Gunfire on the Ranch

by Delores Fossen

  “Stand so we can see you,” Theo called out to the man. “And put your hands in the air.”

  Theo figured there was no way that would work, and it didn’t. Almost immediately, the man got to his feet. But he definitely did not put his hands in the air. Nor did he surrender. Instead he turned, aiming his gun at the cruiser, and he fired. The shot slammed into the front windshield. Just like the other attack, the glass held, but Theo couldn’t risk this idiot firing shots that stood any chance whatsoever of hitting any of them.

  “Stay down,” Theo reminded Ivy, and he lowered the window even more. When the goon lifted himself to shoot at them again, Theo fired first.

  His bullet hit the man squarely in the chest.

  The goon fell backward, his weapon thudding to the ground next to him. Gabriel didn’t waste any time driving the cruiser closer to him. Jameson came out the front of the house as well, but he stayed back on the porch. Probably because there could be other gunmen in the area.

  Gabriel stopped the cruiser right next to the wounded man, and Theo opened his door wide enough to snatch up the thug’s weapon. Of course, he could be carrying a backup, but at the moment he wasn’t reaching for anything. He was clutching his chest.

  And he was bleeding out.

  Gabriel called for an ambulance, but Theo doubted it would get there in time. That meant anything they could get from the guy, he had to try to get it now.

  “Who are you?” Theo demanded.

  The guy shook his head. “My name won’t mean anything to you.”

  “Try.” Theo kept his gun pointed right at him.

  “Morris Carlyn.” He groaned in pain, pressing his hands even harder over his wound.

  The name didn’t mean anything to Theo, but it soon would. Gabriel fired off a text, no doubt to get a background on this guy. Once they had that, they might be able to link him to one of their suspects.

  “Who sent you, Morris?” Theo asked.

  Another headshake. “There’s no threat you can make that’ll be worse than what’ll happen if I talk.”

  “Wanna bet?” Theo took aim at the guy’s leg. “I can start putting bullets in you. It won’t kill you any faster, but it’ll make your last minutes on this earth very, very painful.”

  It was a bluff, of course. He couldn’t shoot an unarmed, dying man, but mercy, that’s what he wanted to do if it would help them put a stop to the danger.

  The guy looked at him, their gazes connecting. “My family could be hurt. That’s why I can’t tell you. That’s why I agreed to do this.”

  All right. So someone had maybe blackmailed or coerced him. Theo glanced at Gabriel to see if he was already on that. He was. Gabriel sent another text that probably included cops going to this guy’s house to check on anyone who might be there.

  “How did you find this place?” Theo continued.

  “I was just told to come here and kidnap the woman, Ivy Beckett. I was supposed to take her alive.”

  Hell. That was hard to hear. Obviously hard for Ivy to hear, too, because she gasped.

  If the guy was telling the truth, and that was still a big if, it didn’t rule out any of their suspects. Wesley or Lacey would want Ivy alive so they could use her as a bargaining chip to get whatever it was they wanted. In Lacey’s case so she could get the money. For Wesley, it could have been so he could maybe force Theo into a rescue situation so he could kill him. Because there was no way Theo wouldn’t go after Ivy if this idiot had indeed managed to kidnap her.

  It was ironic, though, that Wesley would be doing that because he thought Theo knew something about that botched militia raid. Other than a gut feeling, Theo had nothing, and you couldn’t use gut feelings to make an arrest.

  “Protect my family,” the guy said, and his eyelids fluttered down. Dead, probably. But Theo wasn’t about to get out and check on him.

  Apparently, Gabriel wasn’t, either, because he sped toward the house, and he pulled the cruiser to a stop directly in front of the porch. Ivy immediately bolted out, running past Jameson and going inside.

  “Any sign of other gunmen?” Gabriel asked his brother as they rushed in behind Ivy.

  “No. But the sensors are still working because they went off when you got here.” Jameson armed the security system and then tipped his head to the ditch. “Is the guy dead?”

  “Probably,” Gabriel answered, and he went to the window to keep watch while he made a call. No doubt to follow up on the thug’s family.

  “Go ahead. Check on Nathan,” Jameson told him when Theo kept looking in the direction of the hall bathroom. “Once we’ve regrouped and gotten more backup out here, we’ll have to leave, though.”

  No way would Theo disagree with that. He wanted backup and plenty of it, but he also wanted Ivy and his son out of there. The location had been compromised, and that meant there could be another attack. Or another attempt to kidnap Ivy. Either way, they were all at risk.

  The moment Theo stepped into the bathroom, Jodi hurried out, saying that she wanted to check on Gabriel. Theo stood there a moment and watched his sister go to the man she obviously loved. He saw the fear now, on her face and in her body language. The relief, too, that Gabriel was all right.

  Theo felt that same relief when he looked at Nathan. Well, what he could see of him, anyway. Ivy had him wrapped in her arms, and even though she wasn’t crying, she was blinking hard. No doubt to try to stave off the tears.

  “Did you do something to the bad man?” Nathan asked him. He maneuvered himself back just enough so that he could make eye contact with Theo.

  Theo nodded and hoped that would be enough of an explanation. He really didn’t want to have to tell Nathan that he’d just killed someone.

  “Does this mean we have to leave?” Nathan added.

  “Yes,” Ivy and Theo answered in unison.

  Nathan didn’t seem upset about that, but he did volley some glances at both Ivy and him. “Will you two get together?” he asked.

  It was a repeat of the same question the boy had hit them with earlier. It was understandable for him to want to know. After all, whatever Ivy and he did would affect Nathan’s future.

  “I mean, since Mr. Chad is dead and you’re my parents and all,” Nathan added. “I just figured you’d get together.”

  Considering that Theo’s mind was still whirling from the attack, it was hard to switch gears in the conversation. Especially when the switch was this big. Theo looked at Ivy to see if she had an idea of how to answer that.

  She didn’t.

  The blank stare that she gave Theo let him know that.

  “We’ll talk about that soon,” Theo settled for saying. “For now, why don’t we go ahead and start gathering up your things so we’ll be ready to leave when the other deputies get here?”

  Nathan got moving right away, and Ivy and Theo followed him to the bedroom not only to stand watch but to make sure he didn’t go near the window. The blinds were down, curtains drawn, but there was no sense taking the risk.

  “I can’t go to the new safe house with him,” Ivy said. Her voice was a hoarse whisper, and he saw that her hand was trembling when she touched her fingers to her mouth. “If someone is truly after me, I can’t put him in danger like that.”

  Theo was already thinking along those same lines, but he doubted that Gabriel had two safe houses ready to go. That would take time.

  Ivy turned to him, took hold of Theo’s sleeve and pulled him out into the hall. “Just hear me out before you say no,” she started.

  And Theo groaned. Because he figured he wasn’t going to like what would follow that comment.

  “I think Jodi and Jameson should take Nathan to the backup safe house. Right away,” Ivy added. “The deputies who are coming can follow them as backup. That’ll get Nathan out of here in case there are other gunmen.”

  He couldn�
�t object to any of that, but Theo could practically see where this was going. “You’re not going to make yourself bait,” he insisted.

  “Not bait.” She glanced in at Nathan, then pulled Theo even farther away from the room before she repeated those two words. “But we can’t let things continue like this. If whoever’s behind this can’t get to me, they might decide to go after Nathan.”

  Just the thought of it twisted his gut. So did the fact that Theo couldn’t deny that. If this person became even more desperate, then things might escalate fast.

  “You’re still not making yourself bait,” he warned her.

  “Controlled bait,” Ivy corrected, and she kept on talking despite Theo’s protest. “While Nathan is safe with Jodi and Jameson—and you—Gabriel, Cameron and I can go back to Gabriel’s place. We can use the ranch hands for extra protection. Maybe even set up some sensors like the ones that are here.”

  Theo was shaking his head before she even finished, but she took hold of his chin to stop him. “We can make things as safe as we can possibly make them,” Ivy added.

  That wasn’t much of an argument, but then, no place was going to be completely safe. And yes, the ranch hands along with some motion detectors would beef up security. Maybe not enough, though.

  “If we can sell Gabriel on this—and I’m not even sure I want to do that,” Theo said, “then I wouldn’t go with Nathan and the others. I’ll be with you since the attack is most likely to happen at the ranch.” Just saying that didn’t help with the knot that was tightening even more in his stomach. “But first we need to find out if we can find the snake responsible for this before we have to do something this dangerous.”

  Ivy made a sound of agreement. “You mean talk to Belinda Travers. Gabriel got that call from the hospital, and it’s probably about her. Maybe she’s talking.”

  “Wait here with Nathan,” Theo instructed, “and I’ll find out.”

  Theo went back to the living room, where he found Jodi, Jameson and Gabriel all standing watch at the window. “Is Nathan okay?” Gabriel immediately asked him.

  Theo nodded. “Ivy wants to send him to a separate safe house.”

  Even though Theo didn’t explain Ivy’s “controlled bait” idea, Gabriel obviously filled in the blanks because his mouth tightened. What he didn’t do was dismiss it.

  And that caused Theo to curse. “Belinda’s not talking?”

  Gabriel gave a heavy sigh. “She’s dead.”

  Hell. Well, there went the notion of questioning her, but it was more than that. From the looks of things, Belinda had been innocent in all of this, and someone had murdered her. That someone wanted to do the same to Ivy, too.

  “Please tell me someone didn’t sneak into the hospital and finish her off,” Theo said.

  “No. She developed a blood clot. The doc told me that sometimes things like that happen.”

  Yeah. Bad things happened all the time. Theo had to make sure now that the bad things didn’t continue with Nathan and Ivy.

  “I think it’s too late for the guy in the ditch, but just in case, the ambulance is on the way,” Gabriel continued while he volleyed glances between Theo and the window. “The deputies will be here soon, too.”

  “What about the guy’s family?” Theo wanted to know. “Any idea if they’re really in danger?”

  “I called SAPD as soon as we were all back in the house,” Jameson volunteered. “They’re on the way to check on them.”

  Theo hoped they were all right, but after what had happened to Belinda, it was possible the man’s family was also in danger.

  “Is there another safe house?” Theo’s question got all of their attention. Ivy’s as well, since she was now in the hall with Nathan behind her.

  “One that’s ready now,” Gabriel answered. “It’ll take me a while to set up another one.”

  “Wait in your room for just a few more minutes,” Ivy told Nathan.

  Judging from his pinched expression, that was the last thing Nathan wanted to do. The kid was no dummy, and he must have known that something big was about to happen. Still, he went into his room, and Ivy came closer to them. That’s when Theo saw that she was blinking back tears again.

  “Look, I don’t want to be away from my son. Nor do I want to die.” Ivy’s voice was shaking, and one of those tears made it down her cheek. She quickly wiped it away.

  Theo went to her and slid his arm around her waist. He doubted it would help. Nothing much would at this point.

  “We have to put an end to this—now,” Ivy insisted. “That means using me to draw out this monster.”

  Since Theo had already voiced his opinion on this, he stayed quiet and waited for Gabriel to tell her no way in hell was he going to put his sister in danger like that. But Gabriel didn’t get a chance to say anything because Jameson’s phone buzzed.

  “It’s SAPD,” Jameson said. He answered the call but didn’t put it on speaker. Several moments later, he cursed. “The gunman’s house has been ransacked, and his wife and two kids are missing.” Jameson paused, his attention going to Ivy. “Someone left a note on the guy’s door.”

  “A note about me?” Ivy asked. Theo felt the muscles in her body tense.

  Jameson nodded. “The note said, and I’m quoting, ‘Tell Theo that Ivy will be next. She dies tonight.’”

  Chapter Thirteen

  The note had chilled Ivy to the bone. It still did even several hours later. But it had been the final straw needed to convince Theo and her brothers that the only way to end this was to draw out the killer.

  Not just for their sakes but for the gunman’s family, too.

  Ivy now knew that Morris Carlyn’s family had indeed been kidnapped, and the cops didn’t think it was a staged crime scene, either. The person who’d hired Morris had likely taken them to get him to cooperate. If he’d lived, that is. He hadn’t, and Ivy prayed that meant the family would be released soon. While she was praying, she added several for Nathan and the rest of them.

  She dies tonight.

  If that was true, then she only had five or six hours before this monster tried to come after her. Five or six hours to get everything in place so that at least Nathan would be safe.

  “It’s time to go,” Gabriel said as he disarmed the security system.

  That was Ivy’s cue to give Nathan one last hug and kiss before he went off with Jameson, Cameron and Jodi. Ivy trusted all three of them to keep her boy safe, but even though she seemed to be the target, there were no guarantees the culprit might not try to use Nathan the way he or she had used Morris’s family.

  “It’ll be okay?” Nathan asked, but it took Ivy a moment to realize he’d aimed that question at Theo. “You’ll take care of my mom?”

  Theo certainly wasn’t the ice man–lawman right now. His eyebrows were drawn together, and muscles in his shoulders looked stiff. “I will.”

  Nathan seemed to accept that because he nodded, went to Theo and hugged him. Everyone in the room looked surprised. Especially Theo. He hesitated just a moment before his arms went around Nathan to return the hug.

  Ivy had been near tears all day, and seeing that put some fresh ones in her eyes. Over the years she hadn’t allowed herself to consider how Theo would be with Nathan, but she could see how much he loved their son.

  Theo brushed a kiss on top of Nathan’s head, and the boy pulled back, meeting his gaze. “Will you teach me to ride a bull? Because Aunt Jodi said you used to ride them and that you were good at it.”

  Theo shot his sister a “thanks for nothing” glance. “Maybe when you’re a little older,” he answered.

  Again, Nathan seemed to accept that because he smiled, gave Theo another hug and then hurried to the door next to Gabriel. “I know,” Nathan said to him. “We gotta run fast when we get outside.”

  Since every one of them had mentioned that in s
ome way or another, Ivy was glad it had sunk in. She went to the door, too, and from the side window, she saw that Cameron had pulled an unmarked police car next to the porch. Earlier, he’d gotten Nathan’s things and put them in the trunk, and he’d already opened the back passenger’s door.

  Jodi and Jameson didn’t waste any time getting Nathan outside and into the vehicle. Cameron immediately sped away. A second car with two reserve deputies followed them for backup.

  “The new safe house is about ten miles from here,” Gabriel said, “but it’ll be a while before they get there.”

  Yes, because Cameron would have to drive around to make sure they weren’t being followed. Gabriel had already explained that to her along with the assurance that all the vehicles had been checked and double-checked for bugs and tracking devices. Gabriel and the others had made it as safe as they possibly could, considering that Nathan would essentially be out in the open.

  “Now it’s our turn,” Gabriel instructed.

  Another of the deputies, Edwin Clary, pulled a cruiser in front of the house. This one was definitely marked with Blue River Sheriff emblazoned on the side, as was the one behind them that Deputy Jace Morrelli was driving. Along with Gabriel and Theo, that meant there’d be four lawmen driving her back to the ranch.

  As Nathan and the others had done, they hurried to get into the cruiser, and Edwin drove them away. Ivy ended up in the middle of the back seat between Gabriel and Theo, and she automatically sank lower since she figured one of them would soon tell her to do that. However, she kept her head just high enough to help them keep watch.

  “We’re going straight to the ranch,” Gabriel continued, “even if someone follows us.”

  Ivy had figured that’s how things would be, but it still sent a chill through her to hear it aloud.

  “What’s the plan once we’re there?” Edwin asked. The deputy made eye contact in the mirror with Gabriel as he turned onto the road that would take them back to the ranch.

  “The hands know we’re coming, and they’re all armed. Not out in the pastures, though. They’ve been setting up some sensors and cameras they got from the office to set up motion detectors and surveillance spots on the paths that lead to the house. Once they’re finished, I want them out of sight.”