Page 8 of Targeted in Silver Creek

That got her attention, and it only took a few seconds before Grayson’s voice poured through the room. “Marlene’s not at her house. There are signs of a struggle. And blood,” he added.

Hanna’s heart dropped to her knees. Oh, mercy. This had to be Bull’s doing. The man had gone after someone else.

“There’s an old black truck parked at the back of her house,” Grayson went on. “It might be the one Bull was driving when Sheri saw him. Also, Marlene’s car isn’t in the garage.”

So that probably meant Bull had taken his sister in her own vehicle. Had maybe even killed her. Or he could be planning on using her as a hostage if he got cornered by the cops.

“You need me to call and put out an APB on Marlene?” Jesse asked.

“No, I’ll take care of it. I just wanted you to know in case you saw a silver Lexus near Hanna’s place.” Grayson rattled off the license plate of what was no doubt Marlene’s vehicle. “Marlene also has a permit for a Beretta. It’s my guess I won’t find it here at her house.”

Hanna was betting the same thing, which meant Bull was now armed. Perhaps had money, too, since Marlene would have almost certainly had some cash at her place.

“Keep watch and stay safe,” Grayson said.

Even though the sheriff ended the call, Jesse stared at his phone still gripped in his hand. Shaking his head as if trying to clear his thoughts, he had just turned back to the window when he got another incoming call.

Hanna hadn’t relaxed or let down her guard one bit, but she experienced another rush of adrenaline because she thought it was Grayson with yet more horrible news.

“It’s Dispatch,” Jesse muttered, putting the call on speakerphone.

She pulled in her breath. Held it. And waited.

She didn’t have to wait long before she heard the familiar voice. Not Grayson or one of the other Silver Creek lawmen.

“It’s me,” the caller said.

Bull.

This time it was much more than an adrenaline crash. This was like an avalanche of emotions, yanking her right back to the pain of her injury. Right back to the nightmare she knew this man had put her through.

“Where are you?” Jesse growled, sounding exactly like the tough lawman that he was.

Bull obviously ignored the demand.

“We have to talk. There’s a whole lot going on you don’t know about, and it could get us all killed.”

Chapter Three

Jesse heard every word that Bull had just said, but he didn’t respond. Didn’t believe him either.

Not for one second.

But the reason Jesse didn’t reply was that he fired off a text to the dispatcher and asked for an immediate trace on the call just in case that hadn’t already been set into motion. Bull was likely using a burner since he hadn’t taken the EMTs phone, but if Bull was using a stolen phone, then a trace was still possible.

Jesse also continued to keep watch out the window because he wouldn’t put it past Bull for this phone call to be some kind of ploy, a distraction so he could try to sneak up on them.

Jesse did a quick visual check on Hanna. Thankfully, she didn’t look on the verge of a panic attack like the one he’d witnessed shortly after she’d gotten out of the hospital. She was clearly shaken by hearing from the man who’d come way too close to killing her, but she was holding it together. She was also looking out, no doubt scanning the grounds for Bull.

He moved to her, taking hold of her arm as he’d done earlier in the doorway, and Jesse eased her to the side of the window. Best not to give Bull an easy target in case he was close enough to the house to start shooting.

Stay back, Jesse mouthed to her, and the reminder of the possibility of her being shot had her attention flying back to the baby monitor.

Jesse had already considered the position of his son’s crib. Away from the windows and tucked against a wall with the adjoining bath. There were no guarantees that a bullet couldn’t make it through there, but there was no place in the house they could move the baby to ensure that didn’t happen. However, if they or the ranch hands did spot Bull, Jesse would have Hanna take Evan into the bathtub. For now, though, he didn’t want to wake his son unless it became necessary.

“Did you hear me?” Bull snarled. “I said this mess could get us all killed.”

Jesse had no doubts about that, but he figured there was no “us” in this scenario. Bull would be the one doing the killing. He was puzzled, though, as to what the heck the man meant by “this mess.” However questions about that would have to wait since there was something else at the top of the list of things Jesse needed to know.

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