Crisis Shot

by Janice Cantore

  Hardin brought a hand to his face. “I need a word with Chief O’Rourke first.” He stood and stepped back and motioned for Tess to get out. She jammed the car into park and struggled with her temper.

  Oliver put a hand on her arm. “He’ll help. Just tell him what we need.”

  Tess climbed out of her SUV and followed Hardin to his vehicle.

  He towered over her and she knew he believed that to be an intimidation advantage. But bigger, taller people never intimidated Tess. One of her pop’s rules again crossed her mind: “The bigger they are, the harder they fall.” But rule #4 also applied: “Don’t step on anyone’s macho.” She would try.

  “Chief, I listened to Sergeant Logan try to outline what you’re after, and I got to say, I’m not convinced. Roger Dixon is an upstanding citizen from what I’ve seen.”

  “Sheriff, I really don’t have the time to try and convince you. I believe I’m after a dangerous pedophile, wanted in three states, who has kidnapped a fourteen-year-old girl. You holding me up just gives him more time with her. Is that what you want?”

  “I don’t think you have the evidence you need to make that assertion. If—and that’s a big if—Dixon is your man, he could be halfway to Portland by now.”

  “Are you willing to bet a fourteen-year-old’s life on that?” Tess held his gaze and watched indecision cloud his eyes briefly.

  “If I’m wrong,” Tess continued, “you win. But if I’m right and you continue to hold me up, that little girl loses.”

  He waved to his deputy to move a car. “I’ll go along, but just so you know, I don’t like cowboys, cops who don’t look before they leap. I hear you’re already in trouble there in Rogue’s Hollow. If you drag us on a wild-goose chase to disturb a law-abiding man, you can bet that city council will get my input. Follow me in.” He turned on his heel, climbed into his patrol car, and slammed the door.

  Tess hurried back behind the wheel and followed Hardin.

  “I don’t particularly believe in prayer, Oliver. But I know you do.”

  “Yes, of course I do.”

  “Please pray that this guy’s ego doesn’t cost Kayla her life.”

  49

  Oliver felt the tension in Tess fill the car. He knew Walter Hardin could be a stubborn man but believed that he was ultimately fair.

  They had a few miles to get to the Diamond Lake resort and another six past that to get to the road that would take them to the lake cabins. Oliver knew this area quite well. His parents had owned a cabin here when he was a boy. Twice while they were living in Scotland they’d returned here for summer vacations. Oliver loved this area; he’d brought Anna here many times.

  Thinking of Anna pierced his heart. He still had arrangements to make. But he knew she’d want him here, now, to help Chief O’Rourke and Kayla in any way he could.

  –––

  Tess followed the sheriff, chafing as he drove just the speed limit. She’d never been to this lake and was trying to imagine the scenario she would face at a secluded cabin. The trees were tall pines, she guessed. There was also some scrub brush, but would she have cover? Would the approach to the cabin signal to Roger, before they had any chance to save the girl, that they were coming?

  Hardin slowed and pulled to the right. Tess pulled even with him and saw that they were in front of a directory of names and cabin numbers.

  “What was the name on the cabin?” Hardin asked.

  “Urban. Dixon was almost certain it was Urban.” Tess scanned the directory and saw Urban next to the number 42.

  “Cabin 42 sits off the same road as cabin 43, but it’s high and to the right. What’s your plan, Chief?” Hardin looked past Oliver at Tess, skepticism in his eyes.

  “Will he be able to see us drive up?”

  “You get a free hundred, hundred and fifty feet. Then the road rises and he will see you, if he’s looking.”

  “Well, Sheriff, I plan on driving as far as I can, then sneaking in quietly to see exactly what he’s up to. Do you have a problem with that?”

  “Nope. We’ll be right behind you, but this is your circus; you can hang yourself.”

  Tess pulled onto the road and continued forward. She could see to the left small cabins dotting the area. The driveways to the cabins were marked with posts showing the cabin numbers; each post had at least two numbers on it.

  When she got to 39, she slowed, watching the terrain ahead. There was a slight rise, tree lined, and a cabin barely visible. There were also piles of wood and wood debris everywhere, as if the whole area had been raked and cleaned and these piles were ready to be cleared out. They were big piles and could work to her advantage if she needed cover.

  “See those piles of wood?” She pointed and turned to Oliver. “What’s up with that?”

  “Brush clearance for fire danger, I believe.”

  They reached the post that had 42 on it and Tess turned right onto the dirt road. It was narrow with tall, thin trees on either side. When she thought she’d gone as far as she could while remaining safe from Roger’s eyes, she stopped the car and put it in park.

  “There aren’t a lot of people around here, huh?”

  “It’s a weekday. Most of the cabins are probably occupied on the weekends. The resort was more crowded than it is here.”

  “I guess I should have left you with Sheriff Hardin. I’m going the rest of the way on my own.”

  “Chief, is that wise?”

  “Oliver, I still can’t figure you out.” Tess kept her eyes on the rise, where she could just see the roof of cabin 42. “Your wife just died, yet you’re concerned about me. And with almost anyone else I’d say it was because you wanted her murderer to pay.” She turned, held his gaze, searched his eyes. “But that’s not it with you, is it?”

  He shook his head, eyes calm, steady. “No. I’m here because I want to make certain you’re okay. Anna would have wanted to be sure you were treated fairly. I didn’t want Douglas to force you out. You said one way you got through the loss of your dad was to put one foot in front of the other and honor his memory. That’s what I’m doing here: putting one foot in front of the other and honoring Anna’s memory.”

  “Fair enough. Stay in the car. I have a radio. I can call Hardin if I need to.”

  She opened the door and climbed out of the car, eyes still focused on the cabin. It was possible she’d get to a position where she could see the whole cabin and discover that Roger was not there with the girl. What would she do then?

  50

  The piles of wood were good cover. Tess was able to find a stack on the rise, and while using it for cover, she had a line of sight on cabin 42. She recognized Roger’s SUV and her adrenaline surged. She keyed her mike and let Hardin know a vehicle was present.

  All he said was “10-4.” It was obvious he was going to let her sink or swim on her own.

  Very carefully, Tess threaded her way through the trees and wood stacks to the vehicle.

  Keeping the SUV between herself and the cabin, she peered around the rear of the vehicle and saw a figure pass in front of one of the cabin windows. Tall and thin, it had to be Roger. She turned down her radio, not wanting the crackle of radio traffic to tip her hand.

  Hand on the butt of her gun, she went down on one knee and considered her options. She could knock; he could deny knowing anything about Kayla and slam the door in her face. She could wait, hoping that Bender got something from the mayor that would help with a warrant. But that would take so much time. She could use exigent circumstances to burst into the cabin without a warrant, but her justification for exigency was thin—a strong hunch wouldn’t cut it. She was stuck with a conundrum.

  If Kayla wasn’t here, they were back to square one and she was wasting precious time. If Kayla was here, they needed to get to her ASAP. Standing, she peered inside the SUV and saw a suitcase and a box of food, canned and boxed quick meals. Either he was planning on running or he had not yet unloaded the car.

  Tess needed to get closer to
the cabin, try to confirm. She was about to move from the SUV and peek into a cabin window when she heard a crash and a curse.

  A male voice yelled, “Ow! Why, you little . . . Come back here!”

  Things banging, another crash, breaking glass, a man howling in pain, then the back door burst open and out stumbled Kayla, barefoot, hands bound in front of her, clothes ripped, a look of pure terror on her face.

  Tess leaped from behind the car toward Kayla at the same time Roger shoved the door open. There was a gun in his hand.

  Drawing her own weapon, Tess knew that she’d have to get between Kayla and Roger before she could fire. Weapon in her right hand, she reached across her body with the left, extending a hand to the terrified girl.

  “Here!” Tess yelled.

  In her peripheral vision she saw Roger raise his weapon. Time seemed to slow. She thought of her dad, she thought of Cullen Hoover, and she knew that no matter what she had to save this girl.

  Tess grasped Kayla’s wrists and pulled her down and behind her as she shifted her attention to Roger. Off-balance, she raised her gun and pulled the trigger even as he did the same.

  –––

  Oliver got out of the cruiser to stretch and to wait and hear from Tess. The woman’s confidence and instincts continued to impress him. It also made him realize just how much he was going to miss Anna and her insight into people. Just then a wave hit—of loss, of pain, and even a little bit of fear. What was he going to do now with his life?

  Put one foot in front of the other and honor her life.

  He sighed as the pain settled in, tempered ever so slightly by the knowledge that he could, at least, put one foot in front of the other. Then movement on the road caught his eye. It was a blue-and-white Rogue’s Hollow PD vehicle flying up the drive. It screeched to a stop by Sheriff Hardin’s car, and Oliver recognized Gabe Bender getting out of the car. He was animated, but whatever he said affected Hardin and they both hopped back in their patrol cars and headed up the road toward Oliver.

  He would have waited for them, but then he heard the gunshots. How many, he wasn’t sure, but without thought for his own safety, he sprinted up the hill toward the sound.

  The scene that was unfolding before him as he crested the rise took his breath away. Kayla knelt over the prone form of Chief O’Rourke, sobbing, while the man he knew as Roger Dixon writhed in pain near the cabin door.

  Oliver sprinted to Tess, falling on his knees next to her and addressing Kayla. “What happened?”

  “She saved me. She saved me.”

  Like a wave crashing over his head, Oliver felt the fear that Tess was dead.

  But she moved, then moaned and tried to rise, coughing as she did. She looked at Oliver and shifted, pointing her gun toward Roger. But he was no threat, seemingly oblivious to all of them, concerned only with his pain.

  “He’s down,” Oliver said, at the same time as Bender came skidding to a stop beside her.

  Hardin and his deputy descended on Roger. Oliver exhaled in relief and gathered Kayla in his arms to calm her as Bender saw to the chief.

  “Chief?”

  With a rough intake of breath, Tess said, “I’m okay. . . . Wind knocked out . . .”

  Oliver looked where Tess was pointing and realized her vest had stopped a bullet.

  “Take care of the girl,” she said.

  “I’ve got her,” he said. He breathed a prayer of thanks, grateful beyond measure that Kayla was alive and safe. Grateful, too, for Tess, who was probably the only person who could have made the right connections and saved the day like she just had.

  51

  Her chest felt as if she’d been slammed by a hammer wielded by a giant. Tess inspected the area where the projectile had struck. It had glanced off the bottom of her badge—she could feel a dent—and hit her chest a bit off center. She figured it was because of the way her body was turned at the time. The deformed projectile stuck in her trauma plate. She doubted anything was broken, but she was certain there’d be a big bruise.

  But Kayla was safe and a predator was in custody, and those facts acted like a natural painkiller.

  Oliver had come running up the hill like a knight in shining armor—an unarmed knight. Tess instinctively raised her gun, but Marshall was incapacitated. The scene had settled down a bit. Hardin and his deputy were dealing with Marshall, who was screaming and moaning that his arm was broken. Bender took a look and then walked back over to Tess.

  “Looks like you hit his collarbone.” He winced and pointed to his. “Not a lot of blood, but it’s all collapsed. Bet it stings.”

  “Are you sure that you’re okay?” Oliver asked Tess.

  “Oh yeah, I’m fine,” Tess said. She nodded to Bender as she leaned against Marshall’s SUV while they waited for medics. Hardin had secured the scene and called more deputies. Oliver stood next to Tess. Kayla had been walked back down the driveway to Tess’s car, where Del sat with her. He’d arrived shortly after Bender.

  “I want to know what else you found out about Marshall from brother Doug.”

  Bender arched a brow. “Dixon fell apart and told the whole story after you left.”

  “I’m listening,” Tess said.

  “In a way, Roger was the mayor’s brother—his foster brother,” Bender said. “When they were kids, they were adopted by the same foster parents.

  “The mayor claimed he hadn’t seen the guy in years when Roger found him on the Internet and began to correspond. Dixon said he had no interest in reconnecting, but when he was in Vegas a few years ago at a conference, Marshall showed up. He professed to have reformed his life and was trying to start over clean. It seems both have records.”

  “Doug Dixon is wanted too?” Tess shifted in surprise and winced as pain flashed through her body.

  “Not wanted, but back in New Hampshire he did five years for federal embezzlement when he was in his twenties. The mayor says that after he was released, he’d learned his lesson. But he couldn’t get a second chance when he disclosed the conviction. So he left it off, came west to start over, and built a life here. He tried to forget his foster brother, who he said always had problems and has been a sex offender since his teens.”

  “And Marshall held Dixon’s past over his head? Help your dear old foster brother get a new lease on life and he would keep the secret about the old conviction?”

  “Surely the mayor didn’t think people would hold that old conviction against him?” Oliver said.

  “Didn’t want to take the chance.”

  “Even though he knew Marshall was a dirtbag?” Tess asked.

  “Dixon says at first he thought his brother was on the up-and-up, that he really had changed. Marshall told him he’d legally changed his name to Dixon to get away from the stigma of being an ex-con. He played Dixon like a violin.”

  “He played a lot of people,” Oliver said. “I’ve known him since he moved here. My associate pastor married him and Helen Camus.”

  “Right.” Bender nodded. “The first couple of years, especially after he married Helen, who he seemed to make happy, Dixon says he breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that Marshall was a different man. It was only lately, in the last year and a half, that he realized there was something off. And now he had more to lose, what with his wife’s condition and all, so he looked the other way where Marshall was concerned.”

  “Besides, he’d already covered for the guy for years,” Tess said.

  “Yep. He admits he almost—” Bender held his fingers up as if he were placing quotes around the word—“called the FBI. But he was too afraid of Marshall and too afraid he’d go to jail, and no one would be there to care for his wife.”

  That made sense in a twisted way to Tess. “As time went on, it would have been harder and harder to tell the truth.”

  The drone of sirens drowned out the rest of the conversation as medics arrived. Hardin directed them to Tess first, but she waved them off. She was sore but okay. And Marshall’s whining was getting
on her nerves.

  She and Oliver walked down the drive to where Del sat with Kayla.

  “How are you holding up?” she asked, noting that the girl’s tears were gone and Kayla seemed composed and calm.

  “I’m okay.” She gave a heavy sigh. “But can I ask you a question, Chief?”

  “Sure.”

  “Mr. Dixon was the kind of man my dad is always warning me about. I never thought—I mean, he seemed so normal, but he isn’t at all, is he?” Her voice broke, the first crack Tess had seen in the brave girl. She wiped her nose and continued. “How do we keep away from bad people if they don’t seem bad?”

  Tess sucked in a breath, ignoring the twinge of pain in her chest when she did. The girl had come face-to-face with evil and survived, but at what cost? Was there any way to prevent her from being scarred for life? Tess hoped so. “You did everything possible, Kayla. This wasn’t your fault. Mr. Dixon fooled us all. Just keep listening to your parents. Now, I have a question for you. How’d you get away from him?”

  She shrugged in a way only a fourteen-year-old girl could. “I started to wake up and got scared. My dad always says to try and think before you react. Mr. Dixon carried me out of the car into the cabin. Then he took a shower. I could hear the water running. I worked on the ropes the whole time. I got them loose enough so that when he bent down and got in my face, I was able to poke him in the eye. Then I kicked him in the shin and ran.”

  “That was a great self-defense move,” she said to Kayla. She figured Marshall had drugged Kayla when he took her from her house.

  “You were brave and strong,” Oliver added.

  “My dad taught me that.”

  “Good for your dad,” Del said. He’d calmed Kayla and let her talk to her parents on the phone. Casey and John were on the way and Tess expected them any minute. Steve Logan was bringing them and she could admit to herself that she was looking forward to seeing him even more.