Backfire (11 page)

Time crept slowly by and no one stepped from the woods to set the B and B on fire or attack Tracy, and for that he was grateful. On the other hand, if this guy was still out there, David would rather get the confrontation over with while everyone was still on full alert, rather than have the guy show up when they had let their guard down after too much time passed.

Finally car lights flashed in the long drive. David could tell it was the cruiser. The lights went off and out stepped Terry.

“Any news?” David asked.

Terry shook his head. “If he left town, he didn’t leave by any of the usual routes, which leaves me to think he’s still here.”

David followed Terry’s look to the darkened woods. “There are a lot of places someone could hide out there. He’d have to know how to survive in the Alaskan wilderness.”

“If he knows what he’s doing. Whether he does or he doesn’t, don’t worry. We’ll get him.”

“Hopefully before anyone else comes to harm.” At the look Terry gave him, David wished he’d kept those words to himself. He almost sounded as if he thought the Mountain Cove PD wasn’t doing its job. “I should get going.”

Terry nodded his agreement.

David climbed into his truck, started it up and then rolled down the window. “Don’t let the mosquitoes eat you alive.”

He tossed Terry his bottle of repellent. The man scowled at David, but beneath his frown hid the hint of a smile.

Though David hated leaving, he’d grown tired and someone fresh would be better watching the house. If only he could have called Tracy just to say good-night before he left. He steered down the drive off the property and turned onto the main road. That was when he heard it.

That warbled sound that told him he had a flat tire. “Of all the...”

David pulled over to the side of the road and hopped out. Sure enough, his left back tire was flat. He must have hit something on the drive from Jewel’s. He raked his hands through his hair, so not in the mood to change a tire. Not on the dark road in the middle of a short Alaska night when he was exhausted and emotionally drained and there was a murderer out there somewhere.

He got out the jack, lug wrench and retrieved the spare tire. After jacking up the truck, he glanced around and behind him. Pulling his gun out, he set it within easy reach, then bent over and started removing the lugs. He was on the last one when a footfall crunched, alerting him to someone behind him.

Before he could react, pain split his skull and everything went black.

THIRTEEN

D
avid had had the most exhausting week, deployed to a wildfire in the Kenai Peninsula. He’d been trained as a wildland firefighter, but 99 percent of the time, he was fighting fires away from home. He loved his job, but it was hard on his marriage and all he could think about was getting home to Natalie. Climbing into bed to lie on the best mattress in the world next to the best woman in the world. But as he steered his truck home in the early hours of morning, something didn’t feel right. Warning signals pounded in his head.

The smell of smoke filled the air and the fireman in him kicked into gear, stiffened and searched for the source. His phone alerted him to a text at the same moment he heard the blare of fire-truck sirens.

His house came into view, flames shooting out the windows and roof.

Oh, dear God, save her!

David wasn’t sure how he made it into the house, but he hadn’t waited on the trucks. All he could think about was Natalie.

He called her name. Shouted it. Kicked in the bedroom door but the room was already in flames... The heat singed him, burned his lungs. Without his equipment, he couldn’t survive. And neither could she.

Strong arms pulled him out of his house. He’d wrestled on the gear he needed to go back inside, but it was too late.

And now she was gone forever. And he was alone.

The fire had caught him off guard—somehow he should have prevented it.

David coughed, smoke filling his lungs. Heat crawled all over him.

His eyes blinked open. Where was he?

He was inside his truck...and it was on fire. David tried the door handle, but it was too hot. He leaned back, pulled his knees to his chest and kicked the door. Again, again and again.

He was going to die. He deserved it. He should never have lost his wife to a fire. He should have seen the signs. Paid more attention.

But, no, he couldn’t die. Not when Tracy was still in danger. He had to live to make sure she was safe.

God, help me!

“David!” Cade’s shout penetrated the flames. Then the door popped open. Cade tossed in a wet blanket and David wrapped himself then jumped from the burning truck. Hitting the ground hard, he rolled.

A hacking cough overwhelmed him. Cade handed him water. “Let’s get you to the hospital.”

Anger at the situation coursed through David. “I’m fine. The fire truck will have what I need.” Except his head was killing him, from the smoke inhalation and from the blow that had knocked him out. He wasn’t sure he could take another hit in the head.

But at least he wasn’t burned. He’d made it out in the nick of time. “How’d you find me?”

“I needed to get out of the house. Get some fresh air. Leah’s crying. The baby’s crying. And I’m doing everything wrong. I knew Terry was relieving you at midnight and I headed that way to intercept you on your way home. I had nothing better to do, so I came looking. Good thing I found you when I did. What happened?”

David stood, anchoring himself over his thighs, dragging in more fresh air.

“We should move back.” Cade tugged David a good distance from his truck.

Now a blazing bonfire. What a complete waste.

Then his truck exploded. Dizziness swept over him. The world tilted. Cade assisted him to the ground. He gripped his aching head in his hands. He had a million other worries, but that...that was his truck. His new truck!

He felt Cade’s squeeze on his shoulder. “I’m sorry, man. I know you loved it.”

“It was only a truck.” That was what he got for loving it. “Did you call for help?”

“First thing. I saw the flames and made the call.”

Pulse racing, head pounding, David got to his feet again. That was too close.

“You scared me to death,” Cade said.

Tracy hadn’t been kidding when she’d said the people around her were in danger. Now David questioned the sanity of having her stay at Jewel’s with so many other people who would be in danger. What had any of them been thinking? “Can you call Winters for me?”

“Sure, but do you think this is related to Tracy? To the grocery-store fire?”

“Absolutely.”

Sirens erupted in the night. That sound happened too frequently of late for David’s comfort, even though he was a fireman and should be accustomed to it. Lights flashed in the distance down the road as flames devoured David’s truck, illuminating the surrounding area in a bright ring of light. Shadows danced in the forest around them. David peered into the woods. Was
he
still out there?

“Tell me,” Cade said.

The words reminded David of their dad, who’d founded the Mountain Cove Avalanche Center. Ironically, he’d died in an avalanche.

“I was changing a flat tire and heard someone behind me. They struck me before I could react. I woke up in the burning truck.”

The tanker truck arrived. Using the water in the two-thousand-pound tank, firefighters doused David’s truck. Though it would have eventually burned out on its own, they wouldn’t risk the fire spreading.

His firemen coworkers treated him with oxygen. Strange to be on this side of things, but he’d been here once before—the night his wife had died.

This event reminded him of all he’d lost. Little wonder he’d been dreaming about that night when he’d woken surrounded by flames. His body or mind had tried to warn him, bring him out of his unconscious state. That was the second time he’d been knocked out in a week. At this rate, he would end up with a traumatic brain injury like some jock professional football player.

Another vehicle turned onto the road. David recognized the cruiser. He would let Terry have it if he’d left Tracy unguarded. But then he saw Terry had a passenger. The police officer steered the cruiser over to the far side of the road, and Tracy jumped out of the vehicle before it had even come to a complete stop. She ran all the way to David and threw herself into his arms.

That stunned him. Filled him with pure joy he was too shocked to suppress. He savored it instead. After their conversation about keeping their distance, David was surprised at her action, but then he understood. That same force drove him to wrap his arms around her, pull her against him hard and breathe in the scent of her freshly washed hair. Try to soak in the goodness that was Tracy.

“Oh, David, I’m so sorry this happened.” She sobbed into his shirt. “I couldn’t stay away.”

This was getting to be a habit with her. To be fair, she’d cried on him only twice now, but if she was going to cry into anyone’s shoulders, it had better be his. His gut twisted. He’d become far more possessive than he had a right to be.

She pushed away, though not too far. “See, David? See what happens when you get involved with me? This is all my fault.”

He held her face in his hands, weaving his fingers through the soft, wild hair behind her ears, and pulled her close so he could look her in the eyes.

“It’s not your fault. It’s this crazy man’s fault. With every move he makes, he only makes it harder on himself. There isn’t a person in town that won’t be looking for him now, once they’ve heard what happened.”

If only he could convince her that she shouldn’t blame herself. Though he completely understood her thought process—he blamed himself for his wife’s death.

Her eyes brimmed with concern, telling him things she felt about him that he knew she could never say, and stirred him to the bone. He wanted to kiss her again but instead he tugged her to him, wrapped his arms around her and held her soft, warm body tight against him. Funny, he was the victim this time, but here he was, reassuring her. No. He had that wrong. She
was
comforting him. The fact that she’d come to find him and run right into his arms made him crazy inside.

Crazy for her.

Another police vehicle pulled up. Winters.

David released Tracy, but held her hand, and she didn’t resist. They were both crazy.

Chief Winters stepped out of his vehicle and made his way to David. He put his hands on his hips and surveyed the situation.

“What happened?” Winters asked.

David told him everything, except the dream, of course. But Winters had to know this sent David right back to the night Natalie had died.

“A close call. But not as close as it could have been.” He eyed David.

David got his meaning, all right. He could have died. He was that close.

Winters took off his hat and adjusted the rim. “Looks like our assailant caught you off guard.”

David understood what Winters wasn’t saying. The man hadn’t wanted David involved to begin with. Said it was police business, but David had insisted he needed to be part of protecting Tracy. Finally, Winters had relented, and look where that had gotten him?

How could David protect her when he couldn’t even take care of himself?

* * *

Tracy had already caused Jewel enough trouble, so the next morning she decided to be up early and help Jewel serve breakfast. Maybe work would get her mind off the fact that David had almost died. She left Solomon in the room, promising to return after breakfast and take him on a long walk. Of course, she couldn’t go alone, if at all. Still, he needed time to run off his energy after being cooped up in the room to avoid setting off Jewel’s allergies. At least the woman had let Solomon stay as long as he kept to this room.

Jewel liked to serve a big breakfast around a table so folks could get to know one another before they headed their separate ways for their activities. Tracy had already made up a batch of wild-blueberry muffins and they baked in the oven, filling the kitchen and dining room with a wonderful aroma. She helped Jewel prepare her specialty dish, salmon quiche and reindeer sausage. Too robust a breakfast for Tracy, she snacked on fresh blueberries and began serving coffee and juice to the guests settled in at the large table.

A pass-through, a windowed counter in the wall separating the kitchen and dining room, allowed them to see and hear the guests. One place setting remained unattended, but breakfast was served at seven o’clock, regardless. Jewel pulled the muffins out and stuck more in, and together, Tracy and Jewel placed the serving dishes on the table.

Jewel winked at Tracy. “Let’s say grace.”

The ten guests present—believers or not—bowed their heads.

Though Jewel smiled when she finished, Tracy could tell she was on edge today. What had happened to David had them all jumpy. Tracy tried to talk to Jewel about moving out and away, but the woman shushed her and said they would talk later.

Maybe Tracy should leave without saying anything, but she couldn’t do that to Jewel, either.

The final guest moseyed down the stairs and took the empty seat. Tracy hadn’t seen him here before. Something about his appearance and demeanor made her feel uneasy. She needed to get a grip and calm her nerves. She was seeing bad guys everywhere she looked. Tracy made sure he got coffee, juice and the full meal deal, then moved on, her thoughts on everything except her task.

She needed a new cell. Using Jewel’s phone, she’d made some calls to find Jennifer’s number and finally left a voice mail for the marshal. Tracy hadn’t heard back, which frustrated her beyond words. But what had she expected? The woman had a job to do and other witnesses to protect. Tracy had passed up her chance, and her indecision had to be driving the woman crazy, as well. Too much was happening. Tracy was too frazzled to think straight.

While the guests talked about their experiences so far and what was on their agendas for the day, Tracy served. Jewel mostly stayed in the kitchen, busy with food preparation. When Tracy poured more coffee into the new man’s cup, she felt his dark eyes on her. She blinked up then back to her task when she realized she was missing the cup, pouring hot coffee on the table.

“Oh, I’m so sorry.” She quickly wiped up the liquid from around his plate.

The man replied in an understanding tone, but she didn’t register his words.

She went into the kitchen and came out with more muffins. Through her peripheral vision she could see him watching. Again.

“Are you finished? Can I get your plates?” she asked the twentysomething couple at the end of the table, clearly caught up in a world of their own.

They were in love. Anyone could see that. They simply nodded to Tracy. She scraped the plates away then dropped one of them on the tiled floor. It shattered.

Silence hung in the air.

Jewel quickly moved to her side and helped clean up the mess. Together, they carried the pieces of shattered glass along with the dishes Tracy hadn’t broken to the kitchen and dumped them in the sink with a clank. Fortunately, the conversation in the dining room revived.

But now they had moved to discussing the killer. Someone brought up the car fire last night. It had happened where the B and B drive met the road, so she wasn’t surprised they already knew. Or maybe they’d heard her talking with Jewel. Either way, news traveled fast.

Tracy stared at her shaking hands.

Taking Tracy’s hand, Jewel pulled her to the far corner of the kitchen where no one else could see or hear. “What’s the matter? Other than what we already know, of course.”

“That man...the new guy,” Tracy whispered. “What’s his name?”

Jewel straightened. “Clarence Mercado. Why?”

“I don’t know if it’s anything, but... He was...watching me.”

Jewel pursed her lips. “Do you think he’s the one?”

Tracy covered her face. “I don’t know. That sounds crazy.”

Dropping her hands, she looked at Jewel’s pale face. “Forget it. It can’t be.” Tracy had to sound crazy. She was being paranoid to think Jewel’s new guest was after her.

“He’s had this reservation for weeks now but, still, we should call the police.” Jewel put her hand on the mounted wall phone. “Or better yet, I’ll march out to the cruiser outside. Tell the officer we need him in here.”

“No.” Tracy pressed her hand over Jewel’s. “I’ve caused you enough trouble. You’ll never hear the end of this if this guy is just a guest and nothing more. Let’s wait.”

The thing was, most members in Santino’s gang were covered with tattoos, including their faces—at least in the pictures Derrick had shown her. But not the guy sitting at the dining table. Yet Jay hadn’t mentioned more than the one tattoo he’d seen on the wrist of the guy who had pushed him. She really was losing it.