HARD FAL (25 page)

She climbed down from the helicopter, taking care to balance her weight on her good leg. A burning sensation ran down her spine as she crossed to the car, as if she could feel Daddy’s sights on her. Once she was inside and Seth pulled away, she told him, “We’ve got back up listening in via my radio. They can hear everything we say.”

He glanced at her, then nodded his understanding. No more confessions of murder, not with half the office listening in. “I left our phones behind after you called, so we don’t have to worry about him.” He meant Daddy. “Have you heard from June?”

“She’s with Walden and Oshiro. On her way to the hospital.”

“The hospital?”

“She’s in labor. The baby is coming tonight.”

The car stuttered to a stop as he clenched the wheel and bowed his head forward over it. His shoulders shook, then he drew in a breath, and straightened once more. “Then this ends tonight. For June. For our baby.”

He glanced at her and shifted in his seat so she could see the revolver snugged into his waistband at the small of his back. “Promise me, that, Lucy. No matter what, June won’t ever need to worry about him again.”

Lucy never made promises she couldn’t keep. But this one was easy. One way or the other, between her and Hambly’s team or even Seth himself if it came to that, Daddy was as good as dead.

“I promise.”

<><><>

MEGAN SAT IN
the back seat of Walden’s car with her dad. They were a few minutes behind the ambulance—had to douse the fire and turn off all the lights and everything at Grams’ first. Oshiro was in the front seat beside Walden, leaning forward, peering through the rain.

“Where are they? We should have caught up with them by now.”

Walden said nothing, but Megan felt their speed increase even as they rounded another curve. Even with only one good hand, Walden drove like her mother, faster was always better. Then, suddenly, he jammed on the brakes.

“What is it?” Dad asked.

“Look. Down the mountain.” Walden opened his door and got out of the car, peering over the guardrail. They were on the outside edge of one of the many switchbacks that circled the mountain and from here could see all the way down to the lights of the homes in the valley below.

Megan didn’t understand why Walden sounded so worried and from his frown, neither did Dad. But Oshiro got it. “Shit. Turn this thing around.”

Walden got back into the driver’s seat and quickly spun them into a U-turn. Oshiro leaned over the seat to talk to her dad. “Where else does this road lead?”

“Nowhere. Just down to 981.”

“I mean, what’s up the mountain. If we’d gone right instead of left at the end of the drive.”

Then Megan got it. It was only March; there were no leaves on the trees yet. They could see the road all the way down the mountain and there’d been no cars—definitely no flashing lights from an ambulance.

“Someone took June?” she asked. “Who? The paramedics?”

“Maybe they weren’t really paramedics. Or maybe they were ambushed. Who knows?” Walden was steering them around the curves so fast that Megan grabbed for her door handle.

“Where does the road lead?” Oshiro asked.

“It dead ends about a half mile up the road from Coletta’s,” Dad answered. “There are a few logging roads along the way, that’s it.”

They reached the turnoff for Grams’ drive. “Stop here,” Oshiro ordered. Walden slowed, then backed into the driveway, the front of the car pointing out like they might need a quick escape. He turned the lights off but didn’t turn the engine off.

“You two stay here,” Walden said. He reached up to switch the dome light off then opened his door. Oshiro got out as well and they met at the trunk. Megan turned in her seat and tried to see what they were doing.

Dad was smarter. He got out of the car and slid into Walden’s seat. She craned her head and spotted the two men in the rearview mirror. Walden was strapping his bulletproof vest on, fastening the Velcro one-handed, while Oshiro held a shotgun.

Then the sound of a gunshot cracked through the night. Not very loud, but quickly followed by others. Walden left at a jog, Oshiro following close behind.

“Should we get the shotgun from inside the house?” Megan whispered to her dad. She had no idea why she was whispering, but it seemed the right thing to do.

“No. Stay here with me. If they’re not back in a few minutes, we’ll go for help.” He slowly inched the car forward so they had a good view of the road up the mountain.

Megan gripped the edge of the seat back, barely risking a breath. She tried to remember what her Kempo instructor said about releasing fear and controlling her breathing—same thing her mom always told her when they went shooting. But right here, right now, sitting in the dark with no idea what was happening, breathing was the last thing she could think about.

Lights flashed on the street above them. The ambulance’s headlights. A man’s figure was silhouetted in front of it—no mistaking Oshiro’s build—waving them an all clear sign. Dad put the car back in gear and drove up the mountain until they were parked across from where the ambulance sat on the side of the road.

“What happened?” he asked Oshiro, rolling down his window as if he wasn’t sure if he should get out of the car.

Megan was sure. She needed to check on June. She hopped out and ran over to the ambulance’s rear. The doors were open—one of the windows was shattered and there was blood everywhere. Walden was dragging a dead body out of the way, his body twisted since he could only use one arm.

When he saw her, he spun to block Megan’s view of the dead man, but it was too late. Megan stared at the man who was dressed like a soldier or hunter. She knew she should feel something—a man, a person, was dead—but all she could think of was June. “Are you okay?”

June nodded even as she clutched the rails of the stretcher she was strapped to, her face contorted in pain.

“She isn’t hurt.” Walden assured her. Her dad and Oshiro arrived behind her.

“Who’s that man? Did you shoot him?” Megan asked Walden.

“No. June did.” With Oshiro’s help, Walden gave the man’s body a final heave, rolling it out of the ambulance, giving them room to get to the medical equipment.

“The baby’s coming,” June gasped. Megan jumped inside the ambulance, almost slipping on the blood covered floor, and skidded onto the bench seat beside June, grabbing her hand.

“Breathe, June. Like this,” Megan demonstrated the panting she remembered from their health class video. “Dad, you know how. Can’t you help her?”

Dad climbed into the now crowded ambulance and scooted past Megan to sit closer to June’s head. “That’s right, June. You can do this.”

Walden finally found a kit labeled OB. He opened it and looked at the equipment: two yellow plastic clips, a bulb syringe, scissors, clamps, pads, sutures wrapped in tiny foil packets with illustrations of wickedly pointed curved needles on the front.

“I have no clue what half of this is.” He looked to Oshiro. “You’re a combat medic, right?”

“Yeah. I can use a tourniquet and chest tube—maybe amputate a limb if you need it, but this…”

Megan pointed to the yellow thing that looked like a hair barrette. “That’s an umbilical clip, you put two on and cut between them. But first you suction the baby’s mouth and nose with that.” She pointed to the bulb.

“You know about this stuff?” Walden asked.

She nodded. “A little.”

June cried out with another contraction, clawing at Dad’s arm. Megan swallowed, her mouth suddenly dry. “Walden, set up that oxygen and put it on June’s face.”

Walden glanced past Megan to her dad. Anger sparked through her fear—just because she was a kid, didn’t mean she didn’t know what to do. After all, this baby was coming whether they were ready or not. “Dad, I’ve got this. Really.”

“Trust her, she’ll be fine.” Nick answered Walden’s silent question.

Megan wasn’t sure if he meant her or June, but that was okay. She closed her eyes, took in a deep breath, and tried to remember everything she could from her first aid course and the health class. Thank God, she’d stayed awake for the whole thing.

“Oshiro, help June hold her legs back so I can take a look.” Ugh. This was the disgusting part. But the men looked a ton more afraid than Megan. She took comfort in that. “June, I’m just going to check, see how far along you are.” As if she knew—well, if she saw a baby’s head poking out, guess she could figure that out.

Instead of relaxing, June lunged up and grabbed Megan’s arm. “Promise me, Megan,” she said, ignoring the men, focusing on Megan alone. As if Megan was the one in charge, the one who could promise anything. “Whatever happens to me, promise me that my baby will grow up in a home like yours. Surrounded by love. I want her to be strong, to never surrender, despite whatever happens to her.”

“Like you,” Megan whispered. Another contraction. June squeezed Megan’s wrist so tight she felt the bones crunch.

“No,” June gasped. “Not like me. Not a victim. A hero. Like your mom.”

“My mom?” Megan was too scared and exhausted to control her surge of anger. “My mom got my grams killed. She’s no hero.”

She felt more than saw Dad’s grimace at that. Who cared? It was the truth and he knew it. So did Mom—that’s why she acted so distant and moody all the time. Just because they’d started talking again didn’t change the facts.

June fell back, panting. She raised her palm to caress Megan’s cheek. “She is a hero, Megan. She did what she did to save you. I want my baby to grow up with a mother like that.”

Now it was Megan’s turn to clutch at June. “She will. You’ll be a great mother, June. I just know it.”

There was a hiss as Walden finally figured out how to connect the oxygen. He gently adjusted the prongs beneath June’s nose.

June’s face shadowed with something more than pain. “I’m afraid,” she whispered. “I think I should give her up, maybe. Find a better family for her. The family she deserves.”

“No. June. No.”

Behind her, she felt Oshiro shift and knew he felt the same way. He reached down and stroked June’s arm, but said nothing.

June’s answer was cut short as a powerful contraction rocked her body. She screamed in pain then began panting. “I have to push. She’s coming. Megan. She’s coming.”

Chapter 35

BY THE TIME
they reached the dam, the rain had slowed to a drizzle. Lucy had Seth turn off all the lights, interior and exterior, before they got out. She circled around to the rear of the car, opened the trunk and retrieved a short tire iron.

“What’s that for?” Seth asked, leaning against the car. He was moving more slowly and unsteadily than she was.

“He said there was a lock on the gate.”

“He thought of everything, didn’t he?”

“Are you okay?” she asked.

He pushed off the car, a strange smile shining through the dim light. “Yeah. I’m going to be a father. Hell, maybe I already am.”

She couldn’t argue with that perspective on things. Lord knew, it was the thought of her own family that had gotten her through worse situations. At least they were safe.

They linked arms and hauled each other up the slope to the gate at the end of the dam. The spillways were open, rushing water pouring through, echoing through the gorge and leaving the ground with the slightest tremor. Lucy didn’t like it—she had a hard enough time making sure her bad foot was planted firmly as it was.

She handed Seth her Maglite and he needed both hands to hold it steady while she dealt with the padlock. She didn’t bother trying to unlock it—the hasp was thick and sturdy, unlike the cheap chain link that held it in place and snapped with judicious leverage from the tire iron.

“You going to be able to fire that gun?”

“Got six bullets, only need one to do the job.” His tone was nonchalant and his posture open as if he’d left all his worries far behind.

“Okay, then.” She hauled the chain link gate open and they stepped onto the dam. It was only about eight feet across here at the top, the walkway interrupted by several hoists positioned to manually raise the floodgates if necessary.

“Stop there!” a man’s voice came from in front of them. “Inside the gate there’s a radio.”

Seth waved the light around until it fell on a small Motorola walkie talkie. Lucy retrieved the unit and clicked it on. “We’re here. Let me see Taylor.”

“Did you really think we’d be making the exchange here out in the open where your snipers can watch and wait? There’s an access hatch below the first hoist. Open it and climb down to the catwalk. Taylor’s waiting.”

Lucy wasn’t too surprised by the change in venue—like she’d told Hambly earlier, Daddy thrived on control. But that meant she had a greater weapon: chaos.

In the form of a dying man with nothing to live for and everything to die for. Chaos as in an FBI agent who tonight had seen her career go up in flames—literally.

Chaos as in the other items she’d taken from Taylor’s trunk: two roadside flares. One for her and one for Seth.

<><><>

“WHAT’S HER NAME?”
Megan asked June as Walden drove them down the mountain in the ambulance. She marveled at the small creature suckling at June’s breast, eager for her first meal. A surge of pride washed through Megan. June did most of the work and her father and Oshiro helped, but she’d just delivered a baby!