by Carys Jones
*
The day crept by agonizingly slowly but eventually the sun relinquished its control over the sky and started to dip towards the horizon.
“We should make a move,” Buck suggested quietly from the passenger seat. Aiden turned the key in the ignition and moved the car out from the parking lot of a relatively busy motel. All day Aiden had sat and regarded each car which passed along with the road with terrified apprehension but no one stopped. It seemed that Buck had been right about Javier Santo.
Aiden programmed his navigation system to take them four miles east of San Migeno. His heart was already in his throat as he turned onto the main road and took a hard right.
They drove in silence as outside the day was quickly overwhelmed by night. The moon was partially obscured by clouds, making the shadows which lined the road appear even denser.
When Aiden was half a mile from the warehouse, he turned off the car’s headlights, allowing the creeping darkness of the night to devour them and the vehicle.
“Approach nice and slow,” Buck instructed, his eyes wide and alert like a tiger stalking its prey.
“We’ll get out shortly and walk the rest of the way.”
Aiden ground his teeth together and nodded.
*
Brandy’s thoughts felt disjointed as though she were in a dream. She wondered in her more lucid moments how much blood she had lost. But before she could try and reach a conclusion, she was plunged once more into the uncertainty of unconsciousness.
No more water had been poured down her throat. No more limbs had been savagely removed from her body. Helpless and alone, she feared she was just being left there to die.
*
Aiden stopped the car then opened the door and stepped out onto the dirt track he’d partly driven up. On the other side of the vehicle, Buck mirrored his movements. Before closing the door, Aiden reached in for his pistol and tucked it in the waistband of his jeans.
He jumped as Buck’s hand landed on his shoulder.
“Don’t be so jumpy. You need to be focused.”
In the darkness they cautiously fumbled their way along the rest of the dirt track which they hoped would lead them to abandoned warehouse. Five minutes grew into ten and Aiden was starting to fear that Javier had lied to them when he saw the glow of a distant light.
“That’s it!” Buck hissed, instinctively lowering himself to the ground.
“Now what?” Aiden asked, his heart hammering so loudly in his chest that he feared it would alert everyone in the warehouse to his presence.
“We get closer.”
Together they crept towards the warehouse, keeping their bodies close to the ground. As they drew nearer they were able to make out the shadows of several cars parked up outside. A dim floodlight bathed the vehicles in a yellow glow. There were numerous windows within the warehouse but only two were illuminated.
Aiden regarded the building, which was mostly concealed in darkness. He could see rusted pipes and dark, dirtied walls. His heart ached to imagine Brandy in such a place. All of the windows were partly broken with panes missing or cracked. The warehouse was beyond run down with mother nature already eagerly trying to reclaim the property through the shrubs and weeds which gathered in cracks in the wall.
“There,” Buck spoke so softly Aiden barely caught the word. He glanced towards what must have been the main entrance to the warehouse. A broad-shouldered man was standing there, his face turned away from them. But the silhouette of the rifle he held across his chest was terrifyingly apparent.
Aiden balked and turned away.
“If we’re quick and get in the first shot, we’re in,” Buck whispered. “That first shot must be fatal.”
With slick palms Aiden slid his pistol out from his jeans. He wasn’t sure he could do it. If so much as a twig snapped as he approached the warehouse, the man guarding the door would see both him and Buck and gun them down in a rain of bullets.
“She’s in there,” Buck’s voice was strained with urgency. “We have to act now.”
Aiden closed his eyes and remembered the first time he’d seen Brandy. She’d looked lost in the garish orange jumpsuit which swamped her tiny frame. But the light which illuminated from within her existed even inside Eastham Prison. When Aiden saw her, he knew that he had to save her. He’d never known anything else with such certainty. And now he was here to save her again and he wasn’t about to let her down.
Releasing the safety on his pistol, he took a deep breath and approached the main door to the warehouse.
The dense shadows of the night allowed them to creep close to the building. Aiden could smell the cigarette smoke which clung to the broad-shouldered man’s clothes. With his back pressed against the wall of the warehouse, he drew his gun and prepared to shoot.
Something snapped underfoot. Only it wasn’t his foot, it was Buck’s. The man on the door instantly turned in the direction of the sound, raising his rifle. Aiden fired.
The sound cracked through the air like a whip.
He took one clean shot and it was all he needed. The man dropped down, his finger still on the trigger of the rifle, his eyes open but glazing open. Buck stepped out from the shadows and looked at the blood pooling beneath the man’s head. A dark-red tunnel had cut through his skull through which a river of red eagerly flowed. The man’s huge frame twitched unpredictably upon the floor but Buck didn’t flinch. Buck looked at Aiden and then dropped to his knees, unhooking the dead man’s grip from the rifle.
With the rifle in his hands, Buck tossed his pistol across to Aiden. The sound of the gun shot had alerted the four remaining men within the warehouse and they all raced towards the main door, their weapons raised.
Buck planted his legs firmly apart and pulled hard on the trigger of the rifle. Bullets fled wild and fast from it, showering the interior of the warehouse. The sound was deafening; like a tornado ripping through the room.
Buck’s grey eyes narrowed as he fluidly altered his trajectory to catch all four of the men who had come looming out of the shadows.
Aiden aimed his pistol and fired a few shots but he was too far away to be accurate. The four men surged forward, taking a few shots of their own. They raised their weapons and fired at the weathered old man in the doorway. One shot grazed Buck’s cheek, smearing a line of blood across his leathery skin as it went. Another ripped through the top of his ear, but Buck remained rooted to the spot as though he were made from stone.
A shot whizzed past Aiden’s head and he held his breath. The bullets which flew through the air around him were so close he could smell them. He could feel his body trying to nervously convulse. He had no idea how Buck could remain so rigid and focused when potentially facing down his own death.
Something exploded within Aiden, the pain rippling out through the rest of his body. He felt his breath catch as hot fluid began to flow down his chest.
Buck ceased shooting and lowered his gun, there was smoke curling from the barrel. He took a quick breath and looked over in satisfaction at the four bodies which lay on the ground, their blood splattered across the far wall of the warehouse.
“Five, no more, no less,” Buck repeated Javier’s words, mentally checking that all five bodies were accounted for.
“Come on, we need to be quick,” Buck tilted his head towards the interior of the warehouse.
Aiden wanted to follow but instead he dropped to his knees. One hand pushed against the dirt on the ground whilst the other gripped his shoulder which was soaked with his own warm blood. He could feel it gushing out of him with the steady rhythm of a heartbeat.
Buck looked down at him, his face contorting with dismay.
“Shit, Connelly, you’ve been shot!”
“Leave me, just go get her,” Aiden insisted. The pain was already burning through his body, if he went inside the warehouse he’d only slow Buck down.
A crack boomed between them and Aiden was physically pushed back against the ground. All his muscles began to
tighten with panic.
“Shit!” Buck rearmed himself with lightning speed. His eyes peere suspiciously in to the warehouse.
“Connelly, can you breathe?”
Aiden opened his mouth, flapping his lips together like a fish struggling for air. He couldn’t breathe.
“Shit!” Buck cursed as he quickly glanced at him. “You’ve been shot in the chest.”
Another crack, as loud and brutal as lightning. Only this time it wasn’t followed by a tidal wave of pain.
“Put pressure on it,” Buck advised, once again peering into the warehouse.
Aiden remained still on the ground. He could see his vision beginning to blur around the edges.
“Christ, Connelly, pressure!” Buck shouted as he suddenly pivoted on the spot and fired. Aiden heard the man drop to the ground but didn’t see him.
“Five my fucking ass,” Buck muttered as he dropped his rifle and scurried over to Aiden’s side.
“We don’t have long.” There was a tremble in his voice which Aiden had never heard before. He lifted Aiden’s left hand and pressed it firmly against his chest above where a fire was burning within his organs.
“Pressure.” Buck instructed tersely. “I won’t have you bleed out, not here.”
“Brandy,” Aiden managed to say her name although his words were muffled by the blood which was collecting in his throat.
“I’ll get her,” Buck promised. “I’ll be right back. I just hope no one else is inside.”
Aiden heard Buck’s footsteps retreat away from him as the fire in his chest grew stronger, igniting his entire body until he was powerless to fight it and he slipped into darkness.
*
Brandy trembled as she heard what sounded like a thunder storm echo through the walls, causing them to shake. Even the table which she was bound to quaked. Her head was still heavy against her chest as she tried to look up, tried to look around. But she was too weak.
Distantly she heard the door to the room crash open, followed by heavy, urgent footsteps. She assumed that these moments would be her last, that someone had come to kill her.
“Brandy! Brandy, listen to me! Stay with me!” Someone said her name. A voice which was both familiar and unfamiliar. Brandy tried to speak to them but she couldn’t.
“Shit, these fucking chains,” the voice snarled angrily. “Don’t move!”
She heard the order and obeyed it. She almost wanted to laugh at whoever had said it. How could she possibly move? She could barely remain conscious. The thunder storm erupted around her, blasting her ears. A faint ringing promptly replaced the storm as someone lifted her from her chair. She lapsed back into darkness before she could try to comprehend what was going on.
*
Aiden squinted against the bright light of a new day. He winced in pain as he closed the door to the motel room.
Buck Fern was standing outside, his wiry frame silhouetted against the rising sun. With his Stetson shielding his eyes, he looked every inch the weathered old cowboy who’d been round the corral one too many times.
“You’re up,” Buck noted.
“Yeah.” Aiden was surprised he’d managed to sleep at all given everything that had happened but the medication he’d had to take for his shoulder and chest wound had enabled him to easily slip away into the realm of dreams.
“How you feeling?” Buck nodded towards Aiden’s bandaged shoulder. The crisp white of the dressing was visible beneath the sleeve of the T-shirt he was wearing.
“Sore,” Aiden admitted. The wound on his shoulder continued to throb and burn as though flames were licking his skin despite the bullet having been removed and every breath he took felt precarious. It was as though his lungs were now brittle and made of glass instead of just recovering from a bullet wound.
“And her?” Buck glanced back at the motel room door.
“She’s resting.”
“Good.” Buck looked away, out at the motel parking lot which was half full.
“You been out here all night?” Aiden had to lean against the door frame, already starting to feel breathless.
“Since we got back, yeah.”
“You didn’t need to do that,” Aiden stated, grateful that he had.
“Someone had to keep watch.”
Aiden shot a protective glance back at the motel room door. Behind it Brandy was sleeping. She’d been given several pints of blood and numerous painkillers. The doctor they had paid to help them the previous night had assured them that she’d recover from her injuries. She just needed to rest. The doctor pleaded with them to go to a hospital but Aiden knew that wouldn’t be safe. News of what had happened at the warehouse would have spread by now and the Caulerone brothers would be looking for them.
“So what now?” Aiden wanted to return to Avalon, to return to his life but something told him it wouldn’t be that easy.
“Me, I’m going back to Avalon.” Buck’s gaze remained on the parking lot. “And you and Brandy are going on the run.”
“On the run?” Aiden shook his head, the gesture causing the pain in his shoulder to flare up and his broken lungs to constrict in protest. “No! That’s ridiculous! I need to get back to Avalon. I need to get back to my job, my home!” Raising a hand to his mouth he began to cough uneasily.
“Won’t be safe for you there,” Buck slowly turned his head to look at the young lawyer. “You and her need to lay low for a while. Let the grudge the Caulerones have against you lose some of its heat.”
“I have a daughter!” Aiden lamented, raising his voice as much as his lungs could bear. “I can’t just go on the run for an indefinite amount of time!”
“You must!” Buck replied sharply. “You go back to Avalon now, you go back wearing a target on your back. They’ll come for you and kill you for what you’ve done.”
“And what about you?” Aiden challenged. “Won’t you have a target on your back?”
“I was never here,” Buck smiled wryly. “No one would believe that I’d come down here and risk my life for the girl.”
Aiden choked on his disdain.
“This…this was your plan all along?” He pointed an accusing finger at the old man. “You’ve wanted me out of Avalon since the day we met! And now you’re getting rid of Brandy too! This must be a perfect conclusion for you!”
Buck’s flint eyes narrowed in anger as he took a sharp breath.
“I helped you, Connelly. A little gratitude wouldn’t go amiss. Both you and your lady friend are alive because of me.”
“Why help me?” Aiden raged, ignoring the pain searing in his chest as his cheeks reddened. “You hate me! You hate her!” He gestured wildly towards the motel door and regretted doing so as his shoulder began to burn in agony.
“Want to know why I helped you?” Buck asked, his gaze softening.
“Yes!” Aiden insisted. “Why? Why did you help me?”
“When your wife and girl left town you could have gone with them. You could have notched your time in Avalon up to an experiment gone wrong and just resumed your life in the city. But you wanted to honor the promise you made to Edmond.”
Aiden felt tears gather behind his eyes upon hearing his deceased friend’s name.
“Edmond saw something in you,” Buck continued, lifting his chin. “He saw something that he thought Avalon needed. When I met you, I thought you’d only bring our town trouble. And I was right.”
Aiden drew his eyebrows together in confusion. What point was the old man trying to make?
“But you fought for Avalon. You fought for it because it’s your home. Maybe you weren’t born and raised there like me, but you feel bound to it, just like the rest of us do.”
Aiden silently lowered his head. He had to admit that the old man was right; Avalon was his home.
“Maybe you’ve not noticed, but Avalon has lost a good deal of great men. Men who would stand up against outsiders, men who worked to preserve the legacy of our town,” Buck continued, his voice low and respectful
.
“I’m old, Connelly. Each morning when I wake up and my bones ache no matter how much sleep I got I’m reminded of the fact that I won’t be here for ever. But when I’m gone, Avalon will endure and the town will need more people like me, people willing to fight for their home. People like you.”
Buck turned, setting his back against the rising sun. “You’re alright, Connelly,” he said with a light smile as he extended his hand towards Aiden.
With his eyes wide in disbelief, Aiden shook the old sheriff’s hand. His skin was cold but surprisingly soft.
“Buck, I—”
“Now give me your keys,” Buck interrupted tersely.
“My keys?”
“Car keys!” Buck rolled his eyes in annoyance. “How else am I going to get back to Avalon?”
“How am I going to get back?” Aiden asked, horrified.
“You won’t be coming back for a time yet,” Buck stated flatly.
“When can I come back?” Aiden wondered as he tossed his keys to Buck. He had enough money to pick up a cheap car and he reasoned it was probably best to be without a car that could be traced back to him and Avalon. If he and Brandy were to go on the run for a while they’d need to live off the grid.
Buck tossed the keys up in his hand, smiling lightly to himself.
“Buck?” Aiden pressed him. “When can I come back to Avalon?”
“When it’s safe,” Buck replied sincerely, the smile falling from his thin lips.
“When will that be?”
“When I know, you’ll know,” Buck promised as he began sauntering over towards Aiden’s parked car.
“One day it will be safe for you to return to Avalon,” Buck paused and tipped his Stetson at Aiden.
“But that day isn’t today.”
CARINA™
ISBN: 978 1 474 03495 1
Fourth to Run
Copyright © 2015 Carys Jones
Published in Great Britain (2015)
by Carina, an imprint of Harlequin (UK) Limited, Eton House, 18-24 Paradise Road, Richmond, Surrey TW9 1SR