Colton First Responder (The Coltons 0f Mustang Valley Book 4)

by Linda O. Johnston

  “Hello, Zane,” she said back, forcing her tone to remain calm, even though she wanted to scream and race out of there.

  She couldn’t, though. Zane, blocking the exit, held a gun in his hand and was pointing it toward her. “Interesting refuge you’ve got here. I’d never have thought someone like you would wind up living in a former mine. On the other hand, I never thought someone like you would wind up escaping from the cops and eluding them for so long.”

  “How...how did you find me?”

  “Oh, that wonderful phone recorder I rely on so much has other functions, too. There’s a GPS transmitter on it. I followed it, and here I am.”

  Savannah felt herself shaking. But something about that didn’t make sense. “It’s not here,” she told him. Grayson had it with him wherever he’d driven to, but she wasn’t going to say anything to her horrible ex about that.

  “I know that. Your new buddy—he’s a first responder guy, right? Anyway, we saw him drive off a little while ago, and the dot showing the location of my recorder went in that direction. But we could see he was the only one in the car, so I followed what the dot showed before, and here I am.” His smile seemed to grow even more evil, if that was possible.

  “Who’s we?” Savannah had to ask.

  “None of your business, but I want to take care of both of you and get my recorder back.”

  Which meant Grayson could be in danger, too. But at the moment, there was nothing Savannah could do about it. She had to save her own life first, before she could try calling Grayson.

  Under the circumstances, she had to assume that the other person was Schuyler Wells. There could be others she didn’t know about, of course. But right now it didn’t matter who it was.

  “Okay, Zane, let’s talk about this.” Savannah spoke in as reasonable a tone as she could. “I’m a bit surprised to see you in this area. Don’t you think someone will recognize you?”

  “Like someone recognized you? Hey, I’m not going into town. This is far enough out that I’m not too worried. But I do have one concern.”

  He paused, so Savannah did as she figured she was supposed to and asked, “What’s that?” She was still standing near her chair, from which she’d risen before. Zane, however, was walking around the room, glancing around as if looking for something.

  “I’m debating whether just to shoot you here or take you somewhere else. This isn’t a bad place, since when your buddy is gone I gather not many people, if anyone, would think of looking for you here.”

  Then they were planning on killing her, and maybe Grayson, too. She had to warn him somehow.

  “The thing is,” Zane continued, “I want this to look like a suicide. After all, you did murder me and your lawyer. It’s only natural you’d feel some sense of guilt.” Another of those evil smiles.

  That was enough. He wanted her to be afraid. And she was. But after everything she had gone through, she wasn’t simply going to submit to whatever he intended to do with her.

  Thinking quickly, she said, “Oh, I do. I feel terribly guilty that I didn’t dump you sooner. And I’m sure you’re the one who killed your friend Ian.”

  He didn’t deny it. “Could be,” he said, still smiling.

  “But why did you do all this?” she couldn’t help asking. “Why pretend to be dead and frame me? Are you low on money and needing to hide? Or do you just hate me enough to want to ruin my life? Or—”

  “All of the above,” he said with a laugh. “It was so nice to have you around as a scapegoat, dear wifey, though I’m sure I’ll be able to pop back eventually from where I recovered after you ‘killed’ me and bring my business back from its current mediocre status to its former huge success. I’ll just tell everyone you scared me enough when you tried to kill me that I pretended at first to be dead. When I survived, I couldn’t bring myself to return for a long while, so I hid in another town. But hell, you divorced me. That was the best reason for me to do all this. I’m in charge. I always was. And when you did something I didn’t choose so you could change my life, I had to do something to pay you back. And now, when you’re found dead, I’ll pretend to give a damn. Pretend.”

  That was enough. Savannah a bit scared but even more determined, turned briefly and grabbed the chair, using it as a shield as she approached Zane.

  Would she survive to see Grayson again? She had to.

  Zane shot at her, but she darted sideways, still holding the chair. Zane went the same way, keeping his aim steady as she dashed to one side of the room.

  She leaped forward and hit him with the chair, hoping she’d knock him out or at least distract him enough that she could run away.

  That didn’t happen. Instead, Zane moved sideways again, not aiming at her for the moment as he regained his equilibrium—

  That was when Savannah got the idea of how to stop him.

  Not looking to her side, she nevertheless moved that way, dropping the chair and grabbing that tall, unstable bookcase she’d been examining before and yanking it sideways so it toppled. Onto Zane.

  Knocking him to the floor. One of the large, thick wooden side panels hit him in the head, as books tumbled all around him.

  Knocking him out.

  Savannah grabbed his gun, smiled as evilly as she could at the unconscious body of the man she hated, snatched her phone from the chair that had been beside her—

  And fled the bunker.

  As soon as she got to the opening and figured she would have a good signal, she called Grayson.

  He answered right away. “What’s up, Savannah? I haven’t gotten very far, and—”

  “It’s Zane! He found me. I knocked him out and I’m running away, but he said someone is after you in your car, too. Watch out, Grayson. Please be careful.”

  She didn’t hear another word from him.

  But she did hear what sounded like a car crash.

  “No!” she screamed and began running along the dirt road.

  * * *

  Damn. His head had hit the side window before the airbags deployed. And now it hurt like crazy.

  But at least Grayson was still awake. And mad at himself. Never mind he was here in the middle of nowhere. He should have remained careful, watching around him.

  Seeing that car that hit him before it could run him off the road.

  And now?

  Pain shot through his head. But he knew better than to move.

  Zane was with Savannah? Damn. Grayson should be there with her, protecting her. But he wasn’t. Although it sounded like she’d handled the situation well, at least for now.

  She was okay. She had to be. He wanted to grab her and shield her and care for her forever.

  But they both had to survive for a forever to happen.

  What about him?

  Well, if Zane was with Savannah, someone else had run Grayson off the road. Chances were that it was Schuyler Wells. But who it was didn’t matter, at least not much.

  How Grayson handled this did. He had to get back to the bunker fast. To Savannah.

  He heard a nearby car door slam shut. If whoever it was thought Grayson was unconscious, all the better. Grayson allowed himself to continue slumping against the inside of his door.

  Sure enough, that door was pulled open. Not a great thing, but Grayson allowed himself to slide out onto the ground, fortunately hitting his shoulder before his head came to rest on the forest floor. Pain nevertheless shot through him yet again, but at least he remained conscious.

  “Okay, first responder guy,” he heard a voice say and recognized it as Schuyler’s. He didn’t dare open his eyes yet. “Where’s that damned recorder? Zane should have known better. I didn’t know he was taping his conversations. He just told me about it.”

  The guy was talking as if he was holding a conversation with Grayson, but since he didn’t do anything to hurt Grayson f
urther he had to believe his target here was unconscious. Good.

  Feeling a movement against his side, Grayson fought not to moan or move. But he did open his right eye just a little, in time to see one leg hoisted over him as Schuyler—yes, it was the man he’d seen on those real estate websites—stepped partway into the car, apparently trying to find the recorder.

  Also good. Grayson remained lying there for another few seconds until Schuyler bent forward even more. Then Grayson roared to life, pulling the guy from between his legs and onto the ground, pummeling him in the face.

  Schuyler screamed and attempted to fend Grayson off—unsuccessfully. Ignoring his own pain, Grayson rolled the other man over till his face was on the ground and pulled his arms behind him. Too bad he didn’t have cuffs with him. Holding Schuyler down by kneeling on his back and arms, Grayson pulled his fortunately long-sleeved T-shirt over his head and rolled it until it became rope-like. He used it to tie Schuyler’s arms together.

  “Hold still, jerk,” Grayson said to the man squirming beneath him. “It’s over.”

  Only it wasn’t. Not completely.

  Grayson was worried about Savannah, where she was—and how long Zane would stay immobilized.

  He felt a little chilly in the shade of the forest without his shirt, but at least it was springtime in Arizona.

  He stepped over Schuyler and leaned into the car, extracting the oh-so valuable recorder from the floor on the passenger’s side and tucking it into his belt. He also found his phone on the floor and retrieved it. Then he opened the glove compartment, extracting a small but definitely lethal gun. Backing out again, he pointed the gun at Schuyler.

  “Okay,” he said. “Here’s how it’s going to be. Your buddy Zane has been subdued, too, but we’re going back to the bunker and make sure both of you are sufficiently secured. Stay there a sec, then you’ll stand up.”

  First, though, Grayson wanted to call Savannah. He took a few steps backward, still facing Schuyler, still pointing the gun at him. He didn’t particularly want Wells to hear his conversation, but he wasn’t going far enough away from his captive to ensure he didn’t.

  He pushed the button on his phone to call Savannah. She answered immediately.

  “Grayson? Are you okay? What happened?”

  “I’m fine, and I’ll explain it all in a few minutes, when I see you. I’m not far away. But are you outside the bunker?”

  “Yes, but I’m near it, hiding behind some bushes, watching the opening to make sure Zane doesn’t come out.”

  “Perfect! Stay there. If he does come out, try to figure out his direction but don’t get close, okay?”

  “Okay.” She paused, then added, “I’m so glad you’re okay, Grayson. I was so worried.”

  That sent a zing of pleasure through him that he had to ignore for now.

  “Don’t worry,” he said. “And I think this’ll all be over with very soon.”

  Chapter 21

  Savannah continued to crouch on the dirt behind the bushes. The best part was that they were thick and concealing. There were uneven rows of them in this area. A good place to hide.

  She was so glad Grayson was okay. The sounds she had heard after calling him had been scary. Had the person who’d been after him, presumably Schuyler, hit his car?

  She wished he had told her more, but he’d promised to do so soon. And she had come to believe Grayson’s promises. She would see him in a little while. He’d said so.

  And she couldn’t wait. Wisely or not, she had come to really care for him.

  To love him.

  It was late in the day now, but fortunately there was still enough light for her to see the bunker’s opening.

  She had certainly intended to hurt Zane, and the fact she had knocked him out was a good thing, even though she couldn’t have been certain of that outcome. She just hoped she hadn’t killed him. Wouldn’t that be ironic under the circumstances?

  The good thing was that she would have proof he had remained alive, at least until now. And that he had conspired to frame her for his murder.

  Time seemed to pass so slowly as she waited there. No indication that Zane was leaving, at least, unless he had found some exit she didn’t know about. Through the mine somehow? And what direction would Grayson come from?

  How long would it take him to get here—

  There! She saw movement from the edges of the dirt road. Two people, walking.

  Fortunately, one of them—the one walking behind—was Grayson, not wearing a shirt. Savannah couldn’t help staring at his sexy body, even in these stressful circumstances. But she quickly brought herself back to reality.

  The man in front was Schuyler Wells, the guy who’d claimed to be Savannah’s lover as part of the attempt to frame her. As she’d believed, he must have been the one who’d gone after Grayson and the recorder.

  The one who’d apparently caused Grayson to be in an accident. At least Grayson appeared okay. He walked normally, and she saw no blood on him.

  She just observed his gorgeous, carved chest...

  And Schuyler appeared to have his hands tied behind his back as he moved slowly forward, prodded by Grayson.

  She wanted to scream out in happiness and relief and run toward them, but she didn’t. She would wait until they had entered the bunker, keeping watch out here in case Zane had somehow escaped another way, but then join them inside.

  And so she waited—and good thing that she did. Sure enough, Zane appeared at the opening to the bunker. As far as she knew, she had his only weapon.

  Grayson apparently saw him too, and stopped. “Hey, Zane. Good to see you,” he called.

  “Not good to see you,” Zane called back. His voice sounded a bit fuzzy, and he wasn’t moving fast, either—possibly as a result of his injuries from the bookcase.

  Or, possibly, he was faking it to put Grayson off guard as he approached.

  In case it was the latter, Savannah moved away from her hiding place and out into the open—holding Zane’s gun and aiming it at him.

  “Hi, Grayson,” Savannah said, glancing in his direction but looking back immediately. “Should we go inside the bunker now, or somewhere else?”

  “The bunker will do. I’ve got some rope there and you can help me tie both these guys up. I’ve got Schuyler secured, but that would work better.”

  “Damn you,” Zane cried. “I’m not going back in there. And you’re not going to tie me up like some stupid animal you’ve captured.”

  “Oh, is that what you are?” Savannah couldn’t help asking. She basked for a few seconds in Grayson’s smile. “Anyway, that’s exactly what I’m going to do. And if Grayson wants you inside the bunker, that’s where we’ll go.”

  “Actually,” Grayson said, “we can hang out in the entry area.” He had his gun in his hand, and now he aimed it at Zane, too. “Looks like our buddy Zane is the bigger flight risk at the moment, and I’ve got control over Schuyler. Let’s go into the entryway, then I’ll tell you when to go inside for the rope, Savannah, and where it is.”

  Which made her feel wonderful. She’d started to fear that maybe things weren’t over after all.

  But now she had reason again to believe they were. Or could be.

  And she could only hope that the future became as wonderful for her, with Grayson, as she now desired to have.

  Oh, yes. She desired it. And him.

  * * *

  They were sitting on the stone floor of the entry cave to the bunker—Zane and Schuyler, both secured with good ropes, and Grayson certainly knew how to bind them well. But just in case, he still held his gun and encouraged Savannah to hold hers, as well.

  Savannah. She looked so happy now, so radiant.

  And he loved her smile.

  He also loved the fact that she would soon be cleared of all wrongdoing, particularly of murdering h
er ex.

  Would she want to put it all behind her now, including him?

  If so, he would have to convince her otherwise. And not just on a cot in a bunker.

  Grayson had put his shirt back on. Now, his phone rang. He looked at the caller ID and smiled. Sergeant Spencer Colton of the Mustang Valley PD.

  His cousin. The cop he had called after he and Savannah had tied up the two men. He’d given Spencer a fairly detailed explanation of what had occurred in as few words as possible, and told him where he could come to pick up the criminals in this situation. His cousin had said yes, he and some colleagues would come to take the real bad guys into custody.

  This time, Grayson would be glad to see him. “Hi, cuz,” he said, answering the phone.

  “Okay, we’re here. Give me better directions. Where the hell are you?”

  Talking to him a bit more, Grayson learned that Spencer had passed the area of his car wreck and continued down the dirt road. “You’re probably right outside,” he said. “I’ll send Savannah out to greet you when you get here.”

  Fortunately, although it was getting later, there was still some daylight left, so Spencer and his fellow cops should be able to see her fairly easily.

  “You okay with that?” he asked Savannah.

  “If the other choice is staying here with those two—” she gestured with her gun hand in their direction “—then I’m definitely okay with it.”

  She looked so good that way. So natural. Would she have any interest in becoming a first responder, too? That would be one way they could work together, though he wouldn’t want that to be the only way.

  “Good.”

  She exited through the opening.

  “Look, Colton,” Zane said. “You really don’t have to do this. I may be ‘dead.’ To most of the world, but I still have resources. Financial resources even you wouldn’t believe. If you just work with me, tell your cronies that everything was set up by Schuyler, here, I can pay you—”