Chapter 20
S eth settled into a booth at the diner. One with an unobstructed view of the street and the bakery. He jerked his eyes to the door when the bell rang. As he recognized who’d come in, he blinked and then smiled. “Gregg?”
Gregg Koehler frowned and looked over. “Well, I’ll be. What the hell are you doing back here?” Gregg walked over, and Seth stood up, shaking his old friend’s hand.
“Came back to take care of my pops. Sit with me?”
“I can do that.” Gregg sat down, and Corrie came out. “Hi, Gregg, the usual?”
“Yes, please, ma’am,” Gregg said and took off his cowboy hat. “You done with the military? ”
“Yep. Retired. You?”
“I work for Mr. Marshall as a ranch hand.”
“Not with your dad anymore?” Seth asked as he took a sip of his coffee.
“My dad killed my mom and fucked us up, bad. He’s dead. The old ranch was plowed under. Good riddance.”
“Holy hell.” Seth set his coffee cup down. “I’m so damn sorry, dude. I knew things were bad out there …”
Gregg shrugged. “Bastard mentally and physically abused all of us. Christian the most. He escaped. Married. Has a son.”
“Really?” Seth cocked his head.
“Yeah.” Gregg looked him in the eye. “His husband is a good man. I don’t tolerate anyone saying anything about either of them.”
Seth smiled at his friend. “I wouldn’t. Not my place nor my business.”
“What are you doing here? Your pops okay?” he asked after Corrie put a platter-sized caramel roll and a coffee before him.
“Sarah is with him right now. I’m keeping an eye out for a certain truck.”
Gregg stopped with his coffee halfway to his lips. “Been briefed. Seen it? ”
“Edna did yesterday morning. Deputies are keeping it casual, but we haven’t seen it again. Everyone is watching.”
“I’m off today. Come in on my off days for this.” He nodded to his plate. “I could stay if you’re needing help.”
“I wouldn’t mind the company.” Seth leaned back in the booth. “You realize you’ll have to tell me the whole story, right? About your mom. I thought she left.”
“You always were a nosy son of a bitch,” Gregg said before shoving a forkful of caramel roll into his mouth.
“That’s what friends are good at.”
Gregg huffed and asked around his food. “You staying?”
“Yeah. Allison and I have the start of something special. Dad is going to need care for quite a while. Or at least I’m hoping he will. Alzheimer’s.”
Gregg nodded. “Knew that. You going to take that job at the ranch?”
Seth cocked his head. “How did you know about that?”
“Ranch manager said Mr. Marshall had words with you. Figured you must have a military skill he needs.” Gregg looked at him. “And I didn’t say that. ”
“Best kept non-secret in town.”
Gregg pointed his fork at Seth. “That,” he said.
“Start talking, Koehler,” Seth said as he poured another cup of coffee from the carafe that Corrie had brought out.
Gregg sighed and leaned back. “Well, Christian and I are the only ones left.”
“What? What happened to Clint?”
“Turns out he was a serial killer,” Gregg said, shrugging.
Seth blinked. “You’re shitting me.”
Gregg shook his head and looked around the diner. “What do you say we wait for this conversation until after I finish? We can stroll around town, look for that truck, and I can fill you in on all of it.”
“Deal.” Seth took a sip of his coffee. My God, Hollister wasn’t short on drama, was it?
The streets of Hollister were wrapped in dusk, the kind that stretched long across the prairies.
The purple light bleeding into deep shadow.
The bakery had closed hours ago, but Allison’s light still glowed above the back door.
Seth’s gut had been twisting all day. That weight he got before everything went sideways.
He, Gregg, and Gomer had walked the town all day.
That damn truck wasn’t in sight. Still, he couldn’t shake the feeling of dread.
“Did you hear that?” he asked Gregg. Gomer’s ears were pinned forward, and he growled low in his chest. “Come on.” He and Gregg started jogging toward the back of the bakery.
He turned the corner just in time to hear Allison scream, “Let me go!”
He sprinted forward, Gomer at his side, Gregg just behind him. The road behind the bakery stretched out dark and narrow. Halfway down, he saw Allison struggling as she was dragged toward a truck.
And the man dragging her?
It had to be that motherfucker. Eric Danvers.
Big, blocky build. Blond hair with rage pouring off him like smoke off a fire.
Then Seth saw Lottie crumpled on the ground near the rear door. Unmoving.
His vision tunneled. “Gregg, get the women!”
Eric dropped Allison at the sound of his voice. She stumbled back, breath ragged, and Gregg swept in, grabbing her and pulling her to safety.
Seth didn’t slow down.
He slammed into Eric with the full force of his weight, both of them crashing hard against the side of the truck.
Eric snarled, “She’s mine!”
Seth punched him. Once. Twice. Eric took the hits and answered with a fist to Seth’s ribs, then a wild swing that split Seth’s lip.
They grappled, each looking for an advantage.
Fists flew when separation happened. Seth’s boots slipped against the gravel, but he didn’t back up, and neither did that fucker Danvers.
Eric drove a shoulder into Seth’s gut, slamming him into the trash cans. The edge caught Seth’s back hard, and he grunted and twisted sharply, elbowing Eric in the temple. Eric staggered, eyes wild. “You think you can take her from me?” he panted. “You don’t know what she is.”
“I know what you are,” Seth growled. “A coward who hits women.”
Eric roared, pulling a folding knife from his back pocket and flicking it open. Seth barely dodged the first swipe.
“Gregg!” he barked, never taking his eyes off the blade.
“I’ve got them!” Gregg shouted from the back of the bakery. “Both are breathing!”
The knife flashed again. Eric slashed across Seth’s forearm, cutting deep. Pain flared, hot and bright, but Seth didn’t stop. He stepped in fast, inside the blade, grabbed Eric’s wrist, twisted until bones popped, and slammed his wrist against the blue truck. The knife clattered to the pavement.
Seth kneed the man and lost his balance as Eric swung at the same time.
Eric staggered, disoriented, reaching blindly for the truck door with his good hand.
Seth grabbed the back of his coat and spun the man down hard onto the gravel.
Eric’s head landed with a sickening thud, groaning, one arm twisted beneath him.
Sirens wailed in the distance. Then the headlights. Seth dropped his knees to Danvers’ back and twisted both arms behind the man. He pushed them toward the man’s neck, and Danvers roared, spittle flying as he screamed, “I’ll kill her! I’m going to kill her!”
Ken’s voice broke through Danvers’ screaming, shouting orders.
“Step out, Seth!”
Seth obeyed, chest heaving, blood dripping from his arm. Gomer stood beside him, growling low, unmoving.
Ken and two deputies rushed in, guns drawn. Ken knelt beside Eric, yanked his good arm back, and cuffed him hard.
“Eric Danvers, you’re under arrest for attempted murder, aggravated assault, and attempted kidnapping. You have the right to remain silent.”
Eric spat blood. “She’s mine. I own that bitch, I’m going to kill her. You can’t stop me.”
Ken slammed the door on that with a knee drop onto his back.
“You’ll do your talking in court.”
Doc Johnson rushed past them to check on Lottie, who was having problems breathing.
Gregg held her as Doc Johnson examined her. Seth turned to look for Allison, who was upright, tear-streaked, and shaking. She found his gaze and didn’t look away.
She got up and made her way to him, and they clung to each other until she pulled away. “I knew you’d come.”
“I can’t believe he got through to the bakery.”
“I came out, and he was pulling in from that direction.” Allison pointed out toward the darkness and the prairie behind.
“When we started arguing, Lottie came outside. He raced up the stairs and pulled her down by her hair. She froze. She couldn’t move.
I saw the terror in her eyes. He grabbed her by the neck and squeezed.
That’s why I hit him with the trashcan cover. It got him off her, but …”
“Onto you.”
“It was worth it.” She looked up at him. “I knew you’d come. I watched you fight him. I was afraid.”
“For me?” he asked.
She shook her head. “No. I was afraid you’d kill him, and then Ken would have to arrest you.”
Seth laughed and pulled her closer. “Gregg and I weren’t far. You alerted us.”
“Excuse me. I don’t think we’ve met. I’m Dr. Johnson, and you, my friend, need some stitches.”
Seth glanced at Allison. “Are you cut?”
“No, but you are,” Zeke said, pointing to both lacerations.
“Oh, Seth.” Allison bent over. “Oh, man.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Well, she hates the sight of her blood, but obviously, your bleeding affects her the same way.”
Allison staggered and went down. Seth caught her and assisted her to the ground.
“Is she okay?”
“Yeah. Stephanie, my wife, will stay with her until she comes to. I need you and Lottie to come over to the clinic. ”
Seth wasn’t about to leave her. Not a chance in hell. “I’ll carry Allison.”
“No, I’ll carry her,” Ken said. “You don’t need to bleed anymore. You’ve already contaminated my crime scene.”
“I am your fucking crime scene, asshole,” Seth ground out.
“Yeah, I know,” Ken said. Seth frowned at Ken as he bent down and picked Allison up. “Completely platonic, Seth. I have my woman. I don’t want yours.” Even so, the glare Seth flipped Ken was nothing less than territorial and lethal.
Doc Johnson dropped an arm on Ken’s shoulder. “Come over for statements when you get done with this asshole, my man. Gregg, you got Lottie?”
“I do,” Gregg said as he carefully cradled Lottie in his arms.