Julie froze. That wasn’t Ron’s sarcastic, and at this moment, infinitely endearing, voice. It was…
She swung around and her hands covered her mouth to hold back the involuntary scream. Rudy stood over Ron’s body, a hunting knife covered in fresh blood held loosely at his side.
“Hello, Julie.” His lips twisted in his familiar half-smile, the one she’d thought so cute. The one that made her envy Sam.
Oh my God, Sam.
Her gaze jumped from Ron to the surrounding forest, then back to Rudy. She was vibrating so hard her knees threatened to dump her in the dirt, but if that happened, she’d die. She could see it in his eyes. Why had she never noticed how close together they were? How terrifying?
“Di… Did you kill him?” Her voice wavered. I’m so sorry, Ron. This was her fault. Rudy had come for her, and Ron had possibly paid the ultimate price. His life.
Rudy nudged the body with the hiking boots she’d always teased him and Sam for wearing. “Nah, I don’t think so, but he will die if he doesn’t get help soon.” His smile was pure evil. “Too bad that’s not going to happen.”
What was she going to do? The keys were in the truck—as long as Rudy hadn’t removed them—but he was between her and the vehicle. Speaking of which, how did he get up here without their knowledge?
“Where’s Sam? How did you get up here?” She had to keep him talking, it was her only chance. She didn’t even have her phone because Ron had left her purse on the damn floor of his damn truck in the damn forest where there wouldn’t be any damn cell coverage anyway.
Calm down.
Freaking out would only get her killed faster. And wasn’t that an encouraging thought?
“Where’s Sam, Rudy? Is she part of this sick little game?”
He shook his head and took a couple steps closer, the knife glinting even as the clouds began to weep, the drops hitting the leaves overhead and creating a fine mist that soaked them in seconds.
“Nah, she’s not like them.” He waved the blade toward the crumpled earth behind her. “They deserved what they got. Flaunting their bodies, thinking they’re better than everyone else. Perfect.” He spat the last word out, his gaze venomous. “They weren’t so damn perfect when I finished with them.”
Ron moaned and thrashed on the ground. Rudy glanced down, and Julie took her chance and ran, praying she could draw him from the wounded reporter and get away herself. The sobs made it hard to breathe past the fear clawing her stomach and turning limbs leaden. Branches slapped her in the face and yanked her hair, but nothing could slow her headlong flight. She heard Rudy yell and it spurred her on faster. Go. Go.
Her instinct was to race for the logging road, but then she’d be in the open, easy prey, so she delved deep into the forest, climbing, climbing, higher and higher. A quick glance over her shoulder showed she’d made the right decision. Though he favored those godforsaken hiking boots and all she wore were a pair of flimsy sandals, he was falling behind.
This was a nightmare.
They’d been friends.
God, he and Sam had even cared for Dustin and Freddy when she had to work late. She shuddered. Did Sam know? No, she wouldn’t believe that. She couldn’t.
Tears blinded her to a felled tree and she tripped over it, landing with a soft oomph in the damp moss on the other side. Julie lay there for a moment, stunned, before scrambling to her knees. She peered through disheveled strands of hair and moving shadows caused by the swaying trees and dark rain clouds. She couldn’t see him anymore, but his presence pervaded the forest, a dark force weighing her down with dread and fear.
She was going to die out here, all alone. Who would tell her boys? They’d be orphans.
God, please don’t do this to them. To me.
Leaves rustled behind her and she flipped to her back, hands raised to protect herself. A scream strangled her throat until she saw black dots before her eyes.
And an angel.
There was a freaking angel with huge gray wings floating above her prone body. Julie clutched her breast and fainted dead away.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Lucas stared down at the woman at his feet and thanked the Lord he’d made it in time. He couldn’t stand the thought of hurting this family again, especially her. He wondered if she remembered him at all. Oh, not as the grisly old taxi driver, but as the man who had taken away her husband and child. The man she’d gazed at with recrimination and horror as their vehicles raced toward a fatal collision there was no way to avoid.
Yeah, that guy.
She’d fainted just now when she’d seen him; a reaction he’d been used to achieving with his adoring fans… not so much since he became an angel.
He needed her to wake up, they didn’t have a lot of time before her enemy arrived. The Lord had granted him and Mike a vision before they left Transition House. The other angel had been understandably shaken; his wife was in mortal danger. They’d split up upon reaching earth in the hope of finding her before it was too late. God was probably laughing at fate right now. Lucas owed this family, and now it was time to pay.
He sank to earth and knelt beside her, saddened by the ravages her husband’s death had placed upon her body. A shock of silver ran through her hair and deep lines carved the edges of her mouth into a perpetual grimace. Her body was more thin than lean, as though she ate only for nutrition, not enjoyment. He held her hand, the wedding ring loose on her finger, and rubbed warmth into rapidly cooling skin.
“Wake up, Mrs. Crenshaw.” He waited a moment and when she didn’t move, he tapped her cheek. “Julie, you need to wake up now. I need your help.”
She moaned, just the softest little puff of air, then opened her eyes. When she saw him, they grew so big they encompassed her face. Her body went stiff just before she scrambled backward on her elbows, coming up hard against a fallen tree covered in moss the same soft green as her eyes.
“Who are you? What do you want?” Her gaze went to his now folded wings. “I’m dreaming, aren’t I? You’re a figment of my imagination.”
She waved a trembling hand back and forth in front of her body. “All of this is. I’m going to wake up in my bed, in my freaking house, and this will all go away. Right? Right?”
Panic made her voice waver and Lucas wished like hell he could agree and take away her fear, but he couldn’t. All he could do was save her life, and that was a vow he planned on keeping.
“Shh, you need to keep your voice down. There’s a very bad man chasing you. Do you remember that?” He didn’t mean to scare her, but they had to play this smart. He was still learning his capabilities. Now was not the time to find out his shortcomings.
She glanced over her shoulder—probably searching for said bad guy—then stared at him until he became uncomfortable.
“What? You can ask me anything,” he said, hoping she wouldn’t.
“Are you here because I’m going to die?”
“What? No,” he exclaimed. “Nothing like that.”
He stood and paced a couple of feet away, agitated by her matter-of-fact attitude to her possible demise. “Think of me as your guardian angel. I’m here to keep you safe. Your children need their mother, so don’t you give up, okay?” Shit, did she want to die?
Where the hell was Mike? He’d know the right words, the ones she needed to hear.
“You have to be strong. Can you do that for me?”
She hesitantly nodded, and wiped the tears from her cheeks leaving smudges with fingers stained from the tumble she’d taken.
Relieved, Lucas held out his hand to help her up. She accepted, but pulled away as soon as she could, stumbling on the rough terrain. He glanced down and shook his head; who goes into the woods wearing sandals?
A crash from off to their left warned Lucas his time was running out. Julie looked ready to faint or flee—he wasn’t sure which—and he needed her to know something before she did either, so he grasped her arm and ignored her outraged gasp.
“Listen. I w
ant you to run downhill as quick as you can. Try to make it to the truck and get away.” Her eyes were glazed with terror and he gave her a little shake. “Mrs. Crenshaw, do you hear me?” He turned her in the right direction and pushed. “Go. I don’t know how much…”
She didn’t wait to hear his warning, instead lighting out of there as though the hounds of hell were after her. And indeed, they were.
Julie flew down the hill, her feet barely touching the ground. Now that she had a goal, the shock subsided so that she could think. Not that she wanted to. It seemed incomprehensible that she could be fleeing a serial killer who just happened to be her best friend’s husband. Seriously, horror movie you-just-can’t-make-this-shit-up crazy.
And what about the angel?
No one was going to believe that one. She snorted. If she didn’t make it, it wouldn’t matter, there’d be no one left to tell the story. Well, except Rudy, but she didn’t think he was talking.
How could she joke at a time like this? It was either that or lose her freaking mind, that’s how. She glanced over her shoulder, but it was just a blur. In a far-off corner of her mind she understood that her body was in shock, everything she’d seen today playing out in a non-stop reel that kept adrenaline pumping through her veins. It was probably keeping her alive right now, giving super-human bursts of speed to legs that normally enjoyed a leisurely walk a heck of a lot more than an Olympic-type sprint through a heavily wooded forest.
More than once, she tripped and had to grab onto whatever was nearby to avoid kissing the ground again. Her knees still throbbed from the last fall. Though that was nothing compared to poor Ron. Was he still alive? There’d been so much blood. It churned her stomach, making it hard to see anything besides that dripping knife and Rudy’s mocking smile.
Every little sound was magnified a thousand-fold. After the first couple of times, when Julie realized she was startling birds and rodents out of their homes, she bit her lip to avoid crying out and giving away her location. Then again, with the amount of racket she was creating maybe he’d think a bear was wandering the area. God, she hoped not. She couldn’t handle any more predators at the moment, thank you very much.
Something about the angel seemed familiar, but she couldn’t place him. And here she was, running full tilt down the side of a mountain with a madman on her trail wondering where she’d seen a spirit before, like that wasn’t crazy—much.
The truck came into view and her heart sped up. Now that she was within reach of safety the danger seemed magnified. Her hands turned clammy. She couldn’t hear for the buzzing in her ears, and her knees wobbled.
C’mon, Crenshaw, keep it together. Just a little further, you can do this. You have to do this.
Julie slowed and edged to the side of the trail, her eyes peeled for anything that moved. She had a good-sized stick she’d grabbed on the way down, but it wouldn’t be much of a deterrent against a butcher knife.
Ron lay where he’d fallen, in a little clearing about ten feet from the passenger side of the truck. He wasn’t moving.
She muffled a cry with her fist. They hadn’t gotten along very well, but she hated the thought of him dying on the ground like that. Maybe she could get him to the truck? The distance stretched to football field proportions, but she had no choice. She wasn’t leaving without him.
Her body hunched to create as small a target as possible, Julie duck-walked her way to Ron’s side. She huddled against his back and searched the forest, her breath streaming in and out like a locomotive. When nothing stirred in the vicinity, she took a chance and concentrated her attention on Henderson. He lay on his side, his hands curled around his stomach as though to protect vital organs. The nice white dress shirt he’d worn this morning was now brick-red. He’d lost a lot of blood.
She placed two fingers against his throat and held her breath. There. Thready, but proof that he was alive. Now to get him to wake up so he could help her because there was no way she could lift him into the truck even if she could somehow drag him that far. All without being heard by a psychotic killer.
If only she could call Connor.
Her gaze went to the truck. Was it worth the chance? Only one way to find out.
“Hold on, Ron,” she whispered. “Help is on the way.”
God, she hoped she was right.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Connor drove like an Indy champion, his guts twisted into a tight ball of foreboding. What if he was too late? No, he refused to believe that monster had gotten hold of Julie. It was mindboggling the son-of-a-bitch had been under their noses the entire time and they hadn’t known it.
Rudy Franklin Ford.
When Matt said he’d gone back to the tattoo parlor on his own, Connor was pissed. Anything could have happened. The perp might even have shown up to finish the job. They were a team, dammit, he should have called it in. On the other hand, his quick thinking might have saved Julie’s life.
They’d met up with Maddie in the empty Crenshaw home and Matt explained how Marko had been persuaded to describe his client if he wanted to remain open without the Health and Safety Board down his neck. As soon as Matt figured out who he was talking about, he’d raced to Julie’s house, aware that she was friends with the Fords. His intention was to sit in surveillance on the hunch that Rudy would show up, then call for back-up.
Unfortunately, Rudy got the drop on him when he nodded off, still suffering the after-effects of his concussion. He’d held a gun and forced Matt into the trunk, then knocked him over the head. When Matt came to, he’d been trussed up like a fricken turkey.
Maddie had tsk-tsked, checking him out over Matt’s arguments, while Connor searched for clues, his heart in his throat. Some files on the coffee table pointed to the story she’d been working on—The ABC Killer.
Dammit, what was she doing?
Then he saw the report she’d prepared with the Mayor of Sooke, and he knew. She took great satisfaction in her job, thoroughness was essential.
She’d gone to the last crime scene.
Frustration warred with pride. She was a stubborn, aggravating, thoroughly intoxicating woman. And he wanted her and the boys in his life. Needed her to trust him enough to give him a chance.
Why hadn’t she let him know what she was doing?
He could have gone with her; made sure she was safe. He pressed down on the gas pedal and glanced at the grimly silent man in the passenger seat. “Don’t beat yourself up, you did what you thought was best.”
Matt shook his head and stared out the window.
Maddie leaned forward from her position in the back and squeezed Connor’s shoulder. “It’ll be okay. We’ll find her.”
He met her worried gaze in the rearview mirror and knew she was thinking the same as him—if the killer didn’t get there first.
Finally, they arrived at the forestry road. The rain had dampened the dust, but it had also turned the road to snot, making it all but impossible to navigate. When they almost kissed a tree for the third time, Connor slammed the car in park and smacked the steering wheel. “I can’t get any closer, we’re going to have to hike the rest of the way.”
Maddie opened her door. “How much further?”
Connor climbed out and waited for Matt to join them at the trunk. “Suit up. It’s about five miles up the mountain, but we don’t know what to expect so we better go in prepared for trouble.”
They pulled on flak jackets, and Matt grabbed a Smith and Wesson while Connor switched his Sig for the Winchester.
When they were ready, Connor closed the lid, careful to keep the noise down and nodded to the trail winding through the trees. “We should split up; we’ll cover more ground. I’ll take the trail, you guys go by the road, but for God’s sake, be careful. We don’t know if Ford is here or not, or what he has for weaponry.”
Matt held out his hand. “See you on the other side.”
The rain had eased to a drizzle, but now it started to come down again as though someone above
had turned the tap on full-blast. Big fat plops drenched their shoulders and faces and created an impenetrable mist, adding to the shit-factor by oh-a-thousand-or so craptastics. This day was just getting better and better.
Connor shook his friend’s hand, then nodded to Maddie. “Keep him in line and watch your back.”
She smiled, though her eyes remained serious. “Will do, sir. Be careful out there.”
The danger was all too real. There was a possibility one of them could be hurt, maybe even seriously. They were trained for these kinds of scenarios, knew what to do, how to react, but, given Murphy’s Law, Connor wasn’t surprised she was worried.
A faint cry punctuated the fog. Connor’s heart stopped.
Julie.
He shared a last grim glance with Matt and Maddie, then turned and trotted into the woods, praying like he’d never prayed before.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Julie’s heart pounded against the wall of her chest, harder than the rain that had begun to fall in buckets, soaking her to the skin and making visibility next to nothing. She glanced at Ron again, grateful he was lying on his side. At least he wouldn’t drown. Not that it would matter for much longer if she didn’t get him some help.
She nudged him, hoping against hope he’d wake up, jump to his feet, and take over getting them out of here in his usual bossy, sarcastic way, but it was no go. He didn’t even flinch. She was on her own.
C’mon, Jules, you can do this.
Mike. She closed her eyes and lifted her face to the rain, heedless of the icy pellets striking her skin. His spirit infused her body, pushing away the cold and the fear.
He was here. She could feel his presence, a warm blanket wrapping her in a cocoon of safety and love. He’d come to her on a couple of other occasions. Times when she wanted to give up, her will to live gone. He’d held her then too, and soothed the ache. Healed her pain by letting her know she wasn’t alone. And it helped. She missed him and baby Ava more than she could say, but at least they weren’t gone forever. His spirit lived on, and maybe one day, they’d all be together again.
The Beast Within: Mended Souls #2 Page 14
