by Terri Reed
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord. Plans for good, not evil. To give you a future and a hope.
Closing her eyes, she breathed out a barely audible prayer. “If you really mean that, please don’t let this evil destroy Ben.”
Because she didn’t think she could live through another loss of someone she loved.
At the hospital, Corinna was out of the vehicle before Daniel brought the SUV to a full stop. Oliver quickly followed. An empty ambulance sat at the emergency entrance. Corinna hurried through the sliding doors and rushed to the admitting desk.
A gray-haired lady sitting behind the counter smiled at her. “How can I help you?”
“Ben Fritz. He was just brought in,” Corinna nearly gasped.
The older woman’s fingers played across the keyboard of the computer in front of her. Her brow wrinkled in a frown. “I’m sorry, I don’t see anyone in our system with that name.”
“But he just came in,” Corinna insisted. “He was shot. He should be back with the doctors.”
“I’m sorry, Miss. I have no record of him.”
“The ambulance is here,” Oliver interjected. “Where are the EMTs?” Without waiting for an answer, Oliver peeled away from the counter and headed toward the ER doors.
“Hey, you can’t go in there!” A nurse ran after him.
Confusion and alarm squeezed Corinna’s lungs, trapping her breath. “How can that be?”
Daniel and Gisella raced to her side just as Oliver returned. “He’s not here,” Oliver stated. “EMTs said as soon as he regained consciousness he took off.”
Their shocked faces reflected the question burning through her mind. Where could he be?
“I can’t believe I let you talk me into this!” Anderson said with a sideways glance while expertly handling his truck at a breakneck speed.
Ben tried not wincing every time the vehicle rounded a corner or hit a rough patch of road in their pursuit of the shooter. “Wasn’t like I gave you a choice. It was an order.”
“Dumb one, if you ask me,” Anderson groused.
“Not when the order leads to catching this guy. That’s all that matters,” Ben stated firmly through clenched teeth.
His broken rib burned like a roaring campfire gone awry. When he’d come to in the back of the ambulance before the vehicle had left the Riverwalk, the EMTs had told him his Kevlar vest had stopped the bullet, but he’d suffered a rib fracture and they wanted to take him to the hospital for x-rays. They’d strapped tape around his midsection and instructed him to take full breaths to avoid lung complications.
They’d also wanted to start him on pain meds, but Ben had refused. It was bad enough he’d passed out. He needed a clear head, especially when he saw Jimenez running toward the parking garage. He’d been surprised to see him still so close. Jimenez must have hunkered down somewhere hoping to escape when the police presence diminished.
Though the EMTs had argued with Ben when he’d demanded to be released from the gurney to go chase after Jimenez, he’d prevailed, promising he’d go have an x-ray as soon as he could. He had something more important to do.
A shudder ripped through him, eliciting a hiss of pain, as he remembered how close that bullet had come to hitting Corinna. He was gratified he’d managed to get to Corinna in time to save her. It was his job to capture the creep after her, but he also wanted to give her peace. He didn’t want her living in fear as a target anymore. She deserved to live her life free from this threat.
And Ben would do anything to make that happen.
He just had to bring the guy down and put him behind bars.
When his quarry had pulled out of the garage in a red compact car and roared away, Ben and Anderson wasted precious seconds arguing, until Ben had pulled rank. They’d hustled as fast as Ben’s injury would allow to Anderson’s truck. Now they followed after Jimenez. And this time, Ben was determined the monster would not get away.
“Drop back a bit,” Ben instructed. “Don’t want him to notice us.”
Anderson eased up on the gas and changed lanes behind a minivan. They followed Jimenez down I-37, keeping a couple of car lengths between them. When Jimenez exited, they did the same, taking the off-ramp toward the Alamodome. The traffic became more congested the closer they drew to the sports arena. Ben thought for a moment they’d been made when Jimenez abruptly took a right turn.
Anderson shot past the street. “Did he make us?”
Ignoring the pulling pain in his side, Ben craned his head to watch Jimenez. “Don’t think so. He pulled into the hotel parking lot.”
Anderson drove them around the block and doubled back. Pulling his truck to the curb, they watched Jimenez scurry from his vehicle toward the hotel building, disappearing inside.
“You call for back up,” Ben said opening the door.
“I’ll see where he went.”
“Wait! You—”
Ben shut the door, cutting off Anderson’s protest.
The driver’s door jerked open and Anderson jumped out of the truck. “Dude, don’t go all Lone Ranger on me. I’m not losing another captain.”
Ben flinched at the reminder of the way Greg had died. Alone. Because he hadn’t kept them in the loop. Inclining his head, Ben said, “Make the call. Then we go in. Together.”
With a grunt that was somewhere between satisfaction and acceptance, Anderson made the call to Cade, then turned to Ben. “He’s on his way. He’ll let the others know.”
Biting the inside of his cheek against the pain of his burning side, Ben hustled alongside Anderson, down the street and entered the lobby of the cheap motel. Orange carpeting and fake wood paneling hurtled Ben back to the seventies. The stale odor of cigarettes assaulted Ben’s nose, burning the already tender flesh. Amazing how a busted nose made his sense of smell more sensitive.
A teenage kid with ear buds attached to an iPod sat behind the counter, reading. His greasy hair didn’t move as his head bobbed in time to whatever music he listened to. The kid’s gaze was glued to the book lying face up on the Formica countertop.
Refusing to let his pain hinder him, Ben stalked to the desk and waved a hand in front of the kid’s face. The kid jerked back, his hands taking the ear buds out, while his expression turned from surprised annoyance to fear when his gaze landed on the star pinned to Ben’s chest.
“Ranger Fritz,” Ben announced as he pulled a copy of the sketch from his breast pocket and held it up. “We need to know which room Eddie Jimenez has.”
The kid swallowed and his pronounced Adam’s apple bobbled. “I’m not supposed to give out that kind of information.”
Anderson sidled up. “Look, we can drag your sorry hide in for obstruction of justice or you can give us the room number and you get left alone.”
The kid’s gaze darted back and forth between them as he clearly weighed his options. With a shrug, he hopped off his stool and moved to the computer. With quick strokes he brought up the hotel registry and turned the monitor around so Ben could see the screen.
A smile of satisfaction tightened Ben’s mouth. “Got an extra key for Room 303?”
“I can make one,” the kid said, already reaching for a plastic keycard. With a few keystrokes and a swipe through the encoder system, the kid handed over the keyless entry into Jimenez’s room.
Ben tipped his hat. “Much obliged.”
With Anderson at his heels, Ben prowled toward Room 303. He stopped at the door and withdrew his sidearm.
Anderson mirrored him as he whispered, “Shouldn’t we wait?”
Giving a negative shake of his head, Ben readied himself.
Holding up three fingers to indicate they’d move on three, Ben counted down. On the final count, he swiped the card. Anderson turned the knob and pushed the door open. Ben entered the room, the pain streaking through his right side screaming as he aimed his weapon at the man scrambling from the bed.
“Don’t move,” Ben shouted. “Hands where I can see them.”
“Have you done something we need to arrest you for?” Anderson stalked forward and patted Jimenez down while Ben kept his weapon steadily trained on the perp’s forehead. “We’re taking you in for questioning in the attempted murder of a Texas Ranger.”
Ben realized what Anderson was doing. As long as they didn’t formally arrest Jimenez, they didn’t have to read him his Miranda rights and anything the guy spontaneously said would be admissible in court.
Anderson cuffed the guy. Holding on to Jimenez’s arm, Anderson’s gaze moved to something over Ben’s shoulder, his eyes widening. “Turn around,” he said to Ben.
Ben whipped around to find himself staring at a collage of photos, starring Corinna, thumb-tacked to the wall. The images were candid photos taken from a distance. Coming and going from Gisella’s house, from the studio and even some outside the shelter. Newspaper clippings of Greg’s death and the memorial announcement were taped beside the pictures.
Fury exploded in Ben’s gut, pushing all pain and legalities of his job aside. Had Greg died because this guy had a fixation on his daughter? But where did coma guy fit in? And why was the sicko out to kill the target of his obsession?
In a swift move, Ben holstered his weapon and pounced on Jimenez, roughly grabbing him by the throat, ripping him out of Anderson’s grasp and forcing him backward.
“Why?” Ben roared.
Jimenez shook, fear twisting his face. “What?”
“Why are you trying to kill Corinna Pike? Why did you kill her father?”
Sweat beaded on Jimenez’s brow. “What are you talking about?”
“You killed Greg Pike.”
Jimenez looked between the two men, his eyes wide with fear. “No. That wasn’t me. I—”
“You’re going down.”
Shaking his head, Jimenez said, “I didn’t kill her father.”
The sound of sirens bounced off the cheap hotel room walls.
Ben tightened his hold, squeezing Jimenez’s wind-pipe. “Why are you trying to kill Corinna?”
Jimenez glanced at the wall of photos. He swallowed, his Adam’s apple scraping across Ben’s palm.
“Tell me!” Ben snarled. “Or I end you here and now.”
“You can’t! You’re the law.”
Ben moved in close until his face was a hairsbreadth from Jimenez’s. “Today I’m not.”
“Ben,” Anderson interjected close to Ben’s ear.
“We’ve got company. Let him go. We’ll interrogate him at the station.”
“No. I want answers now!” Ben’s fingers flexed.
Jimenez’s face turned red as his air supply diminished. Something in Ben’s eyes must have convinced Eddie Jimenez his life span was rapidly narrowing. “She saw me,” Jimenez choked out. “Could ID me.”
“Let me read him his rights,” Anderson ground out.
Even though Ben wanted nothing more than to choke the life out of the creep in front of him, his rational side sprang to life and shoved through anger’s haze. He couldn’t jeopardize the case by not Mirandizing Jimenez. His admission was already at risk. Ben was stunned by the depth of fury pumping through his veins. Nor could he believe how close he’d come to crossing the line between good and evil.
All because he’d let himself fall in love with the person he was supposed to be protecting. Loving Corinna put Ben’s whole world at risk. If he kept on this course of action, Corinna would become his Achilles’ heel, his vulnerable spot.
Ben suddenly appreciated Greg’s determination to keep his daughter as isolated from his life as possible. Ben would have to follow suit.
Giving one final squeeze to Jimenez, Ben abruptly let go. Jimenez staggered. Anderson grabbed the guy by the arm and dragged him out of the hotel room.
Ben took one final glance at the wall of pictures. Rage shuddered through him. He was going to nail Jimenez to the wall. For himself, for Greg. For Corinna.
“Are you out of your mind?” Corinna shouted at Ben, preventing him from entering the interrogation room where Jimenez was being held. Fear for what he’d done and relief that he was all right mingled to create a confusing jumble inside of her, making her upset over the events of the evening even more intense.
She’d been with Daniel and Gisella when they received the call informing them that Ben and Anderson had tracked the suspect to a hotel, instead of going to the hospital. Daniel and Oliver had taken off, leaving Gisella and Corinna to wait at the hospital for a taxi. When news came that the shooter had been apprehended and taken to the SAPD, Corinna had convinced Gisella they needed to go to the station. Corinna had needed to assure herself that Ben was alive and safe.
From the moment she arrived at the station, she’d been hounding the Rangers to let her talk to him. Now that she had him in front of her, her outrage at his lack of common sense for running after the bad guy while injured cooled.
Ben was ashen, making the dark bruises around his nose more pronounced. Her heart ached for him but at the same time she was angry. Though she couldn’t see the bandages wrapped around his side, the singed hole on his shirt made her shudder. It could have killed him. She remembered her own searing pain when she’d been merely grazed by a bullet. She was just so thankful he’d had on his bullet-proof vest.
“Corinna, not now. I’ve got to question Jimenez.”
Though Ben’s voice was gentle, she could hear the tension in the undertones. Empathy for the pain he had to be feeling arced through her. “Let someone else question him. You need to see a doctor.”
“I’m fine. The EMTs patched me up.”
He didn’t look fine. She reached out to touch his arm. She’d lost her father. She couldn’t lose Ben, too. “Sit, before you collapse and hurt yourself more.”
His hazel eyes narrowed and his jaw worked. “I’m not going to collapse. I’ve got a job to do.”
“You already did your job.”
“I have to see it through to the end.”
The door to the interrogation room opened. Anderson stepped into the doorway. “You coming?”
“Yeah.” Ben covered her hand on his arm. “Go home with Gisella.”
She shook her head, unwilling to leave him even for a moment. She loved this man and would make sure he took care of himself. That was her job. “No. I’ll wait here.”
He swiped a hand over his face. “This might take a long time. I need you to go. Please. I can’t deal with you right now.”
Stung by his last sentence, she shook her head. “I don’t care how long it takes. I’ll stay.”
His expression hardened. “There’s no reason for you to. You’re safe now.”
Her fist clenched. Stubborn man. “I know I’m safe. It’s you I’m worried about. I want to make sure you’re all right.”
His eyebrows pulled together. “I’m not your concern.”
“But you and I—”
He cut her off. “There is no you and I. We’re done.”
Taken aback, she blinked. We’re done. Misery hit her between the eyes. He couldn’t be any clearer. She’d been a job. A promise kept. Nothing more. He had his bad guy and she was dismissed.
Hoping her expression didn’t give away the anguish burrowing deep into her heart, she turned and walked away.
Obviously, her concern wasn’t wanted or appreciated. She doubted her love would be, either. Good thing she hadn’t confessed her deeper feelings to Ben. The last thing she needed right now was rejection.
How could she have been so stupid not to see more clearly?
Being a Ranger came first. It always had with her father. It always would with Ben. But Ben…
Pain seared her soul.
She’d thought this was…different, special.
But it wasn’t. She wasn’t.
She was just another case. Just another victim. Time for him to move on to the next hapless soul who needed his help
.
Tears stung her eyes, but she refused to let them fall.
She’d just have to learn to live without Ben.
THIRTEEN
Ben watched Corinna march away. There’d been no mistaking the hurt in her pretty dark eyes. He couldn’t help that now. He hadn’t meant to be short with her or so blunt. Pain from his busted rib and the anger smoldering near the surface were hard enough to control. He just hadn’t the strength to confront her concern or expound upon the knowledge that loving her put them both at risk.
It tore him up inside that he couldn’t tell her he loved her, but she would be better off without that information because a relationship between them wasn’t possible.
Desolation spread through him. He didn’t belong with her. Never had and never would. He’d only taint her life with the evil he dealt with every day and put her, himself and his team at risk.
If Ben were to allow a relationship with Corinna to develop to something lasting, there wouldn’t be any way to keep her safe. And she deserved to be safe. She deserved so much more than him.
Feeling hollow inside, he forced her from his mind.
He entered the square utilitarian interrogation room.
Eddie Jimenez sat in a metal folding chair, his hands cuffed to the metal table. A pad of paper and a pen lay off to one side. Purple bruises marred the olive skin covering his throat. Ben had come as close as he’d ever had to wanting to take another life.
Disappointment for losing control ate him up, making him feel ten years old. He could only imagine how disappointed God must be with him right now.
Anderson leaned against the wall, his arms crossed over his massive chest. He made an intimidating presence. Ben gave the Ranger a nod before he pulled out the chair opposite Jimenez and sat down.
“So tell me, why did you kill Greg Pike?” Ben said.
Jimenez frowned. “I told you, man. I didn’t kill him. And I don’t know who did.”
“I don’t believe you,” Ben stated, keeping his voice even. He had to play this cool; he didn’t want to get Eddie too wound up, then he’d be asking for a lawyer that Ben wasn’t going to offer. “What happened? You became obsessed with his daughter and he found out?”