Delivering Justice (13 page)

There was very little security at the house. Tyler didn’t want to tell Jessica his real fear, that none was necessary because Jenn wasn’t perceived as a threat. She would be immobilized and he had no idea what physical condition she’d be in when they found her. He was prepared to carry her over his shoulder for the mile and a half walk to his SUV if that’s what it took.

The sun would be up soon, so they had to move fast.

Tyler wished there was a way to prepare Jessica, to soften the blow of seeing her sister in such a vulnerable state as they closed the distance between the tree line and the house.

They could go in through the raised basement. Tyler pulled his gun and motioned for Jessica to do the same. He walked policeman-style, gun and flashlight drawn, down a half dozen stairs.

The door was locked but he’d had enough experience with barn doors to figure out how to pick it.

Inside, the place was dark and dingy, and the floor slanted downward, resulting in water pooling in one corner of the space. Tyler immediately looked for alternate exits in case the cellar door was no longer an option. An old wall that divided the space was half-torn down. The stairs leading to the main floor were old and wooden. There would be people up there. They couldn’t go out that way.

Tyler scanned the room for any signs of life. A woman sat crumpled over in a corner of the room. Her head was slumped to one side, her neck at an odd angle and for a split second Tyler feared the worst.

Jessica let out a little gasp before seeming to catch herself and going silent as she hurried over. She dropped down next to the woman and cradled her face. “Jenn.”

Chapter Thirteen

Tyler took a knee on the other side of Jenn and checked for a pulse. Relief washed over him when he got one. “She’s alive.”

Jenn’s eyes fluttered open and she immediately drew back. A cut ran down the side of her left cheek and her right eye was swollen and bruised.

“Don’t be scared. It’s me. I’m taking you home,” Jessica said soothingly.

It took a minute for Jenn’s eyes to focus, but when they did she scrambled toward Jessica, hugging her sister around the neck. She was aware and that was a good thing.

Tyler glanced around the room. He was a little surprised they’d left her alone in the basement. The lock on the cellar door had been easy enough to pick. This was an upper class suburban neighborhood and they must not figure that anyone would tie this place to criminal activity. It was the kind of place where he half expected to find a grandma upstairs, having risen early and gathered vegetables to begin preparing the roux that would cook all day until used in a dish such as crawfish étouffée for supper.

“I’m going to pick you up and take you out of here,” Tyler said.

Jenn pulled back, fearful, and shook her head. Her lips were dry, cracked and he wondered how long it had been since she’d had water. Getting her hydrated would be his first priority as soon as he got her out of there.

“It’s okay, sweetie. This is my friend and he’s here to help,” Jessica said, her voice rising in panic. “What’s wrong?”

Jenn shifted her position to reveal her ankles. Her feet had been tucked underneath her bottom so they’d missed the thick ropes around her ankles. Tyler followed the bindings to a three-inch PVC pipe climbing up the wall that disappeared into a hole in the ceiling. He pulled out his cell.

“What are you doing?” Jessica asked, placing her hand on his arm.

“Calling the police.”

Jenn shook her head again and Tyler stopped, his finger hovering over the nine.

“I have no choice. I can’t take a chance and I sure as hell can’t leave you like this. We make any noise down here and I guarantee the room will fill with more men with guns than you can shake a stick at. What else do you think we should do?” he asked.

“I loved him,” Jenn managed to say, her voice raspy and she sounded so tired. “Get the necklace. Keep it safe.”

“Or we get you out of here, find the necklace together, and then go to police,” Tyler said, using a tone that said he was done talking.

“No police. Not yet,” Jenn insisted. “Not while it looks like I did this. Who would believe that I’m innocent?”

She had a good point. Currently, evidence pointed directly at her involvement.

“The truth will come out,” Jessica soothed her sister. She was putting up a brave front but it was clear to Tyler that she was fighting to keep her emotions in check. “All anyone would have to do is look at you to know you’re innocent.”

“I go to the police and I’m dead,” Jenn said, and it looked like it took an incredible amount of effort to speak.

Her statement was true and he couldn’t deny it. She was afraid for good reason. Tyler tucked his phone into his pocket.

“Then we find a way to get you out of here and figure this out,” Jessica said emphatically, obviously not wanting to upset her sister with the information about Elijah and Milton. “But I am not leaving you here. Do you understand me? I won’t do it.”

Tyler slid his arm around Jessica’s waist, trying to soothe her.

She smiled up at him and then scooted closer to her sister and out of his reach.

“Where’s Ashton?” Jenn whispered. It was barely loud enough for Tyler to hear.

“I don’t know,” Jessica said.

Tyler searched the space for something he could use to cut the rope. Seeing Jenn like this, defenseless and in a basement, he understood why they didn’t think they’d need security and this was just what he’d feared. They were hiding her in plain sight and were confident...too confident?

Even so, the move was pretty brilliant if anyone asked Tyler, and he’d have to keep that in mind moving forward. These guys were clever career criminals and neither Jenn nor Jessica would be safe until those men were locked behind bars.

There was nothing around to use to free Jenn. The sun would be up soon. That meant someone would most likely be down to check on her.

Old houses were notorious for having pipes that ran nowhere. Was it possible that the PVC pipe she was attached to would be the same? He stood and ran his fingers as high as he could reach on the PVC pipe. The ceiling wasn’t more than seven feet high so he could reach fairly far into the ceiling. He curled his index finger around the end of the pipe. Jackpot.

Tyler twisted the pipe but it wouldn’t budge. There was probably twenty years of grime holding it together. He clamped his back teeth together and gave another twist, netting a little movement this time. Digging deep, he squeezed the pipe and turned. This time, it gave. He pulled apart the pipes by threading one through the ceiling. They could worry about the ropes later. His first priority was getting her out of there. He scooped her off the floor and raced toward the cellar door.

Jessica went first, pushing through the door and into the beginnings of sunlight.

Two men in an SUV with dark windows burst from the vehicle. Tyler cursed and he heard Jessica do the same. They must’ve been reporting to work because they hadn’t been there fifteen minutes ago.

“Run and keep running. No matter what happens,” he said, figuring they still had a chance if Jessica could get away. She would have to call the police then. Of course, with criminals this smart, he and Jenn would be hidden in a new location.

Tyler had no intention of going down without a fight.

“Stop,” one of the men shouted.

Tyler didn’t look back. He ran on burning legs. At this distance, the men would have to be spot-on shots to hit him, although he liked his odds less since he was a good-sized target. Once he got to the trees,
if
he got to the trees, it would be even more difficult for them to get off an accurate shot. They could circle back to their SUV once they got away from the men. Try running there now and the men would catch them before they could get Jenn inside.

He could get to the trees, but then what? If he could set Jenn down, turn around and pull out his gun in time then maybe he could hold them off.

Carrying roughly a hundred and twenty pounds of woman put him at a distinct disadvantage. He chanced a glance behind. The men were closing in fast.

The trees were too far and he realized that there was no way he was going to make it in time. Either of the men could stop and fire at this point and have a good chance at hitting him. His best guess as to why they hadn’t fired already was that they wanted Jenn alive because they assumed she knew where the necklace was hidden.

All his and Jessica’s efforts to save Jenn wouldn’t matter the second these guys caught up with them. He couldn’t outrun them and he could hear their footsteps closing in.

The next second, Jessica spun around with her gun leveled. “Duck.”

Tyler dropped to the ground, holding on to Jenn, whose arms were wrapped so tightly around his neck she was almost cutting off his ability to breathe.

A bullet split the air, Jenn screamed and Tyler half feared she’d been shot by mistake. He looked behind him to see the men had scattered in the opposite direction, running for cover. His chest shouldn’t fill with pride for Jessica’s quick thinking but it did. And he was darn grateful she wasn’t a lousy shot or he might’ve ended up with a bullet in his skull.

He popped to his feet and blazed past her. “Let’s go.”

Only when they were deep in the woods and there was no sign of pursuit did he feel it was safe to stop and catch his breath. “Way to think on your feet back there.”

Jessica smiled and it quickly faded as she put her arm around her sister. “I can’t take her home. That’s the first place they’ll look. I have to figure out a way to warn our parents without telling them what’s going on. And we need to stay out of sight until we sort this out.”

Tyler waited for his breathing to slow before talking. “I can make sure your family is safe. I’ll send someone to pick them up and take them away for an extended vacation. And I have the perfect place to hide while we figure this out. There are blind spots on my ranch and I know just where they are. We can pitch a tent on my land and stay under the radar.”

“She’s too weak and she needs medical care,” Jessica said. “And these guys won’t let up.”

“I have other plans for her and those men with guns are exactly the reason we need to find a place to hunker down for a few days and give her time to recoup. She needs medical care and I know where she can get it and still be safe.” He examined the cut on Jenn’s face. “All the wounds are superficial so they’ll heal quickly as long as there’s no infection. In the meantime, I’d put money on the fact that necklace has to be somewhere in Texas and I’m betting it’s near Bluff.”

“Of course, that’s why Milton believed me and took me there,” Jessica said. “I guess he figured he’d get me to tell him where it was and then he’d take it back himself. And then he could collect a reward from Mr. Beauchamp or use it to get in his good graces.”

“Gambling” was all Jenn managed to say. She needed water, food and a day’s worth of rest before she could say much more. Nearly three days of who knew what conditions she’d been in other than the basement. The only good news was that she seemed otherwise healthy and should bounce back given a little time to recoup.

“What did you say?” Jessica asked, leaning closer.

“She said gambling. I’m guessing Milton’s trouble had to do with a betting addiction,” Tyler said.

Jenn nodded.

“But you didn’t think he’d turn on you,” Tyler clarified.

“No.” A look of horror crossed Jenn’s weary features as she looked at her sister. “I would never have—”

“I know. Don’t try to talk right now. It’s okay,” Jessica soothed. “I know you would never put me in danger on purpose.”

“We need to stay on the move,” Tyler said as he moved toward Jenn. “And get her into the SUV.”

He scooped her up and she wrapped her arms around his neck again. He’d rather go straight to Tommy than to the ranch. There was no doubt that Tyler could trust his longtime family friend. Jessica and Jenn seemed to have other ideas. He needed to help them see the light.

So far the only thing the three of them agreed on was getting Jenn out of the state and keeping her off the radar while she gained her strength. But Tyler had every intention of calling his friend. Jessica had green-lighted the connection before and nothing in their present circumstance changed his mind.

* * *

T
HE
FLIGHT
HOME
was smooth as the morning sun settled in the sky. Jessica was grateful to have her sister back. During the flight she’d racked her brain to put the pieces together. Milton had obviously been in some kind of gambling trouble and when Jessica couldn’t deliver the necklace, he’d tried to kill her, believing her to be Jenn.

Jessica had an endless list of questions...would Elijah realize Big Beau had allegiance to Jenn now that she’d escaped? Elijah had figured Jessica out. But who stole the necklace in the first place?

Everyone seemed to believe that Jenn knew where this multi-million-dollar necklace was, but she was too weak to talk. Answers would have to wait until she was hydrated and feeling better.

“Checked the weather in Bluff before we took off,” Tyler said, interrupting her hamster-wheel of questions. “It should be in the low sixties for the next few days. Perfect camping weather.”

Images of the last time she was on his land flashed through her thoughts. Of turning to find Milton standing there, rock in hand, ready to bash her head in. That image was burned into her brain.

After settling the airplane in the hanger, Tyler helped Jenn into the backseat of his SUV. She was moving a little better now that he’d removed the ropes from her ankles. He’d given her ibuprofen and water from his emergency kit and Jenn had slept during the flight home.

Jessica was grateful for Tyler. She couldn’t imagine doing any of this alone—and yet hadn’t she been alone her entire life? Sure, she’d had her sister and her parents, all people who leaned on her, but who did she have to depend on?

Without the Texas cowboy she had no idea where she would’ve ended up. Dead, she thought. She would’ve died if she’d been left underneath that ATV. A wild animal would’ve gotten to her or she would’ve wandered around on the property, lost, until she succumbed to dehydration or, if she’d survived long enough, starvation. The important thing was that she and Jenn were together and her sister would be okay.

Tyler took a call, walking around to the back of his SUV out of earshot. A pang of jealousy tore through her, which was silly. She had no designs on the cowboy, even though the few kisses they’d shared in the past twenty-four hours had left a piece of her thinking otherwise. Dating hadn’t been a priority of late and especially since Brent. It was more than his infidelity that pierced her chest. It was the fact that she’d so easily given her trust to him, and how willingly he’d stomped all over it. Was she that bad a judge of character?

It would seem so, because she’d misjudged her sister, as well. It had taken a stranger, Big Beau, to tell Jessica what she really meant to Jenn.

How strange was that?

“That was my brother Dallas. Someone in a suit is still asking around for me in town,” Tyler said, rounding the SUV to where she was sitting in the passenger seat with the door open.

“Why would they want you?” Then it must’ve dawned on her. “They must’ve figured out that you were helping me.”

“When your sister wakes up, we need to talk to her.”

“Do you think she’ll be safe with us?” she asked. “I’m worried about her. She’s been mumbling something and I think she’s out of it.”

“I was planning to call Dr. McConnell to have Jenn examined. We could check her into the hospital under a fake name. I can send security to keep an eye on her 24/7 while we continue to investigate. I’m certain the doc will accommodate us without asking a lot of questions.”