Amish Country Ambush

by Dana R. Lynn

  “No! He’s just a baby! He has no part in this.”

  Leroy Dellon sent a bored look her way. “Do I look like I care? You and that kid are the only things that Langor has left.”

  Now she understood. She was still alive because they thought that she could be forced to reveal what Karalynne had told their mole she’d found that implicated Dellon. But Elise didn’t know anything. Her sister had never shared that she’d found anything else.

  Another thought struck her. Leah’s family. What had happened to them? She had no idea how long she’d been out. Had they come home already, or were they still at church?

  “Did you kill the people that live here?” She forced the words from her tight throat. She’d never forgive herself if she’d been responsible for their deaths. Not that it looked like she’d live that much longer herself. Stop it! She couldn’t afford to give up.

  An image of Ryan came to her mind, but she tamped it down, deep inside. If she let herself think of how she’d never see him again, she knew the grief would be her undoing. And she had to get Mikey through this situation. Even if she herself didn’t make it out, he had to live.

  A harsh laugh interrupted her thoughts. “The family isn’t here. She said it was a church Sunday.” He jerked his thumb toward a darkened corner. For the first time, Elise noticed Leah crumpled in the corner. There was blood on the side of her face. She’d apparently been struck. Elise’s heart lurched when Leah slowly opened her eyes. They were dull with pain, but the Amish girl was alive. Elise averted her gaze. She doubted if Dellon knew she was awake. If that was true, she didn’t want to be the one to alert him to that fact.

  Elise heard a sudden crash a second before the door banged open, slamming into the wall and bouncing back with the force. Hudson Langor burst into the room, swinging a gun wildly.

  “Dellon!” he roared.

  Leroy Dellon had stood abruptly as Hudson entered. Now he sat back with a languid smile. The gun in his enemy’s hands didn’t seem to faze him at all.

  Elise took the opportunity to scoot herself and Mikey farther away from the men.

  “Uh-uh.” Dellon swung his own gun in her direction. “It would be a shame to waste this opportunity, now that our friend Langor has arrived.”

  That’s when Elise noticed what Hudson had missed. Another man had entered the room behind him. She didn’t know who it was. What she did know was that her chances of surviving had just plummeted.

  She said a quick prayer under her breath. Not for herself—for Mikey and Leah, the two innocents who’d been pulled into this mess.

  * * *

  “Parker! Parker, can you hear me?”

  Parker opened his eyes and stared blearily at the oval shape shimmying in front of him. He blinked, and it coalesced into Jackson’s face, paler than he’d ever seen him.

  “Yeah, I’m good.” Feeling ridiculous lying in the dirt, Ryan shoved himself to a sitting position. He couldn’t quite stop the groan that emerged as his muscles protested, although he managed to cut it off before it got too embarrassing. He gave himself a brief once-over, stretching each muscle methodically. He wasn’t dizzy or nauseous. Probably not a concussion, although how he had avoided that he didn’t know.

  His hip ached where the car had clipped him, but other than that, he seemed to be in good shape. Satisfied, he stood. Time was not his friend. How long had he been out?”

  “What time is it?”

  “About one.”

  An hour. He’d lost an hour. Who knew how far those thugs had gone with Elise, Leah and Mikey?

  “Elise! And Mikey! We need to find them!” Was that his voice? He never barked like that. He didn’t take the time to apologize. Not when the woman he loved was in danger.

  He had never told her that he felt that way. The feelings had grown so quickly. But that didn’t mean it wasn’t true. He was in love with Elise, completely and without reservation. If he was right, she felt the same for him. He shrugged the knowledge back. He’d deal with it later. After he’d found them and made sure the danger was eliminated.

  “Parker.”

  He focused on Jackson.

  “We know where they are. A small band of men with guns were seen at the Byler farm. There are already cruisers on their way there.”

  The Byler farm. So Elise, Mikey and Leah were close by. Ryan rubbed his hand against his stomach, trying to knead out the knots. He couldn’t relax, not knowing that so many things could go wrong.

  “That’s where we need to go.” He set his jaw, fully expecting his friend to argue and tell him he needed to go to the hospital. To his surprise and relief, Jackson gave him a hard once-over, then nodded. Only the way his mouth tightened showed how much it went against the grain.

  “Fine. Don’t make me regret this, Parker. And once we get your girl and her nephew out of danger, just remember. You owe me. Big-time.”

  He didn’t even bother to protest that Elise wasn’t his girl. Because in his heart, she was.

  “Absolutely.” He stalked to Jackson’s car and let himself into the passenger side, glad that they wouldn’t have to hike back to the farm. It had taken almost an hour to hike out to the abandoned barn where they’d found Leah earlier. Come on, Jackson. Get the lead out. Jackson climbed in and started the vehicle, then sent Ryan an irritated glance. What? Oh. His hands were clenched into fists and he was pounding the right one against the top of the door. Bringing his fist back down to his leg, he forced himself to sit still. He was, after all, a sergeant in the LaMar Pond PD.

  “Sorry.” His voice was low.

  “Parker, we’ll get her back.”

  Ryan nodded in thanks. Inside, though, he was hollow. Jackson meant well, but no one could promise that. They could already be too late. He’d lost his best friend to violence once, but that pain wouldn’t be nearly as bad as what he’d deal with if he lost Elise and her nephew.

  Bowing his head, he did the only thing he could. Please, Lord. Keep them safe. I give them over to Your care.

  Still, when the car pulled to a stop near the other cruisers on the edge of the farm, Ryan shot out of the car before Jackson had come to a full stop. He ignored Jackson’s voice coming from inside the vehicle and hurried over to where the local chief stood directing the operation. The man nodded to him but didn’t stop giving low-voiced commands into his radio.

  “The family doesn’t appear to be in the house, sir. And there is no evidence of a break-in.”

  “They must be in one of the other buildings, Jones. Check the barn. Take backup and don’t take unnecessary chances.”

  The man on the other end agreed.

  Parker’s mind was busy with the implications. No bodies had been found. Some of the tension left him. Casting a glance around, he spotted several large motorcycles behind the barn. The sight was incongruous with the Amish surroundings. There was a single buggy in the side yard.

  He was even more grateful now that the family had left that morning. If only they could apprehend the criminals before the Bylers came home.

  Sudden gunfire erupted from the barn.

  Ryan’s heart stopped.

  All talking ceased.

  A moment later, a police radio came to life. Jones’s voice echoed in the air. “We have the situation under control, sir. Four men, one injured.”

  “What about the women and the child?” the team leader asked.

  “No women or children here, sir. We’re still searching for them. And none of these men are Dellon or Langor.”

  Ryan wanted to scream with frustration. The faces around him were grim, obviously concluding that the absences of the women and child meant that they’d been killed, and the bodies disposed of. A movement caught his eye. There was a smaller house standing apart from the main house. Almost behind it. And someone was moving around in it.

  “There’s someone in the dawdi hau
s,” he murmured.

  The team leader directed the men toward the house. Ryan didn’t wait for the instructions. He joined them, as did Jackson. As the group moved closer, the officer in the lead motioned for them to separate and surround the building. Ryan and Jackson started around the back of the house. Two men burst out of the house, no doubt in response to the gunfire. They were quickly and quietly subdued. Dellon had more men than they’d thought.

  The door was open. Approaching the door, he could hear angry male voices inside. Jackson dropped back. Ryan could hear him telling the chief they were going in. Ryan didn’t wait to hear if the officer in charge agreed or not.

  A woman cried out. Elise. Ryan hurried forward, careful to stick close to the wall and step quietly. He listened to the conversation, his pulse pounding.

  “So, Langor, you managed to get away. The others should have kept a better eye on you. You always were a slippery one. Now that you’re here, at my mercy, it will give me great pleasure to watch you suffer for your betrayal.”

  “I didn’t betray you. You betrayed me! Killing my wife and then trying to kill me.”

  A tsking sound. “Now, Hudson, old friend, none of that would have happened if your wife hadn’t found out about us. That was your fault. You liked to brag a bit too much.”

  “But I didn’t—” He huffed out an annoyed grunt. “It’s not like you’ll listen anyway. So fine. Great. It was my fault. Look, you can have the woman and the boy. I probably wouldn’t get much for them anyway. If you have the card, then why don’t we say we’re even and go our separate ways?”

  So that’s why he wanted his son. Disgust welled up in Ryan. The man was planning on selling his own son. He truly was despicable. Ryan continued to inch forward. He could see just inside the doorway now. Two men were standing there. Both had guns. The second man had his gun pointed at Hudson. Ryan wanted to shoot, but he couldn’t risk the civilians. And he knew that at least two of them, Elise and Mikey, were in that room.

  “I don’t think so. You need to pay for your arrogance.” The first voice had lost its congeniality. It was cold now. The voice of a killer.

  Without warning, Hudson Langor threw himself at one of the men, reaching for his gun. There was a scuffle. Then a gunshot. Leroy’s henchman standing in the doorway moved to shoot. Ryan shot him instead. He fell, and Ryan rushed into the room. Two men were on the floor. The one on the bottom was struggling to shove off the still form lying on top of him. Elise was crouched off to the side, Mikey safely stowed behind her. In the corner, he could see Leah, but wasn’t sure of her condition.

  Jackson charged into the room, with two other officers. Within a minute, Hudson Langor was pulled off Leroy Dellon, who was uninjured. Hudson was alive, but he had been shot in the side. As soon as the villains were secured, Ryan went over to be sure that Elise and Mikey were well.

  “We’re fine.” Elise briefly touched his face as she cradled her nephew in her arms. “It’s Leah I’m worried about.”

  Ryan glanced at her again, reassuring himself, then moved over to Leah. A brief inspection told Ryan that Leah would be fine. She had been hit on the head but was otherwise uninjured. She’d pretended to be dead so as not to draw the man’s attention. She agreed to let the paramedics look at her when they arrived.

  Jackson joined him. Ryan let him take over with Leah and moved to where the woman he loved sat. He squatted down to her level. Her smoky hazel eyes, tired and teary, were the most gorgeous things he’d ever seen. He could breathe freely again, knowing she was well and Mikey was unharmed. He smiled when Mikey started to squirm and Elise allowed the child to slide from her arms.

  Reaching out, Ryan placed his hand along the curve of her cheek. The warmth of her skin was a healing balm to his aching heart.

  As if his touch had awoken her, Elise exploded forward and threw her arms around Ryan’s neck. Her hold was tight. She might strangle him, but he found he was too grateful to care. His eyes burned. He squeezed them shut, burying his face briefly in her hair, inhaling deeply.

  Calmer, he gently set her back, then pulled Mikey toward him to embrace the scared little boy. “Hey, tiger. You okay?”

  “I’m okay, Mr. Ryan. I was scared.”

  Another wave of emotion caught at his throat. He cleared it and blinked again. “I know. But you are okay. Both you and your aunt are fine.”

  “Ryan.” Would he ever get tired of hearing her say his name?

  “Yes, sweetheart?”

  She blushed, but continued. “I didn’t think I’d ever see you again.”

  Ryan couldn’t help himself. He gathered Elise and Mikey near again. He’d come so close to losing them.

  It didn’t take long for him to realize something else was wrong. Elise had been happy to see him, he knew it. Even if she didn’t say it, the hug she’d given him told him that her feelings for him were far from indifference. But that didn’t stop her from pushing him away.

  It wasn’t anything that he could put his finger on. And yet, as the horrible day went on, he could feel the wall she’d built going back up between them. After they’d been checked for injuries and all the arrests had been made, Ryan watched Elise hug Leah tightly. Leah had decided against returning to LaMar Pond.

  By the time the Byler family returned from church, the criminals had all been rounded up, Hudson was on his way to the hospital, accompanied by an officer, and Mikey had fallen asleep in the back of Jackson’s cruiser.

  “Will Hudson be okay?” Elise asked softly.

  Ryan shrugged. “He’ll heal from his injuries. He’ll also spend the rest of his life in jail. He might not have killed your sister, but he’s killed many others. I talked to the chief. The evidence your sister had found was at Dellon’s place. There was actual footage of hits Langor had done.”

  “I think he was planning on selling Mikey. That’s why he wanted him.”

  He wished he could comfort her and drive the grief from her eyes.

  Ryan and Elise had gotten back into Jackson’s car. When Jackson pulled into Elise’s driveway, Ryan signaled to his friend that he wanted to talk with Elise alone. Jackson remained with the car while Ryan walked the woman who held his heart in her hands to the door. Mikey was still asleep and was slumped against her shoulder.

  “Elise, are you sure you’re okay?”

  “Yes, Ryan. I’m fine.”

  Fine. Why was it that he never believed her when she said she was fine? Her voice had a flat quality to it. He didn’t trust it.

  “Honey—”

  “Ryan, I’m sorry,” she interrupted. She wouldn’t meet his eyes. “I’m tired. This day...no, actually, the past several days have been a trial. I can barely think right now. Could we talk later? I really just want to go to sleep.”

  What could he say to that? Reluctantly, he said good-night, leaning forward to kiss Mikey on the top of his head. He kissed Elise softly on the cheek, then backed away.

  “I’ll call you,” he promised. She nodded.

  As he walked back to the car, he looked over his shoulder. She stood where he’d left her. Her shoulders seemed to be slumped, almost defeated. They should have been celebrating. They were alive, the danger had been resolved, Mikey was unharmed and Ryan’s heart was ready to burst with his love for her.

  Instead, it seemed some invisible chasm had opened between them.

  SEVENTEEN

  Why wasn’t she returning his calls?

  Ryan frowned as the now-familiar voice-mail message played. “Hi! You’ve reached Elise. I’m not available—”

  He clicked the end button, not listening to the rest of the recording or leaving a message. What was the point? She hadn’t responded the other six messages he’d left over the course of the past week. There was a very high probability that she wouldn’t bother to answer this one, either. He’d just look pathetic. Or more pathetic than he already did.
Six messages.

  He clenched his teeth, glaring at the phone in his hand as if it was at fault for his current misery. Shoving the phone into his back pocket, he grabbed his sunglasses and keys off his desk and stood, stretching. His shift was over, the ten million forms the department required him to complete were done and his stomach was growling. Time to head home.

  He didn’t want to go home. Not yet. What he did want was to swing by and pick up Elise and Mikey and take them out to dinner. Or even better, bring dinner to them and have a quiet meal at her home. Like a family. He wanted that so badly, but it was obvious she didn’t.

  The ache he’d been ignoring for the past week intensified. There was a tightness in his chest, almost like he had a bad cold coming on. No medicine would heal him, either. What had he done to cause her to reject him?

  If she wanted to let him know she wasn’t interested now that the danger was past, couldn’t she have just told him so? Leaving him hanging like this...

  Home was not appealing right now. It would simply remind him that he was alone. Again. Glancing around, he saw that Willis was just coming in. Willis with his perfect family. Beautiful wife. Twin toddlers. And a new baby at home. He was talking to Tucker, who also had a family to go home to. Even the chief and Olsen were married now.

  He liked them all. Considered them friends and enjoyed being around them. But, right now, he needed a little space. Decision made, he walked out, waving a brief farewell, pretending he didn’t see the concern darkening Willis’s face or the way Tucker cocked his head and frowned. Nope. No reason to feel bad for me. Just because the woman I love wants nothing to do with me.