Chapter Eleven #3
Now, though, it was done, and all that happened was her uniform smelled like beer, and she had some hair pulled out when one of the guys got her braid caught on their utility belt in the melee.
“Head in,” she said to Forest Blasi, her backup in this mess. “Tank them. I’m going home to shower and get some aspirin. I have a freaking headache from this nonsense.”
The other deputy laughed.
“This was ridiculous,” Kory Spark admitted. “I swear to God, the owners should be slapped for saying ‘all you can drink’ around the drunks here. Everyone knows that they love them some free shit.”
She snorted.
Truer words had never been said.
“I won’t arrest you if you do it. No punches, and I will turn my head like I’m checking out some trees.”
Forest snorted.
“I saw nothing, either, Chief.”
Yeah, that said it all.
All of the reservation cops were damn tired of dealing with the bullshit that went on here because it was always with the same offenders.
ALWAYS.
As the men transported, she filled out the report in her car, before getting back on the road to drive to her cabin. Thank God she had some dinner waiting for her.
There was no doubt her father had been there, and he had left something for her.
That was the only good part about him hovering since she started dating Caspian.
Now, she had to hope it was carb-laden after that fight with the drunks. She needed to recoup those calories for later when she had some sexy fun with a hot Marine.
OUT of uniform and clothes.
As she was driving home, something caught her eye near one of the camping grounds.
What she found odd was the fact that they closed down the areas this time of the year from people off of the reservation. It was hunting season, and the last thing they wanted was someone getting shot as they were having a cookout with their family, or camping under the stars.
No one should be near the grounds, unless they were from here.
Turning around, she went back and pulled in behind the car. On the back of the report she’d been filling out, she scribbled down the license plate number in case she needed it later if the car was abandoned.
Then, she put the report back on the clipboard.
Getting out, she headed toward the car.
That’s when she saw a guy under the hood of the vehicle.
“Hey, can I help?” she asked.
When he looked up, he sighed.
“Oh, my God! Yes! I came here to take some pictures to show my fiancé. I came here a few months ago, and I told her what it was like, and now, she wants to do our wedding pictures here. I was in town, and I thought I’d get pictures for her.”
She moved closer.
“You broken down?”
He was honest.
“I got some great photos, and then, I tried to start this car, and it wouldn’t start. I can’t call the rental place because I have no reception. I must be in a dead zone.”
Yeah, she was aware. He was pretty deep on the reservation, and in certain spots, there was very little service.
“I think I’m screwed unless I start walking.”
Yeah, she didn’t want him to do that. Again, Natives liked to hunt at all times of the night, and it was still within the window of being allowed. The last thing she needed was a non-Native being killed.
So, she clued him in.
“Well, the good news is I’m the chief of police. The bad news is you’re not calling from anywhere near here. I have to get you closer to the main road for that to happen.”
He kicked the tire.
“I fucking hate technology,” he stated. “Oh, sorry. Pardon my language. Let it be known that no good deed goes unpunished,” he admitted. “I should have just suggested we get our pictures taken on the cruise ship. Thank you for saving me.”
She waved it off.
“I don’t know much about cars, but I can give you a lift to the hotel, and you can call from there.”
He sighed.
“Oh, can you? It’s a rental, so I can give them a call and have it towed back. Oh, am I going to have a harshly worded conversation with them, too? YES. Is it so much to service your rentals between customers?”
Honestly, she didn’t mind.
In the back of her mind, she was thinking about what Caspian had said, but the guy didn’t look like a serial killer, and his story made sense.
Plus, she was armed.
He.
Was.
Not.
She doubted a serial killer was going to wear a cardigan and loafers. That seemed counterproductive.
“So, you say you took pictures?” she asked.
He nodded and handed her his phone without hesitating. Once she had it, Rayna scrolled through them and even checked out the other photos. They were of him and a pretty girl. She looked at him like he was her whole world.
“Is that your fiancée?” she asked. “She’s beautiful.”
He sighed.
“Yeah, that’s her. I’m marrying up. I got damn lucky, and that’s why I’m willing to be standing here in the dark taking pictures of the woods. She wants a magical fairy backdrop for pictures. What the lady wants, the lady gets.”
Yeah, he seemed harmless. Everything he was saying matched up from the rental to the photos. This was all too elaborate to be a setup.
Someone would have to be insane to plan this out.
“I wouldn’t do the pictures here. There’s a nice spot over by a little lake we have here. I’d do that if you want a fairy backdrop. It’s all mossy with mushrooms.”
His eyes lit up.
“Really? Can you give me directions to come back tomorrow after they get me a new car?”
She nodded.
“I can show you. It’s not far away and near the entrance to the reservation.”
He looked relieved.
“Thank you,” he said. “I really appreciate this.”
Yeah, it was her job, so…no worries.
“Let’s get you back to civilization. Hop into my car, and we’ll be on our way.”
Gratefully, he grabbed his bag, and she opened her trunk for him to put it in.
Then, he tossed it in and went to get into the backseat of the police cruiser.
She made up her mind.
Making him sit back there wasn’t necessary.
The guy wasn’t giving off vibes where he was dangerous. What kind of serial killer got into the back where he would be caged in?
“You can sit up front. I only put the criminals in the back. You’re not a killer, are you?” she asked, making it sound like a joke, but she wanted to see how he reacted.
He laughed.
Then, held out his hand.
“In my youth, I liked to think of myself as a lady killer, and I do have a hot fiancée, so…”
She snorted.
“Funny.”
He introduced himself.
“Sammy Trudeaux,” he said, shaking her hand. “Definitely not a serial killer. A little crazy in love, and a lot of a desperate man to make his fiancée happy, but that’s about it. I’m a pharmaceutical sales rep. Now, if you need some blood pressure med samples, that I can help you with.”
Well, that explained the cardigan and loafers. The only other person she’d seen dress that way was Elizabeth’s one husband, the ME. Had this guy been wearing a bowtie, she would have sworn that was his job.
As for lying to her, she was a good judge of character. He never looked away, and she’d learned the tells when lying as a city cop.
Yeah, he was safe.
She introduced herself.
“Rayna RunningWolf. Hop in,” she said. “I’ll pass on those pills, though. It was a rough day, but not that rough.”
He did as she asked.
As she drove him, he checked out the backdrop that they were passing.
“It’s so pretty here. You’re lucky to live here,” he said, keeping it light.
She actually laughed.
“Lucky? That’s a matter of perspective, but as of late, yeah, I’m lucky to live here.”
He pulled out his wallet.
“My first wife died, and this is my daughter. She loves my new fiancée so much. Can people who aren’t Native live here?”
She checked out the picture he showed her, and she was a cute kid. It made her wonder if she and Caspian would have kids one day, and would they look like her, or him.
He had some pretty blue eyes, and dimples.
She wouldn’t mind being a mom if he was the dad.
“Not really,” she admitted. “I mean, unless you marry a Native who lives here.”
He sighed.
“Too bad. This place is magical. Are you married?” he asked.
She shook her head.
“No, I’m not married. I am dating a really great guy, though,” she said, navigating the road. “Maybe one day I will be married.”
“Oh, are you? Is he Native American, too?” he asked.
She shook her head.
“No, he’s Caucasian and lives nearby,” she admitted. “He works in security.”
That was all he had to hear.
When he jerked his head fast, looking back, she caught the movement.
“What?” she asked, looking around.
“I thought I saw something in the trees that we just passed. It looked…weird.”
Uh…what kind of weird could he have seen?
Immediately, she thought back to the crazy-ass shit her father told her growing up, and how they’d just dealt with a ‘wendigo’.
That kind of weird?
So, she came to a stop and threw her cruiser into reverse. As she did, she looked into the trees where he’d first appeared to see something.
“I don’t see…”
And that was all Rayna RunningWolf got to say.
Because Devon Slater grabbed her by the back of the head and slammed her face off of the steering wheel as hard as he could, knocking her out.
As she went limp, he pulled her over his body and switched seats with her.
The good thing about this place was it was relatively quiet on the road.
When he found her wallet in the glove box, he saw her address and pulled out his phone to find her home.
Then, he made sure she was bound, gagged, and her gun was removed.
Yeah, this was almost too easy.
Apparently, she’d not been warned—or she’d not taken it seriously. Then again, she did ask if he was a serial killer. It wasn’t like he didn’t give her clues.
The name.
The way he was dressed.
The fake photos of his fiancée, who was a newscaster back in DC and created by AI.
Someone needed to pay better attention, and had she, Rayna RunningWolf would have had him, instead of it being the other way around.
Oh, this amused him.
Elizabeth Blackhawk would rue the day she put a bounty out on his head.
Because now, the fun would begin.
AGAIN.