Love Inspired Suspense September 2015 #1

by Margaret Daley

  Let Tucker think he was scared. Jonah was merely biding his time, waiting for the man to make a mistake. One that would mean Jonah got the upper hand.

  God, help me choose wisely.

  The wrong opportunity would mean he’d let slip his intentions and likely be shot for trying to escape.

  Jonah kept moving back, scooting his hips and essentially dragging his legs with him. “If you kill me, the marshals won’t ever rest. They’ll hunt you forever. Doesn’t matter where you hide, they’ll dig you out. You can be sure of that.”

  “Brave words from a man with a gun to his face. Too bad you won’t be around to see your buddies play hero.” Tucker smirked. He scratched the gray stubble on his chin, pulled off his ball cap and resituated it. “Too bad. Too bad I have a place up north where no one will ever find me.”

  “You think they can’t track you in Washington, or are you thinking Alaska?” Jonah kept moving back until his hands found a wooden support beam. He stopped. “Or Canada? Pretty big country, but our extradition is tight. Not like you’d escape justice when you killed a federal agent.”

  Tucker tipped his head to the side. “Why are you assuming it’s only one?”

  He’d killed more? Jonah didn’t know the man’s history, beyond them discussing their military days as neighbors. He’d assumed—from his age—that Tucker was retired. But plenty of older people still worked these days. Did his nefarious business stretch beyond transporting exotic animals? With his military skills, it could even be possible Tucker was some kind of killer for hire.

  “For now, all you need to know is you’re going to die. You and your girl will be blamed for this.” With a sweep of his arm, he indicated the animals in the trailer. “I’ll simply be the frail old man who stumbled across a crime.”

  He was going to blame them for this? “Not going to play hero and pretend you caught us? Might be some money in a reward if you can return the zoo’s animals to the city.”

  Tucker snorted. “Maybe if these were the zoo’s animals. Except Shera, every single creature in that trailer is the real deal. Genuine one hundred percent tradable product. People don’t want sickly animals raised in captivity. Especially this dealer. He wants the rush of the wild.” Tucker made his opinion known about that, and it wasn’t complimentary to his client. “He’ll probably get bitten within a week.”

  Jonah felt around with his fingers, trying to find something sharp to cut the plastic tie. There. A jagged nail in the floor.

  “Too bad we’re closing up shop, moving it elsewhere, or I’d have been able to stick around and find out what happens to the dealer.”

  We?

  Jonah nodded slowly, like it’d dawned on him. “Didn’t figure you for the trader. Guess you’re the hired help, standing around waiting for the boss to show and pick up his animals.”

  “This isn’t a trade-off. This is closing up shop.” Tucker shifted his grip on the gun. “Tying up loose ends. But I guess you know that, don’t you? Fix’s big mouth and all. Not that we have to worry about that now.”

  Jonah’s gut churned. Tucker had already killed tonight, and Jonah was next. Then Elise.

  God, keep her safe.

  Nathan needed his mom. He’d be upset if Jonah died, but not the way he would grieve if Elise was killed tonight. Especially when Jonah would be left to deal with that failure to protect her. To look his nephew in the eye and know he’d destroyed the teenager’s world.

  Jonah lifted his chin. “There’s no way I’m going to let you walk out of here. You and whoever it is you’re working with.”

  “Big words from a big man, tied up, on the floor, about to get a bullet between the eyes.”

  Jonah shrugged one shoulder. “What are you waiting for?”

  The skin around Tucker’s eyes twitched. Jonah had succeeded in surprising him. But he wasn’t itching to die. He simply wanted Tucker to make his move, because the jagged edge of the nail was almost through his bindings.

  Tucker said, “Guess it’s time to die, then.”

  Jonah swung his leg up and across his body, catching the gun with his boot. He sprang from the floor, hands coming around to grab Tucker’s shoulders, bringing his knee up to slam in the shorter man’s stomach.

  Breath whooshed from Tucker’s mouth.

  The boom of a gunshot preceded a flash of pain in Jonah’s leg. He collapsed with a cry, hot blood flowing from the wound.

  Elise walked in the door.

  She had shot him?

  Then he saw the bigger man behind her. In a haze of pain he saw her being herded toward him by a man they’d all thought was dead.

  Tucker stepped forward. “Zane—”

  The man behind Elise lifted his gun and shot Tucker.

  *

  Elise ran to a hurt Jonah before Zane could stop her. She pulled off her sweater and pressed it against Jonah’s wound, tying the arms around his leg. She whimpered, making a point not to look at the dead man on the floor only a few paces from them.

  Jonah gritted his teeth against the pain.

  “Sorry.”

  Jonah grunted, but she could only think how he wouldn’t be mixed up in this if it wasn’t for her. He’d stuck around, making a point to step in and end it because of her. “I’m so sorry.”

  “Not your fault.” He bit the words out, and Elise’s heart turned over.

  She glanced back at Zane Ford, the former zookeeper. “How could you do this? You’re supposed to care for animals, how can you sell them like this? Given to people who, at best, have no clue the extent of how to care for them, and at worst will mistreat them in unimaginable ways.”

  She’d known Zane Ford before, years ago when she was a youth volunteer at the zoo, and he’d never had that hard, dead look in his eyes back then. He’d cared for the animals, and though he’d been aloof, she’d attributed that to the fact that he’d been in charge.

  “You think I wanted to waste my life in a worthless excuse for a zoo? It’s hardly big enough for more than a few goats and that old tiger.” He waved his arm at the tiger. The shotgun had been discarded in the grass on the way over to the barn in favor of a handgun. Both were scary enough.

  “Please.” Zane shook his head. “I have plans, and plans require cold hard cash I won’t get on city pay doing fund-raisers and schmoozing with small-town bigwigs, begging for money to pay for animal feed and basic repairs.”

  Elise glanced at Jonah. His eyes were open, and he mouthed, Are you okay?

  She blinked in affirmation while Zane kept talking. “This way there’s a whole lot less stink to shovel around. I deliver, and I get paid.”

  Elise wanted to throw up. She wanted to scream at Zane, but she kept her eyes on Jonah and not the crazy man still yelling, or the dead guy across the barn. She looked at the man she loved, bleeding out on the floor and mouthed, Parker.

  Jonah’s brow flickered for a second.

  Elise mouthed, Outside.

  Jonah needed hope, and the chance that Parker might have seen or heard Zane take her from Jonah’s barn just might be enough to get them through this. Jonah knew Parker had been with her, and if anyone could track a missing person it should be a former SEAL. Right?

  Zane had only dragged her across the field to Jonah’s neighbor’s barn. It was a couple of miles easy, but that was close in country like this.

  It shouldn’t take Parker long to find them.

  Jonah’s gaze caught hers again. “Run.” The word was a breathy whisper. “Run, Elise.”

  That was the second time tonight someone had told her to run. She looked at the only door, where Zane blocked the way with his loaded gun. Stairs in the opposite corner led up to a loft. Was there a window up there? It wouldn’t be the first time tonight she’d jumped. Could she chance—again—not breaking her leg? Jonah certainly couldn’t go, though. And she wasn’t likely to leave him here to die. So that idea was out.

  Besides, Jonah’s teammate should be here, as soon as he was done helping Hailey. Elise didn’t
know how to communicate that Parker might be two minutes, or ten. Taking a breath, Elise mouthed, Pray.

  Jonah immediately nodded. She’d heard him pray earlier, but it still surprised Elise. She was glad he was willing to trust God with the outcome of tonight. She hadn’t stopped praying since Jonah left, since he gave her that kiss that changed everything.

  Zane grabbed her arm and dragged her to her feet. She swung around fighting, despite the fact that he had a gun. Elise was done with this. She was ready to get out of here, and if she could help it, then she was going to do everything in her power. Zane whipped up the gun and slammed it into her temple before she could get her head out of the way.

  Elise dropped to her knees, stars in front of her eyes. She blinked and blinked. Even so it took minutes before she could see again.

  “Elise.” It was Jonah. “Elise!”

  She chanced a look at Jonah, which hurt. Fear for her was in his eyes. He’d sat up, looking like he was getting ready to come over to her.

  “No. Stay there.” He shouldn’t move, not with a wound.

  The sound of an engine firing brought her attention around the other direction. Fix’s truck pulled out, spewing gravel and exhaust fumes into the barn. Zane parked, and a door slammed before he got into a different vehicle and backed it up to Fix’s trailer.

  Elise couldn’t let him get the animals. She wasn’t going to let him take them and sell them. He was done with his evil business.

  Elise climbed to her feet and stumbled to the trailer. She reached in and found Shera’s cage. With a flip of the latches she opened each in turn, leaving the door shut so the animal would only have to push the door open to get out. She looked Shera in the eye and motioned for her to come, praying the nearly blind feline would see something.

  But Zane was done hooking his vehicle to the trailer. “What are you doing?”

  She spun. “Checking the animals. That’s all. Just making sure they’re okay.”

  “Your concern is not required. You think I don’t know they’re fine? Look at them.” He motioned to the truck even while he kept the gun trained on her. “They’re ready to go meet their new owners, and there’s nothing you can do about it.”

  Zane disappeared again, and Elise hopped out of the trailer. She looked for something to hit the man with, maybe try and knock him out, but there was nothing. And then he was back.

  Zane set a can of gasoline on the floor inside the door. “Time to finish this.”

  Elise crouched by Jonah while Zane flicked the can around the room, spraying gas on dry straw, on wooden beams and all over the walls.

  She pulled up on Jonah’s arms and he got the message, gritted his teeth and started to get up. Elise swung his arm across her shoulder, helping him to stand. Like a team, the way they’d always been.

  “You can’t leave us here to die,” Jonah said. She could hear the pain in his voice, but didn’t think Zane would notice. Or care. “Conspiracy to kill the reporter is different than committing murder yourself now. You’re throwing away the rest of your life. You won’t be able to walk away from this.”

  Zane huffed, pulling out a lighter. “That’s where you’re wrong. I’m the only one who gets to walk away from this.”

  Elise chanced a look to the side. Shera climbed silently from the trailer, her steps muffled on the earthy floor. Shera turned her head side to side, disoriented from the pervading smell of gasoline. Elise had to distract Zane for a second, so she yelled, “Don’t do this! We don’t want to die!” with all the hysteria she was feeling, allowing the fear to infuse every part of her.

  Zane grinned, an awful evil smile. He flicked the top off the lighter and struck a flame. Shera was still, apparently unsure of where to go.

  Zane was going to toss it on the gasoline, and they were going to die.

  NINETEEN

  Zane’s gaze flickered to Shera. His eyes widened and he dropped the flip-top lighter, the flame staying steady as it fell to the floor. Seizing the opportunity, Jonah ignored the pain in his leg and ran to the former zookeeper. He slammed into Zane and they hit the ground. Zane’s gun went off.

  Jonah delivered punch after punch, putting every ounce of rage at the pain he and Elise had suffered because of Zane’s selfish actions, trying to make money by any means necessary.

  Elise screamed, Sam started barking and the room filled with smoke.

  Jonah looked up just as his dog ran in. Parker appeared at the door. “Rivers!” About to enter, Parker’s eyes widened at the scene in the barn.

  Fire rushed across the wall, whipped into a frenzy, trying to reach the air at the open door. Flames licked across the entry, cutting off Parker’s attempt to enter.

  “Stay back!” He didn’t think the order would stop Parker from trying to get in and help them, but it was worth a try.

  “Jonah!”

  He turned to Elise. The last place she needed to be was in a barn that was now on fire. He coughed into his elbow and turned to Sam. “Guard.”

  The dog set his paws on an unconscious Zane Ford.

  Jonah scrambled to Elise, who was leaning over Shera. “What happened?”

  Elise’s hands pressed into the tiger’s side. “Zane’s gun. He shot her.” She sucked in a choppy breath. “I don’t know what to do. She needs help!”

  And so do we. Jonah ran his hand up and down her back. “We’ll get her help. But first, we have to get out of here.”

  The animals in the trailer were starting to screech and scream at the smoke. The air was hot with no relief, and smoke was choking his lungs. God, help us.

  Gears on the truck shifted, and it was pulled out of the entrance to the barn, dragging the trailer. Parker. As soon as he cleared the doorway, Jonah breathed a sigh of relief. “Let’s go.”

  He was getting Elise out of there, and then he’d figure out with Parker how to haul a four-hundred-pound shot tiger out of the barn. And Zane.

  They reached the door, Sam’s eyes on them. The barn wall creaked, and with a mighty crack the roof above the front door came down.

  Jonah stumbled to a stop while Elise screamed. Flames jumped around, and they had to move back. He looked around. They were surrounded now by a wall of flames penning them in.

  “How are we going to get out now?” Elise had to shout over the roar of flames.

  Parker’s voice came from far away, “I already called the fire department.”

  At least that was something. Provided they could hold on long enough for firefighters to get them out and get the fire contained.

  He looked around again. The loft was still standing, on the opposite side from the door, but they’d have to drag everyone up the stairs. He looked from the loft to the tiger, to the man lying unconscious.

  “We need a way out…”

  Elise shook her head. “There was only one door.”

  Jonah went to Shera and knelt by the tiger. He pushed with all his remaining strength and moved the tiger more toward the center of the room. Shera grunted and shifted. He patted her neck, knowing she was confused and unable to see the predicament they were in. At least she was away from the flames now.

  Elise stood in the center of the room.

  “We can’t go up, since we can’t carry everyone up the stairs.” His brain worked the problem, his eyes scanning the floor. “So if we can’t go up, or out, we’ll have to go down.”

  “Into the floor?”

  “Maybe there’s a cellar of some kind. Help me look.”

  They searched every inch of floor until Jonah found the latch. He couldn’t get it open with his fingers, so he kicked at it with his boot. When that didn’t work, he got Zane’s gun and hammered at the latch with the butt of the gun.

  When it broke off, he pulled up the opening, revealing a small cellar dug out of the dirt. Jonah didn’t know what Tucker had kept down there, and neither did he want to find out.

  “How do we get Shera down there?”

  Jonah shook his head. Zane was still out, so he said, �
�Sam. Come.” The dog trotted over. Jonah clicked his fingers and Sam went down the steps, turning in the six-foot-by-six-foot space before sitting down.

  Jonah looked at Elise. “Help me. She’s so heavy that we’re going to drop her. We will just have to help her get down as easily as we can.”

  “Okay. Tell me what to do.”

  Jonah squeezed her hand. Together they pushed Shera to the cellar entrance. Jonah went down first and Elise came down beside him. They maneuvered the tiger over the hole and guided her down to the floor as slow as they could. The weight was massive. Jonah’s leg buckled, and Shera hit the floor. The tiger growled, and Elise crouched. “Sorry, Shera.”

  Then she looked at him. “You okay?”

  Jonah nodded even though his leg felt like it was on fire. “I have to go back for Zane.”

  “Why? He tried to kill us!” Hurt filled Elise’s eyes. “Why save him?”

  “He has to face justice, or what’s the point? He needs to be alive so he can see what he did was wrong. So he can pay.”

  Jonah climbed the stairs, even though his leg blatantly wanted him to stay put. But so long as Elise stayed safe with the animals, he was good. Air was better down there, and the dirt made it cooler.

  Jonah grabbed Zane’s feet and dragged him to the cellar. He wanted the man alive, but didn’t much care how many bruises he had, not considering how many injuries Zane had given Elise over the past few days.

  Jonah pulled him to the entrance and rolled him down the four short steps to tumble on the floor at the bottom. Then he climbed down after him and closed the door.

  Jonah made it to the wall and leaned so his back was against the cool earth. Smoke laced the air down here now, and he could hear Sam and Elise moving around.

  He opened his eyes and glanced at her. Sam had settled his head on her leg, which made Jonah smile even while his heart was racing and he wondered how long they were going to be stuck down there.

  Elise’s lips were moving. Jonah shook his head, he couldn’t hear her.

  She frowned and started to move toward him, but Jonah held her off. There wasn’t enough room for her to make her way over to him.