Mountain Fugitive
Author
Lynette Eason
Reads
18.4K
Chapters
22
ONE
When the gunshot rang out, Dr. Katherine Gilroy pulled her horse to a stop and waited for her friend Isabelle McGee to catch up. “What do you think that’s all about?” Katherine asked.
Isabelle and her husband, Mac, owned the property that stretched for acres—as well as the horse named Hotshot now stomping the ground. He hated loud noises. Katherine didn’t blame him.
“No idea,” Isabelle said. “Maybe Cody Ray came across a rattler or something—but I really doubt that, since he didn’t say anything about working in this area today.”
Cody Ray was one of the hands for the ranch and was often out on the land checking fences or moving cattle. But this was a Saturday morning, and Katherine knew Cody Ray usually saved those chores for the workweek.
Two more quick shots raised Isabelle’s brows.
Katherine frowned. “That sounds more like an or something than a rattler.”
“And Cody Ray wouldn’t need more than one bullet to take care of a snake—or any other wild animal.”
Hotshot pranced and stomped his back feet. Katherine tightened her knees then kicked her heels against his side to get him moving again. Isabelle’s paint fell into step beside her. “It’s kind of hard to tell,” Katherine said, “but I think it came from behind those trees. Someone might be in trouble and signaling for help.”
“Of course this would happen while Mac’s out of town,” Isabelle muttered with a frown. Mac had taken several horses to an auction in Tryon, North Carolina, and wouldn’t be back until late the next day. Isabelle rubbed her nose. “What do you think? Should I call 911?”
“Why don’t we see what’s going on first?”
“Okay.”
Katherine guided her horse in the direction of the shots. Maybe riding toward them was stupid, but if someone needed help, she had the training to offer it.
They followed the path to the ridge where the trees thickened and the underbrush did its best to obscure the way. Hotshot continued his restless dance, shaking his head and making Katherine work to keep her seat. She was an experienced horsewoman and Hotshot needed the exercise, but if someone continued shooting, keeping control of the animal was going to require all her skill.
She led the way, her heart pounding a little faster, mentally reviewing the steps she’d take to treat a gunshot wound with the limited supplies she carried in the saddlebag. A first-aid kit with bandages, snakebite antivenin, a tourniquet, pain meds and antibiotic ointment. Not the ideal situation, but she could work with it.
They crested the hill and stopped just as the white sky released the first few snowflakes of the season. Isabelle pointed. “There, by the tree line. Two people on the ground.”
“Call for help,” Katherine said, “I’ll see if they’re still alive.”
Isabelle gaped. “There’s a shooter out there.”
“I know. And your kids are at the house alone. Go. Hurry.” Isabelle and Mac had a house full of kids—two new foster children and three of their own they’d adopted last year. The oldest was sixteen. Fully capable of caring for the younger ones on a normal day. A shooter on the property changed everything.
Katherine could tell Isabelle wanted to offer more protests, but if the men had been shot, they might still be alive. And in the case of gunshot wounds, quick action was often the difference between life and death.
“You’re a doctor, Katherine,” Isabelle said, “not a soldier or a cop.”
But, as a former tactical medic, she had the training to take care of this and they both new it. Katherine had worked closely with a SWAT team, providing medical care when necessary. She’d saved many lives that hadn’t been able to wait on traditional EMS. Katherine narrowed her eyes while Isabelle bit her lip and pulled out her phone.
She dialed 911, but said to Katherine, “I’ll call Cody Ray and ask him to—no, I forgot, he’s in town and Ms. Sybil is with him. Zoe took Sadie to the doctor for a checkup. So, whoever’s shooting isn’t anyone connected to the ranch.” Ms. Sybil was cook, housekeeper and part-time babysitter rolled into one. Zoe was a former foster child turned single mother living with Isabelle and Mac while she figured out her next steps in life.
“Which means you need to go back there and be with the kids,” Katherine said. “I’ll be fine.” She held still and listened for a fraction longer. “I don’t hear any more shots. Whoever was shooting probably thinks his job is done and hightailed it out of here.” Hopefully. “But just to be on the safe side, you need to go now.”
“I can tell by the look on your face you’re going to go check on them.”
“Just like you would do if you didn’t have kids at the house.”
“I know. Just be careful, and I’ll let Creed and the others know they need to get a move on.”
“Of course.” Katherine kicked Hotshot into a trot, then a full gallop, as she headed for the men, praying she could do something to help them. She wasn’t nearly as confident as she’d conveyed to Isabelle, but she couldn’t let those men bleed out if she could do something about it. “Please, God, don’t let me get shot,” she muttered, “and please let them be alive.” Flashbacks from her paramedic days tickled the edges of her mind and it was all she could do to keep the memories at bay.
The shots had come from her right, so she leaned against the left side of the horse’s mane, trying to make herself as small a target as possible. The men had been ambushed and lay next to the tree line. She guessed they’d started running for cover at the first shot. One was about six feet ahead of the other, more under the cover of the trees.
Heart pounding a rapid beat, Katherine pulled Hotshot to a stop between the men and the direction the bullets had come from, praying the person wouldn’t shoot the horse. She slid from the saddle, leaving the reins trailing the ground, then snagged the first-aid kit from the saddlebag. US marshals according to the vests the men wore.
Looked like their prisoner or fugitive had turned the tables on them. Which meant the person was either gone now that he’d taken care of the threat—or she was now a target because she planned to try to help the men. A quick scan of the area didn’t reveal anything unusual or worrisome, but the trees could easily be hiding the sniper.
Still using the horse as a shield, she hurried to the man closest to her. The bullet had hit him just above his left ear and he’d landed on his side. His brown, sightless eyes stared up at her and she knew he was beyond help. She checked his pulse anyway and got what she expected. Nothing.
She closed the dead man’s eyes then turned her attention to the other one. A pulse. She focused on his head. A gash just below his hairline bled freely. A low groan rumbled from him and Katherine placed a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t move,” she said.
He blinked and she caught a glimpse of sapphire-blue eyes. He let out another groan. “Carl...”
“Just stay still and let me look at your head.”
“I’m fine.” He rolled to his side and he squinted up at her. “Who’re you?”
“I’m Dr. Katherine Gilroy so I think I’m the better judge of whether or not you’re fine. You have a head wound which means possible concussion.” She reached for him. “What’s your name?”
He pushed her hand away. “Dominic O’Ryan. A branch caught me. Knocked me loopy for a few seconds, but not out. We were running from the shooter.” His eyes sharpened. “He’s still out there.” His hand went to his right hip, gripping the empty holster next to the badge on his belt. A star within a circle. “Where’s my gun? Where’s Carl? My partner, Carl Manning. We need to get out of here.”
“I’m sorry,” Katherine said, her voice soft. “He didn’t make it.”
He froze. Then horror sent his eyes wide—and searching. They found the man behind her and Dominic shuddered. “No. No, no, no. Carl! Carl!” He army crawled to his partner and sucked in a gasping breath, cupped Carl’s face and felt for a pulse.
Katherine didn’t bother to tell him she’d already done the same—or what he’d find. After a few seconds, he let out a low cry then sucked in another deep breath and composed his features. The intense moment has lasted only a few seconds, but Katherine knew he was compartmentalizing, stuffing his emotions into a place he could hold them and deal with them later.
She knew because she’d often done the same thing. Still did on occasion.
In spite of that, his grief was palpable, and Katherine’s heart thudded with sympathy for him. She moved back to give him some privacy, her eyes sweeping the hills around them once more. Again, she saw nothing, but the hairs on the back of her neck were standing straight up. Hotshot had done well, standing still, being a buffer between them and a possible sniper, but Katherine’s nerves were twitching—much like when she’d worked with the police department. “I think we need to find some better cover.”
As if to prove her point, another crack sounded, and Hotshot reared. His whinnying scream echoed around them. Then he bolted for home. Katherine grabbed the first-aid kit with one hand and pulled Dominic to his feet with the other. “Run!”
Dominic wasn’t sure he could stand, much less run, but he staggered after her, letting her pull him behind her. They pushed farther into the trees seconds before another bullet whipped past his head and buried itself into the thick trunk of the tree he’d just ducked behind.
“Who’s shooting at you?” she asked, huddling next to him.
“I think it’s the fugitive we were chasing.”
“How’d he get away from you? How’d he get a gun?”
“We didn’t have him. That’s why we were going after him. To take him into custody. He saw us and bolted.” He paused. “He must have doubled back to get behind us. And I don’t know where the gun came from.”
He studied the woman who’d braved gunfire to help him. She was tall, probably about four inches shorter than his own six feet two inches, and had her dark blond hair pulled into a messy ponytail. Strands had escaped to frame her tanned face and intelligent dark brown eyes blinked up at him. Being this close to her, he inhaled the scent of horses and the outdoors with each breath. He liked it and realized it was a smell that fit her. She was pretty in a way that definitely caught his attention, but more wholesome girl next door rather than magazine model.
Another shot pinged off the ground two feet away and Katherine flinched. “Don’t we need to find a way out of here?”
“He can’t hit us from the angle he’s shooting from. Might come close, but...”
“What if he changes angles?”
“Then we’ll have a problem.” He paused. “I think I’m going to be sick.” He closed his eyes and swallowed, praying the nausea would fade. He never liked being sick, but losing his breakfast in front of this woman would be humiliating. Of course, that was the least of his worries. I’m sorry, Carl...
“You probably have a slight concussion,” she said. “How’s your vision?”
“Fine.” A bit wobbly, but it would be fine. He didn’t have a choice. Dominic glanced around the side of the large trunk, saw nothing and pulled back, fighting another wave of sickness. “How come you’re so calm and cool while getting shot at?” he asked, trying to ignore the twisting sensation in his gut. Most everyone outside of law enforcement or military would be freaking out. And it had nothing to do with her gender. He was including men in that generalization.
“I was a tactical medic in Atlanta, Georgia, for four years.”
“That’s a story I’d like to hear, but for now, we need help.”
“Isabelle, my friend who was with me when we heard the shots, called the police, but it’ll take some time for them to get out here.”
Time they didn’t have.
“So, we’re on our own for a bit.” It wasn’t a question.
“Yes.”
“Where’s my phone?” he muttered. He patted his cargo pants and finally found the device in the side pocket. No signal. Great. A flash of movement in the trees sent alarm crashing through him. “Okay, shooter’s changing angles. We’re going to need a better hiding place.” If he could move. The doctor was eyeing him like she was wondering the same thing. “I’ll make it,” he assured her.
“Then come on. Hold on to me if you need to.”
Determined not to need to, Dominic, nevertheless, grabbed her hand this time and headed for a thicker area of trees. The undergrowth slowed them down and he could only pray it was doing the same for the shooter.
A hard yank on his arm pulled him to a stumbling stop. “What is it?”
“There.” She pointed. “Can you go up some? There’s a small cave behind those trees. It’s not perfect, but it’ll provide some coverage.”
He followed her pointing finger to the area that would hide them well if he could manage to get up there. “Go. I’m right behind you.”
She shot him a worried look but did as he ordered and scrambled up the side of the hill to the opening. She slipped inside and he followed with a grunt.
The chill of the sheltered space made him shiver while the pain in his head shot down the back of his neck and into his shoulders. He gripped his weapon in his right hand and stood at the entrance, watching. Waiting. At least no one could sneak up behind them.
Nothing moved. “I’ve lost track of him,” he said in a low whisper. He pulled his phone from his pocket. “And I’ve still got no signal.”
“It’s spotty in this area,” she answered, her voice as low as his. “But Isabelle’s sending help.”
Which he appreciated, but even if help arrived in the next five minutes, that was probably going to be too late.
