Out of the Storm

by B. J Daniels

  “That’s right, Kate,” Collin said, grinning. “Think about what you just saw, if you decide to speak up again,” he said as he read the note and, tearing it into tiny pieces, put down his window and tossed it out into the freezing night air. “You really don’t know who you can trust.”

  Kate felt hot tears burn her eyes. She looked away, unable to stand Collin’s cocky grin as he started the SUV and pulled back onto the highway.

  In the headlights, this part of Canada seemed very similar to what she’d seen of Montana. Except Saskatchewan was flat and barren-looking and much colder. The road signs were different, and so were the license plates on the vehicles that passed, but otherwise the same, she thought. She wondered about the prisons and court systems.

  They had been driving for hours. She had no idea where he was taking her. Or, worse, what he was involving her in. She hated what might be ahead. She just wanted it over.

  “How much farther?” she asked, her body feeling weary of sitting for so long. “I have to go to the bathroom.” She saw what looked like a filling station ahead. Collin glanced over at her as if she were trying to trick him. “It’s been hours.”

  He slowly nodded as if acknowledging it was true and slowed. “You can get out after I fill up with gas, then we can both go inside.”

  She rolled her eyes, climbing out when he did, but merely standing next to the SUV stretching her legs as he filled the tank. She ignored the warning look he gave her. What did he think she was going to do? Run into the small convenience store and tell the clerk to call the cops? She hadn’t forgotten about the patrolman who’d passed Collin the note. Nor about the man with the gun who was with Danielle.

  Once he finished filling up the SUV, they both went inside. She headed straight for the ladies’ restroom and wasn’t surprised when she came out to find him standing outside the door waiting for her.

  “You want something to eat or drink?” he asked.

  She hadn’t realized until he said it that she was starving. He got them both a hot dog and a cola to go. At the register, he fumbled for his wallet before asking quietly if she had any money. She’d hesitated only a moment before she pulled a hundred out of her purse for the gas and the food and drink. The clerk gave her Canadian money for change. She didn’t bother concerning herself with the exchange rate under the circumstances.

  Once in the SUV again, Collin handed her one of the hot dogs and a cola, and without looking at her said, “I’m afraid I’m going to need you to pay for everything from here on out.” She could hear the embarrassment, the anger, the disappointment and resentment in his voice.

  Kate had wanted to howl with laughter. She’d basically been kidnapped, forced into crossing an international border and would soon be forced into a criminal act—and her abductor wanted her to foot the bill for all of it?

  She kept her expression from showing the roiling emotions bubbling up in her. She couldn’t look at him, could hardly form the words. “I figured as much.”

  Collin sat for a few moments longer before he started the engine and pulled away from the pump. She could feel waves of resentment coming off him. Add that to his anxiety and fear and whatever else made Collin Matthews tick, and he was a man close to the edge. She tried not to breathe too loudly, afraid of how little it might take to set him off.

  It wasn’t until he’d eaten part of his hot dog and tossed the rest out the window before he spoke. “I know you despise me right now.” She said nothing, not wanting to lie, half-afraid it would make matters worse if she did. “I wish things were different. Staying in Buckhorn as long as we did depleted my resources. I thought I’d have enough money for the trip. I was wrong. I’m sorry.”

  Kate looked over at him then. She’d gulped down her hot dog and now reached for her cola. She was afraid of what might come out of her mouth. “I’m low on cash. You’ll have to use my credit card.” The card would leave a trail. It wasn’t much in the way of a plan, but it was all she could think of.

  Then she remembered that he’d been in her purse to get her passport. Had he seen how much cash she had? Also, he hadn’t returned her passport. Even if she could get away from him, she wouldn’t be able to cross the border without it. She was sure that’s the way he’d planned it.

  Collin said nothing as he finished his cola, put down his window and tossed the cup out as he drove. He didn’t look at her. But when she glanced at him, she saw the set of his jaw and felt a shudder.

  * * *

  THE SIGNALS ON Matthews’s SUV had stopped in Moose Jaw. As Jon drove toward the city, he waited for them to move again. They didn’t. He stopped at a convenience store for gas and something to eat, drove another hour and then pulled off the road outside of the small Canadian town. Matthews’s vehicle still hadn’t moved. He slept for a couple of hours, waking at one in the morning.

  Jon checked his watch. He had two clear signals where they’d been earlier, still unmoved. From under the seat of his pickup, he untaped two of the weapons Earl Ray had given him, checked to make sure they were loaded and ready.

  He wasn’t planning on using them. He didn’t want to kill anyone. But if he was forced into a corner, he would kill anyone he had to if it meant saving Kate’s life. If it came to that, then his cover would be blown. Even in Canada, he wouldn’t survive a night in jail.

  Once he knew that Kate’s daughters were safe, he planned to make his move. Not that it wouldn’t be dangerous. Anything he did could jeopardize Kate’s life. But he couldn’t leave her with Collin any longer than he had to, fearing what could happen to her if he did.

  As he drove into Moose Jaw, he thought of Kate. Earl Ray was right about one thing. It was crazy the way he’d gotten involved in this. Just because she’d walked into his woodshop that day and thought he was her dead husband, Daniel Jackson.

  Just his luck, he thought. Otherwise he would be in his woodshop right now, working. He often worked late. Instead, he was in Canada, not sure what he was about to get involved in because of a green-eyed brunette with a heartbreaking story about a dead husband.

  He was close now, almost on top of the signals. He looked around, surprised to find himself in a residential neighborhood. He’d thought he’d find them in a highway motel.

  Kate had said Matthews was meeting associates who were up here on a ski trip. Often there was a little truth in every lie, he’d learned. So did Collin’s buddies live here? Or was Matthews meeting someone here?

  The signal took him to a house on the edge of a creek. Each lot was large, except for the last one where the signal was coming from. The house was older, as if it had been the original farmhouse on the property and the subdivision had been built up to the west of it. The house also didn’t look as well kept-up as the others. A rental? That made sense. Make whatever deal was going down in a nice neighborhood. Both Matthews and Kate were clean-cut enough that the neighbors wouldn’t pay them any mind.

  He drove around the block, which turned out to be quite large, the creek cutting through the backs of the yards to form a park of sorts.

  He checked his watch. 1:37 a.m. The neighborhood was dead quiet. No lights on in any of the houses. A working neighborhood where probably both husbands and wives had jobs to get up for in the morning.

  He found a place to park without attracting undo attention. Now the question was how to approach this. He had no idea how many people were in the house or what kind of weapons they would have. He had to assume they would be armed or have a weapon close by, even in the middle of the night.

  Matthews had flown to Montana, which meant he could have brought a handgun in his checked baggage on the plane. Or he could have purchased one easily enough once he landed. Jon had to assume that Collin had a weapon or that there had been one waiting for him in the house. If this were a drug deal, then everyone in that house would be carrying—except for Kate.

  Because the house wasn’t as large as
the others in the neighborhood, there wouldn’t be many bedrooms. Maybe the deal hadn’t gone down yet. His hope was that the associates had rented the house but hadn’t arrived yet. Which meant it would only be Kate and Matthews inside.

  He knew he could sit here all night speculating on what he was going to find once he reached the house. But there was only one way to find out for sure as he double-checked the weapons. He figured neither was registered, so if he were caught, nothing would trace back to Earl Ray.

  With one gun in the top of his boot, another tucked in his back waistband and covered with his coat, he locked the pickup and headed toward the creek. At one time, he’d been a crack shot. He hoped it was like riding a bike.

  The night air made his breath come out in frosty puffs as he walked. The snow was deep. He pushed through it, noticing that his limp was getting worse. He was a woodworker now, no longer a cop, no longer chasing down bad guys.

  But he knew he could do this because when he was a cop, he was good at it. Only this time the stakes were higher than they’d ever been. He didn’t have a badge, was across an international border and was about to blow his cover if he got caught. None of that mattered as long as he got Kate out of this.

  He reached the edge of the park and dipped into the trees. By staying near the creek, he would have cover. But at some point he would have to cross the creek. It looked frozen over, blanketed in snow, but that didn’t mean the ice was thick enough to hold his weight. Nor did he have any idea how deep the water might be at the middle.

  But this side of it provided the best shelter. He moved soundlessly through the soft, fresh snow, not worried about leaving tracks. He could see the back of the house ahead through the trees. He would have to cross the creek at some point and then he would be exposed for twenty yards before he reached the rear of the building. Fortunately the neighbors next to the house had a high fence. He just hoped they didn’t have a barking dog.

  At the creek’s edge, he tested the ice. It was always thinner along the bank. The ice broke under his weight with a loud crack. He felt his boot break through. He took another step—farther out this time, then another. He would hear the ice groaning under his weight. He was almost to the middle when a light came on at the back of the house, and Jon froze.

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  MATTHEWS RUBBED A hand over his face as he turned on the kitchen light. He couldn’t sleep. Aimlessly, he opened the refrigerator and peered around inside. Beer. Leftover pizza and a few condiments. He closed the door and tried the cupboards. Empty except for a large bag of Cheezies. What the hell?

  He unrolled the top. Someone had already gotten into them. Not that he minded. He took out a handful. Canada’s brand of Cheetos. He could live with that.

  His stomach roiled, but he ignored the nauseous feeling, knowing it had nothing to do with what he was putting into his system right now. Nerves. His skin hurt as if his whole body had broken out in a rash. Half the time, he felt as if he would jump out of it.

  Too much hinged on this deal going down without any problems. He had to relax. He had to believe that this would work. He’d been assured that the men at this end knew what they were doing and had done it numerous times before without a hitch. He was betting everything on it—including his life.

  He had to believe he was in good hands, given the highway patrolman—if that’s what the officer really had been—who’d given him the note. So, he shouldn’t worry. These people had everything under control.

  But even as he thought this, he knew the real hitch was asleep in a bedroom in this very house. Kate. He wanted to trust her, but he knew he couldn’t. Earlier, he’d been sure she was about to blow everything when she’d tried to get the officer’s attention. Even with leverage, she had too much fire in her.

  Which threw him for a loop as he thought of the quiet, easygoing woman he’d targeted. That Kate had been docile, easy to manipulate. It had taken more time than he’d expected to work his way into her life, but she’d finally agreed to marry him and take off her old wedding ring. He’d thought then that he had her. And he had, he was sure of it. If the SUV hadn’t broken down and they hadn’t ended up in Buckhorn... If she hadn’t seen that damned carpenter...

  But all that aside, he hadn’t known this Kate. The one with fire in her eyes, who glared daggers at him. The one who looked as if she could scratch his eyes out. The one who everything about this deal depended on.

  Rubbing his neck, he realized that if he’d just taken a different road across Montana everything would be different now. They probably would be planning their wedding—after this quick trip to Canada. She wouldn’t have known what was really going down. He would have made sure of that.

  Unfortunately, she was too smart, too independent, too much better than him, and she would have realized it even if she’d never laid eyes on that carpenter, if he was being honest with himself. Even if he hadn’t had her daughter taken hostage.

  Strange how in the middle of the night he often saw things more clearly. Jon Harper—whether or not he was her husband—had made her realize the kind of man she wanted. And that man wasn’t Collin. If it hadn’t been Jon, then it would have been someone else who opened her eyes.

  He felt a bitter twist of his gut at the thought that he hadn’t measured up to even some scarred, broke carpenter living in some two-bit town. He’d watched her fall in love with the man within a matter of days. He wasn’t even sure that she cared whether the man was her long-lost husband or not.

  Balling his hands into fists, he knew he would never forgive Kate for that. How had he thought that maybe everything wasn’t lost? Whatever had happened in Buckhorn, it had changed everything. When he looked at her, he saw a different woman. This woman was stronger, indomitable. Dangerous.

  It was as if Jon Harper had brought out the real Kate. He thought how ironic that was. Now, though, Collin didn’t know what to expect from her, and that made this whole thing even more precarious.

  He ate another handful of the Cheezies and closed the bag, stuffing it back into the cupboard. He knew he still wouldn’t be able to sleep. He wished he could go for a walk, but no way was he leaving Kate alone. For all he knew, she could be lying in the spare room awake, just waiting for him to do something like that. He hated to think what he might come back to.

  As it was, he planned to sleep with one eye open. Opening the refrigerator again, he pulled out a beer and, sitting down at the table, took out his phone. By this time tomorrow, they would be back in the States, his job over. He’d get his cut, and then...

  He took a swig of the beer, eyes narrowing. And then what? He thought of Kate in the next room sleeping when he couldn’t. At that moment, he hated her even more. How could he let her go when this was over? She’d go to the cops. He had no doubt about that. He’d hoped they would be married after this, so even if she figured out why they’d gone to Canada, she couldn’t testify against him.

  The thought now made him laugh. She would have seen through him at some point, anyway. Maybe it was better this way. Everything was out in the open. Soon it would be all over. He’d have the money he needed. He could say that he dropped Kate off in a city that had car rentals. The last he saw of her, she was headed back to Buckhorn and Jon Harper.

  Everyone would believe him. He’d told her daughter Mia about what was going on, so it wouldn’t come as that much of a surprise to her—or anyone in Buckhorn. No one would suspect him when Kate never turned up. In fact, once it came out about Jon Harper’s past, he’d be the likely suspect in her disappearance.

  And if her body was ever found? He’d make sure it never did happen. But if it did turn up, it would still appear that Jon Harper was the killer. By then, the mob would have taken care of him. The man would finally, truly, be dead. Case closed.

  Collin realized there was one fly in the ointment. The younger daughter. Once he’d taken care of Kate, he’d have to order his associat
e to take care of Danielle. He couldn’t afford to leave any loose ends.

  He started to relax a little as he finished his beer and got himself another one from the refrigerator. He’d thought of everything. Once he’d taken care of business, he’d place an anonymous call and get the word out in Oklahoma City as to where they could find Justin Brown. That’s if Nels hadn’t already.

  Collin smiled to himself, feeling a little better. Kate had complicated things, but in the end, it was all going to turn out fine. Better than fine. Tomorrow, they would pick up the wedding dress and then the rental SUV would be taken to the shop to make a few minor alterations on it.

  Once everything was loaded, he and Kate would cross the border back into the good ol’ USA. Somewhere before he reached Billings, he’d take care of Kate and her daughter. Once in Billings, he’d take the SUV to another shop who would take care of it. No one would be the wiser. He’d fly home, the majority of his cut stashed away in a foreign bank making him even more money. He’d leave out just enough to gamble with. He wouldn’t touch the rest, no matter what. Unless he was on a winning streak.

  * * *

  JON’S PHONE VIBRATED. He stepped back into the trees seeing that the call was from Bessie. About Earl Ray? At this hour? It wouldn’t be good news. He hesitated, knowing it would be risky to take the call. He looked toward the house and took a step when it started vibrating again.

  He picked up, keeping his voice down. “Is it Earl Ray?”

  “I know it’s in the middle of the night, but he insisted I call you. You know how he is.”

  He did and found himself smiling at the reassurance in Bessie’s voice that his friend was fine. “He’s okay?”

  “Won’t be able to eat a lot of what I bake, but the doctor said he should recover.” He could hear Earl Ray in the background telling her to quit gabbing and give Jon the message. When Bessie started to argue, Earl Ray demanded the phone. “You are supposed to be resting,” Bessie said but gave up the cell.