Page 81 of Dairy and Deadly

The first thing he’d do would be to reach out to Johnny. Or the police. Or both. Meaning all that she and Caro really needed to do was hang on for a little longer.

New plan. We need to stall for time.

Martin pushed open the side door to the dairy barn and beckoned them inside with the barrel of his gun.

As Ashley stepped across the threshold, she didn’t dare glance up at the rafters, not wanting to draw attention to a certain pair of glowing eyes.

Caro stepped into the center aisle between the two lines of milking stations, turning in one big circle. “If the zip drive is in here, we’ll find it,” she announced in a much louder voice than Ashley deemed necessary. Had she caught sight of Tucker? Was this her way of warning him to stay hidden? “As you can see, we have the place to ourselves. Tucker must be on break. As long as we work quickly, we’ll be in and out of here in two snaps.”

“Shut up!” Martin brandished the same pistol at her that he’d shot Clint with.

Ashley caught her breath, knowing all it would take was one pull of the trigger indoors for Caro’s ruse to be blown to bits. She stepped between the two of them. “She’s right. We don’t have much time, so we need to make every second count.” She was counting on him not discharging his weapon again while she was in the line of fire. “If we split up, we can cover more territory.”

Martin’s eyes glinted with unholy glee. “That won’t be necessary.” He gestured excitedly at his phone screen. “The tracking device is showing?—”

The door at the far end of the barn banged open so hard that it slammed against the wall. Three masked figures entered. All of them were holding semi-automatic rifles.

Panic nearly buckled Ashley’s knees. There was no way Caro could’ve accounted for this scenario. They were officially out-manned and out-gunned. It was over.

One of the masked figures stalked up to Martin and snatched his cell phone from him. “We’ll take it from here.” The other two masked figures flanked Martin with their rifles raised. “On your knees, Hobbs.”

Martin’s face turned red. “What do you think you’re doing?”

“Following orders.” The ringleader raised his rifle and aimed it at Martin’s head, forcing him to his knees. “According to one of our internal spooks, the late Mrs. Perkins never copied her research to a backup drive like you’ve been claiming. Nor did she subsequently destroy the only original copy of her life’s work.”

“I don’t know who’s serving as your eyes and ears these days,” Martin sneered, “but they’re way off base.”

“Is she?” the gunman taunted. “Then explain this.” He angled his head at Ashley. “Why did your woman pay a visit home to withdraw a file folder from her late mother’s belongings?”

Martin paled. “Is that why you tried to mow her down on her way back into town?”

The man ignored his question. “Zip drive! That’s all we need to talk about. If it’s real, where is it?”

“It’s real,” Martin returned coldly. “And if you don’t meet my demands, you’re never going to get your hands on it.”

“Then you shouldn’t have gotten greedy.” The gunman jammed the tip of his rifle against his temple. “Giving us one price while trying to find a higher bidder on the black market was a bad move. Like every other petty criminal, your greed was your critical error.”

Martin’s angular features distorted with a mixture of confusion and rage. “I know nothing about a black market sale.”

The gunman’s chuckle was as harsh as rusty metal. “Playing dumb won’t impress anyone. We already linked the sale back to an account in your name.”

A spark of hope lit Ashley from the inside out. It was at that moment she realized Caro was very much still in the game playing out in front of them. Anyone who could set Martin Hobbs up for a fall like this, while at the same time turning the members of XAX’s inner circle against each other, was diabolically brilliant. Ruthless. A woman who, in her own words, was capable of so much more than anyone around her would ever suspect.

A whine of a police siren grew nearer, making the cattle send up a chorus of complaints.

“What in the world?” The gunman’s head jerked toward the sound.

“It’s the police, you moron!” Martin shot to his feet. “It’s time to get the zip drive and get out of here. You can thank me later.” He gestured at the cell phone the man had taken from him. “Where’s the tracker saying it’s at?”

While the sirens blared closer, the two men hunkered over the phone screen together. Then they tipped their heads back, gazing upward.

Can Opener came screeching down from the rafters with his claws extended. At the same time, bales of hay tumbled from the loft toward all three masked figures, blocking the ensuing volley of bullets they sent in Can Opener’s direction.

Men burst into the room from three directions. Clint, Hawk, and Tucker were among them. Johnny was there, too. She nearly swooned at the sight of her favorite broad-shouldered dairy farmer sprinting her way while shouting orders. The police were right on his heels.

Ashley was dimly aware of Caro joining in the fight to help subdue the gunmen. The second they were in handcuffs, Johnny made a beeline for Ashley. “You okay, babe?”

She wilted into his embrace, spilling happy tears all over him. “You came!” She pressed a hand to the warm, pulsing beat of his heart.

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