Snowfall on Haven Point (29 page)

For an instant, she was tempted to slip back outside the way she had come, to return to her car, where she could call for help. That was the safe choice, the logical one.

But Marshall was in there.

The man she loved.

Someone had tried to kill him a little more than a week ago, then had tried to hurt him just a few days earlier at the Lights festival. What if he was in danger again?

If that were the case, what could she do about it?
the rational, cautious side of her brain was quick to ask. She was an artist, a mom. Yes, Wyn had taught her six or seven Krav Maga self-defense moves. Learning a few basic maneuvers to protect herself and her children had felt wonderfully empowering at the time, but she was by no means an expert—and right now the thought of using an eye strike or an outside chop filled her with slick, greasy nausea.

She could do this. To protect him, she would do whatever was necessary. She set down her purse so she would have both hands, then suddenly remembered. She might not need to do Krav Maga. She had a Taser, for heaven's sake.

Heart pounding, she dug through her purse, worked the latch on the child-safe bag and pulled out her Taser and the pepper spray, just in case. She shoved the pepper spray in her pocket, and with both hands on the stun gun, she inched closer to the kitchen.

Her stealth seemed to take forever, but finally she was close enough to see inside the room. Marshall stood near the outside door, and across the width of the kitchen, the woman she had met at the Lights festival—Jackie Scott, she remembered—faced him, holding an ominous-looking black revolver in hands that shook as much as Andie's did right now.

In an instant of blind panic, she could focus on nothing but the gun and she had a flashback to that night in her living room when she had been certain she would die, when Rob had held a gun to her chin with deadly intent in his eyes.

Breathe, Andie.
She forced herself to look again. This was different. The woman wasn't pointing the gun at Marshall. She was pointing it at herself.

She hadn't seen Andie yet, she realized—but Marshall knew she was there. His glance flicked toward her and she saw a wild surge of panic in the blue depths, then he looked quickly away. He was trying not to draw attention to her.

Always, always protective.

The woman was obviously having a breakdown of some sort. She was babbling something about not wanting to go to jail, about her son, about being sorry.

“Come on, Jackie. Give me the gun. You don't want to die, right?”

She frowned at him. “Yes. Yes, I do. It's better than jail.”

“Dead is dead. You can't fix anything then, only bring more pain to those who love you. Come on, give me the gun.”

To Andie's horror, Jackie pointed the gun at Marshall. It wobbled back and forth with her trembling, but she was only ten feet away from him. At that distance, it would be tough to miss.

“I told you to stay back,” she said. “You can't stop this.”

He was going to try anyway, Andie realized at once. Like Jason, he intended to try saving someone who didn't want to be saved. His muscles were tensed, ready. He shifted all his weight to his left leg and crutch.

His gaze flickered to where Andie waited in the hall and he inclined his head slightly, telling her without words to get out.

He intended to take on a delusional woman holding a handgun, armed with only an aluminum crutch.

Oh, she loved him. In a stunning moment of clarity, she realized a big part of the reason she loved him was
because
he would always be ready to step up, to help where he was needed, no matter the personal cost.

She couldn't let him risk his life. Not this time, at least.

Heart pounding, she armed her Taser and eased into the room. She could do this. She had practiced repeatedly and knew just where to aim. The big downside of a Taser, of course, was that she had only one shot, but she would keep the pepper spray ready just in case.

If she were trained in law enforcement, she would probably have to announce herself and order the woman to put down her weapon or something.

Good thing she was simply a woman trying to protect the man she loved.

From here, she had a perfect shot at the woman's back—the spot she knew from the training she underwent when she purchased the Taser was the absolute most effective place to aim a Taser, as a hit to the large muscle groups there was most likely to result in neuromuscular incapacitation.

She held her breath, took aim and—guided by the laser sight—fired. The two electrodes shot out almost soundlessly and found their target. Instantly, Jackie collapsed like a thousand-pound sandbag had just dropped on her, as every muscle holding her upright contracted.

Andie dropped the Taser—still connected to the convulsing woman by the wires—and rushed forward to pick up the handgun just as the hallway behind her seemed to explode with people.

Cade Emmett was at the front of the line, leading EMTs and a few other police officers from his department. “What happened? Is she having a seizure?” he demanded.

Marshall looked as stunned as if Andie had reloaded and fired at
him
.

“Andie tased her three seconds before you came in.”

“Seriously?” Cade gave her an appraising look.

“It worked, didn't it?” she said. “The electrical charge will continue for a full thirty seconds. I think she has about fifteen more. Here. Take this.”

She gave the handgun to Cade, then went straight to Marshall and threw her arms around him. He was safe and warm, and she never wanted to let go.

The sudden impact rocked him back a little on his crutches, but his arms came around her and held her tight. “That was amazing.
You
were amazing,” he said.

She had debated even purchasing the weapon, worried she wouldn't be able to actually fire on a human being in a stressful situation. When it came to protecting those she loved, apparently she could.

“What can you tell us about the situation that would help the EMTs?” Cade asked. “This is Jackie Scott, your admin, right?”

Marshall didn't release his hold on her. She knew it couldn't possibly be comfortable for him, balancing on the crutches, but he didn't seem to want to release her. Andie decided she wasn't going anywhere.

“Yes. She took some kind of medication, but she wouldn't tell me what. I don't know what time she took it, only that it seemed to really kick in about ten minutes after she showed up, slurring her speech and slowing her movements. Whatever it is, I don't think she took a fatal dose—on the other hand, she also sustained a full center of mass electric current straight into her back, too, so I can't say how the two things will interact. She was trying to kill herself.”

“Any idea why she chose Wynona's kitchen as the location where she wanted to kill herself?”

Andie felt Marshall's chest move as he gave a long exhale. “Apparently she wanted to apologize to me before she killed herself. She was driving the SUV that hit me.”

Andie lifted her head to stare at him. Now she
really
had no qualms about tasing the woman. If she had the chance, she might even want to shove in her backup cartridge and do it again.

Who knew she could be so bloodthirsty?

“Your secretary is the one who ran you down? Why?”

“It's a long story,” Marshall said. He sounded tired and sore and, if she wasn't mistaken, deeply sad. She hugged him harder, and after a startled moment, his arms tightened around her in return.

“She wanted to keep me from coming into work so I didn't link her to embezzlement in the department,” he said to Cade. “I think she knew we were close and decided she would rather die than go to jail.”

“Sounds to me that's where she belongs, but we'll get her to the hospital first and stabilize her condition. I'll need full statements from both of you, but why don't you go into the other room and sit down while the EMTs take care of things here? You're probably ready to fall over, aren't you?”

“No. We're good here, as long as we're out of the way.”

The police chief didn't seem to care, returning to talk to his other officers as the EMTs began to load Jackie onto a gurney and wheel her out. Jackie spotted Marshall as the EMT was rolling her out and started sobbing harder. “I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I'm sorry,” she moaned repeatedly.

Marshall gestured for the stretcher to stop and he approached her on his crutches. He reached down and squeezed her hand in a gesture of compassion that brought tears to Andie's eyes.

“I know you were trying to help your boy. I get it,” he said. “I just wish you'd come to me first instead of handling things the way you did.”

“I'm sorry,” she mumbled again. “I don't want to go to jail, Sheriff.”

“Just focus on getting better right now. There were extenuating circumstances. We'll get you a good attorney and go from there.”

Andie didn't want to feel sorry for the woman. She could have killed Marshall and had caused him severe pain. But it was difficult not to experience some empathy as the EMTs rolled her out, still crying.

When they left, Cade handed the Taser back to Andie with the probes reloaded. “You'd better hang on to this. I don't think we need to keep it in evidence,” he said. “Anyway, we know where to find you if we need to take a look at it again.”

“Will she be all right?” Andie asked.

Cade shrugged. “The hospital will probably pump her stomach, unless she can tell us what she took and how much.”

He took their statements in the den with a crisp efficiency she appreciated. Ten minutes later he was on his way to the hospital to talk to Jackie and the house was empty again except for the two of them.

She felt nervous suddenly, which seemed ridiculous after everything that had just happened.

“How are you doing?” Marshall asked.

“I don't feel like I need to throw up anymore, so that's good. How about you?”

He was quiet. “I wouldn't mind just holding you again.”

That was exactly what she needed. Without hesitation she rose from her chair adjacent to the Christmas tree her children had decorated and onto the sofa next to him. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her halfway across his lap, then buried his face in her neck.

He was trembling. Her big, tough, wonderful sheriff was trembling. When he spoke, his voice was rough. “I've never been so scared in my entire life as when I saw you standing there in the hall when Jackie was waving that .38 Special around.”

Wasn't it just like him, to be scared for her but not for himself? “Nothing happened. We're both okay. It sounds like Jackie will be okay, too. At least now you know who hurt you.”

“That was some serious kick-ass Taser action.”

“Not much to it. Just aim and fire at the red dot.”

A low laugh rumbled through him. “You did it, though. Some people wouldn't have the nerve, but you just marched right in and went for center of mass. Remember last night when I told you I thought you were the most courageous woman I've ever met? Yeah. That.”

She swallowed hard. She had a long way to go before she could fulfill that expectation of herself, but she wasn't about to argue with him.

“I lost my head when she moved the gun from herself to you. I couldn't let her hurt you.” She paused, her pulse abnormally loud in her ears. “Not before I had the chance to tell you how much I love you.”

She heard his quick intake of breath against her and lifted her gaze to find him looking down at her with a fierce, wild joy.

“What happened to me being the worst possible man in Haven Point for you? I know you don't want to be with another LEO, and I get it, I do. I don't know how to change that. I can try to do something else, but I'm afraid I would be miserable.”

That he would even consider doing something else touched her deeply. A soft, sweet peace seeped through her, pure and lovely and healing. There simply wasn't room for both love and fear in the same heart, she thought.

“Tonight when you were ready to launch yourself at her, broken leg and all, I realized I can't separate that protector out. I wouldn't, even if I could. It's part of you—a huge part. Without it, you wouldn't be the man I love.”

His eyes darkened with emotion and he lowered his mouth to hers. The tenderness in the kiss staggered her.

“I love you, Andrea. You should know, I've never said that to a woman before. I've never even wanted to. Only you.”

She couldn't say the same—nor would she have wanted to. She had loved another man first. Jason had come into her life at the perfect time, to show her for the first time in her life that she was someone worthy of love.

Their marriage hadn't been perfect, but it had produced two amazing children and had helped her become the woman she was now, someone strong enough to be deeply grateful that she'd been given the chance to love again.

She kissed him and they stayed in the embrace, kissing and touching by the twinkling lights of the Christmas tree her children had decorated, until she was restless and achy and they both were breathing hard. This was not a bad position for a man with a broken leg, she decided. They could certainly figure out how to improvise...

The alarm on her phone suddenly went off and she groaned. “That's telling me I have ten minutes before I have to go pick up Chloe at the bus stop,” she said.

He made a sound that somehow managed to mingle disappointment and understanding. His mouth found hers again, but right before he kissed her, he drew back, his eyes wide. “With everything that's happened, I can't believe I haven't told you yet!”

“Told me what?” she asked, sitting up beside him and trying to run a hand through the hair he had messed.

“It's been one hell of an afternoon. I had only been back at the house fifteen minutes when Jackie came over. Before that, I was next door, talking to Herm and Louise and to Christopher.”