Sealed with Justice, page 6
Slashed by the gunman? While he was lying vulnerable on the floor? He was surprised he and Kendra were still alive. “When?”
“I think it happened while we were in the cave. I found them after you fell to the floor. I couldn’t get you up, especially with my injured shoulder.” She grimaced. “Looks like we’ll have to walk out of here.”
Which was probably exactly what the gunman intended. Hudd felt certain the guy might be hiding out somewhere nearby, ready to take another shot at them.
Something he couldn’t allow to happen.
Chapter Five
“Did Echo bark or growl while I was out?” Hudson demanded, moving from one window to the next. “He would know if someone was lurking nearby.”
Kendra wished Hudson would sit down as he still looked pale and shaky. Watching him suffer from that awful migraine had been terrible. She’d never felt so helpless. “He growled when we first arrived at the shack. Maybe he picked up the gunman’s scent.”
“When did you go outside?”
“Shortly after we arrived. I wanted to get the water bottles and the PowerBars.” She glanced at Echo who kept pace with his owner. “Echo actually came with me, which was surprising. He sniffed all around the vehicles where the tires were slashed, growling the whole time. But when we came back inside, he stopped growling.” The dog’s growls had been unnerving, and she’d gotten everything out of the car so that she wouldn’t have to go back out again later.
“Good boy,” Hudson murmured, reaching down to stroke the dog. “He’s a good protector.”
“Yes, he is.” She’d been amazed at how the dog had stayed right next to Hudson the entire time he was curled up on the floor. Every so often, Echo would lick his face or rest his chin on Hudson’s arm. She’d known the dog had likely done this before, and often. And that Echo wouldn’t let anything bad happen to his owner.
The four hours Hudson had been incapacitated had passed with excruciating slowness. She’d considered using her cell phone, but the signal was low, only one bar, and who would she have called? She hated to make her father leave work. And after the recent events at the café, she didn’t trust the police.
After seeing the destroyed vehicles, she’d shied away from walking toward the road to get a better signal. The shack was isolated, and she couldn’t discount the possibility the shooter was out there. Although she’d been prepared to do that if Hudson didn’t get better soon. She’d kept a close eye on his pulse and respiratory rate, which had both been faster than normal.
No doubt because he’d been battling pain.
“Please, sit down for a few minutes. Pushing yourself may cause a relapse.”
Hudson glanced at her. “I know, that’s happened before. But there’s a good chance the shooter is stationed out there somewhere, waiting for us to show ourselves. I need to head out to look for him.”
“I’d rather you stayed here, at least for now. Check your phone, I only have one bar. But if you have a better signal, we can call a tow truck.”
He stared at her for a moment, then pulled out his phone. “One bar,” he said.
Figured. She sighed. “Okay, then we’ll need to walk outside a ways, see if we can pick up another bar.”
“No, we’re not. You’re going to stay here with Echo. I’ll head out to find a signal and search for the gunman.” The brackets of pain around the corners of his mouth hadn’t lessened much. She could tell he was holding himself together with superhuman effort.
“Will you allow me to try something to ease your pain?”
He frowned. “Like what?”
“Pressure points.” She wished there was a chair to sit on, but the floor would have to do. “Sit down, I’ll show you.” When she saw his hesitation, she added, “I don’t think it will make your headache worse. And if it lessens some of the pain, it’s worth it.”
He nodded, then did one more sweep, going from window to window before dropping down to the floor. He was so tall that she had to go up on her knees in order to apply the pressure.
She’d learned the technique through her physical therapist who had also been a massage therapist. Attempting to press on the trigger points on yourself didn’t work as well, but she hoped she could ease some of Hudson’s discomfort.
“Try to relax,” she said in a low voice. Using the pads of her fingers, she pressed hard on the trigger points on his temple, holding the pressure for several seconds before releasing it. Then she moved on to the other trigger points, repeating the applied pressure. She took her time; there was so much tension in his head and neck. Yet as she moved from one spot to the next, she could feel some of that tension easing away.
She finished with the trigger points on the back of his neck. Her knees were stiff and sore, and when she stood, she had to hide a wince.
“That—was amazing.” Hudson turned to look up at her, his blue eye full of awe. “I feel a hundred percent better. Not back to normal, that usually takes several hours, but way better than before you started.”
She smiled. “I’m glad. It’s a technique some massage therapists use.”
“I—thank you.” He stood and smiled down at her. It occurred to her that it was the first real smile she’d seen from him. One that lit up his bright blue eye.
“Anytime.” Her voice was breathy, awareness shimmering like a living, breathing force between them. Crazy as it sounded, she longed for him to kiss her.
“Kendra.” He said her name on a sigh and pulled her into his arms. He didn’t kiss her but cradled her close, resting his cheek on her hair. “I’m not sure what to do with you.”
She had no answer for that but couldn’t deny how much she liked being held by him. His sweetness and caring at odds with his muscular strength. She was secretly glad she’d been able to give him something in return for all the times he’d saved her life.
“I need to go.” He released her, taking a step back. It was all she could do not to throw herself back into his arms. “Stay away from the windows. If Echo growls, you need to find a weapon.” He glanced around, then handed her the flashlight. “Use this if anyone tries to get close.”
“Okay.” Hard to imagine hitting anyone over the head with the flashlight, but then again, she’d never been in danger like this before. Feeling grim, she realized she’d likely do whatever was necessary to survive. Even if that meant resorting to violence. Something she abhorred. “Be careful.”
The corner of his mouth tipped up in a rueful smile, and she was glad to see the brackets of pain had disappeared thanks to her pressure point relief technique. “Always.” He turned to Echo. “Guard.”
The dog sat in front of her.
“Good boy.” Hudson moved to the back door, the one they’d entered hours ago shortly before he’d collapsed onto the floor. “Remember, stay down.”
She lowered herself back to the floor. From this angle, Echo looked huge beside her. Especially his teeth.
Hudson disappeared from her line of sight. Blowing out a heavy sigh, she stroked Echo’s fur. As much as she wanted to go along with him, she knew her being there would only be a hindrance. The man moved as if he walked on air, without making the slightest sound.
Kendra told herself to get a grip on her emotions. This teaming up with Hudson was temporary. He didn’t live in Idaho, and neither did she. She wasn’t sure where he lived and suspected that he didn’t have a place to call home. No reason he couldn’t make a home for himself in Portland, Oregon.
She rolled her eyes at her foolishness. Even if Hudson was interested, she had no intention of risking her heart ever again. Especially not with a man who could easily have any woman he wanted.
“Temporary arrangement,” she muttered to Echo. “That’s all this is, right?”
Echo turned his head and licked her face.
“Gee, thanks.” She swiped at her cheek. Sitting on the floor might be a way to stay safe, but she didn’t like not being able to see what was going on outside. She crawled to the closest window and eased up enough to peer out over the lower sill.
The wind had picked up, the budding tree branches swaying in the wind. She strained to hear other sounds, like that of the gunman, but didn’t. And glancing at Echo, watching his ears twitch, she didn’t think he heard anything either.
Seeing Echo in action earlier had been impressive. The way he’d crowded her, trying to herd her toward the house while she was grabbing the supplies from her car. It was clear the animal had wanted her inside the shack, where he could keep an eye on her and Hudson at the same time.
If she didn’t work twelve-and-a-half-hour-long shifts in the ICU, she’d consider getting a dog. But being left alone that long wouldn’t be fair to the animal. Unfortunately, she was allergic to cats.
The minutes dragged by slowly. She found comfort in the dog’s demeanor, alert yet calm. She felt certain Echo would let her know if something bad had happened to Hudson.
Yet sitting here doing nothing was driving her insane.
After what seemed like forever, Echo’s ears perked forward and his tail began to wag, slowly, then with enthusiasm. She smiled, realizing Hudson would be there any moment.
He came in the front door, and Echo rushed over to greet him, slathering him with doggie kisses. She slowly rose to her feet, resisting the urge to do the same. “Find anything?”
“The spot where the shooter waited.” He met her gaze. “No sign of him now, though. At least not between here and the road.”
“So now what?”
He looked surprised. “I called a tow truck as you suggested. I had three bars out by the road. He’ll be here within thirty minutes with a flatbed trailer. We’ll have him take your car first.”
“Okay, but I meant what about us? What are we going to do next?”
Hudson eyed her thoughtfully. “It’s time for me to get a room at the motel. I like your idea of pretending to leave town, but that won’t work until your car is repaired.” He frowned. “Something the shooter should have considered before vandalizing the vehicles. Neither one of us can leave until they’re repaired.”
“Why do you think he did that? I’ve been trying to understand his angle. The only reason I can come up with is that he wanted us to be stuck out here for a while.”
“Yeah, that is strange.” Hudson shrugged. “And he had to know that we’d find cell coverage to get help.”
“It doesn’t make any sense.” The lack of logic bothered her; although truthfully, she was grateful the guy hadn’t tried to take her and Hudson out while he was writhing in pain. Talk about easy targets.
The tow truck arrived earlier than the promised time frame. He introduced himself as Steve, then scratched his head, looking from her red sedan to Hudson’s Jeep. “What in the world happened?”
“Someone has a sick sense of humor.” Hudson gestured toward her car. “Let’s take care of Kendra’s car first.”
“You got it.” Steve used chains to drag the vehicle up the ramp onto the flatbed. Then he looked at the Jeep. “I’ll come back for that one next.”
“Thanks.” Hudson offered Kendra a hand up into the front seat of the tow truck, then stepped back with Echo at his side. “Steve, will you please do me a favor? I need you to drop Kendra off at her father’s house. I’ll wait here for you to get back.”
“No problem,” Steve agreed.
“Are you sure?” She stared at Hudson, feeling a bit lost at the idea of being alone.
“Your dad should be home from work by now if the power company sticks to regular eight-hour shifts. Stay there until you hear from me, okay?”
“Okay.” She sat back as Hudson slammed the door. As Steve put the truck in gear and headed down the bumpy dirt driveway, she turned to watch out the back window until Hudson and Echo were no longer in sight.
She told herself there was no reason to be afraid. The likelihood of anyone coming after her when she was in a tow truck was slim to none.
But it was more than that. Deep down, she didn’t like leaving Hudson behind. She was becoming far too emotionally attached to him and his faithful companion.
Hudson didn’t like sending Kendra off with the tow truck driver, but he felt certain her father would keep her safe long enough for him to get back into town.
“Let’s go, Echo.” He wanted to take Echo with him to walk the area, hoping the dog might find something he’d missed. His limited vision wasn’t his strength these days, and he wanted Echo to have a chance while there was still plenty of daylight.
“I need you to help me out, buddy,” he said to the dog. “Alert me if someone is hiding nearby.”
Echo eagerly trotted along as he made his way through the wooded area around the shack. Not only was Echo’s eyesight better than his, but the dog’s nose should help him find what he was looking for.
If there was anything to find.
He tried not to worry too much about Kendra, although it wasn’t easy. Three separate attempts to harm her and one act of vandalism indicated someone was truly ticked off about her asking questions about Zoey’s death.
If only he could convince her to head back to Portland. Maybe he needed to get her father involved in that conversation.
The thought cheered him up. Not that he wouldn’t miss her because he already missed her, and she’d only been gone twenty minutes. He told himself to get over it. Because having her safe was more important than anything else.
Including his ridiculous feelings for her.
He owed her a debt of gratitude for watching over him while he was in the throes of the crippling migraine and again for the way she’d eased the remnants of discomfort with her magic hands.
Healing hands.
As he approached the area where he felt certain the gunman had waited, based on the flattened grass beneath the tree and scuff marks in the dirt, Echo lowered his nose and picked up his pace. Hudd had him off leash to give him room to maneuver.
The dog circled the area, a low growl rumbling deep in his throat. Maybe Hudd was giving the dog too much credit, but he rationalized that it was entirely possible Echo had picked up the same scent near the damaged cars.
“Did you find something?” His tone encouraged Echo to keep going.
Echo stuck his nose beneath some brush, his growling growing louder now. Hudd came over to see what had captured the animal’s attention.
At first he didn’t see anything, then Echo pawed at the ground. The dog’s nails raked up a cigarette butt. The entire end of the cigarette was intact, sloppy in his opinion. Anyone in the military would have fieldstripped it before burying whatever was left deep enough where no one would find it.
Someone on the police force should know that much. Then again, it was entirely possible that whoever had halfway buried the evidence may not have taken Echo’s keen nose into account.
Hudson crouched beside the remnant of the cigarette. If this was a true police investigation, he’d ask for it to be tested for fingerprints. At least a partial print would be easily obtained. But based on Andrew Barkley’s reaction to him being there, he felt that would be a useless endeavor. No way was the current chief of police going to run this as evidence of a crime. Not without proof.
Hudd had gotten the impression the guy hadn’t believed Kendra’s story in the first place. Or was trying to cover it up.
Either way was bad news for them.
Hudd lowered himself all the way down onto his stomach to smell it. He was no expert, but the pungent scent of tobacco made him think this had been left recently. Hours rather than days or weeks ago.
The gunman? There was no way to say for sure.
He pulled one of Echo’s poop bags from his pocket and picked up the cigarette butt. He’d keep it, along with the mangled slug, even though he knew they wouldn’t likely be used to prove anything.
At least, not in Eagle. But at the state crime lab in Boise?
Maybe.
“Good boy,” he praised the dog. Echo jumped up, then danced around excitedly. He should have brought one of the dog’s chew toys with him but settled for spending a few minutes playing with the shepherd.
When the dog had been suitably rewarded, Hudd set off to continue walking the property with Echo. Finding nothing of interest, he decided to go all the way back to where they’d found the cave. Echo kept his nose to the ground, but unfortunately, the dog didn’t growl or act as if there was anything else of interest in the area.
Which made sense, as the gunman had kept his distance when firing at them.
He turned and made his way back toward the shack. As much as he wanted to find the spot where the shooter had hidden, he figured Steve, the tow truck driver, would be returning to pick up his Jeep soon.
He headed toward the road, intending to wait there for the tow truck. It was the best place to get phone service in case Steve got delayed.
And he wanted to check out that spot where the shooter had waited too.
The area remained empty, no sign of anyone hiding nearby. He’d been waiting for less than five minutes when his phone rang. Recognizing Steve’s number, he quickly answered. “Foster.”
“Hudson? It’s Kendra. I—uh, didn’t have your number, so Steve let me borrow his phone to call you. I wanted to let you know that I’m fine. I’m at my dad’s house, and he just got home from work.”
“I’m glad to hear it.” He mentally kicked himself for not getting her cell number sooner. Man, he’d been on his own for too long, definitely out of practice when it came to interacting with people.
Especially women. Any normal guy would have gotten Kendra’s number right from the beginning.
He cleared his throat. “Do me a favor and call this number from your phone. That way we’ll have each other’s phone numbers.”
“Okay.” She disconnected from the call. Thirty seconds later, his phone rang again with a different area code. Probably from Portland, Oregon.
“Kendra?”
“Yes. It’s me.” She sounded subdued, and he hoped that didn’t mean she was upset about something. “Steve wanted me to let you know that he’s heading back to pick up your Jeep. We dropped off my car at the local shop first, before he brought me here.”
