“I heard that.” Phillip’s voice had gone expressionless, devoid of any emotion. “And you tell your friend the sheriff if they don’t get off my property, I’ll kill this young woman.”
“But you won’t...” Parker bit back the rest of what he’d been about to say and cursed. “He hung up.”
Rayna shook her head. “I think it’s best if we go in, then.”
Reluctantly, Parker concurred. “But at this point, the chance of him not harming Nicole is next to nothing. Why don’t you call and try to talk to him one more time? He apparently has a grudge against me for something that happened when we were kids.”
For a long moment, she considered him, her eyes narrowed. Finally, she nodded. “It’s worth a try.”
A siren sounded in the distance, getting closer. “The ambulance,” Rayna said. She turned to Myrna, still huddled in the front seat of her cruiser. “We’re going to get you some medical help. They should be here any moment.”
Heart rate accelerating, he nodded and turned nonchalantly away. He knew exactly what he needed to do. For this plan to work, timing would be everything. “Call him from your phone. If he has caller ID, I doubt he’ll pick up from my number.”
“Good thinking,” she replied. “Read it off to me, please.”
He did, watching while she punched it in. The instant she finished and turned away, he took off, running behind Rayna’s back toward the house by way of the storage shed. He used the trees for cover, keeping his burst of movement short and quick. If Rayna took her focus off the call, she’d see him. He hoped he’d have a few seconds of time, because then she wouldn’t realize what he’d done until it was too late to stop him.
* * *
When Phillip Maple picked up after only one ring, Rayna resisted the urge to turn to Parker and give him a thumbs-up. Instead, she kept her head down, concentrating on the call.
“This is Rayna Coombs,” she said in response to Phillip’s snarled greeting. “We’ve got your place surrounded. Why don’t you do this the easy way and come out with your hands up?”
He unleashed a string of profanities that would have made a lesser woman blush. Rayna, however, had heard them before, though not all at the same time. She simply waited until he’d finished before speaking again.
“Seriously, Phillip. I know you don’t want to do this the hard way. It’s your choice. You can come out of there alive or in a body bag. Which will it be?”
“How about a trade?” he asked, a smirk in his voice. “You for the last girl. She’s pretty sickly anyway. I really don’t think she’s going to make it.”
She thought about telling him how little she trusted him to do anything fair. Instead, she tried once again to be the voice of reason. “Even if I did that, what good would it do? Sure, holding a sheriff’s deputy hostage might buy you some time, but in the end, you’re still surrounded by armed law enforcement personnel.”
“So what?” he scoffed. “The Getaway sheriff’s department is already small. If it comes to a gun battle, how many of your people do you think I could take out?”
“The FBI is here, as well, Phillip,” she lied. The fact that they were actually on their way was a mere technicality. “They got involved when you became a serial killer. And you know as well as I do that the FBI doesn’t play games.”
“If that’s the case,” Phillip responded, his tone silky smooth, “then I might as well go out in a blaze of glory. After all, as you say, I’ve got nothing to lose.”
“That’s not what I—”
Instead of listening, Phillip slammed the phone down, ending the call.
“Well, that didn’t go well,” she began, turning to tell Parker. The instant she realized she was alone, she understood what he had done.
Cursing under her breath, she radioed her team. “Looks like Parker might have gone in alone. I’m going in after him. Hold your position until notified. And if you see movement, don’t shoot. Repeat, don’t shoot.”
“Boss, are you sure that’s a good idea?” Larry asked. “Maybe we should—”
“I’m going in. End of discussion.” And she thumbed the radio off.
Eyeing the house, she decided to take the way she guessed Parker must have—using the trees and storage shed for hiding places. She knew Phillip would be amped up, probably armed and watching for the slightest movement.
Though she wasn’t pleased that Parker had taken his own initiative despite promising to obey orders, now that he had, she could only hope he’d managed to get into the house while she had Phillip on the phone. If he had, then there might still be a chance that this could end without bloodshed.
Past the shed, she darted for the largest tree, keeping it between herself and the house. One heartbeat, two. No reaction from the house, no shots fired.
But that didn’t mean she was out of the woods yet. Taking a deep breath, she headed for the next tree.
She made it all the way to the house undetected. Crouching low to stay under the windows, she headed for the front door. To her surprise, the handle turned easily. Unlocked.
Heart pounding, she pushed open the front door. Gun out, she jumped inside, into what appeared to be a sitting room. “Sheriff’s Office,” she shouted. “Phillip Maple, come out with your hands up.”
Silence. Still trying to keep as small a profile as possible, she headed toward the back of the house. The kitchen—clear. A small bathroom—clear.
One more room. A TV room or a den. Peering around the corner, she found Phillip, holding his pistol to the temple of a clearly terrified young woman. Though she was emaciated and filthy, her clothes torn and her feet bare, Rayna recognized Nicole.
“Drop your weapon, or I’ll shoot,” Phillip ordered. “Do as I say or her blood will be on your hands.”
Rayna bent over and carefully placed her gun on the floor in front of her before slowly raising her hands. “Let her go,” she demanded.
Parker stepped out from behind the curtains, where apparently he’d been hiding. Unnoticed by Phillip, he moved forward, clearly intending to try and disarm the other man and free Nicole.
“Come on, Phillip. Let her go. If you want to walk out of here alive, use me as your hostage.”
Phillip laughed. “You don’t get it, do you? None of us are getting out of here alive.”
At that, Parker leaped, slamming into Phillip hard enough to cause him to release his grip on Nicole. She stumbled forward and Rayna grabbed her, yanking her to safety while Parker wrestled with Phillip for his gun. Parker’s sheer size and muscular body worked for him, and he managed to knock Parker’s pistol from his hand. It hit the floor, by some miracle not discharging. Rayna leaped for it, snatching it up and clicking the safety on.
By now, Parker had pinned Phillip’s arms behind him. Murmuring to Nicole to stay put, Rayna hurried over and slapped her handcuffs on Phillip.
Rayna thumbed her radio, calling for backup even as she moved Nicole toward the back door. Hopefully the ambulance from earlier would still be on scene—if not, she’d have to ask for another one.
Larry and Tom burst through the back door. “Sheriff’s Office,” Larry shouted. His eyes widened as he caught sight of Parker, still standing behind a cuffed and subdued Phillip.
“Looks like you have everything under control,” Larry drawled.
“Read the prisoner his rights and take him downtown for booking,” Rayna ordered. “Is the ambulance still here?”
“No, ma’am. Would you like me to call for another?” Tom asked.
“No.” Rayna reached a snap decision. “Parker and I will take Nicole to the hospital ourselves.”
Since Nicole was too weak to walk very far, Parker carried her outside, depositing her gently in the back seat of Rayna’s cruiser. Through all of this, Nicole had remained very stoic, but she broke down in the back of the patrol car, sobbing incoherently all the wa
y to the hospital.
Using lights and sirens, Rayna got them there in less than ten minutes. She’d called ahead, letting the ER know they were en route. As soon as they pulled up, an orderly hurried over with a wheelchair and they whisked Nicole back, leaving Rayna and Parker to fill out paperwork the best they could.
Once this task had been completed, they were directed to sit in the waiting area.
“She wouldn’t even talk to me,” Parker said, his expression agonized.
“She didn’t talk to anyone,” Rayna pointed out. “Most likely, she’s in shock. Think about what an ordeal she’s been through.”
Parker nodded and pulled out his phone, staring at it for a moment before he shook his head and slid it back into his pocket. “I can’t even call John and let him know we found her. Not until I know more about her condition. I’m sure he’ll have a lot of questions.”
“Just wait a bit. Once she’s been checked out, you can call him. Maybe Nicole will even be able to talk to him. No doubt he’d love to hear her voice.” She touched his shoulder. “How about I go get us some coffee or something?”
“Sure. Coffee would be great.”
Like many hospitals, this one had installed a small Starbucks to the side of the main lobby. Rayna got two coffees, doctored hers up the way she liked it and left his black. When she returned to the waiting room, Parker wasn’t there.
“He got to go back,” the charge nurse told her. “I can buzz you back there, too, if you’d like. They’re in room 9.”
After pushing through the double doors, Rayna located room 9 and headed that way.
She paused in the doorway for a moment.
Seated at Nicole’s bedside, Parker looked exhausted. No doubt he’d welcome the jolt of caffeine from the coffee. Since his attention was fixed on the young girl sleeping so peacefully, Rayna studied the man she now knew she loved more than any other.
His cell phone rang, startling him and waking Nicole.
He answered and listened, going very pale. “Thank you,” he managed to say, clearly grappling with his emotions. “That was the hospital,” he told Nicole, who watched him, wide-eyed. “Your brother has slipped into a coma. They’re calling in hospice care.”
The young woman, who’d already been through so much, shook her head in denial. “No. Not yet. He can’t leave yet.” She began fussing with her IV, trying clumsily to remove it. “I need to get out of here. You’ve got to take me to see him.”
“You’re not going anywhere right now,” a nurse said, coming through the doorway just in time to witness Nicole’s feeble attempt at escape. “You’re severely dehydrated and have several infected wounds. You need fluids, antibiotics and rest.”
Nicole lifted her chin. Though clearly still weak, she strengthened her voice. “My brother is dying. I need to see him before he passes.”
The nurse stared. She appeared torn between sympathizing and doing her job.
“The hospital just called,” Parker explained. “He’s slipped into a coma and they’ve transferred him to a hospice care center. We don’t know how much longer he has, but his one request was to see his baby sister before he died.”
Though the nurse looked down, she didn’t respond.
Rayna took the nurse’s arm and steered her into the hall. “I’m sure you’re aware of the circumstances behind your patient’s condition,” she began. “She was held prisoner by a serial killer for several weeks. Is there any way we can get her discharged with medication? We need to get in the car and start the drive to Dallas before it’s too late.”
After a moment, the silver-haired woman nodded. “Give me ten minutes. Let me see what I can do.”
Rayna thanked her, resisting the urge to ask if she meant ten minutes in hospital time or ten minutes in real time. Instead, she went back inside the room and told Parker and Nicole what the nurse had said.
Nicole nodded, biting her lip.
“I need to take a statement from you,” Rayna said softly. “We can talk in private if you like.”
Glancing at Parker, Nicole sighed. “He can stay. After what I’ve been through, it hardly matters who hears about it.”
Rayna got out her phone. “Do I have your permission to record?”
“Of course.” Nicole took a deep breath and began.
Phillip had pulled up right after she’d taken the photo with the city-limits sign and posted it on Instagram and Facebook. He’d asked her if she was lost and when she’d told him she wasn’t, they’d chatted a bit about the weather and the town’s history. She’d mentioned Myrna and been stunned when he told her Myrna was his mother.
Starstruck, of course she’d jumped at the chance to meet her idol. She’d agreed to follow Phillip to his place, unaware of what would happen once she did.
Instead of meeting the famous advice columnist, she’d been drugged and imprisoned. There had been one other girl there, sick and weak and seemingly on the verge of succumbing to her illness.
Horrified, Nicole had realized Phillip had not only duped her, but would most likely kill her. Even though she’d tried to run away with her phone recording the chase, after her capture, her phone had disappeared and she had no idea what had happened to her car.
Somehow, Nicole managed to tell them all of her story, only breaking down a few times, but visibly pulling herself together. She was overjoyed to hear that Donella had made it out safely and heartbroken to learn about the bodies in the unmarked graves.
“It’s over now,” Parker said, patting her shoulder. “Now all we need to do is get you to Dallas to see John one last time.”
A light tap on the door had them all looking up. True to her word, the nurse had reappeared, a white-coated doctor in tow. A few minutes later, discharge papers were signed, a prescription handed over, and the nurse offered to help Nicole get dressed.
Nicole looked stricken. “I don’t have any clothes.”
“Yes, you do.” Rayna pointed to the suitcase she’d placed near the window. “We recovered your things from the house. We knew it was yours because it had Texas Tech stickers all over it.”
Eyeing her luggage, Nicole’s eyes filled with tears. “Thank you so much.”
“No tears.” Gently, Rayna hugged her. “Would you like me or your nurse to help you?”
“I can do it myself,” Nicole said. “But thank you for offering.” Moving slowly, she gingerly got out of the bed and stood, narrowing her eyes for a moment while she regained her equilibrium.
Parker jumped up immediately and went to her side, offering his arm in case she needed his assistance.
“I’ve got this,” she declared. When she reached her suitcase, she wobbled just the tiniest bit before taking the handle and lifting it off the chair.
After that, since it had wheels, Nicole only had to pull it along behind her as she headed toward the bathroom.
“She’s a strong person,” Rayna commented.
When Parker looked at her, the pain in his eyes made her catch her breath. “So is her brother. Damn, I’m not ready for this.”
She went to him then, and wrapped her arms around him tightly, offering comfort the only way she knew how. He held her back, rigid in his sorrow, though he finally relaxed slightly.
“I’ll be back,” he told her, his breath warm against her ear. “After this is over...” His voice broke. Pulling away, he visibly steadied himself. “I’ll come back to you.”
Heart breaking, she nodded. “I’ll be waiting,” she promised. “No matter how long it takes.”
Since all Parker had was his Harley and Nicole wasn’t in any condition to ride on the back of the bike, Rayna drove him to Parra’s Used Cars on the south side of town. He eyed the car Rayna suggested—a sturdy Volvo with only seventy-two thousand miles on it, and the vehicle he clearly wanted to buy, a late-model black Camaro. Even Nicole’s eyes lit up when she
saw it.
Parker haggled a little bit and finally struck up an agreement to purchase the Camaro. Rayna walked with him next door to the bank, where he got a cashier’s check, and returned to finalize the deal.
“We’re going to leave from here,” he said, checking his watch. “Hopefully, we can be in Dallas before dark. I don’t know what the hospice care center’s rules are on visiting, but we’ll try our best to get in. I’m not sure he’ll even know we’re there. He’s been in and out of consciousness, but now seems to be completely unresponsive.”
Nodding, she gave him a quick hug and then turned and did the same for Nicole. “Y’all drive safely,” she said and turned and walked away without a backward look.
She didn’t cry until she pulled up in her driveway. Then and only then did she allow her pent-up emotions to spill out.
The biggest case of her career had been solved and, even though the FBI would take custody of Phillip Maple, the arrest had been made by her department, on her watch.
Still, she wept for all that had come before—the murdered girls and for what they’d endured at Phillip’s hands. While she couldn’t go back in time and save them, she could only hope justice would prevail and Phillip would pay for what he’d done.
By some miracle, Parker had found Nicole alive, which had been the only reason he’d come to Getaway in the first place. Whether or not he’d come back, she didn’t know, but either way, she’d found the love of her life and would be forever changed.
When she’d cried herself out, she used a makeup-removal wipe from her purse to clean up her mascara. Then she took a deep breath, straightened her shoulders and got out of the car to head into her house and rejoin her family. As she had in the past, she’d make sure neither Wanda nor Lauren realized anything was amiss. After all, as far as they’d be concerned, she had a lot to celebrate. So she would, keeping a smile on her face even if it killed her.
Chapter 16
One of the most emotional moments of Parker’s entire life was watching his best friend’s eyes flutter open at the sound of his baby sister’s voice. “Nicole?” John had rasped, squinting up at her from his hospital bed. “Are you really here?”
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