House at Road's End

by Peggy Staggs

  We both stared at him.

  I shook my head. “I’m fine. Nothing a nice hot bath and some aspirin won’t fix. I don’t have any major holes in me.”

  To the EMT Jack said, “Give us a minute.” He reached out and pulled me over to him. “We did it. We got Ralph’s killer. Some of Brad’s men are arresting Lansky and Max Jessen right now. And,” he gave me the grin that melted my brain, “You shot the piece of garbage who blew up my truck. All in all, not a bad day.” He pulled me closer. “It’s all over.”

  Every emotion I’d felt in the last week cascaded through me. Grief, uncertainty, fear, anger, and desire came at me from every direction, crashing in the middle leaving me paralyzed from the onslaught.

  “Ens?”

  “Jack,” was all I could manage.

  He smiled. “Now, with all the business over.” He tugged me closer. “We don’t have to—” He pulled me so close, I could feel his breath on my face.

  My heart raced.

  “Trace. I see you’re busted again. I’d think out here in the country that wouldn’t happen as much.” The man in charge walked over to us. He didn’t take his eyes off me.

  “Brad Hughes, Ensley Markus. Brad here comes around every once in a while for poker lessons.”

  “It’s nice to meet you,” I said.

  “I thought I’d let you know we had a look at the thumb drive. The General never lost a step. He laid out the whole operation for us. Crazy old bastard. All he had to do was call me.” He shook his head. “All that’s left to do is to scoop up the scum. That’s going to take a while. This went a lot higher than the locals.”

  “I don’t think he put it all together until two weeks ago,” Jack said. “Right before he disappeared.”

  Brad nodded. “Trace, job offer is still open.”

  “Brad, you know me, I’m just a small town guy.”

  “Right. I see your small town.” He hadn’t taken his eyes off me. “And I can’t raise it. Just say the word if you get...but you won’t. ”

  Chapter Thirty

  Jane met me in the kitchen of the B&B. “There you are. I heard about the shooting on the mountain. You okay? Jack okay?”

  “I’m fine. I can’t say the same for Jack.”

  She nodded. “Shot up his truck.”

  “They didn’t do much for him, either.”

  “I got the rooms ready for the guests.”

  “We’ve got more people coming?”

  “Jack’s friend Brad and a couple of his men will be here for a while. They’ve got some ends to tie up. Things are picking up. I talked to Mr. Tyson this morning. Seems he’s a big shot and they’re going to reopen the resort.”

  “Jane, that’s amazing.” I slumped against the counter.

  “What about Jack?”

  “They’re trying to get him to stay a couple of days in the hospital in Mullen.”

  “I can’t see that turning out well.” She smiled.

  “I wish he would. His shoulder needs surgery and he’s got a pretty good sized gash in his leg.”

  “You going to do it?”

  “Jane. I can’t practice here. Besides, I don’t have the expertise to repair his shoulder. The gash is nasty but it’s outpatient.” I paused. “I’ve spent my whole career in a lab. I loved the research, finding the last piece of the puzzle. Now, I don’t know. I’ve got some hard decisions to make.”

  “I don’t know about that. I do know hearts change. Lives that once were, fade when new possibilities present themselves.”

  “That’s very profound.”

  “Not me. Your dad. Always said one of the best times of his life was spent here. Don’t know why. It’s just a little town in the middle of nowhere.”

  “I need to get to Mullen. May I borrow your truck? My car is still on the hill.”

  “You should go take care of yourself.” She smiled. “You’ve looked better.”

  “I was so worried about...everything.” My jacket was filthy, my sweater barely hung together. “I’m going to take a shower.”

  “You take a nap, too. I’ll call you if anything happens.”

  “You can’t. My cell phone is crushed. It’s in the bottom of my backpack, up on the hill somewhere. I’m sorry, but so is your cooler. Besides, I should go protect the doctors from Jack.”

  “I can always get new things. You go to Jack. I’ll take care of things here.”

  With Jane in charge, I hurried to take a shower and get to Mullen. When I got home later I was going to soak in a hot tub until my skin wrinkled.

  The day had turned soft and comfortable. Jack was going to be fine, and we were both still alive. We’d found Dad’s killers. I opened the front door to Glenn House. “Jane must have left it open.” I pulled it shut behind me. “I wonder if the rest of the doors are open.”

  “No. They aren’t.”

  The male voice came from behind me.

  I whipped around to find Kenny standing in the library.

  “You scared me.” I struggled to remain calm.

  “I told you when you first got here to leave. Now, it’s too late.” He stumbled toward me.

  “You’re the one behind the threatening phone call.”

  He nodded. “You’ve ruined everything. They’re coming for you next.” He leaned hard against the doorjamb.

  His face was pale.

  “Are you threatening me again?” I heard a splat, like water dripping from a faucet. Behind him on the floor was a dark spot. Blood.

  “It’s a warning.” He grabbed at the stair handrail.

  I took a step toward him. “Kenny.”

  He tilted forward, grabbed for the entry table, and fell. There, sticking out of his back was a knife.

  I pushed the table aside. He was still breathing. “Stay still. I’m going for help.”

  “Tell Jack I’m sorry. I didn’t—”

  “Stay with me, Kenny.”

  His eyes turned glassy and sightless. I put my fingers to his neck. No pulse.

  “This can’t be. It’s supposed to be all over.”

  “Oh, it’s far from over.” Max Jessen and the cowboy Cid stood in the library doorway.

  “The FBI is after you.”

  “All they’re going to find is you and Kenny. This’ll going to work nicely. You killed Kenny because he knew the truth about Ralph and the identity theft. You couldn’t live with the disgrace and killed yourself.”

  “That’s your brilliant plan? Come up with it all by yourself? You know we found the evidence Dad uncovered. Besides, if you kill me, there’s going to be at least two powerful men after you.” At least, I hoped Don would care a little. Even after our conversation on the hill. And...

  “You mean Trace.” Cid laughed.

  “Your boyfriend is as good as dead. He’ll never make it to Mullen.”

  Oh, God. I got to my feet. Jack was helpless. He thought it was all over too. His guard would be down. I’d left him in the hands of the EMT. He was supposed to be safe.

  Cid grabbed my arm and wrenched it behind me. “You’re awful pretty.”

  “Cid, knock it off. We’ve got to get out of here.”

  I had no weapon, I hurt everywhere, and I was outnumbered. These guys were so pissing me off.

  Max pulled out a pistol and held it up to my head.

  I am my father’s child. I wasn’t going to go out like a damn sacrificial lamb. Besides, I had to get to Jack.

  I saw the hammer move.

  I wrenched down and out of Cid’s grasp as Max fired. I felt Cid’s blood splatter on my face. I rammed my good shoulder into Max’s crotch. He went down, dropping the gun.

  I grabbed the weapon. “Get to your feet, you lousy piece of crap,” My vocabulary had hit an all-time low.

  “You’re not going to get away with this. I have men outside.”

  “Maybe, but if I go, you go. Move.”

  I marched him back to the B&B. “Jane.”

  She ran out the backdoor as Brad pulled into the drive
way.

  He jumped from his truck. “What the hell?”

  I didn’t have time to explain. I ran past him and jumped into his still-running truck. “There are a couple of bodies in Glenn House. I’m sorry, Jane.” I slammed the truck in reverse, whipped it around and floored it.

  I had to catch the EMTs.

  Chapter Thirty-one

  Wiping Cid’s blood from my face I sped along the road.

  I knew the truck had lights and sirens, but I had no idea how to turn them on. Instead I kept the gas pedal pressed hard to the floor. I hoped no one got in my way. My shoulder began to throb. “Damn it. This man is so trouble.”

  I skidded around a corner. I knew I should slow down. But today was another day of firsts. I’d never wrenched my shoulder, shot a man at point blank range, taken a man at gunpoint, stolen a truck or driven a hundred miles an hour. I figured the day wasn’t over.

  Ahead, I saw the emergency vehicle from up on the mountain. They were driving without lights or siren. I came up behind them fast. Too fast. I slammed on the breaks and honked the horn. They didn’t pull over.

  How was I going to get this guy to stop? I laid on the horn. As if a bad guy was going to pull over for honking. My choices were limited. Follow him until we got to Mullen—which could be too late. Or run him off the road—which could kill them all. What if someone got in the way? I couldn’t chance it. Or block the road.

  I had to stop them. I couldn’t let him get to town. I remembered the bridge not far ahead.

  Block the road it was. It had to work.

  What more could happen? Jack could already be dead. That might be why I’d been able to catch them. I jammed my foot against the gas pedal as hard as I could. I sped past them. I couldn’t take my eyes from the road. At this speed, things came and went so fast.

  Slamming on the breaks I pulled the truck across both lanes. The only way around me was go in the water.

  With mere seconds, I searched for a weapon. “These guys go big.” I glanced at a rifle in a sheath. If I had to fire it, the pain would knock me out and all would be lost. There on the front seat was a forty cal. “It’ll kick, but I don’t have to put my shoulder into it. This could work.”

  Sliding out the door I ran to the front of the truck. This was it.

  Again.

  I leveled the gun at the driver. I widened my stance and braced for the pain I knew would come.

  He wasn’t stopping.

  Shit.

  He wasn’t going to stop.

  I aimed for the radiator. Moving targets are so hard to hit when they’re coming straight at you at highway speeds. I didn’t want to put the slug through the windshield. I held my breath and fired.

  The recoil knocked my hand back. I aimed and fired again. Tears of pure fear blurred my vision. The truck slowed and stopped.

  “Get out. Now! Both of you.”

  The driver opened the door.

  “The guy in the back too. Now!”

  No one came out of the back. “I’ll shoot you if he doesn’t get out here.”

  The driver called to his partner, “She’s going to shoot me, man. Get out here.”

  Nothing.

  I couldn’t see in the back. There were no windows in the side.

  “Move.” I motioned for the driver to go to the back of the ambulance.

  He pounded on the side of the vehicle. “Arnie, get the hell out here.”

  More nothing.

  The driver looked from me to the backdoor. He reached up and pulled it open. “What the hell are you—”

  The man in the back of the ambulance raised a bloody scalpel as if to strike again.

  God. No. I was too late.

  I fired into the asphalt.

  The man with the scalpel turned.

  “Get the hell out or the next one goes right through your head.”

  He dropped the weapon, raised his hands and moved toward me. It was a small ambulance. As he stepped out I grabbed his arm and threw him to the ground.

  “Hands behind your heads.” Now what? I didn’t know if I could hold on until someone got there.

  I had to see about Jack. I wasn’t sure I could.

  I steeled myself. Adrenaline still pumped through me. “Don’t move. I’ll shoot you both.”

  I heard a sound behind me. I hadn’t counted on a third man. Had he been in the front? No.

  “Ens, I could use a little help here.” Somehow he’d managed to get out of the back.

  “Jack, you’re alive.” I left the idiots on the ground.

  He slumped against the back step, blood ran down his chest.

  One of the men started to get up.

  “Oh, please give me an excuse,” I said. It wasn’t as strong as I’d intended, but my only source of power was ebbing. I was running low on adrenalin. I’d already laid the gun down and grabbed a compress. “Get back down there.”

  The sound of screeching tires cut through my words.

  “Trace, your damn girlfriend stole my damn truck.”

  What was it with these guys and their trucks? “You can have it back, now.” My hands shook and my legs were turning rubbery. I struggled to stay on my feet.

  Jack kept me from falling.

  “They were going to kill you before you got to Mullen.”

  “They tried.” He watched me press the pad to his reopened wound. “I’m not that easy to kill.”

  I had no idea how he was still conscious let alone upright. “Did he stab you or is this you tearing my stitched open again?”

  “Sorry. I ripped them again.”

  “You two leave quite the body count in your wake,” Brad said. “Get this garbage off the road,” he yelled at one of his men.

  “Have you been shooting people?” Jack asked. He put his arm around me and I winced as he brushed my shoulder.

  “I didn’t shoot anyone. Max Jessen killed Kenny and shot Cid in the head.”

  “And the shoulder?”

  “You noticed.”

  “Ens, you’re pale.”

  “I couldn’t stand there and let Max shoot me in the head.” I changed the compress.

  Jack looked at Brad. “See, a reasonable explanation.”

  “You two are giving me a headache and causing me a ton of paperwork. I don’t like paperwork.” He looked at the truck. “I’ve got another ambulance on the way. You two promise not to shoot anyone else on the way to the hospital? Good.” He turned and walked to his truck and pulled it to the side of the road.

  “He’s grumpy. I didn’t hurt his truck.”

  “He’s always been touchy.”

  The quiet streets of Mullen lay just across the bridge.

  »§«

  The people at the hospital were very nice. They hurried Jack into surgery. It was going to take a while to repair his shoulder. I watched as they wheeled him down the hall.

  They immobilized my shoulder. The good news was it wasn’t dislocated. And I didn’t have the same aversion to pain medication Jack has.

  I walked out of the examination room to find Jane pacing. “There you are. I don’t like this business of people getting killed all over. That Max Jessen has always been a problem. I never liked him. He was a bully in school. I brought you clothes. Hope they’re okay.”

  I opened the bag and smiled. “They’re fine.”

  “He’s going to be okay, isn’t he?” She looked worried.

  “He’s going to be fine. His left shoulder is torn up, but he’s strong.”

  One of the nurses took pity on me and let me take a shower. In reality, she probably thought I’d contaminate the area with my filthy clothes. They were covered with dirt and blood. And what wasn’t ripped was unraveling.

  When I was dressed, and my shoulder back in the sling, I sat down next to Jane. “I’m sorry about Kenny. There wasn’t anything I could do for him. In the end he came to warn me.”

  “I know, Boss. Doc Grant said the same. My sister’s broken up. I’ll be going over there after breakfast
until the funeral. I need to be there for her.”

  I smiled at her. She was the best.

  We sat in the waiting room for what seemed like forever. Finally, a doctor came out and asked for me.

  “He wants to see you. I don’t have to tell you not to stay long.” He paused. “He said you were his doctor.”

  I figured he was going to say something about the quality of the care I’d given Jack or that I wasn’t licensed here. I was already to start with I’m-a-research-physician when he said, “You did a great job with what you had. How many times did he rip those stitches out?”

  “I lost count. Four or five I think.”

  “Most people wouldn’t have made it off that mountain.” He shook his head. “He’s a little groggy. I’d like him to keep him for two days, if he’ll stay.”

  I thanked him.

  I found Jack’s room. He had an IV in his good arm. His shoulder had a proper bandage on it. They had his leg elevated. His eyes were closed. I turned to go.

  “Ens, don’t go.”

  I went to his bedside. “You’re going to be here for a couple of days. I’ll go get Lois.”

  “Thank you.”

  “You need some rest.” I pulled the blanket up. “You’ve lost a lot of blood.”

  “I’m fine.” He reached out with his good hand and pulled me closer. “Ens, don’t leave.”

  “I’ll be back—”

  “You can’t leave.”

  “Jack, you need—”

  “I’m no good at this.” He shut his eyes. “Damn pain meds.”

  “We’ll talk later.” I wasn’t ready for this discussion.

  He turned as best he could. “I’m asking you not to leave town.”

  I felt my stupid face flush. “So much has happened. So fast. Now isn’t the time.” He wasn’t thinking straight. It was the pain medication.

  He pulled me to him. “No, now.”

  He kissed me.

  It wasn’t one of those kisses that curls your toes or takes your breath away. This one reached down inside me and grabbed my soul and held on tight. The memory of laying in his arms up on the mountain occupied every cell in my brain and body.

  The End

  About the Author

  After attending thirteen schools in twelve years I married Tim Staggs in 1971 and my life became much more stable. I went to three colleges in five years (Tim was an Architecture major and it’ was a five year degree then.) Tim still knows people he went to kindergarten with. I, on the other hand, have to think hard to remember in which state I went to kindergarten. Yes, my father was in the military and not just the military the Air Force (or the Chair Force as my son the Army Officer likes to call them.) I say that because I was in high school before I realized that people in the other services weren’t those who couldn’t get into the Air Force and civilians weren’t people who couldn’t get in to the military. And they say the Marines are the proud.