Page 72 of Colton First Responder (Coltons of Mustang Valley)

Zane was with Savannah? Damn. Grayson should be there with her, protecting her. But he wasn’t. Although it sounded like she’d handled the situation well, at least for now.

She was okay. She had to be. He wanted to grab her and shield her and care for her forever.

But they both had to survive for a forever to happen.

What about him?

Well, if Zane was with Savannah, someone else had run Grayson off the road. Chances were that it was Schuyler Wells. But who it was didn’t matter, at least not much.

How Grayson handled this did. He had to get back to the bunker fast. To Savannah.

He heard a nearby car door slam shut. If whoever it was thought Grayson was unconscious, all the better. Grayson allowed himself to continue slumping against the inside of his door.

Sure enough, that door was pulled open. Not a great thing, but Grayson allowed himself to slide out onto the ground, fortunately hitting his shoulder before his head came to rest on the forest floor. Pain nevertheless shot through him yet again, but at least he remained conscious.

“Okay, first responder guy,” he heard a voice say and recognized it as Schuyler’s. He didn’t dare open his eyes yet. “Where’s that damned recorder? Zane should have known better. I didn’t know he was taping his conversations. He just told me about it.”

The guy was talking as if he was holding a conversation with Grayson, but since he didn’t do anything to hurt Grayson further he had to believe his target here was unconscious. Good.

Feeling a movement against his side, Grayson fought not to

moan or move. But he did open his right eye just a little, in time to see one leg hoisted over him as Schuyler—yes, it was the man he’d seen on those real estate websites—stepped partway into the car, apparently trying to find the recorder.

Also good. Grayson remained lying there for another few seconds until Schuyler bent forward even more. Then Grayson roared to life, pulling the guy from between his legs and onto the ground, pummeling him in the face.

Schuyler screamed and attempted to fend Grayson off—unsuccessfully. Ignoring his own pain, Grayson rolled the other man over till his face was on the ground and pulled his arms behind him. Too bad he didn’t have cuffs with him. Holding Schuyler down by kneeling on his back and arms, Grayson pulled his fortunately long-sleeved T-shirt over his head and rolled it until it became rope-like. He used it to tie Schuyler’s arms together.

“Hold still, jerk,” Grayson said to the man squirming beneath him. “It’s over.”

Only it wasn’t. Not completely.

Grayson was worried about Savannah, where she was—and how long Zane would stay immobilized.

He felt a little chilly in the shade of the forest without his shirt, but at least it was springtime in Arizona.

He stepped over Schuyler and leaned into the car, extracting the oh-so valuable recorder from the floor on the passenger’s side and tucking it into his belt. He also found his phone on the floor and retrieved it. Then he opened the glove compartment, extracting a small but definitely lethal gun. Backing out again, he pointed the gun at Schuyler.

“Okay,” he said. “Here’s how it’s going to be. Your buddy Zane has been subdued, too, but we’re going back to the bunker and make sure both of you are sufficiently secured. Stay there a sec, then you’ll stand up.”

First, though, Grayson wanted to call Savannah. He took a few steps backward, still facing Schuyler, still pointing the gun at him. He didn’t particularly want Wells to hear his conversation, but he wasn’t going far enough away from his captive to ensure he didn’t.

He pushed the button on his phone to call Savannah. She answered immediately.

“Grayson? Are you okay? What happened?”

“I’m fine, and I’ll explain it all in a few minutes, when I see you. I’m not far away. But are you outside the bunker?”

“Yes, but I’m near it, hiding behind some bushes, watching the opening to make sure Zane doesn’t come out.”

“Perfect! Stay there. If he does come out, try to figure out his direction but don’t get close, okay?”

“Okay.” She paused, then added, “I’m so glad you’re okay, Grayson. I was so worried.”

That sent a zing of pleasure through him that he had to ignore for now.

“Don’t worry,” he said. “And I think this’ll all be over with very soon.”

Chapter 21

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