Randall on the Run

by Judy Christenberry

  “Of course. I saved him. It’s important that he recovers and that he gets the bad guys.”

  “‘The bad guys,’ as you call them, could get you. Don’t forget that, Jessica.”

  “I won’t, Mom, I promise. And Mike is keeping an eye on us.”

  “I know. That’s the only reason I’m willing to leave you here. I’ll be back tomorrow. Your father will probably come with me. He’s going to want to meet Steve. When he’s awake, I mean.”

  Jessica locked the door behind her mother and decided to lie down for a nap. She really didn’t think Steve’s partners would come after him here in Rawhide, but if they did, she trusted Mike to stop them.

  Once again she slid into the bed beside Steve and closed her eyes.

  Sometime later she heard barking. Immediately coming awake, she recognized those sounds. Murphy had come back to her. She hurried to the door, first looking out the window, to see Jon with her dog.

  “Murphy!” she exclaimed as she opened the door.

  “Hey, I’m here, too.” Jon feigned a pout.

  “Hi, Jon,” Jessica said. “Come in. I’ve missed both of you.”

  “Yeah, I could tell whom you missed the most. He’s been missing you, too. Our housekeeper said the howling was keeping the baby from sleeping. I thought it was time for him to at least pay you a visit. I think he thought we’d done away with you.”

  Jessica, who’d been stroking her pet, apologized. “I’m sorry he caused problems.”

  “It’s okay. I’d howl if Tori left me behind,” Jon said with a grin. “Now, how’s our patient?”

  “He’s sleeping most of the time.”

  “I’d better check him out.”

  They both went into the bedroom.

  As Jon checked the wound, Steve woke up. He jerked from Jon’s hands, trying to get away.

  Jessica soothed him. “It’s okay, Steve. You’re safe. This is Jon, my brother-in-law.”

  Slowly, Steve sank into his pillow, taking deep breaths. “You’re a doctor?”

  “Yes,” Jon said as he rebandaged the shoulder.

  “How soon can I get up?”

  “How do you feel?”

  “Weak. But I’ve got to get out of here. I’m in trouble, and I don’t want her to suffer for it.”

  “Well, let’s try a simple trip to the bathroom. While I’m here to help you, it will spare Jessica blushes.”

  Steve looked at Jessica. “That’s your name? Jessica?”

  “Yes. I forgot I hadn’t told you.”

  “Come on, Steve,” Jon urged. “Let’s take our hike to the bathroom.”

  Steve slid to the edge of the bed and stood up too fast. He almost crumpled, but Jon shored him up.

  “Easy there,” Jon told him. “It will take a minute to get your legs under you.”

  Steve steadied himself, then said, “Okay, I’m ready.”

  After the two men moved in tandem to the bathroom, Jessica stripped the bed and put clean sheets on it. She had just finished when they came out. Hurriedly she turned down the covers.

  Steve sank down on the bed, sweat beading on his forehead.

  “Jessica, I’m not strong enough to protect you if my partners come after me. I want you to go with Jon, so you’ll be safe.”

  Jessica ignored him, continuing to tuck the covers around him. “Do you need a pain pill?”

  “No. Did you hear me?” he asked, grabbing her hand.

  “Yes, I heard you.”

  “Then why are you ignoring me?”

  Jon chuckled.

  Steve jerked his head around. “What? What’s so funny? I promise you it’s dangerous for her to stay here.”

  “I know that. But you obviously don’t know the Randalls.”

  “Who are the Randalls?”

  Jessica answered that question. “My family. Jon is married to my sister. So even though his last name is Wilson, he’s a Randall, too.”

  “So’s Mike,” Jon added. At Steve’s confused look he added, “The sheriff. You’ve met him on several occasions.”

  “Is everyone in this town a Randall?” Steve asked, sounding frustrated.

  “Just about,” Jon said. “And we’re going to take care of you and protect you. And Jessica, too.”

  “You don’t understand how—how desperate these men are. They won’t show any mercy!”

  “No, I guess not, since their freedom is at stake,” Jon agreed.

  “Then you understand. Make her understand.”

  Jessica asked, “Then who would take care of you?”

  “I’d manage.”

  “No, you wouldn’t!” Jessica exclaimed. “You can hardly get out of bed, and when you do, you’re exhausted. You certainly can’t cook your meals or dress yourself.” She gave him a triumphant look.

  He ignored her and looked at Jon. “Tell her those things don’t matter. I don’t want her to get into trouble because she saved my life!”

  “Aha! You admitted it!” she exclaimed.

  “Admitted what?”

  “That I saved your life!”

  “Well, of course I admitted that. It’s the truth. If you hadn’t picked me up, lied to the policeman, driven almost twenty-four hours straight, I’d be dead by now. I screwed up when I underestimated them.” He turned to glare at Jessica. “I’m not making that mistake again!”

  Jon intervened. “Neither are we. Mike is a professional from the Chicago P.D. He knows what he’s doing, I promise. None of us wants to lose Jess. She’s part of the family.”

  Steve closed his eyes. In a tired voice that told both of his audience he had spent what little energy he had, he muttered, “You don’t understand.”

  Jessica bent down and kissed his brow, as a mother would a sick child, and pulled the cover up a little higher. Then she motioned to Jon to follow her as she tiptoed out of the room.

  “He’s doing better, isn’t he?” she asked anxiously as she moved to the sofa where Murphy waited.

  “Yeah, but he’s got a ways to go. He should be able to eat a real breakfast in the morning. That will give him some strength. After that he should begin making a rapid recovery.”

  “Good. Though I’m not sure what will happen then. He thinks he’s going to fly to Washington.”

  “That would take a lot of energy,” Jon said doubtfully.

  “That’s not all it would take. He says his boss is in on this scheme, too. No doubt they’ll be looking for him in Washington if they haven’t caught him yet.”

  “Hmm, think we could get the authorities to come here?”

  “I doubt it. Big wigs in D.C. don’t do curb service.”

  “Could someone else deliver the information?” Jon suggested.

  “Possibly, but I don’t think Steve would go for that. He doesn’t want to let the information out of his control until he can turn it over to the head of the DEA.”

  “We’ll have to do some thinking about that,” Jon finally said. “I’d best get home. And I’d better take Murphy with me. You couldn’t let him outside without showing yourself, and Mike doesn’t want that.”

  “I guess you’re right,” Jessica said with a sigh. She hugged Murphy’s neck and told him to be good for Jon. Jon and the dog went down the stairs, and Jessica locked the door behind them.

  Then she went to the kitchen and began cooking supper for her and Steve. She wanted something he could eat easily that would give him energy. She understood that one way or another, they had limited time to resolve Steve’s problem.

  As she cooked, she considered different solutions. Positive solutions. She refused to consider that Steve, or both of them, might die.

  There were two problems. One was surviving the next few days if the bad guys came after them. The second problem was getting to D.C. and into the office of the man in charge of the DEA without being detected.

  The ringing phone took her from her thoughts.

  “Jess, it’s Mike. We found out how Bobby Daniels knew you were there. One of my deputies t
old him.”

  “Oh, no! But—”

  “Don’t worry about it. We’re keeping Bobby here for a couple of days. And the deputy has been fired.”

  “I’m sorry, Mike. That must’ve been difficult.”

  “We also spread the word all over town that you’re in hiding in Hollywood and we need to know if some stranger asks about you.”

  “You did? Did anyone say—”

  “We just got our first report. A couple of strangers asked after you at the café. The waitress told them all about your Hollywood career and said you hadn’t been home for at least six months.”

  “So did they leave town?”

  “Yeah, they went to Buffalo to get a hotel room, but I doubt that’s the last of them.”

  “Okay. So we just stay inside and wait?”

  “Afraid so, Jess. You making it all right?”

  “Yes. I’m just about to give Steve some dinner.”

  “Good. Caroline and I may pay you a visit after dinner. Will that be all right?”

  “I’d love for you to come. Maybe Steve will be able to stay awake for a little while and the two of you can talk.”

  “That would be good.”

  After she hung up the phone, Jessica finished cooking. When the stew was ready, she carried a bowl of it in to Steve.

  “Wake up, Steve. I’ve got some dinner for you,” she announced as she sat down on the edge of the bed.

  When he didn’t respond, she put the bowl on the bedside table and shook him. “Steve? You need to wake up so you can eat dinner.”

  “Okay,” he mumbled.

  “Come on, open your eyes.”

  One brown eye appeared. Then the other one. “Yeah? What do you want?”

  “I’m trying to feed you supper,” Jessica assured her patient. She reached for the bowl and filled the spoon. “Open up,” she ordered.

  “Mmm, that’s good,” Steve muttered, surprise on his face. “I didn’t know you could cook.”

  “Red made sure we all could cook, even the guys.”

  “Who is Red?”

  “He’s like our grandfather,” Jessica told him.

  “Like? What do you mean?”

  “He raised my dad and his brothers. He’s not blood-related, but we all love him.” She put another spoonful of stew in his mouth.

  After five spoonfuls, Steve sank back against his pillow. “That’s enough.”

  Jessica didn’t accept his decision. “The more you eat, the sooner you’ll be strong enough to leave here.”

  Steve frowned. “Okay.”

  “More stew?”

  “Yeah, sure,” he said, and struggled to hold his head up.

  “Just lay back. I can feed you without you lifting up your head.”

  After several more bites, Steve asked, “Has there been any sign of my former partners?”

  Jessica waited until she’d fed him the next bite. Then she said, “Maybe.”

  He reached up and held her arm to stop her feeding him. “What do you mean?”

  “There were some men asking about me at the café.”

  “Maybe they were old friends?”

  “No. They weren’t.”

  “Where are they now?”

  “Mike said they went to Buffalo for the night.”

  “Who’s Mike?” Steve snapped.

  Jessica sighed. “I thought Jon told you this afternoon. Mike is the sheriff and Caroline’s husband.”

  “And who is Caroline?”

  “She’s my cousin and she assisted Jon with your surgery. They’re coming to see us in a little while.”

  “Why?”

  With an exasperated sigh, Jessica said, “He wants to talk to you. And Caroline can check your wound to be sure it’s healing all right.”

  His hand dropped from her arm and she continued to feed him.

  Finally, he told her he couldn’t eat any more stew.

  Jessica didn’t press him this time. “Okay. You did a good job. Why don’t you take a nap, and I’ll wake you up when Mike and Caro get here.”

  His only answer was a grunt as he closed his eyes.

  Jessica sat quietly, watching him as his breathing deepened and the frown on his brow slowly disappeared. With tenderness, she smoothed his dark brown hair from his brow. He was a big man, like the men in her family. And, like them, he was very handsome. Once again she was overcome by the desire to touch him, like in the car. That time she’d allowed her hands and eyes to make contact with him. But now she reined in her errant hand. The situation was different. They were alone in an apartment; Steve was mending. Touching him, she knew, wouldn’t be smart.

  Finally, she abandoned his bedside and went to the kitchen to eat her own bowl of stew. She’d for gotten how good a hot meal felt when it was cold outside. The only times she had gotten cold in Hollywood were when the air conditioning was set too low.

  As she sat at the table, thinking about the changes she was making in her life, she heard footsteps on the stairway. Thinking Mike and Caroline had arrived, she hurried to the door. But she didn’t open it, waiting until they identified themselves.

  Only no one spoke.

  Chapter Five

  Suddenly, a loud whistle rent the air, followed by heavy footsteps racing down the stairs.

  Jessica ran to the window that overlooked the street. She saw the backs of two men as they raced to an SUV parked by itself halfway down the street. She heard shouting. Then there were footsteps coming up the stairs, lighter but noticeable. She watched Mike run down the street, so she guessed her visitor was Caroline.

  “Jess? Are you all right?” Caroline called before Jessica could get to the door. She swung it open and fell into Caroline’s embrace.

  “Yes, I’m fine. I realized someone was out there, but I thought it was you and Mike. When no one spoke, I was frightened.”

  “With good reason. Someone was supposed to be watching the stairs. Mike’s going to raise a ruckus with whoever was on guard. It’ll be a few minutes before he gets here.”

  “That’s all right.”

  “Jessica?” Steve called from the bedroom.

  Walking toward the bedroom, she said, “Excuse me, Caroline. I’m sure I worried Steve when I ran out of the room.” She entered his room and reassured him. “Everything’s fine, Steve. Sorry I woke you.”

  “Why did you run out?”

  “I, um, well, I heard someone on the stairs and figured it was Caroline. And it was.” No way was she telling him about the two men.

  “Is Mike with her?”

  Before Jessica could answer, Caroline joined them and said, “He’ll be here a little later.” She stepped to the bed. “May I go ahead and look at your wound?”

  Steve was watching Jessica, but he nodded to Caroline. While she undid the bandage, he said to Jessica, “What are you not telling me?”

  Jessica’s head jerked up and she met Steve’s stare. “Uh, I didn’t— I mean, I don’t want you to worry.”

  Steve winced as Caroline touched his wound. But his words were directed toward Jessica. “Did they come?”

  “Who?”

  “Jess, you should tell him the truth,” Caroline said as she put on a new bandage and checked the drip.

  Steve stared at her, waiting for her to speak.

  “I—I think one of the men was at the door. Maybe he was trying to listen in, but you were asleep, and I wasn’t talking. I thought it was Mike and Caroline, but whoever it was didn’t say anything. Then I heard a loud whistle and steps running down the stairs. That’s when I came in here to look out the window. I saw two men running down the sidewalk and jumping in an SUV. Mike chased after them.”

  “What did they look like?” Steve demanded, his voice tight.

  “I only saw them from the back, Steve,” Jessica explained.

  “Close your eyes and watch them running away. Then tell me what you see.”

  Though she didn’t think that would help, Jessica couldn’t resist Steve’s compelling stare. Cl
osing her eyes, she tried to picture the two men running away. Surprisingly a mental picture formed. With her eyes still closed, she said, “One was taller than the other—and leaner. They were both white and dressed in jeans.”

  “Marcus and Baldwin,” Steve muttered. Then he struggled to sit up. “I’ve got to get out of here!”

  “Whoa!” Caroline exclaimed and gently pushed Steve back to the pillow. “Where do you think you’re going?”

  “If I don’t get out of here, I’m going to get Jessica killed,” he told Caroline. Since she was block ing his way, he tried to roll to the other side of the bed.

  Jessica watched him, saying nothing. She figured he’d realize his problem sooner or later.

  “Hey! Where are my clothes?” he demanded, proving her right.

  “Not here,” she said cheerfully. “Guess you’ll have to stay a while.”

  “Jess, I’m not kidding. They’ll be back, and I don’t think I can protect you!”

  “Wait until Mike gets here,” Caroline urged. “He’ll protect you both.”

  Steve ignored her. “Jess, I need my clothes!”

  Jessica shook her head. “It’s cold out there. Even if you had your clothes, it wouldn’t be enough. Besides, you’re wounded.”

  “I know I am, but—”

  All three of them froze as they heard more footsteps. Then Caroline said, “I’m sure that’s Mike.”

  “Stay in here with Steve,” Jessica ordered. Then she left the room to go to the front door. “Who is it?”

  “It’s Mike.”

  She recognized his voice and opened the door. “Did they get away?”

  He looked disgusted. “Yeah. Are you and Steve okay?”

  “We’re both fine. Come on in.” She led the way to the bedroom.

  Mike hugged his wife, then turned to Steve.

  “You had two visitors tonight. I didn’t catch them, but I suspect they were—”

  Steve interrupted him. “My partners, Marcus and Baldwin! Jessica saw them and described them.”

  Mike looked at Jessica. “You saw them?”

  “Just from the back. I ran in here and looked out that window and saw them running away.” Jessica looked at Steve. “He said their names. I guess he recognized them by my description.”

  “So these men were your partners in L.A.?” Mike asked Steve.