Fugitive Pursuit Read online

  Everyone was silent as they traveled through the narrow roads of the city. His fingers were gentle as Zack began tending to her wound.

  Questions burned inside the people around her, she was sure. The passenger watched Zack work. From the corner of her eye, she could see the woman behind them sitting forward with her hands on the backs of their seats. The driver stole a glance through the rearview mirror whenever he could.

  The SUV slowed and turned into an almost deserted parking lot. The big neon letters of a grocery store’s name threatened to fall completely off the billboard. A shopping cart rolled on its own across the lopsided pavement. Out the front window, traffic traveled like normal.

  To the rest of the world, it didn’t matter that someone had shot in her direction a little over an hour ago. She pressed her thumb pad against her lips and willed the moisture to stay away from her eyes. Drew and his cronies had forced enough tears out of her.

  “What now?” she dared to ask. But she needed to know so she could plan her next step.

  Once he’d set the car in Park, the driver turned. His gaze shifted from her to Zack. “Little brother, you finish up, then come outside with us.”

  He, the passenger and the woman behind her all exited the vehicle, then slammed the doors shut. Tension swirled with anxiety inside her. As the others gathered on the sidewalk by the hood of the vehicle, Zack said nothing. Their mumbling voices drifted through the cracked open window, but she couldn’t decipher their conversation. Too often, they glanced inside the SUV.

  Zack brushed some salve on her wound before taping a bandage over it. “How’s it feeling now?”

  She cupped her fingers around the bandage. “It’s not on fire anymore.”

  Zack pressed his palm over her hand. “Good.”

  For several seconds, they locked gazes. Longing swarmed through her belly, but for what she couldn’t be sure. Maybe just for the tenderness he offered. “For someone so tough and intimidating, you have gentle hands.”

  As he replaced items in the kit, he chuckled. “I can’t remember the last time anyone called me gentle.”

  “Thank you.”

  He set the kit on the floor. “Are you kidding? Thank you.”

  With a quick glance back out the windshield, she caught the driver pointing inside to them. “Your driver doesn’t like me much.”

  Zack leaned closer until his shoulder brushed against hers and his scent surrounded her head. “That’s Kyle, my oldest brother. He’s the one with the shrewd head on his shoulders.”

  “And the others?”

  “Parker, my other brother who’s not as obstinate as Kyle, and Jessa, our only female partner. Parker and my sister, the woman you fought the other day, are twins.”

  “What do you think they’re talking about out there?” She nudged her chin toward them.

  “Us.” He sat staring through the window with his lips pressed together. “Sit tight.”

  He slid the door open, hopped out, then closed it again. The other three glanced in his direction as he approached. Jamie imagined muscles tensing as calm words morphed into jerked motions. Several times Kyle, the driver, pointed toward her again.

  Trusting the very people trained to turn her in? A complete mistake.

  She leaned back against the seat and closed her eyes. No more did she want to see accusing glares or fingers.

  A few minutes later, the doors to the SUV opened. As the bounty hunting team reentered the vehicle, Jamie didn’t ask any questions. Truthfully, all the answers they could possibly give scared her and showing fear left her powerless. She had to remain strong or she’d never be able to do right by her sister.

  Everyone took their seats again. Kyle glanced at her through the rearview mirror. “Jamie, tell us why those guys were shooting at you.”

  Her dry mouth stalled. She looked toward Zack. How much should she share?

  “Zack’s told us his version, but we want to hear it from you, too,” Parker, the passenger, added with a bit of kindness in his voice.

  She fingered her necklace, the cross her sister had given her in hopes of assisting Jamie’s return to God. But God had given up on her.

  After taking a deep breath, she retold the public events of her life starting from the day she lost her sister.

  Jessa leaned forward. “I don’t get it, though. Why shoot at you? If they killed you, you wouldn’t be able to lead them to your niece.”

  “They weren’t shooting at me.” Jamie made a point to meet the gaze of each person in the vehicle.

  Parker’s eyes widened for a fleeting second, then he faced the front window. Kyle glanced back to the road. Jessa chewed on her thumbnail.

  “All right. We’ve got to go.” Kyle started the vehicle and pulled into the busy traffic.

  “Kyle, maybe—” Parker began.

  “It doesn’t change anything.” Kyle shook his head.

  Jamie stared out her window with her hands in her lap. Cars rolled along the road, a young couple laughed as they leaned against each other and walked down the sidewalk, a van sat in front of a brownstone with movers unloading furniture. These were normal lives. Would she ever get her chance to participate again?

  Probably not, and after failing her sister, Jamie didn’t deserve one.

  The vehicle turned into a parking lot under a set of beautiful oak trees. The small, rustic building Drew used as his legal headquarters sat with a hill as a backdrop...and two sheriff’s vehicles were parked by the entrance to Ponahochet County Sheriff’s Office. Jamie gripped the edge of the armrests. “What are you doing?”

  No one said a word. None of the others dared to look in her direction.

  “Zack?” Her voice held a desperation she couldn’t hide.

  Kyle parked next to a sheriff’s car.

  Zack reached for her but must’ve thought better of it. Instead, he closed his fingers in a loose fist. “We have to turn you in.”

  Oh, no, no, no. A whirlwind of emotions shot through Jamie. Her feet readied for flight. “You can’t drop me off. Not here.”

  “We have to.” The side door rolled open. From somewhere along the parking lot, birds chirped a happy tune. Other vehicles crunched gravel as they wandered toward the shopping mall down the other end of the block.

  Zack hopped out of the SUV. “Come on.”

  But she didn’t move. Instead, she scanned the others in the vehicle. Once, twice she opened her mouth, but the plea she held in her throat wouldn’t mean a thing to these people. Besides, begging wasn’t her style.

  “Jamie.”

  She climbed out. Zack wrapped his long, firm fingers around her wrist and guided her toward the front doors. With each step closer, panic itched inside her. “Zack, please don’t do this.”

  Even if she managed to break free of his hold, she wouldn’t get far before he grabbed her. Or one of his family members would.

  “I have to. It’s my job.”

  “After I saved your life, this is the way you’re choosing to treat me?” Groveling? Um, what had she just reminded herself about begging?

  “You have a warrant out on you and I’m still a bounty hunter. Turning you in is the right decision.”

  “Who are you trying to convince? Me or yourself?” She stopped them both outside the glass entryway. His fingers pinched the skin of her wrist as she tried to break free.

  “Jamie, please don’t make this harder than it already is.”

  “From the way you listened, the way you took care of me, I thought you believed in the truth.” And Charlotte. If Jamie didn’t return to her friend’s house, would Greta be able to keep the little girl safe? Would Drew eventually find them? And if Erin had gathered any evidence of Drew’s drug business, would Mrs. Cecily be able to help prove Drew was a bad sheriff?

  “I promise we’ll do whatever we can to help you when you go
to court and afterward. We’ll even check on your niece when she goes back with her father, so he knows someone is paying attention.” He reached for the door handle.

  “You don’t understand. If you leave me here, Drew’s won and I’ll never be able to prove he’s responsible for my sister’s death.” Or how dangerous he was even for his own community.

  She pressed her fingers to his forearm. When he turned to her, regret drifted through his face. “Zack, please.”

  For a long moment, he stared at her, as though he still wrestled with his decision. “I’m sorry.”

  She nodded and straightened her spine. “I should’ve known I couldn’t trust you.” She grabbed the handle, pulled the door open and stepped through.

  Deputy George Linden’s droning laugh sailed across the room. He stood with his hands on the secretary’s shoulders, sharing a joke or comment she also found funny.

  Jamie’s feet stalled. George was bad enough, but was Drew here? How much worse could her situation get? What did Zack see when he looked at George, Drew’s best friend? A stocky man wearing the standard brown deputy uniform. A colleague, someone to follow the law like he did. She wished she had some way to reveal George’s blackened heart to the bounty hunter. Maybe then he’d believe her.

  Why couldn’t God let anyone believe her that Drew was bad news?

  Zack nudged her forward across the lobby. George and the woman looked up. A mournful tune leaked out of a nearby radio.

  The deputy rolled his shoulders back. “Jamie Carter.” George wandered around her, as if studying a piece of meat and wondering whether to keep it or throw it away. When he turned to face Zack, he wore one of his politician smiles. “I’m Deputy Linden.”

  Zack hesitated but then shook the other man’s hand. “Zack Owen of Second Chance Bail Bonds.”

  “You’re not from around here.”

  “No, sir. We work in Gilliam, outside of Warwick.”

  George gripped his belt buckle. The muscles of his arms strained the fabric of his uniform shirt. “We’ve been hunting this one for a while now. I know the sheriff will appreciate you bringing her in.”

  “I can call him,” the secretary offered.

  “Not necessary. I’ll be talking to him later.” He turned his attention to Zack. “The sheriff’s out of town at a conference, but he’s due home tomorrow morning.”

  Jamie relaxed her fingers out of tight fists. She’d have a bit of time to come up with a plan. And to delay the wrath of her brother-in-law.

  George narrowed his gaze on her, a whirlwind of threats hidden behind his dark eyes.

  She flinched.

  “Sheriff Timmins is so worried about his kid. And her.”

  “Worried isn’t the word I’d use,” she said under her breath.

  “We’ve told you there’s no way out of this, Jamie.” George’s hand clamped down on her shoulder, the pressure tight. As he spoke, his eyes settled on her arm. “Drew’s willing to work with you to find a peaceful solution to you stealing your niece, but you’ve got to make the effort to be civil.”

  She kept her mouth shut. Arguing with him would only make her head ache and make him feisty.

  George grabbed Jamie’s arm, right above her wound. On purpose, she was sure. She gritted her teeth but refused to cry out. “Mr. Owen, Sharon will get you all set up with the proper paperwork you’ll need to sign.”

  After a skeptical glance in Jamie’s direction, Zack walked to the counter. Sharon’s oversize earrings jingled as she shoved her hand through her shoulder-length, straw-like hair.

  While inching closer to her ear, George clenched her wounded skin. Tight. The pain raced up to her brain and threatened to drop her to the floor. “If I call Drew now, he might cut his trip short. Then your arm injury will be the least of your worries.” The words of his threat cut right through her bravado. The fight in her disappeared a little more with each second.

  As he snickered, he moved his hand to her shoulder, his fingers pinching her skin at the back of her neck. “You may think you’re tough now, but we’ll get what we want and, in the end, you’ll be begging for us to kill you.”

  Jamie’s gaze darted across the room. Zack stared in their direction. Was he having second thoughts?

  Please don’t leave me.

  “Sir, I’ve got one more paper for you to fill out.” The secretary waved a single page in front of Zack. He returned his attention to his duty.

  George guided Jamie toward the thigh-high gate along the counter.

  “We’re just about set here, Deputy.” Sharon shuffled the papers together and slid them into a manila folder.

  George faced Zack and held his hand out. “Thank you, Mr. Owen, for bringing her in.”

  Zack knocked his knuckles on the counter. “You know what? Can I speak with her for one more minute? I want to clarify some information she gave me earlier...about another fugitive.”

  Optimism sparked within her.

  The deputy shook his head. “No, I’m sorry. I need to get her fingerprinted and processed.”

  The men stood facing each other. They were at an impasse.

  Jamie clenched her fists. Don’t give up on me, Zack.

  But the plea remained locked in her mind. The bounty hunter nodded. “All right. You guys have a good night.”

  With each step Zack took toward the exit, one more shard of hope died inside Jamie.

  “Let’s go make a phone call.” George shoved her down the hallway toward the back of the building.

  Once again, Jamie was on her own in a battle she barely knew how to fight.

  * * *

  The pursuit of Jamie Carter was over. All tied up in a neat little bow. After one final look into the hallway, Zack strolled out of the building. But the gnawing in his gut refused to disappear. The deputy hadn’t even asked about the blood on her shirt. And the fear in her eyes... What if Jamie was telling the truth about Linden and her brother-in-law? If so, he’d just handed her over like a used ten-dollar bill. But his brothers had made the decision to bring her to this sheriff’s station. He knew they were legally required to do so.

  Then why did he feel guilty for doing his job?

  He squinted against the bright sunlight while he walked back to his brother’s vehicle. Once he’d climbed in, Jessa asked, “All set?”

  “Yup.” As he settled in his seat and closed the door, he stared out the window. Kyle rejoined the traffic line.

  “It was the right thing to do, Zack.”

  He said nothing. Yeah, from a professional point of view, Kyle was right.

  But the fear in her sparkling eyes...

  Parker twisted around in his seat. “We can have Lily check up on her if you want.”

  “Yeah, okay,” he answered half-heartedly. He should shove Jamie out of his mind. Yes, he cared, but it was because of his love for the law. Her impassioned pleas and the way the fire fizzled within her beautiful expression when he’d signed her over to the deputy had absolutely no effect on him. Let her go.

  * * *

  The uncomfortable feeling in Zack’s gut refused to disappear through the night. Instead, a thread of guilt spun around and around until he could think of nothing else but Jamie—her pretty eyes, her brown hair drifting in the wind, her courage. He hadn’t heard her laugh yet, but maybe it would be contagious.

  The next day, he walked through the front door to work. Lily sat behind her desk, wiggling in her chair to some oldies song. “Morning, Zack.”

  “Hey.” Other than his sister’s music floating from the ancient radio she’d kept from Dad, no sounds filled the room. He hung up the keys on the key rack behind Lil’s desk. “Where is everybody?”

  “They went out on an early run.” Lil swiveled in her chair to the far end of her counter and grabbed a pile of folders. “Here.” She held them out to him. “Kyle said yo
u’d know what to do with these.”

  Pitch them in the garbage? “Great.” Exactly what he wanted to do. He snatched the busywork out of his sister’s hands.

  Lil dropped her chin in her palm and a mischievous grin spread across her face. “Want to go on another run together?”

  “Not after the flak I got from Kyle and Parker for taking you along the other day.” It’s why he’d left her at the office yesterday when he went after Jamie.

  “Come on.” She held up her clipboard. “I put together a list of some skips who would be safe enough. I promise I’ll follow all your directions.”

  He raised his eyebrows. “Like you did at the café? No thanks.”

  Resigned to working in the office again, he headed for his desk.

  All four of them worked in one messy room not far behind Lily. Well, the side he and Kyle occupied had neat piles and dust-free surfaces. Parker and Jessa’s side looked like a tornado blew through it. Folders piled up, loose pages scattered across desks, crumpled papers next to the trash bin, probably from Parker’s pathetic attempts to score a basket.

  Tornado. Blizzard. Hurricane. Raging storms destined to wreak havoc on his world.

  Jamie Carter.

  He stopped in front of his desk and leaned his head back. Why wouldn’t the woman leave his brain alone? God, what are you doing to me?

  “Lil,” he began as he sat in his chair. “Can you call the Ponahochet County Sheriff’s Office and make sure Jamie Carter’s been transferred to see the magistrate?”

  “Got it.”

  He tapped the folders repeatedly on the edge of the desk. He’d get busy with the boring paperwork he had to cover when he had an answer about Jamie. Once the music grew quiet, Lil’s voice took on an official tone for the call.

  A few minutes later, she hung up. “She’s still with Ponahochet Sheriff’s Office.” Her voice sailed in from the lobby.

  He slid the files onto the desk. The music resumed.