Chapter 14 #2
“Thanks.” The word came out smaller than she intended.
Piper squeezed her hand. “That’s what we’re here for.”
Ollie nodded and squeezed back. She wanted to believe them. Wanted to trust that they meant what they said. But trust was dangerous. Trust meant letting people close enough to hurt you when they left. And everyone left eventually.
Elena’s phone conversation with the sheriff ended. “He’s meeting us at the station. Says he’ll send deputies and call the state police.”
“Good.” Sully checked the mirrors again. “No sign of pursuit so far.”
No sign of pursuit—for now. But they’d find her again. They always did. The people who wanted her dead wouldn’t stop until they succeeded or until she testified. Six days until the trial. Six days to stay alive.
“Everything okay?” Piper asked.
“Just thinking.”
The lights of town appeared ahead. Another temporary sanctuary. Another place to hide. The jail—an actual jail—would be her home tonight.
Ollie closed her eyes and counted backward from one hundred. Ninety-nine. Ninety-eight. Ninety-seven.
Six more days. She just needed to survive six more days.
And then what would her life look like?
She didn’t know. She could figure that out on the seventh day.
The sheriff met them on the steps of the jail.
Sully climbed out and opened the back door for Ollie and Piper.
They headed straight inside, and the sheriff locked the door behind them, then led them into a small conference room at the back of the building.
“You wanna tell me what’s going on? I’ve sent reinforcements to the ranch, but Elena didn’t really have time to go into the details. ”
“We’re not really sure what’s going on,” Elena said. “All we know is that there is a coordinated attack on the ranch happening right now.”
“And someone attacked Elena,” Sully said.
“I never did figure out who that could be,” the sheriff said. “I sent a deputy up there and he didn’t find anything.”
“How hard did he look?” Elena’s sharp question raised the sheriff’s brow. And while Sully couldn’t blame her, the sheriff wasn’t the problem. The problem was the preppers—and whoever else was mixed up in this mess.
“The deputy found nothing because they didn’t want to be found.” Sully placed his palm on the conference table. “We need a secure location for Ollie, Elena, and my partner until we can figure this out.”
Sheriff Donovan nodded. “We’ve got a couple of cells in the back. Not exactly the Ritz, but nobody gets in or out without going through me or the officer on duty at the front.”
“That’ll work for now.”
Ollie sank into a chair, exhaustion evident in the slump of her shoulders. She’d been through too much already. Piper squeezed the teen’s shoulder before looking at her phone.
“Now that I’ve got a signal again, I need to check in with Hannah.”
“Use my office.” The sheriff pointed down the hall. “Second door on the left.”
Once Piper left, Sully pulled out his phone.
He dialed ASAC Winters, unsure whether he could trust Claire, and explained the situation in concise sentences, along with where to find the prisoner in the barn.
“We need a secure transport team for our witness and Agent Whitaker. And a tactical unit to Broken Chains Ranch. Ollie recognized one of the men in the woods. This has something to do with the Bellini case, and I want agents there to help defend the ranch and track down the men involved. The prepper group may just be on the Bellini payroll.”
“Well, if he’s there, so are we. ETA two hours for transport,” Winters said. “Tactical team will deploy immediately.”
“Thanks.” Sully ended the call and turned to find Elena watching him. Ollie’s absence and the closed bathroom door told him where she was.
Elena’s phone buzzed and she frowned.
“Who is it?” Sully asked.
“I don’t know. I don’t recognize the number, but . . .” She answered. And listened. Her eyes went wide and then connected with his. “Thank you, Frank. I appreciate you letting me know.” She hung up.
“Frank from the post office?” Sully asked.
“Yes. He said Iris was in there this morning. She closed the box and said she had to leave the area as soon as possible. Probably tomorrow. He said she looked scared, near tears. My sister doesn’t scare and I never saw her cry, so she must be in serious trouble.
Maybe my dad too.” She pressed a hand to her eyes.
“Why did I wait so long? I should have—” She dropped her hand.
“Well, it doesn’t matter. I can do something now.
” She swallowed and met his gaze. “Frank said she left a message for me.”
“What kind of message?”
“‘If you see my sister, Eleanor, tell her I’ll try to find her someday.’” She chewed her lip and took a deep breath. He had a feeling what was coming next. “I’m going to find her—them,” she said.
Yep. He was right. “Okay, we’ll look for her as soon—”
“No, I’m going now. It’s possible she’s still there, but I don’t know for how long. Look, Ollie is safe. Authorities are swarming the ranch. I’m going back long enough to grab my stuff and head to the compound.”
He rubbed his eyes. “You can’t do this alone.”
“I—”
“No, I’m serious. You can’t. Not yet. Definitely not without backup.”
She crossed her arms and lifted her chin.
“Iris is out there somewhere, probably at the compound. She’s leaving and I need to find her before she disappears on me.
Something’s happening with the preppers, something bad, and I need to know she—and my father—are safe from it.
” Her jaw worked a moment and Sully waited.
“I ran when I was young. I ran to the boarding school. I ran to the Army when I graduated and didn’t know what to do with myself.
I ran from the Army to school, then to Maya and the ranch because it was safe.
It’s time for me to stop running. This is my chance to help my sister and maybe my dad.
And I sure would like answers to questions that I’ve had for all these years.
And new questions, like who tried to grab me off the horse, who was the woman you chased at the ranch, and who ran us off the road?
” She paused. “And if I can’t get those answers, then I need to figure out a way to accept it and move on. ”
“We can send agents to—”
“They don’t know these people like I do.” Elena shook her head. “These preppers won’t talk to your people. But they might talk to me.”
Sully stepped closer. “And if they try to kill you instead?”
“Then I’ll handle it.”
The certainty in her voice shouldn’t have surprised him.
She’d survived that life once before. But the thought of her walking back into danger made his stomach twist.
“I’m not letting you go alone.”
“Your job is to protect Ollie.”