Chapter 16
CHAPTER 16
O n the ride back to the ranch, Boone tuned the radio to a local station, and Tildi danced and sang along with Gavin Adcock’s Run Your Mouth . It seemed fitting. Kenzie’s knee bopped up and down double time to the music.
“That Cindy Morehead has some nerve!” Kenzie burst out as the song ended. “She’s such a bitch!”
Boone scowled in the rearview mirror at his sister. “Language, Tiger. I think you more than made your point.”
Kenzie crossed her arms and stared out the window.
“I thought she was very brave,” Tildi said, doing her best to sound blasé.
Sev nodded. “I thought so, too. While we have a limited audience, I need to bring you up to speed as much as I can.”
Boone glanced in the rearview mirror again, this time at Tildi. She smiled at him and pushed down the anxiety those words caused.
Her Daddy was protective. If he thought what Sev said would upset her, he’d make his friend wait until the two of them could speak alone. She loved that side of him normally. But right now, she wanted to know what was going on.
Last night, she had grabbed hold of a forever future with Boone. No more secrets. No more holding back for fear of being rejected. He deserved better than that, and so did she.
She’d dreamed of their future together. Of being part of his family. Of the family they’d have one day. Growing old together.
He’d always be her Daddy. She’d always be his babygirl. But that didn’t mean she needed to be kept in the dark about the bad things and scary days. How could she be there for him if she didn’t know what was going on?
He must have read that on her face, too, because he turned back to the road. He nodded to Sev. “Go ahead. But nothing too deep.”
The men talked in murmurs, and the radio kept her from hearing much. Sev said something about narrowing the list of suspects down.
Wait. Sev was gathering a list of suspects? She didn’t understand why Sev was even involved.
Then it hit her. After Boone had bought her new phone, the only place they’d stopped, except random gas stations and the hotel, was Sevin’s house. They’d only stayed for a few minutes. Boone and Dutch had talked with Sev and a few of his men. How could anyone have gotten her number?
She watched the snow fall until her breath fogged up the window. Playing the scene from the market over in her head, she drew pictures on the fogged up window.
It had shocked her when Kenzie stood up to that horrible Cindy woman. It wasn’t as if Cindy had been talking about Kenzie. No, Kenzie had done that for her.
Her heart warmed at that thought. Kenzie must care about her to do something like that. As always, thinking about people looking out for her turned her mind to Breezy.
Tildi was such a coward. She wanted to talk to her sister so much, but if Breezy wouldn’t take her call, it would kill her. But wouldn’t Breezy be just as hurt by Tildi not calling?
Enough was enough. If Kenzie could be brave, so could she. When she got back to the ranch, she was calling her sister. A weight she’d carried for six years lifted from her chest. She wanted to share her decision.
“Daddy, when we get back?—”
Screeching tires and blinding headlights splintered her efforts as a huge black truck lost control and skidded sideways across the road.
“Fuck!” Boone roared as he tried to control the SUV.
Once he came to a stop, he tried to back up to turn around, but another truck sped up and angled across the road behind them.
Boone tried to change directions again, but the ice and snow made it impossible. He lost control and the Lexus slid off the narrow road into a ditch that had been covered in banked snow.
The seatbelt cut into Tildi’s chest, and her head butted the window. Kenzie screamed her brother’s name and grabbed Tildi’s hand.
Already unfastening his seatbelt, Boone growled, “Tildi, Kenzie, everyone all right?”
Tildi’s head throbbed, but it wasn’t bleeding. Blinking her eyes, she tried to clear her blurry vision. “Y-yes, Daddy.”
“I’m okay, too,” Kenzie said, but she held her wrist in her other hand. “Who drives around in blacked out windows that dark?”
Sev was already on his phone. The hum of his voice was terse and clipped. Tension spiraled from Tildi’s heart down to her belly. The warning bells going off inside her had nothing to do with her aching head.
Boone had his phone out, too. “Grif, some of Nico Midnight’s men ran us off Wild River Road just past the Hughes place and now they have us boxed in. I need you here ASAP. Do you copy?” Pause. “Good, now get your ass here.”
Boone disconnected the call before leaning over and pulling a bag from under his seat. After retrieving his pistol, he turned to Sev. “Did you get your people?”
Sev nodded, focusing while checking the ammo in his own gun.
The door on the far side of each truck opened and two men jumped out of each, making four in all. They ducked behind the front of the trucks.
Boone’s face darkened. “That who you expected?”
Sev didn’t take his eyes off the truck. “Unfortunately. My source said they planned to hit the ranch tomorrow once my father was in town. So, either the plans changed, or my source has been compromised.” He cut his eyes toward Boone, then returned it to the truck. “I never would have allowed the women off the ranch if I’d known.”
Boone lifted his chin. “Your men on their way?”
“Yes. They aren’t far, so it shouldn’t take long.”
“Does the traitor know about the other men you brought?”
“He shouldn’t. Do you plan on waiting for your men?”
“The windows are reinforced, but they aren’t military grade.”
“So, I take it that’s a no.”
“You got that right.” Boone turned to Tildi. “You and Kenzie get down on the floorboard and stay there until I come and get you. I need the two of you safe. So stay in the car and stay down.”
Tildi’s heart was thundering in her chest so hard she could barely breathe as terror replaced the blood running through her veins. Tears stung her eyes. “B-but, Daddy. If help is coming and those men aren’t attacking, don’t you think we should all stay in here? I need you safe, too.”
“I’ll be okay, bluebell. Now do what I said.” Turning to Sev, he snarled, “I said I wouldn’t kill your father. I never said I wouldn’t kill your men. And if my Little girl is hurt, I just may kill you, too. You really think those men won’t shoot you?”
“I’m Nico Midnight’s heir. If they shoot me, they sign their own death warrant, even if they do it on my sick fuck of a father’s orders.”
“Well, we need to stall for time. You up for having a chat with your boy out there?”
“And leave the girls in the car by themselves?” Sev glanced over his shoulder. “Especially these Little girls?”
“Most of the windows are iced over, all but the front windshield. So no one’s going to be able to see them if they’re on the floorboard. Not to mention they’d have to get through us to get to the vehicle.”
Sev held up his hands in concession. “You know them better than me. My only experience was the grocery store, so you can see where I’d be concerned.”
“I don’t like it either, but you got a better idea? Cause the only other option I see is to sit here until they start shooting at us.”
“Daddy, no!” Tildi put a restraining hand on his shoulder.
“Listen to me, babygirl. The best thing you can do right now is mind me. Get down on the floorboard. Everything is going to be fine.”
With that, he opened his door and stepped out. Without turning back to the car, he repeated his instructions with a rumble. “Stay. Down.”
Tildi nodded out of sheer reflex. She’d never heard Boone’s voice sound so lethal. “Daddy?—”
“Down, babygirl. And stay quiet.”
Whatever she had been about to say remained unspoken because Boone turned to the men standing behind the truck. The ones who’d had guns pointed toward them.
He tipped his hat back and shoved his hands in his pockets. As if anyone could mistake her Daddy for some local yokel. “You boys might not realize it, but your truck is blocking the road.”
A short, soft whir whispered through the backseat of the SUV, pulling Tildi’s gaze to Kenzie’s window. Her friend had tapped the button to lower the window enough for them both to be able to hear. She squeezed Kenzie’s hand as a thank you.
“Shut up,” a voice yelled. From the sound of it, it was one of the men hiding behind the truck. “This doesn’t have to go down hard. All we want is the girl.”
Ice that had nothing to do with the weather frosted Tildi’s entire body at the man’s words.
“They aren’t with us,” Boone answered, his voice deadly calm. “And even if she was, you aren’t getting anywhere near her.”
The other man spoke, and his was a voice Tildi recognized. Her eyes darted to Kenzie. She knew immediately her friend recognized the voice, too. “I was there, dumbass. I saw you leave, and I know you took both the girls. We only want Nico’s girl. You’re not going to be able to keep her from us. So, you can either hand her over, or we can step over your corpses and we’ll get her ourselves.”
“You’re going to die, Vinnie. The only question is how long and painful that death is going to be.” Sevin spoke as if he was talking about sending the man on a vacation, not killing him. “Boone here wants to just shoot you between the eyes. But me? I take betrayal more personally than that. You will beg for that bullet before I’m done with you.”
“Oh yeah? That’s rich coming from you. You helped the man trying to take out your own father. I’d say if we’re measuring betrayal, yours weighs a hell of a lot more than mine.”
Kenzie’s hand tightened around Tildi’s as Tildi tried to think of something she could do. She should never have come here. She’d been right about bringing trouble to the ranch. Sure, Nico thought he had a score to settle with her Daddy, but Tildi was the means.
If they all lived through this—no, when they all lived through this—she would figure out what to do. Right now, she should call and see if Boone’s brothers were on their way.
She pulled out her phone, but realized she didn’t have anyone’s number. She could dial 911. They would send the police, but would they send them in time?
A tear dropped on her screen. When had she started crying?
Sev was yelling now. “What happens in my family is none of your fucking concern.”
This was not going well. Bullets were going to start flying any minute, just like on the yacht. Was that only a few days before? It seemed like a lifetime ago.
“Shit, Sev,” Vinnie sneered. “You were helping an outsider against the head of the family. You weren’t just disloyal to your father. You betrayed us all. You swore a blood oath to the Cosa Nostra. You deserve to burn. The only reason I don’t shoot you where you stand is that Nico claimed the right to kill you himself. But he wants the girl you stole from him, too.”
Someone fired a shot into the windshield of the Lexus. The bulletproof glass spiderwebbed but didn’t shatter. But how long would that last?
Shots started flying all around them. The noise was deafening. Tildi released Kenzie’s hand to cover her ears, but not before a thud and a cry of pain from right outside the SUV filtered through the noise.
What had just happened? Had Boone been shot? No. No, she wasn’t going to think like that. That wasn’t a possibility.
She could not lose him. Had she already lost him? Tears stung the backs of her eyes, but she ignored it. The thunder of her heart challenged the sound of guns firing in her ears. Had he been injured? Or worse?
She had to know what had happened. Pushing up from the floorboard just enough to look over the backs of the seats, she tried to see something, anything through the frozen windows.
Then the gunshots slowed. Was that a good sign? She had no idea, but she was grateful for the reprieve. She shook her head, trying to relieve the horrible ringing in her ears. When that didn’t help, she ignored it as best she could and scanned the area.
Boot prints and bullet holes marred the once pristine snow. A man lay crumpled on the ground by the truck behind them. Was that the man she’d heard cry out in pain?
Her heart seized until she focused on the man lying so still in the snow. He had red hair, so it couldn’t be her Daddy or Sev. Even though she searched the entire area twice, Boone and Sev were nowhere to be seen.
Maybe they had taken cover next to the SUV. But if that was the case, why hadn’t they gotten back in? She’d promised to stay on the floorboard, but he’d just have to spank her later. There was no way she couldn’t watch. That was her Daddy out there.
Hoping her Daddy would forgive her, she pushed higher off the floorboard, standing as tall as the cabin would allow. Nothing bad would happen if she just took a quick peek.
As soon as she stood high enough to be visible, men from both sides opened fire on the SUV. Bullets glanced off the side and splintered more of the window.
She dropped back to the floorboard, covering her head with her arms after she saw Kenzie doing the same.
What was happening to her Daddy? He and Sev were out there somewhere, pinned down by gunfire. They were going to die, and it would all be her fault.
She couldn’t let that happen. She wouldn’t let it happen. If giving herself back to Nico Midnight would save Boone’s life, she’d do it. He’d saved her once. He could do it again.
She reached for the door handle, but Kenzie grabbed her arm. “What are you doing?” she hissed. “You can’t go out there! They’ll kill you.”
“No they won’t. Nico wants me alive. No one out there would dare shoot me. I’m the only one who can stop this before Boone or Sev get killed. Tell Daddy I have my phone.”
She wasn’t a total idiot. And she wasn’t ready to become another number in some statistic about trafficked women. But just in case, there was something she needed to say.
She hugged her new friend as tight as their cumbersome coats would allow. “Thank you for welcoming me into your family and treating me like a sister. And if something bad happens, tell Boone I love him.”
“You’ll have to tell him that yourself.” Kenzie tried to grab hold of Tildi’s arm, but Tildi’s thick winter coat was too slippery. She jerked away from Kenzie. “Tildi, wait!”
Tildi had never wanted to do as she was told more than that moment. Nausea threatened to overcome her. She despised the thought of seeing Nico Midnight face to face. It terrified her.
But there was no time for waiting. Before she could change her mind, Tildi opened the door and stepped out onto the snow packed ground. She raised her hands in surrender, stepping away from the protection of the vehicle.
“Stop shooting!” she screamed. “I’m here! I’ll go with you. Just stop shooting!”
“Tildi!” Boone roared her name, but she couldn’t turn to face him. If she did, she’d try to run to him. That would just get them both killed.
Boone wasn’t done. “Matilda Jayne Lewis. You get your ass back in the vehicle right now!”
A sob almost broke free at the rage and fear she heard in his words. She’d never even told him her real name. He wouldn’t know how to get in touch with her sister if something happened. Suddenly, nothing was more important than her Daddy knowing her name.
“Daddy,” she yelled back. “My name is?—”
A huge hand covering her mouth cut her off. She struggled to get away until the ice cold muzzle of a gun pressed into her neck. Maybe she’d been wrong. Maybe these men weren’t afraid of killing her at all.
She struggled, but he wrapped his other arm around her waist and pulled her against his chest. Without a word, he backed toward the black truck blocking the road back toward Wilder.
Was this it? Was this how her life ended? Her legs refused to hold her up at that thought and she lost her footing. Terror blocked her speech as the man kept backing up, dragging her with him.
Her Daddy’s voice echoed across the frozen ground. “If you hurt her, I will kill you in ways you cannot imagine.”
They may not have intimidated her captor, but they gave her the courage she needed to struggle to her feet. Tildi had no intention of dying. She would go with these men to give her Daddy time to gather his brothers and Sev’s men.
She didn’t know how her Daddy would save her. She just knew he would.