Outback Blaze, page 32
‘Bunyip Bay Police Station,’ answered Mike.
‘I think Saskia might already have Ruby. We don’t know what kind of weapons she might have on her so let’s prepare for all possibilities.’ He was already turning into the station. ‘Grab O’Leary, the bullet-proof vests and meet me out the front.’
As he leapt from the vehicle, he braced himself for an argument from O’Leary, but credit to the old guy, in the two minutes he allowed himself to brief the others, Sarge didn’t grimace or roll his eyes. And when Drew told them he was taking his bike, Sergeant O’Leary simply nodded.
Drew could get there faster on two wheels and was prepared to break speed limits and road rules to get to her. As he tore down the main street, turned on to the highway, towards the road that led to Annadale, all he could think about was Ruby. Images of their brief time together flashed before his eyes, terrifyingly like people described their moments before death. His whole body trembled as he imagined the unthinkable, imagined how he would feel if Sarge, Mike and he arrived too late.
If that crazy bitch had even laid a hand on her he’d kill her. And it wouldn’t be anything about being in the line of duty, it would simply be about taking revenge on the person who had taken from him the only person who meant anything to him.
Because she did. Oh dammit, she did.
His heart punched his rib cage. He didn’t know if it was love – three weeks seemed like a ridiculous time for someone who didn’t even want a relationship to lose their heart – but the pressure in his chest was like nothing he’d ever felt before. When he almost came a cropper on the Burtons’ gravel drive, he forced himself to push these thoughts aside and focus.
Not wanting to alert Saskia to his arrival, he slowed the bike and stopped about five hundred metres from the cottage. He glanced back down the drive, but there was no sign of the patrol car yet. They couldn’t be far behind but he wasn’t waiting. If he was right and Saskia Vanderbrek was mentally unhinged, he didn’t want to waste time watching the grass grow. His hand automatically went to his gun and although he hoped he didn’t have to use it, it offered a certain comfort. He was glad the police in Australia were armed.
Careful not to make a noise, Drew trod slowly across the uneven terrain, his heart picking up speed with each step closer to the cottage. He saw Roxie tied to a post out front the same moment she saw him. Closing his eyes, he ducked slightly but she tugged against her constraints and neighed in his direction.
‘What was that?’ Saskia spun round to glare out the kitchen window and the paddocks beyond.
‘It’s just Roxie.’ Ruby shifted her legs slightly and placed her palms against the cold checked floor tiles, bracing herself to jump up. ‘She’s probably getting impatient and telling me to hurry up.’
Without replying, Saskia took a step towards the window trying to get a better look. Her knuckles had gone white again as if her fingers were glued around the knife – Ruby wasn’t sure if Saskia had the guts to use it but she pushed that thought aside and used the seconds she looked away to make a dash. Almost slipping on the tiles, she made it a couple of steps before Saskia whirled around.
Her face turned red, her eyes narrowed and she lifted the knife. ‘Where the hell do you think you’re going?’
Ruby didn’t hang around to answer. She yanked open the kitchen door and fled down the hallway wishing she hadn’t closed the damn front door. Saskia’s high-heeled boots stabbed at the floorboards behind her. Ruby didn’t look back as she leapt down the porch steps and charged towards Roxie still waiting by the front fence. Should she run or mount the horse? She’d left her mobile inside, unable to grab it back without alerting Saskia so she couldn’t call anyone for assistance. But if she left Roxie there, would Saskia give up on chasing Ruby and follow through on her threat?
Unable to risk that possibility, Ruby’s decision was made. She might lose time mounting Roxie but the mare could outrun Saskia without even trying. Thank God Saskia doesn’t have a gun. At least Ruby didn’t think she did. Oh shit, what if she does? Her pulse raced even more at the thought.
‘Come back here, bitch!’ Saskia cried.
Ruby flinched at the voice behind her, imagining Saskia catching her and the damage she could do with the knife if in a rage. Yet, just metres away from Roxie, she heard another voice.
‘Police! Don’t move!’
Praise the Lord. She glanced back briefly to see Drew appearing round the side of the porch. He must have been waiting at the side of the house ready to make his move. A lightness filled Ruby but she didn’t stop running. She didn’t want to risk Saskia closing in on her, even with the police presence.
‘I said stop!’ Drew’s angry voice was heard again and his heavy footsteps sounded behind Saskia’s. ‘For fuck’s sake, Saskia, I’ve got a gun.’
As Ruby reached Roxie, she took a chance to look behind and let out a breath of relief – Saskia had leapt over the picket fence and was heading in the opposite direction, down the gravel road.
Drew cursed as he watched her go, but made his way to Ruby. ‘Are you okay?’ He pulled her against him.
Her body melted into him, nothing had ever felt so good, so safe. ‘Yes,’ she gasped, her heart racing more from the adrenalin than the run.
‘Thank God,’ he breathed into her hair.
‘The fire. It was her. It was all her.’
‘I know.’ Drew pulled back slightly and glanced in the direction she’d gone. They could still see her hurtling down the drive towards the Burtons’ homestead, but she was getting away. ‘I’ve got to go after her. Stay here, stay safe.’
He pressed a quick kiss against her mouth and then tore off, dirt kicking up behind him. Ruby watched, her heart kicking over in happiness at the sight of the patrol car coming up the drive. She didn’t want Drew to face Saskia alone. The other woman must have noticed the arrival of back-up because she turned abruptly, leapt over a fence and started charging across a paddock of half-grown wheat. Obviously all that time she’d spent at her posh Claremont gym had come in handy.
Ruby’s hands absentmindedly caressed Roxie as she leaned against the horse, watching as the patrol car skidded to a stop just near where Saskia had jumped the fence. Mike and O’Leary leapt out, leaving both doors open as they charged after her. Ruby had never seen the sergeant move at more than snail’s pace before, but he surprised her now. Granted Mike was in front and Drew was rapidly catching up, but O’Leary’s tubby arms pumped at his side as he gave his best effort in pursuit.
Ruby stood there, her hand against her chest as she tried to catch her breath and silently prayed that they would catch Saskia. It was hard to believe what had just happened and the lengths that Jonas’s sister had gone to destroy her.
Drew had never given chase like this in his life. On the one hand he wanted to catch Saskia more than he’d ever wanted to catch anyone but he also ached to get back to Ruby. His legs burned as he ran to catch up to the others, to catch her. All he could think of was that knife she’d had in her hand as she’d charged out of the cottage after Ruby. He swore he’d almost had a heart attack right there on the spot. He’d stumbled on the porch a moment, giving her the chance to get further away from him and closer to Ruby.
It had been like one of those bad dreams where you needed to run but couldn’t. And then something had snapped inside of him. He’d lifted his gun, aimed and almost fired. It was only the sight of Roxie and Ruby that stopped him – the thought that Roxie might bolt and hurt herself in reaction to the loud noise and the fact he didn’t want Ruby to see him take another life.
But maybe he should have taken a shot anyway because Saskia was a damn good runner. If she got away now, if she continued to be a threat to Ruby he’d never forgive himself. As he caught up to O’Leary he looked sideways and heard the older man puffing and saw that his bright red face looked set to explode.
‘Go back to the car,’ Drew ordered. ‘Circulate Saskia’s description and get everyone to keep an eye out just in case Mike and I can’t catch her.’
‘Gotcha.’ Drawing to a halt, O’Leary placed his hands against his knees and tried to catch his breath. Drew hoped he wasn’t about to have a heart attack – in the end the old guy had impressed him with his drive and stamina – but he couldn’t stick around to make sure. Pushing his legs harder than he ever had before, he sprinted ahead. Mike was about twenty metres in front, and Saskia not much further. Drew had never been the best runner but then again he’d never had such motivation before.
Somehow he pushed past the pain in his legs and the feeling of asphyxiation at his throat and found himself closing in on Mike. He called out again, ‘Police. Freeze,’ and then lifted his gun and fired a shot into the air. Both Mike and Saskia startled. As he’d hoped she made the fatal error of glancing behind her. Mike lunged towards her, flying through the air like a football star diving for the ball. He landed on top of her and she shrieked, thrashing wildly beneath him, screaming obscenities as Drew closed in on them.
It was then he saw the blood gushing from her thigh and realised the knife had plunged into her leg. Dropping to his knees he grabbed her hands that were clawing at Mike’s face and cuffed them above her head.
‘Get off her, Mike. She’s stabbed herself.’
Barely regulating his breathing, Mike struggled off. Somehow, despite the wound, she managed a sharp kick to his groin. Drew winced and Mike swore, but all credit to his colleague because he didn’t bounce around yelping in pain like Drew had expected.
‘Shut up, you silly bitch,’ Mike roared down at her. Frankly Drew would have used stronger words.
‘And stop rolling about,’ ordered Drew. ‘You’re not going to get away now and if you don’t want to bleed to death, you’d better let us help.’
Surprisingly, she stilled, glanced down at her leg and went limp on the grass.
‘Shit,’ said Mike.
‘Call an ambulance. Now.’ Drew pulled the knife’s tip out of her leg, threw it aside and then, swallowing the bile that erupted at the back of his throat at the gush of fresh blood, he tore off his shirt, ripped it into a few strips and racked his brain for whatever they’d taught him in first-aid training about stab wounds.
As fast as he wrapped the strips around her wound, the material turned red.
Chapter Thirty-three
Roxie startled at the sound of a gunshot. Grabbing a hold of the horse’s reins, Ruby rubbed her neck and uttered soothing words, while every organ in her own body shook. She was pretty certain Saskia didn’t have a gun and the cops all did but…What if something had happened to Drew? Her eyes prickled with tears. She’d already lost so much and although she was, in essence, losing him next week anyway, she couldn’t bear the thought of him being hurt. Or killed. Because of her.
Frozen, she listened for another shot but thankfully none came. It seemed like hours since she’d seen the door of the cottage open but it could only have been about an hour. Her foot tapped against the dirt and her fingers caught in Roxie’s mane. Every nerve in her body was on high alert in case Saskia had somehow lost her pursuers and tracked back.
‘We can’t just stay here and do nothing.’
The horse said nothing but Ruby’s decision was made.
‘I need you to stay calm,’ she said softly to Roxie. ‘We’re going to go for a little ride.’ Part of her thought she was being one of those too-stupid-to-live movie heroines but she needed to know what was going on. As she mounted Roxie and looked down the gravel road in the direction they’d gone she saw O’Leary climbing into the police car.
Although he wasn’t the cop she’d most trust with her life, she felt safer simply seeing a uniform and urged Roxie towards him. He stopped and wound down his window but before he could speak, the in-car radio crackled and he snapped his head to the sound. Mike’s voice punched out. At his mention of a knife wound, Ruby tightened her grip on the reins. With the feeling of cold water washing over her, she breathed a sigh of relief when she heard Saskia was the one who was injured. She almost asked about the gunshot but if anyone had been hurt, Mike would have mentioned it.
‘The ambulance is already on the way,’ Mike said. ‘Drew’s doing the best he can while we wait.’
O’Leary nodded. ‘All right, I’ll head to the main road so I can direct them. I guess you heard all that,’ he added as he looked up at Ruby.
‘Yes.’ Relief flooded through her. She leaned forward and pressed a kiss against Roxie’s neck. They had Saskia. The nightmare was over.
O’Leary barked a few more orders and then turned the patrol car, red dirt splattering up behind him as he hooned to meet the ambos. Ruby had the feeling he’d barked an order to stay where she was or head back to somewhere safe but since she hadn’t actually registered anything he’d said, she chose to ignore whatever he had said.
Stopping only to open the gate that neither Saskia nor the police had bothered with, Ruby tried to tamp down her impatience as she directed Roxie. She didn’t want to push her when she was already on edge from the gunshot. After riding on further than she imagined they could have gotten on foot, she saw Drew and Mike kneeling on the ground.
Saskia lay lifeless between them.
Ruby’s heart clenched at the sight. She didn’t want Jonas’s sister dead, just out of harm’s way in some kind of secure hospital where she could get professional help. Or prison – that would be good too. She approached with caution, but Mike looked up and came to meet her.
‘Is she still alive?’ she asked.
He nodded. ‘The wound isn’t too bad. Drew reckons she fainted at the sight of her own blood.’
Neither of them said another word as Drew monitored Saskia but they all breathed a collective sigh of relief when the ambulance appeared thundering across the paddock. O’Leary followed in the patrol car. Ruby urged Roxie back out of the way as the ambulance officers rushed from the van. They dropped to the ground next to Drew and Saskia. Drew briefed them on what had happened and the first aid he’d given, then he stepped away from the action.
He stood there in nothing but trousers and his weapon belt, rubbing his blood-covered hands violently against his legs as he stared off into the distance. Ruby wondered if he were some kind of shock after dealing with Saskia’s injury. Mike and O’Leary were deep in conversation, so Ruby slid down off Roxie, told her to stay, hoped she’d listen, then crossed the dirt to Drew.
‘Hey, you okay?’ She placed her hand gently against his arm.
He turned slowly, let out the longest breath and looked her up and down as if seeing her for the first time. He stood like a wooden soldier but his words were raw with emotion. ‘I thought she was going to hurt you. I couldn’t bear it. I couldn’t bear the idea of losing you.’
‘I’m fine.’ Her own voice shook in reply.
‘I’m not.’ He shook his head and went to scrape his fingers through his hair but realised at the last minute he had blood on his hands. His fingers curled into fists. ‘I don’t think I can do it.’
Ruby frowned. ‘Do what?’
He sighed and glanced again at his hands. ‘Damn this blood, I want to hold you.’ He looked around as if looking for somewhere he could clean himself, but finally settled on shoving his hands into his pockets.
‘Do what?’ she asked again.
He sighed. ‘I’m probably crazy and selfish to even think about it, but I can’t go back to England without you.’
Ruby’s breath caught in her throat. Could she dare to hope his feelings for her had grown into something more than lust? ‘You want me to come with you?’ She’d do it in a second.
‘Yes. No. I don’t know.’ His gazed down at her, his eyes glistening with what looked to be unshed tears. ‘All I know is that I don’t want to be without you. Saskia’s actions made me contemplate a world without you in it and it wasn’t a place I wanted to be. I’ve already lost my best friend and my family, what kind of idiot would I be to let you – the best thing that’s ever happened to me – slip through my fingers?’
‘Oh Drew.’ She reached her hand up to cup the side of his face and ran her thumb slowly over his two-day stubble. ‘Do you mean it?’
He nodded. ‘You probably shouldn’t take me. As I’ve warned you before, relationships and I have a bad track record, but I swear I’ve never felt like this about anyone else. It’s always all been about work, about putting criminals behind bars to somehow live the life Ian never could.’
He turned his face and pressed his lips against the palm of her hand. ‘I can’t do that anymore. Working at the expense of everything else won’t bring Ian back – it’s never filled the gap he left inside me – but you, you Ruby, have. I think I’ve fallen in love with you.’
Ruby couldn’t speak, her heart overflowing with emotion. Drew took her silence as hesitation.
‘You don’t have to say it back,’ he rushed on. ‘I know it’s only been a couple of weeks and I understand if you don’t feel the same but I’m not done with you yet. I’ll never be done with you. Quite aside from the fact I can’t get enough of you, you haven’t taught me to cook yet.’
She laughed as tears eased themselves out of her eyes. ‘Will you just shut up and let me get a word in?’
Smiling, he nodded.
She reached up and placed her hands on his shoulders. ‘I love you. If I didn’t I would have broken things off the moment you told me you were going back to England, but I couldn’t. I knew I’d be heartbroken when you left but I wanted whatever you could give.’
‘I want to give you everything. I’m petrified that I’ll stuff this up and break your heart, but I’m even more scared of not trying.’
‘Drew,’ she whispered, ‘you know how you proved to me I’m not a total dud in bed?’
