Laying Down the Law (3 page)

Now, Cord made eye contact with Karina. Their gazes held for a few intense seconds. “When you get out, start running as fast as you can and don’t look back.”

Chapter Three

Their situation had gone from bad to much, much worse.

Cord wasn’t sure if he could get Karina and the paramedics out of there alive. Still, he had to try because he didn’t have many options here.

“Stay out of the ditches,” Cord reminded them.

Maybe their attacker had lied about putting explosives on both sides of the road, but it was too big of a risk to take. Especially since there had indeed been explosives somewhere near the ambulance. Where exactly those explosives had been placed, Cord still didn’t know, and he didn’t have time to find out if there were others.

Cord stepped out of the ambulance. Not easily. He’d been banged up when they’d been tossed around. No broken bones, thank God, but he’d have bruises, and he was still recovering from injuries he’d gotten last month, thanks to the Moonlight Strangler. Those bruises and injuries made themselves known when he pivoted, looking for the idiot who’d done this to them.

No sign of anyone.

But at the moment the bomber wasn’t even his main concern. It was the thin line of fire snaking its way from the side of the road toward the ambulance. The fire line was too narrow and straight to have been spilled randomly or have leaked out from the ambulance.

Which meant their attacker had set it.

Probably before they’d even arrived at this point on the road.

In addition to the smoke from the fire trail, there was white steam spewing from what was left of the ambulance engine. Normally, he wouldn’t have considered that a good thing, but he did now. Because the steam and the smoke just might conceal them enough so their attacker wouldn’t be able to gun them down when they made a run for it.

“Stay low and move fast,” Cord told them, doubting either of the paramedics could do that last part.

He had to keep watch, but he reached behind him, and with his left hand, he hauled out Karina. The paramedics followed after her, and once they all had their feet on the ground, Cord got them moving.

Away from the spot where he’d last seen the man in the ski mask.

Away from the ambulance.

That meant jumping the ditch. Again, it wasn’t easy. Everyone was limping, hurt, struggling. But Karina and the paramedics all had a clear sense of how critical it was to put some distance between them and the fire.

Cord sure had a clear sense of it.

“Try to make sure the ambulance and steam hide you as much as possible,” Cord added.

They each crossed the ditch while Cord kept watch. Still no signs of their mask guy or of Jericho. Cord figured both were out there, though. The trick would be to avoid another attack before backup arrived and not hit Jericho or one of the deputies with friendly fire.

He braced himself for shots to come right at them. After all, their attacker was armed. But no shots came. Nor were there any sounds that the man was about to launch another attack. Just the stench of the smoking rubber tires and the gasoline.

Cord was the last to jump the ditch, and as soon as he was on the other side, he hurried the others into a cluster of trees. Not ideal cover since someone could sneak up on them, but if the ambulance did explode, then they’d at least stand a chance of being protected from flying debris.

“Get down on the ground,” he told them. “And stay low.”

Again, not easy. The paramedic with the head wound tried to muffle his groans of pain, but he didn’t quiet manage it. Worse, he was still bleeding, and even though Karina was trying to add some pressure to the gash, he was losing a lot of blood.

“The killer wants me,” Karina whispered. “If he has me, you and the paramedics might be safe.”

Hell, no. Cord knew where this conversation was about to go, and he nipped it in the bud. “You’re not going out there. He wants us all dead. That’s why he set those explosives.”

That was possibly true anyway. Obviously, the blast hadn’t killed them, so maybe this was all part of some sick plan to get them in the open.

If so, it’d worked.

They were indeed in the open with only one gun among them and a likely copycat killer ready, willing and able to do them all in.

“Just stay down,” Cord snapped to Karina when she lifted her head. “I don’t have time to watch you and everything else.”

Yeah, it was a jab that she probably didn’t deserve, since she’d certainly pulled her own weight getting out of the ambulance. But maybe it was enough of a jab to keep her head out of the path of a bullet.

Or an explosion.

Even though he’d tried to brace himself for it, the blast jolted through his body, shaking him to the core.

The debris came bursting out from the fireball, all that was left of the ambulance. The trickle of flames had obviously made its way to the engine and heated it enough to cause the blast.

That was probably what their attacker intended.

A chunk of metal flew into the tree, inches from where Cord was standing, and he felt a sharp tug on the leg of his jeans. Karina pulled him to the ground next to her.

“It won’t help us if you get yourself killed,” she warned, sounding a lot tougher than she probably felt right now.

But she was right. Cord had to stay alive.

The wave of smoke came at them. It was mixed with the stench of the burning rubber, and Cord had to cover his mouth to keep from coughing.

“Y’all okay?” their attacker called out.

Cord wished he could do something about that smug tone. Like beat the guy senseless. What Cord couldn’t do was answer him. It was possible the question was meant to help the fool pinpoint their location.

“Because I’d hate to think I gave any of you more boo-boos,” the man added. Then, he laughed. He was still somewhere on the other side of the road.

That was the good news.

It meant he wasn’t sneaking up behind them.

But he could have hired guns. And probably did. It would have been hard for him to pull this off by himself unless he’d set the explosives before attacking Karina, and those hired guns could be anywhere.

“What? Cats got your tongues?” the man asked.

His taunts made Cord’s blood run cold. And made his temper run hot.

“Being quiet won’t help,” he taunted. “I’ll find you.”

“His voice,” Karina whispered.

Even though he hated to risk looking at her, Cord did, to see what the heck she was talking about. “What about his voice?”

She opened her mouth. Closed it. Shook her head. “It’s the same man who attacked me in the barn.”

Of course it was. There’d been no doubt about that. So, what exactly had Karina meant to say?

Or rather what was she trying to keep from him?

Well, whatever the heck it was, Cord would find out. As soon as they got out of this mess.

The seconds crawled by, turning into minutes. Cord forced himself to listen through the crashing of his heartbeat in his ears. Each tiny sound put him on full alert.

Until one sound caused him to pivot in that direction.

Footsteps.

“It’s me,” someone said. Jericho.

Cord didn’t ease the grip on his gun, though, until he actually spotted the sheriff. He was weaving his way through the trees, coming toward them.

“He’s over there,” Cord informed him right off, and he tipped his head in the direction where he’d last heard the guy. “Did you bring backup?”

Jericho nodded and glanced at Karina and the paramedics, before focusing on the area Cord had pointed out. “My brother Jax is somewhere nearby.” He motioned toward the area just south of the attacker. “My other brother, Levi, is on the way.”

So, maybe Jax was already close enough to stop him. Cord didn’t know Jericho’s brothers that well, but Jax had been a deputy sheriff for years. Hopefully, that was enough experience so he wouldn’t walk into a trap.

“There might be other explosives,” Cord pointed out.

Another nod from Jericho. “We got your warning and then heard the blast. Jax will be watching for anything suspicious. If Jax gets a shot, though, he’ll take it.”

Cord knew what that meant—they might not be able to take this guy alive. Part of him wanted the moron alive. Because he wanted answers. But since he was convinced this was a copycat, they could perhaps get those answers even if the man was dead. Besides, if he stayed alive and managed to get away, he’d likely just come after Karina again.

“I can’t stop the bleeding,” Karina mumbled.

Her hands were covered with blood now, and the paramedic was barely conscious. They needed an ambulance and needed one fast. It was time to try to end this stalemate and maybe distract the man so that he wouldn’t hear Jax approaching him.

“Just how long do you think you can stay out here like this?” Cord shouted.

The guy laughed. “Well, you’re alive after all. And to answer your question, I can wait as long as it takes. But I’m guessing that’s not true for you, huh? Just how bad are Karina-girl and the others hurt? I didn’t get a good enough look to know when y’all ran like rats.”

Cord had to get his teeth unclenched before he could answer. “If you’re so concerned about them, why don’t you surrender and find out for yourself how they’re doing? We can have a chat about them after they’re on the way to the hospital.”

Silence. It went on way too long. “Nope. Not in a chatting mood right now. I’m thinking it’s time for me to get myself out of here. Another time, another place, Agent Granger.”

And almost immediately Cord heard some footsteps. Not the light treading ones as Jericho’s had been. Someone was running.

Karina would have gotten to her feet if Cord hadn’t pushed her back down. “He’s getting away,” she argued.

Not if Cord had something to do about it. “Wait here with them,” Cord told the sheriff.

He was about to bolt after the man when Jericho moved in front of him. “I’ll go. My brothers and I have signals already worked out. Keep watch, though, because this could be a trick.”

True. The man could be pretending to leave so he could ambush them. With Jax already out there somewhere, Cord didn’t want him to get caught in friendly fire.

Jericho headed out, hurrying but threading his way through the trees to keep his cover. Cord figured Jericho wouldn’t cross the road until he was clear of all the debris from the burning ambulance. Or until he was sure this clown wouldn’t spot him and shoot him.

All Cord could do was wait.

The paramedic who’d been driving took off his shirt and moved closer to Karina so he could help with his bleeding partner. Cord tuned them out and listened. No more running footsteps, but he did hear something. A sort of loud pop.

Karina obviously heard it, too, because her gaze slashed in the direction of the sound. “Did he hit someone?”

Cord shook his head. Too bad he knew from a case he’d worked the sound a hammer made when hitting a human body.

The next sound was one he had no trouble recognizing.

A shot.

It cracked through the air in the same general area where their attacker had been. And it was soon followed by another bullet.

Damn. He hoped Jericho and his brother hadn’t become this snake’s next targets.

Waiting had never been Cord’s strong suit, and it didn’t help that he had a guy literally bleeding to death next to his feet and a would-be killer was out there who thought this was a sick game.

Finally, he heard another sound that wasn’t more shots. It was footsteps, and they were heading right in Cord’s direction.

“It’s me,” Jericho called out again. He wasn’t running exactly, but it was close. And the lawman was all in one piece.

The breath Karina blew out was loaded with relief. Relief that Cord shared. Jericho hadn’t been shot. But that didn’t mean all was well.

“Your brothers?” Cord asked.

“Are in pursuit of the guy in the ski mask.” Jericho looked up the road. “An ambulance will be here in just a few minutes.”

Good. That was a start.

“You can’t let that man get away,” Karina said, standing and meeting Jericho’s gaze.

“We’ll do our best. In the meantime, there’s a note for you nailed to a tree over there.”

That explained the sound of the hammer Cord had heard. This guy had taken the time to leave a note. Why?

“A note for me?” Karina asked.

Jericho nodded. Frowned. Or maybe that was a scowl. “I didn’t touch it because it might have prints or traces on it. It’s handwritten. Or I should probably say it was hand-scrawled, as if he’d written it in a hurry. Which is a given, I suppose.”

“And?” Cord persisted when Jericho didn’t continue.

The sheriff stared at Karina. “It said, ‘Remember what I told you, Karina-girl.’”

Her shoulders snapped back, and she shook her head.

But a head shake wasn’t the answer Cord wanted. “What did he tell you?” Cord demanded.

“‘This will show them,’” she said. “He repeated that a couple of times.”

Cord stepped closer to her, getting right in her face. “And that’s it?”

Karina looked ready to give him a resounding yes. But then she paused. “No. He said something else.” Now, she shook her head again. “But it doesn’t make sense.”

Or maybe it was something she didn’t want to make sense. “What did he say?” Cord asked.

“He said, ‘You know exactly who I am, Karina-girl, don’t you?’”

Chapter Four

Karina was hurting in nearly every part of her body. She felt like one giant bruise, probably looked it, too, judging from the glances Cord kept giving her from across the hospital treatment room that they were sharing. Sympathy mixed with plenty of frustration.

She understood both.

The bald paramedic was in another room getting stitched up and also receiving a transfusion since he’d lost so much blood. The second paramedic had two broken ribs, one of which had punctured his lung. He’d already been admitted to the hospital.

And then there was Cord.

Karina wasn’t exactly sure what his injuries were because he had refused medical attention and had instead been making a string of phone calls. However, he looked as banged up as she did. Maybe more. Because she knew he was still recovering from the injuries he’d gotten last month.

Stab wounds.

And he’d gotten them when the Moonlight Strangler had taken him hostage.

Of course, Cord and everybody else on the planet believed that Willie Lee had been the one to do those horrible things to him, along with killing all those women. Despite the latest attack, Cord was still convinced that Willie Lee was the Moonlight Strangler. But Karina knew differently. The only thing that made sense to her was that the Moonlight Strangler had set up Willie Lee to take the blame not just for that attack on Cord, but for all the other murders.

She’d had zero luck proving it so far.

The nurse finally finished with the last of the stitches. “Wait here,” she said.

She glanced down at Karina’s bare legs and the blue paper examining gown she was wearing. Her bloodstained T-shirt had already been bagged for evidence.

“I’ll see about getting you a pair of scrubs, and I’ll talk to the doctor about releasing you,” the nurse added and left the room.

“Good,” Karina said before she thought it through. She didn’t want to spend the rest of the night in the hospital, but she wasn’t sure where she could go.

Certainly not back home.

That thought alone caused her to curse this monster. Her horses were there. Her things. Her life. Well, her temporary life anyway. And now she might not ever feel safe there again.

Cord finished his latest call and made his way to her. She was surprised he wasn’t limping. Or maybe he just didn’t want her to see that.

She’d only known him a month and couldn’t quite figure him out. Hurt and bitter. Determined to put his biological father away for the rest of his life.

Drop-dead hot.

Yes, she’d noticed that, too, and hated that she’d noticed.

“After you’re released, I’ll drive you to the sheriff’s office so Jericho can take your statement,” he explained. “Then, we can arrange for you to go into protective custody.”

Karina nodded. This was going to be a very long night, and while she just wanted it to end, she wasn’t stupid. She wouldn’t refuse protective custody.

“Certainly, this attack must make you doubt that Willie Lee is really the Moonlight Strangler?” she asked.

Cord shook his head. “It only convinces me that we have a copycat or else a groupie who wants to pretend he’s a serial killer.”

She didn’t bother with a sigh, though it was frustrating that Cord wouldn’t even consider his father’s innocence. “Then at least tell me they found the man responsible for this latest attack.”

Cord shook his head. “Nothing. So far. But Jericho’s got a CSI team out there now. One out at your place, too. They’re going through every inch of it so something might turn up. After that, they’ll go through your house to make sure your attacker didn’t stash something inside.”

He didn’t sound very hopeful, though, that they’d find anything. Neither was Karina. Mainly because she didn’t believe the attacker had actually been in the house.

Oh, God.

Had he gone inside?

Just the thought of that required a deep breath. It was bad enough that he’d been in her barn.

“Are you remembering something else?” Cord asked.

He’d no doubt noticed the hard breath she’d taken. Heck, she could have even gone pale, too. But she didn’t want to spell out her fears to him. Especially since what was done was done. If the killer had been in her house, if he’d watched her, stalked her, she couldn’t undo that. No. It was best to move on and try to work through this.

She looked up at Cord and caught him in mid-grimace. So, he wasn’t perfect at masking his pain after all.

“You really should let the doctor check you out,” Karina suggested.

Cord must have considered that a closed and shut argument since he didn’t even address it. He dragged over a chair and sank down on it so they were facing each other. She braced herself for another round of “blame this all on Willie Lee,” but it surprised her when he reached out and lightly touched his fingers to her cheek.

To the cut that was there.

Karina hadn’t seen it yet. No mirrors in the treatment room. She figured that was intentional since all kinds of injuries were treated here.

“How bad is it?” she asked, though she wasn’t sure she wanted to know the answer. Especially since just looking at her had caused Cord’s forehead to bunch up.

“It’ll heal,” he said, obviously dodging her question. “You’re the third woman I know who has that scar. My sister, Addie, and her sister-in-law, Paige. Of course, plenty of other women had it, too, but they’re not alive.”

Karina knew about the other women. About Paige, as well. She was the deputy’s wife and had been left for dead by the Moonlight Strangler. However, the other person was a shock. “I didn’t realize your sister had been cut.”

He nodded, leaned back in the chair and scrubbed his hand over his face. “When she was three, Addie was found wandering around the woods near the Crockett ranch. Jericho’s dad found her, and she had the cut then. Of course, nobody knew what it meant at the time.”

No. But Karina knew the rest of this particular story. The Crocketts had adopted Addie and raised her along with their four sons: Jericho, Jax, Chase and Levi. Because the Crocketts had wanted to find Addie’s birth parents, they’d entered her DNA into the databases, and there’d been no match until a year ago, when Addie had learned she was the daughter of the Moonlight Strangler. Cord had been matched a short time later and was Addie’s fraternal twin brother.

Ever since then Cord had made it his mission to find the killer. Which would mean also finding his father. And Cord was certain he’d managed to do that now that Willie Lee was in custody.

“Did you ever find a birth certificate for Addie or you?” she asked, not sure he would even answer. They’d had so many uncivil discussions about his paternity. Well, his insistence that Willie Lee was a killer anyway, and Karina thought he might just blow her off.

Much to her surprise, he didn’t.

“No. And believe me, I looked. The county clerk said that some home births don’t get registered.”

Neither would someone wanting to hide those babies. But why would Willie Lee have done that?

No answer for that, either. No answer for a lot of things, but Karina was certain she could get to the bottom of it if she could just talk to Willie Lee. He’d have to come out of the coma first, and there were no indications when or if that would ever happen.

“Addie’s scar is barely visible,” Cord went on. “Yours will fade, too.”

All in all, it was a kind thing to say. And a surprising one since it took this civil conversation to a different level.

“I must really look bad for you to be so nice to me.” Karina was only partly joking. She was dead certain she looked bad.

The corner of his mouth lifted. Almost a smile. Almost. But it was gone as quickly as it came. He leaned forward, his gaze connecting with hers, and she could see that he was all lawman again. Not that he slipped out of that mode for more than a second or two.

However, the brief change in his demeanor gave her another reminder of that drop-dead-hot thought she’d shoved aside earlier. And continued to shove aside now. Hard to do, though, with him right in front of her.

He was pure cowboy with that tousled hair and those bad-boy eyes. Sadly, he was her type, and her body just wouldn’t let her forget that wherever she saw him. Thankfully, Cord didn’t seem to notice.

Or maybe he did.

He gave her a look. The kind of look a man would give a woman who was hands-off. Which described how he felt about her to a T.

He cleared his throat, looked disgusted with himself. “I keep going back to that note found on the tree.”

Good. A change of subject. Exactly what she needed to get her mind back on track.

“The note said, ‘Remember what I told you, Karina-girl,’” Cord continued. Not that he had to say the words aloud. They were etched permanently in her mind. “And you did remember.”

She nodded. “‘You know exactly who I am, Karina-girl, don’t you?’” she repeated. “But here’s the problem with that. I don’t know who he is. I really don’t.”

“Then why would he say that? He could have put a lot of things in that note, but he didn’t.” Cord paused, apparently waiting for her to will the memory into her consciousness.

When she didn’t come up with anything, he huffed. “All right. Let’s try a different angle. Who would want to kill you? An ex-boyfriend, maybe? A stalker?”

Karina didn’t get a chance to answer because the sound of footsteps had Cord springing to his feet and drawing his gun.

However, it was only Rocky.

Her ranch hand was all right. The killer hadn’t taken him after all. He looked a little disheveled, but that was it.

The relief she felt didn’t last long, though, because of Cord’s reaction. She was usually the one to get his jaw muscles stirring, but they were stirring like crazy now. Ditto for the glare he shot Rocky.

“Where were you?” Cord snapped. Definitely the lawman now.

Rocky pulled back his shoulders. “Out looking for the guy who attacked Karina, of course.”

“You were supposed to go with the sheriff. I heard him tell you that.”

Rocky’s gaze shifted to her, and he looked as if he wanted her to defend him. But she couldn’t. “Going out there on your own was dangerous,” she reminded him. And stupid. “You could have been killed.”

He threw his hands up in the air in an I-give-up gesture. “I just wanted to find him before his trail turned cold.”

“And did you find him?” Cord challenged.

Rocky’s jaw muscles tightened, too. “No. But I did see him. After I heard the explosion.”

That got her attention. Cord’s, as well. Cord made a circling motion with his finger for Rocky to keep going with the details.

“I’m pretty sure it was him,” Rocky went on. “I mean, how many men are running around the woods this time of night?”

Maybe plenty since the guy had almost certainly had help in blowing up the ambulance. “Did you actually see his face?” Karina asked.

Another “no.” Rocky made a sound of frustration. “He was wearing dark clothes, though, just like that man who attacked you in the barn. I know it was him, Karina.” He turned to Cord. “I followed him all the way to a farm road before I lost sight of him. I think that’s the direction of the Appaloosa Pass Ranch, the one the Crocketts own.”

Cord didn’t waste a second. He took out his phone and fired off a text. Probably to Jericho.

Karina touched her fingers to her mouth. “You don’t think the killer will go after your sister?”

Cord didn’t answer right away. “I don’t know. I don’t know who or what we’re dealing with here.”

“We’re dealing with the Moonlight Strangler,” Rocky said as if it was gospel.

That earned him another glare from Cord. “You need to go to the sheriff’s office and give your statement.
Now
.”

Rocky looked ready to argue with that, but Karina nodded. “Go ahead. I’ll be there as soon as the doctor releases me.”

It still took Rocky several long moments and a few volleyed glances before he huffed, mumbled something she didn’t catch and headed out. Cord followed him, stopping in the door to watch him leave.

“How well do you know Rocky?” Cord asked with his back still to her.

Karina wanted to be upset with his tone and the question itself, but it was something a lawman would want to know. “Not long. I just hired him earlier this week. But his references checked out,” she quickly added. “He hadn’t worked with cutting horses in a while, but I decided to give him a chance.”

Mainly because he’d been the only one who had applied for the job.

“References can be faked.” Cord made a sound that could have meant anything and sent another text. “I told the Crocketts it would be a good idea to lock down the ranch.” He finally turned, walked back to her. “You trust Rocky? Any gut feelings about him?”

“Yes, I trust him. No reason not to.”

Was there? Maybe it was because of the frayed nerves, but Karina mentally went through the handful of interactions she’d had with the man.

“He works well with the horses, but the truth is, I don’t know much about him,” she admitted.

That was partly her fault. She’d been so preoccupied with Willie Lee and staying in business that she hadn’t even bothered to get to really know the man she’d hired. A man who was living just yards from her.

“I’ll have a thorough background check done on him,” Cord said. He walked closer, standing over her and looking down at her. “Now, back to the question I asked before Rocky came in. Is there anyone who would want to do you harm?”

Karina didn’t even have to think about this. “DeWayne Stringer.” Just saying his name aloud caused her stomach to churn. “He’s a wealthy cattle broker over in Comal County and lives near my ranch. I’ve had run-ins with him for nearly a year now since he bought the property next to mine. He wants me to sell him my land so he can expand and isn’t very happy that I won’t do that.”

A huge understatement. DeWayne had done everything in his power to pressure her into selling. Plain and simple, he was a bully.

“Over the past couple of months, I’ve had livestock go missing,” she went on. “Some vandalism. I’m sure it’s his doing. Or else he hired someone to do it. He doesn’t seem the sort to get his hands dirty.”