She broke the eye contact first and jammed her hand into her bag. “I need to call Seth. Tell him about all this.” She pulled out her cell phone and punched a few buttons.
Nick hugged Jason’s little body tighter against his shoulder and focused on the road ahead. The truck was only a short distance away. He had to start thinking about unlocking the doors and strapping Jason into his seat. But even so, he found himself holding his breath just a little, waiting to hear the mellow tones of Melissa’s voice as she talked on the phone.
Instead he heard the burned rubber screech of tires on pavement. A scream ripped from Melissa’s lips.
Nick looked up just in time to see an SUV barreling straight for them.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
NICK DIDN’T STOP TO THINK. Clamping Jason tight to his shoulder with one arm, he grabbed Melissa with the other and dove for the ditch.
An engine roared behind them, bearing down.
Nick let go of Melissa and shot out a hand to break his and Jason’s fall. He crashed to rocky dirt. The force of his fall shuddered through his arm and into his body. Rock jammed into the heel of his hand. Something cracked. His arm gave and he collapsed to his side, barely avoiding smashing Jason between his body and the ground.
Jason cried out in his ear.
“It’s okay, Buddy. It’s okay.”
The sound of the engine roared above them. It sounded bigger than an SUV. A Hummer? A damn tank?
“I got you, Jason. I got you.” Nick scrambled to get his feet under him, holding his son tight. The rocky soil was parched and loose, sparse grass slick as ice under his boots.
He reached for the spot where Melissa had been and grasped nothing but air. “Melissa!”
“Here.”
He followed the voice. He could see her blond hair, glowing against the green backdrop of young pine.
The engine revved from above, leaving the pavement, coming after them. Gravel sprayed under tire treads.
Nick’s boots found purchase. He scrambled forward, reaching with his free hand to help Melissa. Pain razored through his arm. He lurched forward, dizzy.
Then she was beside him. Helping him. Pulling him.
His vision cleared just as they reached the tree line. He gritted his teeth and pushed forward, through the tangle of brush at the edge of the forest and into the cool, sparse understory.
Behind them the engine’s roar sounded different. Spinning around, he peered through the trees. A red SUV bumped back onto the road. It bolted down the street and disappeared.
“Daddy!”
He held the little body tight. “Jason. Buddy. Are you hurt?” He pulled back to examine his son.
Except for a few scratches on his arms, he seemed fine.
Nick scanned Melissa. “Are you okay?”
She nodded and leaned hands on knees, trying to catch her breath. Hair clung to a scrape on her cheek. But underneath it all, she still had that fierce hold on control he’d witnessed the moment he met her. She looked up at him. “You’re the one who’s hurt.”
Jason reached for Nick’s free hand. “You need a Band-Aid.”
Nick glanced down at his hand, hanging limply at his side. Blood oozed from scrapes and cuts on his palm, but that was the least of his problems. Now that the adrenaline of the panicked moment was draining away, a bone-deep ache pulsed up his arm.
“It’s broken, isn’t it?” Melissa reached out like Jason had, stopping short of touching him.
“We need to get back to the cabin.”
“You should go to a hospital. Have it set.”
“And let everyone know where we are? I’m fine. Might Jimmy have some kind of first-aid kit?”
“I can guarantee it. But a hospital would be better.”
“Can’t be helped. We need to get somewhere safe. We’ll decide what to do from there.”
Melissa slipped one arm around his back and the other around him and Jason both. “You saved my life.”
He looked down at her. He wished he could raise his hand, smooth Melissa’s silken hair back from her cheek, cradle her sweet face and claim her lips. Let her know that everything was okay. As long as she and Jason were alive, unhurt… everything was fine.
For the fourth time in as many days, he’d come too close to losing those he loved. Jason and…
The realization shuddered through him like the shock waves of a bomb.
That was it, wasn’t it? Jason wasn’t the only one he loved. Despite having been down this path before. Despite knowing she would never be happy spending her life with him. Despite promising himself he wouldn’t go there. He’d fallen for Melissa Anderson.
Now what the hell was he going to do?
______
Melissa was still shaking when she finally got in touch with Seth on the drive back to Jimmy’s cabin. She’d let Nick drive, giving into his insistence despite what she was sure was a broken arm. Now she watched the lines of pain etching his face in the dashboard’s glow as he steered with one hand, the other lying still in his lap, her cell phone clapped to her ear.
Not knowing how long service would last in this mountainous terrain, she filled Seth in on her visit with Sanchez, her meeting with Marris, and Nick’s observations about the shooters and the possibility of Essie being the real target. But despite showing strong interest in Nick’s alternate theory, Seth’s main focus seemed to be Marris.
“What did the detective tell you?”
“A few things. About Calhoun. About his history with Jimmy. About how his whole investigation might be based more on revenge than evidence.”
“That’s funny.”
“Funny? I’d call it a lot of things, but funny isn’t one.”
“You don’t know what I know about Marris.”
“What is it?”
“Jimmy Bernard wasn’t the only one taking money from the Latin Devils.”
“Marris?” She couldn’t believe it any more than she could Jimmy. She stared out the window at the tops of trees rushing by as they left the city outskirts behind and climbed into the mountains. It seemed everyone she respected, everyone she trusted… she shook her head. “Can you prove it this time, Seth?”
“We have a lot more evidence against Marris. He was the original target of this investigation, before we knew Jimmy was involved. If it wasn’t for Gayle Rodgers and then Jimmy getting killed, Marris would already be charged.”
Was it possible? Could Marris be the one who was lying? And if so, how far did that lying go? Was he the one who told those gangster wannabes where to find Jimmy? Did he pay them to take out a friend so he could make it look like Jimmy was the one working with the Devils? Was Marris behind the wheel of that SUV? Was that why he’d set up such an isolated meeting place?
There were plenty of questions. But was there evidence to support any answers?
“Calhoun could have twice as much on Marris as he does Jimmy, and it still wouldn’t add up to much. You’re going to have to fill me in, Seth.”
“Can’t. Not yet. But it’s significant. Trust me on that.”
“What about Calhoun? Did Jimmy write him up, damage his career?”
“That part is true.”
“Why didn’t you tell me that before?”
“It has nothing to do with the investigation.”
“How can you say that? It has to color Calhoun’s view of Jimmy.”
“It was a long time ago, Melissa. Calhoun’s career is back on track. Everything’s going well for him. Why would he risk it all now to get revenge against a dead man?”
“Emotional things like that aren’t always logical. How can you be sure he wouldn’t bend the truth a little to get some payback. Maybe he doesn’t see how it will hurt.”
“He wouldn’t do it, because I wouldn’t let him get away with it. If you’re right, and he has a little extra motivation, I can’t see how that’s bad.”
Maybe Marris was crooked, but he was right about Seth. The man was playing it all ways, making sure no m
atter what happened with this case, he would smell pretty in the end.
Static fuzzed in her ear. “Hello?”
A crackle or two more, and Seth’s voice was back. “Is that all you have?”
“Can you run a license number for me?”
Nick’s head snapped toward her. His brows rose in a silent question.
She nodded. She’d only been able to see the first three digits, but a partial and a description of the SUV was better than nothing. “Colorado plates.”
“What is this about?”
“It would be helpful. That’s all.” Maybe she should have called someone else. The last thing she wanted to do was deal with a grilling from Seth. Especially since she might lose phone service at any time. But with the strain between the D.A.’s office and the police that this investigation business had caused, she wasn’t sure she could get the quick results she needed unless she went through her own office.
As if to underscore the urgency, static hissed over the phone once again.
“You need to give me more than that.”
“It was a red SUV, a Honda. 462 is all I caught.”
Nick gave her a smile, and she returned it.
“That’s not what I mean by more.”
“It tried to run us down. Is that what you want to know?”
“Tried to run you… us… when did this happen?”
“Right after we talked to Marris.”
“Marris? Damn.”
Apparently it occurred to Seth that Marris might be behind that wheel, as well. “What are you going to do, Seth?”
The connection fuzzed again. When it came back, Seth’s voice rang firm and commanding. “…to quit fooling around, Melissa. Get Raymond and his son in here immediately.”
“I’ve tried, Seth. He doesn’t want any part of protective custody, and I have to say, I can understand where he’s coming from.”
Nick nodded, glancing from the road to her and back.
“You can understand? When he and the kid are dead, will you understand then?”
Melissa’s throat closed. She looked at Nick, glanced out of the corner of her eye at Jason in the backseat. This was enough. They couldn’t risk their lives any longer. She couldn’t risk them. Seth was right about that.
“Are you there?” Seth growled through another batch of static.
“Yes.”
“Get him in here now. Him and the boy.”
“I…” She met the glance from Nick. “…he doesn’t know who to trust, Seth. You’ve got to admit, things are pretty confusing.”
“He might be confused. But you damn well shouldn’t be. Get Raymond and the boy in here. If they aren’t in protective custody by tomorrow, you no longer have a job.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
IT TOOK MELISSA ONLY A minute to find the place where Jimmy had stashed his first-aid kit. She pulled out the collection of equipment and bandages and whatnot that probably rivaled that of some small-town clinics from one of the few kitchen cabinets.
“What, did he plan to open a hospital?”
Melissa forced a chuckle, despite the tremor inside her chest that had only grown since talking to Seth. “Tammy is a nurse. She made sure he was well supplied.”
From all she could tell, Nick’s bone wasn’t broken badly. The bone didn’t seem to be protruding, anyway. She was a little clueless when it came to setting broken bones. “You’re sure you don’t want to go to the hospital?”
“Why, when I have you?”
“As a doctor, I make a really good D.A.’s investigator.”
“I’ve seen my share of broken bones. This isn’t a big deal.”
Melissa secured his arm in a soft cast.
Nick sucked in a breath.
She shot him a look and spilled a couple of painkillers onto her palm. “Take these.”
“No thanks. I don’t like the way they make me feel.”
“You’re going to like the pain of a broken arm even less.”
“It’s not so bad.”
“Right. You turn pale every time I adjust the cast.”
“You’re exaggerating.”
“It’ll get worse, too. Your body is probably still pumping a good amount of adrenaline. When that wears off, you’ll wish you’d taken these.”
“Okay. Fine.” He held out a hand and she gave him the pills, followed by a glass of water.
Melissa ran through what had happened in her mind again. The meeting with Marris. The SUV. The danger Nick and his son were in every minute they stayed in Denver.
“What is it?” Nick asked.
“What’s what?”
“That look. You seem… intense.”
“It’s probably…”
“Nothing?”
Melissa smiled. “Yeah.”
“Out with it.”
“The SUV charging at us like that…”
“What about it?”
“Doesn’t it seem… I don’t know… lame?”
Nick held up his injured wing. “Did a number on me.”
“Whoever is behind this shot Jimmy and Essie in broad daylight and on a busy street.”
“You think the SUV didn’t try hard enough to kill us?”
“Something like that, yeah.”
“Agree. It didn’t seem to be planned. It seemed…”
“Desperate?” she finished.
“Yeah.”
“The only one who knew where we were was Detective Marris.”
“So you’re starting to agree with your boss?”
“Maybe. But it still doesn’t feel right. I have to think it through.”
Melissa waited until after they ate another one of Tammy’s casseroles and Nick tucked Jason safely into bed before she brought up the rest of her thoughts.
A fire crackling in the fireplace, she joined Nick on the lumpy couch. “I’m going to meet with Seth tomorrow.”
“You can take the truck.”
“No. I can’t.”
“You want me to drop you off downtown?”
“You need to go. Somewhere. Away from here. Somewhere safe until we can get some answers.”
A muscle along his jaw tensed under razor stubble. “So come with us.”
“I have a job to do.”
“You’re suspended.”
That wasn’t the half of it. When she failed to bring Nick and Jason into the D.A.’s office, she’d probably have no job at all. But even without a title or paycheck or any official authority, she still had work to finish. “I have to find out what’s really going on. I can’t let anyone else get hurt. It’s bigger than the job. It’s even bigger than owing Jimmy.”
“It’s who you are.”
He understood. Somehow she knew he would, and the fact that she’d been right made her feel all the more empty. “As much as the ranch is who you are.”
Nick stared into the fire, as if letting her comment sink in. When he returned his gaze, his eyes held a sheen that wasn’t there before. “When I first met you, I thought you were like Gayle.”
“I look a little like her. I noticed that.”
“The hair. The willpower. But I thought that meant you also had her ambition.”
“I am ambitious.”
“Not in the same way. You do your job because you believe in the work’s value. You want to make a difference. Help people.”
He didn’t elaborate on his ex-wife and her motivations, and Melissa didn’t ask. She didn’t want to know. “I like the way you see me.”
Nick leaned his head against the back of the couch as if he no longer had the energy to keep it upright.
“You okay?”
“No.”
“We need to go to the hospital.”
“My arm isn’t the problem.”
“If not your arm, what is it?”
“I know I shouldn’t say this. Hell, I shouldn’t even be feeling it.” He raised his head and looked at her.
His eyes appeared glassy. The painkillers, no doubt. But his face he
ld something tender, something honest, something she’d never seen in a man’s face before.
A chill traveled over her skin, the sensation having nothing to do with being cold. She didn’t want him to go on, to say another word. And yet, she had to hear. She had to know. She had to feel it, even though it was somewhere she couldn’t afford to let herself go.
“I’m…” He inhaled deeply, as if he needed the extra oxygen.
“Wait.” She brought her fingers to his lips.
He raised his good hand, engulfing her hand, placing it on the back of his neck.
She should withdraw. Look away. Retreat to the other side of the room. She tangled her fingers in the short curls at his nape.
“I’m falling in love with you, Melissa.” He said the words on a rush, pushing them out on a single breath.
She’d known it was coming. On some level, she’d even wished for it. But although the words curled inside her, warm and precious, she couldn’t keep them. She couldn’t make them her own. “No. You can’t.”
He nodded and brought his face close. “It’s impossible. I know.”
It was impossible. She hardly knew him, yet she knew him so well. She couldn’t do this, yet she couldn’t take her hand away, either.
“I know,” he said, as if answering her thoughts. “I’m just a rancher, and you’re—”
“Just a rancher?”
“Not sophisticated. Not ambitious. Not—”
“That’s your ex-wife talking.”
“And if you were talking?”
“I never should have talked you into coming to Denver. You have to leave. You and Jason.”
“Not a chance.” His breath caressed her lips.
“It’s dangerous.”
“We’ll just have to keep being careful.”
“Nick, I can’t ask you to—”
“You aren’t asking. Testifying, putting murderers behind bars… it’s the right thing to do. I know I hesitated at first. That was wrong.”
“It was understandable.”
“Maybe. But that doesn’t make it right. And how can I ever look my son in the eye if I don’t do the right thing?”
She wasn’t sure if he lowered his lips or if she pulled him to her, but his kiss was all she needed, all she wanted. His warmth filled the cold empty quake inside her. His lips moved against hers and her mouth answered, automatically, naturally.
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