Chapter Nineteen

He didn’t expect her to take it well. There was no way to cushion the blow, soften the fact he’d lied to the Ridge’s police chief for over a year, hiding his true identity. The revelation about Kara and their wild week in Vegas had been interesting enough, supplying a goodly amount of gossip to the town, but this… This was far beyond a romantic tryst.

“So, that’s it.” He wiped the sweat from his forehead, keenly aware she hadn’t moved since he’d started talking, all of her focus on him and him alone.

Kara sipped the cold coffee.

“I understand.” The calmness in Marie’s voice sent his skin crawling. “Is there anything else you’d like to add?”

He rubbed his chin, glad he’d gotten the last of the snow out of his beard. “No.”

“Good.”

She moved like a panther, slamming him to the ground before he knew what happened, face flush against the floor. The handcuffs snapped shut on his wrists.

He didn’t fight, didn’t resist. He could have, but she was angry and rightfully so.

The pistol, still snug in the small of his back, was yanked free and placed on the floor—out of reach.

He didn’t feel the need to mention the knife in his right boot.

Marie pointed a finger at Kara. “Don’t. Move. You might be injured, but I won’t hesitate to slam your ass if you try to interfere.”

Kara nodded.

She pulled Liam to his knees and dragged him to the chair she’d been occupying, sitting him down on the still-warm wood.

“Right. Now let me get this straight. Your real name is Liam Wolfson, you’re an internationally known assassin who quit your job and decided to hang out in the Ridge.” She drew a deep breath before continuing. “And now a damned mob of mercs have come here to kill you and anyone who stands in their way.” She gestured at Kara. “They’ve already cut her up.”

“Basically,” he answered.

“Fuck.” She pressed her fingers to her eyelids. “This is so far above my pay grade, it’s in orbit.” Marie lunged for the phone on the nearest desk. “I’m calling in the Feds, the National Guard, anyone who can…” Her face hardened into a scowl as she held the receiver to her ear. “No dial tone.” She glared at Liam. “Could be the storm, but let me guess—standard procedure for your boys?”

“They’re not my boys,” he snapped back, his patience beginning to wear thin. “And yes, the Sons’ standard operating procedure is to isolate the target, the area they’re working in. I’d put money on someone between here and Denver cutting the land lines. It won’t scare the locals, who’ll blame it on the storm.” He nodded at Kara. “They followed her here to find me. In a way, this is your fault.”

Marie slammed the phone down and reached for her cell phone, still glaring at him. “Explain.”

He hadn’t wanted to tell her, but given her reaction, it needed to be said. “It was your sending out Kara’s prints and photograph that triggered their search engines. They had her image in their files as a casual acquaintance of mine, and they hadn’t been able to find her since a year ago when we both disappeared from the hotel. I ended up in the Ridge, Kara went…”

He paused. “Wherever. But when her picture came across the wires, they traced it back to here. Plan was simple. Come to town, flash my picture around, ask if anyone recognized me.”

“You’re the one who brought her in.” She growled. “You asked me to run her prints. Remember that.”

“I will,” he said.

Marie held the cell phone out in front of her, raising and lowering her arm with a snarl. “No damned bars. Think they took out the towers?”

“Might be a bit extreme for them,” he deadpanned. “But the coverage here in town gets spotty at the best of times. We’ve got the first major storm of the season hitting us hard. I wouldn’t be surprised.”

She dropped the phone on her desk and moved around to the nearby computer, running her fingers over the keyboard.

A shake of her head confirmed Liam’s fears.

“Computer network’s down. Can’t even send out a damned email.” She glared at Liam. “Do they have their own satellites, or did they shoot ours down?”

“Jamming technology. They’ll set it up in the hotel room, throw a blanket as far as they can to cut wifi, Bluetooth,” Liam offered without smiling. “When it comes to tech, they’ve got the best. It won’t last forever—eventually people in town will notice it’s too much to blame on the storm and get curious, ask around. But by then the Sons will be gone.”

“Is there another way to call out?” Kara asked.

“Not until the storm quits and the plows come through. This isn’t that uncommon, losing all communication with the outside. People just hunker down with their books and board games.” Marie glanced at the windows. “When the storm ends, people’ll start shoveling out, the volunteer fire department running the small plow around to open up the streets. But we’re isolated until the big guys come down the highway and connect us with the outside world again.”

Kara put her empty cup of coffee down and stood up. “Take those cuffs off of him—we’ve got work to do.”

Marie stared at her as if Kara had grown horns and a tail. “What? Listen, you’re lucky I haven’t tossed your ass into a cell. I still might.”

Kara crossed her arms. “No. No, you won’t because we’re all that stands between you and people dying.”

The police chief eyed her. “I’m listening.”

“This isn’t about what he did in the past, who he was.” She pointed at Liam. “It’s what he is now. You knew him as Jack until a few minutes ago—he’s the same man.”

Marie gave an angry shake of her head. “He lied to me. And this entire town.”

“Because he had to. Because he’s changed. Because he’s trying to atone for his sins, work his way back into Odin’s good graces.”

The chief’s eyes narrowed.

“Look, this isn’t about him—at least, not right now. It’s about saving your town.” Kara turned toward the windows, the panes clotted with wet snow. “If they haven’t found McKay by now, they will soon enough and know we’re onto them. If they have found him, they’re going to be angry and know that Liam’s searched his room and gotten the data. Then what will they do?”

Liam stiffened in the chair, his mind racing.

“I can tell you what I’d do,” Kara continued. “I’d play it cool, keep the facade up of their company retreat going until the snow eases up and they can move out of the building. After that, they’re going to pillage and burn their way through Everett’s Ridge until they find us. They’ve got the mayor and the rest of the hotel residents there, hostages they can interrogate and use as human shields.” She swallowed hard. “Lizzie’s there, along with the other seniors. They’re not going to put up a fight.”

“Let me toss this other scenario at you. They don’t know you’re still in town,” Marie offered. “Might be you got out before the storm hit. So they grab their buddy, jump in their van, and try to catch up with you. Could be on the side of the road right now, snowed in like I found you.” The tone of her voice showed her disbelief in her own theory.

“They’re not going to leave a job half done in the hope we got through the storm to Denver.” Kara shook her head. “These men, they don’t mess around.”

It was Liam’s turn to speak. “They were behind us when we left, back at the hotel. No one passed us on the road. We would have seen them on the way back into town. They’re still here. And they’ll want to finish their contract.” He searched her face, seeing the determination in her dark brown eyes. “Their original plan was stealth. They thought they’d slip into town, hit me and leave. Maybe take Kara with them and dump her body somewhere or kill her in my apartment, make it a murder-suicide and close the books. You’d do an investigation but have no reason to think anything other than what they’d set up for you to find. Done and done, they’re gone.”

Marie nodded. “Given what I didn’t know about you until five minutes ago, it’d be a hot gossip item for a few months, then nothing. No extended family to ask questions, no one comes to claim the bodies, case closed. Damn.” She put a palm to her forehead. “This is too big for me to handle—I’m not ashamed to say it.”

“You’re a wise woman,” Kara said. “Now uncuff Liam and we’ll figure something out. You know how much he loves the Ridge. Do you think he’d do anything to hurt it?”

The chief chewed on her lip for a few seconds, obviously weighing Kara’s argument. Finally, she went to Liam and undid his cuffs, tossing them onto a nearby desk. A few more steps had her retrieving his pistol. She walked over and held it out.

“For the last year you’ve been Jack Hammerson, a good man. Someone I trusted and liked.” She stared at him. “I want to believe you’re still that man. Tell me how we can save the Ridge.”

Liam nodded and reclaimed the weapon. “First, you’ve got to leave.”

Marie’s eyebrows rose. “Excuse me? I’m the only cop here in town.”

“Yes. Which is why you’ve got to get one of those snowmobiles from out back and head out on the road.”

“And where do I go?”

“Try the Jarretts, hook up with Dwayne if he’s holed up there, see if they have cell service. Maybe go all the way to Denver, meet the plows as they turn off the main highway to come down this way. I’m making this up as I go along—you figure it out.”

“But…” Marie started.

It was hard to keep the anger at the Sons from bubbling up and over, clouding his vision. “Listen—if Kara or I go, no one’s going to understand what we’re talking about. If I reveal my true identity there’ll be trouble. I’m a wanted fugitive in many countries and Kara’s a ghost with nothing behind her. We start talking about a mercenary group hiding out in Everett’s Ridge and they’re going to lock us up while trying to figure out what we’re talking about. By the time they get around to acting on our information, it’ll be too late.”

Marie gave him a knowing glare. “The badge makes the difference.”

“Exactly.” The plan was coming together in his mind, albeit very rough around the edges. “We don’t have time to spare—once the snow stops and the plows head out, the Sons of Cain are going to be on the move.” He paused. “They might be already working inside the hotel, scoping out the residents and who they can use for information and for protection. You’ve got to go get the cavalry.”

She drew a deep breath and scrubbed her eyes before turning her attention back to the pair. “Okay. This is what we’re going to do. Latest forecast had the storm going overnight, dumping another dozen inches on us. Total snowfall, just over two feet. Then another wave in a day or so, depending on how fast the weather system travels.”

Kara let out a soft gasp.

“Yeah. Welcome to the Ridge.” The woman shook her head. “The two of you warm up and I’m going to go find you some uniforms. Got some spares in the back that’ll fit.”

“For what?” Liam asked.

“I’m deputizing you both, silly.” She held up a single finger. “I need help and it’ll be a lot easier for all involved if you’re looking official-like. So shut up and think of something past me shooting out of town on a snowmobile.”

She strode past the pair, swearing to herself as she exited the main room.

Liam sat down again. “Well, that was easy.”

Kara let out a laugh. “Really?”

“Compared with what we’ve got to do?” He jerked a thumb at the back of the room.

She came over and caressed his face. “I’m so sorry.”

He leaned into her touch, trying to commit it to memory. “About what?”

“All of this. It’s on me. I brought them here.”

He pressed his hand against hers. “No. It would have happened at some point in the future—I thought my client had walked away, given up after five years. I’m the one who did this, unfinished business coming to my front door, to my home.” He sighed.

She bent down and kissed him, stirring the fire inside.

“Damn love birds.”

They broke apart to see Marie approaching with two sets of uniforms. “Get out of that damp clothing and into this—at least you won’t die of pneumonia.”