Page 50 of Clear Skies (Stormcloud Station)

CHAPTER TWENTY

DAISY’S BLOOD THUNDERED around her body. It felt as if she was literally boiling. She’d heard the phrase before, but never dreamed she would be so angry that it’d happen to her. She controlled her body, bending it to her will, so instead of reaching out and clawing this woman’s eyes out, she remained still, poised, ready to strike. The slimy animal squirmed in her hand, and she had to tamp down a surge of revulsion. This creature was going to be her salvation, she needed to hang onto it for a few more seconds. The sound of her own heartbeat was unnaturally loud. Could Sally hear it? Would it give her away?

“I killed that little lying, greedy bitch. I’ll have no problem dealing with your skinny ass, either,” Sally snarled.

Daisy recoiled in horror. What had Sally said? Surely this petite woman with the large smile and pretty, dark eyes hadn’t just revealed she was the one who murdered Karri? All this time Daisy had been suspecting Johnny, but it’d been Sally all along. Her mind could hardly comprehend Sally’s declaration of guilt. The senior sergeant had been right when he suspected one of their own.

“You’re going down. You think you’re so special, don’t you?” Sally murmured viciously. “Waltzing onto the station like you own the place. Flirting with all the guys, got Dale wrapped around your little finger. You’re going to find out exactly how un-special you really are. In fact, yo—”

Sally’s tirade was cut off mid-sentence, and she screamed in pain and fear as Daisy lunged at her, shoving the cane toad in her face.

“Argh, get it off me. It’s disgusting. Argh, it burns. It’s burning my eyes.” Sally stumbled up off her knees and backward a few steps.

Daisy had shoved the cane toad directly into Sally’s eyes. She’d been counting on the toads’ poison stinging like hell—perhaps even blinding her—and it seemed to be doing the job. Daisy knew little about cane toads, but she knew they secreted toxic poison from glands on their shoulders, and she knew Sally absolutely hated the amphibians. Two points in her favor.

“What the fuck is going on?” Johnny called, running toward the clearing.

Daisy was on her feet, ripping the gag out of her mouth. She had to get to Sally, who was still blinded, and wrestle the weapon off her. It was her only chance. But Sally kept stumbling backward, one hand wildly swiping at her eyes, her other hand reaching for the gun tucked under her arm.

Oh, fuck. Daisy dropped to the ground at the same time as the gun went off. Sally was shooting wildly in every direction. One. Two. Three. Four shots. Daisy hadn’t counted on her doing that. Oh God, what about Dale? Was he okay? He could be shot.

There was a loud scream, and then a thud as something landed on the ground. Or should she say, someone? She could no longer see Johnny running toward them in the headlights. Where had he gone?

“What have you done?” Johnny screamed. “You’ve shot me, you fucking…” His last words ended on a gurgle.

It was as if everything were running in slow motion. Daisy took in Dale as he cowered on the ground, watching the whole scene unfolding with enormous eyes. She could hear Johnny as he thrashed in the long grass right outside the clearing, perhaps struggling to regain his feet. And Sally was staring in confusion, still wiping her eyes, unable to comprehend what she’d just done.

Daisy’s job wasn’t finished. Sally was still a threat. Daisy was up on her hands and knees, keeping low, crawling across the dusty ground. Too late, Sally saw her coming, and lowered the weapon in her direction, but Daisy took the other woman out at the knees, sending her crashing onto her back, the gun flying through the air and disappearing out of sight beyond the ring of light.

Sally must’ve been winded, because she lay on the ground gasping like a fish and clutching at her chest.

Daisy pounced, landing with her knees right on the woman’s solar plexus, knocking more air out of her lungs. With both hands she pushed Sally’s head into the dirt, forcing her face sideways. When Sally reached up to grapple with Daisy’s hands, she grabbed the other woman’s first two fingers on her right hand and jerked them backward. A scream erupted from Sally, so primal and full of pain that Daisy almost halted. But then she remembered River and Karri. She needed this woman immobilized, so she kept the pressure on, bending her fingers backward until Sally had no choice but to follow the direction Daisy was pulling or risk a broken finger. In one swift move, Daisy forced Sally to roll over onto her stomach as she brought her hand up behind her back, keeping the pressure on.

River had taught her the finger lock move. He said a woman needed to know how to defend herself, and he’d been right. But Sally was strong, stronger than Daisy expected for such a petite woman, and she bucked and kicked out with all her strength. It seemed perhaps Sally was prepared to risk broken fingers to get away from her. Daisy sent the pointy bit of her elbow crashing into the woman’s chin, once, twice, three times, stunning her into silence for a few seconds as her eyes rolled back in her head and she stopped struggling.

Those precious few seconds were all Daisy needed. Using the loop of rope still caught around her ankle, she tied Sally’s hands behind her back. Then she ran and picked up the other length of rope, which Johnny had used to tie her own hands.

By the time she returned to Sally, the other woman was coming to. Daisy quickly looped the rope around her legs just as they flailed in the air. Sally hissed at her like a venomous snake. Her eyes were red and swollen from the toad’s poison, and spittle flew from her mouth as she screamed obscenities at Daisy.

Daisy stood and watched Sally for a few moments, until she was satisfied the other woman wasn’t going anywhere in a hurry. Ignoring the curses being flung in her direction, Daisy went over to Dale. She crouched down and removed his gag first and quickly went to work untying his hands. Johnny had stopped thrashing in the grass, and Daisy had no idea whether it was because he was dead, or because he was creeping up on her right this very second.

“Holy fuck, Daisy, I can’t believe you just did that,” Dale blurted as soon as the gag was out of his mouth.

“Neither can I,” she answered, eyes darting all around the clearing, expecting Johnny to rise up at any moment. Her heart screamed that she needed to go to River. Was he even still alive? But she couldn’t go to him until she was sure Johnny was no longer a threat.

“Can you do your legs?” she asked curtly, as soon as his were hands were free. “I’m going to check on Johnny.”

“Wait,” he called, but Daisy wasn’t waiting.

She approached the spot she’d last seen the grass waving when Johnny went down, moving warily. What would she do, if he suddenly reared up right in front of her? She didn’t know where the weapon had landed, but she thought it was over on the opposite side of the clearing. Her toe stubbed against a small rock and she leaned down and picked it up. Not much of a weapon, but at least it was slightly better than a cane toad.

Creeping toward the place she thought Johnny might be lying, she raised the rock above her head. The headlights caused crazy shadows in the grass, dark shapes that her imagination turned into a leaping specter. Her heart felt as if it were lodged permanently in her throat. One step forward. Two steps forward. A slight breeze tickled the branches on the trees to her left and she jumped at the rasping sound. It was only the leaves rubbing together, not the fiery breath of an irate man ready to pounce. Sally was still spouting curses in the background, but Daisy blocked her out, concentrating only on what was ahead.

A flattened area opened up in the grass ahead. It was hard to make out in all the dim shadows, but it looked to be the shape of a man sprawled on the ground. The shape didn’t move, didn’t make a sound. She studied it for many long seconds, but there was no change. Was he even breathing?

There was a sudden presence behind her, and she whirled around, ready to smash the rock down with force.

It was Dale, and she let out a sob of relief. He took her by the shoulders and moved her gently aside so he could peer down at the shape.

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