by Rebecca Deel
“Brockman’s Ridge. Nick’s got a 15 minute head start on us.”
Josh’s face hardened. “I’m coming with you.”
“Not a good idea, Josh.”
He shrugged. “I’ll go on my own.”
Ethan’s lips twitched. Serena had told him the same thing in recent months. Must be a stubborn gene in the Cahills. “Get in. You stay at the perimeter unless I tell you otherwise.” He didn’t miss Josh’s silence.
“Time to go.” In Ava’s hand, the knife’s steel blade glittered in the sunlight streaming through the cabin window. She sliced the duct tape around Madison’s ankles, hustled her outside to the car, and shoved her onto the floorboard. “Don’t move.”
Like that was going to happen wedged between the seats. Madison wiggled onto her side. She needed something to loosen the tape from her wrists. She felt along as much floorboard as she could reach and came up with nothing but grit and a stick of gum. She frowned. Who keeps a car this clean?
“I told you to lie still.”
“It’s a tight squeeze back here,” she said and inched across the floorboard, grasping for anything useful. Nothing.
“I could stuff you in the trunk.”
She slumped against the door and sighed, defeated by a clean car. The ride to Brockman’s Ridge seemed to take forever. By the time Ava skidded to a stop and yanked her out of the car, Madison’s hip was stiff. She struggled up the steep dirt path, balance hampered by her bound hands. After she slipped for the third time, Ava cursed, grabbed her arm and hauled her up the slope.
When they reached the top of the ridge, Ava spun her around. “Sit.”
“Ava, don’t do this. Just leave me and run.”
She shoved Madison to the ground. “He has to pay.”
Madison used her elbow for leverage, shifted herself into a sitting position. “For what? Doing his job? He arrested your father for a murder he admitted committing. Did you know Nick testified at his sentencing? He encouraged the judge to consider the circumstances. It’s not Nick’s fault your family fell apart.”
“He testified at Daddy’s sentencing?” Ava’s voice resonated with disbelief.
“He tried to help your father. It’s time to stop this madness. Haven’t you hurt Nick enough?”
Her expression hardened. “It’ll be enough when he’s dead.”
Goosebumps rose on her skin. She didn’t hear any hesitation or uncertainty in Ava’s voice. What chance did either of them have against that kind of drive for vengeance? She tilted her chin and glared at the other woman. “And what about me? Do I have to die, too?”
“I never meant to hurt you.” Regret shadowed Ava’s eyes. “I didn’t know you were in the car that night.”
Stunned, Madison rested her forehead against her knees. She shuddered. “You ran our car off the road? It wasn’t Bates?” She struggled to process what she’d heard. “You were behind the fire, the roses, everything?”
“Scott tracked me down after the accident, tried to convince me to turn myself in to the cops.” Ava shrugged. “I refused. He owed my father a debt, so he strung your boyfriend along.”
“Scott helped you?”
“Didn’t need help, but he provided good camouflage until he went soft on me. Santana wouldn’t stop digging. When he got too close to the truth, Scott panicked and turned into a liability.”
“So you killed him. Why didn’t you kill Nick that day, too?”
“Jogger.” She sneered. “You think your boyfriend’s so innocent. Didn’t take him long after your husband’s death to make moves on you, did it?”
Madison went cold inside. She shivered, stared at her captor’s smirking face. “What are you talking about?”
“You can’t be that naïve. Didn’t you ever wonder why Santana never dated women more than a few times all those years he and your husband were partners?”
Madison kept her expression blank. She’d wondered more than once why women passed through Nick’s life like the floats in Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade.
Ava tilted her head, laughing. “Pity you won’t have more time with him. He’s wanted you for years.”
Madison turned her face away. Was she speaking the truth? Is that what Nick meant when he said he’d loved her for a long time?
Ava looked toward the path. After a moment, she said, “I think your boyfriend’s arrived.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Nick parked beside Ava’s car. He grabbed the brown envelope and started to shove it under his seat when his gaze fell on the small jeweler’s box. He debated with himself for a minute, then slipped the box into the envelope and slid the package under the seat. If things went south, Ethan would know what to do with the ring.
He flipped open his phone. “Ethan, I’m at the base of the trail.”
“We’re five minutes behind you.”
“Understood.” Nick ended the call, slid his .38 into his ankle holster and got out of the car. He scanned the area. No sign of Madison or Ava. He walked up the steep trail, melding with the trees’ shadows. Ava knew he was coming. Sounds carried a long distance out here, but no point in making himself a target sooner than necessary. Cresting the top of the ridge, he jerked to a stop. Across the clearing, Ava stood with her back to a large rock formation, a gun pointed at Madison’s head.
“Turn around. Let’s see if you’re carrying.” Ava’s frosty tone and clipped words betrayed no hint of nervousness.
He expected no less from the woman who’d plotted and carried out a two-year plan of revenge. Nick raised his hands to his chest, turned. When he faced the women again, he focused on Madison. “You okay, baby?”
Madison nodded, her face colorless, a dazed look in her eyes.
“What now?” he asked Ava.
“We take a walk.” She nodded her head to the right without taking her gaze off Nick or the gun from Madison’s head.
“Let her go, Ava. It’s me you want. I’ll go wherever you say.” Nick took two steps toward her.
“Back up.” She pointed the gun’s barrel at his chest.
Nick stopped. He pitched his voice low. “You know Madison’s going to be a liability. Look at her. She’s ready to drop.” From the way she trembled, he figured Madison’s control verged on shattering.
“You must think I’m an idiot. As long as I have her, you’ll cooperate. She’s your liability, detective.” Her voice hardened. “Back up or she dies.”
His jaw clenched, Nick retreated a step. He thought of and discarded several plans. None of them were viable unless he got Madison farther away from Ava. “At least free her hands so she has better balance.”
Ava reached behind her and pulled out a knife.
Nick stilled, afraid to breathe. At this distance, he couldn’t stop her from plunging the knife into Madison’s back. Ava stood only a few inches behind her. When Ava eased toward her, he shifted his weight to the balls of his feet.
“You twitch and she’s dead. You know I won’t miss at this range.”
He narrowed his eyes, watched every move. Ava sliced through the tape binding Madison and slid the knife back into its sheath.
Madison bit her lip as her hands dropped to her sides.
“Get moving.”
Nick moved a couple of steps to his left, toward the trail and Madison. With a quick indrawn breath, she faltered and hit the ground. He closed the gap between them in two strides and knelt beside her. “Your hip?” She nodded, her lips pressed into a straight line.
When he pressed a hand to her cheek, she covered his with her left hand. His eyes widened. Where was her wedding ring? His gaze flew back to her face. Her mouth curved into a faint smile. “Madison?” he whispered, afraid to believe.
“What’s wrong with her?” Ava said.
Nick dragged his gaze away and swiveled on his knee. “Her hip’s giving out, a leftover weakness from the car accident.”
An indecipherable ripple flashed across Ava’s face. “Just get her moving.”
&nbs
p; Puzzled by Ava’s reaction, Nick lifted Madison to her feet. She leaned on him for a few seconds before putting weight on her leg. He encircled her waist with his arm for support, and let her set the pace up the trail.
Madison pressed close to his side. “Ava didn’t know I was in the car,” she whispered.
Nick tightened his grip, acknowledging the comment. His mind raced. So Ava thought Luke was alone when she ran the car off the road. That might be his ace in the hole. He scanned the woods while they walked the ridge’s edge. Ethan ought to be on their heels, but he didn’t have much time. The ridge trail ended a few steps ahead at the edge of a cliff.
“That’s far enough.”
Nick turned and shifted, positioning his body between Madison and the weapon. Her hand pressed against his back. Warmth unfurled in his chest at her gesture of support.
“End of the trail for you, Santana.” Ava smirked at her pun and raised her pistol.
Ethan slipped from the shadows of the grove of trees surrounding the clearing. He gave the all clear hand signal, waited for the four men to emerge, then bent to examine the scuff marks and tracks in the dirt. Nodding at the indentations in the dirt, he said, “Three sets of footprints, one limping. Looks like somebody fell right here.”
“Maddie.” Josh’s voice was grim.
Rod scanned the area. “Ava’s taking them to the cliff.”
“We can’t wait for the sheriff. Let’s move.”
“Ava, let Madison go. I’m the one you want. You don’t need her.”
Over the muffled roar of her heart pounding in her ears, Madison strained to hear Ava’s response. She mined the depths of her brain, clambering for a solution, and came up empty. They stood on the edge of the cliff; one misstep meant crashing into the black void at their feet.
“It’s too late for that,” Ava said.
Madison pushed against Nick’s restraining hand enough to peer around him. The invisible band around her chest tightened at the obsession burning in Ava’s eyes. Nothing would satisfy her quest for vengeance except Nick’s death.
She glanced behind her. No trees, no rocks to hide behind, only two steps from emptiness. Madison eased closer to the drop-off, searching for a cave, an overhang, anything offering protection. She stiffened. A ledge. Was it wide enough to stand on? She turned and reached for Nick. Loose rocks shifted under her feet.
At her terrified scream, Nick twisted, grabbed for Madison’s hand and caught air. He threw himself to the ground and peered over the edge. “Madison!” She lay unmoving on a narrow ledge, maybe eight feet from the cliff edge.
Nick swung his legs over the side and slid his body over the edge.
He skidded down the steep incline at a dizzying pace, scrabbling for shrubs and small trees within reach. He dug his heels into the loose dirt and rocks to slow his descent. Nick slid to a stop on the narrow shelf and crawled to Madison’s side. He reached out and stroked her hair. “Madison?”
She made a noise somewhere between a moan and a laugh. “First step’s a doozy.”
The corners of his lips twitched. “Anything hurt, baby?”
“Wrong question.” She opened her eyes, her mouth curved. “Should’ve asked what doesn’t hurt.”
Nick heard a noise to his right. A chunk of the ledge crumbled, then another. “Can you climb back up, Madison?” His gaze remained fixed on the narrowing strip of ground.
“I think so.” She sat up, flexed her arms and hands. “What’s wrong?”
More dirt fell away. “The ledge is falling apart.”
She grabbed his arm. “What about Ava?”
“Getting you back to stable ground is more important right now.” He clamped an arm around her waist and helped Madison to her feet. With Ava nowhere in sight, he scanned the rocky mountainside for the easiest climb, slid his .38 from the ankle holster and tucked it in the back pocket of Madison’s jeans.
“Nick?”
The fear in her voice tore at his heart. “I love you, Madison.” He squatted behind her, grabbed her around the thighs, and lifted, his teeth clenched against the clawing pain in his back muscles. She grabbed a jutting boulder now within reach and scrambled for a secure foothold. She pulled herself to safety, turned and reached for Nick’s hand. Beneath his feet, the ledge collapsed.
“Nick!” Madison’s scream pierced the night air. She craned her neck, straining to see where he’d fallen. She couldn’t find him in all the tumbling rocks and dirt. A sob escaped. Hysteria threatened to steal breath from her, paralyze her. Madison bit her lip, hard. No time to fall apart.
She eased her foot to a higher perch, stretched to get a handhold and pulled, repeating the process until a hand grabbed her forearm and yanked her to flat ground. She fell to her knees, her breathing ragged.
“Where is he?” Ava said.
“He fell. I’m going to get help,” Madison said, her voice flat, determined.
Ava peered over the edge. “Go ahead.”
Stunned, Madison watched as her captor moved to the left and slid one foot over the side. “What are you doing?” Ava’s chuckle raised the hair on Madison’s neck.
“Making sure he’s dead.”
A cold fury swamped Madison. If Nick survived that fall, she couldn’t let Ava near him. She reached into her pocket, pulled out Nick’s gun and aimed it at Ava. “I can’t let you do that.”
Her eyebrows shot up. “Do you even know how to handle a gun?”
Madison moved into the stance Nick taught her. A vision of Mandy’s blood-stained body flashed in her mind. She licked dry lips, thrust aside the painful memory.
Ava sneered. “You won’t shoot; you don’t have the stomach for it.” She brought her foot back to level ground and raised her weapon.
“Ava, this is Ethan Blackhawk from the Otter Creek police.” Positioned behind an outcropping of boulders, he raised his weapon and waited.
Ava stiffened. “Wondered how long it would take you to show up.” She looked toward the rocks, searching for his location.
“Put down your weapon, Ava.” Ethan kept his voice calm.
“No way,” she said, her gun still trained on Madison.
“It doesn’t have to end this way. You’ve been careful not to hurt Madison so far. That will weigh in your favor when all this is over.”
Ava’s short laughter rang with bitterness. “Not hurt Madison? She wasn’t supposed to be in the car that night. I heard her tell a friend she was staying home from church.” Her voice rose. “Only the cop was supposed to be in the car.”
“You didn’t mean to hurt Madison or the baby, did you?”
Madison stiffened. The gun clasped between her hands trembled.
Ava shook her head, wiping a tear with her left hand. “Santana should suffer for what he did to my father. He killed Dad.”
“Tell me about your father, Ava.”
“He was funny, always telling jokes, making us laugh.” She frowned. “At least, until we moved to Knoxville. We moved around a lot until Dad left the Army, but he made each move an adventure. Mom hated him being gone all the time, so he quit.”
“Sounds like he really loved his family.”
Ava shot an uncertain glance his way, but nodded.
Ethan felt rather than heard movement to his right. He glared at Josh who now crouched behind a nearby boulder, and signaled him to hold position. He’d deal with his newest cop later. “What do you think your father would say to you right now?”
Ava winced, her gun dipping for a split second. “He’d be angry at me.”
“Why?”
She swiped at her cheek with a clenched fist. Her voice broke with emotion. “He’d say I’m ruining the Castigian name.”
“Ava, I talked to several people about your father. All of them said John Castigian was an honorable man. What do you think he’d want you to do?”
She sighed and slowly lowered the gun. “He’d want me to turn myself in and take whatever punishment I deserved.”
“A wise ch
oice. I’m sure your father would be proud of you. Put the gun on the ground and walk towards me, Ava. Keep your hands where I can see them.” When she’d taken several steps away from the weapon, Rod slipped from tree cover to handcuff her and confiscate her knife.
“Have Sanchez take her to the squad car and Mirandize her.” Ethan holstered his weapon and turned his attention to Madison, who still gripped the pistol with both hands. He took two steps toward her and held out his hand. “Madison, it’s all over. Give me the gun.”
She stood stock still, like she hadn’t heard him. He didn’t want to startle her, afraid she might shoot him or someone else by accident. Ethan eased forward another few steps.
“Let me.” Josh brushed past him. “Hey, sunshine. It’s me.”
Madison blinked and swiveled to look at her brother, her arms trembling. “Josh?”
“That’s right.” He held out his hand. “Give me the gun.”
She gave him a blank stare, then dropped her gaze to the weapon. When Madison looked back at her brother, her eyes filled with tears. “Ava was going to shoot him.”
“Where’s Nick?”
The tears spilled over, flowed down her cheeks. “He fell.”
Ethan’s stomach lurched. He slipped his hand up to the radio clipped to his shoulder. “This is Blackhawk. Get those EMTs up the trail at Brockman’s Ridge.”
Josh stepped beside Madison. “Show me where he fell, sis.” He loosened her grip on the gun and handed the weapon to Ethan. “Maybe I can help him.”
From the murky depths, Nick heard something, a sound. Rocks. Dirt rolling down the hillside. He drew in a deep breath, then wished he hadn’t. Sharp pain dug into his side, across his back. He needed to open his eyes, but his eyelids weighed too much. Nick fought back the darkness and focused all his energy on raising one eyelid.
His heart leaped in his chest. No light, just inky depths. Had the fall blinded him? He closed his eye and forced down panic. Get a grip, Santana. Assess the situation. He steeled himself and forced his eye open again. Grass. Relief slammed into him. Great. Not blind, but lying with half his face pressed into the dirt and grass.
