kissed.
And dreamed about.
Hell, the dreams were the worst part, because in them he’d done a lot more than just kiss her. That made him one sick puppy.
“You had a no-contact clause in your relocation records,” he reminded her. “The only way I could find you was to go into the database.”
“Okay.” She nodded, stayed quiet a moment. “Then turn around and I’ll tell the sheriff that I want to go with you. I want to do this.”
Now it was his turn to stay quiet a moment. “I don’t have the hacking skills to do what needed to be done, and I didn’t have the time to learn them. So, I had to hire someone.” It burned Jake’s throat to say this. “Someone I’m not sure I can trust.”
Her dark brown eyes widened, and she apparently could guess where this was going. “Someone who might tell Tanner?”
“Yeah.” And he wished he had rehearsed this part. “Ernest Garfield’s son, Wade.”
She cursed. “Well, heck, yes. He’ll sell the information to Tanner. He’d sell his mother’s eyeballs for a quarter. Why in blue blazes would you go to him, to anyone who could be paid off?”
“Because I ran out of options, that’s why. And Sunny’s running out of time. If she doesn’t get the marrow soon, it could be too late. Right now, she’s so weak that even a cold could turn out to be fatal. Every moment is a risk for her.”
Mercy, it hurt to say that aloud or to even think it.
“Wade said it wouldn’t be long before the marshals or FBI could trace the hack job to a computer. My computer,” he clarified. “I didn’t want to implicate anyone else in this.”
Her breath was gusting now, and the lip chewing got worse. “So, the marshals know what you’ve done, and they’ve probably called Coopersville’s sheriff.”
“Probably.” And once the sheriff realized Maggie wasn’t at the diner, they’d do a search. One that would include putting out an APB.
She didn’t say anything. Maggie just sat there, and even though Jake hadn’t thought it possible, she had even less color in her face now than when she’d dropped that coffeepot.
Maggie started to shake her head.
Jake ignored it. He wasn’t taking no for an answer.
“First, you’ll need a simple blood test to determine if you’re a bone marrow match. If you are,” he went on, “there’s a procedure where the doctor extracts the marrow with a needle. It’ll require some sedation, but it should all be a done deal in a day or two. I’ll keep you hidden. I’ll protect you as best I can. And then I can call the marshals, turn myself in and you can go back into the program under a new identity,” he added. “I’m sorry about that.”
Another new life. And she was no doubt thinking of the problems that would cause for her. Leaving everything behind again. Starting from scratch again.
Clearly, she had a life there in Coopersville. Not what some would consider a good life, but maybe she’d been happy. The cook at the diner had certainly looked protective of her.
Or something.
It was the same for the geezer eating the eggs. For a second, Jake had thought he might have to shoot his way out of there.
But then Maggie had stepped up and settled the situation.
Jake wanted to hang on to his hatred for her, but she’d put a dent in his hard feelings by not only offering herself to a man she considered dangerous—him—but also going along with this plan that could ultimately get her killed.
“I’m sorry about putting you in danger, too,” he added. “I know this could get you killed. If there’d been another way, I wouldn’t have done this to you.”
“Yes.” Maggie said it almost idly, as if she weren’t really listening to him.
“Is there someone you need to call to let him know you’re alive and well?” Jake asked.
“No.” And she shook her head again. “No one there knows who I am. Was,” she corrected.
Good move. It was probably why she was still alive.
“But they’ll know now,” she added.
Maggie stared out the window, watching the rural landscape zip past the window. Soon he’d need to get off this road and onto another one. Then, another. It’d be all back roads to get her to Mustang Ridge.
He wondered if the marshals or the FBI would set up roadblocks. Or use helicopters to locate them. And while he was wondering, Jake thought about how his family would be taking all of this.
Royce was no doubt trying to cover his butt. Nell would be trying to keep everybody calm and make sure Sunny was okay. Chet would be pitching a fit that Jake hadn’t told him what was going on. It’d be minor compared to the fit Chet had pitched two and a half years ago when he’d walked in on Jake kissing Maggie by the barn.
A kiss to soothe his pain, Jake had tried to justify, since he was grieving his wife’s death.
Jake had pitched his own fit just a few hours later when he’d learned that Anna’s killer was none other than Bruce Tanner and not some armed robber as everyone had thought.
And the real kicker?
Tanner had done that because he’d warned Maggie to back off an investigation she was honchoing. Of course, Maggie hadn’t bothered to share that threat with the family or her sister. If she had, Jake maybe could have figured out that Tanner would go after someone Maggie loved.
He heard her phone ring, and she rifled through her purse to find it. “My boss,” she relayed to Jake, but she didn’t answer it.
“He’s worried about you,” Jake commented. “Will he try to follow us?” In other words, how much did this guy care for Maggie? Would he go to the ends of the earth to find her?
And why did that bother Jake?
He mentally cursed. He didn’t care a flying fig about Maggie’s love life.
“I’ll call him later,” she answered. “Could you stop the truck a minute? I have to throw up.”
Jake knew how she felt. That’s the reaction he’d had when he first learned Sunny was sick. Plus, she was no doubt reliving all the mess with Anna and Tanner just as he was.
He glanced behind them first. No sign of the cruiser. No sign of anyone, so he eased the truck to a stop on the gravel shoulder.
Maggie stepped out, with her back to him, and looped her purse over her shoulder. “I’m sorry,” she said.
Jake groaned. This better not turn into a conversation about Anna. A conversation meant to relieve Maggie of the guilt that he wanted her to have for the rest of her life.
She damn sure deserved the guilt.
So did he.
And Jake was about to remind her of just that when she slammed the truck door and jumped over the ditch.
Maggie started running toward the woods.
Chapter Four
Maggie ran as if Jake’s life depended on it. Because it did. He no doubt knew that he’d opened a Texas-size can of worms by coming to her, but he had no idea just how dangerous this could be for him. For Sunny.
For his entire family.
She wouldn’t be responsible for another McCall murder. No. This ended now.
The ground was frozen, slicked with a mixture of ice, fallen trees and dead leaves, and her sensible work shoes were ideal for standing on linoleum but not so good for navigating the slippery terrain. Still, Maggie ran and prayed that she’d gotten enough of a head start on Jake that she coul
d disappear into the thick woods before he could catch up.
Of course, disappearing was just for starters. She’d have to hide, and she figured Jake would look for her as long as he could—maybe until the Coopersville sheriff or someone else drove by.
Maybe that wouldn’t take too long.
The cold had already started to clog her lungs, but she kept fighting for each step. A thick cluster of trees was just ahead. Beyond that, the actual woods. She had no idea where those woods led; that was something else she’d have to work out.
Maggie heard the footsteps behind her. Heard Jake’s profanity, too.
“Damn it, Maggie. Stop!” he called out.
She didn’t. Maggie kept running and was within a few feet of that tree cluster when Jake grasped on to her shoulder. The fierce jerk he gave her had her flying right into him. Her back collided with his chest, and he hooked his left arm around her waist to anchor her in place.
Maggie fought him. He might be bigger and stronger than she was, but she had a huge reason to get away from him. She rammed her elbow into his stomach and tried to bolt. She might as well have elbowed a brick wall, and the pain shot through her funny bone.
“Why the hell are you doing this?” he snarled. “I need you to help Sunny.”
“I am helping her,” she managed to say.
Jake clearly didn’t believe that because he cursed again and didn’t let go of her. Despite the pain, she tried to elbow him again. Jake dodged that blow, put her in a bear hug and shoved her against one of the trees. In the same motion, he whirled her around to face him.
Really face him.
As in they were plastered against each other, and his eyes, nose and mouth were only an inch or two from hers. They were both breathing hard, and she took in his breath. It was almost like tasting him.
Kissing him.
And he must have realized that because he moved back a little. Just enough so she could see the fire and confusion in his eyes.
“Why?” he demanded though teeth clenched so tight that she was surprised they didn’t chip.
Maggie considered how much she should say. The truth might work if it didn’t cause him to wring her neck. Or somehow try to get to Tanner. Since Jake was already in a blind rage, Maggie went with a partial explanation.
“I’ll go to a hospital alone and do the test. If I’m a match, I’ll donate the bone marrow immediately, but you can’t be involved in it. You can’t be involved with me,” she corrected.
Jake glared at her. “I don’t want to get involved with you,” he informed her. And he stepped back a little more. Probably because he realized their body parts were aligned in a nearly intimate way.
“But you will help Sunny,” he added.
“Of course.” Maggie had to pause, clear her throat, because it was obvious that Jake wasn’t just going to accept her offer to do this alone.
But he would after she told him everything she’d done. He’d hate her more, too, but that couldn’t be helped. It would save him.
She hoped.
“After Tanner was arrested for Anna’s murder,” she started, but had to stop and take another breath. “I went to him and cut a deal. I had evidence against his son, David, and I told Tanner I would hide it if he’d leave you and your family alone.”
Without taking his glare off her, Jake stepped back even farther. “What kind of evidence?”
“The kind that would send David to jail for at least twenty years.” Without Jake’s body heat, she started to shiver. “Yes, I know what I did was illegal, but I had to do something to stop Tanner from killing anyone else.”
“And you believed this would stop Tanner?” Jake fired back at her.
“It did stop him. Since I’ve been gone, he hasn’t paid someone to threaten you or your family, has he?” She prayed the answer to that was no.
Jake confirmed that a few seconds later by shaking his head. “Where’s the evidence?”
“Someplace safe.” In fact, several places, since she’d made duplicate copies and put them in deposit boxes at three different banks.
He glanced away, only to have his gaze slash back to her. “What does this have to do with you running from me?”
Maggie tried to get control of her shivering but failed. “Tanner had his own concessions with the deal. He said if I had any association with Sunny or the rest of you, that I’d ‘be sorry again.’ His exact words.”
And that could only mean one thing—murdering another McCall.
Jake cursed, turned as if about to storm back to the truck, but Maggie stopped him. “You can’t go after him or tell anyone I have the evidence against David,” she insisted. “That would give Tanner an excuse to have his henchmen gun you down.”
That didn’t soothe the dangerous look in his eyes.
“Think of Sunny,” she reminded him.
“I am!” he practically yelled. “That’s why I’m here. That’s why I broke the law and put your life in danger.” He cursed again and groaned. “But now you’re telling me that just my association with you could get us all killed.”
Maggie settled for a nod. “That’s why I need to do the bone marrow test alone, and you need to go back to Mustang Ridge. You can tell your family you didn’t find me, and I’ll make sure the word gets to Tanner that I haven’t set eyes on you.”
Jake stayed quiet a moment, and the only sounds were their heavy breaths and the wind slapping at them and the bare tree branches. “What if it’s already too late?” he finally asked. “What if Wade’s told Tanner that I hacked into the files?”
“It’s not too late.” Maggie hoped. “All that Wade can tell Tanner is that you hired him. Wade doesn’t know you found me.” But then she stopped. “Unless you told your family.”
Jake shook his head. “They don’t know that I was coming here.”
“You didn’t even tell Royce?” His brother, and a deputy sheriff. Jake and Royce were close, and she couldn’t imagine Jake keeping this from him.
“Royce knows I’m looking. He doesn’t know I found you. I didn’t want him involved.”
Yes, she could see why. It was very possible that this would lead to Jake’s arrest. He’d risked so much by finding her, but Maggie couldn’t let him risk his life.
Or Sunny’s.
Her phone rang again, and Maggie looked into her purse at the screen. It was her boss, Gene. Again. And she figured he’d continue to call until she answered. Worse, he might alert the Coopersville sheriff more than he was already alerted. If that was possible. She’d have to call Gene first chance she got.
Jake stayed quiet a moment. “Something’s not adding up. Tanner has to know if he hurts Sunny that you’d spill the evidence you have about David.” He paused, stared at her. “You would spill, wouldn’t you?”
“Yes.” She said it slowly, but there was no hesitation. Not about Sunny anyway. It sickened her, though, to think of Tanner harming that child.
“I obtained the evidence illegally,” she admitted. And she looked at him, daring him to challenge that since he’d just done the same darn thing to find her. “If I break the pact with Tanner, he could decide that his bottom-line threat to me is more important than the risk to his son.”
“Especially if Tanner can get the evidence thrown out because it was illegally obtained,” Jake concluded. He added a groan. “Not much of a pact if you ask me.”
“It was all I had, and I hoped if I stayed away, if I did as Tanner wanted, then it would be enough.”
Jake didn’t respond to that right away. “What about the Coopersville sheriff?” he asked. “And the people in the Tip Top Diner? One of them could say something that would get back to Tanner.”
“I’ll do some damage control.” How, exactly she didn’t know, but Maggie would find a way to convince them to stay quiet about what they’d seen. Maybe a boatload of lies would work.
Jake glanced around the woods and then at her. “Come on. You can’t stay out in this cold, and I can drive you to your c
ar.”
“Too risky.” Her car and apartment were just a block from the diner. “There’s a town, Howard’s Creek, not too far from here. You can drop me off at the town’s edge, and I’ll catch the bus into Sweetwater. I can go to the nearest hospital, have the test done and they can fax the result to Mustang Ridge. I’ll use an alias in case Tanner manages to buy off someone at the hospital.”
Jake stood there, apparently processing everything but not moving.
“I swear I’ll do the test,” she said. “I love Sunny, and I’ll do whatever’s necessary to help her get better.”
That seemed to be the assurance he was waiting for, because Jake gave her a nod, turned and started for the truck. Maggie let out the breath she’d been holding, and she hurried to catch up with him.
“On the bus ride to Sweetwater, I’ll call my boss at the diner,” she added, more for herself than for him, “and I’ll tell him you’re someone I met in a bar last weekend. I can give him enough details to ease his suspicions.”
And maybe, just maybe, Jake’s visit wouldn’t undo the deal she’d made with Tanner and set off the powder keg Maggie had been sitting on for two and a half years. Of course, Jake was sitting on a powder keg of a different sort.
After that, she’d need to ditch the phone in case the marshals tried to use it to try to track her. The phone had special security measures on it, to prevent just anyone from finding her, but right now, the marshals were a concern. If they found her, they found Jake.
“How sick is Sunny?” she asked.
Jake didn’t stop walking, didn’t look back, but she saw his shoulders tense. “I told you it was bad, and it is. She’s very sick and won’t get better without a transplant.”
That cut through her hard. Mercy, this was so unfair. Her little niece had already been through too much. Jake, as well. And Maggie prayed she could help in all of this. Not that it would absolve her of any guilt in Anna’s death.
No.
Nothing could ever do that, but at least she had the chance to save Jake from having to lose someone else he loved.
“I’ll be arrested soon,” he said, still not looking back as they walked to the truck. “But Royce can handle the test results. He’ll see to things.”
Christmas Rescue at Mustang Ridge Page 3
