by Rebecca Deel
Ethan glared over his shoulder, then returned his attention to his aunt. “I love you, Ruth. You literally saved my life. I’ll never be able to thank you enough for sacrificing so much for me.”
Tears glittered in her eyes. “You’re a good man, Ethan. I’m proud of the man you’ve become.”
Muehller sighed, shifted. “Enough. It’s time for you to die, Ethan Blackhawk.”
“Nate,” Josh snapped.
A second later, the back door blew open and Josh and Nate barreled through the doorway with a crouching run and Rio kicked down the front door. At the same time, Ethan wrapped his arms around his aunt, tugged her to the couch cushions and covered her with his body. Heidi dived on top of Charlie and Quinn wrapped himself around her and the dog, his gun aimed at the assassin.
Rage filled Muehller’s face as he raised his gun and aimed at Ethan’s head. A split second later, glass shattered and blood blossomed on the assassin’s shoulder. Ethan reared up, snatched his weapon from the floor and, when Muehller squeezed the trigger, shot the fugitive in the forehead at the same time multiple shots were fired by Josh, Nate and Quinn.
Muehller would never get up under his own power again. Heidi buried her face in Quinn’s neck as the stink of cordite stung her nostrils.
“You okay, baby?” Quinn shoved his gun into his waistband and, wrapping his arms tight around her, drew Heidi close. “Are you hurt?”
“I’m fine,” she whispered. “Is everybody else safe?” Heidi glanced around, careful to avoid looking at the blood and gore from Muehller. She gasped as her gaze scanned Ethan. “Ethan’s hurt.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
Quinn’s head whipped toward Ethan. Oh, man. The sleeve of Ethan’s shirt was soaked with blood. “Ethan?” He crawled off Heidi and rushed to the police chief’s side. Rio shoved his weapon into his thigh holster and raced out the front door to return a minute later with his Mike bag.
Ethan shrugged off Quinn’s hold. “It’s nothing,” he said, weapon still aimed at Muehller. “Make sure he’s dead, Rio.”
Josh nodded for Rio to do as Ethan directed.
The medic knelt, checked for a pulse. He glanced at Ethan. “Gone.”
“Check Ruth next.”
Rio’s eyes flared. “She’s kept for six hours. She’ll keep for five more minutes while I see if you’ll bleed to death in front of her eyes if I treat her first. Sit down, Ethan.”
Quinn thought the lawman would argue, but he swayed on his feet. Stubborn man. To take the decision out of his hands, Quinn steered him to a seat beside Ruth. “What do you need, Rio?”
“Light. Firelight isn’t good for anything except romance. If I wasn’t marrying the most incredible woman on the planet, I’d make a play for you, Ruth.”
The injured author smiled.
Alex strode into the cabin at that moment and turned on the light switch. Glaring light filled the cabin and made apparent Ethan’s pallor. That was saying something considering his copper complexion.
“Ethan, please,” Ruth said. “Let Rio see how bad the injury is. If you won’t do it for me, do it for Serena and the baby.”
The chief grimaced as he nodded.
Rio ripped Ethan’s shirt and eased the material away from his body. After a cursory examination, he said, “Straight through the biceps, my friend. You’re lucky. Muehller could have hit your brachial artery or shattered the bone. This is messy but recoverable.”
“Doesn’t make it feel any better,” he griped.
“Shoot faster next time.” Rio tugged on rubber gloves, tore open pressure bandages, and placed them on both sides of the wound. “That will hold you until the EMTs take you to the hospital.”
“Why is Rio being snarky?” Heidi whispered. “Shouldn’t he be a little bit sympathetic?”
“Keeps Ethan’s mind off his pain and helps Rio evaluate his responses.” Didn’t want to tell Heidi the medic watched for signs the police chief was losing too much blood.
“Ambulance should be here within ten minutes,” Josh said as he slid his phone into his pocket. “Nick and Rod just finished processing Ruth’s place. Stella will meet them here. They’ll arrive soon.”
“Tell the Doucets to stay at their post until we determine whether or not Muehller had someone working with him.”
“I’ll take care of it.”
Rio ripped off his soiled gloves and grabbed a fresh pair. “Your turn, Ruth. You’re holding up better than your nephew.”
“Who do you think taught him to be tough?”
The medic grinned. “Somehow, that doesn’t surprise me in the least. Let me check your pupil reaction, beautiful.” Everyone was quiet while Rio assessed Ruth’s condition. “Good news and bad news, sweetheart. The good news is you’re going to survive this ordeal in a lot better shape than old Hans here.”
“And the bad?”
“You’re going to have a monster headache for a while and quite a few stitches at the back of your head. Makes laying on your back to sleep a literal pain.”
“Can you do the stitches? I have a book deadline to meet.”
“If we were on the battlefield, I’d be honored to stitch your wound. As for the book deadline, email your publisher and tell them you’ll be a few days late.”
Ruth snorted. “Watch me, young man. I’ve never missed a deadline in forty years. I don’t intend to start now.”
Rio chuckled while bandaging her head. “I hope you’re right. I’m looking forward to the next Tutweiler mystery. One thing I know for certain. We aren’t letting Ethan live this down.”
“I have a hole in my arm,” Ethan pointed out. “Ruth has a tiny cut.”
“Not so tiny. I’m sorry, buddy. She wins the grit award today.”
“She cheated. Played the old age card.” Ethan sank against the sofa back. “You’re not fooling me, Rio. If Darcy wises up and dumps you before Saturday, you’ll try sweet talking Ruth into marrying you out of pity.”
“Just proves he has good taste,” Ruth said.
The ambulance arrived followed by Nick and Rod. The detectives walked into the living area first and surveyed the scene. Rod crouched beside Muehller. “Can’t say I’m sorry he won’t be coming back to threaten our families again, but I looked forward to seeing him rot behind bars for the rest of his life.”
Nick knelt in front of Ruth. “How are you, Ruth?”
“According to Rio, I’ll live.”
He grinned. “Good to know. Ethan?”
“I’ll live, too. Don’t tell Serena about the gunshot yet. I don’t want to worry her.”
“Better not wait too long. Word will spread like wildfire. Your sweet wife will make you pay if she learns about your injury from another source.”
By the time they arrived at the hospital, Serena had already heard and insisted on seeing Ethan.
“I’ll talk to her,” Quinn volunteered. “I want to introduce Heidi to her anyway. I also want to hold my new nephew.”
Josh waved him on as he spoke softly into his phone. Sounded like he was reporting to Maddox.
“Come on.” He urged Heidi down the hall with a hand resting at the small of her back. Before coming to the hospital, they dropped Charlie off at the house with a bowl of dog food, some water, and a chew bone as a reward for tracking down Hans Muehller. According to Heidi, her search partner should sleep for several hours.
Quinn wanted to leave Heidi with Levi and his bodyguards since she was exhausted as well, but she insisted on going to the hospital to check on Ruth and Ethan. Unlike Heidi, Quinn trusted the word of his medic teammate. He was confident his two friends would recover.
As they neared Serena’s room, Quinn saw Remy and Lily Doucet standing watch at her door. Lily grinned at him and Heidi. “Congratulations on your mission, Quinn. Any word on Ethan?”
“Doc’s in with him now. Rio says he’ll be fine, though.”
“Good. Serena can use a distraction. She’s concerned, afraid we’re keeping information from her.”
After a light knock on the door, he and Heidi walked inside the dimly lit room. Quinn smiled at the beautiful new mother. “How are you, sugar?” He leaned down and pressed a light kiss to her forehead.
“Quinn, how is Ethan? Please, tell me the truth.”
“The truth is he’s going to be fine. Rio says the bullet went through the muscle in his arm. Missed the bone and a major artery.”
She sank back against her pillow with a sigh of relief. “Thank God. Muehller’s really dead?”
“He’ll never be a danger to anyone again. Serena, this is my girlfriend, Heidi Thompson. Sweetheart, this is Serena Blackhawk, Ethan’s wife.”
While Serena and Heidi got acquainted, Quinn wandered over to the bassinet. Man, the kid had a head full of black hair. When Lucas scrunched up his face like he was getting ready to cry, Quinn glanced at Serena, eyebrow raised to see if she wanted him to pick up her son.
“Go ahead.” She smiled. “Looks like you want to hold him.”
Fantastic. He’d waited for months to hold this little boy. For the next hour, he and Heidi took turns rocking Lucas. Finally, Ethan walked into the room, headed straight to his wife and kissed her, long and deep.
“I’m okay, love. Doc Anderson says I’m not to lift anything heavier than Lucas for a while, but I’ll recover with no repercussions.”
“I was so afraid for you,” Serena choked out.
“It’s over, baby. Muehller’s gone for good.” Ethan turned to Quinn and Heidi. “Thanks to both of you for the help tonight. Heidi, you and Charlie are an amazing team. We’re very lucky to have you in Otter Creek. Charlie’s nose gave us the advantage we needed. I owe you and Quinn a favor. Any time, any place.”
She placed Lucas into Serena’s arms. “No favors owed between friends. I’m glad we could help.”
“I’m taking Heidi home now. Let us know if you need anything else.” Quinn threaded his fingers through Heidi’s and they left the small family to celebrate and bond.
Back in the hall, Lily asked, “How is Ethan’s aunt?”
“Grousing about being on enforced bed rest for two days until she realized reading books and working on her laptop counted as quiet activities. She told the doctor she couldn’t promise to stay in bed, but she would stay home and rest.” He shrugged. “With the irrepressible Ruth, that’s as good as you can get.”
“I’m glad. Serena and her family were worried about the lady.”
“They had reason to be concerned. Muehller would have killed her once he’d taken care of Ethan.”
“Glad he didn’t have that chance,” Remy said. “Where are you headed now?”
“Home with Heidi. You need someone to spell you?”
“Rio is taking over while we go sleep at Liz and Aaron’s house.”
He and Heidi left the hospital and were soon parked in her driveway. The house was dark except for a lamp burning in the living room.
“Looks like everyone’s gone to bed,” Heidi said.
“Either Dane or Angel will be keeping watch.” Quinn noted Heidi’s stiff movements as she exited the SUV. “Soreness kicking in?”
“Pain reliever wore off. What now, Quinn?”
“Sleep for both of us, then we’ll tackle our remaining problem.”
She sighed. “The arsonist. I wish he would leave us alone.”
“We’ll talk about everything tomorrow, baby. Are you hungry?”
“Too tired to eat. I just want to go to bed.”
He ushered Heidi to the front door and unlocked it with the key she’d given him. He wondered if her appetite was diminished because of the events in the cabin. “Come on. Let me walk you to your door.”
She grinned. “Like a real date?”
“A gentleman always sees a lady to her door.”
Once inside the house, Quinn nodded to Dane who had drawn this duty shift and walked with Heidi to her bedroom. He nudged her inside and followed her, closing the door behind himself.
“Quinn?”
“Shh. I need to hold you for a minute.” He wrapped his arms around her. “You were incredible tonight, baby. You faced down a monster and didn’t flinch.”
“Charlie did all the work.”
“He was amazing,” Quinn agreed. “But you made the difference. You’re the only reason Muehller let us in the cabin. If I’d been me alone, he would have shot me where I stood on the porch.”
Heidi shuddered and held him tighter. “Then I’m doubly glad I went with you.”
He lifted her chin and took his time kissing her. Quinn could spend the rest of his life kissing Heidi and never get enough. No question in his mind. He was crazy about Heidi Thompson.
When he felt his control slip, Quinn eased back, breaking the kiss while still keeping her in his arms for a moment longer. “I love you, Heidi. Sleep well.” A last kiss, this one to her neck, and he forced himself to release her and walk from the room.
“I love you, too,” Heidi whispered as she shut her door.
With a smile on his face, Quinn went into his room. The adrenaline crash was hitting him hard. Dane and Angel could keep an eye on things for the night. Minutes later, he climbed into bed and fell into a deep sleep.
He walked into the kitchen early the next morning to see Angel pouring a mug of coffee. “Morning.”
The operative turned, handed him the mug without comment. Quinn’s lips curved. He must look wrung out. Felt like it, too. “Anything happen while I was asleep?”
“Murphy called. He said to get in touch when you woke up.”
He blinked. “Why didn’t he call me?”
“Josh kept him updated along with Maddox. Murphy didn’t want to disturb you, said his information could wait a few hours.”
Huh. Sounded like Z might have something. He hoped the information might lead him to an answer for Heidi. “Thanks.” He finished most of the mug of coffee before refilling it and stepping outside on the deck to call Zane.
“About time you woke up,” Zane groused as his greeting. “Figured you would have already called by now.”
“Yeah, yeah. What have you got, Z?”
“Information on Bennett. He’s dead.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Disappointment spiraled through Quinn. Untangling this mystery would be much easier if they could have talked to the original investigating detective. He and Heidi would have to go about finding the answers a different way. “When did Bennett die?”
“Two years ago in January. Get this, though. Before he died, Bennett had been in a mental institution for years. In fact, he was admitted about five years after Heidi’s kidnapping.”
Quinn stilled. “Diagnosis?”
“Had a mental breakdown and never recovered. He retreated into his own mind and stayed there.”
He sat on the deck steps, took a sip of coffee while he thought about that. “Any idea why he had the breakdown to begin with?”
“Not that I could find. Your best source of information is going to be his son, Ivan Bennett, Junior.”
“Where can I find him?”
“Same place you would have found his old man before the breakdown.”
Huh. Hadn’t seen that coming. “He’s on the job in Black River?”
“He’s a detective, just like his father.”
Interesting. Also annoying. Chances were good Detective Bennett wouldn’t be willing to talk about his father. “Any other children?” Perhaps he might learn information from another relative.
“A daughter. She won’t be any help, though. Aurora Bennett is also in a mental institution, the same one to which her father had been admitted.”
Quinn frowned. A tragedy, but were the two connected? “Dig into Aurora’s background. Junior’s background, too. I want to know everything you can find.”
“I sent Junior’s contact information to your email. I’ll get back to you about anything
else I dig up.” He ended the conversation by simply ending the call.
Quinn sipped the rest of his coffee, letting the caffeine and cold morning breeze clear the cobwebs from his mind. Bennett being admitted to a mental institution not long after Heidi’s kidnapping raised a red flag. There may not be a connection, but his gut told him otherwise. Was Detective Bennett involved in the kidnapping? Was he the one who accidentally killed Moira Henderson?
His hands clenched around his now empty coffee mug. Maybe that’s why his father never got the sense that the police were looking into the kidnapping and missing money. Bennett might not have been interested in pushing the case forward because to do so would have implicated him. Was the detective partially responsible for the death of Quinn’s father?
The back door opened and Heidi stepped out of the house accompanied by Charlie. The Lab trotted to Quinn and, after a few head rubs, went to visit the grass.
Heidi sat down beside him on the step and scooted close. “Hey.”
“Morning, sweetheart.” He leaned over and kissed her thoroughly, something he looked forward to doing for years to come. “How do you feel?”
“Good. No headache. A few muscle twinges. You?”
“Same.”
“Why are you up so early?”
He grinned. “Military training, babe. Can’t sleep more than about four hours at a time. What about you? Why are you awake at this time of morning?”
She wrinkled her nose. “Charlie needed to go outside. I tried to roll over for a little more sleep. He wasn’t having it. Nothing like a wet dog nose pressed to your ear before the sun has risen.”
Heidi studied his face for a couple of beats. “You found out something.” A statement, not a question. Smart lady.
“Zane called. Detective Bennett is dead.”
“So much for getting information from the original detective. Now what will we do?”
“Explore other options. We see if his partner is still alive and willing to talk to us. Second, Z also found out Bennett has a son currently on the Black River police force. He’s also a detective. He might be a source of information.”