Page 54 of Texas Scandal

“Have you ever killed someone?” Tiernan asked. “Because I have. It was an accident, but I still have nightmares. I still see Mary Jane’s face when I close my eyes. Watch her drown all over again as I stood there frozen on the pool deck thinking that she was being silly and not taking her last breaths.” The made-up story rolled off his tongue and seemed to be having the right effect. Coop shifted his weight as he white-knuckled the windowsill behind him.

“This situation is complicated,” the sheriff said. “I didn’t sign up for this. I did my part and you were supposed to handle the rest.”

Tiernan wished he had his cell phone so he could record this conversation. It was too far away to reach. Any sudden movement would backfire. He had, however, managed to unclip Loki’s collar. The studs on it could do serious damage wrapped around his fist as he delivered a punch. Get him close and he could take down the sheriff. Coop was strong and athletic. Not as fit as Tiernan, though.

The numbers were off. It was two against one since Melody was tied to the bed. One of them had a gun.

This tension in the room ratcheted up a few more notches with Loki going wild. Tiernan called his dog, noticing Loki had positioned himself in between Coop and Melody. Did the Lab mix have a protective instinct that Tiernan hadn’t witnessed before?

“Shut the dog up,” Coop demanded, his voice rising in panic. Panic wasn’t a good thing except that it could serve as a distraction. The sheriff took a step closer to Tiernan. The man was almost near enough to spring toward and disarm.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw that Melody had just freed her hands from the bedpost. Her movements were subtle and the chaos with Loki drew attention away from her.

In a flash, their gazes locked. Tiernan knew exactly what to do.

MELODYJUMPEDUP, hopped a couple of steps, and threw herself at Coop. She’d worked her wrists free from the ties, ignoring the burn. A bullet split the air. There was no time to check for injuries or see if it hit a target. The window broke from the sheer force of his weight, and her brother fell backward with a shocked look on his face. He was half in, half out and trying to grab hold to keep from falling.

She might not know her family any longer but the same was true of them. They had no idea who she was or what she was capable of doing. She grabbed her brother by the legs. He tried to buck her off, but he nearly lost his grip and plunged to the ground. A fall like this one probably wouldn’t kill him unless he landed wrong.

“What the hell, sis?” Coop asked. The last word came across like fingernails on a chalkboard after what he’d tried to do to her.

Since he was bigger, stronger and more athletic, she had to make a difficult decision. She picked up his legs and pushed as hard as she could.

“Are you trying to kill me?” Coop asked, surprise in his voice. And a little panic, too. One hand was gripping the frame while the other dangled outside.

With no time to waste, she leaned forward and bit his fingers. One last shove and her brother dropped like a hundred-and-eighty-five-pound bowling ball. Despite the bastard Coop had become, her heart hurt as she heard him scream out in pain at the landing. She risked a glance and saw that a bone had come through the leg of one of his trousers. He was alive, though.

Melody immediately turned in time to see Tiernan on top of the sheriff, squeezing him with his powerful thighs. The sound of a vehicle pulling onto the gravel drive twisted her stomach in a knot.

Chapter Twenty-Two

“We have company,” Melody said while Tiernan squeezed his thighs harder as he pinned down the sheriff. Between Tiernan and Melody, they’d done well. They made a good team. One Tiernan wasn’t quite ready to walk away from. They had company outside and he feared this fight was just beginning.

“Do you know how to shoot a gun?” he asked her. He could hold the sheriff if she could handle whatever walked up those stairs.

“No,” she admitted. “I’m guessing it isn’t that difficult.”

“I can walk you through everything you need to know,” he said, motioning toward where the Glock had flown after knocking it out of the sheriff’s hand.

Loki bolted toward the open-concept stairwell. At least they would be able to see whoever walked through the door from this vantage point. The dog might offer a distraction, a moment of hesitation that could give Melody a clear shot.

“Go over there,” Tiernan said, motioning toward the opposite side of the landing. “Pop up, aim and shoot.”

Melody nodded. Her hands trembled and there were red marks on her wrists. There were fifteen rounds in a Glock 19. One had been fired as Tiernan had wrestled for control of the weapon.

The sheriff tried to buck Tiernan off. He fired off a punch that sent blood shooting from the sheriff’s nose. Sitting on top of a lawman while Melody had the guy’s gun didn’t look good. Of course, Tiernan wasn’t expecting a deputy to walk through the door.

“Knock, knock.” Prescott’s voice was a welcomed relief coming from the front door.

“Don’t shoot,” Tiernan whispered.

Melody set the gun down and backed away from it. “We’re in here and we’re alive.”

From their vantage point at the top of the stairs, they watched as the front door opened and the lawyer walked in.

“There’s a mess up here,” Tiernan immediately said.

“There’s another one outside, too,” Prescott said as Loki practically bowled him over.

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