Jared stood just inside the back entrance to Sheridan’s office and watched Tanner drive away. With luck, Tanner’s P.I. staff would be able to find Agnes McCullough pronto. And with even more luck, maybe she’d have the baby with her.
“What now?” Rachel asked.
Well, it certainly wasn’t what Jared wanted to do. He wanted to get his hands on Agnes now. He wanted the baby now. But apparently, that wasn’t going to happen.
“I guess we go back to the hotel and wait.” He stepped out and checked the area to make sure it was safe. Only then did he motion for her to follow him to the car.
Even with everything else going on, he couldn’t help but notice that Rachel had been awfully quiet since their conversation with Sheridan. Too quiet. Maybe all of this was starting to get to her. But if so, Jared prayed she could hold it together a little longer. He didn’t want to tell her that the worst was probably yet to come.
They had barely made it halfway across the parking lot when he heard the sound. It registered immediately.
A shot.
Just one.
But it was more than enough to make Jared draw his own weapon, and to send them running for cover. It was too far to make it back to the office and too far to the car. So, he gripped Rachel’s arm and pulled her to the ground next to Sheridan’s vehicle.
She moved closer so she could whisper in his ear. “Was that what I think it was?”
“Afraid so.”
She groaned softly, and he pushed her behind him. They waited. In silence. Even though he could hear Rachel’s breathing coming out in short spurts.
“Do you see anyone?” she asked.
Jared shook his head. The sound had come from behind them. Not good. Because behind them was the office. Right where they’d just left Sheridan.
“It was a handgun,” Jared said, more to himself than to Rachel. “Or else a rifle chambered for a handgun.”
“That makes a difference?”
All the difference in the world, and that difference wasn’t good. “If it’s a rifle, it means someone probably shot into the building.”
“As opposed to someone who was already inside,” Rachel finished.
Yes. Either way, Jared damn sure didn’t want a rifle-toting assassin to fire shots at Rachel. Or Sheridan. It was possible the doctor could still help them find Agnes McCullough.
While keeping a vigilant watch around them, Jared pressed in Tanner’s number. It was a risk. A big one. If the gunman heard the phone ring, he might turn the gun on Tanner. Still, Jared had enough faith in his friend. Tanner had probably already taken cover and was waiting for Jared’s situation report.
“I heard the shot,” Tanner said the moment he answered. “Are you all right?”
“For now. Did you see anything?”
“No. I’m at the front of the office. Some cars have passed, but no one’s stopped.”
“Same here. I don’t have a visual on anyone. Could the gunman have gotten inside the place when Rachel and I were going out the back?”
“Negative. I had men posted at the front door and the side. They left less than a minute ago.”
Less than a minute ago was just about the time that he’d heard the shot. Jared checked the area again and was about to tell Rachel they’d have to make a dash for the car. But something stopped him. The dull heat in the back of his head. A tightness in his stomach.
Something beyond the obvious was wrong.
Levering himself up just slightly, Jared looked on the roofs of the surrounding two-story buildings. It was just a glimpse. A glint of reflected sunlight.
A rifle.
Hell.
Jared didn’t waste any time getting that information to Tanner. “The shooter’s on the roof of the brownstone. I need a distraction so I can get Rachel out of here.”
Tanner didn’t answer for several moments. “I see him.” He mumbled a curse. “He’s got a scope. If he’s after you, the second you try to drive out of here, he’ll have you in his range and pinned down. The windows on the car aren’t bullet resistant.”
That meant going back into the building. It wasn’t exactly Jared’s first choice of escape plan. He needed to get Rachel the hell away from there. If someone nearby had heard the shot, they might already have called the police. Not good. Still, he couldn’t risk some stray bullet going through the car window and hitting her.
“We can’t stay around here long. Think you can manage to have our shooter off that roof in under ten minutes?” Jared asked Tanner.
“I’ll try. Get Rachel in the office and stay down until I give you an all-clear.”
He handed Rachel the phone so he could keep his hands free. “Come on. We have to go back in.” Jared positioned her between the gunman and him, hoping that was enough. “If something goes wrong, get inside. No matter what.”
“Excuse me?” She pulled him back when he started to move. “I should be the one protecting you. They don’t want me dead.”
No way would that happen. “We don’t know that for sure. They’re making up the rules as they go along. Just like we are.”
“Then, why do you have to be the one in the line of fire?” she asked.
“Because I’m bigger.” It was a weak answer, but he didn’t want to waste any more time arguing a point that wasn’t open for debate. “Let’s go.”
He didn’t give her a choice. Jared looped an arm around her waist and got her moving back toward the office. His heart pounded harder with each step. No more shooting. Thank God. He didn’t know if that was because Tanner had managed to distract the gunman or because the guy was just waiting until he had a better shot.
Jared opened the thick metal door and pulled Rachel inside with him. “I swear this will make a praying man out of me yet,” he mumbled.
Rachel started to back into the hallway that led to Sheridan’s office, but Jared caught her again and repositioned them so he was in front. If by some chance Tanner was wrong and a gunman had managed to get inside, he didn’t want Rachel coming face-to-face with him.
Jared kept his footsteps light so he could hear any movement in the other room. But it was silent.
“Dr. Sheridan?” he called out.
Nothing.
This wasn’t good. The man knew the sound of his voice and should have responded. If he was capable of responding, that is.
Jared had already anticipated what he might see long before he got to the doorway.
And he was right.
Dr. Randall Sheridan was slumped over his desk. Facedown. His lifeless eyes staring at the wall.
There was blood. Plenty of it. But that wasn’t what captured Jared’s attention. It was the gun still cradled in Sheridan’s limp right hand.
The doctor had found a way to avoid Esterman’s wrath, after all.
Rachel gasped when she saw the body and quickly turned her head away. She wasn’t quick enough. In that glimpse, she saw what remained of Dr. Sheridan. She clamped her teeth over her bottom lip to stop herself from screaming.
Jared motioned for her to stay put, but he walked closer and checked for a pulse in Sheridan’s wrist. “I guess he decided against protective custody...”
When he didn’t finish, Rachel followed his gaze. Sheridan’s phone. It was off the hook, lying on the desk. Jared put his ear closer, listened and then cursed.
“Captain Thornton?” Jared said. “Sheridan called you?”
Rachel couldn’t hear the captain’s response, but it couldn’t have been pleasant. Nor was it short. The woman seemed to be explaining something. Or rather, ordering Jared to do something. Jared’s eyes narrowed, and he aimed that narrowed glare at her.
Oh God. Not this. Not now. Rachel definitely wanted to put off this particular confrontation, but from Jared’s glare, she could see that wasn’t possible.
Jared didn’t pick up the phone, but instead he used the end of his key to press the speaker button—perhaps so he wouldn’t mar any possible evidence; this was now essentially a crime scene. Still cursing under his breath, he went to the window, lifted the blinds a fraction and peered out.
“Well?” the woman on the phone asked. That one word hung in air for a while. “Cat got your tongue, or are you just wasting my time?”
Rachel recognized the voice. It was definitely Captain Elizabeth Thornton. Jared’s boss.
“Sheridan said he was about to kill himself,” the captain continued when Jared didn’t respond. “He made it clear that Rachel and you weren’t responsible. Now, while I’m relieved about that, I’m not pleased with the rest of your actions, Lieutenant Dillard.”
“I know. And I don’t have time to explain things. A baby’s life is at stake—”
“So the doctor mentioned. Drive to headquarters, and we’ll discuss it in detail. By the way, in case you missed the subtle nuance in my tone, that was an order.”
Rachel braced herself. An order. This was no doubt why Jared hadn’t wanted to speak to his boss. He knew he would have to disobey her.
“I can’t go to headquarters,” Jared answered. Rachel didn’t miss the nuance there. The words were strained. His voice, tight. It matched his expression. “Not until this is finished.” And with that, he reached over and clicked off the phone.
Even though Jared didn’t say it aloud, there was a bottom line to all of this, and it could cost him his badge.
“Wanta save some time?” Jared asked.
Since Rachel was pretty sure where this was leading, she stalled. “That depends.”
“That comment’s not my idea of saving time, Rachel.” He tossed her one quick, icy glare before he turned his attention back to the window. “Why did you call the captain this morning and tell her that it was your idea to escape? Jesus H. Christ!” It took him a moment to regain his composure. “You told her that you held me at gunpoint and forced me to go with you.”
“Oh, that.” Rachel quickly ran through her options, only to realize she didn’t have any. Jared wasn’t about to let go of something like this. His pit bull instincts had already kicked in. “Okay, but I warn you, this is like the proverbial Pandora’s box. Once opened, you might not like what you find inside.”
“Try me.”
She tried him, all right. Rachel didn’t pull any punches. “I didn’t want you to lose your badge. Not because of this. I know you’re doing this for me.”
“I’m doing it for us. For our son. And I don’t need you to defend my reputation or whatever the hell you thought you were doing, got that? You could have accidentally said something to Thornton to give us away. She could have found us through that phone call.”
“But she didn’t.” Rachel had already geared up to add more, much more, but Jared put his finger to his lips in a be-quiet gesture.
“Hell. It’s Sergeant Meredith,” Jared grumbled. “Just what we don’t need right now.”
She froze. Which was a good thing. It saved her from panicking. “Where is he?”
“I see him on the roof. He’s got a rifle.”
Forcing herself to move, Rachel made her way past the doctor’s body and across the room, but Jared kept her back when she tried to look out the window.
“Are we trapped?” she asked, frightened of the answer. It wasn’t just because of Meredith. This was costing them valuable time.
“I’m not sure. Let’s give Tanner a couple of minutes to lead Meredith away from here, and then we’ll try to get out.”
Good. She didn’t want to stand around in a room with a dead body any longer than necessary. She was so close to a panic attack that she could taste it.
“Why don’t you think of our first kiss?” Jared said, his voice anything but romantic. A moment later, she knew why. “Or else you can think about how I’m going to yell at you for calling the captain.”
Well, that was a sure-fire way to stave off a panic attack. Rachel decided to wait to panic, or defend herself.
Jared lifted his head slightly and turned back toward the window. “Listen,” he whispered.
But she didn’t have to listen hard. She heard the sound immediately. A siren. It wasn’t close, but she was positive it was headed their way.
“Captain Thornton must have sent out a unit,” Jared explained.
Yet more bad news. It might scare off Meredith, but it put them in danger of being found.
“Let’s go,” he said.
Together they sprinted down the hallway. He didn’t stop when they got to the door. Jared shoved it open, scanned the parking lot and gave her the go-ahead.
“I’ll walk out first,” he instructed. “If all goes well, follow me. Pay particular attention to that ‘if all goes well’ part, Rachel. Don’t go out there if anyone, including me, is shooting. Got that?”
She nodded and braced herself for the run to the car. Tanner might have distracted Meredith so they could escape, but that didn’t mean Meredith hadn’t doubled back to come after them. Fortunately, she didn’t get a chance to dwell on that theory because the phone rang.
“Answer it,” Jared insisted. “It’ll be Tanner.”
Yes. And perhaps with news that he’d lost Meredith.
But it wasn’t Tanner.
“A mutual acquaintance got this number for me,” she heard the man say. “No easy accomplishment, I can tell you. The lieutenant obviously values his privacy.”
The voice made her blood turn to ice.
“Esterman.” Just saying his name took the breath out of her. Rachel had to pause a second. Beside her, she heard Jared ask for the phone, but she ignored him.
She covered the mouthpiece. “Concentrate on getting us out of here,” she whispered to Jared. “I’ll take care of this.”
Jared objected. As she knew he would. But Rachel disregarded him.
“What do you want?” she asked Esterman.
“Let’s see—what do I want?” he repeated, his tone cold. “I want you to do as you’ve been told.”
Rachel didn’t back down. “And I want my son.”
“Yes. I can only imagine. Your own flesh and blood, and yet you’ve never even seen the little fellow. He has good healthy lungs, from what I understand.”
God, he would use something like that—the suggestion that her son was crying. It tore at her heart—just as Esterman had known that it would. It didn’t break her, though. Too much was at stake for her to let him do that.
“I want to see him.” Rachel silently applauded herself. Her voice sounded calm and steady. Beneath all that calmness, however, her entire body was one raw nerve. “Where is he?”
“In due time. You should be thanking me, you know. After all, this was my plan. I’m the one who’s responsible for that child being born. Without me, you wouldn’t have your son. The son you’ve always wanted.”
“A son you’ve threatened to kill,” she reminded him.
“Only if you don’t cooperate. The choice has been yours all along. But what have you done with that choice? You allowed your ex to sway you in a seriously bad direction. How many more people must die before you do what’s necessary? You are responsible for this.”
“Wrong. You’re responsible.”
“Each second you waste is putting your child in greater danger. So far, I’ve shown compassion. Don’t expect that compassion to continue.”
And with that, he hung up.
“What did he say?” Jared asked immediately.
She took a moment to gather her breath. “Nothing that we didn’t already know. Our son is in danger, and Esterman is the one responsible.”
“That really was Esterman on the phone?”
Rachel nodded. Just nodded. It seemed the best response while she kept hold of the emotions that threatened to break free.
“What the hell did he want?” Jared demanded.
“The impossible.” Rachel closed her eyes for a second and fought to hold herself steady. “Now, let’s get out of here and find our son.”