Taking Aim at the Sheriff (16 page)

“You really think our
friend
will let us all live? Not a chance. Because if he lets me walk, I’ll hunt him down. And I’ll kill him.”

Yes, Jericho would. And the man on the other end of the line almost certainly knew that, too.

“Enough of this.” Jericho snatched the phone from her hand. “Who the hell hired you to come after Laurel?”

More silence. It went on so long that Laurel thought the line might have gone dead. But it hadn’t.

“I hired him,” someone finally answered.

And this time, it was a voice that Laurel had no trouble recognizing.

Chapter Eighteen

Dorothy.

Jericho wasn’t sure which of their suspects would turn out to be behind this, but none of them would have been a surprise. All had motive.

Or at least they thought they had motive.

“You’re doing this because of the money you lost on those business deals?” Jericho snapped.

“In part,” Dorothy admitted. “But I really don’t want to discuss that now. Is everything in place?” she asked, and it took Jericho a moment to realize that she wasn’t talking to him.

“It’s in place,” a man verified. The same man who’d been talking to them earlier. One of Dorothy’s hired thugs.

Jericho was about to demand to know what exactly was
in place
, but then he heard Reese’s shout. “I’m sorry, Jericho. I didn’t see them in time.”

Heck. That couldn’t be good. Jericho turned around, trying to pick through the darkness, and he finally saw what he didn’t want to see.

Levi and Reese.

Their hands were in the air, and there was a gunman on each side of the cruiser his brother had been driving.

“Don’t blame the deputy or your brother.” Dorothy’s voice had gone from sarcastic to taunting. “I brought plenty of backup with me, and there were men waiting in the ditch.”

And it’d worked. It also meant Dorothy had at least six gunmen with her. Two in the SUV, the two guarding Levi and Reese, and the two that Levi had spotted in the limo when it first arrived.

Of course, there could be more.

Not to mention Dorothy was probably armed. He hoped she was because he couldn’t shoot an unarmed woman, but he darn sure could shoot an armed one. Especially this one.

“Is Theo helping you?” Jericho came right out and asked.

“Please. I have a coward of a son. He hired those men in the black car to save you, to kidnap you.”

Laurel shook her head. “Why?

“Because Theo was going to keep you all for himself so he could try to convince you that he’s the man for you. Laughable, isn’t it?”

“Not really,” Jericho growled. “Nothing laughable about this. So, you lost money. Boo-hoo—”

“I lost more than that!” Dorothy paused, and Jericho figured she was trying to get hold of the temper tantrum she’d just started. “I lost my reputation. My so-called friends whisper behind my back now. And that’s all because of Laurel.”

“How do you figure that?” Jericho asked.

“She was supposed to marry Theo. I told everyone it was finally going to happen. I made plans for business deals that hinged on Theo and Laurel being man and wife.”

All right. Jericho didn’t want to have this conversation, but it might give him time to figure out what to do next. “You mean plans with Rossman and Cawley? Who, by the way, are both dead. Your doing?”

She didn’t confirm the part about having them murdered. “Bigger plans than that. Ones that would have made me richer than my wildest dreams.”

“Ah, I get it now. You made those plans because of Laurel and her father’s connections. When the engagement ended, so did the connections, and you were left holding a very empty bag that you hoped would be filled with money.”

Again, Dorothy didn’t verbally confirm it, but judging from her ripe profanity, he’d hit pay dirt.

“Laurel ruined us,” Dorothy said a moment later. “Both Theo and me.”

“I didn’t ruin you,” Laurel argued. “You did it to yourself.”

“You did this!” she shouted. “And after all that, Theo still wants you back. Even after I told him that you had crawled into bed with that cowboy.”

Even though Laurel was scared spitless, that put some fire in her eyes. “Jericho’s my husband.”

“Right,” Dorothy said with a serious dose of sarcasm. “A marriage of necessity to stop your father from getting custody of your son. Well, I don’t think you have to worry about that anymore.”

Jericho wondered if that meant that Dorothy had killed Herschel. No such luck. Because a moment later, Herschel got out of the limo. Not voluntarily. A heavily muscled armed goon shoved him out.

Herschel staggered, and it took him several wobbly steps to regain his balance. The man’s hands were cuffed in front of him, and he looked disheveled. Definitely not a happy camper right now.

“Give me Laurel or Herschel dies,” Dorothy threatened.

Jericho so wished the woman could see the flat look he was giving her. “Do you think I really care a flying fig what you do to Herschel?”

Laurel made a sound of agreement. After everything Herschel had tried to do to her, Jericho thought she might be willing to pull the trigger herself. She certainly wasn’t going to sacrifice herself for him.

And that sent an uneasy feeling snaking up his spine.

If Dorothy thought she could use Herschel to lure out Laurel, then the woman had something up her sleeve.

Something dirty, no doubt.

“Oh, you should care about what happens to Herschel,” Dorothy said. She was back to being as cold as ice. No sign of that hot temper right now. “If you want to know the truth, that is.”

“What truth?” Laurel and Jericho asked at the same time.

Herschel certainly didn’t jump to answer. Thanks to the interior lights from the limo, Jericho had no trouble seeing the man’s expression. Not defeat. He was riled to the core.

“The truth about your father’s death,” Dorothy finally said. She stepped from the limo wearing a thick fur coat. And she was smiling. “Or should I say, his murder? Because Sherman Crockett was indeed murdered.”

That uneasy feeling inside him turned to a full roar. “What do you know about that?” Jericho demanded.

“Plenty. I know Herschel murdered him, and I have proof. Not with me, of course. I’m not stupid. But I have it tucked safely away.”

Jericho figured this was about the time for Herschel to blurt out his innocence. He didn’t. Nor did he deny that Dorothy had such proof.

“Let’s just say Herschel had too much to drink one night and got very chatty,” Dorothy explained. “He didn’t know I was recording every word he said.”

Now Herschel responded. His narrowed gaze cut to Dorothy, and he cursed her. “You’ll burn in hell for this.”

“Maybe, but you’ll be right there with me.” Dorothy patted his cheek before looking toward Jericho again. “Hand over Laurel, and I’ll give you Herschel and the proof.”

So, that’s what was up her sleeve. Laurel for the thing that Dorothy thought Jericho wanted the most.

“You can be the one to arrest Herschel. And you can be there when he gets the needle shoved into his arm,” Dorothy continued. “Think about it, Jericho.”

He didn’t have to think about it. Yes, he wanted justice. He wanted it so much that he could taste it.

But there was no way he’d trade Laurel for it.

“No deal,” Jericho let the woman know.

“Too bad.” Dorothy answered quickly enough that she’d no doubt considered that’s how this would play out.

“Why do you want Laurel alive, anyway?” Jericho asked.

“Because she’ll force me to go through with those business deals,” Laurel provided. “She needs my contacts, and my signature. And once she has that, she’ll kill me.”

Jericho had no doubts, none, that it was exactly what Dorothy had in mind. Either way, she’d kill Laurel first chance she got.

“I suggest you change your mind,” Dorothy warned him. “Because if you don’t hand Laurel over to me, I’ll give my men the order to start shooting. You’re outnumbered, Jericho. Outgunned, too. They’ll kill all of you, including Laurel.”

Jericho knew this wasn’t a bluff. If Dorothy couldn’t have Laurel, then she’d have them all killed. Or try.

That was a risk. One that cut him to the core. But at least Laurel was inside the cruiser, and even though the engine was damaged, the windows and the sides were bullet resistant. His brother and Reese were also still close enough to their cruiser that they could use it for cover when all hell broke loose.

He hoped.

“Stay down,” Jericho whispered to Laurel. He took another gun from the glove compartment and also handed her extra magazines of ammo. “No matter what happens, don’t get out.”

Laurel’s eyes widened, and she shook her head. “What are you going to do?”

“Stay down,” he repeated, and brushed a kiss on her mouth.

“Levi, you ready to do something about this?” Jericho shouted.

“Oh, yeah,” his brother confirmed without hesitation.

Just as Jericho had thought. That was the only green light he needed.

Jericho came out of the cruiser with guns blazing.

* * *

“N
O
!” L
AUREL
SHOUTED
to Jericho. But it was already too late. He was out of the cruiser, and the shots started flying.

Sweet heaven, he was going to get killed.

Maybe Levi and the deputy would be, too. Of course, it wasn’t as if Dorothy had given them too many options. And now Laurel could only pray that they got out of this alive.

Dorothy screamed out her own “No!” and Laurel wondered if she’d been shot. Maybe. But she quickly had to amend that when the woman belted out another order. “Kill them all. Do it now.”

Laurel lifted her head just enough to see out the back window. No sign of Dorothy. The woman had probably gotten back in the limo. Laurel’s father was on the ground, his hands covering his head. Trying to protect himself.

Dorothy’s gunmen were doing the same thing—they’d gotten behind the back of the limo. Out of the line of fire but still in a position to shoot and carry out Dorothy’s orders. It was the same for Levi and Reese. They were on the side of their cruiser, both of them shooting.

Jericho ducked down behind the door of the cruiser, once again using it for cover, but he continued to lift his head enough to return fire. So many shots came at him. Too many, and Laurel sat there, feeling helpless. And furious that Dorothy wanted her dead all because of money and revenge.

She thought of her son, and it broke her heart to think that she might not see him again. But at least he wasn’t here in the middle of the attack.

From the corner of her eye, Laurel saw the movement. The two gunmen from the SUV were getting into position to help out their fellow hired thugs. One of them scrambled toward the hole in the pavement created by the grenade.

Coming toward Jericho and her.

And not just coming toward them. The guy was trying to sneak up on Jericho so he could gun him down from behind.

Laurel didn’t think. She just reacted. She opened the cruiser door just enough so that she could take aim and stop him. But he must have seen what she was doing because he pivoted in her direction, bringing up his gun to shoot her.

But Laurel shot first.

The recoil of the gun stunned her a moment, but she quickly fired another shot. Both of the bullets slammed into the man’s chest. However, he didn’t drop to the ground. He stood there, frozen, his gun still pointed at her for what seemed an eternity.

Before he finally collapsed.

Jericho snapped toward her, and Laurel braced herself for his usual protest—
what word of
stay down
didn’t you hear?
—but he muttered, “Thanks,” followed by “Now, get down and stay there.”

The words had barely left his mouth when he levered himself up, turned and fired in the direction of the SUV. But not at the SUV itself. At the second gunman. Laurel had been so focused on Jericho and the man she’d killed that she hadn’t noticed the second one.

But he’d seen her.

He had his gun aimed right at her and was no doubt within a split second of pulling the trigger.

Jericho beat him to it.

He finished off the gunman with a shot to the head, and in the same motion, Jericho turned his gun toward the limo. He fired. And he took out the gunman on the left-rear side.

Laurel hated to feel relief that she’d just killed a man and had watched another die, but the relief came, anyway. They were winning. Except she knew that could change on a dime.

“Don’t shoot!” someone yelled. It was the final remaining gunman. “I’m surrendering.”

Laurel wasn’t sure if it was some kind of trick, but then she saw the man slowly get up from the limo’s right side. He still had hold of his gun, but he raised his hands in the air.

“Drop your weapon,” Jericho ordered. He stayed behind the cover of the door. Good. Because this still wasn’t over. “Are there any other gunmen in the limo?”

He tossed down his gun, shook his head. “Just the boss lady. Don’t shoot me. Arrange for me to get a plea deal, and I’ll tell you whatever you want to know.”

“Where’s the proof that Herschel killed my father,” Jericho demanded.

The gunman shook his head. “I don’t know that, but I know plenty about the men she hired to kill you. That’s something you’ll want, right? It’ll be enough to put her in jail for the rest of her life.”

Before Jericho could answer, Laurel heard the sound. It didn’t even sound human at first, more like something that would come from a feral animal. But it was Dorothy. And it was the sound of pure outrage.

“Coward!” she screamed.

“Dorothy, get out of the car,” Jericho ordered her.

“If you kill me, you’ll never get the evidence I have against Herschel. Never,” Dorothy threatened.

Laurel figured the woman would use that to bargain while she stayed in the limo. She didn’t. Making another of those feral sounds, Dorothy came out from the backseat. A gun in each hand.

And she fired shots at Jericho.

Jericho ducked down in the nick of time, the bullets slamming into the cruiser door.

The woman didn’t give up. She kept firing. Kept screaming. Until Levi took aim at her and brought her down with a shot to the chest.

Dorothy fell, the guns clattering to the frozen ground with her.

“I’m sorry,” Levi immediately said to Jericho. “I wanted to take her alive.”

Laurel understood that. She also understood it’d been impossible to do that. It was clear Dorothy would have murdered them all if she’d gotten the chance.

“Don’t get out,” Jericho insisted when Laurel pushed open the door. He glanced around, no doubt looking for more of Dorothy’s hired thugs. Laurel didn’t close the door, but she did duck back inside.