Christmas on the Run

by Shannon Nemechek

  Chapter Five

  It was still dark as hell outside, and the snow was coming down so hard Skye could barely see in front of the SUV. Parker had only given her a few hours to get to town, grab the money, and get back before he shot her dad, then if she wasn’t back after another two hours, he would kill Tyler. Parker told her if he heard sirens they would all die, so she couldn’t go to the cops. She was stuck, and she had to get to town quickly. As she pushed down on the gas, the tires started to slide, but she had the SUV in control. She sped down the snow-covered gravel road as fast as she could. Her heart pounded faster as the speed of the SUV revved. She only looked down for a moment, and when she looked up, a pair of headlights were headed straight for her. She swerved right to avoid the old beat-up truck, barely missed hitting it head on. As she got the SUV to the right side of the road, her tires slid, and she spun around and around again, then her tire hit the ditch, and the SUV went into the air. It flipped and flipped again, finally landing on its top, then she went unconscious.

  “Damn it, what the hell?” Cody screamed and pounded his fist on the steering wheel. “Crazy-ass fucking drivers.” Cody looked in the rearview mirror and saw the SUV flip through the air. Slowing his truck down, he quickly turned the truck around and headed back to where he had seen the SUV flip. Grabbing his cell phone, he dialed 911, then headed toward the SUV on foot. As he approached, he noticed sparks flying near the engine. As he got to the SUV, he approached from the passenger side and looked through the windows. Only seeing one occupant, he moved to the driver’s side. Cody attempted to free the woman from the seatbelt, but no luck. Grabbing his Gerber, he cut the belt, and she landed safely into his arms. Pulling her out, he scooped her into his arms as the sparks turned into flames. Squeezing the young woman as tightly as he could, he ran for his truck just as the SUV exploded and smoke and flames filled the cold night air. The snow continued to fall as Cody dropped the gate of his truck and laid the woman down. “Ma’am, the fire department and ambulance will be here any minute. Just hold on. Ma’am, can you hear me?”

  Cody checked her breathing by placing his hand on her chest, then he moved her long blonde hair away as the blood streamed down her face. His heart fell into his stomach when he realized it was Skye. She hadn’t changed a bit; she was more beautiful than ever. His heart ached, and he felt sick as he screamed her name.

  “Skye! Skye! Stay with me, Skye!” Grabbing a blanket from the cab of his truck, he quickly wrapped her and waited for the ambulance to arrive. Cody crawled up on the tailgate and laid next to her as the snow got thicker. Whispering in her ear, he said, “Skye, can you hear me? Skye.”

  Pulling her in closer, he finally heard her voice. “What happened? Where am I? Oh my God, I gotta get outta here. I gotta go now.” She quickly raised up but then grabbed her ribs.

  “Whoa there, Skye. You were just in an accident. You need to get checked out,” he said.

  “And who are you to tell me what I should and shouldn’t do?” she asked, then the lights and sounds of the ambulance lit up the area, and she saw him. “Cody?” she questioned.

  “Yeah, it’s me. How ya doin’, Skye?” Cody said, smiling back at her.

  “Cody, I gotta get to the bank, and that ambulance needs to turn off its sirens. If Parker hears them, he’s gonna think I called the cops, and he’ll kill Daddy and Tyler.”

  “Wait. Wait. Calm down, Skye. Slow down and tell me what’s going on,” he asked.

  “Not until you get that ambulance to turn off its sirens,” she begged.

  “All right. Give me a second. Stay right here,” he said as he jumped off the tailgate and motioned to the driver to cut the siren. Then he walked back over to Skye.

  “All right, now tell me what’s going on.”

  “Daddy and Tyler are being held at gunpoint by Parker, my ex,” she explained.

  “Okay, why would he do that, Skye? And what does the bank have to do with all this?” Cody questioned her.

  “He’s holding Daddy and our son at gunpoint until I bring him all the money from Daddy’s and my bank accounts, so he can flee the country with Jasmine. And Jasmine is helping me because Parker is a son of a bitch and beats her, and if I don’t get back with the money soon, he’s gonna kill Daddy, then if I’m not back after another two hours, he’s gonna kill Tyler,” she explained.

  “Wait—Skye, did you say our son?” he asked. His eyes started to swell and fill. “Why didn’t you tell me? I don’t understand.”

  “Cody, can we talk about this later? I gotta get to the bank and get that money,” she begged.

  “Yeah, but we will talk about it. I promise you that,” he said as he went to the cab of his truck and retrieved his .09mm and his AR-15, checking the ammunition, then grabbing his vest from behind the seat. Skye watched him as he loaded up his vest with ammo and then strapped his leg holster on as the paramedics worked on Skye. She fought them every step of the way.

  “I’m fine. Just tape up the cut on my forehead, please,” she said to the paramedics.

  “Are you refusing care, ma’am?” the young paramedic asked.

  “Yes, I am—for now, that is.” She turned to Cody. “And what are you doing?” she asked.

  “Well, Skye, I’m going to save our son and your daddy from your ex-husband,” he said calmly, slapping the magazine into the .09mm and then sliding it into the holster.

  “He’s not my ex-husband.”

  “Okay, husband,” he said.

  “No, my ex-boyfriend and boss,” she explained.

  “Okay then, tell me why he wants to get outta the country. And why does he want to kill your daddy and our son?”

  “Well, he wants to kill me because I saw him kill his business partner at the gallery. Then when he realized I saw him, he tried to kill me. So I ran home, grabbed Tyler and some clothes, and drove here. When I got to the house last night, Parker and Jasmine were there waiting. Parker had Daddy handcuffed to the chair in the living room, then he grabbed Tyler and held the gun to his head. Told me that I had to get all of Daddy’s money out of the bank and then clean out my bank account so he and Jasmine could get outta the country. But Jasmine doesn’t want to go.”

  “Tell me where everyone was in the house when you left,” Cody said.

  “Well, Parker was in the living room on Daddy’s couch, Jasmine was sitting at the dining room table playing with Tyler, and Daddy was still upstairs handcuffed to his bed.”

  “Jump in the truck. We’ll get close to the house, then I want you to wait in the truck. Okay?”

  “Okay,” she said as Cody drove about a half a mile from the main house, then got out.

  He leaned back into the truck. “Promise me you’ll stay here. I swear to you I will bring them all out. I want you out here when I get close to the house. I want you to take my cell and call 911. Tell them to come, sirens silent. Tell them what’s going on and that I am in the house. Okay, Skye, you got all that?” he confirmed as he grabbed the AR-15, then he ran toward the house.

  She watched as he slowly approached the house like someone that had done it a thousand times. It made her wonder what he had been doing the past ten years that made him so confident; she couldn’t remember Cody being that way when they were younger. He was cockier than he was confident, she thought. As she watched him near the back door, she dialed 911 and explained the situation and that Cody was making his way inside the house. When she heard the reaction from the Crawford Police, she was confused.

  “Oh, if Cody Wilson is there, then just call us when he comes out with the perps,” the dispatcher said.

  “Cody said to come now so that you can assist him,” she begged.

  “Ma’am, Cody Wilson don’t need no help. He could take out twenty guys and not break a sweat,” the dispatcher replied.

  “Uh, are we talking about the same Cody Wilson from the Bent Arrow Ranch, captain of the football team and class president? That Cody Wilson?” she asked.

  “Yep, that be the same Cody,” C
assie said.

  “Okay, so how did Cody Wilson get to be such a bad ass?” she asked.

  “Girl, you been livin’ under a rock?” she asked.

  “No, I’ve just been living in another city,” Skye replied. She didn’t want the dispatcher to know exactly who she was yet.

  “Well, Cody Wilson just got back home not too long ago. He been gone for, oh, I say about ten years. He went and joined the Army after some girl broke his heart. Up and left the poor boy the night he was gonna ask her to marry him. She up and left—just left a note that said go to hell. ’Bout broke the poor boy’s heart. The story I heard was he was taking old Dee Dee Freeman home cuz she got drunk at the graduation party and tried to get fresh with Cody, and Cody told her hell no, but Cody being Cody, he drove her home to her daddy and made sure she was safe.

  “He’s a good man, that Cody Wilson, so he got home after getting hurt real bad in Afghanistan, so the army medically retired him. I hear told he was one of them Special Forces guys like Rambo or Chuck Norris. Cody is a badass. I seen him kick guys’ asses bigger than him over at the Bent Nickle. He has been working there as a bouncer at night, then during the day he helps around his daddy’s ranch since his daddy is a quad in a wheelchair, and then he goes over to the Triple H Ranch and helps out ol’ Ross Howard, but looks like Ross got himself some trouble. And who are you, little lady?” the dispatcher asked.

  “I would be the girl that left Cody the note. I’m Skye Howard, Ross Howard’s little girl. And well, Cody needs y’all to come now. He said sirens silent.”

  “All right, I’ll send out a couple of cars ASAP.”

  Cody approached the house from the back and peeked through the window and saw Jasmine at the table with his son. That’s my son. I gotta lot of catching up to do with you, boy, he thought. But first I gotta get y’all outta here without a scratch or old Ross will have my hide.

  Circling around the other side of the house so he could get a clear view of the living room, he looked through the window in the office that was right off the living room. As he looked through, he saw Parker lying on the couch, his eyes closed. Perfect timing, he thought. I can bust in the door and surprise him before he even has a chance to get his gun, which it looks like he put on the table behind him. What a dumbass! Guess I will take a frontal assault. He moved toward the front porch and slowly walked up to the door. Checking his weapon, he took the safety off, then kicked open the door, yelled for Tyler to drop to the floor, and before Parker could even move a muscle, Cody was on top of him, pointing the gun to his forehead.

  “Jasmine, is that your name? I’m told you got nothing to do with this, so take Tyler outside to his momma, please. Me and this piece of shit scumbag are gonna have a little talk.” Cody held his weapon, the barrel touching Parker’s forehead as he watched Jasmine run out the door with Tyler in tow.

  “So, Parker, is it?” Cody asked.

  “Yeah, and who the fuck are you?” Parker snapped back.

  “Me? I’m the son of a bitch that’s gonna make you pay for holding my son hostage and shooting at the woman I love.”

  “You can have the little skank. She’s nothing to me, she was nothing when I found her, and she’s nothing now,” he yelled. As the last word left his lips, the butt of Cody’s AR-15 found Parker’s head, and he screamed in pain.

  “You can’t do that to me!” Parker cried out.

  “And why the hell not?” Cody said as he stood over Parker.

  “Because I have rights,” Parker cried.

  “Go ahead and scream rights. I ain’t no cop. I’m just a private citizen protecting the ones I love and their property. I could kill you right now and get off scot-free. But instead, I’ll just let the police drag your piece of shit ass off to jail and back to New York City where you belong.”

  Cody heard the Crawford police come up the stairs. “Come on in, guys. Take this piece of shit outta my sight,” he said as he grabbed one of the officers. “Hey, Jasper, you got a cuff key? Ol’ Ross is upstairs handcuffed to his bed, but before we uncuff him, we gotta get a picture. You got your cell phone with ya?” Cody said.

  “Cody, man, as a matter of fact I do. My cell phone is right here in this pocket. I think I’ll go up and snap me a few pictures, then we can uncuff him,” Jasper said as he and Cody ran up the stairs.

  “Ross, old man, where are ya?” Cody yelled.

  Ross quickly answered, “Cody, get your ass in here and uncuff me. Where is that son of a bitch that pointed a gun at my grandson? I’m gonna kick his ass all the way back to his momma’s pussy. Come into my house, pull a gun on me, and expect me to put up with that—where is the little weasel fucker?” Ross screamed while Cody and Jasper snapped pictures of Ross cuffed to the bed.

  “Ross, we didn’t know you was into that kinda stuff,” the men teased.

  “I swear, Cody Wilson, if you don’t uncuff me right now, I swear I won’t let ya come over and watch wrestling with me no more,” he scolded.

  “All right, Jasper take the cuffs off the old guy. He’s gonna end up having a heart attack if we don’t.” Cody laughed as Jasper uncuffed Ross and Jasper got the lickin’; all the while Jasper told Ross it was all Cody’s idea.

  When Cody got down the stairs, Skye jumped into his arms. “Whoa, and what’s this?” he said, trying to keep his balance.

  “It’s for saving my daddy and our son,” she said as she pulled him toward her and kissed him.

  “And that?” he said.

  “That was from me to you,” she replied.

  “Okay, and that’s it?”

  “No, we should probably sit down and talk,” Skye replied as she turned and gave her dad a hug as he came down the stairs. “Daddy, are you okay?” she asked.

  “Little girl, it takes a lot more than a city boy to knock me down. The little son of a bitch got the jump on me,” he said.

  “Daddy, you think you can watch Tyler while Cody and I talk?” she asked.

  “Well, little girl, it’s about time you talked to this boy. You not gonna run off this time?”

  “No, Daddy, no running this time,” she replied. Skye turned to Cody and said, “Well, where should we go?”

  “Let’s go to where it all ended,” Cody said.

  “You wanna go to the bunkhouse?” she said.

  “Yep. Or are you afraid of being alone with me?” he asked as he grabbed her hand and they walked out the door.

  “We won’t wait up, Skye. Take your time. Right, Tyler? How about you and I go to breakfast over to the diner?” Ross asked Tyler.

  “Grandpa, can we go buy a cowboy hat and boots?” “Well, Santa’s coming tonight. Why don’t we go see Santa and ask him to bring you them under the Christmas tree?” Ross replied.

  “Momma, can we?” Tyler said

  “Yes, baby we can go later today.”

  “Yeah!” he yelled as he ran out the door.

  Chapter Six

  It felt like yesterday that she had walked up these stairs and into the bunkhouse; it hadn’t changed in ten years. Cody had gone out to get some firewood to start the fire, as it was cold and the fireplace was the only thing that kept the place warm. As she walked around the old place, she walked over and ran her hand along the mantel until her fingers caught on something. Looking, she noticed a nail, then she realized it was the nail that she had put the note on that she’d left for Cody all those years ago. That nail had changed her life forever. As she sucked the blood from her finger, all those past feelings came flooding back. Had she ever quit loving Cody? Was that the reason she could never commit to Parker? Looking back now at the day’s events, it was probably a good thing she never committed to him. When she thought about it as she got comfortable on the couch in front of the fireplace, she realized after all these years she was still in love with Cody Tyler Wilson. Now she just needed to tell Cody and hope that he could forgive her for ever doubting his love, his devotion, and his loyalty to her. They did have a lot to talk about, and what better time than the da
y of Christ’s birth—Christmas Eve?

  Cody kicked the door, hoping it would get Skye’s attention. She promptly got up and opened the door. Cody’s arms were loaded down with wood for the fireplace. He winked and said, “Well, darlin’, glad ya didn’t make me wait that long this time. Ten years is a mighty long time to wait to get you back in this bunkhouse, but it was worth it.” He smiled, anticipating Skye’s reaction, but she smiled and apologized, then sat down on the couch. Cody dropped the wood in front of the fireplace and began to stack the wood and start the fire.

  “I’ve missed the smell of a wood-burning fireplace. My place in New York has a gas fireplace, and it’s just not the same,” she said, watching Cody as he stoked the fire with the poker, then sat down on the couch next to her.

  Leaning back on the couch, he looked over at her and said, “Well, it seems there’s a lot I don’t know and a lot you need to explain to me, wouldn’t ya say?”

  Skye looked down at her lap, her hands clasped together, wringing them as anxiety coursed through her. Her mind raced, and she feared that he might leave when she explained everything. It was a mess for sure, but she had finally come to realize that she owed it to Cody, not just because he had saved her, her daddy, and their son, but because despite everything, she had always loved him and hoped he still loved her.

  “Forgiveness is sometimes a hard pill to swallow, but I hope that you can forgive me in time,” she said as she raised her chin to look him squarely in the eyes.

  Those eyes, she thought as she tried to remain focused on what she was trying to do.

  “I tell you what. Why don’t we start from the beginning and work ourselves to the present? We got all day,” he said.

  “Not all day…I still have to shop for Tyler. Tomorrow is Christmas, and I—well, we—can’t have our son wake up on Christmas Day without presents from Santa Claus.”

  “All right, not all day, but you’re stalling, Skye. It may have been ten years, but you haven’t changed when it comes to talking about something that makes you uncomfortable. So spill it. I’m not the teenaged kid you left behind. I’m a man who apparently is also a father,” he said, smiling. “Me, a dad—I never imagined. I hoped one day but never thought…” But before he could get all the words out, Skye kissed him. Not a peck on the cheek or a peck on the lips, but a steamy, hot, tongue-dancing kiss.