Chapter 37

THIRTY-SEVEN

SATURDAY

Invigorated by her work the previous day, Beth stared out of the window just as the sun peeked over the top of the mountains. Although still cold, a deep blue sky spread out forever and she had a longing to get outside and breathe in the cool mountain air. At this time of the morning Styles would usually walk Bear to the park so that he could have a run before being cooped up in the office all day. She grabbed her coat and headed to the door. This morning they would have company. As she headed along the passageway toward his apartment, the elevator grinded to a halt and the door slid open. She stopped mid-stride as Carter and Zorro stepped into the passageway. "Morning, are you going for a walk?"

"Yeah." Carter ran a hand through his blond-streaked hair and pushed on his Stetson. "I was just dropping by to collect Styles along the way." He gave her a long considering stare as they walked toward Styles' apartment. "I figured you'd be snuggled up in bed for at least another hour."

Beth flicked him a glance as she knocked on the door. "You don't know me at all, do you? If the weather were a little warmer, I'd be out running by now. It loosens me up some before I go down to the gym to work out with Styles." She turned to look at him. "It looks like a beautiful spring day and I just couldn't resist a walk in the park before work."

The door to the apartment opened and Bear bounced out and did the doggy walk-around with Zorro, who totally ignored him. She looked up as Styles came out pulling on his gloves. "Hi, Beth." He smiled. "The moment I saw the blue sky, I just knew you'd be waiting out here for me." He nodded at Carter. "We might as well drop by TJ's for breakfast. He opens at six and we'll be through by then."

"Sure." Carter turned back to the elevator and punched the button. "I'll grab takeout for Jo. She likes her sleep and I know she'll want to speak to her daughter before she heads out for work this morning."

Steam escaped from their lips as they headed along Main toward the park, and underfoot, ice still crunched on small patches of water on the sidewalk. The wind had died down this morning and only a light but cool breeze brushed Beth's cheeks as she walked beside them. The men beside her strode along, their long legs eating up the distance with ease, and Beth pulled on Styles' sleeve. "If I'd wanted a run, I'd have dressed differently." She coughed as an icy breath seared her heated lungs in a bolt of pain.

"Sorry." Styles shortened his stride. "I like to keep moving when it's cold in the mornings and the dogs are anxious to get into the park. I gather you would have worked on your laptop all night, so I'm surprised to see you up so early." He walked backward to look at her. "Did you manage to create our fake identities?"

Frowning, Beth stared at him. "You'll end up walking into a street light or falling down a ditch if you don't turn around." She waited for him to fall into step beside her. "Yeah, I've created some absolutely foolproof documentation and backgrounds for the four of us. In case we make a mistake writing our names, I've stuck as close to our normal names as possible without being obvious. Carter and I are Betty and Tim Carson. You and Jo are Steve and June Simons. I followed Carter's suggestion about being a cattle baron. That worked well, as one of the safe houses you suggested is a large ranch that currently runs cattle."

"I like it." Carter grinned and swung open the gate to the park, standing to one side to allow the dogs to pass into the massive area.

"And what story do you have for me?" Styles followed them through the gate and closed it behind him.

Beth had enjoyed creating Styles' background and tried hard not to smile as she stared at the dogs tearing around like lunatics. "You're a businessman on the wrong side of the law." She turned to smile at him. "I made you the owner of a few seedy establishments, since closed. I'll give you a rundown before you do your thing." She looked at Carter. "Same with you, but as I'll be with you, I can cover for you if anything goes wrong."

"I'm still not clear why you prefer to do this with Carter and not with me, your partner." Styles tipped back his Stetson and peered at her. "Do I really look as if I would be involved in a pedophile ring?"

Seeing a flash of anger cross his eyes, Beth shook her head. "No, of course not, but then if we could recognize them by face value, they wouldn't be walking around free, would they? Unfortunately, they come in all shapes and sizes and various occupations, from the lowest paid to the highest." She lifted her chin and held his gaze. "It's nothing personal, it's just that since I've known Carter he has this smooth easy way of talking to people. When we get to the adoption agency, he has to come over as extremely rich and very sincere in wanting a baby, particularly a newborn. I honestly think he's the best person for the job and that's no reflection on your skills."

"Makes sense, I guess." Styles frowned and shook his head slowly. "I've faced greater challenges."

They followed the dogs down toward a wooded area and watched them disappear into the trees. As they reached the perimeter of the park, a black SUV stopped at the curb and four men dressed in SWAT gear jumped out. Before Beth could register what was happening, they'd leapt over the fence and were on them in seconds. At once, Beth reached for her weapon only to find it missing. In her rush to meet Styles, she'd left it hanging on the back of the chair by the front door. A heavy body rammed into her, and they tumbled to the ground. Pain from her sore ribs shot through her, stealing her breath. She rolled, and bringing up her elbow, smashed it into the man's throat. She lifted her knees and gripped her legs around his waist and squeezed. As he gagged and choked above her, she tried to fend off punches.

It was the same as before, a silent attack, no guns. These men considered themselves to be skilled enough to take them down, but Styles had taught her to fight dirty. Screaming a war cry, she jerked forward, headbutting the man's nose, and heard a satisfying crack. His blood sprayed her face, but she hadn't beaten him. When his hands went to her throat and squeezed, she reacted without a second thought and jammed both thumbs into his eyes. Her attacker let out a long scream, and his hands dropped from her bruised throat to defend his sight. Bunching her fists, she punched him hard under both kidneys. The effect was immediate. He howled in pain and tried to roll away. She unclasped her legs and pushed him from her. Up on her knees, she stared at him curled up in a ball sobbing. He wasn't going anywhere. All around her grunts and thuds broke the quiet morning as Styles and Carter defended themselves.

The men they'd sent this time were lacking skills and more like street brawlers than the martial arts experts who had broken into the motel. They didn't stand a chance. They had expected to take down three FBI agents and ended up facing a serial killer and two ex-military specialists. From the bulges under their coats, Carter and Styles were carrying their sidearms, plus they carried KA-BAR knives on their belts. They didn't need her help; they were handling the three men with less effort than a morning workout. She stood slowly, searching her pocket for a tissue to wipe the blood from her face and keeping one eye on her captor when two streaks flashed from the forest. The two combat-trained K-9s attacked at once. She held her breath as Zorro's open snarling mouth closed around one man's leg and Bear threw himself at the third man, his sharp teeth locked around one arm.

In that second, Styles hit the second man, attacking him with an uppercut that sent him flying backward and sprawling motionless on the grass. Beth gaped in horror as the man in Bear's grasp drew a knife, the sharp blade sparkling in the sunlight. Beth ran toward him. "Knife."

A shot rang out, so loud Beth fell and rolled to the ground. She turned as Bear dragged at the motionless man's arm and gasped. The ground was visible through the hole in his chest, tall pieces of wheatgrass sticking out of the bloody mess as if they belonged there. She turned her head as Carter swept the second leg from his attacker and the man fell on the ground.

"Get that dog off me." The whites of the man's eyes showed in his absolute terror.

Beth's gaze moved to Carter. As if he had all the time in the world, Carter drew his weapon and aimed it at the man.

"Ask me real nice." Carter's mouth twitched up at the corners. "My gun has a hair trigger. It would be a shame if my finger slipped. Look around you. I have two FBI witnesses to say you drew a weapon on me."

"Please call off your dog." The man's face twisted in agony.

"With me." Carter waited for Zorro to come to his side. He flipped out his phone and stared at Beth for a few seconds and then nodded. "Morning, Cash. We have a few men for you to arrest. We'll need Nate too. Someone jumped us in the park. One dead, three injured. Once you've arrested them, I'll call County to come by and get them." He disconnected and stared at their prisoners. "There you go. Duty of care satisfied."

"Who sent you?" Styles had the man who had attacked Beth by the collar and was giving him a shake. The man whimpered. "You figure she can hit hard? You've gotten off easy. If I'd hit you, I'd have driven your nose out the back of your head."

The conscious men said nothing, just looked at each other as if seeking support. Beth moved closer and found Bear at her side, looking from her to Styles. She patted the dog's head. "Good boy."

"It's been a time since either of these dogs have seen action." Styles rubbed Bear's ears. "They never forget."

Head thumping and aching all over, Beth crouched near the man who'd attacked Carter. She'd noticed he'd led the attack and must be the leader. "Look, you might just as well make it easy on yourself and give us information." She leaned in conspiratorially and lowered her voice. "We know Doc is involved. He sent you to take us down, didn't he?"

The man clung to his damaged leg and glared at her. Like the others, he refused to name anyone, but she'd seen a flash of recognition in the man's eyes at the name of the doctor. "Have you ever heard the expression why come to a gunfight with a knife ? Surely you must have known that we would be armed? Did Doc tell you to do that to make it a nice quiet death for us?"

"If I talk to you, he'll sell my kids into slavery." The man's voice was so low, she almost missed it.

Leaning closer, she met his gaze. "We could've killed you in self-defense, but we spared your lives. If what you say is true, we can put you into witness protection for your testimony against the doctor. Your family will be safe."

"No, they won't." The man shook his head. "We failed. It's already too late." He lifted his dark gaze to her. "You have no idea who you're dealing with, have you? We're dead and you will be soon. Nothing can stop him."