Page 15 of Truth is the Ultimate Weapon

“There wouldn’t. And neither of those would flee the scene either.” Kenzie chided, her anger palpable in her tone. “This was intentional.”

“I am so glad you said that.” Cut admitted, emotions threatening once more, “The scene keeps replaying in my mind, and I can't wrap my head around why someone would approach any intersection at such a high speed, especially emerging from one of those narrow side roads with so many blind spots.”

“I’m so sorry, Cut.” Kenzie reached for his hand. “We’re going to figure this out. I promise, one way or another, we will find out who did this.”

“You know, they didn’t even fully assess injuries until after we got here. That’s how fast everything happened. By the time EMS arrived, the baby was already coming, so they just loaded her and me up and rushed here.”

“Wait, Nora had the baby on the way here?” Coy asked.

“Yep. She was in and out of consciousness with broken ribs, a busted leg, and a massive concussion, but she had that baby like a champ regardless. Like she refused to give into the head injury until she knew the baby was here.”

“I’ve never doubted how tough she is,” Coy admitted with a proud smile. “She’s a fighter, always had been, and going to come through this just fine, brother. You’ll see.”

Cut nodded. “She, uh, told me what happened. You know, out in the garden yesterday.”

Coy and Kenzie exchanged a glance before discreetly scanning the area for any potential eavesdroppers. They silently agreed to relocate to a small, private family room within the waiting area where Cut could fill them in on the events that transpired the previous day.

Coy pulled out his phone and dialed.

“I want Rip and Dillon to hear this conversation so they can be prepared for… anything.” Coy shared as they waited for Rip to answer his phone.

“Everything okay?” Rip asked as he answered.

“We’re good. I just want you to hear what Cut’s about to share. Is Dillon nearby by any chance? I know it’s late.”

“Nobody is sleeping tonight. We’re all up, sitting around the table waiting for an update or the next crisis to occur, whichever comes first,” Rip admitted. “You’re on speaker phone, Coy. Everyone can hear you.”

“I’m with Kenz and Cut. He’s sharing Nora’s encounter, and I thought you should be part of the conversation. If for no other reason, to be informed.”

“Nora didn’t kill those men. She was attacked.” Cut deadpanned.

“But she was holding the knife…” Kenzie started to speak, but Cut raised his hand to halt her, indicating they needed to hear more crucial details to paint a clearer picture of what happened. “She’d been out in the gardens, collecting vegetables for a big dinner salad. I guess she’d been craving one all day.”

Cut paused, then chuckled at mention of the food craving.

“She heard some commotion coming from the other side of the garden shed and thought it was the kids playing over there. Given all that’s been going on, she went to check on them as we know it hasn’t exactly been safe for them to roam around.” Cut shared. “When she rounded the shed, the first thing she saw was the bloodied body on the ground. She slowly backed away, not realizing she wasn’t alone, and backed right into the other guy.”

“How frightening,” Kenzie said under her breath.

Cut nodded, “The guy grabbed her and covered her mouth before she could scream. He didn’t expect her to fight back as she did. I guess she got him good, a headbutt to the face, scratched, kicked––”

“Good girl.” Kenzie smiled.

“Yeah. She broke free from his grip and ran for the knife he’d dropped in their struggle. She faced him, and that’s when she noticed he was covered in blood. He’d killed that man on the ground, and he was pretty beat up himself, and it wasn’t all from her.”

Coy’s brow furrowed in confusion, “He was already injured? How? Why? Were the two men fighting? Is that what she’d stumbled upon?”

“Better question is why were they there to begin with?” Cut added, “And how the hell did they get past all of our security?”

“We have a few known weak spots we’re working on, but they’re very secluded and hard to find.” Coy shared.

“Unless you know where to find them. Say, with a map.” Kenzie offered.

“Shit. Owen.” Coy shuddered at the thought of being watched, feeling powerless to keep the prying eyes and threats at bay despite his best efforts. “They must’ve been studying the property and found them. Just got lucky. Or, he could’ve sent them, but why show his cards and play the hand that way?”

“Hold on,” Kenzie interjected as curiosity took over. “Can we go back to the battered guy?”

Cut nodded, “Nora said the man she found looked…”

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