Page 91 of Wild Justice

“The app?” Kai echoed. “What app?”

Henry rolled his eyes at the question, even as he pulled his phone from his pocket.

“How quickly you forget that I’m a victim of a kidnapping in my youth. That makes me overly paranoid and suspicious of pretty much everyone and everything. Because of my rampant paranoia, I convinced Lulu to put one of those apps on her phone that tells me where she is all the time. She has my information, too. She said that if it made me feel more secure, she was fine with it. Ninety-nine-point-nine percent of the time, I don’t check it because I don’t need to.”

Kai wasn’t a huge fan of the modern methods of what he considered technological stalking, but in this case, he’d make an exception.

“She’s still at the ranch,” Henry said, turning his phone screen so that Kai and Chase could see it. “I’ll try calling her. Maybe she was in the shower earlier.”

Henry tried, but once again, no answer. Kai also tried, but Lulu didn’t pick up either.

It didn’t make sense. He’d seen Lulu climb out of the shower to answer her phone. If she thought the call was from the sheriff’s station or one of her friends or family, she wanted to take the call. She always said that she knew that if they called it was important, otherwise they’d simply send a text to be answered whenever.

“That’s weird,” Henry stated. “Normally, Lulu would answer right away.”

“Maybe Allie is already there,” Chase suggested.

“I don’t like this,” Henry declared. “This isn’t like Lulu.”

“Let’s not jump to any conclusions,” Chase replied. “There’s probably a perfectly reasonable explanation for why she’s not answering.”

Henry held up his phone again.

“She’s still at the ranch. Or at least her cell is. Even Lulu wouldn’t take a shower this long. Why isn’t she answering us? I don’t like this at all. We need to drive to the ranch right now.”

Kai was more than certain that Lulu could handle Allie Baker with one hand tied behind her back. But…he couldn’t deny that he had a hinky feeling as well. It was simply unusual behavior for Lulu. As the sheriff of a small town with mostly part-time staff, she had her phone on her pretty much twenty-four-seven. She’d even carried it around when they were on their long weekend, although she’d never received a call. Only a few texts with questions that could be answered when she had a few minutes.

It felt a bit silly to go running to the ranch because she wasn’t answering her phone. People were allowed to ignore calls whenever they wanted to. It didn’t mean that she was in mortal danger. Maybe she was just getting dressed, and she was going to call them later.

The question warred in Kai’s brain, but it was no contest when he looked at Henry. The other man’s hands were balled into tight fists, the knuckles white. The situation was affecting him, whether he wanted to admit it or not.

Kai didn’t want to see Henry upset. If it helped in the least bit, it wasn’t a big deal to head towards the ranch. They might even meet Lulu driving toward them on the way. She’d be slightly amused at their behavior, but she’d easily understand. She, more than anyone, was aware of how Henry could react to certain situations.

“Sure, let’s go. Just in case Lulu needs our help.”

“I didn’t want to be an alarmist, but I’m glad we’re heading to the ranch,” Chase admitted when they were in the car a few minutes later. “Anything can happen there. Lulu might have got some crazy idea in her head and ended up injured.”

The image of Lulu lying on the ground, possibly in a pool of blood, had Kai pressing the accelerator even harder. He hoped that when they arrived, they’d feel like idiots for worrying when she was fine.

“Hey, Henry,” Kai said as they raced down the deserted road. “Try calling her again. See if she picks up.”

Henry pulled out his cell phone and tried again before shaking his head.

No answer.

Something wasn’t right.

While Ramsey was still writhingon the floor, Lulu crawled toward the door on her hands and knees, her throat burning and her breathing ragged. Chase wouldn’t be home yet, but if she could make it all the way to the barn, a few of the ranch workers might be there still.

Ramsey began to struggle to his feet, although still extremely unsteady. She had to get on the move, and she needed to do it now. She wasn’t going to get in another lucky shot. He’d be more wary a second time.

Her muscles screamed in protest when she forced herself to stand. It felt like every bone and muscle hurt, but she couldn’t lament any physical injuries. She could moan and groan later, nurse herself back to health.

When she was safe.

Because Ramsey, who was now screaming nasty names at her, was pissed off - absolutely fucking furious. If he caught up to her, he was going to want to inflict equal damage and pain, if not more. If she hadn’t fought back, she had no doubt she’d be dead.

She could hear her phone ringing again, sitting on the kitchen counter, but grabbing it wasn’t in the cards. She’d have to move back into the house to do that instead of taking the few steps out of the front door.

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