Gridlocked (Bounty County Series Book 3)

by Maren Lee

  “Just know that I’m fuckin’ jealous I didn’t think of sex in the gazebo first. Wesson can sure be a dumb fuck,” Sierra stated. Molly’s hackles went up. Don’t talk about my man like that! “But he’s also a fuckin’ genius!” she continued. Better. “You can fuckin’ bet that Brenden and I will be out there next time the mood strikes just to get away from the kids. We might be a little quieter than you and Wesson were though,” Sierra teased.

  Molly blushed. She shook her head and smiled. “Wesson is actually really smart, Sierra. Don’t let his Wessonisms fool you.”

  “Oh, I know that. I’ve also heard he’s doing an amazing job on this case of yours. Maybe it’s because it’s personal and he’s got some skin in the game, but Brenden was mentioning to me the other night that Wesson should think about going the detective track rather than patrol officer. Especially with Lawrence getting set to retire. Clay will need help.”

  “Oh wow. Does Wesson know?”

  “Yeah, Brenden mentioned it to him the other day. He said he’d consider it. He likes the action. Likes responding to calls. But the department isn’t huge, so it’s not like they wouldn’t need Wesson for that kind of thing on occasion. He wouldn’t be giving it up completely.”

  “That’d be kind of hot,” Chloe added. “Fucking a detective in Sierra’s gazebo.” The girls descended into a fit of laughter. Molly decided to just roll with it. It was already hot.

  Molly admired the ice blue nail polish she’d chosen for her toes. Wesson is gonna like these. Lane had chosen orange, Chloe went with french tips, and Sierra’s were blood red. She loved their Beehive escape once every couple of weeks. It wasn’t a fancy spa like the one at The Lodge up in the mountains, but it was cheaper and did all the basic manis, pedis, waxes, and hair. Not to mention the fact that it was filled with friendlier faces. Molly felt more relaxed than she had when she first walked in this morning.

  The bell chimed as the front door opened and a customer walked through. Darla! Their favorite bartender from the Cadillac.

  “Darla!” they all shouted in unison.

  “Well, if it isn’t the Queen of Bounty County and her court!” Darla smiled, her voice raspy from years of cigarettes and booze and bartending. She was referring to Sierra as the Queen. “I’m actually glad to see you. Meant to call Brenden this morning, but I slept through my alarm and realized I was late for my hair appointment so I just ran here!”

  “Darla, it’s noon,” Sierra responded.

  Betsy, the owner of the Beehive, ushered Darla into one of the salon chairs. Darla looked at the girls behind her in the mirror in front of her.

  “I was at work until 3 a.m, gimme a break for sleeping late! Anyway, what I wanted to call Brenden about: Wesson’s dad was in the Cadillac last night.”

  Molly gasped. “That’s a violation of his parole!”

  “I wondered if it was. But it’s not my job to be the one enforcing that. It is my job to refuse to serve someone who is obviously intoxicated. Man was drunk as fuck.”

  “Oh shit,” Lane responded. “Was he talking much?”

  “Talked the whole time to anyone who’d listen. Bitching about Wesson. Bitching about his P.O. Bitching about his ex-wife. Bitching about me refusing to serve him anything but a soda or water. Bitching about not having a car. I wouldn’t have thought anything of any of that. But then he said something really fuckin’ weird.”

  “Go on,” Lane encouraged her.

  “Said he’d finally finished the job.”

  “What’s that mean?” Chloe asked.

  “I was curious, so I asked, ‘What job did you finally finish, Randy?’ You know what he said?”

  “What?”

  “Finally pulled the trigger and did what I meant to do to Rachel.”

  Lane gasped. “Molly, we need to call Wesson.”

  “He’s over there right now for lunch, I’ll call him.” Molly pulled out her phone.

  “Wait, I got more,” Darla interrupted. “So I pressed him on that, asked him what he meant to do to Rachel and he responded, ‘Meant to kill her.’ Everyone knows that. So I asked him, ‘Is Rachel okay?’ and he said, ‘Oh yeah, Rachel’s fine. Warden’s not, though.’ And then he laughed and I was just like, ‘What the fuck does that mean?’ But he got up and stumbled over to the juke box. Got so busy I didn’t see him again or think about it until I got home last night.”

  Everyone gasped. “Oh my god. Randy killed Warden Adler!” Molly shouted. “We’ve gotta go get Wesson!” Molly flipped her salon-provided cheap flip flops off and put on her own with less care than her pedicurist would have liked, but Molly didn’t give a fuck if she smudged the job. This was important. Lane, Sierra, and Chloe followed suit.

  “I’ll pay. You get in the car!” Sierra shouted as they headed to the door.

  “Thanks, Darla! See you soon!” Molly yelled as they ran out to the car. She pulled her phone out and dialed Wesson. “Wesson!” she shouted into the phone, probably with too much alarm in her voice.

  “Yeah, honey, what’s wrong?” She could hear his concern reverberate through the phone.

  “Your dad killed Adler.”

  “I figured that out already, but what makes you say that?”

  “He was in the Cadillac last night. He confessed to Darla.”

  “Holy shit.”

  “Yeah.”

  “Sounds like we got a good case, then.”

  “Sounds like it.”

  “You eat lunch already? My mom made enough for an army and Ryan and I can’t possibly tuck it all away.”

  “No. We were gonna hit that new Greek place, but we need to tell you the whole story Darla gave us just now, so we’re headed to you!” she said, sounding out of breath.

  “Ok - you gals have lunch here, then. My mom will love it. Take a deep breath and drive slowly and safely, Molly.”

  Dang, he’s so sweet. “No worries. I’ll get us there safely.”

  She hung up as Sierra jumped in the back seat next to Chloe. “Let’s go, bitches!”

  They laughed as the tires of Molly’s Ford Escape squealed as they pulled out of the parking lot and headed to Rachel’s house.

  ➰

  Wesson hung up the phone and shook his head, smiling. “Hey, ma! You’re gonna have four more visitors in about ten minutes. Molly and the girls are on their way.”

  “And you were giving me crap for cooking too much food! See? I did it for a reason, Wesson!”

  “You didn’t know they were coming over when you made it.”

  “But I knew there was a possibility!” His mom had laid out a spread when he’d called earlier this morning and mentioned that he and Ryan were going to come over to fix the ramp on her back porch. Hot dogs, hamburgers, a giant potato salad, and a veggie tray that did not appear to be store bought. Neither of them were working today, but Wesson figured Ryan probably wouldn't say no to someone else cooking lunch in exchange for some light labor.

  “You just wanted to impress Ryan,” he grinned at her. “Go ahead, admit it.”

  “Mmmm hmmmmm. Ryan is not hard to look at.”

  Ryan laughed. “Thanks, Ms. Campbell. I have to say, the feeling is mutual,” he winked at her and Rachel pretended to faint in her wheelchair.

  Wesson rolled his eyes. “Stop encouraging her, Blakesly.”

  His mom roused in her chair and smiled. “You can come by whenever you want, Ryan. A friend of Wesson’s is a friend indeed.”

  “At least Ryan is closer to your age,” Wesson asserted as he shrugged.

  “Fuck off, Wesson. I’m 41.”

  “What a coincidence! I’m still 39,” Rachel added. “So this is perfect! We should get married.” She cannot be serious.

  Ryan’s eyes bugged out of his head. “Sorry, Rachel. I’m just not the marrying kind since my divorce.”

  Rachel tsked and popped an olive in her mouth. “Pity.” Good lord, Mother.

  Ryan laughed. Wesson just shook
his head.

  “Rachel!” Wesson heard a shout from the front porch and a pounding on the door. Fuck. Is that my dad again?

  Ryan and Wesson both stood up at the same time and marched to the front door. Wesson opened it. Yep, father dearest.

  “Wesson! Lemme in,” he demanded as he tried to stumble in the front door. Shit. He’s drunk as fuck.

  “Not a chance, old man.” He stopped him in his tracks. “Fuck, man. You smell awful. You’re drunk.”

  “Show what if I am!” he shouted, spitting in Wesson’s face. Gross.

  “It’s a violation of your parole, Randy.” Ryan came up behind Wesson.

  “Who the fuck are you?” Randy asked.

  “I work with your son.”

  “He’s NOT my son! His momma was a WHORE! His girlfriend is probably a WHORE, too! Glad she’s goin’ to jail. Easiest deshishon I ever made, plannnning those drugs. Gonna ruin his life just like he ruined mine!” he screamed.

  Shit on a shingle.

  “You hear that, Ryan?”

  “Yep, I heard it.”

  Wesson’s dad started backing down the front porch.

  “All right, so you can fuck right off, old man. After that confession, and the fact that you fit the description of someone wanted for Warden Adler’s murder, we’re taking you down to the station,” Wesson announced. He didn't have his cuffs on him since he was off duty, but he had a pair in his patrol truck he'd driven over here today.

  “No!” his dad turned and ran. Shit.

  Wesson and Ryan took off after him, and you would have thought that two highly trained, highly athletic men would have been able to catch his drunk, fat ass. But Randy was quick and hopped right in Ryan’s Jeep, started it up and backed out of the driveway, just as the girls were pulling up on the street.

  “Fuck! Why’d you leave your keys in it, Ryan?!” Wesson yelled.

  “Dammit!” Ryan shouted in reply.

  Molly rolled down her window. “Who just sped off in Ryan’s Jeep?”

  “My dad--,” Wesson didn’t even have a chance to put a period on the sentence. Molly floored it to chase after him. “No! Fuck! No! Do not do that! Molly! God damn it!” he shouted. “Ryan! Get in my fuckin’ truck!”

  ➰

  “Holy shit, Molly! We’re going to be in huge trouble, you know this right?” Lane shouted as they sped down the residential road.

  Yeah. Molly got it. The guys were gonna be pissed. Molly gripped the steering wheel harder. “Whatever! We need to stop Wesson’s dad!”

  “Ohhhhhhh shitttttt!” Sierra shouted as they rounded the corner at the end of the street. Molly’s three passengers grabbed onto the ‘Oh Shit!’ handles in her car to go along with their cries. Babies.

  They were fifty feet behind Ryan’s Jeep. It was weaving back and forth. “Jesus, he must be drunk!” Molly shouted.

  They got to the highway at the entrance to Wesson’s mom’s neighborhood. Wesson’s dad didn’t stop at the stop sign. He just ran straight through. Fuck. Molly wasn’t going to risk it. She stopped, looked both ways, and thankfully there were no cars coming. So she pulled out onto the highway, her tires again squealing. Wesson’s dad was clearly speeding. So fast. Molly watched the numbers on her speedometer rise. She was already going 65 in a 55. She didn’t want to go much faster.

  “Shit, he’s going like 80,” Lane commented, still holding on to the handle.

  “The guys can find him. That’s Ryan’s baby. I’m sure he’s got LowJack on it,” Sierra commented. Molly didn’t know what that was, but she was a little pissed she was just now hearing about it.

  “Why didn’t you say that before I chased after him?”

  “I didn’t really have a chance - you just went for it! I didn’t want to disrupt your flow.” Sierra and Chloe laughed as Molly slowed down. They could still see Wesson’s dad in front of them, but Molly wasn’t going to risk their lives to track him down.

  “What would we have even done if we’d caught him?” Chloe asked.

  “I don’t know! I wasn’t thinking! It was pure instinct!” Molly felt stupid.

  “You don’t even have zip ties in here, Molly,” Sierra laughed.

  “Fine! You know what? Fuck off!” Molly snapped.

  A collective gasp filled the car. “Did Molly Mooney just tell us to fuck off?” Lane asked.

  “She totally just did that,” Chloe added.

  “Wow. Impressive. Let’s turn around and head back to the Cadillac! Time for celebration shots! Molly has officially turned into a bad ass! Public sex, car chases, and cursing! What’ll she do next?!” Sierra teased.

  Molly couldn’t help but laugh. These crazy bitches. “What can I say? Wesson brings it out of me.”

  They lost sight of the Jeep in front of them, but were quickly approached from behind by Wesson’s truck running lights and sirens. Shit. Molly slowed down and pulled over, as if she was being pulled over for real. But Wesson didn’t stop. He slowed down just enough to look at Molly through the window. She got ‘the glare’ from both of the guys and gave them a little wave. Okay, yeah, so we’re in trouble.

  “Ruh roh, Raggy,” Chloe said from the back. “Just want you all to know that I’m throwing Molly under the bus when Justin tries to rip me a new one.”

  “Hey! What happened to all that Musketeer stuff? All for one, one for all?” Lane asked. Everyone knew that Lane loved fighting with Jake, so this just would just give her something to look forward to.

  Chloe laughed. “Fine. It was everyone’s idea.”

  “Oh my god, I’ll take the fall,” Molly volunteered. She continued following Ryan and Wesson, but they had their lights and sirens on. If she kept on their ass, Wesson would definitely be upset with her. “I’ll just keep going until the highway splits and then we’ll turn around and head back into town. Sound good?”

  “We still need lunch. I’m fucking starving and need a cigarette,” Sierra chimed in.

  She drove for a few more miles and then came upon the highway split. Ryan and Wesson’s vehicle was parked on the side of the road, lights still flashing, but no siren. She slowed as she watched them hop out of the vehicle and start walking toward the trees.

  “What the….?” Lane questioned no one in particular.

  Molly pulled up behind Wesson’s vehicle and put her car in park. Holy shit.

  Ryan’s Jeep was wrapped around a tree.

  There was smoke billowing and liquid dripping everywhere.

  “Somebody call 911,” Molly didn’t know what else to say. The air felt like it had been sucked out of the vehicle.

  “911 is already here, honey,” Sierra reached forward and gave Molly’s shoulder a squeeze.

  “Oh. Right. I’m sure Wesson has called an ambulance in already.”

  “I doubt he’s alive in there, so there probably isn’t any rush.”

  The Jeep looked like it was a part of the tree. That’s how embedded it was. There was no way - no way - that Randy had survived that crash. Holy fuck.

  ➰

  “What the fuck were you thinking?” Wesson admonished Molly. He couldn’t fucking believe she would put herself - not to mention her best friends - in that kind of danger. They were all back at the station.

  Molly cringed. “I’m sorry, Wesson. I wasn’t thinking.”

  “I told her to do it,” Sierra added.

  “Jesus, Sierra. What the fuck were you thinking?” Brenden asked.

  “Stop, she didn’t tell me to do it. It was all me,” Molly defended her friend.

  “No, it was me,” Chloe and Lane both said at the same time.

  Jake crossed his arms and gave Lane a look that said she’d probably be getting spanked later. Justin looked fucking furious.

  “Thanks, girls. But this was all on me. I was so worried we were gonna lose him, I just acted on instinct.”

  “Nope. All for one, one for all. We could have yelled at you to stop or slow down, but we didn�
�t. We just went with it!” Lane smiled. “Don’t be hard on Molly, guys. She was actually a really careful car chaser. Stopped at the stop sign and everything!” she laughed.