Shifting Targets (5 page)

With a smile of satisfaction plastered on her
face, she sauntered up the sidewalk through the billowing smoke and
onward until the massive inferno left behind grew farther away. She
hated to leave her masterpiece of destruction, but wisely chose not
to linger in the glory of it all. Before returning to Trip, she
stopped behind the last grove of trees and called upon
Nagi
once again.

“Wow,” she muttered as the intense heat made
her a bit queasy. Once in her human form she felt the true impact
of her actions. Using extra caution, she made her way to Trip.
“That was awesome!” she said in a breathless whisper. “Did you see
it?”

He let out a light, openly amused laugh. “I
think all of South Dakota saw it. Get on, babe.”

She slung the launcher over her shoulder,
tucked her shotgun into the holder he’d mounted to his bike and
slid on behind him. “Ready…let’s get the hell out of here.”

He drove slowly at first, carefully keeping
the powerful engine quieter than the noisy chaos not far away. Then
as they pulled away he went full throttle and kicked it into gear.
They raced with the wind and headed north. She swore they almost
left the ground as he flew down the long highway. Riding behind him
was invigorating, bringing to mind her flight as an eagle. She
couldn’t compare the two experiences. Taking flight as a majestic
bird had been indescribable. But sailing on the road while wrapped
around a gorgeous hunk of man offered a similar yet invigorating
thrill all its own.

If I had to choose…I’d choose the man, even
if he is more dangerous.

“You were absolutely amazing!” Trip swept her
off his parked bike and into his arms swinging her around in
circles while hugging her. “And without a doubt the craziest woman
I’ve ever met!”

She laughed victoriously and kissed his
neck.

“How’d you get Carter to leave?” He gazed at
her with shimmering eyes.

“Oh…he’s probably on his way back by now.”
She laughed again. “He received an invitation from the Sherriff to
witness the interrogation of a popular fugitive. I sent him on a
fool’s run.”

“You’re so bad…I love it. Won’t that give
Carter an alibi?”

“Not today,” she replied with a wink. “It’s
Monday. Sherriff Roone goes fishing every Monday afternoon with his
deputy. He’s way out in the middle of nowhere. They close the
office and don’t return till the next day. But Carter wouldn’t know
that because he’s a transplant.”

“Transplant?”

“Not from these parts. He only came here to
escape his long list of dirty deeds, which Gage conveniently took
care of. I still don’t know how those two got hooked up.”

“So what now, my brilliant little vixen?”

“He has no bank and I have a feeling when he
drives his fancy vehicle back to town he’ll be greeted by the
FBI.”

Trip’s eye shone with open pride. “And he’ll
probably be forced into bankruptcy just to pay his fines let alone
cover his bail.”

“Yep. I doubt he’d fare very well in prison.
He’ll sell everything he owns to try and keep his ass out.”

“It’s gonna take one sharp lawyer to pull
that off. The man has just added a list of federal charges to his
name. With no evidence against us, his accusations will be
dropped.”

“What about Pike’s testimony?” she asked.

Trip let out a sardonic laugh. “Draven won’t
even acknowledge he knows Carter now. Hell, nobody will. That’s one
witness that will never come forward.” He took her hand and led her
up the path to Remle’s cabin. “C’mon, let’s tell him how it
went.”

Remle looked up with a broad grin when they
walked in the door. “You guys have to see this.” He aimed his
remote at the TV.

She sat on the edge of the couch beside Trip.
He wrapped an arm around her waist as they watched the newsflash on
the huge plasma screen. Dozens of reporters had gathered around the
bank, swarming throughout town square like locusts.

“This is Kit Katrane with IBC News live at a
very disturbing scene in Mossburg, South Dakota. Shocked witnesses
came forth in droves to talk about the explosion that occurred
approximately two hours ago here in this normally peaceful town.”
She pointed toward a smoking pile of rubble. “State Police have
roped off the scene of what used to be Bluff Ridge Bank. Apparently
Mike Carter, owner and chief officer of the bank first robbed the
vault then several minutes later returned to the scene and used a
rocket launcher to blow up the building. A bomb squad and trained
dogs are still checking the area for explosives. One woman saw it
all.” The reporter turned toward a blonde woman. “Can you tell
viewers what happened here today?”

“Oh my god, that’s La!” Shye gasped,
realizing the steep risks she’d taken with La’s ever-watchful eyes
in town. She said a silent prayer that the town gossip had not
spotted her anywhere near the scene today.

“Yes,” replied La. “I work for attorney Gage
Korben. I was just about to walk across the street to the bank and
deposit some money when Mike Carter came running out of the bank
carrying two big bags. I didn’t know he had money inside but it did
look suspicious. A bunch of us had gathered to see what he was
doing.” She smiled at the camera while fluffing her hair. “A few
minutes later he walked back into town carrying a huge gun of some
sort. Two men tried to stop him but he fired at them with another
gun. I think everyone was calling for help at that point. People
started running and screaming but he just stood there staring at
the bank. Then all of a sudden he just opened fire and blew it
up.”

“Did you see where he went?” Kit held the
microphone back to La’s mouth. “Was anyone helping him?”

“No…he was alone. Then there was so much
smoke and fire I didn’t see which way he took off. We all ran for
cover. It was terrifying. People were shouting that he’d gone mad.
I’m just really thankful that no one was hurt.”

“Thank you.” Kit faced the camera again. “As
you heard, a banker went crazy. Over what? Nobody knows. Police
have not released a motive and there is a warrant out for his
arrest. Thank God the people of Bluff Ridge were not harmed in this
banker-gone-mad explosion.” She paused as if listening to something
in her earpiece then continued. “I’ve just received word that Mike
Carter has in fact been apprehended by federal law officials. And
we have breaking news on another hot topic.” Her eyes glimmered
with zeal. “All charges filed against Shye Halayi and her supposed
accomplice Trip Viper, have been dropped. Mike Carter had filed a
complaint with local law officials naming Shye as the prime suspect
in a string of robberies that took place in his bank over the past
week.” The woman arched her brows skeptically. “I think it’s safe
to say that the residents of Bluff Ridge can breathe easier now
that the real robber has been caught. Remember you heard it here
first with Kit Katrane. Stay tuned to IBC News for updates on this
bizarre story.”

“We did it!” Shye toppled off the couch with
Trip in a fierce hug. “Carter is out of the way and I’ll get my
farm back.”

“You are one cunning and gutsy woman,” Remle
said with a wink. “I take it the RPG met your approval?”

“Ah yeah, that baby handles like nobody’s
business,” she gushed while lying on the floor with Trip. “I wish I
could use it more often…what a rush!”

“I think it best if I give it a good
polishing and tuck her into safekeeping until she’s needed
again.”

She grasped his subtle innuendo about
removing any fingerprints that may have been left before she
handled the weapon as Shadow. “Thank you…thank you so much.”

“Good luck with your farm. I hope he is
forced to sell it right away. You’ve done a good job of separating
Draven from Carter. He’s not about to stick his neck out or visit
the bastard in prison.”

Trip looked up from his position on the
floor. “One down, one to go.”

Chapter Five

“What the hell are
you
doing
here
? I told you to never come around.”

Pike closed the door behind him, giving the
man a hard stare. “I’m a cop or did you forget? I know how to get
around without being followed. I want to know what the hell you’re
up to.”

The man stared back with worried eyes.
“Nothing. Everything is fine.”

“What about the farm? Carter got busted
yesterday. How are we gonna deal with that?”

“It’s been taken care of.”

He slammed his fist down on the wooden desk.
“Don’t pull this evasive bullshit with me! Viper knows I’m here.
He’s been tracking my ass, and now he’s got some mysterious female
riding with him. They gave us the slip when we cornered them at
their hideout. Led us on a wild chase…I still can’t figure out how
she got away.” He paused reflectively, struggling to figure her
out. “If our customers suspect a snitch they’ll be coming after you
too.”

“What woman? I’ve never met your friend
Viper, only heard his name dropped several times. Wasn’t his
brother a cop too? Didn’t he OD or something?”

“Or something,” Pike replied with a laugh.
“His older brother Trip has been tracking me ever since
Ty…
retired
…from the police force. Word is he has some kind
of evidence on me. I’ve been hearing a lot of that lately.” He
leaned over the desk with a smirk. “You wouldn’t know who Carter
entrusted his
insurance
policy
with, now would you?
The pathetic weasel told me that everything he knows is on a disc
and in safekeeping with an attorney.”

“What about the woman?”

Pike rubbed his chin while observing his
cohort through narrowed eyes. “Carter hired me to track her. Sure
enough, I caught the little vixen coming out of the bank holding a
shitload of cash.” His thoughts drifted. “I have no idea how she
pulled it off. I swear she walked straight through the damn
wall…then that damned horse…strange.”

“Horse? You’re not making any sense,
Draven.”

“Maybe not. Still, she was the hottest thing
I’ve ever seen. If only Viper hadn’t swung in like Zorro and taken
her away, I’d have been able to persuade her to join us. She was
starting to doubt him until he blazed into the barn.”

“Are you deaf? I asked what woman?”

“Her name is Shye. She’s like some kind of
ghost woman or something. A sweet little Indian chick with a killer
body who somehow hooked up with Viper.”

Pike noticed the range of emotions flash
through his cohort’s eyes and wondered if he’d be able to keep his
cool. It was no secret that Gage had the hots for the raven-haired
seductress. He thoroughly enjoyed toying with the man’s
emotions.

“So what about this evidence Carter claims to
have hidden?”

“I don’t know anything about it. He’s out of
the picture now anyway. Even if he did start yapping nobody’s going
to believe a convicted felon.”

“True…” Pike grinned. He’d planned on taking
the dirty banker out in any case, as he was becoming an annoyance.
“But we need him for the land and a place to move the money. We no
longer have a bank, and he’s gonna have to sell that farm to cover
his bail.”

“We’ll find another bank. Don’t worry about
the land. It’s ours. Carter sold it to me right after Shye
returned. He got nervous when she started dogging him. We agreed it
would be best to make a quick, quiet sale, and let little Miss
Halayi believe he still owned the place.”

“Probably not how I’d have handled it, but
not bad strategy to keep her looking the other way, especially with
her new boyfriend helping her out.”

Again that mixed look of rage and pain
whipped across his partner’s face yet he kept mum on his thoughts
regarding the shifty woman.

“If there’s nothing else, I’d appreciate it
if you’d get the hell out and never come in here again. I don’t
need suspicious eyes on me. You should know that.”

“Yeah…just had to make sure you weren’t going
soft on me, too.”

“I’ll take care of the farm. You keep the
clients happy and nobody will be the wiser. And you best make sure
Trip Viper doesn’t get the drop on you.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll get him out of the way.
His sweet little lady did me a big favor by putting a solid frame
on Carter.”

“What?” A baffled expression slid across his
face.

“Nothing.” Pike gave a slight nod before
slipping out the back door.

He paused on the stoop to light a cigarette.
With Carter out of the way he had one less problem on his hands and
knowing the land was still theirs to use pleased him. Only one man
posed a threat to his thriving business now. One determined
son-of-a-bitch who just couldn’t let go of the past.

He wondered if Trip would be willing to make
a trade. Whatever evidence he had might be worth trading for the
girl.
I wonder,
he laughed to himself.
Does he love her
enough to drop this vendetta with me over his brother? We’ll soon
find out.
Now that the charges against them had been dismissed,
the bank destroyed and Carter permanently ruined, Shye had gained
her revenge. Her guard would be down.
If Viper isn’t willing to
make a deal, maybe the sweet vixen will. Is reclaiming her family
estate more enticing than life on the road with a man who will
never settle down? Surely a woman like her possesses a deep sense
of obligation to her ancestors.

Now that her farm was in better hands, Pike
felt more confident with his bargaining power. He wondered which
angle to pursue. Getting rid of evidence that could send him to
prison for life would mean losing any chance of owning the
mysterious Indian woman. If he did succeed in striking a deal with
Trip, the man would ride off with the woman and business would
continue as usual. On the other hand, if Trip intended on turning
over evidence before hauling him in, he’d have done it by now. So
he knew that his nemesis wanted to see him dead. Then he’d present
proof of his guilt and use his license as a bounty hunter to make
it legal.