Chapter 16
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
J enna shook her head. She was bent over, her ears were ringing and her vision was blurry.
She couldn’t see Olson.
Two dark shapes dropped from the roof of the nearby building.
What the hell? Did Olson have accomplices? Were they here to help him escape?
She straightened, using the wall to hold herself up. She lifted her arm and tried to aim her gun. “Freeze. US Marshals.”
“Don’t worry, we’re on your side,” a deep voice said.
Jenna sucked in a breath and blinked at the men. “Vander?”
“Olson’s running,” the other male said.
“Go after him,” Vander said. “I’ve got Park and Jenna.”
The other man took off running down the alley.
Park .
Her vision hadn’t cleared entirely, but she saw him lying on the ground and stumbled toward him. He had a hand pressed to his side. Blood oozed between his fingers.
“Park!” She dropped to her knees.
“Jenna, are you okay?” he asked. “A flash bang leaves you disoriented. Just breathe.”
“I’m fine. Olson stabbed you.” She slid her gun away and touched his side. There was so much blood.
“Your warning meant that he didn’t hit anything vital.”
“Let me see.” She lifted his hand and her breath hitched. Iciness pooled in her belly. It looked bad. She pushed her palm down hard on the injury and he grunted. “We need to stop the bleeding.”
It was clear that Olson had been aiming to kill. Just a few millimeters in the other direction and…
Her throat tightened, a storm of emotions raging inside her.
She couldn’t lose Park.
Vander crouched on the other side of Park.
“Where did you come from?” Park said.
“I was in the neighborhood.”
“Always had uncanny timing.”
“You do too.” Vander held up Park’s HK. “Think this belongs to you.”
“Thanks.”
Vander slid a sleek backpack off his shoulders and pulled out a small first aid kit. A moment later, he pressed a bandage to Park’s wound. He met Jenna’s gaze. “Olson is our mess to help clean up. I called some friends, and we came as fast as we could. I found out that you’d tracked Olson here to Valdez.”
She was sure Vander had all kinds of contacts in law enforcement, and probably in shadier circles as well. He liked to keep his finger on the pulse of everything.
Footsteps echoed on the pavement and a tall, muscular man appeared. He wore a flannel shirt and had a strong jaw and a steady gaze.
“Olson got away.” A muscle ticked in his jaw. “He’s slippery.”
“Hi, Boone,” Park said through gritted teeth.
“Hey, Park. You doing okay?”
“He needs stitches,” Vander said. “Shep can do it. He’s surprisingly neat at it.”
“Except he has a rotten bedside manner,” Boone said with a smile.
“Shep’s here too?” Park said.
“Yes, and so is Ren,” Vander added. “Sawyer would’ve come as well, but he’s out of the country with Hollis. Boone, this is US Marshal Jenna Sheridan.”
The man in the flannel nodded at her. “Bad circumstances, but nice to meet you.”
“You too.”
“We’ve got a room at a nearby hotel.” Vander straightened. “Let’s get Park back there before he bleeds to death.”
Both men helped Park up, and kept him between them with his arms draped over their shoulders. Park’s shirt was soaked with blood and Jenna bit her lip.
“He needs a hospital.”
“No, I don’t,” Park bit out. He met her gaze. “No hospitals.”
Her heart squeezed.
“We can treat him, Jenna, I promise,” Vander said.
Together, their small group made it out onto the street. They walked toward a large black Suburban. Vander helped Park into the backseat while Boone circled around and got behind the wheel.
Jenna slid in beside Park. “Okay?”
“I will be.” He took her hand.
His face was paler than usual, but he had the same tough glint in his eye.
“Promise?”
His lips quirked. “I promise. Can’t get rid of me that easily.”
That was her problem. She didn’t want to get rid of him at all.
She was falling hard and fast for this former soldier.
Soon, Boone pulled up in front of a simple building painted a pale gray with a white trim. It was called the Glacier Hotel. Boone parked in front of one of the rooms. The front door opened, and a tall man walked out.
A second later, the back door of the Suburban opened.
“Park, you didn’t let that asshole get the better of you, did you?” the newcomer said.
Jenna blinked. The guy was handsome. He had tousled, black hair, a chiseled face, and warm, brown eyes.
“It was just a love tap, Ren,” Park said. “Good to see you.”
Ren and Boone helped Park toward the door of a nearby room. A big, scowling man stood in the doorway, his broad shoulders filling the space.
“Shep, Ren, this is Jenna,” Vander said. “She’s with the US Marshals.”
“Hi.” Her gaze narrowed on Shep. “Wait, aren’t you the guy who rescued the president’s daughter when she was taken hostage in the jungle?”
“Yeah.” Shep’s voice was a deep rumble.
“He also fell in love with her,” Ren added. “And they’re going to get married.”
Shep shot his friend a grumpy look.
Something told Jenna that grumpy was Shep’s default. But right now, she didn’t have time to chitchat. She was worried about Parker and the amount of blood he was losing. “Can you get Park into the bathroom. I’ll stitch him up.”
“You sure?” Vander asked.
“I’m sure.”
They walked through the room that had two queen beds, a desk, and a TV. The bathroom wasn’t fancy, with a shower above the tub and a slightly yellowing vanity and sink.
“Give us a shout if you need us,” Ren said.
She helped Park take his shirt off, then sit on the closed toilet seat. He did a bad job of hiding his wince.
She opened Vander’s first aid kit and briskly started cleaning the blood off his skin. The cut was nasty. He could’ve died. Her hand shook. “You’re going to have another scar.”
“Hey.” He cupped her face with one big hand. “I’m okay.”
“You could have bled out…”
“But I didn’t. I’m pretty tough.” He leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers.
She gripped his arm. “You’re not invincible, Parker.”
“Don’t need to be when I have you guarding my back.” He kissed her again.
With a small moan, she opened for him. She poured all her fear and worry into the kiss.
There was a faint sound and Vander walked in. “Oh. Sorry.” He backed out of the bathroom with a half smile on his face.
“I don’t like you getting hurt,” she said. “Don’t let it happen again.”
He smiled. “I’ll do my best.”
She gave him some painkillers, then washed all the blood off her hands. Next, she painstakingly stitched up the cut. He didn’t make a sound.
“So, your friends are here,” she said.
“They want to stop Olson.”
“And they want to help you.”
“Yeah. But I’m not sure I need their help, not when I have you.”
Her insides turned to warm mush. She finished the stitches and pressed a bandage over the wound. “Don’t forget it. And whatever happens next, you’re not to get hurt again. Understand?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
She pressed her forehead to his. “I need to call Owen, and then I need to get back out there and find Olson.”
Park grabbed her hand. “ We need to get back out there.”
She knew she had zero chance of getting him to stay here and rest. She nodded. “Yes, we’re a team.”
“You should be in bed. Or in a hospital.”
Park glanced over at Jenna’s surly tone.
“I’m okay.” They were outside, walking down one of Valdez’s streets again.
“I just stitched you up and mopped up the blood. So, I know that you’re not okay.”
There was a low chuckle behind them. Park knew it was Boone. Asshole. He was well aware that all his friends were watching them with amusement.
Park grabbed her hand. “Jenna, I’m fi?—”
She glared at him.
“I’ll heal. And I can finish this mission. I have you to protect me.”
“Okay, listen up,” Vander said.
They all turned.
“Kyle Olson is close. The only road out of the town is closed. We’re taking him down. We’ll split up in pairs. Boone and I will head that way.” Vander pointed. “Ren and Shep will go back toward the bars. Park and Jenna will move toward the waterfront and harbor.”
They all nodded.
“Olson is here,” Vander said. “We’re not letting him get away.”
“I’ve checked in with my partner Deputy Marshal Owen Briggs. He’s at the roadblock with the state troopers. He’ll let us know if they catch Olson trying to get out of Valdez.”
Park’s mouth flattened. The net was tightening. Olson couldn’t escape them now.
But he wouldn’t go down without a hell of a fight.
“Let’s find this fucker,” Shep growled.
With a nod, they all broke apart. Park ignored the pull in his side. The cut hurt, but the painkillers had taken the edge off. He’d refused to take anything too strong. He didn’t want to dull his senses.
He needed to focus on Olson.
And he didn’t want Jenna to worry.
“He could’ve found somewhere to hide,” Jenna said.
“No. He was at that bar to find a victim. He’s not going to hide. He’s under pressure, and he needs to kill to keep himself balanced.”
Her face turned pinched. “We need to stop him before that happens.”
They headed down the sidewalk and he took her hand.
“Try and look more like a woman on vacation and less like a badass marshal hunting down a fugitive.”
She huffed, trying to relax.
He shook his head. “Nope, you still look like a marshal.”
“Look, there’s another bar.” It was across from the harbor. “The Singing Mermaid.” There was a carved wooden mermaid sitting near the front door.
They slowed down as they approached. Some people were sitting at tables outside, taking in the view of the mountains across the bay.
“See anything?” she asked.
“No.”
“Sense anything with those spidey senses?”
He gave her ass a light swat. “Smart ass.”
“How’s the cut?”
“Stop thinking about it.”
“I can’t. He tried to kill you.”
“He tried to kill you, too.”
She squeezed his fingers. “Let’s get this done, and stay alive while we do it.”
They peered through the windows of the Singing Mermaid, but she didn’t see Olson inside. They continued down the street.
There were so many boats bobbing in the harbor, docked at several slips. A cool breeze blew in, playfully tugging at Jenna’s hair, and bringing the scent of fish. He saw a carved wooden sign that said The Fishing is Great in Valdez, Alaska . Several fish that looked like salmon hung off the sign, and people were taking photos.
“Leave my man alone, asshole!”
The female screech came from around the corner.
Jenna and Park shared a look, then picked up speed. They ran around the corner and saw another bar. This one wasn’t as nice as the others they’d seen.
Two men were scuffling outside. A woman in a short skirt was hovering nearby and yelling. The taller man shoved the shorter guy away.
That’s when Park got a clear view of the taller man’s face.
It was Olson.
Park and Jenna broke into a run.
Olson looked over his shoulder and saw them coming. He shoved the man into the woman, and the pair crashed to the ground in a tangle. Olson took off.
Jenna followed, moving fast. Park ignored the pain in his side, blocking it out, and followed her.
Olson dashed across the street and headed for the harbor. He sprinted down the boardwalk, past a group of men cleaning fish, and down one of the entrances onto the docks.
Park and Jenna ran out onto the main dock. Olson was nowhere in sight. Several docks ran off it like arms.
“He can’t have gone far,” Jenna said. “You take that one—” she pointed at the closest dock “—and I’ll go this way.”
Split up? Hell, no. “We should stay together.”
“We could lose him.” Her face was set in hard lines. “Go, Park. He could circle back up that other dock or steal a boat.”
Damn, he had to trust her. His jaw clenched, but he nodded.
He hadn’t known her long, but there was no one he trusted more than Jenna.
As she moved down the dock to the left, he moved to the one on the right. He pulled out his gun. There were boats lined up on either side. These were all working fishing boats, and the scent of rotting fish was ripe.
He glanced through the boats to his left, catching a glimpse of Jenna on the neighboring dock, her gun in hand.
He focused back on his dock and the boats around him.
Where are you, Olson?
He peered in the back of several boats. No one was around. He walked on and looked in the back of the next boat.
There was no sound, just a hard hit to the center of his back.
Park stumbled, and caught his balance before he fell in the water. His gun flew from his hand and landed in the water with a plop. Shit . He spun.
Just in time to block Olson’s kick.
The man didn’t talk or taunt this time. He attacked—hard and brutal.
They traded blows. They grabbed at each other, shoving hard. Park gritted his teeth and put all his strength into it. Olson took a step back, then he yanked an arm free, and rammed his fist into Park’s injured side.
With a grunt, he fought to hold on. His vision wavered. The pain was horrible.
Olson smiled. “I’m going to have fun with her.”
He shoved Park hard. With a curse, Park hit the wooden dock, pain rolling through him. He fought back the urge to vomit.
He was back in that cell, hanging upside down, nothing but a mass of pain.
Not now . He pushed the old memories back. He couldn’t pass out. Jenna needed him.
A second later, Olson tossed some heavy fishing nets on top of him, pinning him down.
“Jenna!” Park roared a warning. “He’s here!”
Olson’s running footsteps thudded on the dock as he sprinted away.
Park fought the nets and the pain, trying to get free. Finally, he shoved the heavy nets off his legs and pushed to his feet. Holding his side, he hobbled down the dock.
“Park!”
He looked up and saw Vander and the others running toward him.
“Olson’s here.” Where was Jenna? He scanned the docks and didn’t see her. “Jenna!”
Then he saw something at the end of the dock she’d been searching. He picked up speed and moved into a jog.
He stopped at the end of the dock. No .
It was her gun.
Vander and the others arrived. Park snatched up her Glock, his chest feeling like it was filled with concrete.
He scanned around the harbor. “Olson has Jenna.”
There was a roar of an engine. Park spun and saw a boat speeding away from the dock.
“Hey!” a man yelled from nearby. “Someone stole my boat.”
Olson had Jenna and he was making a run for it.
“We have to stop him,” Park growled. “Now!”
Hold on, Jenna. I’m coming for you .