The Lawman Returns

by Lynette Eason

  “Where are Mom and Dad and the rest of the family?”

  “Trapped inside the house.” Abe glanced in the direction of the main house. “They’re going to kill them. They’re just waiting on you two.”

  “What do you mean?” He’d never seen Abe look so pale before. Stark terror for those he loved stood clear in his eyes.

  “I overheard Krissy talking on her phone. Said the plan was to wait until you two got here and they could do away with all of you at once.”

  “Did you happen to hear how she planned to do that?”

  “A house fire,” Abe said, his voice hoarse. “She told someone to bring gasoline.”

  Clay swallowed. How could someone deliberately plot the murder of another person? He didn’t get it. Never would. “Has that someone arrived yet?”

  “No, not yet. They got ’em all tied up in there.”

  “How did Krissy and Stan manage to get the whole family under their control?”

  “Krissy held a gun to the little girl’s head and said she’d blow her away if they didn’t cooperate. Stan tied them up while Krissy watched their every move.”

  “And you couldn’t get in there?”

  “Nope, figured I was better off going for help. That’s why I was in the barn. I needed a horse. They disabled all the vehicles.”

  Clay shook his head. “Then we have to figure out a way to get them out. Where are the cops? I called Ned and told him to send law enforcement out here.”

  “Haven’t seen Ned.”

  Now Clay was seriously concerned. “What are they tied up with?”

  “Duct tape and some rope, I think. I could see what all they used.”

  “Let me have your cell phone.” Abe handed it over and Clay quickly punched in Ned’s number. It went straight to voice mail. “Ned, where are you? I’m at the ranch and I need help. Call me ASAP.” He snapped the old-fashioned phone shut. “Now he’s not answering.” Clay opened the phone again and called one of the other deputies, Donnie Kingston. “I need backup at the ranch and I need it now.”

  “Have you seen the snow, Clay? We were blessed to get home from your parents’ barbecue. Roads are getting bad.”

  “I don’t think you understand, Donnie. My family is being held hostage!” Sabrina placed a hand on his arm and he realized his voice had risen with each word. He took in a deep breath. “I don’t care how you get here—just do it.” He hung up and called his department in Nashville. “I know it’ll take an hour for you to get here, but get a chopper in the air, something. I’ve got two killers in my house, and I need help now!”

  His head pounded in time with his pulse. How was he going to do this? Abe’s phone rang. He handed it to his uncle.

  “Hello?” Abe listened. Then his eyes rose to meet Clay’s. “It’s for you.”

  “What?” Clay took the phone back. “Hello?”

  “You have exactly sixty seconds to get inside this house or I start killing family members,” Krissy said. She might have been ordering a pizza for all the inflection in her voice.

  Clay’s blood ran cold. “What do you want?”

  “I just told you. Sixty seconds.”

  * * *

  Sabrina watched Clay pace for five of those seconds. Then he stopped sharp and bolted for the tack room. When he returned, he looked at her and Abe. “Wait for backup. I’ve got to go in or they’re going to kill someone.”

  “Clay—” she whispered.

  He placed a hard kiss on her lips and, without another word, headed from the barn and out into the hard-falling snow.

  Sabrina looked at Abe. “What are we going to do?” she demanded. “Wait for backup that may or may not be on the way?”

  Abe ran a hand down his face. “That doesn’t seem to be a good idea, does it?”

  “He can’t die, Abe.” Her voice cracked, and she bit her lip. “None of them can die.”

  “You’re right. They’re not dying. Not while I have breath left in my body.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  “I’m going to see what I can do about getting them out of there.”

  “How?”

  “If I knew that, I’d tell you,” he snapped. “Now you stay put.”

  “Nope. I’m going.”

  He stared at her. “You’ll just get in the way and likely get yourself killed. Stay put.”

  She held his gaze. “No.” Sabrina wasn’t sure she wanted to work with a man who held her, at the very least, partially responsible for his bitterness, but she figured she didn’t have any other options. She wasn’t going to be left behind.

  She saw the moment he realized he wasn’t going to win this argument. He tightened his grip on his rifle and motioned her to follow him. Sabrina belatedly remembered the weapon in her jacket pocket. She slipped her hand in the pocket and curled her fingers around the grip.

  Then released it. She knew she had to make a decision. Could she use the weapon or not? She pictured Krissy with her gun held to little Maria’s head and felt certainty come over her.

  She could do it if she had to.

  “It’s just the two of them. They don’t have enough manpower to monitor all sides of the house. They might be glancing out the window every once in a while, but we’re gonna sneak up on ’em.”

  Abe led Sabrina from the barn and to the side of the house. He sidled up to the window, and Sabrina held her breath. This was crazy.

  Abe was crazy.

  She glanced back toward the drive that would bring help. Emptiness stared back at her.

  Please, Lord, bring help and bring it fast. Keep Clay and his family safe. Please don’t let them die.

  * * *

  Clay held his hands up and focused his attention on Stan, not on the family who sat tied to various pieces of furniture in the den. He’d taken everything in with one glance when he’d walked through the kitchen door. No one had put up a fight. Krissy still held Maria by one arm, her gun never wavering from the little girl’s head. Stan had Tony in much the same position. Only Stan had his sawed-off shotgun aimed in Clay’s direction.

  Clay pulled in a deep breath. “I’m here. Now what?”

  “Where’s Sabrina?” Krissy demanded. “I know she was with you.”

  “She was. She’s safe now. You don’t really think I’d let her walk into a situation like this, do you?” She frowned as though she wasn’t sure whether she believed him or not. “You killed Steven.” He kept his voice soft. Low. Almost soothing. It was a testament to his self-control.

  Seth sat on the couch, his casted leg propped on a pillow. A fist with white knuckles lay against his thigh. He wanted to act. His parents sat in their matching recliners, hands and feet bound. White-hot rage nearly blinded him. His sister, Amber, sat on the love seat under the window, eyes narrowed and assessing, fingers clenched tight.

  The pile of cell phones in the middle of the coffee table in front of her explained why he couldn’t reach anyone.

  Aaron lay on the floor, unconscious, a gash on his temple bleeding slightly.

  “Yes,” Krissy said. “But you can blame Jordan for that. He was being a tattletale.”

  “Who’s your boss?”

  Stan snorted and Krissy laughed. “You haven’t figured it out yet?”

  A chill swept through him. His mind clicked. The phone call. Abe’s phone. Crushing despair ratcheted through him. “Yes. I think I have.”

  “A little late to do anything about it, though.”

  “So what now?”

  “Now we wait on the boss to get here, and we burn down your house with everyone in it.”

  His mother’s whimper nearly snapped his tight hold on his control. Not yet. Not yet. He flicked a glance at Seth. They’d taped only his hands together—in front of him. His crutch
es lay beside him next to the couch. Clay caught Seth’s eyes and looked down at the crutches, then back up. Seth gave a slow nod.

  Stan let Tony go, and the boy ran to Clay’s mother and hugged her knees. She lifted her taped hands to rest them on his head. Stan jerked Clay’s arms behind his back and used the silver duct tape to secure them. He then shoved Clay into the wingback chair near the far wall. “Don’t move. In a few minutes, the boss will be here and this will all be over soon.”

  The minutes ticked by.

  Clay worked on his bonds while he tried to communicate with his eyes. Stan no longer held Tony hostage, but any wrong move might spur Krissy into pulling the trigger on Maria.

  Krissy and Stan didn’t speak. Stan paced, and Krissy twitched, her nerves ready to get the best of her. Clay cleared his throat. “While we’re waiting on your boss, will you please tell me why you had to kill Steven?”

  She looked almost relieved at his question. “Trey called and said Jordan had pictures of me and my customers at the meth lab on his camera and that he’d given some hard copies to Steven. I couldn’t take a chance he would figure out who was in those pictures.”

  “So you had Trey set him up and you killed him. And Trey.” Rage ripped through him, and he had to concentrate on keeping his cool, staying calm. Going ballistic wouldn’t help the situation.

  “It’s the way things work sometimes.”

  “No, not for sane people,” Clay retorted.

  Krissy’s eyes flashed. “Jordan had been snooping around. One of my customers saw him and went ballistic. Jordan ran, but I knew who he was. I had to get him and his stupid camera. But he was pretty quick and sneaky. I ran into him in town and when he didn’t react to seeing me, I realized he didn’t know who I was, that I must not have been in his pictures. I know now I was, but I was a blur. So the fact that he didn’t know I was involved in the meth ring made things a little easier.”

  “Easier to set him up to kill him?”

  She snickered. “Yeah. Exactly.”

  “But then he found Steven’s wallet in Stan’s trailer.”

  Krissy’s pleased expression sobered and she shot a look at Stan. “Apparently.”

  “How did it get there, Krissy?” Clay asked, keeping his voice soft. “Did you plant it there hoping Stan would take the fall for Steven’s death?”

  “Murder,” his father stated. “Call it what it is.”

  Krissy’s gaze swung to Clay’s father. Clay caught the man’s eye and gave a slight shake of his head. “Come on, Krissy, you were trying to set Stan up. With Sabrina dead, the authorities would swarm the place, find the wallet in Stan’s trailer, and Stan would take the fall for everything.” He blinked. “No, that’s not the way it was supposed to go down. You couldn’t let Stan take the rap. He had to be dead, too, didn’t he? Because he could identify you. You were going to kill them all, weren’t you?”

  Krissy’s mouth worked and Stan’s jaw hung, his face turning a different shade of red with each word Clay uttered. Clay pushed the point. “Yes, I think I have it figured out now. You told Jordan to lure Sabrina to Stan’s trailer. You planned to kill her and Jordan. Then you were going to lie in wait for Stan to come home and kill him, probably making it look like a suicide.”

  Krissy’s face whitened and she took a step back.

  “I knew it!” Stan roared. “You said the kid had the wallet all along, but you were setting me up!”

  “Stop it, Stan. Think about what Clay’s saying. What he’s doing. He’s trying to get us to turn on each other. So just settle down.” She looked back at Clay. “Now I think it’s time for you to shut up.”

  “Just one more question.”

  “What?”

  “Why?”

  Krissy frowned. “Why what?”

  “Why choose this life? You have a husband who loves you, people in town who think you’re a great teacher and respect you. Why throw it all away?”

  She stiffened. Maria wiggled, and Krissy jerked her back. “Be still, brat.”

  “Let me go! You’re mean!”

  Krissy ignored her and looked at Clay. “I’m not throwing it all away. I’m simply tying up some loose ends to ensure no one finds out.” She sneered. “I hate this dead-end town. I want out.”

  “They why not just leave?” Seth asked her. Krissy stood next to the sofa now. In her rant, she’d tried to pace. Keeping Maria with her had hindered her progress a bit, but Clay was satisfied with her location. He raised a brow at Seth, who nodded and shifted.

  “And go where?” Krissy shouted. “And do what with no money? Why? You want to know why? So I could leave. Leave it all behind. My sick mother, my suck-up brother and my lame husband.”

  The door slammed open, and Clay flinched. He twisted so he could see. Sabrina stepped through first, hands held high, followed by Abe in the same posture. Behind them, rifle held centered on Abe’s back, came the boss.

  Clay’s jaw tightened. He forced it to relax. “Hello, Ned.”

  TWENTY-ONE

  A collective gasp came from the rest of his family as they put it together. “Why, Ned?” His father’s agonized question hung in the air as Ned gestured to Stan to set about duct-taping Sabrina’s and Abe’s hands and legs.

  Abe gave Stan a shove and pulled back his fist.

  “Stop!” Krissy’s shriek pierced the air. “I’ll shoot her!”

  Clay swung his attention to Krissy, who had the gun pressed against little Maria’s temple. Maria didn’t look scared, just furious, her big blue eyes shooting sparks at the woman who kept her captive.

  Abe dropped his arm. Stan swung the shotgun and caught Abe on the chin. Clay winced as his uncle stumbled back and hit the wall. Next Stan pointed the weapon at Clay.

  “No!” Sabrina launched herself at Stan, and the two of them tumbled to the floor, the shotgun skidding. Stan pushed Sabrina away and grabbed the weapon. This time he pointed it at her.

  “Move and I’ll fill you full of holes.”

  “No holes, Stan. It has to look like an accident,” Krissy said. He prodded Sabrina in the back, and she moved to sit on the floor beside Clay. Stan had her hands bound in front of her within seconds.

  Clay eyed the gas can Ned set on the floor. “Arson investigators are pretty good these days.”

  “Yes, well, we all know who will help in the investigation. I think we’ll be fine.”

  Clay didn’t take his eyes from Ned’s. “Why?”

  “Money.” For a moment shame stood out clearly on the man’s face. He quickly covered. “Money. The diner is going under. We all know how well my job pays.” He snorted. “And I got a kid with a drug problem.”

  “Lily?” Sabrina gasped.

  “Yes. Prescription drugs.” He shook his head, his grief visible. “That car accident has nearly destroyed our family. It was Lily’s fault and the other person sued. I had to take another loan out against the diner and my house to help her. And with the economy in the tank, I’m about to lose everything.” Clay thought he saw tears in his eyes for a moment. Then they were gone. “You got to do what you got to do to protect your family.”

  “Yes,” Clay said. “You sure do.”

  They sat on the floor against the wall. Sabrina’s gaze met Clay’s.

  Ned handed the gasoline can to Stan. “Get it good. There’s more where that came from.” Stan walked outside. The sheriff looked at Clay’s father. “I never meant for Steven to get killed. Krissy did it, and I didn’t find out about it until later. Once I realized everything that happened, I couldn’t arrest her.”

  “Because she would turn you in.”

  “Exactly.”

  * * *

  Sabrina struggled to get her taped hands into her pocket without attracting Krissy’s or Ned’s attention. Finally, she managed to get her fingers wrappe
d around the grip. Slowly, her eyes swiveling between Stan and Krissy, heart pounding, expecting to be caught at any moment, she pulled the weapon from her pocket.

  Stan had taped Clay’s hands behind his back, but she could see he’d worked them free. Low on the floor, she lifted the gun and nudged Clay’s free right hand. He didn’t look at her, just wrapped his fingers around the barrel and kept it behind him.

  She didn’t know what he could do with it, but surely it would be something. Fear trembled through her. Prayers winged from her lips. Tony stared at her. Maria sobbed her anger. Fear morphed into fury, and Sabrina brought her knees up. She buried her face in her hands, hoping it looked as if she had just given up. She sank her teeth into the duct tape.

  “Now,” she heard Clay say.

  She snapped her head up in time to see Seth swing one of his crutches up from beside the couch and catch Krissy’s arm. The gun tumbled from her hand and hit the floor. She screamed and froze as Seth grabbed it and brought it up to center it on her face.

  Clay moved at the same time, bringing the Sig Sauer around to level it on Ned, who stood frozen with his rifle aimed at Clay. “Drop it, Ned.”

  “I can’t,” the man whispered.

  A shadow moved behind Ned, and the muzzle of a small pistol settled at the base of his skull. “But I can and I will if you don’t drop your gun.” Ned’s shoulders wilted and Sabrina could see he realized he was done.

  Jordan bolted around the sheriff, still holding his weapon on him.

  “Jordan!” Maria cried out and raced over to wrap her arms around his legs. Clay removed the rifle from Ned’s hands as law enforcement swarmed into the house.

  Krissy screamed and made a break for the back of the house. Sabrina pushed her legs out straight and caught her in the shins, and the woman went down with a thud.

  Seth held Krissy’s weapon above his head as another officer grabbed her and cuffed her. She felt Clay tugging at the duct tape on her hands and then they were free. He pulled her up and wrapped his arms around her.

  “Hey, what about the rest of us?” Abe grunted. Clay gave her a quick kiss and started freeing his family.