Colton Manhunt

by Jane Godman

  “That’s the plan.” Spencer nodded wearily.

  The time passed quickly, and when they’d finished eating, Katrina felt like she’d known Jarvis and Bella forever. For someone who didn’t make friends easily, it was a good feeling. Like coming home after a long, hard day.

  “We must do this again soon.” Bella hugged her as they parted at the restaurant door.

  “We must,” Jarvis said. “It’s nice to see my brother with a smile on his face again.”

  Chapter 16

  The following day passed slowly with no new developments. That evening, once the dogs had been fed and settled for the night, they ate at the kitchen table.

  “Goodness, you must be hungry,” Katrina commented when she saw how fast Spencer was consuming his meal.

  “No. I just want to finish eating quickly so I can take you to bed.”

  She gasped, then started to laugh. “I appreciate your honesty.”

  He leaned across the table to kiss her. “I want that to happen a lot. All the time.”

  “Sorry?”

  “This feeling that I have to finish my food quickly so I can make love to you. The first time was wonderful. Last night was equally perfect, but I’ll never be able to get enough of you.”

  “Oh.” She wasn’t sure exactly what he was saying, but his words had a permanent ring to them that she liked the sound of. Right now, she was more focused on the gleam in Spencer’s eyes and his delicious kisses. “I’m finished eating now.”

  As he got to his feet and held out his hand, heat raced through her body. When they reached the bedroom, Spencer pulled her tight against him, running his hand up and down her spine. “I’ve been thinking about this all day.”

  “Me, too.” She melted against him with a sigh.

  “In that case, I think we should get rid of these clothes.”

  Within minutes, they had both discarded their garments and were lying on the bed. Spencer moved to lie between Katrina’s thighs, then smoothed a warm palm along her body from shoulder to hip. After a few minutes, when she was totally relaxed beneath his touch, he began to stroke along the inside of one thigh.

  When his fingers found her, she jerked with a combination of pleasure and surprise. His touch was magical, instantly making her whole body melt with desire.

  “I want you now,” she murmured.

  The look in his eyes was a perfect balance between vulnerability and strength. He reached for the condom he’d placed on the nightstand and quickly sheathed himself. After pushing apart her thighs, he placed a hand beneath her and lifted her to him. Pressing up against her, he dipped into her briefly, then pulled back.

  Desperate for more, Katrina wriggled her hips closer, wrapping her legs tight around his hips. Tilting up her pelvis, she reached a hand between them and guided him to her. Spencer’s breathing changed, and when she looked up, his gaze was bright on her face.

  He entered her so slowly she thought she might pass out from anticipation. His smooth, hard length moved inside her just a little way, pulled out slightly, then came all the way out to glide over her clit before pushing back inside again.

  “So good.” Her back arched and her head tilted back.

  His fingertips dug into her ass as he lifted her higher, drawing her closer and sinking deeper into her. His mouth found her shoulder, nipping and sucking as he drove into her hard and fast.

  “The way we fit together feels perfect.” His voice was harsh, his eyes glazed. There was a sheen of sweat on his face, neck and chest.

  He changed his rhythm, using his hips to grind against her, pounding into, pulling out and grazing up against her clit. Her release was beginning, coiling low in her belly, tightening her muscles and igniting her nerve endings.

  “More, please.” Her voice was little more than a whimper.

  Pushing her knees up and back toward her chest, he powered into her, hard and fast. Instantly, she tightened and vibrated around him. And then she was falling over the edge, bucking her hips into him, contracting so hard around him her muscles ached. Her body felt like it was being flung around by a giant hand, like it was turned inside out and then pulled back again.

  As she struggled to breathe, she was barely aware of Spencer’s continuing thrusts. As she was taken over by another series of pulsing contractions, she sensed his peak as he held himself deep inside her. He bowed his head into her neck, growling against her skin as his muscles began to quake.

  Eventually, they both stopped shaking and started to breathe normally. Spencer turned until they were lying on their sides and he could cradle her in his arms. Exhausted, Katrina felt her mind empty of anything other than the sound of his breathing and the feel of his heart beating against her cheek. She felt completely relaxed in that perfect moment of intimacy.

  Sleeping next to Spencer had quickly become her new normal and she wanted to do it for a very long time. When she lifted her head to tell him how she felt, he was already dozing.

  * * *

  Spencer woke with a start when his cell phone buzzed in the middle of the night. It didn’t happen often and he knew it must be important. The sound hadn’t disturbed Katrina, and he eased her away from him, trying not to wake her.

  Even in the urgency of needing to check his cell, he took a moment to appreciate how incredible she was. How amazing things were between them.

  Call me pls.

  The message was from Kerry Wilder.

  He gathered up his clothes, then carried them through to the living room and started pulling them on as, with his cell awkwardly held against his ear, he made the call.

  “What’s going on?”

  “There was some trouble at Joe’s Bar a few hours ago. One of the responding officers was injured.”

  Images of what he had pictured when Billie was captured flashed through his mind. “Who was it? What happened?”

  “It was Officer Donovan. He was punched as he tried to arrest a guy. He’s fine, just a cut lip and a few bruises, but the guy who hit him got away...” Kerry paused. “I thought you’d want to know who it was.”

  Spencer could have taken a few guesses, with one obvious name at the top of his list, but he played along. “Go on.”

  “It was Kenyon Latimer. Other customers reported that he appeared drunk, or high, and that he was looking for trouble from the minute he walked into the place.”

  “Where is Latimer now?” Spencer asked.

  “We don’t know his exact location. After he hit Officer Donovan, he ran off toward Mustang Park. I’ve posted a lookout at the AAG ranch in case he turns up there,” Kerry said. “I’ve also got a vehicle patrolling the area, but it seems he’s lying low in the park. I’m reluctant to send officers on a manhunt when we don’t know if Latimer could be armed.”

  She was doing everything right and her caution was understandable, but Spencer could feel her frustration. Latimer had proved to be tricky so far and they already knew he could be violent.

  “There is another reason why I called you. Latimer left his jacket in Joe’s.”

  Spencer was on his feet and moving toward the door. “Bring it to the park entrance. I’ll meet you there with Boris in ten minutes.”

  As he released Boris from the kennel and gave pats to the other sleepy dogs, he considered the situation. He was leaving Katrina alone, something he’d sworn he wouldn’t do. But there was a police officer watching the AAG ranch and Latimer was pinned down in Mustang Park.

  She was safer now, in her own bed with the doors and windows locked, than she’d been since this whole thing started because Latimer, the person who’d threatened her, had other things on his mind. If Boris was his usual efficient self, they could have Latimer in custody before she even woke. In the meantime, Spencer would get a patrol car to do a regular check on the house.

  When he reached the park entrance, Kerry and Detective PJ Do
herty were waiting for him. Spencer’s body armor was in the rear of his vehicle and he donned it before releasing Boris from his compartment and getting the dog into his own protective gear. Although Boris was calm, his eyes were shining and his tail was wagging. He knew he would soon be needed on a job and that was his favorite thing.

  When Spencer joined his colleagues, he overheard a radio message from Lizzie Manfred reporting that there was no change out at the AAG ranch.

  “Nothing new to report here, either,” Kerry confirmed. “As far as we’re aware, Latimer is still in the park.”

  “It’s a big area for Boris to cover.” PJ’s expression was skeptical.

  “He’s an experienced dog.” Spencer had complete faith in his partner. “And, if he has a scent, he should be able to track Latimer easily.”

  Kerry had covered Latimer’s jacket with a plastic evidence bag. Spencer pulled on a glove before removing the jacket to ensure he didn’t confuse the dog. Although a number of other people could have handled the garment since Latimer had worn it, he wanted Boris to get as much of the target’s scent as possible.

  He crouched and snapped the fingers of his ungloved hand to Boris. The dog obediently came to sit in front of him. Spencer held out the jacket and Boris sniffed it. The dog didn’t need a command; the presence of the garment was enough. After a moment or two, he gave a snort as though indicating he knew what he needed to do.

  Spencer attached a tracking line to the canine’s harness. He didn’t always use one, but at night and in a large open space, he didn’t want Boris to get too far ahead and risk the possibility of losing sight of him.

  “I’ll maintain radio silence, as I don’t want to alert the target to my presence, but I have it with me if I need to contact you in an emergency,” he told Kerry and PJ.

  With that, he and Boris took off in search of Latimer. The park was a different place at night, darkness altering its familiar tracks and forms and giving them a sinister twist. Nose to the ground, and pulling hard on the line, Boris almost flew along the central path. He reached a row of large shrubs and paused, snuffling along its length. This was a danger point for Spencer and he eased his weapon from its shoulder holster. If Latimer was armed and hiding in those bushes, it could be a trap.

  After a minute of sniffing, Boris moved on, straining in a new direction. His eagerness was a clear indication that he knew exactly where Latimer had gone. The next time the dog paused, it was next to a large willow tree. Standing at the base of the trunk, Boris looked up and began to eagerly sniff the air.

  Could Latimer be hiding among the branches? The willow was sturdy, but Spencer wasn’t sure a person would be able to climb it. Squatting beside his canine partner, he removed a flashlight from his utility belt and shone it up into the leaves. He couldn’t see anything unusual.

  “If he was here, he’s gone,” he whispered to the dog.

  Boris didn’t seem convinced. His sturdy body bristled with excitement and he stood to attention, his ears pointed and his eyes bright.

  As Spencer straightened, he noticed that the earth around the tree had been disturbed, as though it had recently been dug up. Shining the flashlight beam wider, he caught a glimpse of something more alarming. A few feet away, he could see what might be a shallow grave.

  Before he could investigate, the slightest sound behind him made him turn to look. It was enough to ensure that the blow meant for the back of his skull caught him on the side of his head. As he fell forward onto the sandy ground, he dropped the flashlight and its beam illuminated Latimer standing over him, a rock in his hand.

  Letting go of Boris’s line, he managed to utter one slurred word. “Leave.”

  The dog’s instinct would be to remain with his handler. Overriding that was one of the hardest things to teach a police dog. Even now, as Latimer raised the rock again, Spencer couldn’t be sure what Boris would do. Would he obey and go for help, or stay and try to save his master?

  It was his final thought before pain seared through his head and darkness engulfed him.

  * * *

  Stretching sleepily, Katrina reached out a hand for Spencer. When she found that his side of the bed was cold, she frowned and sat up. It was still dark. Where could he have gone at this time?

  Doubt instantly flooded her. Was he regretting getting so close, so fast? The hints he’d dropped about wanting to make love to her all the time had sounded like he wanted a long-term relationship. Was this his way of backing off, of telling her that what he actually wanted was only physical, and his sweet-talking her was just a part of that?

  She knew what was happening. Her old trust issues were too raw to lie down and die completely. When she was with Spencer, she felt sure of him. It was at times like this that the doubts crept in and prodded her. What she needed was to feel his arms around her.

  Maybe he was in the living room, working on his laptop. She slid out of bed, pulled on her clothes and headed through to the other room. The small house was too quiet for him to be anywhere else and she frowned. She checked her cell phone but there were no messages. Surely, he would have let her know if he’d had to go out in the middle of the night?

  With almost perfect timing, the display on her cell lit up. Every other thought went out of her head when she saw who the message was from. Eliza...

  I need you. Come quick. Where we used to hang out as kids in the park. E x

  Hope bubbled up inside her like an underground spring rising to the surface. It was exactly the sort of message Eliza always sent when she was in trouble and she wanted money from Katrina.

  The easiest way to get to the place where she and Eliza used to play was to enter the park using the old gates on Western Drive. She remembered how they used to sneak in that way as kids and how her grandpa would scold them and ask how he’d know where to start if he needed to come looking for them.

  But it was nighttime, and Eliza’s message sounded urgent, so Katrina was going to take the quickest route, even if it wasn’t the safest. Before she headed out to her car, she spared a thought for Spencer. He’d been so worried when she’d gone to the store without letting him know where she was. Although she had no clue to his whereabouts right now, she sent him a message letting him know that Eliza had been in touch and that she’d gone to meet her. That should reassure him.

  After pausing to find a flashlight in one of the kitchen cabinets and to put on boots instead of her sneakers, she set off. Because of the time, the roads were quiet and she reached her destination in minutes. It was only as she left her car and looked up at the old gates that the first doubts hit her.

  She was alone in the early hours of the morning, about to enter an isolated but enclosed outdoor space, and if Spencer didn’t pick up her message, no one knew she was here. It was taking recklessness to a whole new level.

  Inside her, caution went to war with her responsibility to her sister. The time she’d spent agonizing over her twin’s welfare had taken its toll on Katrina’s own well-being. She had to know how her sister was, for her own sake as well as Eliza’s. She’d come this far; the final few steps would be easy.

  The night air was stifling and sticky, and sweat coated her skin as she followed the tracks. The route from the main entrance was familiar, but her childhood memory soon kicked in and she easily found her way to the dip in the ground where she’d seen the kids several days earlier.

  Shining her flashlight around, she picked out the trees she and Eliza used to climb. And over there was the big willow tree. They used to sit beneath its overhanging branches and tell stories about princesses and knights. But there was no sign of her sister. Instead, the silence was unnerving. She turned in a circle, trying to pick out a figure in the darkness.

  There! A faint movement caught her attention and she heaved a sigh of relief.

  “Eliza?”

  She took a step back, stumbling slightly on tree roots a
s Kenyon Latimer appeared in the circle of her flashlight with a gun in his hand.

  “Sorry to disappoint you.” His grin made her flesh crawl. “But I did warn you not to poke your nose in.”

  “I don’t understand.” Katrina looked around her wildly. Could Spencer have been right all along when he speculated that Eliza might be the one who was threatening her? Was her sister working with Latimer? “Where’s Eliza? That message came from her cell phone.”

  “You mean this one?” He held up a familiar pink, sparkly cell. “I had fun reading her messages. She sure knew how to play you, twin sister.”

  From nowhere, it felt as if an invisible gale was blowing, pushing Katrina back, numbing her brain and forcing her body to slow down. Despite the summer temperatures, her teeth chattered as though she was chilled. “You did know her.”

  “Yeah, I knew Eliza.” He looked over his shoulder. “We had a good thing going on for the short time she was at the ranch. I even liked her. I thought we could have made something of the start we had.”

  Katrina choked back a sob. If Eliza had left behind Dobby and her cell phone, did she really want to hear the answer to her next question? “What happened to her?”

  His expression changed, becoming sad and furtive at the same time. She didn’t like those quick glances he kept taking over his shoulder. “She told me she was a former addict and I tried to get her hooked on heroin again.”

  “Why would you do that?” Katrina momentarily forgot her fear of the gun pointing her way and let shock show through. “After all the trouble she’d gone through to get clean, why would you want to drag her back down again?”

  “Hey.” His voice was sharp. “You think I don’t want the same things you do? Someone to come home to each day? To care for me and be by my side as I grow older? But I know that won’t happen with a person who isn’t addicted. Although Eliza liked what she saw in me, she wasn’t going to stick around if she was clean. So I tried to remind her how good drugs can feel. When I asked her to get high with me, she refused.”