Chapter Sixteen
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At the sound of the gunshot, Cassidy’s heart kicked hard as she instinctively grabbed for her weapon. She turned toward the cemetery, eyes sweeping the headstones.
Kincade leaned forward in his seat, his jaw tight. “That came from the north side. Near the trees.”
Then she saw him. Not the shooter. But someone else.
“Travis,” she whispered, then louder. “Travis!”
He was running with his arms zip-tied behind his back, stumbling toward a row of headstones. A second later, he tripped and went down hard beside a granite marker, twisting to get back on his feet.
Another shot rang out, kicking up dirt inches from his shoulder. Cassidy didn’t hesitate. She shoved her door open.
Kincade cursed behind her. “Cassidy, left tree line.”
She knew Kincade meant it as a warning, telling her that it wasn’t safe to get out, but it sure as hell wasn’t safe for Travis either. He was exposed, defenseless, and seconds away from taking a bullet. So, Cassidy bolted from the SUV and hit the ground running.
The shooter fired again. Not at Travis this time though. The shot cracked past her head.
Kincade was on the move beside her, barking something she couldn’t hear over the blood pounding in her ears. They dove behind a stone bench as another round slammed into it, chips of stone flying.
She crouched low, her breath coming fast. Her grip on her weapon tightened as she glanced toward where she’d last seen her brother.
He was still down.
Cassidy ducked as another shot splintered the edge of the bench, showering her with bits of stone.
Her pulse hammered as she stole a glance toward Travis.
He’d managed to scramble behind a large marble headstone, his body curled protectively behind the slab.
For now, at least, he was out of the direct line of fire. But the shooter wasn’t giving up.
Bullets continued to slam around them, churning up dirt and grass, forcing Cassidy and Kincade tighter behind their meager cover.
In between the nearly deafening blasts, she heard Kincade’s phone buzz. Keeping low, he quickly glanced at the screen.
“It’s Jericho,” he muttered. “He has eyes on the shooter, but he can’t make an ID. The guy’s dressed all in black, ski mask and everything.”
Cassidy clenched her teeth. “Another hired thug, then. Just like Greer and Knox.”
“Looks like.” Kincade typed out a quick reply, paused, then whispered, “Jericho’s asking if we want him dead or alive.”
Cassidy met his eyes. Every instinct in her wanted the shooter neutralized, permanently. But they needed answers. “Alive, if he can manage it.”
Kincade nodded, thumbs rapidly tapping out another message. A second later, he exhaled sharply. “Jericho says he’ll deal with this—with his slingshot.”
She’d heard of Jericho’s famous slingshot skills. Rumor had it he’d once taken down a fleeing suspect from forty yards, a precise hit to the temple that left the guy out cold without firing a single shot. Right now, Cassidy desperately hoped Jericho lived up to his reputation.
“Tell him to do it,” Cassidy urged.
Kincade tapped his phone once more, then gave her a tight nod. “It’s done.”
Seconds later, a sharp cry of pain echoed across the cemetery, and the gunfire abruptly ceased. Cassidy immediately edged out, weapon aimed and ready. From the cluster of trees, a figure staggered into view, clawing at the ski mask. Cassidy’s breath froze in her chest.
It was Marlene.
Blood seeped down the side of her face, stark red against her pale skin. Cassidy watched in disbelief as Marlene quickly regained her footing, ducking behind another tree. Then another bullet whipped past, dangerously close, forcing Cassidy back down behind cover.
“Damn it,” she muttered, heart pounding furiously.
Kincade’s jaw clenched, his eyes narrowing to slits. “Jericho didn’t hit her hard enough.”
Cassidy stared at the spot where Marlene had vanished. She had known the deputy had secrets, but she’d never expected anything like this. Marlene had worked alongside her for years, but right now Cassidy knew she couldn’t hesitate.
Marlene was trying to kill them.
Kincade’s phone buzzed with another text from Jericho, and he turned the screen toward her so she could see it.
Shifting position. Will try again.
Cassidy leaned out slightly, trying to pinpoint Marlene’s location, but the woman had chosen her cover carefully. No clear shot. She ground her teeth, the frustration burning through her.
“Marlene?” Cassidy shouted, trying to keep her voice calm. “Stop shooting. You don’t have to do this.” Silence answered her. Cassidy waited a beat, her pulse pounding. “If this is about your mother, maybe we can help.”
Another silence. Then Marlene’s voice came back, sharp and ragged. “You can’t help me. You don’t know what you’ve gotten yourself into.”
“Then tell me,” Cassidy called back. “Put the gun down and talk to us. This isn’t going to end well.”
“I’m sorry,” Marlene said, voice trembling slightly. “It’s already too late for that.”
Cassidy tightened her grip on her weapon, every muscle tense. Marlene’s desperation was obvious, and desperation made people dangerous.
“Alisha ruined everything,” Marlene sobbed out. “She saw me with Daniel that night. She ran off, but I knew she wouldn’t keep her mouth shut.”
Cassidy’s pulse thundered in her ears, her chest aching. “You and Daniel were involved?” she managed to ask.
“Yes.” Marlene’s voice shook, edged with resentment. “Alisha saw us. Daniel panicked because he was married, had ambitions. He couldn’t let her ruin him.”
The raw grief surged through Cassidy. Her cousin had died simply because she’d witnessed an affair, because Daniel had ambitions and secrets he refused to lose.
Cassidy felt Kincade’s hand brush against her arm. And she saw the sympathy and grief in his own eyes. It helped. But there was no fix for this. They couldn’t undo what had been done to a girl who just happened to witness something she shouldn’t have.
“Did Daniel kill Alisha?” she asked, both dreading and welcoming the answer. She might finally know the truth of what had happened to her cousin. “Was it him?”
Before Marlene could respond, a dark figure burst from the trees, barreling into her from behind and dragging her roughly to the ground. Cassidy jerked in surprise, gun trained on the struggling pair. At first, she thought it was Jericho.
But no.
It was someone else. A second attacker, dressed all in black, his face hidden by a ski mask.
Marlene screamed in rage, twisting violently beneath him. The attacker pinned her down, one hand gripping her throat, the other wrenching away her gun.
“Get off me!” Marlene yelled, the panic and anger drenching her voice.
Cassidy hesitated, torn between intervening and holding her position. The situation had spiraled dangerously out of control.
Marlene thrashed on the ground, locked in a fierce struggle with the masked figure who had taken her down. She still had a grip on her gun and was flailing around, making it a danger to any one of them if Marlene pulled the trigger. Cassidy kept her weapon raised but couldn’t get a clean shot.
Some movement to her right drew her attention. Travis was on his feet, weaving through the headstones with his hands still bound behind his back. He was trying to get to them.
“Take care of your brother,” Kincade insisted.
That was the only thing he said before Kincade broke from cover, sprinting toward Marlene and the masked attacker.
Cassidy’s heart kicked hard against her ribs.
She pushed up from the ground and followed, keeping low, her weapon steady.
The wind caught her hair and the distant cry of a hawk cut through the silence that had fallen between gunshots.
She didn’t know who the second attacker was. But she knew this wasn’t over. Not yet.
Staying low and with her heart pounding, Cassidy hurried toward Travis.
She dropped beside him and pulled him behind one of the headstones just as another shout rang out from the scuffle nearby.
Marlene and the masked figure were still locked in a vicious fight, but Cassidy pushed the chaos aside to focus on her brother.
“You okay?” she asked, already reaching for the zip ties around his wrists.
Travis gave a tight nod. “I’ve been better.”
“Who is that?” she asked, nodding toward the masked attacker.
“No idea.” The words tumbled out with his gusting breath. “Marlene didn’t say anything about backup. She lured me here, said she had proof about Alisha’s murder. I figured it was a trap, but I came anyway.”
Since she and Kincade had done pretty much the same, she couldn’t fault her brother for coming. Still, she wished things hadn’t gone down like this.
Especially since Kincade was running right into danger.
Cassidy’s heart jumped into her throat as she saw the masked attacker break away from Marlene, and he turned his gun on Kincade.
“No,” she shouted.
The crack of the shot split the air, and Kincade dove, rolling behind a thick oak tree just in time. Bark exploded where he’d been standing a second before.
Cassidy didn’t hesitate. She turned to Travis. “I have to help him.”
But she also couldn’t leave her brother defenseless. Because after all, there could be more hired thugs out there.
Hurrying, she yanked out her pocketknife and sliced through the zip ties. His wrists were red and raw. She cursed softly and reached into her boot holster, drawing her backup pistol.
“Here,” she said, pressing it into his hands. “You’re going to need it.”
Without waiting for a reply, she bolted from behind the headstone, crouching low as she moved. The masked man was focused on Kincade now, firing shots at him nonstop. She sprinted across the uneven ground, her eyes locked on her target.
She had to get to Kincade. And fast.
Cassidy darted between the graves, her pulse pounding in her ears. She spotted Kincade shifting behind the tree, readying his weapon. Just a few more feet and she could reach him.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Travis moving too, staying low as he maneuvered through the stones with the backup gun clutched in both hands.
Beyond them, she also caught sight of Jericho as he slipped through the tree line. He raised his gun, lining up a shot at the masked man.
“You’re not supposed to kill them,” Marlene shouted.
Cassidy turned in time to see Marlene push up from the ground, her gun swinging toward the attacker. She fired, but the shot went wide.
The masked man whirled, his gun flared. The bullet caught Marlene in the shoulder, spinning her sideways with a cry of pain.
She hit the ground hard, then scrambled behind a headstone, dragging herself out of the line of fire. Her breathing was ragged, one hand clutched to her bleeding shoulder. But she was still alive.
Still dangerous.
Cassidy’s pulse hammered as she raised her weapon again, eyes locked on the trees. The fight wasn’t over. Not yet.
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