The Texas Lawman's Last Stand

by Delores Fossen

  And his gun.

  “He’s going to shoot again,” she tried to warn Bo. But it was too late.

  The gunman fired. The bullet slammed through the car and right into the seat, less than an inch from her arm. The next one went into her headrest.

  Well, it was clear which one of them the gunman wanted dead. This attack was for her, but the gunman probably didn’t care if he killed Bo in the process.

  Bo cursed and hit the accelerator again, ramming into the other car. It worked. The jolt sent the car forward and finally gave Bo the opening he needed. He jerked the steering wheel to the left. With the tires squealing and the bullets continuing to blast through their car, Bo got them away from there.

  “O’Malley’s on the way,” Mattie relayed to him. She tried to brace herself for more of the shots, for the deafening deadly blasts.

  But they stopped.

  Bo grabbed his phone and made another call. Unlike her, he was able to give a more specific address and a description of the gunman. He also requested an ambulance in case any of the bystanders had been hit.

  Mattie didn’t sit up, but she lifted her head just enough that she could see the side mirror. And what she saw had her just as frightened as the prospect of more bullets coming their way.

  “The gunman’s running,” she practically shouted.

  She didn’t want him to escape. Mattie wanted the cops to arrive right now and arrest him. Then they could force the man to tell them who’d hired him. That information was critical, and once they had it, then this danger might finally end.

  “Don’t let him get away,” Bo told the officer on the other end of the line. He continued to maneuver the car through the busy streets, quickly putting some distance between them and the gunman.

  “He wanted me dead,” Mattie mumbled.

  “Yeah.” Bo reached up and tore away what was left of the safety glass. “But we’re going to get him.”

  She latched on to that promise and continued to watch. And pray. Mattie hoped he didn’t have some way of following them and launching another attack.

  Or…

  “We need to get to the children now,” Mattie blurted out. She suddenly had an overwhelming need to make sure that that wasn’t where the gunman was headed next.

  “We can’t go to them. Not now.”

  Mattie frantically shook her head, ready to argue with him. She had to make sure the children were okay.

  “This could have all been a ruse,” Bo explained.

  “While we were pinned down, someone could have put a tracking device on the car.”

  “I didn’t see anyone do that.” But she couldn’t say with 100-percent certainty that it hadn’t happened.

  “There was a lot going on,” he went on while he maneuvered the car through the side streets. “And it’s too big of a risk to take. We can’t compromise the location of the safe house. Plus, we can’t drive into the neighborhood with the car shot up like this. It would draw attention to us, and we don’t need that.”

  Mattie knew this was all true, but each moment she was away from the kids was agony. It obviously was for Bo, as well, because he took out his phone again and made another call. This one he put on speaker.

  “Rosalie,” he said the moment the nanny answered. “Is everything okay?”

  “Yes, but I was about to ask you the same thing. The officer here with us just got a call that something had happened to Mattie and you?”

  “It was probably a case of wrong place, wrong time,” Bo lied. “But we’re all right.”

  Another lie. Mattie was shaking and wasn’t sure she could stop. But she was also relieved. Rosalie and the children were safe.

  For now.

  She wanted to tell Bo to have another officer sent out, but that might not be smart, either. Heck, the person after them could be watching headquarters for just that sort of thing. Bo was right. Best to return to the station and regroup. And get another car.

  “I’ll phone you from headquarters,” Bo assured Rosalie. “I’ll also be tapping into the security feed at the house…because I want to take a look at the babies. I think Mattie would like that, too.”

  Yes. She would. Right now, just seeing them would help soothe her.

  “Do you see anyone following us?” he asked Mattie right after he ended the call.

  “No. But with all the traffic, it’s hard to tell.” Then what Bo did really sunk in. “You don’t think the gunman will follow us to police headquarters and start shooting at us there?”

  He didn’t answer her right away. “We’ll be careful when we get out at the parking lot.”

  Oh, God. This might not be over.

  It seemed to take a lifetime, but they finally reached the headquarters building. Bo parked the bullet-riddled car next to the side entrance, and true to his word, he hurried them inside.

  No one fired shots at them.

  Several officers asked how they were, and Bo gave them a clipped answer that they were unharmed. He didn’t stop, however. He got them to his office, and while he rang Rosalie he used the laptop on his desk to tap into the safe house security system. Mattie soon saw the children sleeping in their cribs.

  “What happened?” Rosalie whispered, and she went into the hall, probably so she wouldn’t wake the children. Since Bo had the call on speaker, Mattie had no trouble hearing the woman.

  “Someone fired a few shots at us after we left headquarters.”

  Because she was still in camera range, Mattie saw the stark fear on the woman’s face.

  “But it’s all right,” Bo assured her. “As soon as we can, Mattie and I will be back. In the meantime, just stay inside and keep everything locked up. The officer is still there with you, right?”

  “In the living room. He hasn’t left the house.”

  “Good. Make sure it stays that way.” There was a tiny beep from his phone. “Rosalie, I have another call coming in, but I’m going to keep the security feed on for several more minutes.”

  So he could keep watch. Mattie was thankful for it. Just seeing both children, safe and sleeping, made her breathe easier.

  “O’Malley,” Bo said when he took the other call. “What’s going on?”

  “We’re in pursuit, but we have an ID. One of the officers recognized him. It’s Terrance Arturo. Gotta go. I’ll call when we have him.”

  Terrance Arturo. That turned her blood to ice. “Didn’t they arrest him?” she asked.

  Bo nodded. “But they had to release him.”

  Mattie squeezed her eyes shut a moment. “Arturo works for Ian and therefore Kendall.”

  Bo nodded again, and he slipped his arm around her waist. “When he’s caught, I’ll question him. If Ian or Kendall ordered this hit, then I’ll get the truth from Arturo.” Bo eased her closer to him. “You should sit down. You’re shaking.”

  Yes, she was, and since Mattie wasn’t sure she could stand much longer anyway, she slid to the floor, using the wall to support her back. Bo took the laptop and slid down right next to her, but they were only there a few seconds when Mattie heard something on the security feed from the safe house. It was Jacob. He’d woken up and was starting to fuss.

  Rosalie immediately went to the little boy, picked him up and started to rock him. Bo zoomed in on that tiny precious face, and it brought home exactly what was at stake here.

  Their children.

  “If Arturo isn’t caught,” Mattie whispered, “I’ll call Kendall and start the process to make him think that I’ll help him, that I’ll have Holly tested as a possible bone marrow donor.”

  Bo didn’t say anything, but that got his jaw muscles working. It was a decent backup plan, but he obviously hated the idea as much as she did. She didn’t want Kendall even speaking her daughter’s name until she was sure he wasn’t the one trying to kill her.

  Jacob lifted his head from Rosalie’s shoulder and looked directly into the camera.

  “Hey, grumpy,” Bo teased his son. Bo touched his fingers to the scr
een.

  “He can hear you?” Mattie asked.

  “No. The audio feed is one-way. We can only hear them. It’s for security reasons so that if someone manages to get access to the security system, they won’t be able to backdoor their way into the police computer.”

  That made sense, but she would have liked the little boy to hear their voices.

  “He looks so much like you.” She studied the tiny face still staring at them as if he knew they were on the other end of that camera. “I didn’t see it so much when he was born, because I didn’t know what you looked like then, but I see it now.”

  “You held him when he was born?” Bo asked.

  “Yes. I guess you could say I delivered him. I cut the cord with a pair of scissors I found in the nurses’ lounge. Nadine had done the same for me about a half hour earlier when Holly was born.” Mattie lifted her shoulder. “Maybe that’s why I feel so close to Jacob, because I was there with him right from the start.”

  The pain and tension returned to Bo’s face, and she was sorry she’d brought it up. He took a deep breath, kissed the top of her head and then slipped his left arm around her so he could pull her to him. Until they pressed together.

  Like a real couple watching their family.

  Mattie stiffened at that thought and cursed herself for even thinking it. It didn’t matter how many kisses they’d shared. It didn’t matter how hot the attraction. He wasn’t looking for a wife, because she doubted he’d gotten over Nadine.

  “Thank you.” Bo whispered the words so softly that it took her a moment to figure out what he’d said. Before she could ask him what he was thanking her for, his phone rang again.

  “It’s O’Malley,” he relayed to her. His phone was no longer on speaker, so Mattie couldn’t hear what the sergeant was saying.

  “How did that happen?” Bo asked, his voice rough and filled with the tone of the profanity he didn’t use.

  “No,” Mattie mumbled. Please. She didn’t want any more bad news.

  She started to imagine the worst—that Arturo had learned the location of the safe house, and he was on the way there. She got to her feet in case they had to hurry out of there.

  Bo stood, as well. “You’re sure?” he asked O’Malley.

  Bo obviously didn’t like that response, either, because this time he spat out the profanity he’d held back earlier. “Bring him in. I want to talk to him.”

  That gave Mattie some hope. Had they actually caught Arturo? But those hopes were soon dashed.

  “Arturo’s dead,” Bo let her know the moment he ended the call.

  Part of her was relieved. The man wouldn’t be coming to the safe house, and he couldn’t make another attempt to kill her. “So we don’t know who hired him?” she asked, already knowing the answer.

  Bo shook his head. “He died on the scene without saying a word.”

  There was something he wasn’t saying. “Died? How?”

  “A shootout. Arturo was running a street over from where he attacked us, and when he was confronted, he tried to shoot his way out of it. Or so it seems.”

  “What do you mean? Did someone from SAPD shoot him?”

  “No.” And those jaw muscles stirred again. “Marshal Larry Tolivar killed Arturo.”

  “Tolivar? Why was he there?”

  Bo shook his head. “I don’t know, and it might take a while before we find out. Tolivar’s not saying anything until his legal rep from the Justice Department shows up.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  Bo practically rammed the keys into the ignition of the new unmarked car, the replacement vehicle for the one Arturo had shot to hell the day before. He was not in the right frame of mind to be questioning two suspects. One who was also a federal marshal and the other suspect, Kendall Collier, who might be behind all of this.

  But he didn’t have a choice.

  While Bo would have preferred to stay at the safe house and have a long, relaxing breakfast with Mattie, Rosalie and the kids, this part of the investigation was too important for him to pawn it off on anyone else. Still, spending time with Mattie and the kids sounded like heaven.

  And that troubled him a lot.

  Lately, Mattie was part of every image that he had about his immediate future. She was there. Helping with the kids. Talking to him. Adding something that hadn’t been in his life for a long time. Yes, a big part of that something was sexual attraction, but he had the feeling that it could be a lot more than just that.

  And that scared him.

  Because to accept Mattie into his life meant he had to give up the old feelings he had for Nadine. Bo wasn’t sure he was ready to do that.

  “You okay?” Mattie asked, putting on her seat belt.

  No. He wasn’t. But Bo kept that to himself. Instead, he nodded, started the car and opened the garage door so he could back out.

  “Your last chance,” he mumbled. “You can stay here, and I can question Kendall and Tolivar on my own.”

  “I’m going,” Mattie insisted. “I wouldn’t have called Kendall and asked him to come to the station if I didn’t plan to be there. He wants to talk to me, and I want to talk to him.”

  He checked her eyes to see if there was any doubt. There wasn’t. But there was fatigue, and he was sure it was mirrored in his own eyes. It’d been a long night, and Mattie was likely still reeling from the shooting the day before—even though she managed to look amazing in the loaner purple dress that had been brought to the safe house for her. Thankfully, Bo kept several outfits in his office and had been able to use one of those, because he hadn’t wanted to risk going back to his own house to get anything.

  Because he thought they could both use it, he leaned over and put his mouth to hers. Bo had intended it to be something quick. Just a kiss of reassurance, but it was as effective as an hour of good foreplay. His body always seemed primed and ready when he was around Mattie.

  “Do you think having sex would make us think better, as in clearing our heads?” The corner of Mattie’s mouth lifted, and it made him wish she would smile more often. Of course, they didn’t have a lot to smile about at the moment.

  “Don’t know about the thinking part,” he drawled, kissing her again. “But it’d make us feel a hell of a lot better.”

  Since that wasn’t a joke, Bo decided to end the torture and get to headquarters. Plus, it wasn’t a good idea for them to be sitting in a garage kissing, especially when they had to discuss some things before they talked to their suspects.

  “You shouldn’t be in the room when I talk with Tolivar,” Bo said, and he continued even over her objection. “You can listen in and watch. You can even feed me questions if you think I’m missing something, but I have to do this interrogation by the book. We don’t want his legal rep to step in and pull him away from our jurisdiction.”

  “They can do that?” she asked. No sign of that smile now. Reality was hitting her again.

  “They can try.” But Bo wanted to keep this within the SAPD so he could continue to have Mattie in his protective custody. If the feds took over the case, God knows what they would try to do in the name of protecting her.

  “And now for Kendall,” Bo said, moving on to their next problem. “I got a call about him this morning when you were in the shower. It’s true. He really does have aplastic anemia. It’s similar to leukemia, and he’s stabilized with meds for now. But the only chance at a cure is a bone marrow donor.”

  “Holly,” she mumbled.

  “Holly,” Bo confirmed. “Kendall could be so desperate to see if Holly’s a match that he could be pretending to be a changed man.” But Bo had to tell her the rest. “Or it could be for real. He did indeed sell his business, and he’s had no recent association with anyone shady.”

  “That doesn’t mean he’s changed.”

  “No. But there’s more. He’s apparently working with the feds, the very people who arrested him for the illegal arms deal.”

  “He’s what?”

  Bo unders
tood her shocked reaction because it was the same one he’d had when the captain told him the news. “The Justice Department won’t give us details, only that Kendall is cooperating with them by giving them information about some of his former business associates. It’s my guess that this deal will give him immunity, clear his name, and in turn the Justice Department will get to make some arrests.”

  She huffed. “And Kendall will go free.”

  Yes. And that could be a major problem, if Kendall was indeed the one who wanted Mattie dead. It might mean that Bo had to bargain with the devil, with Kendall, if there was any hope that Mattie would have a normal life. And her normalcy was necessary for Holly’s.

  Bo parked in the secure lot directly next to the headquarters building, and when they were done, he wouldn’t use the same car to return to the safe house. He wanted to put as many layers of security as possible between this would-be killer and the children.

  He led Mattie toward the interview room with the intention of starting with Tolivar, but he spotted Kendall in the hall outside his office. The man was alone, without his attorney or his fiancée. Kendall was leaning the back of his head against the wall, and he had his eyes closed. For just a brief second, Bo saw the man’s fatigue, and Kendall no longer looked like the threat that he might possibly be.

  That made him even more dangerous. He could be playing the part of a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

  “Kendall,” Mattie said, practically snapping out his name.

  Kendall’s eyes flew open. He didn’t offer them a smile or anything else friendly. “You wanted to see me.”

  Bo ushered them into his office so they’d have some privacy.

  “I want to know the truth,” Mattie said without even waiting until they were fully inside.

  “The truth,” Kendall repeated. “I wonder what that is myself.”

  Bo rolled his eyes. “Could we cut the existential BS and get to the facts? Mattie and I want to know what you’re really up to. And then you can tell us if you hired Arturo to try to kill her.”

  “I didn’t hire him,” Kendall said calmly. “But I can’t rule out that someone did because they thought in some kind of warped way it would help me.”