Taken in Texas

by Susan Sleeman

  Cord met her gaze. “If so, she never said anything about it.”

  “You said she was of sound mind, so we can rule out senility.”

  He nodded. “If this wasn’t my aunt’s car, my experience would have me leaning toward drugs or blackmail.”

  “Then what?” She could hardly think with ten grand in cash sitting there. “Drugs seems out of the realm of possibilities, but not blackmail.”

  He shook his head and narrowed his eyes. “Who would want to blackmail her?”

  “That’s what we’ll need to figure out.” Kendall forced her brain into action. “I’ll get Tessa to photograph the money.”

  While Tessa photographed the money, Kendall tried to come to grips with the discovery. There really weren’t any other scenarios that made sense as to why an older woman like Eve would have a pile of cash in her trunk.

  Tessa hung her camera around her neck and stepped back. “Let’s get this inside and inventory it.”

  Kendall loaded the money back into the bag and carried it inside to stack the bills on the dining room table. Cord counted the number of bills in a single pack and then the packs.

  “I was right,” he said, sounding baffled. “Ten grand. I don’t get it. Not at all.”

  Kendall shook her head in disbelief. “Ten grand. That’s just crazy. We have to figure out where it came from. Maybe we can ask about tracing the bills when we visit the bank.”

  Cord nodded, his eyes narrowed. “This is getting really bizarre.”

  “Beyond bizarre,” she replied, still gawking at the cash. “Maybe when we finish our search of the house we’ll find an explanation.”

  She eagerly began looking, hoping with each door, each drawer she opened, that she would find a clue to the mystery money. But they spent the next two hours going through closets, drawers, a storage shed and garage, but located nothing. Zip. Nada.

  She wished she could solve the mystery, but she was unable to do anything else here tonight. She’d head to the ER and spend the drive trying to come up with a plausible explanation. She left Tessa in charge of the scene and started for the door.

  She stopped next to Cord. “I can’t explain the cash, but there’s nothing left to do here tonight. You should head out, too.”

  “You’re not planning to start that imaging tonight, are you?” he asked, ignoring her comment. “You need your rest.”

  “Not likely.”

  “And you’re going to stop at the ER now, right?”

  “Yes.”

  “I’ll come with you. Your dad—”

  “Doesn’t know when he’s overstepping.” She grabbed a stack of file folders from Eve’s desk that she planned to review before she saw Cord again.

  “I’ll see you in the morning, then,” he said, giving up far easier than she expected.

  She started to nod, but her head still hurt too much. “See you then.”

  Stunned at tonight’s turn of events, she got her car on the road. She’d been knocked unconscious, caught her first case as an interim detective and saw Cord again. What a crazy, crazy night.

  How was she going to spend time with him while looking for Eve when he was still pushy? Still large and in charge.

  She glanced in the rearview mirror, checking to see if he followed her. She wouldn’t put it past him to want to make her dad happy by ensuring she went to the hospital.

  In a long sigh, Kendall let out her frustration with her father. Her job was everything to her. Everything. She’d given up so much to become a detective—relationships, fun, entertainment—and he could potentially deny her the career she’d always wanted. She was probably putting too much importance on the job, but it was the only thing in her life besides her family. She wasn’t feeling sorry for herself regarding the sacrifices she’d made. She purposely worked long hours to get this detective job. Now that she was this close to reaching her goal, she would do what it took to get it. Even working with a splitting headache. Or working with Cord, the man she’d once thought could be the one.

  Hah! Like that would have happened.

  Her thoughts went to her siblings. They’d all blossomed since they’d found their life partners in the last two years. But she was happy, too, and didn’t need a man to find contentment. Sure, she wasn’t giddy in love like the others, but she didn’t need that. Not having it did make her feel a bit like an outsider in her close-knit family, though, and a target for everyone, especially her mother and grandmother, as they kept trying to set her up with one guy or another.

  She sighed again and stifled a yawn. The tension and being clobbered on the head had taken everything she had. It would be hard to get out of bed in the morning, but she’d find a way. She wouldn’t miss out on her first investigative case.

  The cash came to mind as she eased to a stop at a four-way intersection and yawned again, careful not to fall asleep on the rest of her drive. Pressing on the gas pedal, she entered the intersection. Suddenly, the sound of air brakes on a large grain truck approaching from her passenger side caught her attention. She waited for the truck to stop at the sign, but it kept coming. Not racing. Just a steady clip.

  Fear skated through her body. She had to move. Now!

  She pressed harder on the gas. Not fast enough.

  The big chrome bumper loomed large in her window and rammed into her passenger side. A sharp jolt shifted her body. Metal ground on metal as the driver kept his rig moving forward. She stomped on her brakes, but her car slid across the road like a toy car in the hands of a toddler. The big rig pushed her up against a tree and pinned her car and door against the tree.

  Her shoulder ached from the impact, and her heart raced as she tried to grasp the situation. She looked around for an escape but she was trapped by the tree on one side and the truck on the other.

  This wasn’t accidental. At least she didn’t think so. Not when the truck had sped up instead of trying to stop. This driver wanted to put her here. But why?

  She reached for her gun. Before she could pull it from the holster, a man was out of the truck and over to the tree, pointing a gun of his own at her window. He motioned for her to lower it.

  What was going on? Was this a carjacking?

  Panic taking hold, she reached for her radio to call for help, but he tapped his gun against the glass.

  “Don’t do it.” His voice came through the closed window, sending fear racing through her body. He rapped on the glass again. “Now open it.”

  What if she refused? Would he shoot her? Kill her?

  Her pulse pounded in her head, jumbling her thoughts.

  Think, Kendall. Think.

  She couldn’t risk her life over a carjacking. She had to press the button. The glass whirred down. She held her breath and prepared herself for the worse.

  The guy poked his weapon inside and leaned down.

  She met his gaze, stifled a gasp and lurched back. It was the man who’d whacked her with the rolling pin. Here now. In front of her.

  “You.” She kept her gaze trained on him, noting his burly build, his swarthy coloring and pure black hair, along with eyes the color of coal, so she could report him if he got away.

  “Yeah, me.” He chuckled but it was ugly and guttural. “Just wanted to say if you planned to have one of those sketches made of me and put out there for everyone and their brother to call in, you won’t live to take the first call.”

  Just like her dad said. He was worried someone would recognize him or give the sheriff’s department his name. Good. He needed to be worried.

  She needed to be worried, too. He could change his mind and kill her now instead of just threatening her, but she couldn’t let him see her fear. She had to remain strong as she’d been taught.

  “I won’t be threatened by you,” she said, but it didn’t come out sounding as brave as she’d intended.

  He l
eaned closer, and the heated anger in his eyes burned into her face. He pressed the barrel of his weapon against her chest as a slow, snide smile crept across his face. He held her gaze.

  Her heart raced, pounding so hard she thought it might escape her chest, but she wouldn’t back down and look away.

  “If you report me,” he said, his tone menacing and making her breath catch, “consider that lump on your forehead as a down payment for the next time we meet. If that happens, you won’t get off so easy.”

  FIVE

  Cord lifted his foot from the gas and slowed his SUV to keep from catching up to Kendall. If she saw him tailing her, she’d be hopping mad. But only if she saw him. He wasn’t going to let that happen. He’d simply drive to the hospital, make sure her patrol car was in the parking lot and then head to Houston. Simple as that.

  He crested the hill and saw a vehicle off the road ahead. He blinked hard and strained for a better look.

  Was that Kendall’s car pressed up against a tree, a grain truck holding it in place?

  He got closer and could make out the lights on top. It was a patrol car for sure, but he couldn’t be positive it belonged to Kendall.

  Heart pounding against his chest, he floored the gas and came roaring up on the vehicle. He scanned the driver’s side. Yes, it was Kendall. She sat behind the wheel, unmoving. Was she hurt?

  He grabbed his gun for the second time that night and bolted from his SUV. He glanced up at the truck on the way. No one in the cab. Still, he kept his focus on the truck and backed toward Kendall. He bumped into a tree and then sidestepped to her window. He found it open, her radio in hand as she was reporting her situation to dispatch.

  “Are you hurt?” He tried not to sound panicked and ran his gaze over her. She’d lost a bit of color and her hand trembled.

  She looked up at him, firming her resolve and taking on her tough deputy persona, obviously trying to hide her reaction to whatever happened here. “Just my pride.”

  “What’s going on?”

  “The intruder from Eve’s house paid me a little visit.”

  “He did what?” Cord’s voice reached up to the treetops.

  She blew out a frustrated breath. “He must’ve been waiting for me near the intersection. I’m guessing he stole the truck. He didn’t stop at the four-way and pinned me against the tree so I couldn’t get out. He wasn’t going all that fast, but fast enough that my brakes were no match for him. I couldn’t get out either door, so he put a gun to my chest and told me if I reported him or had a sketch drawn of him that he’d kill me. Then he off-loaded a motorcycle from the truck and took off on it.”

  Cord sucked in a quick breath. He had to admit it was a clever move, but threatening Kendall like this wasn’t cool. Not cool at all.

  “And what about your head?” he asked as he tried to make sense of the incident. “Did you reinjure it?”

  “No. He wasn’t moving that fast and the impact was minimal.”

  “Still, we need to get you to the ER.”

  She held up her radio, her hand still trembling. “I’m waiting for someone to come document the scene and move the truck. Then I’ll go.”

  “I can snap pictures with my cell and move the truck.” He stepped back. “You radio in that you’ll be at the ER if anyone needs you.” He was in no mood for her to argue with him so he didn’t wait for her agreement but took off toward the truck.

  “Don’t destroy evidence,” she called out after him.

  That was the best response he could ask for when he expected a fight. Did that mean she was hurt worse than she claimed, or was she just exhausted from her night? Could be either and it meant he had to keep an eye on her. Not just make sure she got to the ER.

  He took pictures of the truck and her car from every angle possible. Then he jogged back to his vehicle and grabbed a pair of gloves and booties before climbing up into the big rig. He had no idea how to drive one of these things, but he could handle a stick shift, so how hard could it be? He soon figured it out and backed the truck out far enough for Kendall to climb out, but not so far as to block the road.

  She rolled up her window and then leaned toward the middle of the car. With the computer mounted between the steering wheel and the passenger side, she had a hard time getting out, but she was slender enough to pull it off.

  “I’m never going to live this down.” She frowned and brushed off her uniform as if brushing off her unease, but she couldn’t hide her shaking hand.

  “Maybe not, but you are going to live, and that’s the most important thing.”

  “You’re right. It’s just the detective job. I can’t give my dad any reasons to hand it over to someone else.”

  “I’m sure he’s not even thinking about doing that.” Cord gestured for her to precede him to his car.

  She started walking. “Actually, he might. My almost-brother-in-law is very capable and should probably get the job.”

  “Explain.”

  “Tessa is engaged to a guy named Braden Hayes. He was a homicide detective in Austin. He took a patrol job here to be with Tessa, and he wants to move into a detective slot.” Kendall paused as if simply thinking about it troubled her. “He wouldn’t want to take the job that I want, but he joined the department, thinking our other detective was going to retire this year. He decided to stick it out another year, so that leaves Braden on patrol.”

  “I don’t know the guy, but he’s got to be a good one if your dad approves of him to marry one of his daughters. So I’m sure he wouldn’t want to take a position out from under you.”

  “I agree. He is a great guy, and he wouldn’t do that to me.” She paused by the car to look up at him. “But what if Dad doesn’t give him a choice?”

  “A, I don’t think your dad would put him in that position. And B, we always have a choice. Especially when it comes to being with the ones we love.”

  She arched a brow, her expression telling him her mind had traveled back to their breakup. So had his. But he wasn’t going to talk about it when he wanted to get her to the hospital to be checked out.

  He opened the door for her and waited for her to settle in before closing the door gently to keep her head from reeling. He climbed behind the wheel and got them on the road, his mind still on the past.

  He’d often wished he hadn’t been so quick to take off when she’d ended their relationship. Maybe they could’ve worked things out. Maybe. But at the time he’d had no choice. Not with his heart shredded, and he couldn’t see a way through that.

  But now? In hindsight? He had to wonder where he’d be if he’d given control of his life over to God back then and trusted Him. Shoot, trusted God to be in charge of anything.

  But what was the point of thinking about that? It was about as helpful as questioning why God allowed his family to perish and left Lucas an orphan. Why his other brother Danny had died when they were kids. Why his aunt was missing. If he thought about it long enough, he’d go crazy, because it was like anyone he touched died. What was Lucas’s future, then?

  Grr. Stop thinking. Just move forward. Be active. Keep busy, with his mind occupied, until he dropped and could sleep at least for a few hours a night.

  Kendall sighed and rested her head back against the seat.

  Perfect. A distraction. “You’re thinking about the accident.”

  She turned her head to look at him. “Actually, I’m thinking about what my dad is going to say and how it will impact his decision. Your aunt is missing and I’m thinking about my job again. Pitiful. What kind of a person does that make me?”

  “Makes you human.” He smiled to help relax her worry. “I know you care about finding Eve.”

  She shot forward and clutched his arm. “I do, Cord. I really do, and I’ll do everything within my power to bring her home safely.”

  He loved her enthusiasm and the way she cared for
others. He’d always found that so attractive. But he’d also worried when she’d let it take over. “I know you’ll do your very best, but I need you to promise me something.”

  Suspicion darkened her eyes, the smoky brown turning ebony. “What?”

  “That you won’t get so wrapped up in your work that you forget about the creep who threatened your life.”

  She let her hand fall. “Him? Right. Of course.”

  “No, don’t just say him,” he said forcefully to get her attention and tapped his temple with his index finger. “Keep him here. Foremost. Before anything else. Or I promise you, I’ll spend every waking hour with you.”

  She held up her hands. “I got it. Honest. I’ll be careful.”

  He didn’t believe her. Sure, she meant what she’d said, but when she got involved, he feared she would forget about the threat. Or maybe she was trying to play it down to calm his nerves. After all, his tone had been frantic—crazy frantic—and it worried him.

  Was he losing it? Fearing the loss of another person so much that it totally and completely paralyzed him?

  He sure wasn’t the man he’d been in the past. Strong. Confident. Taking charge.

  He wanted to be that guy again. He wanted to be strong for Kendall. To make sure she was safe. And he had to try. After all, sniping at her would send her running in the opposite direction. Maybe into that danger he was so keen to protect her from.

  He cast her an apologetic look. “I’m sorry I snapped. I’ve just... So many people. I can’t...” He shrugged.

  She took his hand again, and the warmth melted his heart. “I know you’re on edge. It’s to be expected, and I’ll be careful. For you. I promise.”

  His heart soared at hearing the “for you” comment. That she would do anything for him made him unreasonably happy.

  Which is why he carefully extracted his hand and planted it on the wheel. He couldn’t get close to her again. If he did, he was sure she’d wind up dead, too.

  * * *

  Kendall pushed through the door from the emergency exam rooms to the lobby. Even after a long wait and then a thorough exam, she felt her hand still shaking from being threatened by a man with a gun. It was one thing for him to hit her with a rolling pin but to shove a gun in her face? A weapon that could go off at any time. That, she was having a hard time coming to grips with. So she’d do what she always did when she couldn’t handle her emotions. She’d push them out of her mind and throw herself into her work.