The Unrelenting Tide (Islands of Intrigue: San Juans - Christian Romantic Suspense)

by Bonner, Lynnette

  “Mommy?!” Tears magnified Marissa’s eyes and she squirmed for freedom. “I want down! I want my mommy!”

  “It’s going to be okay! Just hold still, baby!”

  Donny’s cold gaze swung her way. “Put the gun down, Shania!”

  Marissa was screaming in terror now.

  Devynne complied, lifting her hands in a soothing gesture. “Alright. I’m putting it down.” She bent and tossed the weapon onto the deck between them. “See. Everything’s fine now. Just let her go! Please!”

  Using his foot, Donny scooted her .38 behind himself.

  Carcen took another step toward him. “Donny just let the little girl go.”

  “You stay back!” He shook Marissa so hard her head whip-lashed back and forth. “Shut up! Quit your screaming!”

  Marissa only screamed all the harder and kicked her feet as a real tantrum of terror set in. The heel of one foot connected solidly with Donny’s groin.

  Donny swore and bent forward slightly, the gun jerking away from Marissa for a moment.

  Seizing on the moment Carcen dove at the monster from where he stood.

  “I said stay back!” He extended the gun toward Carcen and pulled the trigger.

  Carcen’s body seemed to hover mid-air for a moment, and then he crashed onto the deck.

  “No!” Not again. Devynne dropped to her knees by his side trying to see where he’d been hit. She couldn’t see any abrasion. Maybe… and that’s when she saw the puddle of blood seeping out from under his head.

  Marissa’s screaming stopped just as suddenly as it had begun and Devynne’s heart nearly seized in her chest. She tore her gaze from Carcen to see what had silenced her daughter. Marissa, little face ashen, slumped dead weight in Sanchez’s arms, her head lolling forward like a rag doll.

  Chapter 21

  Dear Jesus! A sob escaped. “Did you—?”

  Donny gave a perturbed grimace. “Get over here and get her.”

  Devynne scuttled toward him, arms stretched toward the child she’d failed to protect.

  Everything seemed to slow as she took Marissa’s limp little body from his arms. She sent a prayer heavenward. God, do you even care about me here? Living with all this pain, misery and loss? I swore I’d never let myself care for someone again and now… Her gaze skittered toward Carcen who still hadn’t moved. Another sob escaped even as she sank to her knees and jostled Marissa, trying to wake her. Every thought had to be pulled from a thick sludge that refused to let them go.

  Devynne patted Marissa’s cheek. “Marissa honey, come on p-please w-wake up for Mommy.” What had happened to her?

  No response.

  Had he snapped her neck?

  Donny strode to Carcen’s side and prodded him with the toe of his boot.

  No response.

  And then Marissa moaned.

  Oh! Thank you God! Devynne clasped the little girl to her chest and rocked her. She must have fainted. “Mommy’s here. Everything is going to be alright. I’ve got you.” She rested her chin on top of Marissa’s curls and that’s when she saw Donny point his gun down at Carcen’s prone form.

  “Don’t shoot!” Another sob escaped. “Please Donny, don’t shoot him. Let’s just leave him and go. You don’t want to shoot him, Donny.”

  Feral malevolence stretched his lips. “Oh, but I do. I really do. I’ve seen the way he looks at you, Shania. Kent used to look at you like that.”

  Everything in her vision melded into a blur. “Before you shot him?”

  He nodded. “I did you a favor. He wasn’t worthy of you.”

  “And my sister? Did you do me a favor by getting rid of her too?”

  He angled her a look. “She was holding you back. You weren’t going to take that part in Surf Justice and you deserved it.”

  She gave up trying to stop the tears. “The job required a lot of hours away. My sister needed me.”

  He shrugged. “And then she didn’t. I took care of you. And you took the job.”

  Her eyes felt gritty and painful when they dropped closed. She didn’t want to watch if he was going to shoot Carcen. “Well, you’ve already taken care of Carcen too. Shooting him again isn’t going to make him any more dead.”

  Silence stretched so long she pried her eyes open.

  He sniffed and squatted down onto his haunches looking over at her. “What do you say we get out of here? You and I, and the girl if you want… we can go back to California and you can go back to doing what you love, what you were born to do. And…” he shrugged. “I’ll do what I was born to do. Keep you safe.”

  A chill ran down her back. No way on earth was she going to let this maniac take care of her and Marissa. But she felt so helpless. Marissa seemed to be breathing easier now that she rested in her arms. But how was she going to get them out of this? How could she get away from him when every law enforcement officer on the island – everyone who could help her – had already been taken out by this madman?

  Despair settled over her. God, what am I going to do?

  Out in the darkness waves sloshed against the dock. And somewhere farther out a fish – probably a porpoise – swam by, because she heard it blow as it crested. Such a beautiful sound. A sound full of life, and expectation. So in contrast to her current situation.

  Here on land life bled out, dying, decaying all around her.

  Donny’s feral gaze raked her from head to toe in a sick way that made her stomach churn. She clutched Marissa a little closer. …and the girl if you want… He didn’t care one bit about Marissa.

  But her only solution was to go with the man and then escape him later when she could get them away. She started to stand and that’s when she saw Carcen’s foot move.

  He was alive!

  She nodded at Donny, suddenly desperate to get him away from here. “Fine, Donny. Let’s go back to California.” She reached her hand out to him, praying he wouldn’t look back because Carcen’s head rolled from one side to the other now. He was waking up. Maybe he could get himself to a hospital and get help. But if he had any hope of living she needed to get Donny away from him now!

  Donny had his full attention fixed on her when Carcen’s eyes fluttered open and he moaned.

  “What the—” Donny spun around, his gun coming up to bear.

  Carcen kicked out with all his might, his boot connecting with Donny’s wrist as it swung around. The gun tumbled across the deck and slid to a stop in front of Devynne.

  With a roar, Donny dove toward Carcen, who rolled and smashed an elbow into Donny’s side as the man crashed onto the deck beside him.

  “Marissa honey,” she stood the little girl on her feet and gave her an urgent shake, “Mommy needs you to run upstairs to your room and wait for me.”

  “Mommy, I’m scawed.”

  “I know. But you’ll be safe up there. I have to help Uncle Carcen! Now go!”

  With a guttural grunt Donny sprawled onto the deck.

  Devynne snatched up the gun as her mind registered Marissa scooting through the doorway into the house.

  She held the gun out toward the two men, but they were rolling and punching and thrashing so that she didn’t dare pull the trigger for fear of hitting Carcen.

  Carcen’s breaths came in wheezing gasps and every few seconds he scrunched his eyes shut and shook his head. Blood, slick and dark red, coated the side of his head

  Donny bellowed a curse as he landed another punch to Carcen’s ribs.

  She moved a couple steps closer, the barrel of the gun tracking with each movement Donny made.

  Carcen plunged his elbow into the inside of Donny’s thigh.

  Donny howled and thrashed out, shoving Carcen over onto his back.

  Bracing his shoulders against the deck, Carcen brought both feet up and planted them into Donny’s chest thrusting the man away from him with all his might. But the effort cost him and he was slow getting to his feet. With a grimace, he tucked one arm close to his torso.

  Devynne swung her aim on
to Donny who could now be taken out safely, but in her haste to pull the trigger her bullet only grazed his side.

  He bellowed a curse and kicked out, knocking her legs out from under her. She thudded to the deck and the impact knocked the gun loose. It clattered away into the darkness beyond the reach of the light.

  Then someone had her by her shoulders and hauled her up. The cold metal of a sharp blade pressed against her jugular.

  Sanchez. Despair washed over her. She raised her chin and looked into Carcen’s defeated gaze.

  “Don’t move another inch, Lang!”

  Carcen lifted his hands once more. And with the effort he staggered sideways a step, his breaths gurgling in his throat.

  “Now.” Donny gave her a shake. “You are going to come with me back where we belong.” His hot fetid breath puffed against her cheek and the side of her neck. And, as his hand slammed just below her nose to torque her head farther, another scent wafted to her. Chlorine. Her eyes dropped closed. Marissa had said he smelled funny. Donny had taken a turn at the dunking booth right after Carcen. They should have known it was him this whole time.

  He looked past her to Carcen. “Lang, one more move from you and I’ll slit her pretty neck.” Sanchez emphasized his words by using the knife’s edge to stroke the length of her throat.

  She swallowed, her nostrils flaring as she willed down the bile at the back of her throat.

  “I’m not moving.” Carcen’s feet didn’t budge, but he swayed slightly.

  “The only reason I haven’t shot you again, is because you’ve convinced Shania here that you are the good guy and she’s lost my gun somewhere around here.” He stroked her throat again. “Won’t take me long to help her see who the good guy really is. The one who really cares about her.”

  Despite his words Devynne felt the knife cutting into the skin under her chin.

  Carcen took a deliberate step to his left, forcing Donny to angle toward the house to keep him in sight, and jutted his chin toward the blade. “Last I checked, holding a knife to a woman’s throat wasn’t the best way to seduce her.”

  “Shut up!”

  Carcen tilted his head angling another step. “Give it up, Sanchez. Turn yourself in and I’ll make note of it in my report.”

  “Yeah, right.” Donny forced her body to turn some more to keep Carcen in sight.

  What was Carcen doing? He might get her killed taunting the beast like that.

  Suddenly she felt Donny jolt and his body arched backwards, the knife at her throat cut deeper as he fell away and she heard the report of a shot.

  In an instant Carcen leapt forward and grabbed her. “Get behind me.”

  But Donny’s eyes were staring sightlessly across the planking of the deck and a chunk was missing from one side of his head.

  Devynne wretched and twisted away. But just as quickly she jolted back to scan the brush. Someone had shot him. But who?

  Movement came then. Randy pulled himself up over the lip of the rock wall. Limping markedly, a black pistol clutched in one hand, he quirked an eyebrow at Carcen. “I can’t believe you thought I was a stalker.”

  Carcen’s lip ticked up on one side. “Only for a few hours. And it was your own fault.”

  “Marissa!” Devynne started to run into the house, but Carcen gripped her arm and motioned to her neck.

  “Let me see that cut. It’s bleeding pretty good. Marissa doesn’t need to see you like that. She’s been through enough for one night.”

  She felt the warm seep of blood soaking her collar then.

  Carcen touched her chin and tilted her toward the light. Then gave a grunt of satisfaction. “Doesn’t look like he hit anything vital. Just change your shirt and slap a gauze pad on before you go in to see her okay?” He let her go but a grimace of pain contorted his features.

  “You’re hit too.” She was torn. Who to help first?

  Randy lumbered up onto the deck. “I’ll see to him. Go to Marissa.”

  Chapter 22

  Sheer relief coursing through him at having the situation finally contained, Carcen stumbled a sideways step as Devynne disappeared into the house.

  Randy gave him an assessing look. “You don’t look so good, my friend.”

  “I don’t thin—” he staggered and his legs melted out from under him.

  “Whoa!” Randy took him by the arm and eased him to the deck. Carcen felt numbness begin to settle into his hands and feet and he blinked hard to bring the porch light back into focus. “Were you hit anywhere besides this gash to your head?”

  “I don’t— better call 9-1…”

  Randy hissed and tucked the phone he’d already dialed between his head and shoulder as he quickly patted down Carcen’s body to assess any other wounds. This was not good. Not good at all.

  “9-1-1, how may I help you?”

  “Uh, I have a gunshot wound. Not me. A cop. Sheriff Lang has been shot and I need someone here now! I don’t know if he’s going to make it.” Randy whipped his own t-shirt off over his head and pressed it against the seeping gash above Carcen’s left ear.

  “Okay, sir. Please stay calm. Are you safe?”

  Stay calm? He’d show her calm. “Yes, I’m safe. The shooter is dead.”

  “I have you calling from 1020 Sea Mist Drive. Is that correct?”

  “Yes.”

  “Can you tell me where he’s shot?”

  “Uh, I see a good size graze on his head. I don’t know if he’s been hit anywhere else. There’s a lot of blood.”

  “Okay, sir. I need you to put pressure where the blood is coming from.”

  “I’m already on it.” Lord, please… a little wisdom here. “I have pressure on it.” In the distance a siren sounded. “I can hear your guys coming now. The shooter said other cops were down. I don’t know if they are dead or not. He said they were.”

  “Okay, multiple units are on their way. Just keep pressure on till they get there. Where are you on the property, sir?”

  “Lowest level deck at the back on the ocean side of the house.”

  Devynne stepped out onto the deck then as he heard the dispatcher relay their whereabouts to the ambulance crew. Her eyes rounded and immediately filled with tears as she glanced from Carcen to him and back again. “No.”

  He swallowed hard having no assurances to offer. “Ambulance is on its way.”

  Chapter 23

  The next hours passed in a blur for Devynne. The ambulance had arrived and whisked Carcen to the hospital. But snatches of phrases whispered from one paramedic to another like, “blood pressure is in the tank,” and, “prep the MedEvac,” left her despairing of hope. The one pinprick of light in the cave of darkness was that the bullet hadn’t penetrated his skull, but had carved a path above his ear that caused massive bleeding and likely had left a severe fracture.

  Devynne had borrowed a paramedic’s phone and mechanically dialed Jackie and Lamar who were still in Leavenworth, and stumbled her way through the horrible conversation. Carcen would be life-flighted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. Devynne would get there as soon as she could. Jackie and Lamar were headed there now.

  Randy, who had a gunshot wound in his thigh and a nasty gash on his head from a rock he’d hit when he toppled, was also loaded in an ambulance and rushed away.

  Officer Boyd had been found badly beaten and left for dead behind the guest house, but it looked like he would make it. And Shannon, who Sanchez had knocked out from behind and then shot in the back, would have terrible bruising, but her flak jacket had taken the bullet. Whether Sanchez had hoped that his bullet in such close proximity would kill her or just put her out of commission they’d probably never know. Shannon had driven Boyd to Friday Harbor’s Peace Health Medical Center herself after reporting that the screaming which had been coming from Honey’s, was a recording pumped through speakers wired to her back deck and turned on with a remote trigger.

  Sullivan and Sanchez had been loaded into body bags and taken away by the coroner, but
only after hours of photographs and videos were taken of the yard, her house, and guest house.

  Now as the doors slid open on the 14th floor of Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, Devynne stepped out. The nurse’s station was just to her left, but she couldn’t seem to put one foot in front of the other. What was she going to do if he hadn’t made it? Terror bowled over her and her hands shook so hard she set Marissa down beside her.

  “Is this whewe Uncle Cawce is?” Marissa clutched her pink silk blanket, glancing around wide-eyed.

  Devynne pressed her lips together. She needed to get a grip and be strong for her daughter. “I think so, honey. Let’s go see if we can find him. What do you say?”

  Marissa’s only response was to slip her little hand into hers.

  A nurse, dark skin gleaming under hair braided into corn-rows, looked up as they approached. “How can I help you?”

  “We’re, uh… Is Carcen Lang on this floor? He was life-flighted from San Juan Island this morning?”

  The nurse’s face blossomed into a white-toothed smile. “Oh good. You’re here. You are Devynne and Marissa, right?”

  The first hint of relief beginning to bloom, Devynne nodded.

  The nurse gave a follow me gesture and started down the hall. “Maybe now that man will rest. He’s been askin’ for you non-stop. Tried to call you I don’t know how many times. Doctor’s been tryin’ to get him to sleep but he’s refused all pain medication until you got here.” She shook her head with a tsking sound, then stopped and pushed into a room through a heavy door. Inside, a curtain was pulled over the entry for further privacy. The nurse unceremoniously scooped it to one side. “Sheriff Lang, your gal is here. Now maybe you’ll let me give you that morphine?”

  “Gwandpa!” Marissa dashed across the room to Lamar seated in a chair.

  “Come here, Sweet Pea.” Lamar pulled Marissa onto his lap and she promptly snuggled into a little ball against his chest as he settled her blanket over her and wrapped his burly arms around her.

  Jackie stood by the head of the bed helping Carcen sip some water. But Devynne only had eyes for him. Pale and with a thick white bandage plastered to the left side of his head – but alive and his face softening into a relieved smile as he locked eyes on her.