Finally he bent closer to her. "I think it's safe to move now," he whispered. "I haven't heard a thing. My guess is that our stalker left when he realized we weren't coming back to the house."
"What are we going to do?" Janie stretched her legs, loosening her cramped muscles.
"We're going to circle around the lake and come out behind the house. We should meet up with Dev at some point."
"Do you think the killer is just waiting for us somewhere else?" Janie asked. "I can't believe he'd give up this easily."
"He might be. But Dev or his men should find him, if he is."
"Unless he finds us first," she muttered. "Why don't we just wait here and let the sheriff find him?"
"Anytime we're in one spot, we're vulnerable. I want to keep moving. And I'd rather not retrace our route from yesterday. He's probably already seen our tracks. So we'll just continue around the lake."
"All right." She pushed herself away from the rock and crouched beside him. "Tell me what to do."
He hesitated for a moment, then said, "Thank you for trusting me."
"Always." She glanced around at the cliffs towering above them, listened to the quiet lapping of the lake against the rocks. "If anyone can get us out of this, you can"
Heat filled his eyes for a moment, and he started to say something. Then he closed his mouth and nodded. "I'm going to go first. Stay as close to me as possible. And try to make as little noise as you can."
They began walking through the scrub and the rock debris. Janie moved her feet carefully, trying not to kick any of the slabs of rock that had fallen from the cliffs. Every time her foot connected with a piece of debris, the sound echoed like a shot in the still air.
They had hiked for about fifteen minutes when Ben held up his hand once again, then led her behind a large rock. "Be as quiet as you can," he breathed into her ear. "I thought I heard something."
She sat motionless behind the rock, beginning to sweat in the flannel shift. The sun was higher in the sky, and its heat reflected off the slope next to them and the boulders that tumbled crazily down to the lake. Ben crouched next to her, tension quivering off him. They sat still and quiet for a long time, then Ben nodded.
"I didn't hear anything else. We might as well keep going."
He stepped out from behind the boulder, and Janie moved close behind him. Suddenly a gunshot exploded into the air and a piece of rock flew past their heads.
Ben yanked Janie down and pulled her back behind the boulder. As soon as they were behind the rock, she reached for him.
"Are you all right?" she whispered frantically. "Are you hurt?"
"I'm fine." His voice was grim as he ran his hands over her. "How about you? Did that rock hit you?"
"No. I'm fine, too." Fear held her paralyzed. "How could he find us?"
"He did just what I expected him to do." Ben's voice was full of self-loathing. "He just anticipated what we would do and moved a little closer."
"Do you think he saw us climbing down from the cave?"
"It's possible. If he had, he could have watched us and saw what direction we were going, then picked his spot to wait."
"What do we do now?" Janie tried to keep the despair out of her voice.
"You're going to stay right here. I'm going to try and circle around, using the boulders for cover. I'll try and come up behind him."
"He has a gun, Ben! What do you think you can do?"
"Surprise him." Ben slipped a deadly looking knife out of his pack, then set the pack on the ground. "With any luck at all, he'll be watching for you and won't notice me."
He leaned over and kissed her. She tasted his determination and strength, and it steadied her. "Come back to me, Ben."
"I will." He touched her face once, then slipped away. Janie strained to listen, but Ben made no sound as he moved from boulder to boulder. She tried to watch for him, but could see nothing on the rocks above her but a quick flutter of shadows.
Praying for Ben's protection, she stared at the bleak cliffs above her as if by watching for Ben she could insure his safety. Her eyes began to water, but she refused to look away.
Suddenly she saw a flash of light to her right, and she eased around the rock until she had a clear view of the boulder field. The light flashed again, and the long barrel of a rifle appeared between two rocks.
She wanted to yell, but fear swallowed the sound in her throat. She watched, horrified, as the rifle moved slowly away from her, and she realized that the man holding the gun had seen Ben and was trying to get a clear shot at him.
She didn't even think as she jumped to her feet. "You up there with the gun! What are you doing?"
The muzzle of the gun faltered, then swung down in her direction. The man holding the gun remained hidden as a gunshot exploded again. It struck the rock in front of her with a high-pitched whine and a slice of the rock flew into the air.
Janie's stomach clenched with fear and her whole body shook, but she forced herself to call out, "You don't want him. He has nothing to do with you. I'm the one who can identify you."
The only answer was another gunshot. But it was at her again, not toward Ben, and Janie gathered herself to move. "Come down here and get me. You don't need to hurt any other innocent people."
She was being foolish, she knew. Clearly the man above her wouldn't hesitate to kill anyone, innocent or not. But she needed to keep him distracted. She stared up at the rocks again, but still couldn't see Ben.
The man above her didn't answer, didn't move. So she picked up a handful of pebbles and threw them as far as she could to her right, away from the direction Ben had gone.
Another gunshot split the silence of the mountains. Then she heard the man above her mutter a vicious curse. He fired two shots in the other direction, then she heard the rocks begin to slide. He was moving.
He was heading down the cliff, in her direction. Maybe he couldn't see Ben anymore! She prayed that was true as the murderer slid down the slope toward her. She risked a glance around the boulder and saw a dark-haired man far above her, moving carefully down the slope.
Without thinking she moved away from the boulder, heading up the hill in the opposite direction Ben had gone. Her only thought was to draw the murderer away from Ben. She scrambled from one boulder to another, using them for cover, grabbing at rocks, ripping her fingernails and scraping her palms. She refused to think about how high she was, refused to look down. All she could think about was luring the killer away from Ben.
He was gaining on her. He had spotted her moving from boulder to boulder and was getting closer. But he had apparently forgotten about Ben, and that was all that mattered.
Suddenly she heard a thud behind her, and she turned to look. Ben and the stranger were tangled together on the ground, and the killer was trying to turn his rifle around and point it at Ben.
Janie scrambled as fast as she could over the rocks, bouncing off one boulder, sliding partway down the cliff then lunging for another. By the time she reached the two men, Ben had managed to knock the rifle out of the other man's hand. When he saw her, he yelled, "Pick up the gun, Janie."
She reached for it tentatively, as if it were a snake that could bite her. When she had it in her hands, she carefully pointed it away from the two men.
Then all she could do was watch helplessly as they rolled around the rocks in a silent but frighteningly vicious fight. Both men were fighting for their lives. Janie picked up a rock, but she was afraid she'd hit Ben instead of the other man. So she circled around them, watching for an opening, waiting for a chance to use the rock.
She saw Ben's hand scrabbling on the ground, then his hand closed around a sharp piece of rock. He brought up his hand and hit the man twice in the side of the head. The man slowly crumpled to the ground, and Ben hit him once more before jumping to his feet and running over to her.
"Janie, are you all right?" he said.
"I'm fine," she said shakily. "Shouldn't we tie him up, or something?"
&n
bsp; "Give me your shirt."
She pulled off the flannel shirt and handed it to him. In a moment he'd torn it into strips and tied the killer's hands and feet together. Then he turned to her again and pulled her into his arms.
"Oh, God, Janie. When I heard you yelling at the guy, I just about died. Why did you do it?"
"He had seen you, Ben. I saw a flash of metal, and saw that he was pointing the gun in your direction. I had to do something to distract him."
"You could have been killed." He held her tightly against him, as if he would never let her go.
"He would have killed you if I hadn't yelled. I didn't have a choice."
His anus tightened around her, and she melted into his embrace. They were both alive, and the man who had haunted her dreams for three years was no longer a threat.
"Janie, do you realize what you did?" There was awe in Ben's voice.
"I didn't do anything," she protested.
"You ran up that cliff without hesitating." His arms tightened. "Don't look down. Keep looking at me. How did you do it?"
"I couldn't think about the height," she said simply. "I didn't have a choice."
I would have done a lot more than run up a hill to save you, she added silently.
Ben held her for another moment, knowing he would relive the nightmare over and over again. He would never forget the sight of Janie, scrambling up the cliff. He bad been frozen for a moment, knowing that at any moment she would remember where she was and freeze. And the man chasing her would catch her.
Finally, when he could bear to let her go, he moved away and cleared his throat. He had to get a grip on himself. "Let's get a look at your mystery man," he said. He roiled the man over with his boot, and saw a handsome, striking man.
He saw the bewilderment in Janie's face as she stared at him. "He looks familiar to me, but I'm not sure why. I have no idea who he is."
"We'll find out soon enough."
Ben reached for the man's pockets, but stopped when he heard a shout from below.
"You all right up there, Ben?"
It was Devlin, the sheriff. "We're both fine," he called down. "We've got a package for you, though. Something to keep you and the other deputies busy."
He waited, his arm around Janie, as Devlin scrambled up the slope. There were two men behind him. "What happened, Ben?"
"He must have seen us coming down the cliff this morning, because he was waiting for us as we walked back to the cabin. I tried to circle around and come up behind him, but apparently he saw me. Janie distracted him and I finally was able to grab him."
"Do you know the guy, Janie?" Devlin turned to her. She shook her head. "He looks familiar, but I don't know who he is."
"We'll find that out." The sheriff looked behind him at his two deputies. "All right, get the cuffs on this character. And make sure he doesn't have any other weapons."
Ben watched as Dev and the other deputies secured the man, then searched him. Then they pulled him to his feet.
"He doesn't have any identification," Dev said grimly. He gave the man his Miranda warning, then started him walking with a hand on his back. "Let's go."
"No identification? I find that very interesting," Ben said.
The man glared at Devlin, but didn't say a thing. "Who are you?" Ben asked.
He didn't answer.
"What were you doing up here with a rifle?" he continued.
Ben didn't think he would answer, but after a long time he said, "I was hunting."
Ben started to ask him another question, but Janie stumbled next to him. He tightened his grip on her hand and looked over at her.
Her face was sheet white, and her eyes were dark pools of horror as she stared at the man in the handcuffs.
* * *
Chapter 15
«^»
"What's wrong?" he asked sharply.
"It's him," she whispered. "His voice. I recognize his voice."
The man in the handcuffs flinched, but Ben paid no attention. "Are you sure?"
"Absolutely. I didn't see his face, but I'll never forget that voice."
Ben nodded. "Dev will get his fingerprints when he gets him into the office, and we'll call the cops in Chicago, let them know what's going on. If he's ever been printed before, we'll know who he is real fast. Then we can figure out why he wanted to kill you."
"He wanted to kill me because I knew he was the other man in the greenhouse when my boss was killed." Her face was pale, but she stared at the man in the cuffs. "He was the one giving the orders."
They'd reached the path that led to the cabin, and they began walking more quickly. When they passed the cabin, Dev stopped them.
He ordered one of his deputies to get the evidence kit from his Blazer and secure the scene. He turned to look at the man in custody. "If nothing else, we have him for attempted murder. He's not going to be going anywhere for a long time. Except maybe into custody in Chicago."
Dev guided the suspect into the back seat of the truck, then put one hand on Ben's arm. "Why don't you follow us down to the house? Rafael heard what was going on, and he's scared."
"We'll be right behind you."
They rode back to the ranch in silence, but he held on to Janie's hand the whole way. She still looked white and shaken. The house was in sight when he said, "It's all over now. He's been caught, and you don't have to be afraid, ever again."
"It won't be over until he's in prison. He must be a powerful man, and they have a way of making things work to their advantage."
"Not here in Utah," he said, picking up her hand and kissing it. "If nothing else, he'll spend a long time in a Utah prison for attempted murder."
When they got to the ranch, Shea and Jesse and Rafael, along with Carly, were waiting for them on the porch. They all ran toward the cars.
"Ben?" Rafael's voice was thin with fear, and Ben reached down and swung him into his arms.
"Here I am, buddy. And here's Janie. We're both fine, and we caught the man who was scaring Janie." He swung Rafael around and pointed toward Devlin's car. "See? There he is. The sheriff is going to take him to jail."
Rafael clung to Ben as he studied the man who sat in the car. Gradually his arms loosened. "Did he shoot a gun at you?"
"Yeah, he did, but he didn't hit us. All he hit was a bunch of rocks."
"Did you shoot at him?"
"I didn't have a gun. So I hit him with a rock instead." Rafael gave the man one last look, then he turned back at Ben. "You have blood on you. And so does Janie."
He reached up and touched a tender spot on his head. He'd hit a rock, he remembered, while he was rolling around with the suspect. "Yeah, but we're both tough. A little blood wasn't going to slow us down."
Janie came over and touched Rafael's arm. "I cut my hands on the rocks," she said, showing him her scratched and bloodied palms. "But I'm not really hurt."
"Is he really going to jail?" Rafael finally asked. "Yep. The sheriff is going to lock him up. Would you like to go see for yourself, maybe tomorrow?"
Rafael nodded, then looked back at Ben. "Does this mean you don't have to go away again?"
A lump swelled in Ben's throat. "You bet. The next time we go away, you'll come with us. Okay?"
The boy looked from Ben to Janie, then began to smile. "Okay. Do you want to see what I taught Buster while you were gone?"
"I'd love to see what you taught Buster."
As Rafael raced away to get the dog, Janie moved closer and took his hand. "I think he's going to be fine." He heard the wonder in her voice.
"He just needed to know that we were all right, and that the man who wanted to hurt us was caught. I suspect that wasn't the case in San Rafael."
Before she could answer, Shea and Carly came running over to them. "Janie, Ben, are you all right?"
Ben watched as Janie reassured the two women, then Shea asked, "Who was it, anyway?"
"I don't know who he is, but he's involved in a murder in Chicago. It's a long story, which I'll t
ell you later."
They both looked over at the car, where the murderer sat in the back seat, and Carly drew in a sharp breath. "I know who that is," she said.
"Who?" All three of them spoke at once.
"Let me get a closer look." She walked over to the truck and stared in the window. When she walked back to them, her face had a strange expression.
"That's Edward Turnbull. He's running for governor of Illinois."
"How did you know that?" Janie asked.
Carly's face turned pink. "I've always been a news junkie. And I have a good memory for faces. Turnbull has been in the news magazines a lot lately. He's running an aggressive campaign."
"I know that name," Janie said thoughtfully.
"Are you from Illinois originally?" Carly asked.
Janie glanced over at Ben, and he took her hand again. "It doesn't matter anymore, does it?"
"I guess it doesn't." She turned back to Carly. "Yes," she said, and she began to smile. "I'm from Illinois. Chicago, in fact."
"Then I'm not surprised he looked familiar. He was a Chicago alderman for a long time, then he decided he wanted to run for governor. Why on earth was a man who's running for a high political office chasing you through the mountains with a gun?"
"Because I was a witness to a murder he committed. Oh, he didn't actually pull the trigger, but he stood there and watched while someone else carried out his orders. No wonder he wanted me dead."
Carly looked stunned for a moment, then she slowly smiled. "Hot damn. I know what I'm going to be doing tonight. Focus is going to be eating out of my hand to get this story."
But suddenly her smile faded, and she turned white. Devlin leaped forward to wrap his arm around her and lead her into the house. Janie started to go after her, but Shea grinned at her.
"They're all right. They'll be back out in a minute. Carly's not going to let a little thing like morning sickness stop her from getting this story into Focus."
"Morning sickness?" Ben said blankly.
Shea's smile faded. "Shoot I've spoiled their surprise. I forgot you were up at the cabin when Dev and Carly told us their news."
THE MARRIAGE PROTECTION PROGRAM Page 18