by Jenna Night
“It’s Daltrey and Bunker,” Daisy said, able to see them clearly through the binoculars.
They were still a good half mile away. Martin steered his truck across the overturned soil and stopped when they reached another cluster of trees that offered cover.
“I can’t wait to bust them,” Daisy said, indulging in a wide smile even though the bad guys weren’t within reach just yet.
“Let me tell Harry and Leon where we are,” Martin said. “As soon as they get here, we can surround these thugs and take them all down. But if our criminals try to drive away before Harry and Leon get here, we’ve got to call the cops. We can’t risk losing them again.”
“I agree.”
Martin quickly placed the call.
The doors to the idling car opened. The man and woman from the airport got out and walked toward Daltrey and Bunker. It looked like the four of them exchanged a few words. Daisy rolled her window down, but she couldn’t make out what they were saying.
Ivan Bunker set the long duffel bag he’d been carrying on the ground, unzipped it and pulled out a pistol and handed it to the woman. Then he reached into the bag again and handed her what looked like an additional box of ammunition. Daisy couldn’t see for certain, because the headlights created an excess of light that made the night-vision binoculars less helpful.
“Makes sense the fugitives who were already here would bring guns to the new arrivals,” Martin said. “They couldn’t bring their pistols on the plane with them. And what’s a mobster without a weapon?”
The woman checked her gun. Apparently it was already loaded. She tucked it into her waistband.
Bunker did the same thing again with the man, taking a pistol out of the duffel bag and handing it over. The man likewise popped out the clip, checked it and then popped it back in. Then he tucked the gun into his waistband. Bunker reached into the duffel bag one more time and pulled out a rifle with a scope, followed by a box of ammunition.
“They’re arming up pretty heavily for people who flew into town only to drive Daltrey and Bunker out of here,” Daisy said. “You think they anticipate a run-in with the cops?”
“Maybe. Or maybe they plan to come after you.”
Daisy felt for the gun she’d borrowed from Millie after Ivan Bunker took hers at Pearce Park and made sure it was within reach. Harry and Leon needed to hurry up and get here. She was looking forward to feeling a sense of relief when these dangerous people were finally locked up.
Bunker picked up the duffel bag, turned it over and shook it, as if checking to make certain he hadn’t left anything in inside.
Meanwhile the man took the rifle and laid it crosswise on the hood of the car. When he turned back around, Bunker tossed the empty duffel bag on the ground. The woman pulled the pistol from her waistband, stepped forward and shot Bunker twice in the head at close range. He dropped to the ground. The wounds were obviously fatal.
For the first few seconds after the shots were fired, Daisy felt like her own heart had stopped beating.
Martin was already on his phone, calling 9-1-1 to report the murder.
Daisy’s gaze was locked on the thugs in front of her. Daltrey barely batted an eye. Had he known his partner was going to be murdered? Or had his life as a professional hit man made him blasé around death? As a bounty hunter, Daisy had come across some vile and heartless people. She probably shouldn’t be shocked by depraved behavior anymore. But she was.
Martin disconnected from his call. “The cops are on their way.”
“Let’s hold tight until somebody gets here,” Daisy said. She nodded toward the direction of the bad guys. “They’ve got us outnumbered, plus they’ve got that long rifle. They could aim accurately at us from a distance. That’s not good.”
“I think they have that rifle because they plan to come after you before they leave town,” Martin said. “My guess is that they plan to go from here to Peak Bail Bonds where they intend to find you, shoot you and then leave town. By the time the authorities could identify them as the shooters and distribute photos online, they could be long gone.”
“Taking Beau Daltrey with them,” she said.
“Or not,” Martin said grimly. “They could just be keeping him alive until he can help them find you.”
That would wrap up the whole problem for the mob. Give them a clean break.
Daltrey pulled open the door and got into the back seat of the mob couple’s car. He didn’t even have a suitcase with him. The couple got into the car, as well.
“They’re leaving,” Daisy said, just as the car backed out and swung around, the sweep of its headlights flickering through the trees.
“If they see us, we’re in a world of hurt,” Martin said, pulling his gun out of his holster.
“Slide down out of sight,” Daisy said, likewise gripping her weapon. “If they don’t see us in here, they might think someone just left a truck parked near the barn.”
Daisy dropped down to the floorboard. Martin lay down across the bench seat.
Through the open window, Daisy could hear the tires rolling over the rocks and mud as they slowly drove by. Her heart hammered rapidly in her chest, and the heel of her hand holding the gun felt sweaty.
She looked up and locked eyes with Martin. There was enough light that she could see his face. And then, because he was Martin, he smiled at her. Even in the midst of fearing for her life, her heart felt like it broke into a million pieces. The intensity of the moment had drawn out some real truth. And the truth was she loved Martin. She had for a long time. She always would. And she would never, ever be able to marry anyone else. She knew that now as well as she knew her own name. She couldn’t kid herself anymore.
The car rolled by and Daisy let out a sigh of relief. Either they didn’t see Martin’s truck, or, as she’d hoped, they’d seen the parked truck and hadn’t realized it was there when they drove by the first time. The mobsters might be good at their jobs, but they weren’t perfect.
“Where are the cops?” Daisy said as she climbed back up onto the bench seat. “And Harry and Leon, why aren’t they here yet?”
“I’m sure they’re getting here as fast as they can,” Martin said, “but we can’t stay and wait for them. We’ve got to follow the criminals. If they get away they will find you and kill you.”
“And if you’re right, and they’re headed for the Peak Bail Bonds office, Alvis and Millie are in danger.”
“I’m afraid so,” Martin said.
“All right.” Daisy gestured toward the car full of mobsters that was disappearing down the farm road. “Let’s go after them.”
THIRTEEN
Martin slowly drove forward, following the mobster car as it headed down the farm access road and toward the main road. Daisy looked across the dark fallow field, hoping to see the red and blue flashing lights that would indicate help was here. She didn’t see anything. Nor did she hear sirens, even though she still had her window down a little despite the literally freezing temperature. The light rain that was falling earlier was now dropping down as icy flakes.
The mob car reached the intersection with the main, paved road and stopped. Martin also hit the brakes. Daisy held her breath. She waited to see if the car turned right, toward the wilderness and escape into southern Montana and potentially anywhere in the country, or left, and back toward the outskirts of Jameson.
The car turned left, toward town.
“They aren’t going to leave until they finish tying up loose ends,” Martin said grimly.
Yeah. And that meant killing Daisy and anyone who got in their way while they tried to do it. Like Alvis and Millie. She placed a quick call to Millie, explaining to her what was happening and warning that she and Alvis should be ready for anything. Then, after telling her she had to go, she disconnected.
“I’m going to have to let them get a little ahead of us,” Ma
rtin said as the mob car started picking up speed and ascended the slight hill. “There’s traffic on the main road so I need to use my headlights. I don’t want to be close behind them when I turn them on. They might notice and realize they’ve been followed.”
“Just stay close enough that I don’t lose sight of them,” Daisy said, grabbing hold of the night-vision binoculars just in case. She would not lose these criminals again.
Martin gave it a few seconds, then flicked on his headlights and turned onto the highway. After driving in the darkness, it felt like they’d suddenly turned on a spotlight. Daisy’s gut tightened with anxiety. These mobsters were pros. They had to know how to watch for tails. It made sense that they hadn’t spotted Martin and Daisy following them from the airport because there’d been a fair amount traffic around them. But here, now, with only sparse traffic, the sudden illumination of the headlights might have shown up in the rearview mirror and caught the driver’s attention.
Daisy prayed that hadn’t happened. Because if it had, the driver would take evasive maneuvers and get away in the darkness. And Daisy and everyone she cared about would be in danger.
“They’re speeding up,” Martin said as the car started up the hill ahead of them.
“Could be coincidence,” Daisy said. “Maybe not. Maybe they’ve spotted us. Forget about being subtle. You’ve got to speed up, too. We can’t risk losing them.”
They passed by a gas station with a convenience store and a small strip mall. They were out of the countryside and back on the edge of town now. Up ahead, the road was part of the main drag for this section of town with all of its interconnecting side streets where the mobsters could turn multiple times until Martin and Daisy lost track of them.
Martin’s phone rang. Caller ID showed that it was his fellow bounty hunter Harry Orlansky. “What?” Martin barked, answering with the truck’s hands-free device.
“We’re close to your location,” Harry answered. “Where exactly are you?”
“Northbound heading into town.” Martin gave him the specifics, including a couple of cross streets that they’d soon be approaching. “We’re following our two from the airport plus they’ve picked up Daltrey. Bunker’s dead. They shot him.”
Daisy heard Harry sigh heavily over the phone. “We’ll be ready for them.”
“I need to call 9-1-1 and let them know exactly where we are right now,” Daisy said to Martin. “They might have already arrived at the barn where you called in Bunker’s murder.” She reached for her phone without taking her eyes off the car ahead of them. The mobsters’ sedan peaked the top of the hill and then dropped out of sight.
Martin hit the gas to catch up with them.
Daisy tapped 9-1-1 on her phone just as Martin’s truck crested the hill and she heard a loud popping sound followed by a couple more. Bullets blew three holes through the windshield, one of them blasting all the way through and out the back window, the other two hitting the interior and sending fragments of cloth and plastic flying.
“Get down!” Martin yelled, swerving the truck to the right.
Daisy heard two more bullets clink as they hit the body of the truck. She slid down slightly, but not so far that she couldn’t see. She grabbed her pistol and hit the button to roll her window down farther. If they were going to force her to respond with lethal force, she’d do it.
“What’s going on?” Harry called out through the truck’s speaker.
At the same time, Daisy could hear the insistent voice of the 9-1-1 operator on her own phone. She’d dropped it, and right now was not a good time to pick it up. “We’re being shot at,” she called out, giving the location just before her phone slid to the floor and out of reach.
“I’ve got to stay on them,” Martin said to Daisy. “Capturing them is the only way to keep you safe.”
“I know,” she snapped, waving at him to speed up. “Go!”
The safety glass on the truck’s windshield held together despite the holes in it and the road ahead was visible through the spiderweb of cracks.
The mob car was several car lengths ahead of them, moving fast.
They were well into town now, with streetlights making things visible as they sped past stores and businesses. The recklessness of the mobsters had Daisy nervous not just for Martin and herself, but for innocent bystanders, as well.
“We’re turning off the highway and headed toward you right now,” Harry said over the speaker, startling Daisy, who’d forgotten about the open phone line.
“They’ll be coming up on you pretty fast,” Martin said. “Do what you can to slow them down until the cops can show up, but be careful. They aren’t afraid to shoot.”
“Yeah, we heard,” Harry said dryly.
Martin gave them a quick description of the vehicle so they’d know exactly what they were looking for.
Brake lights flared ahead of them. The mob car was slowing down and Martin’s truck was getting close.
Daisy got a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach as Beau Daltrey leaned his upper body out of the rear passenger window, turned toward them and started firing.
Martin slammed on the brakes as a bullet took out the passenger side mirror, sending fragments of broken mirror flying toward Daisy, slicing the skin on her right cheek.
They were near a grocery store with people in the parking lot who were in danger of being struck by a stray bullet.
“We’ve got to stop pursuing them,” Daisy said, nearly choking on the words as she said them. “An innocent bystander could get hurt.”
“I’m sorry,” Martin said. “I know it’s the right thing to do.” He sighed heavily. The call with Harry had dropped and now Martin punched the screen to reconnect to his fellow bounty hunter. “Bad guys are heading straight for you,” he said as soon as Harry answered. “We’ve had to fall back. Too dangerous for civilians.”
“We’re on it,” Harry answered. “I hear sirens. I think the cops are close. With the sudden temperature drop and black ice forming on the road, people are sliding and it’s slowing down traffic.” That must be why the cops weren’t here yet.
As Martin slowed down, the bad guys sped away. But then the driver hit the brakes. He flipped a U-turn and then started to accelerate, crossing over the yellow line in the center of the street so that they were now barreling directly toward Daisy and Martin.
Beau Daltrey leaned out of the back driver’s-side window pointing a gun at them. The mob woman leaned out of the front window on the passenger side also pointing a gun at them.
“They want to kill me here and now,” Daisy said, her voice shaky with adrenaline and fear.
“That’s not going to happen,” Martin said. “I’ve got to lead them away from all these people. These idiots don’t care who they hit.”
Bullets started flying at them before Martin could turn onto a side street.
Daisy didn’t want to add to the danger, but as she saw Daltrey take aim at her, she had no choice. She leaned out the window and returned fire.
Her bullet hit the driver and he slumped over the steering wheel. The woman reached over and grabbed the collar of his shirt, pulling him away from the steering wheel. His weight shifted, and the car sped up and smashed into the truck on Martin’s side, glancing off it and then spinning into a car that had pulled over to the curb and was filled with terrified-looking occupants.
The airbags in the truck deployed, stunning Daisy for a moment, but she quickly regained her wits and pushed the now-deflating bag out of the way.
“You okay?” Martin called out as he impatiently tried to move his airbag aside.
“Yes.”
Ahead of them, a big green pickup truck slid to a stop on the icy road behind the mobster car. Two big guys got out and approached the car with guns drawn.
“Harry and Leon,” Daisy said, relief coloring her voice.
“Abo
ut time they got here,” Martin snapped.
The slushy rain was falling harder now. They’d come to a stop away from a streetlight and it was hard to see much. One of the headlights on Martin’s truck was broken. Both headlights were broken on the mob car.
Impatient to get out and make her capture, Daisy unfastened her seat belt and pushed open her door. A sharp pain stabbed at her, and she yelped and froze for a second. The crash didn’t seem to have created any new injuries, but it had aggravated all the ones she already had.
“Wait here for the medics to arrive,” Martin said, drawing his weapon and kicking his dented door to get it to open. He moved toward the civilian car, calling out to them and asking if anybody was hurt.
Daisy didn’t want to wait. She got out of the truck and moved toward the mobster car. The front looked pretty bashed up. Martin’s truck had definitely been the more solid vehicle. Harry and Leon were already beside it, guns drawn, with car doors pulled open.
She moved toward the car with her gun drawn, sucking in a shallow breath with each painful movement of her arrow-injured arm. Slush covered the windshield, blocking her view. She was determined to get a look inside. She wanted to see Beau Daltrey up close before the cops arrived and carted him away.
Harry and Leon each gave her a nod of acknowledgment as she approached.
She walked around the open driver’s-side door and saw the driver sitting up, slump-shouldered and looking disoriented, hands on the steering wheel. There was a bullet hole in the windshield where the rearview mirror should have been anchored and the mirror was missing. When she’d fired at the car, the bullet must have hit the mirror and the mirror hit the man’s head. In the passenger seat, the woman had her hands on the dashboard. Having the perpetrators keep their hands in view was standard procedure.
Daisy then shifted her gaze toward the back seat. It was empty.
No. Beau Daltrey had to be back there. Maybe he was lying on the floor. Daisy hurried around to the rear door for a better look.