Imperfect Justice (34 page)

“That’s odd.” Jared set the phone on the table in case Misty called him right back.

“What’s odd?” Ty replied, pulling his attention from a story their dad was telling them. “Is something wrong? You don’t look happy.”

“Misty should have been back by now.” Jared held up his phone. “And she’s not answering her cell. That’s not like her.”

Ty laughed and shook his head. “She’s fine. Man, you worry too much. She and Rayne are probably planning a baby shower or something. It’s a man’s job to wait for a woman.”

Jared had to concede that when Misty and Rayne were together they could talk and lose track of time. If Rayne noticed the engagement ring on Misty’s hand they might be starting on the wedding plans right now. And isn’t that exactly what Jared wanted? Misty was always telling him he needed to learn patience and there was no time like the present.

Or he could simply take the tongue lashing she’d give him about worrying too much and go down the block and see what was holding them up.

Jared stood pushing back his chair. “I’m going to see what’s keeping them. I’ll be right back.”

“Me too. It’s a great day for a walk,” Gerald Monroe replied, slapping down his glass on the table.

“It’s only two blocks,” Jared protested as Ty looked on with amusement. His younger brother obviously had a feeling something was going on and it was more than a simple family lunch.

His father rubbed his upper arm and smiled. “I’ve been thinking about getting a tattoo. Something to symbolize my life. I’ve been wanting to talk to Rayne about it. She and I can discuss it on the way back.”

His father was thinking about getting a tattoo? What next…a pierced tongue? The staid, serious family patriarch had been acting strangely lately with all the smiling and joking around he’d been doing.

Ty waved them away with a grin. “I’ll hold down the fort. Just get back here quick. I’m starving. I’m likely to go ahead and order for all of you and eat every bite.”

Typical Ty boast. Jared’s brother loved the trash talk more than any of the Monroe boys. “We’ll be back in ten minutes tops. Hopefully we’ll meet them coming here on our way there.”

Back out in the sunshine Jared breathed deeply, enjoying the warm temperature. It had to be a good omen that the day had dawned so beautifully when he and Misty planned to tell their momentous news. He and his father walked down the sidewalk, their long strides eating up the distance quickly. Misty and Rayne were nowhere in sight which gave Jared an unsettled feeling in his stomach. He liked things to run predictably, like clockwork, and when they didn’t…? It made him uneasy. Misty could help him change some things about himself but certain traits in him were so ingrained they weren’t budging.

“The
Closed
sign is out,” Gerald pointed to the large window. “Maybe they already left.”

If that were true they would have run into Misty and Rayne on the way here. Jared walked up close to the window and peered inside. The glare of the sun made it difficult to see but he was able to make out Rayne’s form slumped on the floor, apparently unconscious.

Jared’s heart accelerated and he had to force himself to take a breath as fear coiled in his belly. He couldn’t see Misty and he needed to get inside. Now.

He slapped his phone against his father’s chest. “Call my deputy Knox and tell him to get to the tattoo shop. I’m going inside.”

“I’ll be right behind you after I make the call.” Gerald Monroe took the phone, his lighthearted expression wiped away. His features were now a tense mask of worry and fear.

“No, you stay out here. I don’t want to have to worry about your safety too. There could be someone still in there.”

Jared unholstered his service weapon and tried to pull open the front door but it wouldn’t budge. With a curse he looked around for something to break the glass.

Gerald was hanging up the phone and pointing to an old truck parked at the curb. “Old Larry always keeps tools in the back. I’m sure he won’t mind borrowing for a good cause.”

Jared didn’t give a shit if Old Larry minded or not. If he was upset Jared would buy the man a dozen new tools. Reaching into the back of the truck Jared pulled out a large sledgehammer.

“Step back, Dad.”

A quick appraisal told him that breaking the glass in the door would be safer for Rayne who was slumped in the opposite corner of the shop against a worktable. Jared pulled his hat down low to protect his eyes before swinging the hammer and shattering the glass in the door, shards flying in every direction.

Reaching in the large hole he’d created, he was able to easily reach the lock and flip it open. As soon as he was inside the acrid aroma of gasoline and smoke assailed his nostrils sending his adrenaline into overdrive. His gaze darted around the room but Misty was nowhere to be found. He knelt down beside Rayne to check her pulse, noting with relief it was good and strong.

“I’ve got her, son. You go find Misty.”

Gerald shouldered his middle son aside and Jared didn’t argue. He headed straight for the back room and what appeared to be the source of the smoke. His gaze went first to the leaping flames on the back wall that had eaten into several shelving units but hadn’t spread any farther. Yet.

The room was filled with a haze of smoke that made it difficult to see but he could hear coughing in the distance and he prayed it was Misty.

“Misty,” he called, praying she could hear him, that she would respond.

“I’m here.” He saw something wave through the smoke and bolted straight for her, his heart in his throat. Coughing and choking, he dropped to his knees beside her, his fingers automatically going to the pulse in her neck.

“Rayne?” she asked, the words choked.

“Rayne is fine and with my dad. I’m more worried about you.”

“I’m okay but my wrist is cuffed to the pipe on the wall. I’ve been trying to break the lock with this.” She held up a large smooth rock. “So far…no go. I was getting ready to try using the letter opener as a file.”

Sirens sounded in the distance and Jared heard the shuffle of boots in the front room. The cavalry had arrived but he was closest to Misty.

“I’ve got you, honey. I’m going to get you out of here.” The words came out so gravelly and constricted he wasn’t sure she would understand but she must have as she pressed close to him.

“Lindsey made me cuff myself to the pipe.”

Lindsey
?

“Lindsey Jackson?”

“Yes, she said you took her husbands and child away from her so she was going to do the same to you.”

Lindsey Jackson needed psychiatric help along with a cell next to her husband. Acid born out of anger churned in Jared’s stomach. The woman would pay for what she’d done today.

“We’ve got Rayne out of the building,” a voice that sounded an awful lot like Knox rang out. “What do you need, boss?”

“She’s cuffed to the pipe.” Jared yelled back. “I’m going to try and use my keys but get a saw or an ax just in case.”

“On it,” the voice replied and Jared heard the clomping of boots in the distance.

Jared cupped Misty’s jaw. “Stay with me here. I’ve got cuff keys in my pocket. I’m going to try those.” It felt like knives being thrust into his chest every time he tried to take a breath but he focused solely on freeing Misty from the ever-growing flames that were encroaching, now so close he could feel the heat on his back as the sweat poured off of him.

He fumbled in his back pocket, the darkness making it difficult but not impossible as he pulled the key loose triumphantly.

“I’ve got it, baby. Hang in there for me.”

“I’m scared, Jared. I tried to keep her talking until you came but she left.” Her voice shook with fear and it made him want to pull the goddamn pipe from the wall with his bare hands and scream in frustration. But he couldn’t give in to any of that. She needed him to keep calm and level-headed so they could both get out alive. She’d counted on him to save her and he couldn’t let her down now that he was so close.

“You did real good, honey. Real good. I’m here now and we’re going to get you out. Stay still for me.”

It took several tries before he found the keyhole but it finally slid in and turned just as he’d hoped, the cuff coming loose.

“Got it.” Misty’s arms went around him immediately, holding him with a death grip as if afraid he’d disappear. He wrapped his own around her, pulling her close with a sense of relief. Now that she was free he just needed to get her out.

“Sheriff, I’ve got the ax.” Jared couldn’t see Knox through the smoke.

“She’s free. Let’s get her out of here. Lindsey Jackson did this.”

“Let’s get both of you out of here,” another voice said. Someone – perhaps the person who just spoke – pressed an oxygen make over his face and he fought it, wanting it to go to Misty. The baby.

“She’s got one too, Sheriff. You’re both going to be okay.”

Jared refused to let go of Misty even as the fireman helped them both to their feet and escorted them through the building. The fire had grown and now encompassed a full half of the back room.

Jared clutched Misty to his chest as they both fell to their knees on the sidewalk, the sun blindingly bright after the darkness of the building. Rayne was sitting up on a gurney with an oxygen mask, Jared’s father and Ty at her side.

He needed to know what the fuck had happened but first Misty needed medical attention. An EMT ran to both of them and Jared pointed at Misty.

“She’s pregnant. She needs to go to a hospital and be checked by a doctor.” The last words came out as coughs but the minute he’d said the word pregnant they were already loading her into the ambulance. He grabbed Deputy Knox’s arm.

“Lindsey Jackson did this. Put out a BOLO. Every man on this. Find her. I have to stay with Misty.”

Jared jumped into the back of the ambulance and held Misty’s hand. They weren’t taking her anywhere without him. The doors slammed shut and the engine roared to life. He had so many questions about what had happened today but the only one that counted at the moment was whether Misty and the baby were healthy.

If they weren’t, nothing else mattered.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

J
ared stepped into the smoky, dimly lit bar just outside of Hope Lake. The last few days had been hell and he had just one more thing to do to close the Boyd Hicks case.

Now that Misty was home he was back to work. She’d breathed in enough smoke they’d kept her for observation in the hospital but she and the baby were out of danger. Jared of course had been glued to her side which was why it had taken so long to find Dale Hicks.

“Is that him?” Chris nudged Jared’s arm and jerked his head toward a dark haired man in his mid-thirties but who looked a decade older from too much hard, fast living.

“That’s him. Stay alert. You never know with a Hicks what they’re going to do next. He may not come quietly.”

Slowly Jared and Chris approached Dale Hicks who was currently drinking whiskey and playing pool. The man Dale was with stiffened when he saw them and it must have tipped Dale off that something was happening.

Hicks whirled around, his hand reaching into his waistband but Jared already had the drop on him. He held the gun steady, pointing it at the man’s chest. Chris had already moved toward the friend and was patting him down.

“Got a warrant for your arrest, Dale. Hands on your head.”

Dale just threw back his head and laughed, almost dislodging the toothpick that dangled from his teeth.

“A warrant? What for? I didn’t do shit.”

“Obstruction of justice and accessory to murder,” Jared stated, not letting his complete disgust with the man show. “Lindsey spilled the beans. We know the truth.”

The man’s jaw tightened and the laughter ended abruptly. “Lindsey is a skanky drug whore who wouldn’t know the truth if it slapped her in the face. You can’t believe anything she says.”

“She sounded pretty convincing when she was telling Misty Foster how you provided the gun she used to shoot Boyd Hicks with.”

Dale tossed the toothpick away, his eyes narrowing to slits. “So what if I did? Ain’t no law against helping a woman protect herself.”

“You knew all along that she’d killed Boyd. You covered for her. That makes you an accessory after the fact. You wanted her to kill your brother.”