by Terri Reed
“That will take too long,” Leo argued. “You get the boat. True and I will find her faster on ground along the shore.”
Max nodded. “I want him alive, Leo. We need whatever information he has on Dupree and Jake.”
Despite wanting the same thing as his boss, if it came down to Alicia or Pike, there was no contest. Alicia would win. “I can’t make that promise.”
Fingers curling into fists around the sweater in his hands, Leo bent to eye level with True and looked into his soulful dark brown eyes. His chocolate coat gleamed in the sunshine. He sat up straight and proud, ready to work. “Find Alicia.”
The dog blinked as if he understood.
Leo unhooked the leash and True ran toward the water. Leo worked hard to keep up, or at least keep the dog in sight. True reached the water then veered left along the shore, crashing through bushes, speeding over rocks and river debris with sure-footed confidence.
Leo slipped and slid in his heavy boots. His head throbbed with each step but he didn’t care. He only cared about finding Alicia. Having to split his focus between where he was stepping and keeping an eye on the river, along with making sure he didn’t lose sight of True, was taxing his brain. The dull ache he’d been trying to ignore roared. He gritted his teeth together, knowing he would be adding a sore jaw to his list of ailments once this was over.
His heart beat too fast, pumping blood with alarming speed. His limbs felt on fire. Sweat broke out on his neck. He had to find Alicia before it was too late.
“Lord, please, I beg of You, show us where to find her. Lead us to Alicia. Make Pike stop whatever he’s doing or intending to do. Give me the strength, the courage, to face this trial. In Jesus’s name, amen,” he said. Fear and panic crowded for prominence in his mind.
True’s frantic barking jerked Leo’s focus to finding the dog. True had discovered something and was alerting his partner, the constant barking leading him to True’s location. Leo fought his way through the thick underbrush and tight growing trees and broke through at the water’s edge. He halted in the shadow of a tree, reluctant to show himself. He didn’t want to force Pike to act.
In the middle of the deepest part of the river, about a hundred and fifty yards away from shore, not far from the place where Pike had dumped the first Esme look-alike, was a motorized fishing boat idling in the water.
Alicia sat on the port-side gunwale. Garry Pike stood behind her with a gun pressed against her temple.
FIFTEEN
The sound of a dog barking gave Alicia hope despite the fear trembling through her. She sat perched on the edge of the fishing boat Pike had stolen from the marina. Her feet dangled in the cold water, making her shiver.
Her fingers gripped the lip of the side, hanging on for dear life. Pike loomed behind her, the hard, round barrel of his pistol pressed into her temple.
The afternoon breeze whipped her hair into her face. The strands stuck to the tears streaming down her cheeks. She closed her eyes and sent up a silent prayer of protection.
She didn’t want to die. She couldn’t leave her son an orphan. She had to talk Pike out of killing her. She forced her voice to stay calm. “Please, you don’t have to do this.”
“But I do,” he responded menacingly. “No loose ends. My boss will skin me alive if I let you live.”
She opened her eyes and craned her neck back to look at him. His cold stare made her want to turn away but she held his gaze, forcing him to see her. “You work for Dupree, right? Help the FBI bring him down. Cooperate with them. I know they’d give you leniency.”
“No way,” he spit. “I’m no rat. Besides, the feds aren’t going to do squat for me or to me.”
He thought he was above the law. He couldn’t be more wrong. “The FBI has your picture. They know who you are and what you’ve done. You’ve killed two women.”
“A third is no big deal.”
His smug smile angered her, tempering her fear enough to make her voice sharp. “Killing me will only make things worse for you.”
“Maybe. But I’ll enjoy it.”
“Where are the other two women you kidnapped? Are they dead, too?”
His lip curled. “Naw. They’re alive. For now.”
She hated the menace in his tone that made it clear he had every intention of doing away with his other two hostages. “Where are they?”
Not that she was in a position to help them, but keeping him distracted might buy her some time. Give Leo a chance to find her. She sent up a silent plea that God would lead Leo and True to her.
“Upstream. But you shouldn’t be concerned about them when it’s your life I’m about to snuff out.”
She couldn’t take looking at his cruel face any longer. She faced forward in time to see True charge into the water up to his chest. His bark was ferocious. His lips were drawn back and his teeth bared. Her heart leaped. If True was here then so was Leo.
God had answered her prayer.
She searched the shore for the man she loved. There. In the shadows, she could just make out his form.
The sound of an approaching powerboat snagged her attention away from Leo. Officer Dorset drove the speedboat like an expert, and Max and Opal were beside the police officer.
She was being rescued.
Pike grabbed a handful of her hair and dragged her backward. Sharp pain made her yelp and grab at the hand fisted in her hair.
“Stand up,” Pike ordered.
She scrambled to get her feet beneath her. The boat rocked with their movement, making it difficult to gain her balance. Her gaze went back to Leo. He’d disappeared, but True was still at the water’s edge. His frantic barks ricocheted off the canyon walls. What was Leo doing? Where was he?
He wouldn’t have left her.
She managed to get both feet flat on the floorboards of the boat.
The other speedboat slowed and came to a halt about twenty yards away. Officer Dorset drew his sidearm. Max cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled, “Give up, Pike. There’s only one way this ends well. Let the woman go.”
Pike let go of her hair and yanked on her arm, forcing her in front of him like a shield. “Let us go or the woman dies.”
He was going to kill her no matter what. Wildly she looked back at the shore and caught a glint of sunlight reflecting off something in the trees. Leo? Had he climbed the tree and was now sitting on a branch with his assault rifle aimed at Pike?
She had to do something—anything—to give Leo a clear shot. Taking a deep breath, she let her knees go limp. Her sagging weight threw him off balance.
“Hey!” he screeched and tried to regain his hold on her.
Using all the strength she possessed in her legs, she exploded upward, ramming the back of her head into his nose. With a high-pitched cry, he released her. Without hesitating, she flung herself overboard into the water, hitting her head on the side of the boat.
She winced. The cold river stole her breath. As her head submerged beneath the surface, she heard the loud crack of gunfire chased by a burning pain.
* * *
Leo’s heart stopped. He stared through the scope of his assault rifle and watched as Alicia went overboard. Pike fired into the water. Leo pulled the trigger. His aim was true. A kill shot. Pike crumpled to the floorboard of the boat.
“True! Rescue!” Leo shouted as he scrambled off the limb of the tree he’d climbed. He didn’t wait to see if True obeyed. Leo had every confidence the dog would do what he’d been trained to do. Opal’s deep bark bounced off the water.
Leo swung down from the branch and jumped to the ground, taking the force of the landing with bent knees. He’d barely hit the dirt before he was running toward the water, slipping the strap to his rifle across his chest. Then he charged into the river. Ahead of him, True swam toward the spot w
here Alicia had disappeared.
Please, don’t let her drown, Lord. He still couldn’t believe she’d acted so valiantly and brilliantly. He’d seen her crumple then jerk upright to bash the back of her head into Pike’s face before she’d thrown herself into the water. Her actions had given Leo a wide-open shot. But had she paid the ultimate price for her bravery?
His gut twisted and he pushed himself harder, to swim faster. They had to reach her before her lungs filled with water.
Max and Dorset had tethered their boat to the fishing boat. Max boarded the other boat and checked Pike’s vitals. Leo wasn’t surprised when Max shook his head. Pike had shot into the water, at Alicia. There was only one course of action for Leo to take.
True dived beneath the water. Leo was almost there. The dog popped back to the surface, dragging Alicia with him. He had a mouthful of her shirt. She appeared unconscious. Her dark hair floated on the water. Leo kicked harder and reached them.
“Here,” Max shouted and threw two orange seat cushions into the water.
Leo grabbed one flotation device then hooked an arm around Alicia and drew her to his chest. True let go of Alicia’s shirt and latched on to the other cushion.
Blood matted the side of Alicia’s head. Fear that she’d been shot grabbed Leo by the lungs and squeezed. Kicking hard to move them closer to the speedboat, he forced himself to stay calm and in control. He checked her breathing by putting his ear close to her nose and mouth. “She’s not breathing!”
Officer Dorset and Max helped to pull her in and laid her on the bottom of the boat. Leo boosted True into the boat before he hefted himself in. He stripped off his rifle and set it aside. Opal greeted True and barked as the canine shook the water from his coat, spraying the other dog.
Max had Alicia turned on her side to keep any water in her mouth and nose from going down to her lungs. Leo nudged Max aside to check Alicia for a pulse. There was one. Yes!
He laid her flat and performed rescue breathing by pressing the heel of one hand to her forehead and pushing her head back to open her airway. Then he pinched her nostrils together, turned her face toward him and sealed his mouth over hers and gave her four strong breaths.
She jerked and gasped. He backed away and rolled her to her side as she coughed and spit out river water, then took hiccuping gulps of air. His relief that she was alive nearly overwhelmed him. Tears of joy burned at the backs of his eyes. He stared in her pretty pale face. She gazed up at him, looking a bit disoriented. Love flooded his chest. He smoothed back her hair, careful not to disturb the wound to her head. “Hey, sweet lady.”
Panic flared in her blue eyes. “Pike?”
“You never have to worry about him again,” he told her. “I promise.”
“You always keep your promises.” She sighed and melted into his arms. “God answered my prayers. He sent you to find me.”
“That He did.”
There was a gash on her right biceps. From Pike’s bullet? Leo was sure the thug had only managed to discharge one round. Why did she have two wounds?
He gingerly gathered her close and became aware that two other boats had stopped. Chief Jarrett jumped aboard the speedboat. Anxiety deepened the lines around his eyes and made his voice shake. “Is she okay?”
“She’ll live,” Leo told him. “But we need to get her to the hospital.”
Complications from the water exposure could result in pneumonia or infection. They needed to make sure her lungs were clear and the wounds she’d suffered were cleaned and dressed. He prayed there would be no more life-threatening situations for the lovely widow.
“Officer Dorset will take you to the marina,” Jarrett said. “An ambulance will be waiting.”
Around them Max and the chief went about securing the scene.
Guilt scrubbed at Leo like sandpaper. He met Alicia’s gaze. “I’m so sorry this happened to you. I failed you.”
Her dark winged eyebrows drew together. “No. You saved me. You came after me. I’m so grateful.”
He didn’t want her gratitude; he wanted her love but had no right to ask for it. So instead, he lightly touched his lips to hers in a tender kiss.
When the speedboat reached the marina, the ambulance was waiting just as Chief Jarrett had promised.
He explained to the paramedics what had happened as they loaded Alicia onto a stretcher and wheeled her toward the back bay of the emergency vehicle.
“Come with me?” Her eyes implored him and she held his hand tightly in hers. “You’re hurt, too.”
“Minor stuff.” Nothing he couldn’t handle or that couldn’t be treated later.
“I’ll be there as soon as I can,” he assured her. Although every cell in his body wanted to go with her right then and there, he had a job to finish. He would have to give a statement. There would be an investigation in an officer-involved shooting. He knew it was a clean incident. He’d had no choice. “I’ll let your family know what’s happened.”
Releasing his hand, she nodded. “Thank you.”
The doors to the ambulance closed with a resounding thud that reverberated within his chest.
* * *
“Mommy!” Charlie’s exuberant cry brought tears of happiness to Alicia. He ran into the hospital room, followed by her dad. She lay propped up on a hospital bed, her head and arm bandaged. She was now dry and warm but the shivers hadn’t abated yet.
After the ambulance had whisked her away from the river, she’d been admitted to the hospital and put through a series of tests to determine if there were any other injuries besides the two visible ones. As far as the doctors could tell, she was fine.
Her head now sported two stitches and her right biceps four. The head wound was from hitting the side of the boat as she’d gone in the water; the other injury was where Pike’s bullet grazed her arm.
With her uninjured arm, she hugged her son close, relishing the feeling of him against her, and smiled at her dad. She was surprised to see tears in his eyes. He came to her side and kissed her forehead beneath the bandage.
“Hi, sweetheart. We’ve come to bring you home,” he announced. “Leo is waiting at the entrance with that amazing dog of his.”
Her heart sputtered. She’d been half-afraid Leo would leave without saying goodbye. “I’m ready to get out of here.”
“Good.” Dad’s gaze pierced her. “Are you sure you’re all right?”
“I am. These will heal quickly,” she assured him, hating to see the worry in his eyes. “Thanks to Leo and True, this ordeal is over.”
Dad gave a slow nod and a speculative gleam entered his gaze. “Yes. We’ve all grown very fond of Agent Leo Gallagher.”
She smiled, remembering his pronouncement that he was a keeper. Leo was certainly that. And she would like nothing better than to keep him close to her heart forever. “Yes, Dad, we have.”
His face lit up. “I’m glad to hear it. I believe he’s grown fond of us, too.”
If only she knew what Leo’s feelings were for sure.
“I’ll light a fire under the doctor and get your discharge papers,” Dad said and hustled from the room.
Charlie nestled into her embrace. “Agent Leo said you went into the river. Did you slip off the rock?”
She laughed with joy at her son’s innocence. She wished she could capture him at this age and never let him grow up. “Something like that. What have you been doing?”
His little face beamed. “Miss Julianne and I played I Spy and we took the dogs for walks and we ate sherbet and watched Barney.”
“She took good care of you, buddy.” Alicia would be forever grateful to the agent. She hoped they would be able to stay in touch once she moved on to another assignment.
Thinking about the agents leaving brought an ache to her heart. She didn’t want Leo to go. Everythi
ng inside of her rebelled at the idea of him not being a part of her and Charlie’s lives.
But what was she supposed to do?
Even if she told him that she loved him, she could never ask him to give up his career and move to the ranch. She wouldn’t want him to do that. He was a dedicated officer of the law who had proved to her he could also be a man who would devote himself to those he loved. But she couldn’t leave the ranch. Her dad needed her.
On the other hand, Billings, Montana, was only two hours away. Close enough that if Dad needed something she could come back. She and Charlie could come back on the weekends and holidays. They could hire some teens to come and help Dad with the chores around the ranch. The more she thought about the logistics, the more conceivable she found the idea.
She mentally snorted. Of course, planning a life with Leo was a moot point if he didn’t feel the same about her. If he wasn’t interested in building a future that included her and Charlie.
Only one way to find out. She had to expose her heart and pray Leo loved her, too.
* * *
An hour later, Leo carried Alicia into the living room of the Howard ranch house. Charlie hovered close by waiting for the opportunity to be with his mother. According to Julianne, Charlie had been scared when he’d awoken to discover his mother not there. He’d told the agent that he’d had bad dreams that a bad man had taken his mommy away.
Apparently he hadn’t been completely asleep when Pike had kidnapped Alicia. Leo hoped the boy would forget whatever he’d seen or heard now that the danger had passed.
He bent to gently lower Alicia to the couch cushions. She hung on to him for a moment. Her arms around his neck were thrilling and her body so light in his arms.
“You’re spoiling me,” she murmured close to his ear, her breath tickling the sensitive skin. “I could get used to being swept off my feet.”
Her words bounced around his head and his heart. He’d like nothing better than to sweep her up and carry her off to some tropical paradise, where it would be just the two of them. But that wasn’t going to happen. She may not blame him for failing to keep Pike away, but he certainly blamed himself.
