Love on the Risky Side

by Mariah Ankenman

  “The only dirty cop here is you, Tyler.”

  The vile man laughed, the maniacal sound bouncing off the snow covered trees, echoing in the still mountain forest. “Yeah, but no one is ever going to know that, will they? Shall we see who the fastest draw in the west is, Sheriff?” David mocked as he took aim.

  Fear grabbed a tight hold on Kayla. At such close range, David would kill Ryder for sure. She couldn’t have saved Julie only to lose Ryder. He saved her, in every way imaginable, and she loved him with her entire being.

  Without thought to her injured leg, she launched herself out from behind the boulder. Knife in hand, she screamed, plunging the blade deep into the back of the bastard who killed her friend and tried to ruin her life.

  The moment she struck, his gun went off. He howled in pain, reaching for his back, his weapon slipping from his grip. Swinging around, he smacked her in the head with his fist. Blinding pain burst through her skull. She went down, pulling him with her. They fell in a sprawl of arms and legs.

  She could hear Ryder shouting in the background. Was he hit? Was he bleeding, dying? She wanted to check, but her main focus was on David, who was currently pinning her to the ground. Her leg burned, head pounded, vision blurred, but she had to push through it. David would not beat her. Kicking and punching with all her might, she tried to dislodge him, but he was bigger and stronger.

  “You stupid bitch,” he screamed, spittle flying from the corner of his mouth to land on her face. “You ruined everything!”

  “No, you did.” Tears freezing as they fell from her eyes, she used every bit of strength in her to kick, scratch, and maim any part of this evil monster she could reach. “When you killed the sweetest, kindest, most wonderful woman in the whole wide world.”

  “Oh, spare me your sisterhood solidarity.”

  Still struggling under his brutal grip, she managed to free her right arm. She slipped her hand down into her blood and snow soaked boot and felt around until her fingertips hit the hilt of the other steak knife she had stashed there.

  “Spare this,” she muttered, pulling the knife free and driving it hard and fast into his stomach.

  His dark, cold eyes went wide with shock. He sucked in a sharp breath and collapsed on top of her, heavy, suffocating.

  Then suddenly, David’s body lifted away, and she was engulfed in warm, strong arms, and a deep woodsy scent.

  “Kayla, sweetheart. Are you all right?”

  Ryder! He was okay. He wasn’t dead…and neither was she. The best possible outcome had come true.

  “I’m okay. I’m okay.”

  Ryder pulled back, his concerned gaze going over every inch of her. Blood poured from his head, and he swiped at it to keep it from going into his eyes.

  “You’re hurt!”

  “Just a graze.” He squeezed her tightly again, as if assuring himself she was indeed unharmed. “It just knocked me on my ass for a moment. Head wounds bleed, but it’s not that bad, baby. I promise.”

  A shuttered moan came from the body lying on its side in the snow. She squelched a scream as Ryder placed his body in front of hers, bringing his gun up on David’s prone form. Reaching out with a gloveless hand, he felt for a pulse.

  “Is he alive?” she asked quietly.

  “Unfortunately.” He shook his head with disgust. Sirens wailed in the distance. “Sounds like back up is on its way, so he’ll probably make it.”

  He leaned down to the still living man’s ear. “But I promise you, asshole, you will never see the outside of a prison cell ever again. I’m making it my personal mission to see you pay for every single one of your crimes. It’s dirt bags like you that give cops a bad name. Bet the guys in lock up are going to love getting their hands on a crooked cop.”

  Kayla thought she heard David whimper but felt no pity for him. He had threatened, tortured, and killed people she loved. She heard stories about what inmates did to cops in prison.

  David Tyler deserved everything he was about to get.

  Lights flashed, reflecting off the white, powdery snow dotted red with blood. An ambulance and three cop cars pulled into the driveway of the cabin.

  “Over here,” Ryder called to his officers.

  For the first time since she got that awful phone call this morning, Kayla’s heartbeat settled to a normal rhythm. It was over. David was caught red-handed. Everyone would know exactly what kind of monster he was. It wouldn’t be hard to prove her story now.

  A sob of relief escaped her, and she buried her face in Ryder’s chest.

  “Come on, sweetheart.” Strong arms pulled her up into his comforting hold. “Let’s get you looked at, and then we can go home.”

  Home. It sounded so nice.

  But a sad, sinking feeling entered her chest. Now that everything was over, now that she wasn’t running anymore, the real question was, where was her home?

  Chapter 28

  Ryder sat on the hard plastic hospital chair. Edgy energy still coursed through his body. He’d wanted to kill that bastard Tyler. Almost had. There was a moment when the jerk was lying on the ground, bleeding, struggling to breathe, Ryder had entertained serious thoughts of murder. It would have been so easy to place his hand on the man’s neck and twist. Hell, the guy was almost dead anyway.

  The only thing that stopped him was the look in Kayla’s eyes. She looked at him like he was a hero, a frickin’ white knight or something. He was no hero, just a man doing his job. But some small part of him didn’t want the hero worship in her gaze to go away. He didn’t want to let her down like so many in her life had before.

  So, I let the bastard live.

  Now, here he was, in the county hospital, waiting to hear the conditions on the two most important people in his world. The ambulance only had room for one patient, and since David Tyler had been most in need, the asshole had gotten the ride. Ryder had tucked his sister and Kayla in the back of a squad car driven by his deputy. The green cop drove them all to county while the others processed the scene.

  After arguing with the doctors and nurses, he relented his demand to go with his sister and Kayla when they arrived at the hospital. A young doctor, so small a strong breeze looked like it would knock her over, pointed out he couldn’t go with both women seeing as how they would be receiving different care. She also—quite forcefully for her size—pushed him onto an exam bed and informed him, sheriff or not, his butt could not leave the spot until she had a look at his head wound.

  After a short examination, the doc concluded it to be a bullet graze, nothing serious. He could have told her that. Five stitches, a shot of antibiotics, and he was right as rain. Except for the worrying knot in his gut that he knew wouldn’t go away until he saw Julie and Kayla.

  The stale cup of coffee he purchased half an hour ago sat untouched on the table next to him. Nerves on high alert, he darted his gaze all around the place, waiting for someone to bring him news, an update, anything.

  A surgeon, hair graying at the temples and thin lines bracketing his mouth, came down the hallway. His soft shoes made no noise on the hard tiled floor. If he hadn’t been scanning his surrounds, Ryder wouldn’t have even noticed the doctor’s approach. He rose to meet him, wondering who he was about to get news on.

  “Sheriff Ryder?”

  “Yes.” Sweat coated his palms, and he wiped them on his jeans.

  “I’m Doctor Krum. I have the status report on your suspect.”

  Tyler, dammit! He didn’t give a shit about the man. He wanted to know about the women.

  “The knife wounds to the shoulder and thigh damaged some muscle tissue, but they should heal in a few months with no long term damage.”

  Bully for the bastard.

  “The wound to the stomach is a bit more severe. The blade punctured the intestine. We were able to repair the damage, but there may be some long-term effects. It’s too early to tell.”

  David Tyler was alive and would stand trial. That was all that mattered. Any lasting injuries were just
cause and well deserved.

  But Ryder didn’t care about that now. He had more pressing matters on his mind. “What about the two women I came in with? Julie Ryder and Kayla Jenkins?”

  The doctor turned to the nurses’ station and murmured something to the young man sitting in front of a computer. The nurse dug through a stack of files on the desk beside him. He pulled up two gray, metal clipboards and handed them to the doctor.

  Krum glanced at the notes before responding to Ryder’s query. “It seems Ms. Ryder—”

  “My sister,” he filled in unnecessarily.

  The doctor gave him a sympathetic smile. “Your sister is going to be fine, Sheriff. She had some small knife wounds. None were deep enough to cause any real concern, but they did require stitches. The scarring should be minimal. The nurse gave her some painkillers and a tetanus shot. She’s in room 107 if you would like to see her.”

  He nodded gratefully, one weight off his chest. “And Kayla?”

  The doctor glanced at the other clipboard. “Ms. Jenkins is in surgery to repair a gunshot wound to her right calf. The bullet appears to have grazed her leg, tearing off skin and muscle. Thankfully, it did not hit any major arteries. She lost some blood, but the makeshift tourniquet she had on when she arrived stemmed the flow. A few days of bed rest and she’ll be just fine.” Dr. Krum looked up, green eyes serious. “She’s very lucky.”

  No, she was very smart. Smart as hell. He was so damn proud of her. Most people would break down in a crisis, not Kayla. She pulled herself together and used her brains to save herself…and him.

  Damn, he loved her so freaking much.

  “As soon as she’s transferred to a room, I will have a nurse inform you.”

  “Thank you, Doctor.”

  The older man inclined his head, handed the clipboards back to the nurse, and headed down the hallway. At that moment, Ryder’s cell rang. The nurse gave him a stern look and pointed to a sign indicating no cell phone use. Too relieved to argue with the man, he held up a hand in apology and walked down the hall toward room 107.

  Once he was out of sight of the cranky nurse, he dug his phone out of his pocket and answered. “Ryder.”

  “Hey, man, I’ve got some news for you.”

  Liam. “Give it to me.”

  “I was digging around in Tyler’s files. Seems a few people who he should have put in jail are out walking the streets.”

  Imagine that.

  “Let me guess,” he said dryly. “They got off on technicalities?”

  “Got it in one,” Liam replied. “Somehow, evidence got ‘misplaced’ and the creeps walked. Tyler’s not as good as he thinks he is. There’s a paper trail linking him to some pretty nasty shit. Bribery, evidence tampering, and a whole host of seedy crap. And that’s not all.”

  Of course it wasn’t. David Tyler was a monster. No telling what depths of depravity this man went to.

  “Tell me.” He gripped his phone tightly.

  “When I was digging, I noticed a few buried reports against Tyler. As if they were paid to disappear.”

  “Nothing disappears.”

  “Got that right, man. Anyway, it seems Tyler has a little problem keeping his hands off his lady friends. I tracked down two of the women, and they’re willing to testify that David assaulted them, then threatened their lives if they ever spoke about it.”

  He was rethinking his decision to let Tyler live. The man was a devil who didn’t deserve the air he breathed. The only solace Ryder had was, between today and everything Liam found, they could put Tyler away for the rest of his miserable life.

  “I sent a copy of my report to Tyler’s chief, and my boss gave me the clear to take him in, since some of this stuff crosses state lines. Now, I have to find the bastard.”

  “No need. I know exactly where he is.”

  Ryder proceeded to tell Liam the events of the day, skipping his inner battle with the value of letting Tyler live.

  When he finished, his friend swore. “That sonofabitch! Is Julie okay?”

  Liam had known Julie since the police academy days. The two of them had always been friendly, but from the worried tone in his buddy’s voice, Ryder wondered just how friendly his best friend and little sister were.

  “She’s going to be fine. Some stitches and light scarring is all.”

  “Shit, man. How are you holding up?”

  By a thread.

  “Fine.”

  Liam chuckled. “Yeah, sure you are. Sit tight, buddy. I can be there in a few hours. I’ve got a nice pair of shiny metal handcuffs for Tyler, and I’m itching to use them.”

  The phone disconnected, and Ryder smiled. He’d known his friend would come through for him. By this time tomorrow, Tyler would be recovering in the prison infirmary.

  He smiled to himself as he pushed open the door to his sister’s room. It was like any other hospital room, small, sterile, depressing. For one brief moment, he had a flashback to his mother’s last moments…in a room similar to this one. He shook his head, clearing the image. Julie was fine. No one was dying here today.

  “Hey, kiddo. How ya feeling?” He slowly approached the large, mechanical bed.

  Julie smiled, her eyes slightly glazed. Painkillers he guessed.

  “Jake, you’re here.”

  “Where else would I be, brat?” He ruffled her hair playfully when all he really wanted to do was hold her close and never let anything bad happen to her ever again. But that was impossible, and he knew it.

  Tears gathered in her dark brown eyes. “Oh, Jake. I was so scared.”

  Sitting on the edge of the bed and being mindful of her injuries, he gently gathered her in his arm. He could tell she was shaken up—his baby sister rarely cried in front of him.

  “I’m so sorry. When David took me, I knew he would never let me go. But that’s no excuse, I should have fought harder or done something. I didn’t mean to tell David where Kayla was. I tried to be stronger, I just—”

  “Hey, hey, hey,” he interrupted, pulling back to look at her. “You did nothing wrong, Julie. You hear me? David Tyler is a monster who gets off on hurting people. The guy would have found Kayla with or without you. It’s my fault for dragging you into this mess. I never should have involved you.”

  She shook her head. “It’s what we do, big brother. Put the bad guys away. You catch them, and I lock them up.”

  “Yeah, but this time, the bad guy caught you. I could have lost you, Julie. Do you know what that would have done to me?” He pressed her face into his chest, fear forming a tight lump in his throat at the thought of losing the only family he had left. “I can’t lose you, Julie. I won’t.”

  She laughed, hiccupping as the tears fell. “Well, same goes to you. I can’t lose you either. What’s a girl to do without her big brother?”

  If it were up to him, she wouldn’t ever have to know. Never before in his life had he been so afraid. The fear had been a living thing, wrapping around him, squeezing the life out of him until he could see his sister and Kayla again. He knew he wasn’t invincible and life often threw curve balls, but if it were up to him, neither Julie nor Kayla would ever know another moment of pain or fear in their lives.

  Chapter 29

  Kayla tugged on the scratchy hospital gown. Once she was released she would need something else to wear. Her clothes were trashed and also with the FBI as evidence. A heavy sigh left her. It was finally over.

  Mixed emotions roiled in her gut. Happiness that Jen’s killer was going to jail for a long, long time, sadness because her best friend was still dead, and confusion over what to do next. She realized she couldn’t go back to Chicago. There was no way she could ever live in her apartment again. David had wiped away all the good memories with one horrible one; they were just too much to bear.

  She contemplated staying in Peak Town, with Ryder. But last night, after she had been placed in a room, Ryder and Julie came to see her. She had been exhausted and on medication that made her sleepy, but she did hear
snippets of conversation. She also saw—through hazy vision—the two siblings had been embracing each other so tightly, as if they were afraid to let go for fear of losing one another. Given their past losses, she could understand. Always wanting, but never having any family herself, Kayla envied the moment.

  She was the reason Julie and Ryder almost had to say goodbye forever. If it wasn’t for her, they never would have been in this mess. The poor young woman would now have to carry scars with her for the rest of her life…because of me. Ryder was almost killed, his sister was marked forever, and it was all her fault.

  Her heart squeezed in her chest, shattering into a million pieces. No way could she stay here now. David had been right about one thing. She was cursed. Her parents had the right idea in abandoning her. She only brought misery and pain into the lives of those she loved.

  Before he left her room, Ryder had bent down and placed a soft kiss on her forehead, whispering he would be back the next day. He might, but she wouldn’t. Shame choked her with the thought of facing him again. Guilt hung like a heavy storm cloud over her head. She was no longer in trouble now that David had been arrested. Kayla didn’t needed Ryder’s protection. And he didn’t need her. No one ever did.

  Pain lanced through her. How could someone hurt so much and still breathe?

  Her heart broke at the thought of leaving Ryder, but she didn’t dare stay. The best thing for everyone would be for her to go. Move on. On to what, she had no idea, but she’d figure it out. As much as she wanted to stay here in Peak Town with her new friends and the man who held her heart, she knew she couldn’t. Every time Ryder looked at her he would be reminded of how she almost cost him his sister. He would come to hate her.

  That was the one thing she wouldn’t survive.

  “Well, you seem to be doing better this morning.” A cheery looking nurse with golden blonde hair entered the room. “The doctor has given you the all clear. He’s sending you home with some pain killers and wants you to stay off that leg for about a week.”