Chapter Seventeen
Katherine forced herself to look at Caleb, expecting her own exploding pain to register at any moment. Everything had happened so fast, her brain almost couldn’t catalog the sequence. Both he and the man on him lay still. Blood. There was so much blood.
Please move, Caleb. Get up.
He didn’t.
Hopelessness engulfed her. If he was dead... Oh, God... She couldn’t even think what she would do without him.
Tears sprang from her eyes. She doubled over. Her world imploded around her. She’d finally invested herself and fallen in love. Now he was dead. Just like her parents. Just like her sister.
Leann.
Noah was sick. Would he die, too?
A hand gripped her shoulder, pulling her upright. Cold metal poked her back. She jerked away, spun around and stared into the blackest set of eyes she’d ever seen. “You killed him. This is your fault. You caused me to drop my son, too. That won’t be forgiven.”
Through blurry eyes she searched for Noah. He’d been placed on a seat in the SUV. The door was open.
Her gaze flew to Matt’s lifeless body.
“He’s still alive. For the moment. Make another move and he’ll be dead, too,” Kane said into her ear, disarming her. “You’re going to pay for what that bitch sister of yours tried to do to me. I loved her. I treated her like a queen. Look what she did.” He waved his gun around, and then pressed the metal barrel against Katherine’s temple. “I never would’ve known if she hadn’t gone and gotten herself killed. I pieced it together when I was going through her things. Nobody betrays me and gets away with it.”
She squeezed her eyes shut.
“Now move,” he growled.
Every muscle in her body stiffened as she forced herself by sheer will to walk. He pushed her toward the barn. The man behind her directed her actions. This was something new to fear. A crazed psychopath who wanted to do more than kill her. He needed to see her suffer.
“You won’t get away with this,” she said in the dark. His icy fingers gripped her neck. Her body convulsed. She could feel his hot breath on her.
“I’m going send you to meet that bitch sister of yours in death. But first, you’re going to watch that boyfriend of yours burn.”
Katherine’s heart shriveled. The air thinned. She struggled to take a breath. She refused to believe Caleb was gone and her life would end like this. That Noah would be brought up by this monster. There had to be a way out.
He tossed her into a stall and on top of a bale of hay. She popped up. “The cops are coming. They’ll arrest you. Hurting me won’t help your case. It’ll only make it worse. If you leave now, you can disappear. They won’t find you if you stay out of the country.”
“Be still, kitten.” He knocked her down, forced her hands behind her back and tied them together. “I have no plans to rot in jail. Time to get rid of the evidence.”
Her body shuddered at his touch. She kicked as hard as she could, connecting with his shin multiple times.
He flinched and slapped her across the left cheek. Katherine’s head jolted. It felt as though her eye would explode. A fresh course of adrenaline pumped through her.
“You’re about to learn something.” A wicked grin spread across his lips. “Look at me.”
He touched her cheek with the back of his hand. “She favored you. So beautiful.” He shook his head. “She could have had anything she wanted. I would have given her the world.”
His lips thinned. His gaze narrowed. “Now you all die.” He shook his head. “What a waste.”
Katherine struggled against her bindings. The rope cut through her flesh. She ignored the pain, trying to loosen the ties.
A hysterical laugh brought her focus back to Kane.
“Stay here, little one. I’ll be right back.”
Maybe Katherine could free herself before he returned. Her body convulsed. Yet she couldn’t budge the ropes. Kicking did no good, either.
It felt as though Kane had been gone for eternity when he finally showed up, dragging a bloody lifeless body.
Her heart beat against her ribs in painful stabs.
Caleb.
“One more to go and I’ll finally be rid of you all,” Kane said before he disappeared again.
Where was the sheriff? His men?
Katherine’s gaze frantically searched for any sign of life in Caleb. She knew it was too much to hope he was still alive. Yet she had to be sure. She watched his chest for signs of movement. His broad chest rose and fell.
Or was she seeing what she wanted to?
Was he unconscious?
Katherine could’ve sworn she just saw Caleb surveying the area. Were his eyes open?
Yes. Definitely so. Her heart soared at the realization Caleb was alive. He brought a finger to his lips, the universal sign to keep quiet.
Matt was dragged in next. Katherine wanted to scream. She fought harder against the ropes.
Kane positioned Matt next to Caleb and threw a few fistfuls of hay on top of them. Her pulse beat in her throat. She was sure a red heat crawled up her neck. She put all her focus toward Caleb.
Kane hovered over Katherine. She kicked and threw her arms at him, trying to fight. He held out a match over the heap.
She looked toward the man she loved one more time. One wrong move and Kane would shoot. She needed to stall. To get his attention. She looked up at him. “Leann wouldn’t want this. She never meant to hurt you. The Feds must’ve forced her to turn against you. I know she loved you.”
Kane’s laugh was haughty and arrogant. He trailed his finger along her jawline, and she saw Caleb’s hands fist. Hope filled her chest.
“You are almost as beautiful as Leann,” Kane said. “She was a free spirit. You, on the other hand, are a bit uptight. Even so, I could make you moan. The things I would like to do to you before I watch you burn....”
Allowing him to touch her and talk about her sister in that way nearly killed her.
He smoothed his hand across her red cheek. “I wish you hadn’t made me do that to you.”
Kane’s dark eyes homed in on her. He brought a match to life with a flick of his nail and dropped it next to Caleb.
The moment Katherine moved, Caleb was on top of Kane. With a few quick jabs to the head, Kane’s body slumped on top of her, pinning her to the ground. He was unconscious, but for how long?
A scream escaped before she could get her bearings and push him off. “I thought you were...”
“I’ll be fine. I took a blow to the head. Scrambled a few things. Took a minute to shake. By the time I got my bearings again, I was being dragged to the barn.”
She struggled against the ropes on her wrists, tears falling down her cheeks. When Caleb helped free her, they pulled Matt to his feet. He shook his head. Disoriented, he didn’t seem able to hold his own weight.
“Help him outside.” Caleb handed over Jones’s cell. “Call 9-1-1. I have to put out the fire before it spreads.”
Katherine dialed the emergency number as she bore some of Matt’s heft, and walked outside the barn.
After giving her location and details to the operator, she helped Matt ease onto the ground.
A moment later, Caleb dashed to her side, a fire extinguisher in his hands. “It was contained. Didn’t take much to put it out.”
“The police are on their way.” Katherine looked to Matt. “He’s hurt, but conscious.”
Max was at the door to the tack room. He stood sentinel, barking wildly.
Caleb’s autumn-brown eyes pierced through her as he set the extinguisher down and told her to wait for him.
“No. I’m going with you,” she insisted with a glance toward Matt.
He motioned for her to go.
Kane was moving toward the back of the tack room, trying to escape. He rounded on them.
Caleb shielded her with his body, pulling a gun from his waistband. Kane launched himself toward them. The gun fired as the two landed on the ground.
In a quick motion, Caleb straddled Kane. Blood was everywhere.
Panic momentarily stopped her heart. “Are you shot?”
He shook his head.
Kane gurgled blood before his gaze fixed and his expression turned vacant.
She dropped to her knees. Max ran to her. She cradled him. “It’s over.”
Caleb guided her to her feet where the little dog followed. “Let’s get Noah.”
His hand closed on hers as he led her outside.
Matt stood, still weak, and Caleb took some of his weight.
Another bolt of lightning cut across the sky as a droplet of rain fell.
An SUV was gone. Only the man who’d been shot remained, lifeless on the ground.
By the time they reached Noah, his face was pale. Katherine picked him up and hugged him. He let out a yelp.
Katherine embraced him tighter. “Oh, baby. You’re safe.”
His brown eyes were wide and tearful.
Caleb stood next to her. “Okay, little man. We’re going to get you to the hospital.”
Noah nodded. His bottom lip quivered as tears welled. He was too tired to cry. Not a good sign.
“Did the men bring your medicine, baby?”
He shook his head.
His breathing was shallow, and Katherine realized it was probably the reason he wasn’t bawling. He didn’t have the energy, which meant he needed medicine right away.
“You’re safe,” she repeated over and over again, hugging him tightly into her chest. He was fading, and she knew it. “Can you check the car for his medicine, Caleb?”
They searched the vehicle, pulling out the contents of the console and glove box, looking for the life-saving drugs.
Rain starting coming down in a steady rhythm as Katherine held on to her nephew, whispering quiet reassurances that he would be okay.
He
had
to be fine.
She glanced at Caleb and tensed at his worried expression. Noah’s eyes rolled back in their sockets; he was losing his grip on consciousness.
“An ambulance is on its way. So is Coleman,” Caleb said.
Katherine’s tears mixed with rain, sending streaks down her face. “Come on, baby. Stay with me.”
Her shoulders rocked as she released the tears she’d been holding far too long. They came out full force now. “When will that damn ambulance be here?”
She kissed Noah’s forehead. His face was paler than before. His skin was cool and moist to the touch. Her heart thudded in her chest. “Caleb. Oh, God. Nothing can happen to him. Not now.”
“The keys are still in the ignition.” He hopped in the driver’s side and motioned for her to climb in the passenger seat.
The SUV started on the first try. He glanced back at Matt. “Wait here for the sheriff?”
“Yes. Now go,” Matt said.
Caleb glanced at his friend again.
“I’m fine. Get out of here.”
The engine roared as Caleb gunned it.
Sirens and lights brought the first spark of hope.
Caleb flashed the headlamps as they cut off the ambulance at the top of the drive.
He hopped out of the driver’s seat and crossed his arms over his head to signal they needed help. A paramedic scrambled out of the passenger seat as Katherine ran toward him with Noah in her arms. “Help him, please. He’s not breathing. He has asthma and may not have had medicine in a few days.”
A paramedic took him from her arms and ran to the back of the ambulance as she followed. His hands worked quickly and efficiently.
“Has the patient been to the emergency room or used EMS in the past twenty-four to forty-eight hours?” he asked, not looking up.
“No. He was kidnapped. His skin was pale and his breathing shallow when I found him.” A flood of tears spilled out of Katherine’s eyes and into the rain.
Caleb’s arm came around her, reassuring her. Protecting her.
The paramedic shot a sympathetic look toward her. “I’m going to administer a dose of epinephrine.”
Another ambulance whirred past.
Matt.
She turned to Caleb. “Go. Be with your friend. I have this covered. I know how worried you are about him.”
Caleb’s head shook emphatically. “I won’t leave you to deal with this all by yourself.”
There was that cowboy code again. “He’s your best friend. And I need to know if he’s going to be okay. I want you to check on him for both of us.”
She could almost see the arguments clicking through his mind. How torn he had to be. “I’m serious. Go. I’m safe and Noah’s getting the help he needs.”
The paramedic started an IV and bagged him. “We’ve got to get the boy to the hospital. You can ride in the front,” he said to Katherine before turning to Caleb. “You can follow behind in your vehicle.”
“I’ll go with Noah. You stay with Matt. I’ll meet you at the hospital,” Katherine said, determined. She was fine with Noah and he needed to make sure his friend was okay.
“I know that stubborn look. I’d rather stay with you but I won’t argue,” Caleb agreed, looking more than reluctant.
She gave him a quick kiss as he helped her into the passenger seat.
* * *
C
ALEB
DROVE
LIKE
a bat out of hell down the drive. He parked the SUV and went to his friend.
Matt had an oxygen tube under his nose, and his forehead had been cleaned up from all the blood. His cut wasn’t as bad as it had first looked.
Matt blinked up at Caleb. “What the hell are you doing here?”
“Checking on you.”
Matt issued a grunt. “I’m not the one who needs you.”
“Try telling her that,” Caleb quipped.
Sheriff Coleman roared up and jogged toward them. “Sorry I’m late. I got called away to another county on an emergency. Got there and they said they never made the call.”
“I’m sure you’ll need a statement, but I have to get to the hospital and check on the little boy,” Caleb said.
Coleman took Caleb’s outstretched hand and shook it. “I can always drop by tomorrow if you’d like. Sounds like you guys have had one hell of a night already.”
He nodded.
“I spoke to Dallas PD to make sure you were no longer a person of interest in their murder investigation,” Coleman said with a tip of his hat. “You’re fine. I’ll get this mess cleaned up and be out of here before you return.”
“Much obliged, Sheriff.” The last thing Caleb wanted to do was to bring Katherine home to reminders of the horrors she and Noah had endured.