If this woman was going to pull some “I’ve been sleeping with your man and he really loves me” crap, she could forget it. Misty wouldn’t buy that for a moment. Especially after the weekend she and Jared had shared. She’d trust him no matter what.
The woman leaned back in her chair, anguish written in every line of her face and the gun still pointed at Misty’s heart. “Do you have any idea what I’ve been through? Jared Monroe has cost me everything I’ve ever loved. That’s why I’m going to take everything he loves from him. Namely you and that baby.”
A chill ran up Misty’s spine at the cold words, spoken in a tone full of hate, spite, and despair. What this woman didn’t realize was that Misty wasn’t going to let anything happen to her baby without a fight.
“Who are you?” Misty whispered, her heart clenching in her chest making it hard to breathe. “What are you going to do to me?”
The woman placed the gun on the table and reached into her purse again, pulling out a large mason jar filled with a golden colored liquid and a rag coming out of the top. Misty tugged at the metal cuff wrapped around her wrist but it was tightly locked and wouldn’t budge.
The woman picked up the gun. “My name is Lindsey Hicks Jackson. And I already told you what I’m going to do. I’m going to take from Jared Monroe what he took from me. He took everything I loved. He owes me and he’s going to pay up. I’m going to set fire to this building and you’re going to die in it.”
The ex-wife of Boyd Hicks.
Sweat was running down Misty’s back and she could hear the blood rushing in her ears. She didn’t want to die. She had too much to live for. “You’re crazy. None of what happened to you is Jared’s fault. He was just doing his job.”
“His job?” The gun jerked in Lindsey’s hand and Misty stopped breathing for a moment. “His job is to protect people. Where was he when Boyd got me hooked on drugs? Thank God Dale was there to help me. We worked together and got Boyd sent away for a long time. Dale was my lifeline. But then Dale got sent away too and I had nobody to take care of me. And then I lost Tilly. But I met Dave and everything started to be better. I thought everything was going to be okay but then Boyd was let out of jail and Dale told Boyd everything.”
“Everything? What did Dale tell your husband?” Misty tried to keep Lindsey talking no matter what. Stall.
“Dale told Boyd about him and me. Boyd was pissed off and he threatened me if I didn’t support him seeing Tilly. He threatened to tell the judge about Dale and me.”
Lindsey had been having an affair with her husband’s brother. It was like a soap opera except that Misty was trapped in it and it was all too real.
“So you killed Boyd? I’m sure you didn’t mean to.”
“He would have killed me.” Lindsey stood and began to pace the room, waving the gun around. “I had no choice. I shot him and then called Dale but he didn’t answer. Then I called Dave and he came to help me.”
The woman’s expression crumpled and tears rolled down her cheeks. “Dave’s the only man that has ever truly loved me. When I finally did get through to Dale he just laughed at me. Said I was a great piece of ass and that was it. He just used me for revenge on Boyd. He hated Boyd and tricked me into killing him. Even gave me a gun for protection. For protection, he said. He knew I’d end up using it. I fell for it and now everything is falling apart.”
Lindsey was also falling to pieces in front of Misty. It was the one glimmer of hope in this dire situation. Keep Lindsey talking until she completely fell apart or Jared came.
“Jared can help you,” Misty said urgently. “It sounds like it was self-defense. They won’t put you in jail for that and you’ll still get your daughter. Nothing has gone too far yet. Jared can help you.”
Lindsey stopped and whirled around to face Misty, her eyes wild and her skin pale.
“Where was he when Boyd was threatening me so he could see Tilly? Nowhere. Dave had to take care of Boyd because Jared Monroe wasn’t doing his job. Now that Dave’s in jail, they’ve postponed the custody hearing for Tilly. But I know what that really means. It means they’re never giving my baby back to me.”
Lindsey’s voice had gone up several decibels and the words came out in choked sobs. Lindsey’s lips trembled while her hand holding the gun shook. Wanting to calm the woman, Misty spoke in a soothing tone.
“A postponement doesn’t mean you won’t get her back. I’m sure once they see you’ve changed you’ll get your daughter.”
Lindsey’s features twisted into something ugly, the humanity stripped from her expression. “It’s too late for that now. I’ve lost everything I’ve ever cared about. Tilly. Dave. Dale. Boyd. Someone has to pay. Jared Monroe doesn’t deserve to live happily with you and that baby when he’s the reason all these bad things have happened to me. He deserves to suffer. I hope he burns in hell.”
Before Misty had a chance to make sense of the woman’s words Lindsey Jackson pulled a lighter from the bag and lit the rag hanging out of the mason jar and then tossed it against the wall. The glass shattered, the sound loud in the eerie silence, the liquid a huge blot and dripping down on the flammable paper below it. Orange and yellow flames jumped and danced while the pungent odor of gasoline filled Misty’s nostrils.
The strong instinct to survive kicked in and the world seemed to come into sharp focus. She could hear every little breath Lindsey took and see the sweat beaded on her upper lip and forehead. The woman’s eyes had gone cold and lifeless, almost like black marbles. Misty’s mind ran through scenario after scenario of possible ways to escape and they all ended the same way. Her and Rayne dead in a burned out building.
“Don’t do this, Lindsey. I’m pregnant. I’m a mother just like you. I don’t think you’re the type of person that would kill an innocent child. You’re better than that.” Misty’s voice was filled with desperation that she couldn’t hide even as she tugged at her wrist, a futile effort. The flames weren’t large at this point but they would grow bigger. The horror of a death by fire was something she couldn’t even comprehend. That one human was capable of committing such a grisly act on another was beyond Misty’s understanding of the world.
“Maybe once I was better than this. But now I just can’t go on anymore and pretend things will get better. They’ll only get worse.” Lindsey dropped her purse on the floor and pulled a syringe from its depths. “I’m tired. Of everything. This will soon be all over.”
With that she wrapped an elastic band around her upper arm and then while Misty watched in horror, Lindsey shot the syringe full of liquid in her veins. She groaned and closed her eyes, her lips turning up slightly at the corners as if savoring the feeling.
“You’ll pass out from the smoke before the flames get you.”
The words were slurred as Lindsey stumbled to her feet, swaying and unsteady. Her purse dangling from her fingers, she stumbled to the back door, slamming it shut behind her.
The growing yellow and orange flames jumped along the back wall and the smoke was growing thicker.
In desperation Misty frantically pulled open the drawers of the desk next to her looking for something – anything – that would get her out of these cuffs. She wasn’t going to die in the building. It was up to her to save herself and her baby.
Her fingers closed tightly around a paperweight, a heavy polished rock Rayne had brought back from one of her many adventures. Misty lifted it high into the air and brought it down on the lock of the cuffs with all the strength she possessed.
She’d batter at the lock until it gave way.
It was a glass of iced tea later when Jared impatiently looked at his watch. Rayne and Misty should have been back a long time ago. She hadn’t sent him a text that they’d be awhile so he couldn’t think what would be keeping them. He pulled his phone from his pocket and punched a few buttons. Misty’s phone rang and rang but only her voicemail picked up.
“That’s odd.” Jared set the phone on the table in case Misty called him right back.
>
“What’s odd?” Ty replied, pulling his attention from a story their dad was telling them. “Is something wrong? You don’t look happy.”
“Misty should have been back by now.” Jared held up his phone. “And she’s not answering her cell. That’s not like her.”
Ty laughed and shook his head. “She’s fine. Man, you worry too much. She and Rayne are probably planning a baby shower or something. It’s a man’s job to wait for a woman.”
Jared had to concede that when Misty and Rayne were together they could talk and lose track of time. If Rayne noticed the engagement ring on Misty’s hand they might be starting on the wedding plans right now. And isn’t that exactly what Jared wanted? Misty was always telling him he needed to learn patience and there was no time like the present.
Or he could simply take the tongue lashing she’d give him about worrying too much and go down the block and see what was holding them up.
Jared stood pushing back his chair. “I’m going to see what’s keeping them. I’ll be right back.”
“Me too. It’s a great day for a walk,” Gerald Monroe replied, slapping down his glass on the table.
“It’s only two blocks,” Jared protested as Ty looked on with amusement. His younger brother obviously had a feeling something was going on and it was more than a simple family lunch.
His father rubbed his upper arm and smiled. “I’ve been thinking about getting a tattoo. Something to symbolize my life. I’ve been wanting to talk to Rayne about it. She and I can discuss it on the way back.”
His father was thinking about getting a tattoo? What next…a pierced tongue? The staid, serious family patriarch had been acting strangely lately with all the smiling and joking around he’d been doing.
Ty waved them away with a grin. “I’ll hold down the fort. Just get back here quick. I’m starving. I’m likely to go ahead and order for all of you and eat every bite.”
Typical Ty boast. Jared’s brother loved the trash talk more than any of the Monroe boys. “We’ll be back in ten minutes tops. Hopefully we’ll meet them coming here on our way there.”
Back out in the sunshine Jared breathed deeply, enjoying the warm temperature. It had to be a good omen that the day had dawned so beautifully when he and Misty planned to tell their momentous news. He and his father walked down the sidewalk, their long strides eating up the distance quickly. Misty and Rayne were nowhere in sight which gave Jared an unsettled feeling in his stomach. He liked things to run predictably, like clockwork, and when they didn’t…? It made him uneasy. Misty could help him change some things about himself but certain traits in him were so ingrained they weren’t budging.
“The Closed sign is out,” Gerald pointed to the large window. “Maybe they already left.”
If that were true they would have run into Misty and Rayne on the way here. Jared walked up close to the window and peered inside. The glare of the sun made it difficult to see but he was able to make out Rayne’s form slumped on the floor, apparently unconscious.
Jared’s heart accelerated and he had to force himself to take a breath as fear coiled in his belly. He couldn’t see Misty and he needed to get inside. Now.
He slapped his phone against his father’s chest. “Call my deputy Knox and tell him to get to the tattoo shop. I’m going inside.”
“I’ll be right behind you after I make the call.” Gerald Monroe took the phone, his lighthearted expression wiped away. His features were now a tense mask of worry and fear.
“No, you stay out here. I don’t want to have to worry about your safety too. There could be someone still in there.”
Jared unholstered his service weapon and tried to pull open the front door but it wouldn’t budge. With a curse he looked around for something to break the glass.
Gerald was hanging up the phone and pointing to an old truck parked at the curb. “Old Larry always keeps tools in the back. I’m sure he won’t mind borrowing for a good cause.”
Jared didn’t give a shit if Old Larry minded or not. If he was upset Jared would buy the man a dozen new tools. Reaching into the back of the truck Jared pulled out a large sledgehammer.
“Step back, Dad.”
A quick appraisal told him that breaking the glass in the door would be safer for Rayne who was slumped in the opposite corner of the shop against a worktable. Jared pulled his hat down low to protect his eyes before swinging the hammer and shattering the glass in the door, shards flying in every direction.
Reaching in the large hole he’d created, he was able to easily reach the lock and flip it open. As soon as he was inside the acrid aroma of gasoline and smoke assailed his nostrils sending his adrenaline into overdrive. His gaze darted around the room but Misty was nowhere to be found. He knelt down beside Rayne to check her pulse, noting with relief it was good and strong.
“I’ve got her, son. You go find Misty.”
Gerald shouldered his middle son aside and Jared didn’t argue. He headed straight for the back room and what appeared to be the source of the smoke. His gaze went first to the leaping flames on the back wall that had eaten into several shelving units but hadn’t spread any farther. Yet.
The room was filled with a haze of smoke that made it difficult to see but he could hear coughing in the distance and he prayed it was Misty.
“Misty,” he called, praying she could hear him, that she would respond.
“I’m here.” He saw something wave through the smoke and bolted straight for her, his heart in his throat. Coughing and choking, he dropped to his knees beside her, his fingers automatically going to the pulse in her neck.
“Rayne?” she asked, the words choked.
“Rayne is fine and with my dad. I’m more worried about you.”
“I’m okay but my wrist is cuffed to the pipe on the wall. I’ve been trying to break the lock with this.” She held up a large smooth rock. “So far…no go. I was getting ready to try using the letter opener as a file.”
Sirens sounded in the distance and Jared heard the shuffle of boots in the front room. The cavalry had arrived but he was closest to Misty.
“I’ve got you, honey. I’m going to get you out of here.” The words came out so gravelly and constricted he wasn’t sure she would understand but she must have as she pressed close to him.
“Lindsey made me cuff myself to the pipe.”
Lindsey?
“Lindsey Jackson?”
“Yes, she said you took her husbands and child away from her so she was going to do the same to you.”
Lindsey Jackson needed psychiatric help along with a cell next to her husband. Acid born out of anger churned in Jared’s stomach. The woman would pay for what she’d done today.
“We’ve got Rayne out of the building,” a voice that sounded an awful lot like Knox rang out. “What do you need, boss?”
“She’s cuffed to the pipe.” Jared yelled back. “I’m going to try and use my keys but get a saw or an ax just in case.”
“On it,” the voice replied and Jared heard the clomping of boots in the distance.
Jared cupped Misty’s jaw. “Stay with me here. I’ve got cuff keys in my pocket. I’m going to try those.” It felt like knives being thrust into his chest every time he tried to take a breath but he focused solely on freeing Misty from the ever-growing flames that were encroaching, now so close he could feel the heat on his back as the sweat poured off of him.
He fumbled in his back pocket, the darkness making it difficult but not impossible as he pulled the key loose triumphantly.
“I’ve got it, baby. Hang in there for me.”
“I’m scared, Jared. I tried to keep her talking until you came but she left.” Her voice shook with fear and it made him want to pull the goddamn pipe from the wall with his bare hands and scream in frustration. But he couldn’t give in to any of that. She needed him to keep calm and level-headed so they could both get out alive. She’d counted on him to save her and he couldn’t let her down now that he was so close.
It took several tries before he found the keyhole but it finally slid in and turned just as he’d hoped, the cuff coming loose.
“Got it.” Misty’s arms went around him immediately, holding him with a death grip as if afraid he’d disappear. He wrapped his own around her, pulling her close with a sense of relief. Now that she was free he just needed to get her out.
“Sheriff, I’ve got the ax.” Jared couldn’t see Knox through the smoke.
“She’s free. Let’s get her out of here. Lindsey Jackson did this.”
“Let’s get both of you out of here,” another voice said. Someone – perhaps the person who just spoke – pressed an oxygen make over his face and he fought it, wanting it to go to Misty. The baby.
“She’s got one too, Sheriff. You’re both going to be okay.”
Jared refused to let go of Misty even as the fireman helped them both to their feet and escorted them through the building. The fire had grown and now encompassed a full half of the back room.
Jared clutched Misty to his chest as they both fell to their knees on the sidewalk, the sun blindingly bright after the darkness of the building. Rayne was sitting up on a gurney with an oxygen mask, Jared’s father and Ty at her side.
He needed to know what the fuck had happened but first Misty needed medical attention. An EMT ran to both of them and Jared pointed at Misty.
“She’s pregnant. She needs to go to a hospital and be checked by a doctor.” The last words came out as coughs but the minute he’d said the word pregnant they were already loading her into the ambulance. He grabbed Deputy Knox’s arm.
“Lindsey Jackson did this. Put out a BOLO. Every man on this. Find her. I have to stay with Misty.”
Jared jumped into the back of the ambulance and held Misty’s hand. They weren’t taking her anywhere without him. The doors slammed shut and the engine roared to life. He had so many questions about what had happened today but the only one that counted at the moment was whether Misty and the baby were healthy.
Imperfect Justice Page 24
