Witness Pursuit (13 page)

“Let go,” he said.

She nodded, but her fingers were locked in place, like they were glued to the cool metal.

“It's okay,” he whispered against her ear.

The warmth of his breath filtered down her arm, easing the tension from her fingers.

“That's it, just relax.”

A burst of air escaped her lips. She'd been holding her breath.

“Shh, you're doing great,” Nate coached.

She willed herself to unclench the gun, but it was like someone else's hand was attached to her body.

Nate wrapped his fingers around her hand. His warm palm blanketed her knuckles and seemed to melt her frozen joints. She stretched her fingers, releasing the gun. Nate eased it out of her grip.

“That's it,” he hushed.

“I... I was protecting you.”

“Yes, you were. And you did an excellent job.”

* * *

Nate steadied his hand as he retrieved the gun from Cassie, not wanting her to see that he was shaking, as well. She might be trembling from the adrenaline rush of violence, but Nate's body trembled from the lack of oxygen. He'd almost been strangled to death.

In front of Cassie.

He'd been distracted by her beauty and kindness, and had almost gotten them both killed. Well, Nate would have been killed. It was pretty clear they wouldn't kill Cassie until they got answers.

“Are you okay?” he asked, his lips touching her soft blond hair.

“Yes.”

He aimed the gun at their motionless attacker, the guy from Becca's tour group. It never should have gotten this far. Cassie shouldn't have been put in the position of having to shoot a man. The trauma of wounding or killing another human being would have stayed with her forever.

Changed her forever.

It was Nate's fault. He'd drifted into a false sense of security out here in the wilderness while looking into her expressive blue eyes.

Nate approached their attacker. Blood trailed down the side of the man's head. Nate nudged him with his boot, but the guy didn't respond. He knelt and pressed the barrel of the gun against the guy's forehead.

“I will pull the trigger if you make a move,” he warned.

Again, no response.

Nate pressed two fingers against the man's neck to feel for a pulse.

“Is he... Did I?” Cassie uttered in a shaky voice.

“He's alive. Can you go into the backpack and find a first aid kit and some rope?”

When she didn't move, Nate glanced at her. Eyes wide, she continued to stare at the wounded man. It was as if she had just awakened from a dream and realized what she'd done, that she'd inflicted the head injury and caused all the blood.

“Rope and first aid?” he prompted in a firm tone.

Her gaze shot up to meet his. “Oh, right.”

She dug into Spence's backpack, strapped to Nate's back. A moment later she handed him rope.

“You need to bind his wrists.” With the gun still pointed at the guy, Nate rolled him onto his stomach.

Cassie pulled his wrists behind his back and bound them as tightly as she could. Nate holstered his gun and pulled the knot even tighter.

Nate used remaining rope to secure the man to a nearby tree, where he assessed his injuries.

“Head wound doesn't look too serious.” Nate wiped the gash clean and applied a bandage. “That's all we can do for him. We'd better go. He may not be alone.” Nate packed up the supplies.

“We...leave him here?”

“Yes, but I'll get him help.” Nate led Cassie away and called in. “This is Chief Walsh. I need a law enforcement team to retrieve a suspect, midforties, just north of Lake Serene on the trail. He's tied to a tree and unconscious. I administered first aid, but he's dangerous. Proceed with caution, over.”

Cassie glanced at their attacker. “He was going to kill you.”

Nate put his arm around her, hoping to ease her anxiety. She didn't push away, yet he felt her body stiffen.

He let his arm slide off her shoulder and they walked in silence. It was a different kind of silence than before. He felt like he was losing her somehow.

* * *

Hours later, utterly exhausted by the day's journey hiking through the mountains, Cassie was starting to feel weak for the first time in many years. She fought anxiety about her condition possibly flaring up. These could be normal aches and pains, nothing related to the autoimmune disease that plagued her as a child.

Don't give in to the fear
, she told herself.

Not so easy.

Nate would start a conversation with her, probably because she was too quiet, and she'd struggle to find the strength for small talk.

That jerk almost killed Nate.

Right in front of her.

She shuddered at the memory of Nate's arms going limp.

“Cassie,” Nate started. “Next time someone comes after me, promise you'll take off and find a safe place to hide.”

“I can't make that promise.”

“Look.” He stopped and gripped her arms. “If I die trying to protect you, I'd like some peace of mind that at least I saved your life. Promise me you'll put yourself first.”

There was desperation in his serious green eyes, and pain. Lots of pain.

“Okay, okay.” She glanced away and he released her.

* * *

After hiking in awkward silence for another half an hour, she spotted the cabin. “There.” She pointed to the one-story rental in the clearing below, with a gravel driveway and wooden porch.

As she started down the trail, Nate blocked her. “I'll go first. You stay back until I signal that it's safe.”

“No,” she said.

“Cassie—”

“You would have been killed if I hadn't been with you. We stick together, Nate. We're better together.”

She walked around him, realizing she'd never been that direct with anyone in her life. Maybe it was exhaustion. Maybe it was hunger.

Or maybe she'd finally found her voice.

“Hey, hey,” he said, catching up to her. “I'm just trying to keep you safe.”

“I know, and I appreciate that.”

“But?”

“I guess I'm hungry and tired.”

“There's dehydrated food in the pack. We can heat that up for dinner.”

Twilight illuminated the property as they approached the cabin. Cassie punched in the override code that unlocked all property doors.

“At least let me go in first,” Nate said.

She stepped aside, understanding his need to take the lead. He placed the backpack on the porch, turned the door handle and went inside.

The door slowly eased shut behind him.

Cassie put her hand on the heavy oak to keep it open.

And saw something come down against Nate's head from behind.

THIRTEEN

C
assie snapped her hand back in shock.

The door clicked shut.

Heart pounding, she darted to the side of the cabin, spotted a small shed and ducked inside. It was her instinct to run, find safety and regroup. She could call for help, but they wouldn't get here in time to do any good. No, she was on her own.

Nate would want her to flee, hike to safety. He'd made her promise to leave him behind.

A light sparkled through the crack in the shed door. Someone was searching the area with a flashlight. And he was headed in her direction. Cassie dug into her bag for keys.

The ball of light grew bigger, brighter.

Her fingers touched a small canister of pepper spray Bree had given her. She calmed her frantic heartbeat and waited for the door to open.

God give me strength.

She blinked to clear her vision.

It seemed like it was taking forever for the guy to find her.

“Who's in there?” a woman demanded.

Cassie recognized that voice.

“Becca?” Cassie flung open the shed door.

Becca lowered a two-by-four she had been gripping as a weapon. “Cassie?”

She threw her arms around Cassie and gave her a hug. Cassie hugged her back, although she still gripped the pepper spray and keys.

Becca released her. “What are you doing here? It's dangerous, a man—”

“Nate.” Cassie took off for the house.

“Cassie, don't! There's a guy—”

“Nate Walsh! It's the police chief!” Cassie called over her shoulder. She raced into the cabin and froze at the sight of Nate, unconscious on the floor. Dropping to her knees beside him, Cassie said, “Nate, can you hear me? Come on, open your eyes.”

Footsteps pounded on the porch and Becca rushed up behind Cassie.

“I didn't see him, Cassie, I didn't know who it was. Honest, I never would have—”

“What'd you hit him with?”

“A two-by-four.”

Cassie ran her hand across the side of Nate's head. “Go get the backpack on the porch. Quick!”

Becca dashed out of the cabin.

“Nate, can you hear me?”

When he didn't respond, she stroked her thumb across his cheek. “You'll be okay. You have to be okay,” she whispered. “Ya know why? Because I love you. I've never loved anyone like this before, so could you open your eyes, please?” She waited. “Not yet, huh? Okay, take your time.”

As she stroked his hair, she prayed for him to open his green eyes and speak her name.

“I got it,” Becca said.

“There should be a cold pack in there, and ibuprofen. Is the water working?”

“No, and no electric. But I have some water left. And there's a creek behind the property. We can get water there if there's a filter in that pack.”

“I'm assuming there is.”

Becca handed Cassie the cold pack and knelt beside her. Cassie twisted the package, releasing the chemicals, and placed it against the bump on Nate's head.

“I didn't mean it, Cassie. I never would have hit the chief.”

“It's okay, he'll understand.”

“No, he won't.” Becca shot to her feet. “I'm already in trouble because of Tony. He said we weren't doing anything wrong, but now these guys are after me, and I think Tony's working for them and—” she paused “—I don't want to go to jail!”

“Take a breath,” Cassie said. “One thing at a time. Help me make him comfortable.”

Becca glanced from Cassie to Nate back to Cassie.

“Find me something to prop up his head,” Cassie ordered, shifting Nate onto his back.

Becca pulled a pair of jeans out of her backpack, rolled them up and handed them to Cassie. Cassie slipped them beneath Nate's head and readjusted the cold pack. “If he doesn't wake up in a few minutes I'm calling 911.”

“No, those men...they'll find us, they'll kill us,” Becca said.

“I won't risk Nate's life. If this is more serious than a minor concussion, we'll have to get him to the hospital.”

Becca stared in horror at Nate, her eyes widening.

“I need you to tell me what's going on,” Cassie said. “Who's after you and why?”

“I can't.” She stood and paced to the kitchen sink.

“Really? Because you've dragged me into this violent mess and I don't appreciate it.”

Becca spun around. “What do you mean?”

“They think I have something of theirs. What?”

Becca shook her head and put out her hand. “The less you know the better.”

“It sounds like Tony is into something dangerous, criminal even. I want you to explain how a good person like yourself could end up going down this path.”

“I love him,” she said in a hushed voice. Becca's gaze drifted to the floor. “He was always so nice to me, made me feel special...and loved. He brought me flowers for no reason.” She glanced at Cassie. “I'm an idiot, right?”

“No.” Cassie sighed. “But you need to fix this.”

“It's impossible. They're everywhere.”

“Is that why you disappeared from the tour group?”

She nodded affirmative. “A guy pulled me aside and said if I didn't tell him where the money was, he was going to kill me before we got down off the mountain. Cassie, we're in so much trouble.” Becca burst into tears.

Cassie felt bad for her friend, but was also angry at the decisions she'd made. Becca should have gone to the police and asked for help. Instead she was hiding out in an abandoned cabin.

“What was the plan?” Cassie asked. “Hide out here until when?”

“I don't know. I hadn't thought past getting away.”

“You left your jacket and a bunch of other stuff on the trail. Why, to throw everyone off?”

“I needed the men who were after me to think I was dead.”

“No, what you need to do is end this before more people get hurt.”

Nate moaned and blinked his eyes open. “Cassie?”

“Hey, you're awake. How do you feel?”

“Like I was hit by a truck.” He glanced around the room. “What happened?”

“Misunderstanding. Becca thought you were one of the bad guys.”

Becca stepped into his line of vision. “I'm so sorry, Chief. Please don't arrest me. I had no idea it was you.”

“We thought you'd been kidnapped.” Nate struggled to sit up and Cassie helped him. He clenched his jaw as she held the cold pack against his head.

“I was scared,” Becca explained.

“The federal authorities would like to speak with you,” Nate said.

“Oh my God, am I going to jail?”

Nate stood and Cassie led him to a chair beside a worktable in the kitchen.

“That depends,” Nate said. “Have you broken the law?”

“I don't think so, I don't know. I'm stupid. I trusted Tony.”

“Well, try trusting me instead. Tell me what's going on.”

“I can't, don't you get it? It'll put you in danger.”

“In case you haven't noticed, we're already in danger,” Cassie shot back. “Tell the chief everything.”

Becca sighed and hugged herself.

Cassie stood beside Nate, her hand resting protectively on his shoulder.

“From the beginning,” Nate encouraged.

Becca joined them at the table. “Tony worked part-time for Echo Mountain Rentals, dropping things off for guests and taking the laundry in, picking it up, that sort of thing. One day a man approached him and said he was a small businessman wanting to grow his company.”

“What kind of business?” Nate asked.

“Laundry services. Tony tells the guy he should talk to Mr. Anderson. The guy says he'll have a better chance if he gets Tony's support.” Becca sighed and shook her head. “That should have been his first clue, because Mr. Anderson doesn't take business advice from Tony.”

“Continue,” Nate said.

“The guy says he's going to offer a lower rate than the current service. But it's a longer drive to his facility, so he's afraid Mr. Anderson won't consider him. If Tony agrees to make the extra thirty-minute drive, the man will pay him a $500 finder's fee. Then, every time he has to make the drive, which is two to three times a week, Tony will get an extra $100 cash. That would certainly pay for the extra gas, plus his time. That's like $300 a week.”

“And Tony didn't suspect anything strange about this?” Nate asked.

“No, the man seemed genuine, at least in Tony's opinion, and he needed the money because he was working limited hours for Echo Mountain Rentals. Mr. Anderson is kind of cheap that way.”

“Okay, so Tony was driving the laundry to where?” Nate asked.

“A facility near Mount Vernon. He'd drop off the dirty bags of laundry and pick up the nicely packaged clean linens, take them to the office where Cassie and I would pick them up and deliver to the cabins.”

“But something changed,” Nate said.

“One day, Tony was in a hurry, and a clean linen package ripped.” Becca's eyes grew wide as she retold the story. “All this stuff spilled out, like passports and cash, lots of cash.”

“That's when he should have called the police, Bec,” Cassie said.

“I know, but he didn't. He brought the linens to my place. We didn't know what to do at first, but Tony couldn't resist. He took a hundred dollars cash and we bundled the linen back up, nice and neat. A week later, when no one said anything, he assumed they hadn't noticed.”

“Could he honestly be that naive to think it wouldn't catch up to him?” Nate said.

Becca leaned back in her chair. “It's not his fault. He never got a fair shake in life, being orphaned and sent to live with an aunt and uncle who didn't have time for him, and then being expelled from school for no good reason.”

“He sounds like he suffers from victim mentality,” Cassie said.

“He hasn't had it easy, Cassie.”

“We all have our struggles.”

“Says the girl with the perfect family,” Becca shot back.

Cassie didn't respond. Comparing personal trauma was counterproductive. Nate placed his hand over Cassie's and gave it a squeeze.

“Sorry,” Becca said. “I shouldn't have said that.”

“Back to the laundry,” he prompted Becca.

“That's how it started, with a broken package. I didn't know he continued to take money. After a month, he'd saved over three thousand dollars between his driving fees and what he was skimming from the packages.”

“You had to have known what he was doing, Becca,” Cassie said.

“No.” She hesitated. “Maybe, I don't know. I suspected, I guess. He kept saying how he was planning this amazing new life for us, because he loved me so much. A few days ago, he shows up at my place with plane tickets to Maui. Said he had a job offer down there and wanted to marry me. We were going to leave right after I brought the group back from the hike. But while I was up there, this guy threatened me. You know the rest.”

“You haven't spoken with Tony since you took the group up the mountain?” Nate asked.

“No.”

“The man who threatened your life, what did he say?”

“That I wasn't going to make it down the mountain alive unless I told him where the money was.” She stood and paced to the window. “Tony said everything was going to be okay.”

“He was stealing from the mob,” Nate said.

“What?” She turned to them. “No. Tony said it was just some guy moving cash around, you know, because he was being paid under the table for things like fake passports.”

“The mob was sending bail jumpers to Echo Mountain Rentals cabins to hide out until they could flee the country with new identities.”

Becca came back to the table. “You mean he was helping criminals escape?”

“It looks that way,” Nate said.

“And I'm a part of this. I'm going to jail, aren't I?”

“That's yet to be determined,” Nate said. “Help us solve this case and you may be able to stay out of jail. There's a federal agent in town who'd like to speak with you.”

“What about Tony?”

Nate and Cassie shared a look.

“He's not a bad person,” Becca protested. “He didn't know the laundry owner was involved with the mob.”

“We'll sort it out once we get safely back to town,” Nate said. “It would help to know why they're after Cassie. Any ideas?”

“Because we're friends and they think she knows about the money?”

“What, you mean like I took some of it?” Cassie said.

Becca shrugged. “I guess. I'm truly sorry you got dragged into this.”

“Me, too. And I'm sorry you didn't challenge Tony on his activities sooner,” Cassie said.

Becca glanced at the floor, ashamed. It was not Cassie's intent to make her feel bad, but she had to face her mistakes.

Cassie's stomach growled. “I'd better eat something before I start gnawing on the table.”

“I've got a few cans of hash in my backpack,” Becca offered.

“There's dehydrated food in our pack if we can heat up some water,” Cassie said.

Cassie and Becca got to work pulling together a meal. They chose the canned items because it would take too long to start a fire outside and heat water.

After eating the last of the cold canned food, Nate said they should rest. He'd take the first watch.

Cassie slept fitfully, if at all, her eyes opening to the image of Nate, her protector, standing guard at the window.

Becca had fallen fast asleep. Well, at least one of them would feel refreshed in the morning. A few hours later Cassie gave up on trying to sleep and went to Nate. “Hey, your turn for some shut-eye.”

“You sure?”

“Absolutely. Go on.”

“Wake me if you see anything.”

“Of course.”

Nate brushed a kiss against her cheek and went to lie down on the sleeping bag.