And it’d come damn close to hitting them.
Dylan shoved Collena to the floor, and he maneuvered himself so that he was in front of her. That way, if the intruder shot at them again, he’d be in a better position to protect her and return fire.
Judging from Collena’s muffled protest, she didn’t like that idea. But Dylan wasn’t giving her a choice. He’d already lost two women in his life, and he wasn’t about to lose another.
While he was there, crouched over Collena, he went through the other possibilities, none of them good. He might have a killer in his home. Or maybe a kidnapper who’d come for Adam. After all, he was a wealthy man, and anyone who’d heard about the recent shooting in the woods might have thought this was the perfect time to commit another crime.
But that didn’t make sense.
If this was a kidnapping, why hadn’t the person just gone after Adam? And why try to kill him, the person who would be paying the ransom for the child?
Part of Dylan was elated that this might not be connected to Adam. But he couldn’t be that happy, because Collena’s life was on the line, and they almost certainly had a killer in the house.
He saw the gloved hand jut out again. The shooter didn’t aim or peer out from around the corner to determine their position before firing.
This shot smashed into the window a good ten feet away from them, and the wind howled through the now gaping hole left in the glass. But that shot told Dylan exactly what he needed to know.
That Collena could escape.
Because the shooter wasn’t aiming. That would have required the person to leave cover and be exposed to gunfire.
“Crawl to the opposite end of the hall,” he whispered to Collena. “And get into the family room. I’ll be right behind you.”
Until he’d added that last part, Collena had been shaking her head. But that stopped her, and after a few moments of hesitation, she started inching her way backward.
Dylan did, as well.
However, he kept watch to make sure the shooter didn’t jump out with guns blazing. He also listened for the sound of footsteps in case this SOB decided to backtrack and sneak up behind them. Of course, that would mean the person knew the layout of the house.
Collena and he crawled back. Inch by inch. Dylan’s adrenaline level was sky-high, and with each passing second, it got even higher. It didn’t help that the wind was screaming now. Muffling sounds that shouldn’t be muffled.
He cursed himself, for not doing more to prevent this. Collena wouldn’t blame him. She wasn’t the sort to do that. But he was. And it would take him a lifetime or more to get over the fact that he’d endangered her and Adam.
They made it to the end of the corridor. Just as another shot came at them. It tore off a piece of the ceiling, and the plaster came raining down on them. Dylan used the diversion to get to his feet. He dragged Collena around the corner and out of the line of fire, just in the nick of time.
The next shot splintered the wood floor where they’d been seconds earlier.
“We can double back around,” Collena whispered. “That way, we can make sure Adam and Ina are okay.”
Yes, and while he was at it, he could leave Collena with them. That would serve two purposes. It would get her out of the immediate path of this killer, and it would give Ina some much needed backup if this shooter got past Dylan.
He didn’t intend to let that happen. But he could use the backup plan to convince Collena to stay where she stood the best chance of surviving his.
Dylan took off his boots, so that they wouldn’t be heard on the hardwood and tiled floor. Collena did the same with her shoes. Once they were done, they started to move again, quickly, so they could get to the nursery.
Just in case the shooter had the same idea they did.
Dylan kept his ears and eyes open for any movement or sound.
Unfortunately, he heard one, even over the winter wind.
Someone was running down the corridor that Collena and he had just left. The shooter was coming after them, and once he or she rounded the corner, the bullets would likely start flying again.
Collena grasped their situation, as well. With Dylan right behind her, she began to run for the nearest cover—the dining room. Dylan calculated that they had just enough time to dive inside before they became targets.
But he miscalculated.
He saw the figure at the end of the hall. Just a shadow, camouflaged by other shadows that the moonlight and the shrubs had created.
And he realized it was too late for Collena and him to take cover.
The figure stepped out, a bulky, awkward movement that seemed to involve some kind of struggle. He had a split-second realization that there might be not one shooter but two. However, that realization came a little too late.
Someone fired.
And fired.
And fired.
That’s when Dylan got a better look at the person who was trying to kill them.
Chapter Seventeen
Collena aimed her gun to return fire.
Only to realize she couldn’t.
The person coming down the hall toward them was none other than Ina. But Ina wasn’t the one who was shooting. There was someone behind her.
Someone was using Ina as a human shield.
Collena yelled for Dylan to keep down, and they tried to scramble out of the line of fire.
It wasn’t easy. The bullets seemed to be flying everywhere. She wasn’t even sure the shooter was aiming. Just blasting random shots through the air. Still, stray bullets could be as deadly as aimed ones.
Collena dove into the dining room and tried to drag Dylan to safety with her.
Of course, that left Collena with one terrifying question.
Where was Adam?
Oh. God.
Where was her son?
“Ina, are you okay?” Dylan shouted.
He grabbed Collena when she started to get up. He knew that she was in a panic now that she’d realized Adam might not be safe. But she had to get to her son.
Ina didn’t answer right away. “I’m alive.”
“And Adam?” Collena asked. She held her breath and prayed.
“Still sleeping in his crib. I’m sorry, Dylan. I couldn’t get him in the bathroom in time to lock us in there like you said.”
“I wouldn’t hurt Adam for anything,” someone added.
It was Millie.
Dylan cursed under his breath. Collena cursed, too, because she realized they had a very unstable woman on their hands. This situation could easily turn more deadly than it already was.
“You’re sure Adam’s all right?” Collena demanded, and she listened for any hint of a lie in Millie’s response.
“He’ll be okay as long as you cooperate and do as I say.”
Millie’s threat was chilling. And convincing. That meant Adam was okay, for now.
“Put down your gun, Millie,” Dylan insisted. “And let Ina go. We need to talk.”
“Yes, we do,” Millie agreed. “But Ina and my gun stay put. For now anyway. Toss out your guns and step closer so I can see you. If you don’t, Ina dies right here.”
Millie might be bluffing, but it was a huge risk to take, especially if she was off her antipsychotic medication. Still, if Dylan and she surrendered their weapons, they’d be defenseless against Millie’s gun.
“Collena’s not armed,” Dylan said, and he motioned for her to hand him her gun. Because she didn’t have a better plan in mind, Collena cooperated.
Dylan tossed his weapon onto the corridor floor and tucked her gun in the back waist of his jeans. “I’m coming out.”
“Collena, too,” Millie insisted.
“No. This isn’t about her.”
“But it is. It’s about both of you. Come out, or Ina dies.”
“We need to stall her,” Dylan whispered to Collena. “The sheriff will be here soon.”
That might or might not be a good thing. Once Millie heared the siren
s, she might just shoot them and then try to escape.
“Come out now!” Millie yelled. Her voice was so loud and shrill that Adam woke up.
From the end of the hall, Collena heard her son begin to cry and only hoped that Adam was safe in his crib. She didn’t want her child getting out of the room and coming anywhere near this.
“Try to stay behind me,” Dylan told Collena. Then, he raised his hands in the air and stepped out.
So did Collena, and when she went into the corridor, she came face-to-face with a woman who obviously wanted her dead. Judging from Ina’s dire expression, she’d already accepted her death and was just waiting to see how all of this would play out.
“I’m in love with you, Dylan,” Millie said. Her voice was trembling. Her whole body was trembling. And that meant her trigger finger was, as well.
“You don’t know what love is,” Dylan fired back at her.
Millie frantically shook her head. “Oh, but I do. I killed for you, Dylan. That woman you asked to marry you wasn’t right for you. I thought you’d figure it out for yourself, but you didn’t. Collena isn’t right for you, either. She only wants you so she can keep Adam. You’re too good for her.”
There it was. Motive and confession. All along, the killer had been under Dylan’s own roof.
“Did you kill my sister, too?” Dylan asked.
Millie nodded. She didn’t seem eager to finish her confession. “She found out what I’d done. I couldn’t let her go to the police. I couldn’t let you know what I did because I knew you wouldn’t understand. You wouldn’t have forgiven me.”
“No. I wouldn’t have.” Dylan took a step toward the two women. “You’re a killer, plain and simple. That has nothing to do with love.”
“Don’t come closer,” Millie warned.
Dylan took another step anyway and, even in the pale, shadowy moonlight, Collena saw Millie’s index finger tighten on the trigger. “You don’t want to hurt Ina.” His voice was calm. Unlike the storm of emotion swirling around them. “You want to let her go. I can arrange help for you.”
“You mean, a psychiatric hospital. I won’t go. Mother’s been trying to make me go to a place like that for years, and I won’t. I’m not crazy. I’m only trying to protect you.” Millie’s eyes turned on Collena. “She’s trash. Can’t you see that?”
“She’s not trash. She’s Adam’s mother. And remember, our marriage is one of convenience. For Adam’s sake. There’s no reason for you to feel threatened by Collena.”
Collena knew he was probably just trying to negotiate, to buy some time until he could distract Millie enough to get that gun away from her. But she also knew it was true. Despite the fact they’d had sex, this was a relationship based on providing the best for their son.
Unfortunately, Millie, with her delusions and sick love for Dylan, could take that all away. And Dylan was taking a huge risk with every step he took toward her.
He didn’t stop, despite Millie shaking her head and backing up. Collena’s cop instincts made her want to shout for Dylan to stop. He was pressing too hard. But she also knew he didn’t have a choice. They wouldn’t let Ina die, and they couldn’t allow Adam to be put at further risk.
Collena moved closer, as well, in case she had to help.
“Put the gun down,” Dylan told her.
“No.” Twin tears spilled down Millie’s cheeks. “I can’t. It can’t end this way.”
The words had hardly left her mouth when she gave Ina a fierce shove. Right at Dylan and Collena. Ina collided with them, and the impact sent the three of them crashing to the floor.
Millie didn’t waste any time. While Ina, Dylan and Collena were untangling themselves from one another, Millie turned and sprinted down the corridor away from them, and headed right for…
“The nursery,” Dylan said. He picked up his gun and tossed Collena hers. “We have to get to Adam before she does. Millie might try to use him to escape.”
Or worse.
Collena and Dylan jumped up from the floor and raced to save their little boy.
DYLAN’S HEART WAS pounding against his ribs. He had a dozen horrible thoughts that he didn’t want to have. Still, he didn’t let those thoughts distract him.
Adam was in danger, and he had to get to the nursery.
Because his pulse was pounding in his ears and because of their collective footsteps on the hardwood, Dylan couldn’t tell Millie’s position. But he guessed that she was using the west hall to get the nursery. Collena and he were using the east.
Millie’s route was slightly shorter.
But she didn’t have as much at stake as Collena and he did.
Dylan turned the corner, mere feet away from the nursery door. He could hear Adam’s soft sobs, as if he were trying to go back to sleep, but Millie was nowhere in sight.
However, the nursery door was wide-open.
Collena tried to bolt past him, but Dylan restrained her just in case Millie was inside the doorway, waiting to ambush them.
There was another problem, as well. The door directly across from the nursery was open, too. That was Ruth’s room, and Millie could easily be hiding there. Either way, Dylan couldn’t risk her firing any more shots. One way or another, he had to get that gun away from her.
He heard the sirens from the sheriff’s car and knew there wasn’t much time. Millie would know it, too, and she might already be in the nursery. She could even escape out the window with Adam.
Dylan hated to put Collena’s life at further risk, but he didn’t have a choice. He tipped his head to the nanny’s room. You go there, he mouthed. I’ll go into the nursery.
She swallowed hard and then nodded. Collena looked as if she wanted to say something to him, but both knew there wasn’t time for that. Aiming her gun, she slipped around him and eased into the room.
Dylan went in the other direction.
Adam stopped crying. Dylan preferred the tears. It let him know that his son was okay and that he was nearby. Without the sounds of the little boy’s cries, Dylan had no idea if he was still in the nursery.
He stepped cautiously into the room. Watching his back. And trying to watch Collena’s. He went to the crib. Adam was indeed there.
Thank God.
His son’s eyes were closed, and he was sucking his thumb.
Dylan checked the windows next. They were all shut tight. It was harder to tell if all was well in the room because the moonlight was scarce on this side of the house. The only illumination came from the battery-backed-up night-light near the crib. There were a lot of shadows in the room, and Millie could be lurking, waiting to strike.
A soft sound put him on alert. Not a footstep. More like a swish of movement across the hall.
Where Collena was.
He didn’t dare call out to her. It might give away their positions. Dylan eased his way back to the door and looked out.
What he saw caused his blood to turn to ice.
Millie was there. In the hall. Collena’s back was to her. And Millie already had her weapon raised and aimed.
She was about to kill Collena.
In that flash of a moment, things became crystal clear. He was in love with Collena and desperately wanted her in his life. Not just as Adam’s mother. Dylan wanted her. He couldn’t lose her.
“Get down!” he yelled to Collena. And then he launched himself at Millie.
She fired the shot anyway.
The sound and the bullet ripped through Ruth’s room, but Dylan had no idea if it’d hit Collena. The impact of the collision with Millie threw them off balance, and they crashed into the wall.
Unfortunately, she kept control of her gun. Dylan didn’t. Millie kicked his hand, sending Dylan’s gun flying across the hall.
Millie fought like a wild woman. She clawed at him, bashing his head and face with her gun.
“I loved you!” Millie yelled. “You had no right to do this to me.”
He managed to catch her right hand and pin it against the
wall. She continued to fight, her finger still on the trigger. They weren’t out of danger yet.
Collena went to him. He couldn’t tell if she was hurt or not, but she grabbed Millie’s left arm while Dylan wrenched the gun from her right hand.
So that Millie wouldn’t hurt herself or him, Dylan dragged her back to the floor and held her down so that she couldn’t move.
“Anybody here?” someone called out. It was Sheriff Hathaway. Just in time to arrest a killer.
“Back here,” Dylan shouted. And then he looked over his shoulder to see if Collena had checked on Adam.
But Collena was still in the corridor leaning against the wall.
And there was blood streaming down her forehead and onto her face.
Chapter Eighteen
Collena winced when the doctor flashed the light in her eyes.
“Got a headache?” Dr. Finn McGrath asked her.
She nodded. The movement made her head hurt. So did her knees, hands and her right arm. She’d injured it somehow in that scuffle with Millie. Heck, she hurt all over, so she quit trying to identify each source of annoying pain.
Dylan sat in the corner of the examining room. He looked worried, but he was okay. So were Adam and Ina. She’d made the medics check them out at the ranch before she would get in the ambulance and come to the hospital. And Collena would gladly go through a million headaches or more if that meant everyone was safe.
“You have a mild concussion.” The doctor turned off the light and stared down at her. “A cracked rib, multiple cuts and contusions, a sprained wrist and you’re going to need stitches in your forehead where that bullet grazed you.”
“All minor stuff,” she concluded, and she sent Dylan a reassuring glance to let him know just that. It didn’t appear to reassure him though. His jaw was clenched like iron, as it had been during the entire ambulance ride to the hospital and the examination.
Dr. McGrath turned and looked at Dylan. “I don’t suppose it’d do any good to suggest an examination for you?”
Dylan shook his head. “I’m fine. Take care of Collena.”
“Already done that. The prodding and poking is over, and all that’s left is for the nurse to come in here in a minute to do some stitching and bandaging. While she’s taking care of that, I’ll write Collena a prescription for some nice painkillers, and leave written instructions about how to deal with that concussion. But I have to figure, if she has injuries like these, then you’re probably hurting some, too.”
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