Cody saw the silhouette of the man with the gun and the larger silhouette that she assumed was Paige and the two children. She could hear the little girl crying—she sounded so much like Lucy it went through her like a knife. “Don’t move! Federal agent! Put down your weapon!”
He almost turned on her. Cody pulled back the slide. “I said do not move!”
“Cody?” Paige called.
“Put your weapon on the ground and then place your hands on your head. Slowly. Where I can see you.”
Cody shined her light on the deputy.
Carroll.
Why did it surprise her that it was Carroll? He’d been an ass to everyone from the very beginning.
“Don’t do anything stupid, Carroll. Do you really think I’m up here alone?” She was, but he didn’t need to know that right now.
She’d heard the sounds of sirens in the distance.
He had to have heard them, too. “Think about this. You know what could happen. They’ve taken cover. And I have my weapon pointed right at the back of your head. Think I won’t pull the trigger if I have to?” She kept her voice as cool as possible.
“If she doesn’t, there are others here who will,” Allenski said from somewhere nearby. Cody almost fell to her knees in gratitude.
But she didn’t. She kept her cool.
Finally, Carroll’s gun was lowered to the snow next to his left knee. “You have made a mistake. I didn’t do anything wrong. I’m just out here searching for a murderer. This FBI bitch has overreacted. I think she got scared out here in the real world.”
“You have the right to remain silent…” Cody began the litany, but Allenski finished it, as he slapped flex cuffs on his colleague.
Cody kept her gun trained on Carroll until he was completely secure.
“Paige! You can come out now!”
Paige did. Arms wrapped around a little girl the same size as Cody’s Lucy. Cody stepped forward and took her into her own arms. “Paige, I think TJ needs you now.”
Paige turned to the little boy who was practically falling apart next to them, crying and shaking.
Paige wrapped him up close, holding him almost the same as Cody held the little girl.
She carried him back down the hill while Cody carried Ashley.
Allenski led Carroll down nowhere near as gently.
They came out near the blue lights of the squad cars—just as two more squad cars arrived, along with the rental SUV she recognized as Sebastian’s.
Once he was halfway to her, Cody started shaking. “Now you decide to show up?”
“Did the best we could.”
“Where’s Al?” Mick demanded.