Three more bullets pelted the driver side door. One of them went into the seat, one hit Sam in his left hip; the third lodged in his left thigh.
The blood from his left shoulder was gushing. That bullet had hit an artery, he thought. He fought to maintain consciousness.
He thought to himself, just a hundred more yards, just a hundred more yards.
“Almost there,” he gasped, his consciousness beginning to wane. He floored the gas pedal.
Thirty more yards, he thought.
Two more shots pelted the Tahoe. One of them lodged in another area of Sam’s side. He groaned.
Twenty more yards… ten.”
“I have a cell signal,” Vandy screamed. “I have a cell signal!”
The Tahoe veered to the right, off the road. He Tahoe slammed hard into a boulder.
“Did you hear what I said, Sam? I have a cell signal,” she repeated.
There was no answer.
“Sam?” she cried out. She sat up again. She could see that the Tahoe had made the turn at the bend. The vehicle was no longer in the shooter’s line of sight. She no longer heard gunshots.
“Sam, you did it!” she yelled. “You got us clear. Sam? Sam?”
There was no answer.
She dialed 911. She received a recorded notification, “All circuits are busy. Please try your call again later.”
“No! No! No! Dammit!” she screamed.
She dialed again.
“All circuits are busy. Please try your call again later.”
“No!” she screamed again, dialing again.
“Ring you fucking piece of shit! Ring! Ring!”
Chapter 18
The sun had been beating down. It was well over 90 degrees, and Sam was basking in the sun, sweating on his recliner, wearing nothing but sunglasses, swimming trunks and sunscreen. He had just finished a Mark Len Mayfield novel on his Kindle and was deciding whether to grab another ice-cold beer from the cooler or take a dip in the pool.
He sat up, hearing the water splash.
Vandy had been swimming and was just getting out of the pool. Her skin had tanned golden brown and her tiny yellow bikini left almost nothing to the imagination. Her body had healed. The scar over her breast was nearly unnoticeable. She was a vision of beauty, climbing out of the pool. Sam felt himself getting aroused looking at her as she approached, smiling from ear to ear, showing her perfect set of white teeth.
She had on no makeup and her hair was wet and slicked back on her head. He actually thought she looked sexiest with no makeup at all. He had never seen a more stunning looking woman. Her magnetic eyes were burning a hole right through his head.
He reached for the cooler.
“Let me get that for you cowboy,” she said, opening the cooler and reaching for an ice-cold Budweiser. She looked at it before handing it to him.
“You fucking hillbilly,” she chided playfully, “when are you going to let me get you some real beer?”
She popped the can and took a long swig of it before handing it to him.
“You mean there are other kinds of beer?” he replied.
She rolled her eyes.
“Don’t you know I’m a Hollywood socialite?” she said. “I can’t be seen drinking this swill. It will ruin my stainless reputation.”
She straddled him on the outdoor recliner as he took a drink.
“Well, it’s a good thing we’re at your private pool,” he said. He looked around at Vandy’s incredible estate. “You know, a man could get used to this?”
She smiled, leaning over him, kissing him warmly on the lips. He could taste the beer on them.
She sat up, taking the beer from him again. She took a long drink and then allowed beer to spill down the front of her chest.
He sat up and began to kiss her chest, tasting the beer.
“Whoa,” she said, looking down at his crotch. “It looks like someone is happy to see me?”
Sam blushed slightly, “You know I’m always happy to see you.”
She bent over him and they kissed again. Her tongue slipped into his mouth. His stiff member rubbed against her sheer bikini bottom. His hand slid up her thigh and side until he found her breast. His fingers moved under her bikini top and touched her erect nipple as she moved her hips back and forth on top of him.
He used both hands to slide his trunks down under her. She untied the knot of her bikini bottom and pulled it away. She raised her hips and slid over top of him, allowing him to enter her. They both moaned.
Vandy raised and lowered her hips in a slow motion, relishing every movement as he entered her deeper and deeper with every thrust.
He untied the back of her top and let it fall away, revealing her magnificent natural breasts which swayed gently with her hip movements.
Her hip movement quickened. She moaned louder.
Vandy’s cell phone rang. It was an odd ringtone; beep… beep… beep.
She continued to move her hips, ignoring the ring.
It continued to ring, Beep… beep… beep.
“That could be important,” Sam said. “Aren’t you going to get that?”
She slowed and bent over him; her breasts nearly touching his face. Then she leaned back and smiled brightly.
“I think he’s waking up,” she said to him.
Chapter 19
“What did you say?” Sam asked.
“Sam? Can you hear me?” Vandy said.
Beep… beep… beep.
Sam blinked several times. He looked to the sound of Vandy’s voice. She was standing over him. She was smiling though tears were in her eyes.
The beeping noise was not from a cell phone, but through a medical life window monitor. He was in a hotel room.
“Oh my god, you’re awake!” she cried out. “Nurse! Nurse! He’s awake.”
The nurse came in and looked at Sam, “Look finally decided to join us,” she said. She looked at the monitors. “I’m Nurse Riley. Ms. Vanderbilt and I have been watching over you.”
Sam blinked again, “Vandy?”
“Yes, it’s me, Sam. I’m here.”
He tried to lift his head. Vandy gently retrained him, “Don’t try to move, Sam. “
“She’s right Mr. Steele,” the nurse repeated. “Don’t move. I’ll get your doctor.”
“Where am I?” Sam asked.
“You’re in St. Patrick Hospital in Missoula,” she said.
“I was having the most wonderful dream,” Sam said.
“What was it about?” Vandy asked.
He glanced at Nurse Riley, “I’ll tell you later. Oww!”
“What happened?” Riley asked. “Are you in pain?”
“I feel so stiff,” he said, his voice lumbered, groggy.
“That’s because you’ve been in a coma, Sam,” Vandy said. “You’ve been in a medically induced coma for nine days. You were shot five times and banged your head. I was so worried.”
A man in a lab coat appeared. He was thin and short, with dark hair and a dark complexion.
“Well, hello, Mr. Steele,” he greeted, pleasantly, but without a smile. “My name is Dr. Adatia. Do you know where you are?”
“Yes,” he replied. “In St. Patrick’s hospital.”
“You were shot, Mr. Steele,” Dr. Adatia replied, “five times. Do you remember being shot?”
“I think so,” he said. “Even if I didn’t, my shoulders, side, hip and leg would remind me. Damn, it’s painful.”
“We were able to remove the bullets,” Dr. Adatia said. “They are healing nicely. I would expect you to have a full recovery from those wounds.”
“That’s good news.”
“Mr. Steele, do you have family we can call for you?” Dr. Adatia asked. “We couldn’t locate anyone and Ms. Vanderbilt seemed to think…”
“No,” he interrupted. “There’s no one.”
Dr. Adatia nodded, “Mr. Steele, who can make medical decisions on your behalf in the case of an emergency?”
He bi
t his lip and sighed, “I… I… really don’t have anyone.”
“I’ll do it,” Vandy said. “I’m right here.”
She looked at Sam, “Unless you think I’d kill you.”
“You were pretty pissed at me for a while,” he said, smiling.
“I’ll send the nurse in with the paperwork later, if that’s okay, Mr. Steele.”
He nodded.
“Mr. Steele, you lost consciousness through a combination of pain and blood loss. The automobile drifted off the road. Ironically, it wasn’t the gunshots that caused your biggest problems. You banged your head pretty solidly when the car hit a boulder. Do you remember hitting the boulder?”
Sam shook his head, no.
“Ms. Vanderbilt called 911 and the Medical Chopper brought you here. She kept pressure on your wounds until the chopper arrived. She may have saved your life.”
“I’m grateful,” he said, smiling at Vandy. “We’re even.”
“Not by a longshot, cowboy,” she rejoined.
“We discovered swelling of your brain and placed you under a medically induced coma. You’ve been in that coma for nine days,” the doctor continued. “We’ve been bringing you out of it slowly over the last two days.”
“You put me into a coma? I’ve been out for nine days?” he asked.
“Yes,” he said. “It is standard medical procedure. It helps prevent further brain swelling and allows for faster healing. Are you in pain?”
“Yeah,” he said. “My body is stiff, my shoulders, leg and hip hurts and I have a bursting headache.”
The stiffness is from lying in bed, and the shoulder, leg and hip pain is around the areas where the bullets were removed,” Dr. Adatia said. “Tell me more about the headache. Do you get them often?”
“No,” he said. He opened each of Sam’s eyes and shined a pen light into them.
“Anything else I should know about?” Dr. Adatia asked.
“My stomach is a little queasy,” he said.
“These are probably side effects from the trauma,” Dr. Adatia said. “To be safe, I’m going to get you upstairs for another MRI.”
“Thanks doc,” Sam said. “Do you know how long I’ll be here?”
“You’ve just recovered from a coma, Mr. Steele,” Dr. Adatia said. “Let’s take it one day at a time. Let’s look at the MRI and take one day at a time, shall we?”
“You’re the boss,” Sam said.
“I wish all my patients would say that,” he replied, a smile appearing on his face for the first time.
He gave Nurse Riley a series of instructions, patted Sam on the knee and told him he’d be back later to check up on him. Sam thanked him. Vandy hugged him. The doctor turned red in the face and left.
“I’ll bet you’re hungry,” Riley said.
“You know it,” he replied. “Do you have steak and mashed potatoes?”
“Not exactly.” she said, consulting the doctor’s instructions, “We have Jello and chicken broth.”
“Yum, yum,” he feigned, rolling his eyes. Vandy laughed.
Sam looked at Vandy, “Your leg.”
“I was treated and released seven days ago,” she said. “The doctor was most impressed with your field work, by the way. Thanks to you I am on the mend.”
“The rest of your cuts?” Sam inquired.
“You mean my boob?” she said. “More good news there. It’s going to require a little plastic surgery, but the doctor thinks I’ll be back in low cut dresses in about six months. The leg will continue to have a white scar even with plastic surgery, but ask me if I give a shit.”
“Do you give a shit?” he asked, dutifully?
“Nope,” she said.
“Why are you still here in Montana?” he asked.
She raised her eyebrows, “Why do you think, cowboy?”
“She’s barely left your room for three days,” Riley said. “You have a wonderful girlfriend.”
“She’s not my girlfriend,” Sam said.
Vandy’s jaw dropped in feigned disbelief, “I suppose you think you can do better?”
“Better than a stunning billionaire Hollywood celebrity with a face like and angel and a body that could make Raquel Welch envious? Hmmm…”
He paused, pretending to reflect.
“Yeah, maybe,” he said. “I might have to wait a week or two, of course.”
“Careful, cowboy,” she scolded, “this may be the one day I can kick your ass.”
“I’m going to leave you two lovebirds and order Mr. Steele’s meal,” Riley said. “Press the call button if you need me.”
Sam held up the button, “Trust me ma’am. I’m all over this button.”
Riley laughed and left the room.
“The men who were after you?” he asked.
Vandy started to reply when a young, black, burley orderly bounded into the room. He had ear bud headphones in his ears and was playing air guitar, “Mr. Steele? Sam Steele?”
“That’s me,” he said.
“I’m Richard, you’re bedside chauffeur for the day. I’m taking you up to the next floor for an MRI,” he said. He turned to Vandy, “You can wait here or…”
“Actually, I haven’t had a shower or change of clothes today,” she said. “I think I’ll go back to the hotel and clean up now that you’re awake. I have a few calls to make. I’ll be back later, cowboy. I’ll give you all the updates then. You okay with that?”
“Sure, it’s probably better anyway,” he said. “My head is spinning.”
“You’ve been through a lot,” she said. “You need rest.”
She leaned over and planted a long, wet kiss on his lips. The orderly raised his eyebrows.
“I’ll be back soon,” she said. She winked at the orderly and skipped off.
The orderly looked down at Sam, “So, she’s Elaine Vanderbilt?” he said.
“She is,” Sam replied.
“Hot damn!” Richard barked, looking at Sam. “She looks even better in person than she does on television. No offense man, but you know that shit is wayyyy above your pay grade.”
“Don’t I know it,” he replied.
When Vandy got back to the hospital, Sam was fast asleep. Riley said it was normal and that he needed sleep for his body to continue to heal. She scooted her chair next to the bed, and sat, holding his hand. She fell asleep herself.
Chapter 20
“Vandy? Did you sleep here all night?”
Vandy woke, startled.
“Sam, yes, I’m here,” she said. “I’ve been up off and on. How are you?”
“I’m feeling better than yesterday,” he said.
“Good, good,” she said smiling. “I was hoping you’d be up for a talk.”
“Sure,” he said. “Do you think they’ll let me have coffee?”
“They just brought your breakfast in five minutes ago,” Vandy said.
“Eggs and sausage and hash browns with a side of pancakes?” he asked.
“Close,” she said. “Oatmeal, fruit and one piece of dry toast.”
He smiled in faux delight, “They’re spoiling me it would appear.”
“The good news is, there is coffee,” she added. “Plain, black coffee.”
“Is the coffee any good?” he asked.
“I had some earlier this morning,” she said. “If you are looking to remove rust off of old lug nuts, this will do the job.”
She stood and moved the cart to him, poured his coffee and water.
“The men who were after you,” he said. “Did the police catch them?”
She nodded, picking up his hand. She kissed it and rubbed it on her cheek, “You got us to safety before you passed out from the blood loss. I got a cell signal and called 911. As it turns out, the police were one their way already. You were out for only about five minutes before the cavalry arrived. We got really lucky.”
“Really, already on their way?”
She nodded, “They had been trying to reach Sheriff Stone and when he didn
’t answer they sent help.”
“We should have stayed put in the cabin,” he said.
“If we had stayed put, we’d have been dead,” she said. “After the police found us, they went to your place. It had been firebombed—burned to the ground. Two of them went to the cabin while two shooters took their position to get us in case we tried to run. I’m sorry about your cabin.”
“I built it once, I can do it again. Who were the men?” Sam asked.
“They were men hired by the ex-husband of my chief of staff, Pam Putnam,” she said.
“You called it,” Sam said. “Nice detective work.”
“Two of the men were ex-military, including a former Army sniper. You called that one. He’s the one who shot you and killed Chief Stone. They were hired to run me off the road, and make my death look like an accident.”
“Hmmm, that’s why they didn’t shoot you when they first ran you off the road,” he said. “They were going to make it look like you lost control of the vehicle and rolled the Jeep.”
She nodded.
“That’s almost word for word what the FBI said. When you showed up, the plan changed. After you winged two of them, the men were going to call it quits. Pam got desperate and upped the ante. She had originally offered them $400,000 to kill me and make it look like an accident. When you shot two of them, she changed the offer to $1 million and told them to kill me and you any way they could. The whole story is all over the news. It’s all anyone is talking about.”
“What about the security detail she wanted to send with you?”
Vandy nodded, “Pete McCutchen and Mike Arnaiz were actually Plan A. Those men had carefully planned that I would have a skiing ‘accident’ that would have left me dead and them very rich. When I refused to let them come, Pam scrambled and put Plan B into action.”
“I’m sorry,” he said, squeezing her hand.
“Don’t be,” she said. “If it weren’t for you I’d be dead, and Pam would have gotten away with the whole thing.”
“So, they admitted it?” Sam asked.
“When the FBI offered deals to nail Pam, everyone was singing like little birdies,” she said. “When one started to talk, they all fell in line. They were falling over themselves explaining how it all happened.”
Brotherhood Protectors: STEELE RANGER (Kindle Worlds Novella) Page 13