Chapter 12 Jesse
JESSE
Kyler, the one who’d helped me by tagging Rafferty’s car, whose father I killed, stood at the side of the bed. He held the gun to Rafferty’s head with a shaking hand and cold hatred in his eyes.
I held up my hands, praying he wouldn’t pull the trigger.
“Jesse?” he asked, his voice trembling with anger. “Where. Is. My. Father?”
With a pit in my stomach, it occurred to me he was asking because he knew his father had come after me. Which meant he’d already chosen a side.
And it wasn’t mine.
Loyalty had once again kicked my ass.
“He’s in the Colorado River,” I answered truthfully. “He ran us off the road and sent both cars out of control. I was the only one who made it out.”
“You fucking traitor,” he said, ice and broken glass in his voice. “If your father had not ordered me to bring you in alive, you and your cop boyfriend would be so fucking dead right now.”
“He’s not my boyfriend. We just got bored.”
Rafferty tensed, the gun still at his head. His expression flashed hurt, then neutralized.
Kyler pressed the muzzle harder into Rafferty’s skin. “Alright, cop. Get up. Slowly. If you try anything, I will kill you.”
Rafferty did as he was told and stood, his eyes never leaving mine. Kyler, brain trust that he was, hadn’t anticipated Rafferty’s height and had to step back to adjust for the difference.
Dread pooled in my belly. Not for Rafferty.
My cousin, whom I’d once loved more than life itself, was dead.
He just didn’t know it yet.
“Hands behind your back,” Kyler ordered, pulling out the same flexi-cuffs I’d used on so many of the guys I’d taken out.
Rafferty sent me a warning look, then slowly moved his hands into place, just as directed. Even though I knew what was coming, the movement was so impossibly fast that I barely registered a blur before the gun went off.
Kyler fell to the ground in a lump.
Rafferty, still naked, spun in place and knelt beside Kyler. Then lost his balance and fell on his ass.
“Fuck, he looks just like you.”
It was true. Save for our hair—his was darker and close-cropped—we’d been told we looked practically like twins our entire lives. Kyler was the last person I had left in the world.
And I wondered if anyone in my family had ever truly had my back.
The answer was staring up at me with dead eyes.
I crawled out of the bed and cataloged his body. The only disturbance I found was the small hole between his eyebrows. Rafferty had picked up his gun and gotten off a clean shot without looking.
“He’s gone,” I said, numb.
“I’m so sorry.”
I could hear the genuine regret in his voice, which was ridiculous. “He was going to kill you, Raff. And when he figured out I’d killed his dad, he would’ve killed me.”
Fuck. I need to get him out of here.
As the reality of the situation started to settle in, a phone started going off, fraying my last nerve.
“That’s mine,” Rafferty said, then pointed to the closet. “Get some clothes on.”
He disappeared into the hallway, still naked, and returned seconds later with the phone against his ear.
He mouthed my boss, then pressed his finger to his lips. I numbly pulled on a nice pair of slacks and a soft sweater from his grandfather’s collection as I listened to his side of the conversation.
“Hey, Ronnie.”
He gestured to the socks and shoes. I found a pair of black ankle boots that were only a little big and paired them with thick wool socks.
“Yeah, got snowed in here. Wi-Fi and cellular were out all night.”
Rafferty nodded along as she spoke, digging a fresh pair of underwear and joggers out of his duffel. “The dam? Wow, that’s less than three miles down the road from where I am.”
“No, I haven’t,” he said as he slid on the underwear. “They haven’t been able to dive for the bodies yet?”
He pulled up the joggers and sat to put on his socks and tennis shoes.
“Well shit. I’ll keep an eye out. Should I stop drinking and help with the search party?”
He snorted. “Yes, I’ll sober up in time for my shift.”
He paused, listening intently as he watched me.
“Yeah, sure. Keep me up to date.”
Rafferty held out his arm. I stepped into his embrace.
“Thanks, Ronnie. I’ll be here if you need anything.”
He ended the call and brought me into a full hug. “Are you okay?”
“Why didn’t you tell your boss about me?” I asked, burying my face in his chest.
“The Rangers obviously can’t keep you safe, so it’s better if they think you’re dead long enough to give you a head start.”
I shook my head. “But why would you help me? You’ve got your whole career ahead of you.”
“No, I’ve got my whole life ahead of me,” he said gently. “And I don’t want this career anymore.”
That didn’t make any sense.
“Rafferty, you can’t make that decision based on one vodka-fueled encounter with a criminal.”
He chuckled, that low tone vibrating my core. “I decided to quit on the drive out here. I’ve been drinking to give me the courage to acknowledge how I really feel. The vodka-fueled encounter with a criminal was just a bonus.”
I knew he was trying to be funny, but it wasn’t funny at all.
“If they find out I was here the whole time, you’ll go to jail.”
“First of all, how would they know?” he asked, pulling back to rub his thumbs over my cheekbones. “And second, what makes you think I’d ever allow myself to get caught?”
Something about the confidence in his words told me he was right.
“Why would you help me?”
He released me and took my hand, walking us toward the living room. “It’s like you said—this isn’t the life you would’ve chosen for yourself. Maybe now you can figure out a better life. Possibly in a non-extradition country.”
I stared back toward the hallway. “What are we going to do with the body?”
Rafferty pointed out the big picture window in the living room, which showed the snow already starting to melt. “It’s a deep lake, Jess, and it’s already dusk. I’ll take my grandfather’s outboard and drop him off in a random cove, far away from the dam.”
Rafferty walked to the front door and opened it. Water dripped from the roof as the chilled wind licked through the living room. The driveway, where his truck sat next to my cousin’s Jeep, had only a few traces of snow. Shivering, he shut the door and looked down at me.
“If your cousin could make it in, you can make it out.”
Before I could protest, he shook his head. “The snow last night covered up your tracks, and it’ll be days before they realize you’re not in the lake. The rain over the next few days should keep the dogs off your scent.”
“But—”
“He has a passport, right?” Rafferty asked, talking over me. “You both had to get one to go to Mexico, right?”
“Yes, but—”
“We’re going to shave your head and you’re gonna take his Jeep, get every bit of documentation of his that you can get your hands on. The passport is critical, but if you can get his Social Security card, even better. His birth certificate, if you can swing it, would give you the most options.”
I nodded. “I think I know where he keeps everything.”
“Then drive up to Dallas tonight. Go straight to DFW and get the first flight to the first non-extradition, non-visa country you can find. You’re going to live a good life.”
I almost laughed. I had no credit cards to speak of. Hell, I didn’t even have a bank account anymore.
But Kyler does.
“Raff.” I held up my hands. “My father clearly knows where I am. If he doesn’t hear from Kyler in the next ten minutes, he’ll come out here and finish the job himself. It wouldn’t take him very long at all to figure out I was here with you, and even less time to leverage that against you.”
“I know.”
“But—”
“I’m pretty sure my grandfather’s boat can handle two bodies,” he said, far too calm for what he was proposing.
“Why, though? Can you explain that to me?”
Complicated emotions crossed his face as he cupped my jaw.
“I investigated you for a long time, Jess. I know how you like your coffee. I know which shoes make you feel taller. And I know that you care, even when you shouldn’t. With this job I took at the beginning of the year…I thought about you. A lot.”
“Really?”
It was a relief, knowing we’d been on each other’s minds.
“I had hoped that if I could get in early enough, maybe I could prevent a young kid from being forced to go down the path you had to. But life doesn’t work that way.
So, this is my one opportunity to make something right.
To give you a chance to start over as if you weren’t your father’s son.
As if you were your own man. As if you weren’t staring down the barrel of your cousin’s fate. ”
I swallowed thickly, surprised by the emotion welling up. It was as if he were peering into the part of my soul I hid from everyone. That he saw who I wanted to be, despite what time and circumstance had turned me into.
“And,” he continued, “if I find that you have set up some criminal enterprise, that you’re injuring people, that you’ve in any way become like your father, I’ll hunt you down and kill you myself.”
That, too, carried the ring of truth.
I stood there, staring at him for a frozen moment, then crashed into him, hugging him tightly. He cupped the back of my head and touched his lips to mine. We kissed, probably for longer than we should’ve, letting our bodies say all the words we couldn’t.
Our bubble of time was bursting, but I didn’t want this to be the end. I had a wild thought that maybe he could come with me, but…
He can’t. You know he can’t.
Finally, he withdrew from the kiss and ran his fingers through my hair. “Let’s shave this off, pack a bag with my grandfather’s finest mall wear, and get you started on your new life.”
I nodded, and he grabbed my hand, tugging me toward the hallway.
A few minutes later, we were both grinning at the bathroom mirror.
Long, curly strands filled the sink, and I was running my hand over my shorn hair, amazed at how velvety it felt under my fingertips.
Rafferty found some of his grandmother’s makeup and temporarily darkened the fuzz with some sort of bronzer and a big, fluffy brush.
He then dragged a wheeled suitcase down from the attic and stuffed it with a variety of clothes.
He also slipped my cousin’s wallet and phone from his jeans. Kyler’s birthday was his password, so I opened the phone and, on Rafferty’s suggestion, reset the fingerprints and facial ID.
Kyler was wearing the same jacket in his ID, so Rafferty gently removed that from his body.
He held it out to me. “You should wear this when you get to the airport.”
I accepted the jacket from him, checked it for obvious blood stains—none, thank God—then helped him roll Kyler’s body in a sheet and drag him onto the little outboard tied to the back porch.
Rafferty was right. My cousin and father could definitely fit in that boat.
Everything settled, he walked me to my cousin’s Jeep. We took a beat to check around the vehicle for an AirTag, but didn’t find one.
“Drive safely,” he said, palming my shaved head. “And take the long way around. The dam’ll either be closed down or they’ll be stopping vehicles.”
“I will.” I took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. “And I’ll figure out a way to let you know where I end up.”
His face, so serious, brightened.
“I’d like that.”
We made no promises to each other, but something about this moment felt like one.
He gave me a final kiss, then stepped back as I tossed the suitcase into the passenger seat and sat in my cousin’s place.
I didn’t even have to adjust the seat. On a hunch, I popped open the glove box.
There, under his registration and a couple dozen Tootsie Roll wrappers, was Kyler’s passport, right where he’d tossed it after our one trip out of the country.
I held it up, and Rafferty sent me a salute. One less thing to worry about, and I could live with that for a while, even if I couldn’t immediately get the rest of his documentation.
I sent him a wave, then backed up and headed toward the two-lane. As I bumped along the caliche driveway, I looked in the rearview mirror. Rafferty was smiling.