Sealed with Justice, page 18
“Yeah, they are very soothing.” She turned to stare out the back window again. “I doubt we’ll see any cops this far outside of Boise.”
“That could be, although they are called state police for a reason.” He wasn’t ready to let his guard down. “What do you suggest for a place to do another rest stop? I hate keeping Echo confined in the back for so long.”
“There used to be a rest stop in Blacks Creek, but no gas station if you can believe that.” She frowned and sat in her seat facing the windshield. “I’ll watch for signs. I’m sure Echo would prefer to be active.”
“He would.” Hudd would like to let the dog run for a bit. Normally, he’d run alongside him, but the migraine he’d suffered earlier hadn’t quite gone away. There was a lingering pain along his left temple, the location of his injury. And since he wasn’t always sure what brought the attacks on, he thought it better to remain low-key. His top priority was getting the journal and their story to the FBI.
Once they’d gotten the Feds involved, he needed to convince Kendra to head back to Portland. He wanted her far away from Robinson and Barkley.
“Can you check local news on your phone?”
“Yes, good idea.” She pulled out her phone, then hesitated. “I still have it turned off to preserve the battery. I should have looked to see if they sold charging cords at the convenient store.”
Her comment made him pull out his decrepit phone too. “I have less than ten percent battery left, and there’s no signal out here.” He handed it to her. “Turn it off for me, would you?”
She did, then tucked her phone back in her purse. “I’ll hold off using my phone too. There probably isn’t good coverage. Besides, there’s nothing I can do about Corey getting out of jail. I have to put the situation in God’s hands and pray Corey doesn’t hurt anyone else. And we may need to use it for something more important.”
“I admire your faith, Kendra.” He reached over to take her hand. “You’ve shown me what I’ve been missing these past few years.”
“I’m glad to help.” She smiled, and his heart literally skipped in his chest. He needed to get a grip. Distractions could get a man killed. He took a moment to eyeball the rearview mirror and his side-view mirror. So far, so good. “I can’t say it’s been easy, though. Losing Olivia was awful.”
“I can only imagine.”
“You lost your teammate, which had to be just as difficult.”
“Yeah. He gave the ultimate sacrifice.” He continued sweeping the area for cops, glad there didn’t seem to be many.
After another thirty minutes, Kendra broke the silence. “Is that a car pulled over up ahead?”
“I’m not sure.” His pulse spiked at the thought of passing a cop sitting at the side of the road with a radar gun.
A strained silence shimmered between them as the Jeep ate up the miles.
“It’s a pickup truck,” Kendra said. “Looks pretty old and rusty. I’m sure it broke down and the owner just left it there.”
He didn’t say anything, scouring the area around the interstate searching for anything out of place. Using an abandoned car for cover wasn’t outside the realm of possibilities.
“I don’t see anyone inside,” she went on. “I’m sure it’s fine.”
Hudd hit the gas, sending the Jeep lurching forward. He found himself holding his breath as they roared past the abandoned car. After five miles, he slowed down and released a sigh of relief.
“I guess you see danger everywhere you look,” Kendra said softly.
“Occupational hazard.”
They drove in silence for another few minutes. “The rest stop is still there,” Kendra gestured toward the sign. “Five miles from here.”
“Good. Echo will appreciate a break.”
“Me too,” Kendra said wryly.
He kept a wary eye out as the rest stop came into view. The truck they’d passed had looked as if it had been there for a while, but he couldn’t discount the possibility that the driver had walked there.
The diagonal parking spaces in front of the rest stop were empty except for a large eighteen-wheeler. Even as they got off on the ramp, the driver of the truck emerged from the bathrooms, hitched his jeans, and hopped into the driver’s seat. Hudson pulled in and waited for the truck to leave before pushing open his driver’s side door.
“I feel bad for the person whose truck broke down,” Kendra said.
He was glad the traffic had been light, most of the vehicles they’d seen were large semitrucks or other types of trucks. He opened the back hatch and let Echo out. The dog raced around, then headed right out to a grassy area to do his business.
“I’m going inside for a minute,” Kendra said.
“We’ll wait here.” He pulled a ball from the back of his Jeep and tossed it for Echo. The dog eagerly ran after it, catching it on the second bounce.
Echo would do this all day if Hudd let him, but he didn’t mind letting the dog burn off some energy. He threw the ball again while watching the highway.
Echo ran like the wind, jumping so high he cleared three feet before landing back on the ground. Hudd had considered creating some sort of obstacle course for the dog, but that would mean putting down roots.
Something he hadn’t really considered until now.
Portland sounded more metropolitan than he’d have liked. He gazed out at the Blacks Creek landscape, appreciating the wide open space. It was probably too far away to be practical, no grocery store, gas station, or restaurant to be found. But he wouldn’t mind a place similar to where he’d grown up. His memories of Eagle weren’t all bad.
Kendra was a trauma critical care nurse, and he suspected that most trauma centers were located in the heart of big cities, not out in the middle of nowhere Idaho, Montana, or Wyoming.
He shrugged off the thought. This wasn’t the time to be thinking about where he might settle down.
Or if Kendra would be a part of that decision.
Echo didn’t return with the ball. He was sniffing around, no doubt picking up an interesting scent. “Echo, come!” he shouted.
The dog whirled, picked up the ball, and loped toward him. He bent down to retrieve the ball, and when he straightened, he caught sight of a vehicle cresting a hill in the distance heading toward them.
Too far away to make out the model, but he glanced nervously toward the restrooms. Where was Kendra? He wanted to head around back to avoid being seen, but he couldn’t leave her behind.
Hudd hurried toward the woman’s restroom. “Kendra? You okay?”
“Coming,” she responded. He heard water in the sink, then the sound of a hand dryer.
The vehicle was approaching fast. No sirens blaring, and he couldn’t make out if it was a squad or not. Could be that the driver was ignoring the speed limit considering the lack of traffic, but the tiny hairs on the back of his neck tingled in warning.
“This way, around back.” He took Kendra’s arm and urged her around the back of the building. “There’s a car coming up fast, could be a cop.”
Kendra’s gaze turned fearful. “He’ll see the Jeep.”
“I know.” Hudd raked his gaze over the area. “We need a place to hide.”
“Out here? What’s the point? They’ll find us eventually.” She stared at him as if he were crazy.
“Hurry.” He lightly jogged across the uneven terrain. They were on a hill overlooking the creek, and they could go down along the edge to get out of sight. Kendra ran to keep up with him while Echo treated this as another game.
The moment he reached the edge, he pulled Kendra down to the ground. The creek bed was down below, and the rocky landscape was somewhat precarious.
“I need you to go down as low as you can. I’ll watch from here.”
“What are you going to do?” Kendra asked.
He pulled his weapon. “Hold them off. See if your phone works. If you can get through to the Feds, let them know what’s happening.”
“Okay.” She pulled out her phone and turned it on. Then she gingerly moved down the rocky hill toward the creek below.
“Guard, Echo,” Hudson said to the dog.
Echo wheeled around to follow Kendra. Hudd hoped he was wrong about the vehicle that had been speeding toward the rest station, but he didn’t think so.
He found a place along the ridge where he could stretch out on his stomach while still being able to see the area around the rest station. It didn’t take long for the vehicle to pull in and park next to his Jeep.
It wasn’t a squad but a large 4x4 RAM truck, silver in color. It looked familiar. Then it clicked. The truck had been in the driveway of Barkley’s house.
A man emerged from the truck, carrying a rifle. He stood for a moment until another older man joined him, also carrying a weapon.
The pair was father and son, but not Andrew and George Barkley as he’d expected. No, the two men were Tristan and Coach Donahue.
Chapter Fifteen
Flanked by Echo, Kendra slipped over the rocky terrain while holding up her phone to get a signal. Unfortunately, she had only one bar.
One stinking bar. She swallowed hard trying to hold back a flash of panic.
Maybe it would be enough.
“Kendra?” Hudson’s low whisper had her turning to head back toward him. “Tristan and Coach Donahue are here each armed with rifles. Your phone?”
Tristan and Coach Donahue? She could hardly believe it. The pair had never seemed like viable suspects, then again, Tristan was probably the one who’d killed Zoey, and his father was just bailing him out.
Still, she was keenly disappointed the killer wasn’t Corey or Andrew.
She punched in the numbers 911 and prayed the signal would go through. Her pulse quickened when she heard ringing on the other end of the line, then the sound of a dispatcher asking, “What’s your emergency?”
“We’re at the Blacks Creek rest area, there are two men carrying guns. Please send help!”
“Ma’am? I’m sorry, I couldn’t hear what you said. Where are you?”
“Blacks Creek.” She enunciated as clearly as possible while trying to be quiet enough so Tristan and his father couldn’t hear. “Men with guns. Hurry!”
“Ma’am? Are you there?”
Kendra closed her eyes and hit the end button on the phone. She met Hudson’s gaze and shook her head. “She can’t hear me.”
“Follow the creek farther from me,” Hudson whispered. “Take Echo and stay safe.”
“What about you?” She didn’t like the idea of leaving him here. Especially not when Tristan and his father had rifles. She didn’t know anything about guns, but Hudson’s pistol probably didn’t have the range of a rifle.
“Go,” he said tersely.
“Echo, stay,” she said before turning and retracing her steps to follow the edge of the creek. If she had to leave, then she’d feel better leaving Echo with Hudson. He’d need the dog more than she would.
“Go, Echo,” Hudson whispered. She glanced over her shoulder, glad the dog hadn’t moved. Unusual since the animal normally listened to Hudson without question.
There was a large boulder twenty yards ahead. She picked up her pace until she could drop down behind it. It was large enough to shield her from view but not too far away from Hudson’s location either.
If anything happened to Hudson or Echo, she didn’t think her chances of escaping through the wilderness were very good. Especially not when two men were armed with rifles.
As she huddled beside the cold rock, she realized she wasn’t afraid of dying. Not when it meant she’d be taken home to God, reunited with her daughter, Olivia, her mother, Grace, and Zoey.
But she would miss Hudson. More than she thought possible. And for a long moment she longed for something she never thought she’d find.
A man to share her life with.
She drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly. They weren’t beaten yet. Hudson was a former Navy SEAL. If anyone could get them out of this, he could.
Yet if that couldn’t happen, then she would be okay.
You’re in charge, Lord. I’m putting myself in Your loving hands. Let thy will be done. Amen.
Kendra hadn’t gone far enough, and Echo wasn’t listening either. But Hudd didn’t have time to worry about either of them.
His only thought was to neutralize the threat.
The Donahues must be avid hunters because they each took a post on one side of the restroom, making themselves smaller targets. He didn’t dare move, knowing they would slowly rake their respective scopes over the area to look for him.
They were roughly a hundred yards away, a makeable shot for him. He wasn’t the sharpshooter on the team, Dallas held that honor. But he was second best. He’d make the shot.
The problem would be that he could only take out one target at a time. And doing so would likely reveal his position. The rocky edge was too unpredictable to shoot, then run to a new location.
He’d just have to trust his aim and hope that taking them by surprise would work to his advantage.
He kept his head low and patiently waited, watching for them to make their move. He had no idea how much hunting Tristan and his father had done over the years, but he had to assume they were good enough to take him out. Having a rifle and a scope would be to their advantage.
A hint of movement caught his eye. Another man was creeping up to the building housing the restrooms, having come out from behind Hudd’s Jeep. His gut clenched as he worried it would be another shooter he’d be forced to contend with.
Yet the stealthy nature of the guy seemed to indicate otherwise. It wasn’t long until Hudson recognized Nevins.
Friend or foe? He couldn’t be sure.
The glimpse of sunlight reflected off the scope of the rifle on the farthest side of the building. Hudson ducked his head as a shot rang out.
Thankfully, it missed, but Hudson didn’t waste a second. He eased back up and fired at the spot where the shooter was standing. A loud cry indicated he’d hit his target.
One down, two to go.
“Drop your weapons and put your hands where I can see them!” The voice sounded like Nevins, but Hudson didn’t move from his location.
“Hey, he shot at us!” a whiney voice protested.
“Now!” Nevins barked.
Hudson frowned, wondering if this was a ploy to get him to reveal himself. He remained still, listening intently. There was a thudding noise as something heavy hit the dirt.
“I’m hurt,” another voice said. “He shot me!”
“You shot first,” Nevins said. “Throw down your weapon.”
There were muffled sounds as if Coach had complied too. But Hudson still didn’t move. From his vantage point, he could see Kendra poking her head up, looking at him curiously. He scowled and shook his head.
“Hudson, I have Tristan and Eric Donahue in custody,” Nevins called. “It’s safe to come out.”
Hudd didn’t move for a long moment. Then he risked a quick glance over the edge of the bluff. Both Donahue men were handcuffed, their rifles tossed on the ground. Nevins seemed to catch his eye, and for a long moment, Hudd expected the worst.
“I know you don’t trust me, Foster. But I am one of the good guys,” Nevins called.
Hudd knew he could take out Nevins from here if necessary. One target was easier than two. But he hesitated, unwilling to blithely shoot a cop.
“Why were the police staked out at the Boise FBI office?” Hudson asked in a voice loud enough to carry across the terrain. “You’re the only one who knew that was where we were headed.”
“I know, that was my fault. I felt obligated to report up through the chain of command about Zoey’s journal. Next thing I know, Barkley knew all about it and sent several guys there.” There was a brief pause before Nevins said, “I knew you wouldn’t be caught by the cops waiting at the FBI office, and Salt Lake was closer than Portland, so I decided to stake out this section of the highway. I was hiding in the abandoned truck, making sure my vehicle was out of sight. After I saw you go past, I waited until the Donahues showed up, then followed them here.”
Hudson wasn’t convinced. He glanced one more time at Kendra who was watching him warily, then asked, “Why did you suspect Tristan and his dad? You weren’t at the party that night.”
“That’s true, but after you left me searching for the handcuff key, I remembered that all the guys were hungover the next day. All except for Tristan. And it made me think, what if that was because Tristan wasn’t drinking with the rest of them? What if he was out with Zoey, killing her, and then stashing the body?”
It was plausible, Hudd had to give him that.
“I’m not the bad guy,” Nevins repeated in a frustrated tone.
“Prove it by holstering your gun,” Hudson said.
To his surprise, Nevins did. He holstered his weapon and pushed the two men up against the wall of the restrooms. Then he stood with his hands facing palm outward. “I’m not here to arrest you, Foster.”
Hudd quickly scrambled up over the rim of the ledge. Nevins didn’t move, simply watching as he approached.
“FYI, Tristan here smokes.” Nevins nodded toward the younger Donahue. “If you still have that cigarette butt, we can try to lift his prints.”
“I do. And I have a smashed bullet fragment that I dug out of the cave wall.” Hudd eyed Nevins warily. “Did you call for backup?”
“Yeah, but understand they’re not going to be here for a few minutes yet.” Nevins glanced over his shoulder. “Where’s Kendra?”
“She’s safe.”
“Hudd, you need to put your weapon away. The guys coming to back me up will not look kindly on you holding a gun on me.”
That was true. He turned to look at Coach Donahue and his son. The older man looked pale, blood seeping from a wound in his shoulder. Tristan looked panicked. Neither man had spoken since being handcuffed. Hudd decided to bluff them a bit. “We have Zoey’s journal and the cigarette butt Tristan left behind at the scene of the shooting, along with the slug that I’m sure will be matched to one of those rifles. Oh, and the make and model of the car that you used to try to run us down.” He managed a smile. “You’re both going down for first degree murder.”
