by Robin Perini
Lucy poured milk into two glasses and laid out a spread of cookies and fruit. She even added a small vase of flowers before stepping back and admiring her handiwork.
“It’s beautiful, Lucy,” Raven said. “Thank you.”
Lucy glared at Hondo. “See. Told you they’d like them,” she said, wrinkling her nose. “But it’s so dark in here. At least turn on the light—”
“No!” Daniel shouted as Lucy’s form was thrown into silhouette against the blind.
The next moment, a spray of gunfire shattered the glass. Lucy fell to the ground. Hondo leaped toward his sister, and another volley of bullets peppered the motel room.
Daniel vaulted to the door, racing into the parking lot in time to see a car screech away.
Raven grabbed a towel and dropped to her knees beside Lucy. “Oh, my God, Lucy. Daniel, call 9-1-1.”
Her heart twisted with guilt as she pressed at the wounds on Lucy’s chest, trying to stop the flow of blood, but it seeped through. So much blood. Too much blood.
Daniel slammed back into the room, Trouble on his heels, and her gaze snapped to him. He plastered the phone at his ear. “We need an ambulance at Copper Mine Motel. Drive-by shooting. Two down. The car was a late model white sedan. The license plate was covered in mud, but my guess is Texas plates.”
“Daniel,” Raven choked, the towel turning red in her hands. “I need more.”
He sprinted to the bathroom and threw her a set. She grabbed one and replaced the one that had soaked through. Trouble whimpered and lay in the corner while Daniel ran to Hondo. The big man let out a low moan. Daniel pressed a cloth against Hondo’s bleeding shoulder and met Raven’s gaze.
Her eyes burned with emotion when she looked down at Lucy’s innocent face. “You’re going to be okay. The ambulance is coming.”
God, please let her be okay.
“Hondo,” Lucy whispered. “I’m all bloody. Am I dying?”
Her brother shoved at Daniel, groaned and rolled toward her.
“No, baby girl,” he said, his voice choked. “I promised Mom I’d take care of you. And I always keep my promises. You’re going to be fine.”
“It hurts,” she whimpered. “I don’t like it.” Her voice trailed off, and her eyes closed.
Hondo struggled to his hands and knees while Daniel pressed a towel against his shoulder. The big man reached out a shaking hand. “Lucy—”
Raven placed her shaking fingers at Lucy’s throat. “I feel a pulse. But barely.”
Hondo cried out with grief. “Who did this?”
From a distance, a siren screamed toward them.
Raven met Daniel’s gaze. “This is all my fault,” she whispered. “If only I could remember and stop these people.
Blood soaked the second towel. Lucy was still. Too still.
“Don’t give up,” Raven begged. “Please don’t. Hondo needs you.”
Hondo sank to the floor, holding his sister’s hand. “These animals don’t deserve any mercy, Adams. You make sure my Lucy gets justice.”
Daniel’s face went hard. “I promise we’ll get them, Hondo. I keep my promises, too. I’ll find out who did this, and they’ll pay. No matter what it takes.”
Chapter Seven
The sun had fallen too far in the sky by the time the crime-scene team had come and gone. Daniel stuffed the last few personal items into his duffel while the doctor checked out Raven in the motel room next door. They’d be hard pressed to make it to the location he’d found when he had searched the satellite images of the area for a place to hole up.
The scent of blood permeated everywhere from the stain on the floor of room six where the paramedics had worked so hard to save Lucy. Her heart had stopped twice, and when they’d carried her out, her complexion was still gray.
Daniel had seen enough bullet injuries to know her chances weren’t good. He didn’t know whether Hondo would survive, either, but he knew if Lucy didn’t make it, the man’s life would be changed forever. Hondo had lived to protect his sister.
Nothing Daniel could say would ever change the reality that his choice to return to the motel may have cost two lives. Hondo had every right to hate him. If something like this were to happen to either one of his sisters, Daniel would lose it. He yanked the duffel bag’s zipper closed, his frustration boiling deep inside.
The men who were after Raven didn’t care who they hurt. Anyone who got between them and their objective was fair game. Daniel hadn’t lied to Hondo. Their attackers deserved to die for what they’d done.
Sheriff Galloway stood in the doorway and scowled. “I don’t like you taking off into parts unknown with no backup.”
“Tough. We’ve got to disappear. Lucy’s closer to dead than alive, and Hondo’s not much better. You hired me for my expertise. Well, my gut says ‘get the hell out of here.’ I’m holing up in a place they can’t find us. And if they do luck out, I’ll defend Raven with whatever it takes.” Daniel tucked the Glock in the back of his jeans. “I can’t protect Raven here.”
The only other way he could help her was to make use of his psychology degree and try the memory therapy. For that she needed quiet and safety. Daniel could use the open spaces to think. Yet they had to be close enough to Trouble, Texas, that they could return quickly, and since the town truly was hours from anywhere, that left one option.
“Which way are you heading?” Galloway asked, his voice low.
Daniel slung his duffel over his shoulder. “Sorry, Sheriff. The fewer who know the better.”
Galloway slapped his Stetson against his leg. “How will I get in touch with you? What if I discover her identity?”
“Call Blake Redmond. I’ll keep in touch with him,” Daniel said. “That’s the best I can do.” He shoved his way past Galloway, scrutinized the surroundings, then tossed their meager belongings into the back of the truck beside the small satchel Noah had given him and the whip. His entire body on high alert, he searched once again. Though the clouds to the west had darkened the horizon, two hours of daylight were left. Daniel hoped it was enough.
The streets had been cordoned off due to the crime scene. Galloway’s young deputy stood watch. So far, so good.
Daniel returned to the neighboring room and stood in the doorway as the doctor finished his check on Raven.
“She okay?” he asked.
The gray-haired man scowled. “For someone who’s been in a cave-in, an explosion and a drive-by, sure, she’s great.”
Daniel grimaced. “Now you know why we’re leaving.” He held out his hand to Raven. “You ready, darlin’?”
She rose. “How are Lucy and Hondo?” she asked.
“In surgery in El Paso,” Sheriff Galloway said. “It’s too soon to tell.”
“Would you tell Hondo...” Raven gripped Daniel’s hand like she clung to a lifeline. “Would you tell him I’m so very, very sorry? I wish...” Her voice trailed off. “I hope they’ll be okay. I guess there’s nothing else to say, is there?”
Daniel led her to the truck and helped her inside. Trouble looked at him expectantly. “Come on, boy. You get into the front seat for this ride. I think she needs you.”
Trouble hopped onto the floorboard, and Raven scratched his ears.
Daniel shut the door on them and faced Galloway. “Thanks, Sheriff. I’ll be in touch to resign when this is over.”
Galloway ignored the comment. “Stay safe.”
Daniel paused. “If you see Hondo, tell him we’re both sorry. For everything. If he ever needs anything...I won’t forget what happened today.”
“I’ll let him know when the time is right.”
With one last stiff nod, Daniel slid into the driver’s side and pulled out onto the highway. Raven sat quietly next to him, her hand buried in Trouble’s fur as if the animal wo
uld keep her grounded. A mountain loomed in the distance to the west, the sun barely setting over its tall peaks.
“Where are we going?” Raven asked, her voice raw with emotion.
“There’s a section of desert below Guadalupe Peak with several caves where we can find shelter and quiet,” Daniel said. “I have a SAT phone. Noah and Elijah can get in touch if they discover something. If the CTC psychological program works, we can call them. But we’ll be safe there.”
He glanced in the rearview mirror and tugged hard at the vehicle, pulling off the road and behind a small bunch of juniper trees. With a quick move, he slid out his Glock and waited.
“What are you doing? Did you see someone?”
“No, but if we’re being followed, this is the only way out of town. I’m taking no chances.”
A few minutes passed. Not one car went by. Daniel glanced at his map and took off down a dirt road. The holes and rock roads jarred the truck. Daniel peered over the darkening landscape. He’d have to stop soon, but he wanted to put as much distance between them and Trouble, Texas, as possible.
“I don’t think anyone could follow us, even if they wanted to,” Raven said with a quick look behind them.
“That’s the point.” The final rays of dusk pierced the dust, exploding in color across a sea of rock and sand. No sign of civilization peeked up for miles in any direction.
“No distractions, that’s certain,” Daniel said, scanning her face with a concerned gaze. “Any dizziness left?” he asked.
She shook her head, and for the first time since he’d found her in that mine, he didn’t see her wince. She pressed her fingers against the cut on her temple. “My head is still a little sore, but at least it doesn’t feel like someone took a hammer to it anymore.”
“Good.” Daniel studied the dramatic rocks thrusting up from the earth. “The place we’re heading will be quiet. It’ll give you a chance to rest your mind.”
“I may never be able to have peace again. Too much has happened,” she said softly. “I don’t know if I’ll ever forget Lucy’s look at me after she was shot. She hurt so bad,” Raven said, her hand twisting the material of the latest pair of borrowed scrubs she wore.
“If I’ve learned anything over the past few months, it’s that you can’t forget. You can only try to live with what happened.” He patted her hand. “You have the strength to do that, Raven. I know it.”
Uncertainty clouded her expression—and something more.
“I can see a question in your eyes, Raven. What do you want to know?”
“Horrible things were done to you,” she said softly. “I can’t imagine. Do you think...do you think it’ll ever be over for you?”
God, what a question. Unknowingly, the woman had flailed a layer of skin off his soul with her words. “I don’t know.”
Her gaze met his, and she nodded. “Thank you for being honest. It’s one of the many reasons I trust you.”
He cleared his throat. “Look, I’m not one to trust. I’m trained to deceive. In every assignment I dealt with men and women who had no consciences, who would lie, cheat or steal for money or power or a twisted view of the world.” He stuffed his free hand in his pocket and toyed with the bullet casing.
“Then why do you keep doing your job? You sound like you hate it.”
“Someone has to.”
Her gaze narrowed with concern. “This CTC you keep mentioning—you work for them? How can they expect you—?”
“They want me to take a job. Right now I’m...” he paused “...on a leave of absence from my regular gig.”
Her questions were getting too pointed. He shifted in his seat and checked the darkening sky. An outcropping of rock caught his attention, and he recognized the lay of the land. Maybe his luck was changing. “We’re almost there.” He pointed to a spot halfway up the side of a low mesa.
A flash of lightning pierced the blue-gray clouds, its jagged end snapping toward earth. A rumble of thunder followed the spark.
Large raindrops hit the windshield.
Trouble whined.
“Are we climbing up?” Raven asked.
“There’s a four-wheel-drive path halfway up. We can’t leave the truck down here. That last turn took us into a low-lying wash.” The truck’s headlights flashed against a rock face. “See the water-level mark. Flash floods can happen out here in no time.”
“It’s not raining that hard.”
“Maybe not here but who knows up in those mountains. It doesn’t happen often, but at this time of year, you can’t be too careful.”
By the time Daniel maneuvered the truck to higher ground and parked as close to the cave as he could get, the rain had started really coming down. “Who’d think we’d end up in a rainstorm in the deserts of West Texas? But it’s too dark to change plans.”
He slammed on his Stetson, ducked out of the truck, and then grabbed his equipment and the small bag of toys Noah had given him. His fingertips hesitated over the whip, but with a small curse, he grabbed it.
Noah knew him well. Daniel wouldn’t let the duke win. A few hundred feet later, he stood in front of a shallow cave. At least he didn’t have to search for occupants; he could see to the back. Thank God. No more dark, winding passages. He returned to Raven, opened the passenger door. Trouble jumped out of the truck and headed for shelter.
“Smart dog,” Raven said.
“He’s a survivor.” Daniel led Raven to the cave. He unpacked a sleeping bag and the provisions Galloway had provided for them.
Within minutes they’d set up camp. A small hunting lantern illuminated the earthen room. Darkness had closed around them, but the night roared with thunder, and lightning streaked between the clouds and arced like daggers to the earth. Rain pummeled the dry ground, running in torrents off the side of the mesa into the wash.
“I wasn’t expecting this,” he said, raising his voice over the roar.
Raven huddled against the rock wall, hugged her arms to her body and shivered slightly. The temperature had cooled. Daniel pulled off his field jacket and wrapped it around her.
“Thank you.” Raven smiled up at him in gratitude. His heart did a flip inside his chest. She knelt down and pulled out a protein bar. “Dinner?”
He snagged the food and sat just inside the cave’s entrance, looking out at the rain. This position was safer—in so many ways. “We won’t be leaving anytime soon,” he said quietly. “With this much water, the ground would collapse from under us. Even the four-wheel drive will have trouble getting through these conditions.”
“Which means no one can follow us,” Raven said quietly. “We’re safe.”
He twisted to look at her vulnerable features. “Yes, you’re safe.” Even from me.
God, he hoped so.
Raven clasped the locket. “I wish I knew if the baby was.”
What could he say? Daniel rubbed the nape of his neck to ease the tension. He focused on her face, doing his damnedest to ignore the three walls encroaching on him. The fresh air helped. At least his heart wasn’t racing through his chest. Small rivulets of water dripped down his back, reminding him he wasn’t being especially supportive. He was sitting half outside.
Raven sat alone at the back of the cave, looking small and desolate. He couldn’t deny her need. Shoving aside his demons, he ducked inside, something he would never have done a few days ago. He settled next to her and wrapped his arms around her. “You’re safe now,” he repeated, pressing her trembling body close to his side. “Let’s look at her photograph.”
The flickering lantern bathed Raven’s pale skin in light, illuminating her face. God, she truly was beautiful.
She released the locket’s catch and opened the necklace. Noah had taken a few strands of the baby’s hair and a copy of the photograph back to Carder for analysis,
but he’d left some hair and the original snapshot.
Daniel had insisted. Raven needed the connection those few strands gave her. He knew that. When everything was taken away, somehow you had to find one concrete belief to hold on to. Raven’s belief was that the child in the locket was her baby.
Raven’s brow furrowed in concentration, and her fingertips touched the edge of the image. “Look at those innocent eyes. They give me hope,” Raven said softly, glancing up at him. “Hope. It’s strange, but the word makes my heart warm. Maybe I haven’t truly lost it.”
Her lashes fluttered closed. She leaned against him, and he focused on the feel of her body pressing close. The walls had stopped closing him in, and a small fire of optimism kindled inside. Maybe he was healing a bit.
Raven stirred. “Something tells me I wanted her very badly,” she said. “Like I waited a long time for her.”
She blinked, swaying back and forth, a small hum escaping from her lips that was barely audible over the storm outside. He leaned his head closer to her lips. A lullaby, perhaps?
“Ashes, ashes,” she sang. “We all fall down.” Her body stilled. “I don’t know how I know, but I hate that song. It gives me chills.” Her shoulders sagged, and she opened her eyes. “For a moment something was there. Something bad. Then it vanished.”
“Every day the flashes become more frequent,” he said, pulling her even closer.
“I miss her so much. How can I when I don’t even remember her? I’m so scared I won’t remember in time,” she said, frustration mounting. “I feel like I’m failing her.”
He turned Raven into his arms. “You are not a failure.” He cupped her cheek, unable to look away from her. “You are courageous and brave and caring.” His voice turned hoarse at the words. “In fact, you amaze me.”
Her pupils dilated, turning her cinnamon-colored eyes dark with awareness. His body tensed. Everything inside of him wanted to lean into her, to touch her, to hold her, not in comfort but in something much more dangerous.
“This probably isn’t a good idea,” he muttered, even as his body strained against his jeans. He couldn’t resist. He leaned into her.
