Lawman from Her Past

by Delores Fossen

  “Merilee and Dara will be in the hall bathroom with the boys,” Gabriel added. “It’s the safest place in the house since there are no windows. Jodi, Mark and I will stand guard. If there’s a sign of trouble, we’ll sound the alarm and get all of you back here.”

  And there was the other concern that was eating away at Cameron. If there was trouble, then Lauren and he could be right in the line of fire. That was better than having the babies at risk, but it was nowhere near ideal.

  Simply put, Lauren could be hurt.

  Heck, Jace and Jameson could be, too.

  “If we see the SUV once we’re on the road,” Cameron continued, “then it’ll almost certainly follow us. We’ll lead them here.” He pointed to one of the larger trails that was about five miles from Gabriel’s house. “Or here.” Cameron moved his finger to another trail. “It’s far enough away from the ranch—”

  “Wait,” Lauren interrupted. “Why lead them there? There are woods. The river, even.”

  “There’ll be some hands, reserve deputies and even Rangers hidden on those trails.” He checked his watch. “They’ll be in place by now.”

  And with some luck, the hired guns hadn’t spotted them. If they had...well, Cameron didn’t want to go there.

  “We also recorded this shortly before you came downstairs.” Jameson hit a button on his phone to play the sound of the baby whimpering. It was almost identical to what Patrick had been doing just moments earlier, but this had come from Isaac when Merilee had stopped him from spilling his sippy cup of milk.

  “Why would you need that?” she asked, turning first to Jameson and then to Cameron.

  “In case the attackers call us.” Cameron patted his phone. “They have my number because they’ve called me before. This way, they’ll hear the recording and believe the babies are with us.”

  Lauren stood there, her forehead bunched up. She was obviously processing all of this, and Cameron wished he could give her more time, but he couldn’t.

  “If you can think of a safer way to do this,” Cameron said to her, “I’d love to hear it.”

  Lauren rocked Patrick some more and shook her head. “Would we leave now?”

  Cameron nodded. “The sooner the better. We need to put some distance between the boys and us.”

  She blew out a breath, kissed Patrick again and then did the same to Isaac. Lauren handed Patrick to Dara. “Please take care of them,” she whispered, and she included Gabriel and Jodi in the glances she gave the nannies.

  “I’ll get the blankets ready,” Jodi said, passing Isaac to Merilee. She headed out of the room.

  Gabriel handed Lauren a gun that he took from the top of the fridge, and she tucked it in the back waistband of her jeans. “I’ve already given Cameron some extra ammo,” Gabriel explained. “And make sure your phone is with you. Just in case.”

  Yeah, in case this plan went south and those goons tried to kill them. If that happened, then Lauren would be the one who’d probably have to make the call since Jameson, Jace and he would be returning fire.

  Lauren checked to make sure, and she already had her phone in her front pocket. That meant they were as ready as they could be.

  Jameson certainly didn’t seem so eager to get out the door. He huffed and grabbed two Kevlar vests that he’d gotten from Gabriel’s home office. “My advice is to lay this on top of the blankets. So it looks as if you’re protecting the babies. Then, once you’re in the cruiser, put them on.” He tapped his chest. “Jace and I are already wearing ours.”

  That was something Jace and Jameson had done because they’d thought they would be taking the babies to the safe house. Now they would be doing backup for Lauren and him, and the vests might come in handy.

  It didn’t take Jodi long to return with the blankets, and she’d already rolled them up in such a way that it did look like bundled babies. She handed one to each of them, and while Lauren took it, holding it against her shoulder as she’d done to Patrick, she also gave both boys another kiss.

  Cameron kissed them, too, and he draped the vests over the blanket bundles, but he didn’t linger. “Go ahead and take them to the bathroom,” Cameron instructed the nannies.

  No need to stretch out this goodbye. For one thing, it wasn’t the safe thing to do, and besides, there were tears in Lauren’s eyes. Best not to have her break down. Not until they were in the cruiser, at least.

  Cameron waited until he heard the bathroom door shut with the nannies and the boys inside, and Jameson, Lauren and he headed to the front door where Jace was waiting.

  “Move fast,” Gabriel instructed.

  Lauren probably hadn’t needed anything else to put more alarm in her eyes, but that did it. Because it was a reminder that there could be snipers.

  Gabriel turned off the security system so they could get out the door, but Cameron was certain he would reset it. There wasn’t anyone else he trusted more to protect Patrick and Isaac, but Cameron prayed it would be enough.

  The rain seemed to be coming down harder now, and the lightning was close. So close that the thunder boomed almost immediately after the strikes. Definitely not a good time to be out driving, but they couldn’t wait it out. The storm was supposed to last most of the day.

  Cameron took hold of Lauren’s arm to help her down the slippery steps, and Jace and Jameson ran ahead of them to open the doors. The moment they were inside, Jace drove away.

  Lauren looked back at the house, tears watering her eyes, and even though Cameron doubted it would help, he kissed her. Her gaze came to his then, and even though she didn’t say anything, he knew her heart was breaking.

  She’d been through way too much in the past couple of days, and he certainly hadn’t helped matters by having sex with her. Yeah, it’d felt necessary at the time, but it had caused them both to lose focus. Had been confusing, as well. But that was something he could dwell on another time.

  “Go ahead and put on the vest,” Cameron instructed.

  He lay the blankets on the seat next to her and helped her into the Kevlar before she put on her seat belt. Cameron got on both his jacket and his seat belt, and then he immediately drew his gun. That didn’t help with the alarm in Lauren’s eyes, either.

  “It’s just a precaution,” he told her. A necessary one.

  As they’d discussed, Jace drove away from town and in the direction of one of the trails. It was hard to see much of anything because of the rain sheeting over the windows. Still, Cameron kept watch. So did Jameson and Jace from the front seat.

  “So what’s put Gabriel in a snit?” Jameson asked. He glanced back at his sister. “And it’s not a snit because of the danger. I’m pretty sure this one’s more personal.”

  Lauren frowned. “Gabriel found me with Cameron.”

  Jameson laughed. “Like old times. I seem to remember him not approving of you two way back when.”

  He hadn’t. Gabriel had thought Cameron was too old for Lauren. And he had been. But that age difference no longer seemed like an obstacle. A good thing, too, because they had plenty of other obstacles to get in their way.

  “Want my advice?” Jameson said, but he didn’t wait for Lauren to answer. “Just let Gabriel know you’re in love with Cameron, and he’ll back off. Love cures a lot of ill will between siblings.”

  Lauren made a sound of surprise that was borderline outrage. That meant she didn’t love him. Not that he thought she did. Lauren had fallen out of love with him years ago, and heck, it probably hadn’t even been real love then. He’d been her crush.

  A thought that made him frown.

  Was that all it’d been?

  The attraction had definitely been there, now and then. But maybe her feelings for him hadn’t gone beyond basic lust.

  “You were more than a crush to me,” Cameron mumbled under his breath, but it was obviously loud enough for Lauren to hear
because she practically snapped toward him.

  However, she didn’t blurt out anything to reassure him that he’d just babbled the truth. “You have a picture of us in your wallet,” she said.

  Now she was the one who looked alarmed at saying something she hadn’t meant to say. He nodded, admitting that he did indeed have a picture. One she must have seen when he’d left his wallet on the bathroom floor. But Cameron didn’t get a chance to add anything to his nod. That was because Jameson spoke first.

  “A black SUV just pulled out of the side road behind us.” Jameson drew his gun and turned in the seat. “And it’s following us.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  The plan was working. Now Lauren had to hope that was a good thing and that they could truly lead these thugs away from the ranch.

  “Speed up,” Cameron instructed Jace. “They’d expect us to do that if we actually had the babies in the car.”

  Cameron gave an uneasy glance behind them at the SUV, followed by an equally uneasy one at the sky. Going fast on these roads wasn’t a safe idea, but he was right. They needed to make this as realistic as possible. That meant taking risks.

  More than the ones they’d already taken.

  She prayed that whatever they would do, it would make Patrick and Isaac safe. Lauren didn’t want these goons anywhere near the boys. Still, it was a chance that could happen. While Cameron and she were luring the gunmen, the gunmen could be playing a cat-and-mouse game to get them away from the house.

  “They’re speeding up, too,” Jace relayed.

  Lauren got a glimpse of that, and yes, the SUV was much closer now, but Cameron took hold of her arm and lowered her to the seat. “Pick up the blankets,” he instructed. “Hold them as if you’d be holding the boys. The cruiser windows are tinted, but they still might be able to see inside.”

  True, and again they had to make this look believable. Lauren gathered up the blankets in her arms, making sure they stayed rolled up.

  “How much farther is the trail where we’ll be turning?” she asked.

  Cameron didn’t jump to answer, and she saw the renewed alarm on his face. “Hold on,” he warned her. “They’re going to hit us.”

  It wasn’t a second too soon because the jolt came. So hard that even with her seat belt on, it slung her forward. The strap caught her wounded shoulder in the wrong place and caused the pain to shoot through her. She made a sharp gasp that she tried to muffle, but she failed because Cameron looked at her. But he didn’t look for long.

  That was because the SUV rammed into them again.

  The cruiser went into a skid on the wet pavement, and she could see Jace fighting with the steering wheel to keep control. The cruiser tires clipped the gravel area just off the asphalt and sent a spray of rocks banging against the doors and undercarriage. It sounded like gunfire.

  “Hold on,” Cameron repeated, and this time he took hold of her.

  The SUV rammed into them again. And again. Obviously, the front end of the vehicle had been reinforced because the engine was still roaring behind them.

  “Let me see if I can do something about this,” Cameron said when Jace finally got the cruiser back on the road surface.

  He lowered his window, the rain immediately dampening the backseat. Despite the summer temperatures, the spray of water was cold, and Lauren started to shiver. Part of the shivering, however, was because Cameron was about to make himself an easy target for those hired killers.

  Cameron leaned out enough so he could take aim, and he sent two shots in the direction of the SUV. Since Lauren was down on the seat, she couldn’t tell if he hit anything, but at least the SUV didn’t ram into them.

  But the gunmen did something worse.

  They returned fire. The shots slammed into the roof of the cruiser. The bullets didn’t tear through it, but Lauren could hear them slice across the metal.

  “Why would they be shooting with the babies inside?” she asked, the question meant more for herself than the others. “Why would they risk that?” It didn’t make sense if they wanted the boys alive.

  If.

  “They’re not firing kill shots,” Cameron answered. “If they were, they’d be shooting into the window. I think they’re just trying to run us off the road.”

  Yes, but even that could hurt Patrick and Isaac. Maybe that meant these thugs didn’t care if the babies were harmed or not. Or they could have figured out the boys weren’t in the cruiser.

  That thought didn’t make her breathe any easier.

  Lauren tried not to panic, but it was hard to rein in the fear. Not only were their precious babies in danger, but these goons could end up killing Cameron and her in a car wreck, too. Of course, that could be what the person behind this wanted. If it was Julia or Duane, they wanted her dead. Evelyn probably felt the same way about Cameron. She didn’t want to think of what would happen to Patrick and Isaac if these thugs succeeded in carrying out whatever orders they had.

  “How long before we get to the trail?” Lauren repeated.

  “A minute, maybe.” Jace was volleying glances between the road and the rearview mirror.

  The SUV rammed into them once more, but this time Jace managed to keep control. There was no other traffic, thank goodness, so Jace swerved into the oncoming lane to stop them from being hit again.

  “Let me try to hold them off.” Jameson lowered his window as Cameron had done, and he sent three shots at the SUV.

  Maybe those shots would buy them some seconds until they could get to the trail. Of course, the SUV would follow them. That was the plan, after all. The driver could still ram into them. But they wouldn’t be going at such a high speed on the trail, and there’d be an ambush waiting for the thugs. Maybe they’d be able to capture at least one of them alive so they could get some answers.

  “Everyone hold on,” Jace said. “The turn is just ahead.”

  Lauren pulled in her breath and held it. There were wide ditches on each side of the trail, and if the SUV hit them again, they could land in one of those. They were filled with water and mud, and the cruiser would likely get stuck.

  There was another thing that could go wrong, too. Simply put, the gunmen might not follow them. They might recognize this could be a trap and just speed away so they could regroup and come after them again.

  Jace had to hit the brakes to slow down for the turn, but he was still going pretty fast when he took it. The trail was a mixture of gravel, dirt and grass, and judging from the way Jace had gripped the steering wheel, he must have expected them to go into another slide.

  And they did.

  The back of the cruiser fishtailed, slinging them around again, but Jace got them back on course. He didn’t speed up right away, though, and Lauren knew why. He was waiting for the gunmen.

  She lifted her head to look out the back window. It seemed to take an eternity, but it was only a few seconds before she finally saw what she needed to see. The SUV made the turn, as well, and came after them. Jace hit the accelerator again.

  “The reserve deputies and the Ranger should be about a half mile up,” Jameson explained. He kept his eyes on the SUV but motioned for Lauren to get back down on the seat.

  She did. But she hated she was being protected like this when all three of the men were high enough in the seats that they could be shot. Of course, the gunman’s bullets would have to get through the glass first.

  That thought had barely crossed her mind when there were more shots fired. These slammed into the trunk of the cruiser. Definitely not as “safe” as those on the roof since the trunk was right next to the backseat.

  “What the hell?” Jace mumbled.

  That put her heart right in her throat, and Lauren lifted her head again so she could see what’d caused his reaction. There was a motorcycle, and it was parked just beneath some trees just off the left side of the trail.
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  “Is that the Ranger?” Jace asked.

  Jameson shook his head. “Maybe it’s one of the reserve deputies. I’ll ask Gabriel.”

  He took out his phone, no doubt to call their brother, but Jameson didn’t get a chance to do that.

  Because there was a blast.

  It was deafening. Lauren couldn’t be sure, but she thought maybe it’d come from the direction of the motorcycle. She was sure of something else, though. It hadn’t been the sound of a bullet. No, this was something much, much bigger. And whatever it was, it hit them.

  Hard.

  Jace still had hold of the steering wheel, but it didn’t seem to do any good. That was because whatever had hit them exploded into the front end of the cruiser. There were ditches here, too. Ones almost as wide as those on the road. And that was exactly where the blast sent them.

  * * *

  CAMERON DIDN’T KNOW what the guy by the motorcycle had shot at him. He’d barely had time to spot the man before he’d fired something. Not a grenade. The blast hadn’t been big enough for that, but it’d been some kind of explosive device.

  Jace cursed when the cruiser pitched to the left, and the deputy had no control when the tires on that side went into the ditch. Because of the rain, it was more of a small stream, and they instantly went into the bog.

  Trapping them.

  They were much too close to the motorcycle guy, since he was on the same side of the trail.

  Cameron glanced down at Lauren to make sure she hadn’t been hurt in the impact. She hadn’t been, but she’d already pulled her gun and was about to sit up. He pushed her right back down.

  Behind them, the SUV came to a stop. Not a fast one, either, which meant they’d slowed down enough, probably because the driver had known this was going to happen. And what had happened was the worst-case scenario for this plan. Because now they were trapped.

  “I’ll call the backup,” Jameson said. He, too, still had his weapon drawn, and he was looking all around them.

  Cameron was looking, too, but he could no longer see the man by the motorcycle. He’d likely slipped into the woods, and there were plenty of hiding places for him. The trees and underbrush were thick here.