Page 43 of Crossing Lines

Had me? Bitch, please.

“If you had her, why isn’t she here?” Kurt clenched his fists. “I’m going to kill her slowly!”

“Don’t worry, she’ll come after her brother. I told you he’d be an easy target.”

A red haze colored my vision. Davenport had set this up? He. Was. Dead. Period. I didn’t care what anyone said, that bitch was mine.

“As soon as she’s dead, we leave. If she’s gone long, Tracey will come looking for her. Where is she? She left before I did—” I hurried to find a split in the boards again. Had he spotted me? It was dark in there, but I could see. Davenport was looking around, his eyes wide.

I silently cursed. Carter was tied to a pole, his head hanging forward. He wasn’t moving. I was going to truss these fuckers up and skin them like a deer. Carefully, I moved past the opening in the boards. There was an old ladder that led to the open hayloft. If I could get above them… That thought was interrupted by a loud grunt.

“We should go. She’s going to?—”

“I’m not going anywhere!” Kurt lashed out and clocked Davenport in the jaw. The big man rocked back a step then turned his hard gaze on Kurt. Maybe they’d kill each other—no, that would spoil my fun. I looked up at the ladder hanging from the open loft door above me. It was about six feet off the ground, having been broken for years. No way I could climb that and hold my bat. Plus, if I got up there and hit a rotten step, I’d break my neck. Carter needed me on my feet.

While they were distracted with each other, I moved around the barn. I could hear them, but they were muffled as they wrestled for control. Morons. I felt a jolt of energy curl in my gut. There were boards missing from a space I thought I could fit through. I glanced around, trying to figure out how to get in there without making noise. There was so much that could go wrong.

I shook my head, stopping those thoughts. We were going to walk away from this. Failure was not an option.

“I’ll just kill him now!” Kurt’s words sent a spike of fear along my spine.

“That wasn’t part of the deal!” Davenport growled.

I started to slip into the opening when a faint whistle caught my attention. I looked around. Charlie and another PD Officer were crouched by a bush on the other side of the fence. He waved, a gesture for me to come to where he was. Nope. Not happening. I shook my head and signed one word: Carter.

I made sure my badge was on the vest I wore so I wasn’t mistaken as a bad guy if cops came rushing in. I slid between the boards, sucking in all I could. My vest got caught, then a flashlight, but thankfully, I got through and silently. I took a deep breath, but the stale air made me wrinkle my nose. Dust motes surrounded me. If I sneezed now, Carter was toast. I shook the feeling off, pulled my bat up, and twirled my wrist. Stalking closer to the main part of the oversized barn was easy. The narrow walking path and its shadows hid me well. Other than hay, there was nothing back here, which was good. I could keep my eyes forward and not on where I was stepping.

Their heads came into view, so I stopped, peering across the area before landing on Carter. He was bleeding. His shirt was soaked on the left side. His poor face… Rage fueled my silent steps as I moved closer to the men. Kurt kicked Davenport in the gut where he lay on the floor, then moved to where Carter was slumped. He grabbed a handful of his hair and jerked his head back. “His death will be on your hands.”

The hell it would. I watched in slow motion as he raised a hand, the slim bit of sunlight glinting off the blade he held. I charged him, swinging the bat to crack against his hand. The knife flew, and Kurt spun, cursing.

“You!” he seethed. Spittle flew as he charged toward me. His mistake was underestimating a Malone. I swung at him from the side, landing a solid hit to the ribs. I heard the crack as it made contact. It didn’t even seem to slow him down. I aimed the next swing at his knee, but before it made contact, he lunged. We slammed into the ground, the air whooshing out of me. Before I could react, he belted me in the face. My head spun.

“I’m going to kill you slowly, let you feel every bit of it.” He looked crazy. His eyes were dilated. Jesus, he had to be on something. That would make him a lot harder to subdue. Even I wasn’t stupid enough to think I was as strong as a man his size.He grabbed my throat and started to squeeze. He was trying to take me out first. But again, he should have learned. I had all kinds of tricks up my sleeve.

My fingers scrambled to find the small metal rod we used to bust windows. I had to hurry; the blackness was starting to fill my vision.

Got it! I’d use it on his head. Make him think twice about his next move. Carter started to struggle, so my eyes naturally went to where he was. Davenport was holding a knife toward his middle.

“Sissy!” He sounded so weak. Tears stung my eyes. They were not going to hurt him again. I brought my hand up, my fist balled around the rod, and slammed it into the side of Kurt’s head. The metal dug into his ear. He howled with pain and let go of me.

I sucked in air, my lungs burning. My throat felt as if it were on fire. With a growl, I shifted, bringing my legs up, wrapping them around his upper body and slamming him back to the ground. It hurt. Something in my leg twisted with him. I cursed, scrambling to get his hands away from my legs.

Tracey

The cell rang in my pocket, and I answered it quickly when I saw Derek’s name pop up.

“What’ve we got, kid?”

“Charlie called on the radio. Stella’s made it inside. They don’t have a visual but are moving closer. And…”

“What?”

“Davenport’s in there, too. Charlie said he pulled up in one hell of a hurry too. From the looks of it, there was no struggle, and he’s been arguing with the asshole inside. They haven’t moved any closer for fear of being seen.”

“Son of a bitch!” I cursed. “I’ll kill him. What in the hell is she doing in there? She should have waited for help!”

“She’s saving her brother. Did you think she wouldn’t go running in there after him?” Derek’s words were almost a growl. I swallowed hard. “She’s armed. Charlie said she was decked out in tactical gear and had her bat.”

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