The Target (23 page)

She told herself it had nothing to do with the fact that they’d been intimate. That didn’t matter in the least. It was Megan she was concerned about. Not Jaime. Jaime could take care of herself.

Her shoulders sagged. Who the hell was she kidding? Of course it was Jaime she was worried about. And the fact that they’d become lovers made it all the more difficult to separate.

“I’m going back.” She pointed down the road. “And you are all going that way. To Tin Cup.” When Abby opened her mouth to speak, Sara held up her hand. “Don’t argue with me, Abby.”

He had long ago stopped cursing himself. It was doing no good.

But he had their trail. Did the bitches really think they could hide from him in St. Elmo? No, he’d get them all. And he’d start with the cop and end it with the bitch Michaels.

Damn. He’d told Ramsey not to get the cops involved. He’d told Ramsey he could track them on his own. He didn’t need a goddamned tracking device to follow them. But no, Ramsey didn’t want to take a chance. A female cop wasn’t going to be a problem, he said.

“Stupid bastard,” he mumbled as he pulled the collar of his light jacket up higher around his ears, trying to ward off the cold wind that had hit that morning. “Stupid bastard,” he said again.

As Jake climbed higher up Cumberland Pass, the cold wind turned bitter and she called Cheyenne in, raising the window to keep out the cold. Cheyenne’s sharp bark brought her attention back to the road and she slammed on her brakes, barely avoiding the group of women who scrambled to the side and out of her way.

“Jesus Christ!”

She skidded to a halt, her eyes as wide as those that stared back at her. She opened her door and got out, wanting to make sure no one was hurt. The women all started talking at once, some pointing behind them, others pointing up ahead.

Jake held up both hands, trying to silence them.

“Whoa there, ladies. Calm down. Is anyone hurt?”

Again, everyone started talking at once and Jake shook her head, again holding up both hands.

“Come on now. Give me a break here.” She pointed at one of them. “You. Talk.”

Abby stepped forward, her head cocked. “You damn near ran us down. Who the hell are you?”

Jake raised an eyebrow. “Jake McCoy. Who the hell are you?”

“You got a phone?”

“You got a name?”

Abby shifted nervously, looking away from Jake’s intense stare, then glancing at the others. “I’m Abby.”

Jake nodded then looked over the group. “Sara Michaels?”

Abby’s eyes widened. “How do you know Sara?”

Jake shrugged. “I’m a … I’m a cop,” she said, surprised at how easily the words flowed. “I understand somebody might be after her.”

Abby put her hands on her hips. “Well that’s a bit of an understatement.”

Jaime moved along the edge of town, keeping to the trees as she made her way to the general store. She’d gone back to the house they’d stayed at last night, trying to make it obvious that they’d been there. Been there and were now gone. She purposefully left the kitchen a mess, hoping he’d see they’d eaten and taken off.

What she wanted to avoid was him doing a cabin-by-cabin search.

If he slipped past her—or got past her—she didn’t want him finding Megan. Shotgun or not, she doubted Megan would be able to shoot.

But she wasn’t planning on letting him slip past her.

She paused under the thick boughs of a low-growing spruce tree, scanning the outskirts of the old town with her binoculars, looking for movement. Of course if he was smart, he’d be behind the trees, looking for movement in town. She had to remind herself he had a rifle. A rifle with a scope. She had to stay behind cover.

When she saw nothing out of the ordinary, she moved again, keeping to the shadows. She looked back over her shoulder the way she’d come, expecting to see the old dirt road empty. But the flash of red startled her. She snatched up her binoculars, staring.

“Goddammit!” She lowered her binoculars.
I’ll kill her.

She jumped up, running. She ran into the trees, sprinting back the way she’d come. She stumbled once, nearly falling, but caught herself. She stopped, trying to catch her breath, trying to judge where she was. Through the forest, she made out their cabin from last night. She took a deep breath, then ran, assuming Sara would go there first. The tree cover gave way to the small clearing beside the house. She raced to the house, diving behind the back, away from the road. She saw her just as she rounded the corner.

“Sara!” she hissed as loud as she dared.

Sara stopped, her eyes widening when she saw Jaime. She ran toward her, her smile fading at the angry glint in Jaime’s eyes.

“What the
fuck
do you think you’re doing?” Jaime demanded.

“I … I was afraid to leave you behind.”

Jaime grabbed her, pulling her onto the back deck and through the door they’d broken into yesterday. Once inside, she held Sara against the wall, her hands tight on her shoulders.

“Sara, goddammit, you’ve got to think. You’re running around with a bull’s-eye on your back.”

Sara glanced at the bright red New You sweatshirt she’d worn that morning. It was the warmest thing she’d packed. She closed her eyes, nodding.

“I guess you’re mad,” she stated quietly.

“I’m beyond mad.” Jaime released her grip on Sara’s shoulders then pulled her into a quick, awkward embrace.

“I had a bad feeling, Jaime. That’s all.”

“Yeah? Well what kind of a bad feeling do you think I’d have had if he’d seen you just now and gotten a shot off?”

“Look, I told you last night and I told you again this morning, I didn’t like the idea of us splitting up.”

“Sara, the whole point of this is for you to be safe. You’re not now.”

“The whole point is not just for me to be safe. I don’t outrank anyone else in this group. I don’t deserve more consideration. He’s not just after me anymore. He’s after all of us. You included.”

Jaime’s eyes flashed. “
I
need you to be safe. And you were safe when you walked out of here with the others.”

“
You
need me to be safe? Will it be a black mark on your record if something happens to me? Is it going to set your career back?”

Jaime was startled by the anger in Sara’s voice. Her eyes softened immediately.

“Sara, I don’t give a damn about my career. I need you to be safe for
me,
not my job. It’s totally selfish, trust me.”

“Then why can’t I be selfish too?”

Jaime closed her eyes, her heavy sigh quite audible in the empty house. Well, it was too late now. She couldn’t very well send Sara out of here again. It was too late for that. She opened her eyes again.

“Okay. The first thing we’ve got to do is get you out of this red Santa suit.”

“I’m sorry, Jaime. I just—”

“No. It’s okay. To be quite honest, I was worried as hell as soon as you left my sight.”

Sara nodded. “Megan?”

Jaime smiled. “How do you feel about spiders and stuff?”

He climbed higher, pausing to catch his breath as he peered through the trees, just barely able to make out the buildings of the old ghost town. Earlier, when he first reached St. Elmo, he moved off the trail and into the woods. He had visions of the bitches hiding, waiting for him, all armed with sticks and stones, ready to attack. Well, he wasn’t stupid. He would hike along the ridge above town then come in from the back side.

And then he would decide. If some of the summer residents were still about, if tourists were out and about, he’d have to abort the mission. He wasn’t going to take a chance at getting caught.

No, he’d just disappear, leave the country. They’d paid him half up front. And after all he’d been through for the last week and a half, he felt he was due that, even if he didn’t get his target.

But he’d done his research. He knew all about St. Elmo. All along it was going to be his destination after the kill, his means of escaping out of these mountains. He knew the general store closed after Labor Day. He knew most of the summer residents left then too. And he knew the town would be mostly deserted until the snows came and brought skiers with it. No, he felt confident that there would be no one about during the middle of the week, especially on such a cold, windy day like today. He’d still get his target.

And then some.

So he pushed on, making a trail where there was none as he made his way above St. Elmo.

Jake walked as fast as she dared, pleased that her leg was not protesting the pace. The short hikes she and Nicole took around the cabin were leisurely at best. Even on the occasions they hiked to the hot springs, they didn’t push. But now, she pushed, letting Cheyenne run in front of her.

After getting the story from the women—a story she tried to decipher as all eight insisted on talking at once—she made a quick call to Captain Morris, letting him know she’d found their party, albeit short his detective and the Michaels woman. Then she packed all eight of the women into her Land Cruiser and sent them down the pass to Tin Cup. And despite Morris’s plea to keep this quiet, that the FBI didn’t even know she was on the scene, she’d also placed a call to the sheriff in Nathrop as well as to Chad Beckett in Gunnison. Both were en route.

And she would beat both of them to St. Elmo.

But from what she’d gathered from their story, this Jaime Hutchinson seemed capable enough. She’d gotten the group this far with only two casualties, one of whom needed medical attention.

As she walked, she studied the treetops, judging the wind speed. She shook her head. The swirling wind was too gusty to chance a helicopter.

They were on their own.

“I can’t believe you came back. What were you thinking?”

Sara took a sip of water, then handed Megan the bottle. Yes, what was she thinking? She closed her eyes for a second, again remembering Jaime’s touch, her kisses. Yes, that was what she’d been thinking.

“I was worried about you. Both of you. And as I suspected, Jaime stashed you somewhere with plans to play cowboy with this guy.”

“Yeah. And left me with a shotgun.” She touched Sara’s arm.

“Do you know how to use one of these?”

Sara shrugged. “I’ve been skeet shooting before. Whether I could point it at a person and pull the trigger is another matter.” As Megan’s eyes widened, Sara smiled and gently squeezed her hand.

“But don’t worry. We’re not going to need it. Jaime won’t let him get to us.” Then she touched Megan’s forehead. “You don’t feel quite as warm. Maybe those antibiotics have helped some.”

“I don’t know. To be honest with you, I’m so numb I’m not sure how I feel.”

Sara nodded. She didn’t know what to say so she remained quiet. Megan had already heard all of their consoling words. What she needed was a doctor. So she turned out the small flashlight Jaime had left with them and leaned back against the wall next to Megan.

And waited.

Jaime was hiding in the forest, out of sight of the main trail but after an hour without movement or sound, she grew anxious and very worried. She scanned once more with her binoculars and again saw nothing out of the ordinary. In fact, it was too quiet. But she could attribute a lot of that to the gusty winds that had been blowing all morning. Even the normal chatter of the birds was missing.

She shook her head. Something wasn’t right. She could feel it in her gut. She frowned, looking down the trail then back toward town. The street was still deserted. Then she looked farther, past the street, her eyes following the old road out of town, the road the girls had taken that morning. Her eyes widened.

“Son of a bitch,” she muttered.

He’s coming in from the back side.

Jake came to a sudden stop when she saw movement through the trees. She touched Cheyenne’s head, silently telling the dog to keep quiet. She waited then saw him. A tall man carrying a burgundy backpack—he looked like an ordinary hiker. So she stood still, watching as he lowered the binoculars he’d been looking through. He turned suddenly, as if sensing her presence.

“Well, hey there,” he called. “You startled me. Haven’t seen any other hikers in days.” He motioned with his binoculars. “Thought I saw a bear.”

Jake nodded, her body still tense, wary.

“You alone?” Jake asked.

“Yeah. You?”

Jake nodded. “Just a day hike.” She released her hand, allowing Cheyenne to move away. The low growl in the dog’s throat told Jake everything she needed to know.

The man moved again, taking a step closer, their eyes fixed on each other.

“You been to St. Elmo before?” he asked.

Jake nodded. “Many times.”

“Many people out and about this time of year?”

Jake shook her head. “No, not really.”

She felt a chill as a smile slowly formed on his face and his eyes turned cold.

“That’s what I was hoping.”

She felt her adrenaline surge when he pulled a rifle out from behind his back. Without thinking, she dove headfirst to the side of the trail, sliding down quickly behind the fallen boulders. She ducked her head as the first shot rang out.

“
Cheyenne!
”

She saw only a flash as Cheyenne ran behind her. “Good girl,” she murmured. She pulled the dog closer against the rocks. “Now stay put.” She ducked her head again when a second shot was fired.

“Come on out now, little girl. Got no place to run to.”

With her weapon drawn, she scooted down lower, trying to get an angle on him. He was walking closer. She didn’t have a good shot but she wanted him aware that she had a gun. Between the limbs of the spruce tree she fired, her shot landing near enough to his feet to kick up rocks. It was his turn to take cover and she fired once more as he took refuge behind his own rock pile. They were maybe fifty feet apart. Too close for comfort but far enough away for Jake to feel somewhat safe. She tucked her head against her chest as the dirt kicked up behind her from another round.

Safe?
Who was she kidding?