Chapter 16 #2
Dean grabbed Max. “I’m going too.” He led him out to Officer Turner’s cruiser and settled him into the back for safekeeping. “Guard him and make sure to call an ambulance for David and this guy.”
Clay jumped back into the pickup, and Dean slid into the passenger’s seat. “We didn’t see them as we came up the main road, so they must have taken another way to reach the highway.”
“Does she have GPS on her car or phone?” Clay asked him.
He shook his head. “No. I taught her how to stay off the grid.”
That comment worried Clay. He needed some reassurance. “Just to be clear, when we find them, what do you plan to do?”
Dean flashed him an irritated glare. “I also trained her on how to use a gun. I’ll take care of her. She’s my responsibility. You get Darby out.”
He gripped the steering wheel, still not one hundred percent sure Dean was on his side. He’d have to keep his eyes open.
Assuming they could catch up to them.
Tears stung Darby’s eyes as Suzanne sped down the deserted road, one hand on the wheel and the other on the gun in her lap.
She turned off onto the highway. She was driving recklessly but Darby didn’t dare comment on it.
Getting pulled over by the police wouldn’t be the worst thing, although she wasn’t certain Suzanne wouldn’t fire first and ask questions later.
Greed and revenge had fully taken hold of her.
The thought of leaving David behind had nearly broken Darby, but she wasn’t sure what else she could have done.
“What’s the plan?” Darby asked her.
“None of your business.”
“What are you going to do to David? Will that man hurt him?”
She gripped the gun and yelled at her. “I’ll hurt you if you don’t shut up and let me think.”
This wasn’t working out the way she’d thought, and now Suzanne was panicking. Darby saw it on her face. She didn’t have a plan for keeping her name out of it, so that meant running.
And Darby and David were disposable.
Oh, how she wished Clay was here. She should have called him when she’d first gotten the news about David being kidnapped, but how could she without alerting Max? He’d watched her the whole time.
But she couldn’t leave her fate—and David’s—in Suzanne’s hands. She had to find a way to get away from her before it was too late.
Suzanne’s phone buzzed on the dashboard. She reached for it.
Now. This was her chance.
Darby lunged, grabbed the steering wheel, and yanked it hard. The car veered with a screech as Suzanne screamed and tried to keep it on the road, but Darby refused to let go. The car swerved then went off the road and slammed into the ditch.
The airbags exploded, leaving Darby momentarily stunned.
She gasped to catch her breath then, once she was able, grabbed for the door handle and fell onto the gravel.
She had no idea where Suzanne was, if she was still in the car or not.
She hadn’t bothered to notice. Darby knew only that she needed to get away before Suzanne released her murderous rage.
She crawled to her feet, using the car to steady herself as she inched toward the back of the vehicle. If she could flag down a passing car, maybe she could escape this nightmare.
Suzanne emerged from the other side, blood trailing from her temple, gun shaking in her hand. She, too, walked unsteadily, leaning on the back of the car to stay upright. “You just can’t leave well enough alone,” she snarled.
Darby didn’t wait. She surged forward and tackled her. They crashed to the ground, limbs entangled, as Suzanne tried to hold onto the gun, and Darby tried to knock it from her hand. This was it. This was where she either took back her life or lost it for good.
Suzanne rolled on top of her, trying to press the gun to her head. Darby grabbed her arm, using everything she had to fight back.
Rage burned in her eyes. She grabbed Suzanne’s wrist and used every bit of strength she had left to shove it to the ground. Suzanne still refused to release her grip. The weapon fired, startling Darby who stumbled backward.
Suanne used the distraction to press the gun to Darby’s head. “Now you’re finally going to get what you deserve.”
Time slowed as seconds ticked by. Her life suddenly came into clear view. She’d spent so many years just surviving when she should have been living, enjoying her son, enjoying the blessings God had bestowed on her.
She’d treated her inheritance like a burden rather than the gift it was. Suzanne claimed she didn’t deserve it and, in some ways, she believed it.
God had blessed her so completely, but she’d been ungrateful. Even with Clay.
Clay.
A handsome federal agent had swooped in and saved her life when she hadn’t even known she was in danger. He’d told her he loved her, and she knew it was real.
Now, she would never get to enjoy her inheritance.
Never get to see David graduate or get married.
Never get to tell Clay she would follow him anywhere.
Tires squealed to a stop. Doors opened. Footsteps approached them as a voice thundered through the air. “Drop it, Suzanne!”
Clay.
He ran toward them, Dean close behind, both with weapons drawn.
Darby’s heart soared but Suzanne seemed unfazed by their presence. Her face was still full of rage, and that gun could go off at any moment. Darby wasn’t sure she knew others had arrived.
Chief Dean grabbed Suzanne by the arms and pulled her off, knocking the gun from her hand in one swift movement. She screamed and tried to fight him but he shook her until she calmed down.
“Don’t even try,” he snapped. “I know everything, Suzanne. The kidnapping. The money. Grand larceny. I can’t help you out of this one.”
Suzanne’s mouth opened—but no words came.
Darby stumbled back, chest heaving. Clay put away his weapon as he moved to her. He pulled her into his arms. “David?” she gasped. Once the shock of nearly dying passed, her first thoughts were of her son.
“He’s safe,” Clay whispered. “We’ve got him. He’s okay.”
Relief broke over her like a tidal wave. She clung to him, shaking. “Are you sure? Are you really sure?”
“Yes, I shot Max myself. David is fine.”
She crumped into his arms. “You saved me.”
“I promised I would.”
She tilted her head, eyes filling with tears. “I was so afraid. I wanted to call you, but they had David. They were watching me.”
He shushed her as he rubbed her hair. “It’s okay. I know. But you’re both safe now. I promise.”
As the pounding in her ears lessened, she heard Suzanne yelling again, proclaiming her innocence and trying to blame Darby for everything. “This is all her fault,” she insisted. “You have to believe me.” She touched his face and tried to appeal to him. “Please, you have to do something.”
She held her breath, waiting to see if Chief Dean would revert to his old ways and try to help her. Clay tensed too, his fingers lingering near his weapon.
Dean opened the back seat of Suzanne’s car and pulled out the suitcase, unzipping it to expose the cash.
“We’ll share it,” Suzanne insisted. “You and me, Jeff. Partners.”
He rubbed his head with his free hand but didn’t let her go. “It’s not your money, Suzanne.”
“But I deserve it more than she does. She gets everything. Please, you can fix this. I know you can.” She pressed herself against him. “You’re the law, Jeff. You have the power.”
He pushed her away. “No, Suzanne. We’re talking about kidnapping, grand larceny, and attempted murder.
I can’t help you get out of that. I won’t.
You’re under arrest.” He rattled off her Miranda warnings as he pulled her hands behind her back and cuffed her, her eyes widening in shock as they locked in place.
Then she turned her rage on him, yelling and fighting him as he walked her to the car.
Darby’s knees buckled with relief as she realized it was finally over. Clay’s arms tightened around her and he held her up. Darby smiled through her tears. “I’ll follow you anywhere, Clay. There’s nothing keeping me in Sheraton anymore. I never want to be without you again.”
“You won’t be.” He cupped her face, pulled her close and kissed her—slow, certain, and full of everything she’d ever dreamed.
Behind them, sirens wailed in the distance, approaching the scene.
But for once, the danger was behind them—and the future stretched ahead.
Together.