Shelter from the Storm (Finley Creek Book 2) Read online

Two men climbed out. Chance recognized the heaviest of the three as the man he’d fought with before. “Go! Now!”

  Brynna ran.

  * * *

  BRYNNA did exactly what Chance told her, but it didn’t matter. There was a third man walking across the field. It was the tall man. She had no way to avoid him.

  But she tried. She ran as fast as she could, but he had the advantage of longer legs and a stronger body.

  He tackled her, taking her straight to the ground. She screamed and fought. “Let me go!”

  “No. If I do they will kill you without thought.” He grunted over her and then dragged her to her feet. “I have been searching for you for days, Brynna.”

  It took her less than ten seconds to figure out who the man holding her was. It was the port wine birthmark on his neck that did it. She’d seen videos of him before—at work with the TSP and on the television and internet.

  The birthmark had always caught her attention. It was perfectly shaped like the state of California.

  Less than eight inches separated her from that birthmark now. There was no way she was wrong.

  He was the richest man in Texas, which was saying quite a lot.

  Handley Barratt was like some superstar billionaire or something. Why would he be out in the woods looking for her?

  “Let me go.” Brynna pulled against his hold, but he wouldn’t budge.

  “Keep quiet and keep walking.” He turned and looked at her.

  He had a beautiful face. He didn’t look like he’d be in his sixties, but she thought he was. He might have been a little younger, like maybe her father’s age? Brynna wasn’t any good at figuring that out.

  He was one of the men who’d pulled her from the rental car. One of the men who’d come for her.

  And now he had her; what was he planning? “Chance will find me. Find you.”

  “I’m sure he’ll try. He’s the relentless type.”

  “He made me a promise. To keep me safe. Chance always keeps his word. He’s going to come for you. And probably kill you.”

  “You’re that sure of him?”

  “I am.” She kicked out at him, making contact with his shin. He cursed and his hand tightened on her arm. He dragged her closer, until she hovered on her tiptoes. Handley Barratt was around six and a half feet tall, at least two inches taller than Chance. “He’s coming for me.”

  He looked down at her for a moment. He shocked her when he lifted a hand and touched her lips gently. “Yes. I suppose he would. Listen, if you want that boyfriend of yours to stay alive, and want to be alive when he does find you, then you’ll cooperate.”

  “How?” She had absolutely no intention of doing anything this man said. How could he think otherwise?

  “Keep up. Quit stalling. I told them going after you three days ago was a stupid idea. Now the entire mob that is the media is on the trail of you and lover boy.”

  “Why?”

  “How the hell should I know? But those two fools seem to think finding you and Marshall and getting rid of you is the smartest use of our time.”

  And Brynna suspected he didn’t agree. So what was he saying? “Why?”

  “Are you a broken record? Of course you are. The autism. I’m sorry. I forgot about that for a moment.”

  He started walking again, dragging Brynna behind him. No matter how she fought and scratched, she couldn’t get him to let her ago.

  Until finally, he’d apparently had enough.

  He wrapped his hands around her upper arms, lifted slightly, and started shaking her. “Listen, you damned little fool. If they find you, you are as good as dead. They don’t think you’re much of a threat, and that fool thinks to rape you before he kills you. Do you understand me? I am your only hope of surviving any of this.”

  “I-I-I don’t understand. Aren’t you going to kill me?”

  “No. Not if I can help it. You’re going to go that way, run. As far as those idiots know, you’ll escape me out here in the woods. I’m giving you a three minute head start.”

  She’d seen his face, though. What did that mean for them? “Aren’t you afraid I’ll turn you in?”

  “I know you probably will. If they’ll even believe you. I have ways of making people doubt anything you’ve ever said in your lifetime. I’ll do just that. And hell, who knows? Maybe it’s time all of this ended. Came to the conclusion it should have twenty-four years ago. Go. Now. And don’t look back.”

  “I can’t leave without Chance.” Brynna was afraid to hope, afraid to believe he meant it.

  “Marshall’s time is over. He’s been on borrowed time for ten years. Him and his brother both.” He reached out and shoved her slightly. Brynna stepped back to keep from falling. “But you...you don’t have to be. You weren’t even born when this first started, little girl. Why should you have to lose in it? Go. Before I change my mind. Go, and forget that Marshall bastard. He’ll only bring you trouble.”

  Brynna listened. She ran toward the sun. Where Chance said the road was.

  Once she reached the road, she had two choices—head toward the town, or back where she’d started.

  Back toward Chance.

  She looked toward the town, where she knew she could probably find help, and made her decision.

  She turned away.

  * * *

  SHE found him. She didn’t know how it happened, but Brynna found him. He punched the heavily muscled guy in front of him hard, but the man didn’t go down.

  The man fighting Chance was the one who terrified Brynna the most. He’d been in her nightmares for the last two nights, and she suspected he be there for a lot longer to come.

  His big dark-headed friend held a gun trained on Chance, but he hadn’t shot him yet. Afraid he’d hit his partner? Or was he just enjoying watching the bloodshed?

  None of the men had noticed her yet. They weren’t going to stop until he was dead, were they?

  She was just thankful he wasn’t dead, yet. She scrambled closer, hoping the one wouldn’t turn around. Wouldn’t see her.

  She’d have only one shot at helping Chance. She had to make it a good one.

  Brynna looked around, searching for a branch big enough to do some damage but small enough that she could control it.

  She found one. She crept up behind the man with the gun and swung the branch as hard as she could.

  He went down without a sound. Other than the sickening sound of the tree branch crashing in to his skull.

  The other guy cursed and lunged away from Chance.

  Toward her.

  “Brynna, run!” Chance yelled it at her.

  Brynna ran. Like she had before.

  But the muscled man was there. He tackled her from behind and her head cracked against a rock. Dazed, she couldn’t move.

  It was just long enough for him to get his hands on her.

  He had a knife. Where had the knife come from?

  The guy who’d touched her before lifted it and jerked his arm down, straight at her heart.

  Brynna rolled to the left.

  The blade sank into the skin under her right arm, sliced through her skin and didn’t stop until it hit the hip bone.

  Brynna screamed and screamed.

  Chance knocked the guy off of her and punched him. And punched him again.

  Finally the man jerked to his feet and ran off into the woods.

  Then Chance was there, leaning over her. “Baby, no...Bryn. I told you to run. To get away. Why didn’t you listen?”

  “I couldn’t leave you behind.” She touched his cheek, trying to ignore the burn. The pain. She pressed a hand to her ribs and pulled it away.

  Bloody. “Chance...I hurt. He cut me. The other side. And it went deep.”

  “I know. We’re going to get it stopped. I have that damned duct tape in my pocket. We’ll get the bleeding stopped and we’ll get you into town. Get you fixed.”

  “It was Handley Barratt.”

  “Who?”

  “The guy in t
he field. His name is Handley Barratt, he’s the billionaire. He took me away and then he let me go.” She gasped and coughed. Her chest hurt. Her lungs hurt. Everything on her hurt right then. “Chance...I...I didn’t think you could fall in love with someone so fast.”

  “What are you talking about? Of course you can.”

  “He said that guy was going to rape me. That they were going to kill both of us. Except he didn’t want to.” Brynna turned her head. She could see the man who had had the gun’s head.

  His skull. There was blood everywhere around him. Had she done that? “Is he dead?”

  “I don’t fucking care. I’m more worried about you.” He had his shirt off and was cutting it into strips like they did in the movies.

  Brynna loved his chest. She’d never seen one more perfect. He wrapped the strips around her like he’d done once before. More tape covered the cloth. She hoped it would work better this time. “Chance...if I bleed to death, will you tell my sisters and Gabby that I loved them. Tell my dad he was the best dad in the world, and I’ve always known it. And Carrie...tell her I wished I knew her longer.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE.

  * * *

  “STOP it.” Chance wouldn’t think about it. And he wouldn’t let her, either. “You’re going to be fine. We just need to get to a car.”

  “And the gun. I think he dropped it when I—when I hit him. When I killed him. Killed him. Killed him. Killed.” She hadn’t turned away from the bloody sight.

  It would haunt her, he knew. What had happened, what she had done. Long into the future, she’d remember this moment. Remember the man.

  Someone would have to help her through it each and every time.

  Right then he had something far more important to worry about.

  “Wrap your arms around my neck. We’re not that far from the highway, I don’t think. We’ll see if we can catch a ride up there. How does that sound?”

  “What if no one comes by?”

  “I’ll bet someone does.” He’d find a damned way. Didn’t she realize that? “I’ll get you to the hospital.”

  “Finley Creek General. Jilly works there. Take me to Jilly.”

  He’d take her to the closest medical personnel he could find. Period.

  He carried her as fast as he could toward the sound of rushing traffic.

  Someone would stop to help them. He was counting on it.

  * * *

  BRYNNA dozed off in his arms. Her head hurt from where she’d hit it on that rock and her side was lit on fire. It was easier to use sleep as an escape.

  When she woke, Chance was talking to someone. A man’s voice that Brynna didn’t recognize answered.

  “Get her in. There’s a bed behind the passenger side. And in that cabinet right by the door is a first aid kit. I don’t know how much good it will do you, but it’s something. I’ll get this rig fired back up. We’ll get her there, son. I promise.”

  “Thank you.” He sounded so worried, so afraid. Brynna tried to push her eyes open, but it was too much effort.

  “You’re the ones been on the TV and radio, aren’t you?”

  “I’m sorry? We’ve been without cell service or television for almost three days.”

  “That girl’s been plastered over every place. She autistic?”

  “Somewhat.”

  “Then that’s her. Every time you turn on the radio, they’re blasting something about some young autistic girl missing with an ex-Texas Ranger.”

  “That’s me.”

  “Speculation is that you were murdered over some old case.”

  “We weren’t. But we were attacked several times. They hurt her simply because they could.”

  “Get her fixed up, then go after your demons. Only way to do it. Saw one of her sisters on the news back at the Flyin’ Truckerville Stop about one hundred miles back. Pretty redhead with a crutch. About a mile of curly red hair, that one.”

  “Brynna’s is straight. Most of the time. When it’s wet it curls.”

  “She’s a pretty one. Can see why you look about crazy over her. How’s she doing?”

  “I’m ok,” Brynna said, though she didn’t open her eyes. Chance leaned over her—she could feel his breath on her face.

  “Baby, how do you feel?”

  “Like someone stabbed me. Where are we?”

  “We’re in a semi-truck headed back home. We’re taking you to the hospital. You remember what happened to you?”

  “Yes. Take me to Jilly, Chance. She’ll be able to deal with Daddy. Promise. Take me to my sister.”

  “I promise.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO.

  * * *

  FOR as long as he lived, Chance would never forget the debt he owed to Meryl Wanamaker from Peabody Street, Lofton, Indiana. The trucker drove them straight to Finley Creek General at a decent rate of speed.

  He’d been repairing his truck on the edge of the on ramp when Chance had hit the highway, Brynna in his arms.

  The older man hadn’t hesitated to offer help.

  Chance would never forget the guy.

  Wanamaker dropped him off at the emergency entrance and Chance carried Brynna inside, yelling for help.

  Doctors and nurses rushed toward him. They pulled her from his arms and laid her on a stretcher.

  “Dear heavens,” one of the nurse’s said. “It’s Jillian’s sister!”

  Brynna opened her eyes. “Chance?”

  He grabbed her hand. “I’m here, baby.”

  “Ok. Hospital? I hate hospitals. Hate them. Stay with me.”

  “You know I will.”

  They wheeled her away. Chance did everything he could to stay with her as long as they would let him.

  He didn’t speak to anyone other than to demand answers until his brother was there.

  Elliot was speaking to the other people in the room. Chance wasn’t even certain how he’d gotten to the room to begin with.

  Chance didn’t give a damn about what they were saying; he just wanted to know how she was.

  “All this is just great, but how is Brynna? Tell me…how is she? The blood…?” Chance looked at his hands. He could still see the red, couldn’t he? He rubbed his palms against his pants. There was nothing there. It was all in his head, all in his heart.

  The hospital admin looked at him with compassion on her face. She’d told him…told him she knew Brynna. Would make sure she was taken good care of. “Mr. Marshall, I told you. Next-of-kin. It’s up to them to give out the information. Not me.”

  Chance looked around. There were other people there, people there for Brynna. Gabby was right there. His brother.

  Kevin Beck and a host of redheaded women. He looked at them, one-by-one. They were all about the same height as Brynna, they all had varying shades of red hair.

  And tear-filled light brown eyes.

  Eyes that looked at him, asking why he hadn’t kept their sister safe.

  Her father was at the center of his daughters. “I’m her father. How’s my daughter? You can share with all of us here.”

  “She’s still in surgery. There was some damage from the knife, but it was mostly superficial. The biggest concern was the bleeding. She did have to have a transfusion. And to combat infection, they’ve put her on strong antibiotics. She’s responding well. Very well, actually. She’ll be out for a few hours—most likely until morning. I’ve pulled some strings. I can’t get just anyone back there to sit with her, but Jilly is cleared since she routinely works the surgery floor here. I thought it might be best for Brynna not to wake up in the hospital without a familiar face nearby.”

  The smallest woman nodded. Chance looked at her quickly, light brown eyes, long dark red hair. Same gap between the front teeth as Brynna. Brynna’s family. He turned away—he couldn’t look at any of them again. “Of course. Thank you. Fin, I owe you one.”

  “No thanks necessary. I owe Bryn a few myself.”

  Chance couldn’t take it; not all of them looking so much like her.
He walked out.

  * * *

  “CHANCE?”

  Chance turned. He hadn’t realized his brother had followed him. “She’s going to be ok. She’s not going to die.”

  “That’s what they say.”

  Chance looked up when rain fell on him. He stepped back under the awning. “You’ll need my shirt. Damn it. It’s got DNA. You’ll need it with someone like that sonofabitch. Can’t let it get any more degraded than it has.”

  “What happened out there?”

  Chance removed his shirt and tossed it to his brother.

  “Chance. Tell me.” Elliot grabbed him and hugged him. Chance tolerated it for a moment. “Don’t scare me like that ever again.”

  “Get off of it, Elliot. I’m alive.” He was. Perfectly fucking fine. It should be him in there. Not that girl-woman, who had plenty more redheaded sisters wet-eyed over her.

  They’d looked so much like her, hadn’t they? Every last one of them.

  “Almost three days, Chance. While I thought my brother was dead. I get a hug, whether you like it or not.”

  Chance heard Elliot’s pain in his voice. He was all his brother had, wasn’t he? If their roles had been reversed, he’d be just as upset as Elliot. “Sorry. Sonsofbitches didn’t make it easy. We had to rabbit out of there fast. We holed up in an old camp storm shelter a few miles from the intersection. Just waited out the storm mostly. Barratt and his friends caught us again on the way out.” Chance would find them and make them pay one by one for every drop of blood Brynna had lost. One by one.

  “Barratt? Houghton—the billionaire’s son?”

  “No. The billionaire himself. She got away from him while I was otherwise occupied. You’ll have to ask her…when she wakes up.” She should have kept running. She never should have come back for him. Why had she?

  “He the one who stabbed her?”

  “No. Another big bastard. I don’t know his name. But I’m going to find him. For her. She’ll never feel safe as long as they’re out there.” Brynna deserved to be safe. He’d do whatever he had to for her to be safe. For as long as it took. “I made her a promise that I would keep her safe, Elliot. And I’m going to keep it.”