CRISIS at Rescue Ridge, page 12
“Pull up a seat,” Conrad said.
“Coffee?” Hudson asked.
“That’d be great.” Beau’s injury delayed his trip to find his mother. He glanced around the room. His eyebrows drew together. “I expected to find Cassie in here.” He eased onto a chair.
“Why is that?” Hudson stopped halfway across the room and turned to Beau.
“She’s not in her room.” Beau’s expression dropped to outright concern. “The adjacent bathroom door is open. So, I assumed she would be in here with you guys when I heard your voices.”
Hudson abandoned his trip across the room, backtracked, and headed down the hallway toward the guest bedroom.
Shit.
The room was empty. The bed had been made. The towel she’d used to shower was folded up on the counter in the adjacent bathroom.
Panic shot his pulse through the roof. Where the hell was she?
He shot through the ground floor faster than a heat-seeking missile searching for its target, but came up empty.
Hudson raked a hand through his hair as he stood, dumbfounded, in the kitchen. “Are all the vehicles still here?”
Conrad was up and at the window in two seconds flat. “Looks like they are.”
“Which means she’s out there on foot.”
Shit.
Cassie. Where did you go?
After racking his brain for a few minutes, he knew.
Hudson grabbed his keys and bolted out the door before anyone could stop him. The second he stepped outside, a female figure caught his eye. She was moving through the thicket beyond the barn, staggering.
The back door swung open, the screen smacking against the wall as Conrad bolted out faster than a champion thoroughbred out of the starting gate.
“Conrad!”
All hope the female was Cassie died when he heard the voice. A different relief washed over him as he realized Nikki was alive and running toward them.
Hudson studied the area around her as Conrad picked up the pace, running toward the person he loved without regard for his own safety.
“Here,” Beau came up from behind and handed Hudson a shotgun. “Take this.”
“You’re just in time.” Hudson took the offering and aimed as he scanned the area searching for any signs of movement. Would Jarek be careless enough to follow Nikki out of the thicket?
If the man was anywhere near, he wasn’t shooting. Maybe he didn’t want to risk a murder charge. Someone like Jarek, who had a pilot’s license and access to a private airplane, could disappear across the border. He wanted Cassie. He wanted her alive. He wanted to hold her hostage, either to have her all to himself or to punish her for leaving him in the first place. The twisted sonofabitch wouldn’t get a chance if Hudson had anything to say about it.
Halfway across the distance to the barn, Nikki and Conrad reunited. Embraced. He quickly placed his arm around her and ushered her to the house.
“Did she escape or was she released?” Hudson asked, pausing for a moment as they approached.
“I escaped,” Nikki said.
“Was there any other female around?” Conrad asked, cluing in. Escaping versus being released could make a difference as to whether Jarek had Cassie.
Nikki gave a small headshake.
“She’s out there somewhere,” Conrad said. “Go find her.”
He waited until his brothers and sister-in-law were safely inside the house before making a beeline for a ranch vehicle. He chose one of the oldest, a beat-up pickup truck that was rarely used. After turning the key to start the engine, he checked the gas gauge. A full tank meant it was go time.
Without any idea how long ago Cassie had taken off, it was impossible to gauge how far she’d gotten. Her destination came to him in a rush. It was obvious now. She was going to check on the kid she believed to be her son.
And then what, Cassie?
The obvious answer would be to disappear. No way. He couldn’t let that happen. It wasn’t fair that she should be treated like a criminal, sent into hiding for making the simple mistake of getting involved with the wrong person. She’d tried to walk away, break free from Jarek. He stood in her way.
Hudson scanned the skies in search of low-flying aircraft that would tell him Jarek was searching for Cassie, too. The mountain lion still hadn’t been caught to his knowledge. Marcus had promised to send an update as soon as the animal was captured. The animal posed an additional threat to anyone alone in the woods.
Cassie had to be exhausted. She’d looked tired as hell last night. Even so, even though her problems were mountains, she’d still been more concerned with comforting Conrad than with her own safety.
Speeding away from the ranch, Hudson figured Cassie had left a short while after everyone had gone to bed. They’d been tired, and she would’ve correctly assumed that they’d pass out for a few hours. Enough time for her to be long gone before anyone checked on her.
Shit.
Cassie forced one foot in front of the other as she bit back another yawn. Adrenaline had worn off an hour ago, leaving her tired down to the bone. Her body ached for a soft bed. The thought of the one she’d given up to be out here hammered home that her choice hadn’t been her best move.
Another twig snapped.
Was someone or something following her?
The sun was up. The road was close. She did a full three-sixty to see if anything caught her attention.
Nothing.
Would going out in the open help? Maybe she could cross the road and walk on the other side. It would be just her luck to get stranded out here with the mountain lion; a true full-circle moment.
She sprinted across the deserted road. Out here, she could hear a car coming from a distance. No one could surprise her. At least, not easily. If someone was stalking her in the woods, that would be a different story. A person would show themselves by now, right?
Not necessarily. Not a hunter.
Ducking behind a tree, she held her breath as she turned around and waited.
Show yourself, bastard!
15
Hudson slowed at the sight of something crossing the road in the distance. If this was Cassie, would she welcome him? Be angry at him? Find another way to disappear the second he turned his back?
He’d acted on protective instinct earlier, making a mad run for the truck when maybe he should’ve sat back and respected her choice to leave. He pulled over to the side of the road and parked. Cut the engine off.
From here, he could keep his distance. First things first, he needed to confirm this was Cassie. Grabbing the shotgun, he exited the vehicle and locked it up. What were the odds she would be on this road? The direction checked out with her heading toward her son’s home. Getting there would require a shit-ton of walking. She’d be at this for days.
Was that the plan? Stick to the road, using the trees as cover. Take her time so Jarek would give up? Retreat? Or be caught? Based on what he knew about her so far, she’d taken Nikki’s abduction seriously—and blamed herself for it. He couldn’t fault her for her reasoning. He would probably have gone down the same route if it were him. It was easy to blame yourself when something went south. The if only I’d done whatever…not gone to someone’s house…left the state…then none of this would be happening game was a shark circling bloody vibrations in the ocean.
Outside of the relative safety of his truck, he felt exposed. He could only imagine how Cassie must be feeling right now. Had she found her rifle? Brought any type of weapon? A kitchen knife?
Knowing her, she split too fast. Getting outside without being caught would have been her number one priority.
He made a wide circle as he navigated the terrain with the ease of someone who’d grown up there. He’d explored or worked every inch of ranch property and the surrounding areas at some point in his life, which provided an advantage and allowed him to catch up to the person who’d darted across the road.
The person was a hitchhiker who couldn’t have been a day over fourteen years old, if he had to guess. A young person who was most likely trying to get to a friend’s house. Hell, he’d done the same in his youth.
If the kid saw Hudson with the shotgun tucked underneath his armpit, he might panic. Best leave the kid alone. Or, better yet, Hudson could jog back to his truck and then give the kid a lift, allowing him to hop into the back as so many folks had done for Hudson when he’d been close to that age. Beaumont hadn’t exactly been carpool material, and Hudson’s siblings had had their own problems without him bumming rides from them. He’d always been independent anyway, with a stubborn streak a mile long.
Hudson jogged back to the truck, slipped into the driver’s seat, and continued the drive. When he got close enough to the fourteen-ish-year-old, the kid stuck his thumb out. Hudson rolled down the window.
“Where are you headed?”
The kid rattled off an address.
“I can take you a couple of miles to your turn off,” he said. “Hop in back.”
The kid smiled, thanked him, and hopped onto the bed of the truck.
“Word of warning,” Hudson said to the kid. “There’s a mountain lion with a taste for human meat on the loose.”
“Shit,” the wide-eyed kid said. “Oh, sorry.”
Hudson laughed. He’d said worse back in the day. “I’m not your parent, kid. You don’t have to watch your language with me. You should be careful, though. The damn lion came at me out of nowhere and, as far as I know, has yet to be caught.”
“Thank you for the warning, sir.”
Hudson would correct the kid. Being called sir made him want to turn around to check which grown-up was behind him. It was a sign of respect and common in these parts to respect your elders. He barked out another laugh. When had he gotten so old? The response came quickly. Nineteen. Losing Adina had aged him decades. Growing up with Beaumont hadn’t helped in that department, either. The man hadn’t wanted children. He’d wanted a little army of soldiers who obeyed his every command. Robots, essentially, that didn’t talk back or hold opinions of their own. What he’d really wanted was carbon copies of himself.
So, yeah, Hudson had grown up fast. He wasn’t reminiscing to wallow in self-pity, just to understand why he’d been closed off all these years and how he could feel a close bond with someone he hadn’t known existed forty-eight hours ago. He’d been plunged into Cassie’s world headfirst, and now he was actively trying to find reasons she should let him stay.
At the turn, he rolled down the window and tapped on the side of the truck. “End of the line, buddy.”
“Thank you, sir.” The youth jumped off the back and waved before heading east.
Hudson took a good look. That boy had been him years ago, walking these farm roads and hopping into a truck bed to shorten a walk. He really did feel old. The world was going to grow and change around him. He needed to accept it and adapt, or die. Because he’d felt dead inside for more than a decade. Being with Cassie had made him realize how much he’d shut himself off from the world.
What the hell was he supposed to do with that?
Cassie could’ve sworn she just saw the mountain lion. She suppressed a gasp as she studied the area. Several minutes passed. The predator hadn’t followed her across the road, not directly anyway. Could it be circling her? Aware that she’d realized its presence?
It might not be stalking her at all. Much like running into an ex in line at the grocery store, coincidence could be a bitch. In this case, it could be deadly.
She sat down long enough to hydrate, crush the plastic bottle, and drop it into the bottom of the backpack. Her stomach growled, reminding her that she hadn’t eaten in a long time. She polished off an apple and then stood.
A twig snapped. She froze.
Slowly, she turned in a circle. There was no sign of the animal. Heart hammering against the inside of her ribcage, she figured moving was better than staying put. After shouldering her backpack, she took her first step.
And then she heard it. A sneeze. Human. Close.
Cassie took off running toward the road, praying someone would drive past and she could signal for help. Branches slapped her in the face and torso as she bolted through the thicket. Scrub brush threatened to snag her foot. She had to pick her legs up higher, which caused her thighs to burn even more. She was expending a lot of energy on an already low-fuel tank. At last, another shot of adrenaline kicked in, giving her a much-needed boost. Could she outrun whoever was behind her? She didn’t dare look back. That could cost her the small lead. It would be Jarek or one of his people. Or someone hired to bring you back. It occurred to her that Jarek had a network of criminals to draw from. She might not even recognize the person gaining on her, even if she dared risk a backward glance.
Zigzagging through the trees would make her a difficult target if the person from behind decided to shoot. Calves and thighs burned, and a painful cramp in her side threatened to take her down.
Should she run deeper into the trees? Not one vehicle had passed since the one from earlier, and no one she knew had been behind the wheel. Since Jarek could be sending just about anyone for her, she couldn’t risk reaching out to a stranger unless it was clear the person couldn’t be working for him or financially benefitting from her being found and returned. A reward for her as a “missing person” could be on the table. She should have asked about it when she’d had the chance.
Of course, she hadn’t known the situation would come down to her being alone in the woods and running from a threat that was close behind.
Since giving up wasn’t an option, she wondered for a half second if she could turn around and fight. Could she take a peek at who she was up against? Determine if the risk was worth the fight?
A thud practically moved the ground underneath her feet. Resisting the temptation to turn around and look, she took the opportunity to put more distance between them. Darting across the road, she picked up more speed. Being out in the open meant taking a chance, but it was paying off as she no longer heard footsteps behind her.
The person chasing her might have gotten a toe caught in the underbrush and taken a tumble.
From across the road before she darted into the thicket, she looked behind her.
A linebacker-sized male had been chasing her but she couldn’t get a good look at his face. He was wearing hunters’ clothing, which seemed horribly appropriate and unnerving at the same time. It meant he’d come here to hunt her down like a deer on the wrong end of a rifle’s scope. The fact that he hadn’t fired any type of weapon at her gave her a glimmer of hope that Jarek wanted her back alive. An involuntary shiver rocked her body, thinking about being forced back into Jarek’s life not to mention how he would punish her for leaving in the first place. Could she convince him to release Nikki if that was the case?
By now, she prayed that he’d received word that she was on the move and far away from Sturgess land. Hope that Nikki would be released unharmed blossomed. Having witnessed Conrad’s pain firsthand had pushed her to make this decision, and it was the right one. This way, she was the only one in jeopardy. She was the only one who would pay for her mistakes, as she should. Plus, she was the only one who could fix this.
Risking a glance behind her, she couldn’t get a good enough look at the man’s face and had no intention of sticking around long enough for him to regroup or get close enough to make out details.
“Help!” came an all-too familiar voice. It sounded muffled and more than a bit panicked. But she was almost certain it was Franco.
Was he serious?
She had no cell or she’d check for bars. He was most likely trying to get her close enough to trap her.
“No!”
It occurred to her the mountain lion might still be around—even more reason to get the hell away from there. No way was she falling for the helpless act. Whoever chased her, if not Franco, was either an experienced criminal or someone directly connected to Jarek—someone who worked for him or with him.
At least the Feds were onto his activities. Could they bust him any day now? Could she stay hidden long enough for them to gather enough evidence to put him away for life? Another thought struck as she navigated the terrain. He could turn on his bosses in exchange for his own freedom. Would that place him in Witness Protection? Would that bring an end to his hunt for her?
She highly doubted it. The thought that he could be given a new identity and a new lease on life in exchange for testifying made her sick to her stomach. Or did he plan to snatch her before making a run for it? Force her to live in another country under an assumed name? He’d have to drug her.
The possibilities circled through her mind on a hamster wheel of hell.
Aside from the thought of never seeing her son, she might never see Hudson. More of that familiar ache welled up. Not being with him was torture. Take away those two people from her life, and she might as well be dead. She’d live out the rest of her life like a zombie. Those were the only two people who mattered.
Ironically, she had to stay out of both of their lives to keep them safe. She’d had to walk away from her son because she’d been too young to take care of him. Now, she was walking away from Hudson to protect him and his family.
Would he give up now that he knew the truth about her circumstances? Would he happily let her go?
Her life was complicated, confusing. Funny enough, her emotions were crystal clear. In her heart, she wanted to be part of her son’s life as well as Hudson’s. Was that practical?
No.
Was it realistic?
No.
The heart didn’t care. It wanted what it wanted.
Pushing through the woods, her vision blurred as tears welled in her eyes. Cassie was not usually a crier. Her usual MO was to hold everything inside and push it down deep. Since opening up to Hudson, that was no longer possible. Now, tears spilled out like an overflowing bathtub.
Breathe.
One look at Christian—or whatever his name was—and she would grab the money she’d hidden, grab the IDs with her second new identity, and disappear from the only place she’d ever called home…Texas.
