Corktown (22 page)

At the tree line, the couple said their goodbyes and lowered their goggles. If at all possible, they agreed to try to keep the agent alive. She would make a wonderful play toy for Preston, and Katherine simply didn’t like the bitch. The thought of being able to watch Kane suffer at the hands of her husband made her smile.

75

“Look, a light came on. They’re inside.” Solis said while pointing.

“We need to split up,” I said. “Solis you go right. Madero you go left. There’s got to be a back entrance into this place.”

“What about you?” Solis asked.

“I’ll head for the front door. I’m the shortest; it’ll be harder to spot me when I move. It’s the only way to take them by surprise.”

“One more thing,” Solis said. “If the doors are locked, we’ll have to fire a round at the knob and kick our way in. We don’t have radios so we’ll text each other. When we’re all in place, we’ll push in at once.”

As we were about to move, Madero motioned us to stop. “What about the kids?”

Solis looked at the cabin and then back at us. “If they get in my way, they get in my way.”

Madero looked at me, obviously wanting to see how I felt about having to target the boys. I didn’t think we could trust the children. “Let’s not take any chances.”

I spotted a wheelbarrow about half the distance between where I crouched and the house. That would be my first destination. I moved as fast as I could, while remaining low, until my back was up against it. Once there, I did a sweep of the property. I could no longer see Solis or Madero. They had disappeared into the darkness. I, on the other hand, felt completely exposed under the moonlight, but I knew better than to think that. The wheelbarrow and I were the same height.

I felt buzzing in my pants. Did they reach the backdoor already? I pulled out my phone, expecting a text from either Solis or Madero, but instead I got one from Lucy. The agent in me screamed,
“What the hell are you doing, Abby?”
as the mother in me texted Lucy back that I was busy. I would have stayed put either way; I hadn’t figured out my next move.

I peeked over the wheelbarrow and figured out a plan. I would move straight ahead, up the three stairs, and onto the porch, where I could tuck under a window next to the front door.

On the count of three I would make my move.
One, two—
Bam!

A gunshot!

76

The gunshot came from the right side of the house.
Solis!
No sooner had I heard that one, when I heard another from the left side.
Shit!
They were waiting for us. I heard more firing on the left side but nothing on the right. If I stayed put, I was an easy target on the porch. I reached for the knob. It was locked. I fired a round at the base of the knob. There was more damage than I’d expected, eliminating the need to kick the door open.

I entered the cabin, gun ahead of me. Left. Right. Left. I swung my arms, clearing the area. My finger gripped the trigger tightly. I was so sure one of them would jump out at any minute. I closed the door behind me and crouched down.

The cabin seemed empty. To the left, I saw a small table with a kitchen behind it. To the right of me: a couch, a sitting chair, and a short bookshelf filled with a few knickknacks and paperbacks. Straight ahead were wooden stairs that led up to the second level.
A bedroom. The boys are probably in there.
The door at the top was closed. A tiny office was tucked under the stairs. Next to it was a back door. That’s how they got outside.

More shots rang out.
Dammit!
I had no idea what was going on outside. I bounded up the stairs and plopped myself down on the last step. It was my best bet for cover. From the top of the stairs looking down, I had the front door covered. It would be crazy for me to move outside. I had to trust that Solis and Madero could handle themselves.

I leaned back against the door. Sweat trickled down my face, and my shirt clung to me like a layer of skin. I needed to calm myself and slow my breathing. I turned my head to the side and listened. I couldn’t hear any noise or movement coming from the room. Either the boys were being very quiet or they were a sleep. My gut told me they were up. The gunshots were loud. I reached up to the knob. Another locked door.

Seconds seemed like minutes. The gunshots outside had died down. I had no idea if Solis or Madero were alive. If they weren’t, that would mean the wolves were circling.

77

It didn’t take long before Katherine spotted her target moving like a bear on its hind legs. The night vision goggles painted him as a white human shape against a green background. She wasn’t exactly sure which of the two detectives she had been dealt, but she widened her stance and cleared a few branches away. With her breathing slowed and her heartbeat calmed, Katherine was ready.

One, she inhaled. Two, she let it out. Three, she raised her weapon and pulled the trigger.

Through her goggles, she saw the head of the white figure snap back. White particles blasted out from the roundish shape before slumping down into a pile. Bullseye!

• • •

Preston had also spotted his target. He got the taller, fatter one.
This is too easy, fat man. Where’s the challenge? Where’s the fun? I might as well be aiming a cannon, you pathetic excuse for the living.

Preston thought of picking him off little by little. Wounding him in each limb, then moving in for a personal kill—the way he loved to do it. That meant going against his wife’s wishes of course, something he almost always avoided. She laid out the plan and told Preston not to deviate from it.

Preston bit his lip. He raised his weapon and concentrated. He heard a gun shot just as he pulled his trigger. The rotten timing caused his arm to jerk, sending the double tap he had practiced relentlessly to go wide. He didn’t bother with the third shot. He needed to focus. The fat one had already taken advantage of the situation and slipped behind a tree. His belly stuck out of course.

• • •

Madero couldn’t see a goddamn thing, but he certainly heard the zip of two bullets fly by him. He knew he wasn’t safe behind the tree. The gunman was probably using thermal sighting; it’s the only way he could have come that close to hitting him. Madero wasn’t even moving when he heard the first shot. But it surprised him enough to jerk back. Had he not, he would have been dead.

The muzzle blasts gave Madero a general location of where the shooter might be. He wasted no time aiming his weapon and pulled the trigger on his department-issued Smith & Wesson. Madero put all fifteen rounds into the area where he believed the shooter’s chest and head were. He prayed he had gotten lucky and snagged a headshot.

As quickly as he emptied the magazine, he released it from the gun, pocketed it, and replaced it with a fully loaded one. He was locked and loaded in seconds. These bullets had to count. It was all he had left. He dropped low, hoping he had enough brush covering him. But he knew he couldn’t stay still, not if the shooter was still alive. One more thing worried Madero: the gunshot he heard on the other side of the cabin. The Carters were out hunting.

78

Katherine didn’t have time to think the situation through thoroughly. She reacted and ran straight for the side of the house when she heard the barrage of return fire that followed what she was sure to be Preston’s double tap.
He missed.
She crouched beneath the window on the right side of the cabin, her back pressed up hard against the wood as she caught her breath. Her eyes completed multiple sweeps of the area but nobody came into view. She struggled to quiet herself. She was convinced her labored breaths and thumping heart would give her location away.

She inched forward to the front of the house and peeked around onto the porch. Still her night vision revealed no one.
Where were they?
Had the cabin been compromised?
She fell back to the window. Tremors ran through her hands and her rasping breath had become uneven and more pronounced.
Stay calm. Focus.

She had heard nothing since the last barrage of gunfire. She struggled to keep her thoughts focused; she had no idea if Preston was dead or alive. It terrified her to think she might be by herself. But more importantly, she worried about the boys. Were they still safe?

In the span of a few minutes, the strong matriarch of the family had gone from confident leader to terrified mother. She couldn’t stop thinking about her two boys. Suddenly, images of Jackson and Lorenzo lying dead in a pool of blood filled her head.
No!
She jerked her head. Tears poured down her cheeks. Her bottom lip quivered uncontrollably. Katherine crumpled to the ground.
I can’t lose the boys. I can’t! What if I gave up? I could say Preston made me a prisoner and forced me. Would they believe me?
That maternal instinct kicked in. All Katherine could think about was protecting her kids, even if that meant giving herself up.

She flipped the night vision goggles up and brushed her hair from her face. Slowly, she raised herself up until her eyes could see through the dusty window. Her vision was slightly obstructed, and she needed to be sure if someone was inside or not. She pulled down on the sleeve of her sweater so it covered her palm and wiped a very tiny portion of the lower corner of the window so she could peek through again. She saw nothing.

• • •

I hid easily in the darkness at the top of the stairs with my black jeans and blue long-sleeve shirt. It’s the only reason why I could look directly at Katherine while her eyes glazed over my position. I had initially heard someone bump up against the side of the house. A few seconds later, I had seen her head pop up for just split second, but I instantly recognized the headgear she had on.
Night vision goggles
. Solis and Madero were easy targets. They never had a chance against the couple.

And now the dynamic duo had me in their sights.

Katherine peeked inside once more, sans goggles, and then disappeared, but it was easy to track her. I heard her step up onto the porch. If she hadn’t noticed the missing lock, she would any second now. Until then, she probably thought the house had not been breached. I knew she wanted into the bedroom where her children were. That’s where she would make her stand. Not knowing the situation outside, I had to assume the worst: Solis and Madero were down and the wolves were coming into the den.

I couldn’t wait any longer. I took a chance Katherine was in front of the door. I lifted my weapon and unloaded my entire magazine, starting near the bottom of the door, shooting up methodically—hoping I would hit her.

• • •

Madero knew his next move had to be to a place providing better coverage. He was an open target in the woods and no match against a pair of night vision-wearing lunatics. If he could get to the space between the SUV and the house, he would have the protection he needed. Whoever had shot at him would have no choice but to come out into the open.

Madero gave himself the best starting block takeoff he could manage. He ran hard and straight. Not once did he look around at his surrounding area. The way Madero saw it, if he got hit, he got hit.

As soon as he exited the tree line, he heard rapid gunfire. Madero ducked his head and kept running, all while wondering how many times he had been shot. He slid into the gap between the house and the vehicle like a ballplayer. Looking back and forth between the front and back of the vehicle, he waited for his attacker to show but no one came. He lowered his gun and patted himself, checking for wounds.
What the...?
He thought for sure he had taken a slug.

With no movement in the woods, Madero figured he had hit his target, or at least wounded it.
What about the other gunfire? Who were they shooting at? Solis? Kane?
For some reason, his gut told him the husband had hunted him. Madero pulled out his cell and sent a text to Kane and Solis, wondering who was still alive.

79

My phone buzzed against my leg, causing my body to jerk. I reached into my jean pocket and pulled out my cell. Madero was alive. I quickly answered him. “I’m okay. In the house. You? Solis?”

Madero buzzed me a second later. “I’m okay. Between Rover and house. Solis MIA.”

“There’s a door, back of house. I’m at top of stairs,” I texted.

Madero responded, “I’m coming in.”

Seconds later I heard the door open and close. “Madero,” I whispered.

“I’m inside,” he said. I watched Madero move into view at the bottom of the stairs.

“Katherine was in front of the door. I think I hit her.”

“No shit,” he said looking at all the bullet holes. Madero continued forward until he had his back up against the wall near the hinged part of the front door. I moved so he could see me on the stairs. He nodded and I motioned to him to pull the door open. I aimed the barrel of my gun straight ahead.

Madero reached across the door, slipped his fingers into a bullet hole, and pulled. The door swung open as he moved to the side and raised his weapon in case a madman or woman came running in. No one did.

Katherine lay curled up on the porch. Madero moved toward the doorway.

“Is she dead?” I asked.

Madero leaned over for a closer look. He then fired off a round. “If she wasn’t, she is now,” he said turning around with a spiteful look.

I couldn’t believe what I had witnessed.
Did Madero just murder Katherine, or was she already dead?
Did I even care?

Madero continued to look my way, waiting for an answer to what he just did. What he got instead, neither of us saw coming.

An arm reached around Madero’s neck and pulled back, twisting his head off to the side. When he turned back toward me, his eyes widened in disbelief. Blood gushed down his throat as he cupped his neck with his right hand.