Hidden Target (Otter Creek Book 2)

by Rebecca Deel

  “Well, did you find something?” Gray peered over his shoulder.

  Nick slammed the book closed, a small smile creeping onto his mouth. Oh, yeah. He’d found something, all right. A killer. In an instant, missing pieces of the puzzle fell into place. He knew who killed Luke, tried to kill him, and sliced away pieces of Madison’s life with the precision of a scalpel. He couldn’t prove it, but he knew. Gathering the evidence was Ethan’s job. All Nick had to do was keep Madison away from a killer masquerading as a friend.

  Madison locked her Jeep, thankful for a parking place in the shade. With the hospital parking lot almost full, the trek from her car to the hospital entrance took long enough that she arrived in the lobby hot and sticky.

  She walked the second floor hallway and tapped on Julia’s door. She peered around the door and smiled. Julia was asleep. Madison glanced at the man rising to greet her. Her jaw dropped. “Officer Kendall!” She stared at his bald head. “What happened to your hair?”

  “Didn’t want Julia to feel bad about losing her hair from the chemo treatments, so I shaved it,” he said with a grin. “Our hair will grow back at the same time.”

  Madison batted back the pooling tears. “Since she’s asleep, I won’t stay.” She handed him a bright yellow gift bag. “I brought one of the hats Julia requested. Tell her I’ll stop by Friday with another.”

  Kendall opened the bag and rolled his eyes. “I bet she’ll sleep in it,” he said and placed the bag on the table where his daughter would see it as soon as she woke. “Thanks, Madison. I’m sure Julia will love the hat.”

  Madison emerged from the air-conditioned lobby and squinted against the glaring late afternoon sun. She pulled out her cell phone and called Ethan while she walked to her car. When his deep voice answered her ring, she said, “Seen any chickens lately?”

  “Stick to knitting, honey. Your comedy routine’s for the birds.”

  She laughed. “I’m ready to leave the hospital.”

  “Josh just left the station; wait for him.”

  Madison sighed. No use arguing with a man who could throw her in jail for protection. “I’ll be in the car with the air-conditioner blowing full blast.”

  “Lock your doors.”

  She frowned as she ended the call. Why was he so paranoid? What could possibly happen to her in the middle of a busy parking lot in broad daylight? She shoved the phone in her pocket, dug her car keys from the bottom of her purse and unlocked the door.

  “Madison.”

  Madison turned with a warm smile for the approaching dark-haired woman. “What are you doing here?”

  The woman raised her hand and shoved the barrel of a glittering black gun against Madison’s side. “Looking for you.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  “Jed Starnes?”

  The middle-aged man looked up, his glasses reflecting the light from a computer screen. He studied Nick with curiosity. “What can I do for you?”

  Nick handed Starnes his card. “Nick Santana. I spoke to you a few minutes ago about the Castigians.” White Oak Target Range’s small office looked like the entrance to a hunter’s paradise. A mounted deer head adorned one log wall. The coffee table showcased a stuffed red-haired fox, its sharp white teeth clutching a mouthful of tail feathers of the wild turkey forever out of reach.

  Starnes handed him a sheaf of papers. “I pulled the records for both John and Ava. After her father died, Ava came in every weekend to shoot.” He nodded at the list. “I also printed the type of shells she bought from us.”

  Nick scanned the ammunition list with the dates of purchase. Ava changed from 20-gauge target loads to AA11 sniper rounds right after her father died. He folded the papers and slipped them into his pocket. “Thanks, Mr. Starnes.”

  “Her father taught her how to shoot.” Starnes offered the information with eyes full of regret. “She always enjoyed challenging herself, striving for a perfect score with the clay targets. After her father died, she changed, became more driven, more focused.”

  Nick nodded. “The Otter Creek police will contact you. Your help may save a woman’s life.”

  Ethan shoved the SUV into gear and threw open the door, frowning at the crowd of spectators pressed against the crime scene tape, eager to witness the drama unfolding in the hospital parking lot. “Push the perimeter back another 500 feet,” he snapped as he passed Sanderson. “And get those people moving.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Fury welled inside him with the force of a geyser. He should have tossed Madison into protective custody instead of letting her roam around town at will. “What have we got?”

  Rod turned with dead roses in his gloved hand. He handed Ethan a small card, protected by a clear plastic bag. Words printed in black ink stood out against the snowy background. “Too late.”

  His jaw clenched. “Any witnesses?”

  Rod inclined his head toward a woman standing off to the side. “Lacy Grant saw Madison drive off with a black-haired woman. Josh missed them by a couple of minutes. I sent him into the hospital to interview Kendall and hunt for another witness.”

  “Anything else?”

  “Jeep was unlocked. No signs of struggle, no blood.”

  Ethan rubbed the back of his neck with a sigh. “I’ll talk to the witness, see if I can get a description of the car. Find us something we can use, Rod.” He crossed the parking lot, ducked under the crime scene tape, and introduced himself to the witness. “Ms. Grant, tell me what you saw.”

  “Like I told the other officer, I saw the blonde-haired woman get in the car with that other woman and drive off.”

  “What made you notice the two women?”

  “Well, I thought I recognized Ms. Ryder from her picture in the paper. My mother’s a customer of hers. Anyway, I heard the dark-haired woman call out her name. By that time, I was close enough to see Ms. Ryder’s face. She smiled until the other woman got close. I’ve never seen anyone go from happy to petrified in the blink of an eye like that.”

  Lacy frowned. “I watched for a few seconds, wondered if I ought to walk by or something. By the time I decided Ms. Ryder was in trouble and started toward them, they got into that other woman’s car and drove away.” She glanced up at Ethan, guilt shadowing her eyes. “I guess I should have done something, but I didn’t know there was a problem until it was too late.”

  “Did you recognize the other woman?”

  Lacy shook her head. “I got a good look at her, though.”

  “Describe her.” Ethan listened carefully to the description, his suspicions weaving into a solid rope of certainty. “Would you recognize her if you saw her again?”

  “Oh, yes,” she said. “She’s a very beautiful young woman.”

  Ethan retrieved the picture he’d slipped into his shirt pocket as he left his office a few minutes earlier. He handed Lacy the photo.

  “That’s her. That’s the woman I saw in the car with Ms. Ryder.”

  A grim smile settled on his mouth. He questioned Lacy about the car. Satisfied his quarry hadn’t changed vehicles, Ethan strode to his SUV, leaving the witness with a patrol officer. He grabbed the microphone. “Dispatch, this is unit one.”

  “Go ahead, Chief.”

  “Put out a BOLO on a 4-door, black Taurus.” Ethan rattled off the license plate number and description of the driver. “Advise officers this is a hostage situation. They should assume suspect is armed and dangerous.”

  After completing his instructions to the dispatcher, Ethan pulled out his cell phone and flipped it open.

  Nick stilled, his breath frozen in his lungs, cell phone pressed to his ear. Horror sliced through him with the precision of a samurai sword. His grip tightened on the small velvet box nestled in the palm of his left hand. “When?” he managed to ask in a hoarse voice. He grabbed the receipt from the startled jewelry store clerk, turned from the glass counter and dashed outside to his Jeep.

  “Less than an hour. A BOLO just went out. Ava won’t get far, Nick. We’l
l find her.”

  Yeah, but would Ethan find Ava before she hurt Madison? He berated himself for not trying to call Ethan again sooner. He’d tried to reach the police chief when he left the high school, but couldn’t get a signal. Nick sped from the parking lot, tires squalling. “Did you call her cell phone?”

  “Went straight to her mailbox.”

  Nick slipped on his sunglasses. “You were right, Ethan. This whole stalking business was payback for her father’s death and I didn’t see it.” His voice was tight, full of self-recrimination.

  “Neither did Luke,” Ethan said. “Beating yourself up is pointless. A lot of good cops didn’t see the connection. We need to focus on tracking Ava, anticipating her next move.”

  Nick glanced in the rearview mirror and accelerated onto the interstate. “What’s the plan?”

  “We called in all our off-duty officers to help in the search and alerted the county sheriff and highway patrol. The local radio station’s broadcasting our hot-line number and asking people to call in if they see Ava or Madison.”

  Nick drove in silence for a moment. “Ava will call.”

  “Yes.” Ethan paused. “I need to know when you hear from her, Nick.”

  “I’ll do whatever it takes to free Madison,” he said. “I’m not bound by procedure any longer.”

  “You’re still bound by the law,” Ethan said. “Don’t make choices that will force Madison to visit you in prison or the cemetery. She’s been through enough.”

  Nick ended the call and dropped the phone into his shirt pocket. He promised Madison nothing else would happen on his watch. He glanced at the small box on the passenger seat. He doubted he would have the chance to slide the half-carat diamond engagement ring on her finger. If he and Ethan managed to get her away from Ava alive, Nick couldn’t ask Madison to marry the man who destroyed her life.

  “Where are we going?” Madison’s fingers curled around the steering wheel in a death-grip. She didn’t expect an answer. Every question she’d asked had been ignored for the last hour.

  “Turn right at the sign ahead.”

  The gun pointed at her remained steady. Madison slowed, negotiating the turn onto Mining Camp Road. A lot of good the road sign did her. They had doubled back and drove over so many twisting side roads she didn’t have a clue where she was. The tires spun, a cloud of dust billowing in their wake.

  She scanned both sides of the road. No houses in sight, no signs of civilization. If Madison did manage to get away from her captor, she’d have a long hike to find a main road. If she had any sense of direction. She didn’t. Madison couldn’t find her way out of a fog bank with a guide rope tied around her waist. Ahead, a rustic cabin sat at the top of the rise.

  “Park in back.”

  Madison flashed an irritated look at the woman, but followed her instructions. She turned off the engine. “What now, Jenny?”

  The look in Jenny’s eyes sent chills skittering across Madison’s body. Cold, ruthless, determined. “My name is Ava, not Jenny. Get out of the car. If you run, I’ll shoot you.”

  The saliva in her mouth disappeared. She fumbled with the handle, managed to throw open the door and climb out. Once on her feet, a muscle spasm near her hip almost sent her to the ground. Madison gritted her teeth and gripped the car door for support. Ava grabbed her arm and shoved her toward the cabin. She stumbled, caught herself before hitting the dirt, and lurched up the weed-strewn path to the wooden structure.

  Inside the musty cabin, Ava pushed her toward the bed in the corner.

  “Face down,” Ava said, her voice flat.

  Madison hesitated. She wrinkled her nose in distaste. The stained mattress reeked of things she didn’t want to think about too long. She glanced around the cabin. “What about that chair?” She nodded at the straight backed piece of furniture beside the window.

  Ava scowled, then snatched a roll of duct tape from a small table. “On the floor.”

  Playing with the bugs had to be better than rolling on that filthy mattress. With a sigh, she lay flat. Ava jerked her hands behind her back and taped them together. By the time she’d finished binding her ankles as well, Madison felt like a trussed up turkey.

  Ava tossed the tape into the corner, rolled her onto her back, thrust her hand into the front pocket of Madison’s jeans and pulled out her cell phone. Madison watched her scroll down the contact list with a cold smile.

  “What’s going on? Where are Madison and Nick?” Liz Cahill stood in the doorway, fear etched on her face.

  Ethan turned away from his grim-faced future father-in-law. “Nick’s on his way back from Knoxville.”

  “And my daughter?”

  Ethan hated to tell a woman he’d come to love like a mother that her daughter had been kidnapped and, worse, he didn’t have a clue where she’d been taken. Ava and Madison had disappeared.

  “Liz, come sit down, honey.” Aaron held out his hand.

  “I don’t want to sit down. I want to know where my daughter is.” She turned back to Ethan with fire in her eyes. “Tell me the truth, Ethan.”

  “I don’t know where she is yet,” he said. “But I know who she’s with.”

  “What are you talking about? Is she missing?”

  Aaron moved to stand beside Liz. “Who is it, then?”

  Ethan focused on Liz, his dark gaze holding hers. “Madison was abducted from the hospital parking lot by Ava Castigian, a woman you know as Jenny Siler.”

  Liz gasped, blood draining from her face. “Jenny’s the stalker? Why did she take Maddie? What did my daughter ever do to her?”

  “Nothing. It’s never been about Madison. Ava’s the daughter of a man Nick arrested for murder. She blames Nick for destroying her family.”

  Aaron frowned. “But taking Maddie makes no sense.”

  “In a kind of twisted way, her logic does make sense. She wanted to destroy Nick’s family, like he destroyed hers, only Nick’s family died years ago in a home invasion. She must have realized how close Luke and Nick were.” Watching her, Ethan knew when she grasped the connection.

  “She killed Luke?” Liz latched onto her husband’s arm for support.

  Ethan nodded. “We don’t have enough evidence to charge her with Luke’s murder, but it’s only a matter of time now that we know where to look.”

  “Then she’s the one who shot Nick.” Aaron slipped his arm around Liz’s shoulders and pulled her in close to his side.

  “But why take Madison?” Liz asked. “You said this is about Nick.”

  “Nick loves your daughter. Ava figured the easiest way to draw him out was through her.”

  Liz leaned her head on Aaron’s shoulder and stared at Ethan. After a moment, she said, “Ava’s going to kill them both, isn’t she?”

  Nick grabbed his ringing cell phone. He read the words in the display screen. Madison’s cell. “Santana.” He pulled onto the shoulder of the road and idled his engine.

  “Checkmate.”

  Relief swept through him. At least he’d guessed this step right. “Ava.”

  She chuckled. “Very good, detective. Too bad it took you two years to figure it out. You’re too late. I captured the queen. Game’s almost over.”

  “What do you want, Ava?” He listened, but heard no noises in the background.

  “You.”

  “Let me talk to Madison.”

  “You don’t tell me what to do, Santana. I’m the one with the gun to your girlfriend’s head.” Ava’s shrill voice sent chills down his spine.

  “I’m the one you want,” he said. “I talk to Madison right now, or this conversation’s over.”

  He heard some scuffling, a thump, a cry of pain. His gut clenched as he strained to listen. Finally, he heard what he’d been praying for.

  “Nick?”

  Her voice sounded far away. He’d bet Ava was listening to their conversation. “You all right, baby?”

  “Just scared.” A sniff. “Tell Ethan I’m sorry. I should’ve listened to hi
m.”

  He fought back the emotions threatening to swamp his ability to think. He wanted to wring Ava’s neck for what she’d put Madison through. “Tell him yourself when this is over. Do exactly what Ava tells you to do, honey.”

  “Good advice, detective.”

  “When and where, Ava?”

  “Top of Brockman’s Ridge. You know where that is?”

  “I’ll find it.”

  “Be there at 6:00. And no cops, detective, or Madison dies.”

  Nick glanced at the dashboard clock as Ava ended the call. Twenty minutes wasn’t long and he didn’t know the area. He pulled back onto Highway 18 and called Ethan.

  When the police chief answered, Nick said, “Top of Brockman’s Ridge, 20 minutes.”

  “Where are you?”

  “Highway 18. I just passed Kirby Road.”

  Paper rattled, a pause, then, “Turn right on Donovan Lane, about a mile from your present location. About two miles down, you’ll see a dirt road on your right. That will take you to the top of Brockman’s Ridge.”

  He slowed and veered to the right. “I’m on Donovan. Ethan, Ava’s threatening to kill Madison if she sees a cop.”

  “She won’t see us.”

  Ethan’s confidence made him smile. No matter how good Ava thought she was, Nick bet Ethan was better. “Everything I learned about Ava is in a brown envelope. I’ll leave it under the driver’s seat.”

  “I expect a full report from you when she’s in custody.”

  No problem. If he survived to give one.

  Ethan snatched the map from his desk and strode out of his office. “Rod, Ava and Madison are headed to Brockman’s Ridge.”

  Rod jumped to his feet and followed Ethan to the street. The police chief paused beside his SUV as Josh whipped into the parking space beside him.

  “Where are they, Ethan?”