Expired Game (Last Chance County Book 5)

by Lisa Phillips

  “It’s… Jess.”

  “I’ll trace the call, find your location, and send someone to you.”

  “The lake. West side, right in the corner.”

  “I’m putting the call out now. Hang on.”

  She was grateful for his quick thinking and explained to him what had happened. When she explained about the fire chief, she heard him bite back a word he wanted badly to say but knew he shouldn’t.

  “Just as long as you’re all okay.” Then he muttered. Finally, he said, “This is going to take a long time to unravel. An underwater facility?”

  “Given Pierce Cartwright and his crazy ideas about keeping people in captivity, it doesn’t seem quite so bizarre.” She had to suck in a few breaths after the exertion of getting all those words out.

  “I still don’t like it,” Conroy said.

  She figured it didn’t matter whether he liked it or not, the truth was just the truth. Though, everyone in town would have to deal with that since Steven Hilden was a local hero. No one would easily accept the fact he was the one who had been West all along.

  She turned the corner and the lake came into view. Dean was kneeling over a man on the ground, punching him over and over again while Ellie sat a few feet away, her eyes wide as she watched.

  “Dean!” Jess yelled his name so that he could hear. So he’d be distracted and realize he’d probably punched this man more than enough times. When he looked at her, she said, “Conroy is on his way.”

  She wanted to ask them all where Ted was, but Dean had his full attention on the man who had tried to abduct Ellie.

  Dean called out over his shoulder. “Where’s the other guy?”

  “I killed him.”

  Her future brother-in-law looked like he wanted to do the same with the man he had. But didn’t.

  On the phone, Conroy said, “Everyone available is on their way.”

  “Thanks, Chief.” Jess turned, looking all around to find Ted. Where was he? Dean wouldn’t have left him to drown for the sake of saving Ellie, right? Then again, she had no idea.

  “Jess.”

  She realized Conroy had been talking to her. “What?”

  “Are you guys all okay?”

  “I can’t find Ted. I don’t know where he —”

  Stephen Hilden stepped into view.

  Jess nearly dropped the phone, but managed to tell Conroy, “Hilden is here.” And speaking of, the man had a gun pointed at Ellie. She blinked, and he shifted it between the three of them. Equal opportunity with his aim.

  Conroy said, “Two minutes.”

  “Hang up the phone.” The man who was West, who hurt and sold people for financial gain, pointed the gun at her.

  She heard Conroy say, “Don’t —”

  Jess didn’t end the call. She tossed the phone to the ground. They could continue to track her location here. All she had to do was keep him from shooting anyone for the next two minutes.

  And Hilden looked like he thought he had all the time in the world.

  Ellie whimpered. Dean stood, moving his weight off the unconscious man on the ground. Did he have a gun? She prayed Dean had grabbed one from the man’s body. She’d left the other one with the man she’d killed, not wanting to touch his weapon after she had already used hers to shoot him.

  She hadn’t thought she would have to try and kill someone else tonight.

  Of course, that meant, once again, she was a complete and total failure at keeping people from being killed. If Hilden decided to shoot, she would have no way to stop him from taking a life.

  Jess lifted both hands, palms out. “Don’t shoot.” She wanted to ask him what he wanted, but the words just wouldn’t come out. She was more likely to sag onto the ground right now, into a heap, unable to move.

  Hilden pointed the gun at Dean. “You, back up. Ms. Ellie comes with me.”

  He reacted at the same time Jess did. She said, “No way. I’ll go with you, but you aren’t touching Ellie.”

  She knew Dean felt the same way as her. Help us find a way to take him down. To not let him hurt anyone.

  Ellie backed away from Hilden, toward where Jess stood.

  “I will shoot both of them if you don’t walk toward me.”

  Ellie shook her head. Jess grasped her sister’s hand and, in one fell swoop, swung her around behind her while she stepped in front.

  Just as the gun went off.

  The explosion erupted into her chest, and everything went black.

  Thirty-four

  Ted flinched as the sound of a gunshot echoed across the shoreline. He heard a woman scream, then a serious commotion.

  “Keep going.”

  Ted lifted his hands an inch higher. Whatever it took for his father to think he was cooperating. Dear old dad had found him on the shore and dragged him to his feet. Ted should have played dead, since he was pretty sure now that if his father had been forced to carry him, Pierce Cartwright would have just left him there.

  Though, he would likely have killed Ted right then and there since he couldn’t take him with.

  Like he was trying to do now.

  “As if I’m going to let Steven Hilden kill my sons,” the old man muttered behind him.

  “He was going to drown us in that facility.”

  Pierce huffed. “But you escaped.”

  “You gave him the plans, right? That’s how he got this whole place built down there.”

  “Plans? It’s my facility, you should know since you’ve seen it for yourself. It was my pride and joy, back in the day. Some of my first operations happened in that place. In some ways, it’s going to be my crowning achievement forever, regardless of what else I manage to achieve.”

  Multiple gunshots echoed to him. A woman screamed, “Jess!”

  Ted’s footsteps faltered.

  “Move it.” Pierce shoved him in the back with the barrel of his gun.

  Ted glanced over his shoulder at his father.

  “You think I’m going to let an asset like you slip through my fingers?”

  Ted swallowed. “Someone will be looking for me. Kind of like how the FBI is looking for you.”

  Pierce chuckled.

  Evidently he didn’t consider the feds he’d escaped from to be much of a threat.

  “They’ll think you drowned in the lake.”

  Ted pressed his lips into a thin line. It was that or rage at his dad. Actually, maybe he should do that. Making a lot of noise might help now. He’d tried it before when he first saw his father standing over him. Didn’t work then, but this could be different. It might.

  Please.

  Pierce stabbed his back with the gun, and Ted took another few steps. “They’ll spend days dredging the bottom of the lake for your body, trying to figure out what happened.”

  Ted’s body shuddered. Dean. His brother would believe he’d died.

  A tear rolled down his face. By the time they realized he wasn’t in the water still, he would be long gone. Captive to Pierce Cartwright—again. “I don’t want to go with you. I never wanted to stay with you, and I won’t do anything for you.”

  Pierce chuckled. “Did you practice that?”

  Ted spun around. “I hate you!”

  His father’s expression darkened, and he swung the gun at Ted’s head. He lifted his arm to counteract the blow, but it was with his wrapped wrist—the sprained one.

  Pain shot up his arm. Ted fell to his knees and threw up—mostly lake water. He gulped a few heaving breaths until his father kicked him in the ribs.

  “Get up. It’s time to go.”

  “Sorry.” Ted looked up at him, not sorry at all. “Didn’t realize we were on a timetable.”

  “You’ve gotten mouthy since I saw you last.”

  Ted said nothing, bile in his mouth and tears still drying on his face. He sat back, holding his injured arm to his front.

  Jess had been bleeding. Her arm. She had a staple in her head. And now she’s been shot. He hardly wanted to even think ab
out seeing her fall. She was dead. That was all there was to it. Nothing to be done, no way to get her back.

  Dead in her uniform, killed in the line of duty while bringing down the town’s worst enemy.

  She’d have liked that.

  Ted wanted to have that kind of parting satisfaction. “Just kill me.” Someone would hear the shot. They would come running, right? The FBI would get Pierce back, and he’d die knowing he had a hand in bringing his father down.

  A man whose stain infected those around him. But no more, Ted didn’t want anything to do with Pierce this time around. He hadn’t exactly been a willing participant before, but he had no intention of being a witness to his destruction. His dad wasn’t going to take him anywhere.

  Ted wanted the chance to choose his future. Whether that was five minutes or fifty years, it would be up to him.

  And no one else.

  He was done being controlled.

  “Get up.” Pierce waved the gun at him.

  “No. I won’t go with you.” Ted lifted his chin. “Last Chance is my home.”

  “You’re gonna stay here? This place is a joke. Why do you think I left the first moment I could?”

  “On to bigger and better things?” Ted planned to drag the conversation out long enough for someone to find him.

  “Well, yeah. The founders do whatever they want. The cops think they’re making a difference, but they’re not. Small time, every bit of it.”

  “And you’ve made a name for yourself in much bigger things.”

  “There could be more for you if you get on board again.”

  Ted shook his head. “I was never on board. You have to know that.”

  “A moral failing on your part,” Pierce said. “Now’s the time to change your mind. Or I can put you through a program. That’ll change it for you.”

  Ted’s body stiffened.

  “They’re very good at what they do. But you’ll probably not enjoy the experience, so it’s best to just comply.” His dad looked like he might feel bad about making Ted go through something like that. Despite all he’d done, and the countless people he’d hurt, it seemed Pierce Cartwright had some feeling for his youngest son.

  “You’ve done enough to hurt me, don’t you think?”

  Pierce huffed.

  “Just leave me alone now.” Ted looked at the trees beside the hiking trail. “I’m tired of you, and all the pain you cause.” Let his dad think he’d hurt Ted more thoroughly than he’d imagined.

  He would either walk away, or he would suddenly decide he didn’t care after all.

  Ted wasn’t sure which way it would go. “I’m not leaving with you. You’re nothing but a sociopath. I won’t be a part of any of it.”

  “Well, I need your expertise, so I guess you have no choice.” Pierce shifted, a rustle of clothing. He was growing impatient. “You think they’ll take you in after they find out what you’ve done?”

  “I think they’ll be hurt,” Ted said. “But they’ll forgive me. That’s what family does. Something you know nothing about.”

  Pierce huffed. It sounded vaguely like a chuckle.

  “Just go now. Because I’ll never go with you. It was a waste of time, you coming back here.” All his father had done was ruin Ted’s life further.

  “That’s a shame.” Pierce shook his head. “I would’ve given you the world.”

  One that was truly demented. A world where his father had planned to terrorize Kaylee into being his wife, all because Pierce had some sick obsession with her mother back in the day. “I don’t want anything to do with your world.”

  “I guess I’ll have to make things a bit clearer to you then.”

  Ted stilled.

  “You don’t have a choice. So let’s go.”

  Thirty-five

  “Help me.”

  Conroy huffed but did as Jess asked. He held her upright while she stumbled to Steven Hilden. Pain sliced through her chest with every gasp.

  She grumbled. “Why does no one say getting shot in the vest hurts so much? Gah. It feels like I broke my sternum.”

  “That’s why EMTs are here to help you.”

  “I just want to talk to him.” She stumbled to the grass beside the fire chief and knelt. “Hilden.”

  He gasped. Blood covered his chest from where they’d taken him down after he first shot Jess. Thank You, God. She’d been wearing her vest.

  The last thing she’d done before being captured and put in that underwater facility was put on a vest and walk through that building with Basuto.

  She whirled around to Conroy, pain slicing through her. Jess gasped. “Basuto.”

  “Hit in the vest. He’s here, somewhere.”

  There was another thing, a thought that began to stir in her head. But when she opened her mouth to speak, the thought evaporated. She closed it again and shook her head…whatever she had thought was so important, it was gone now. Chased away by more pain. Her grandpa always told her that if it was important enough, the thought would resurface. She let that settle her for the time being.

  “You’re a mess.” Conroy shook his head. “Whatever you’ve got on your to-do list, it happens in the next thirty seconds, and then you’re going to the hospital.” Before she could ask, he added, “We’ll find Ted. They’re already looking for him.”

  Jess nodded. That was good, she was glad they were looking for Ted. Trying to figure how he got lost in all the confusion.

  She turned to Hilden.

  Conroy cut into her thoughts. “What are you doing?”

  She didn’t look at Conroy but answered his question. “I want to talk to him.” Jess put her hand on Hilden’s arm, ignoring the sharp pain in her shredded forearm. She seriously needed a new bandage. Dry clothes. Medicine. And then about six months of vacation time. “Hilden.”

  He gasped. The man didn’t have much time left, considering all the damage from those gunshots. Blood bubbled on his lips.

  She glanced at the closest EMT. He shook his head. She turned back to Steven Hilden and saw his gaze had snagged on her. Face pale. Seconds left to live. “I want to hear you say it.”

  Behind her, a man sighed. “Why can’t someone just put him out of his misery?”

  Jess leaned down to the fire chief. “Are you West?” She wanted to hear him say it. “It’s all over for you, but you can do this one last thing right. Tell me. Are you West?”

  She wanted to tell him to just admit it already. But he might fess up just to get her to stop asking. Even if he did confess, this wouldn’t exactly be a lawful confession. Still, she wanted to hear it from his lips.

  Hilden’s lips spread into a bloody smile. “West.” His chest shook, as though that was funny. “She…”

  He coughed. His whole body jerked, and he gasped. This one more desperate than the last.

  A second later, the life bled from his eyes the way it seeped from his wounds.

  Conroy laid his hand on her shoulder. “He’s dead.” The chief didn’t allow her to do anything else, he simply hauled her up in his arms. As though she couldn’t walk herself. Which was probably true, if she was being honest.

  Jess allowed her whole body to sag in his arms, her forehead resting against his neck. “Where’s Ted?”

  “I know,” he crooned as he walked toward the ambulance. “Don’t worry about Ted.”

  “You know Basuto isn’t a traitor, right?” Was that it? The thought she’d had was about Basuto, the memory of concern for her sergeant. Or someone related… Someone who had also been shot.

  “Yes, I do.”

  There was something else he wasn’t saying, but she couldn’t put her finger on it. At least he knew. Meanwhile, Jess couldn’t get her mind to process the thought fully enough to say it aloud. Something wasn’t adding up in her brain.

  She spotted some FBI agents and tried to shift out of Conroy’s arms, not fully realizing what she was doing. “They need to find Pierce. He has to have Ted.”

  Where else would he be right
now?

  “I’ll tell them.” He sounded like he was simply trying to placate her. “You need to be in the hospital, Jess. It’s time to lay down the fight and let us take over.”

  He was mad. She knew he was.

  Because she hadn’t told them all her concerns? Because she hadn’t brought them in to help when things got hot. He had to know she wasn’t wired that way. This was a fight that belonged to her and Ted.

  Jess lifted both hands. She realized then that she was barely walking on her own. Her feet were only slightly touching the ground he was holding her so tightly upright. Shoving away all other thoughts except what needed her attention, she clutched Conroy’s cheeks. “Find Pierce.” No, that wasn’t it. “Get Ted back.”

  “You get in that ambulance. Don’t worry about Ted, we’ll get him back for you. Okay?” He still sounded like he thought she was simply overly distraught and should only be told what was absolutely necessary right now. That she wasn’t capable of handling any kind of truth.

  “Find. Him.” He had to understand, and saying that was the only way she was willing to get in the ambulance and concede the fact she couldn’t go after Ted herself. Where are you? She knew something was wrong. She could feel it.

  “I know you’re worried about him. But don’t be.”

  Strong arms assisted her into the ambulance, and a man said, “I’ll get her statement. You find your guy, but keep me posted on the hunt for Pierce Cartwright.”

  Jess frowned. The EMT had her lay back. She stared up at his face, her attention snagging on his shirt collar. Why would…

  Her head swam. He patted her shoulder. “Just rest. We’ll have you taken care of in no time.”

  Jess briefly wondered where her sister was, too. She opened her eyes and lifted her head off the bed. She saw Ellie standing beside Mia just for a fleeting second before the chief closed the doors. The FBI agent settled across from her.

  She sighed. What was Jenkins doing here? He’d been shot. He had to know there was no strength left in her to give a statement right now. And the last thing she wanted to do was go over everything. Ted was still out there. Until she knew he was all right, she hardly wanted to think about anything different. Or do much else besides praying for him and the cops and agents trying to find him.