Muttering a string of curse words under his breath, he bolted toward the distress calls. Another shot fired.
Please let her be all right.
He broke into a harder run, panting as he pushed through the thicket. Scrub brush tangled around his shoes, tripping him every other step, but nothing could stop him from reaching Audrey. He forced his way through the overgrown vines and weeds.
By the time he reached Audrey, she was gasping for air on her side.
Duke’s training taught him better than to run toward an injured person, so he slowed down and surveyed the area before dashing to her and taking a knee by her side.
“Duke,” she gasped, immediately looping her arms around his neck. “He took off that way.” She released him and pointed northeast, talking through gasps. “Go. You might be able to catch him if you hurry.”
“I’m not leaving you here alone,” he insisted as he fished his cell out of his pocket. “We’ll call for help.”
“He said his name,” she said. “It’s Trey.”
He muttered another curse when he realized there was no cell coverage at this spot. Audrey, however, managed to sit up. She winced in pain with movement as her hand immediately came up to the back of her head.
“Where are you hit?” he asked, hoping for the best while fearing the worst. His grandfather was in trouble. Audrey was shot. To say this day had gone to hell in a handbasket was an understatement.
“I don’t know,” she admitted. This close, he could see the whites of her eyes in the moonlight. Her adrenaline must be pumping through her veins, and she most likely was in at least a mild state of shock.
Blood wasn’t gushing out of her as far as he could tell.
“Can you get up and walk?” he asked, holding out his hand, ever aware the perp could be behind a tree setting up his next shot.
They needed to get out of here. Now.
Chapter Nineteen
Audrey managed to stand up with Duke’s assistance. She had no idea where Trey had disappeared to. He could be anywhere out here. Duke wasn’t able to call for help. Even if he could, it would take time for another deputy or the sheriff to get out here. At this point, they were sitting ducks.
They needed to move no matter how much pain it caused. Reaching up to touch the back of her skull, she felt something wet. Most likely blood. She wouldn’t be surprised, given the couple of whacks she’d taken on the crown of her head. She remembered Trey tried something else, too.
“That sonofabitch put a rag over my mouth soaked with chloroform,” she said to Duke as they started back toward the cabin.
“It doesn’t work in real life like it does in the movies,” he said, but they both knew that was true already. Very little did work the same. “It does give us an idea that he’s maybe using crime shows as inspiration.”
Audrey limped, moving as quickly as she could. There was no obvious blood gushing out of her anywhere. Was it possible she’d literally dodged a bullet, even at close range?
“I’m certain I hit him,” she said to Duke. “It looked like I took off a piece of his shoulder, but he dived once he realized I had a weapon. He wasn’t exactly in point-blank range, but I’m usually a better shot than that.” Her hand had been shaking as she raised it to shoot, which hadn’t helped matters.
“You’re alive,” he reminded her. “You did good.”
“Thanks, but he’s still out there so I’m not exactly safe,” she pointed out.
“He’s not coming back tonight,” Duke stated. “We’re too aware of him now.”
“Still, I don’t want to stay at the cabin anymore,” she said, firm on her stance. Being there, knowing someone could so easily walk up and watch her through her windows gave her the creeps.
This wasn’t the time to dig her heels in and insist on staying home.
“You’re more than welcome to stay at the ranch,” Duke offered. “I’m the only one in the house right now, but that might change.”
There was a note in his tone that concerned her. “What’s going on? What happened?”
He shook his head. “Not now.”
“I can handle whatever it is, Duke.” Granted, her head pounded like someone stood behind her and played drums with a hammer. Still. Whatever was happening, she wanted to know.
And then it dawned on her. She sucked in a gulp of air. “Your grandmother?”
“Grandfather,” he corrected.
“Oh, no,” she said. “What is it?”
“Grandpa Lor went into cardiac arrest,” he said in a low whisper.
“We need to get to the hospital,” she stated. “Immediately.”
“We do,” he admitted. “But not just for the reason you think. You need to be checked out, Audrey.”
“I’m lucid,” she said defensively. Realizing how that sounded, she softened her tone when she said, “While we’re there checking on Grandpa Lor, it wouldn’t hurt for me to see the doc on call. You can run up to your grandfather’s floor. I’ll check in with emergency and meet you up there as soon as I’m cleared.”
They broke through the clearing of her yard. The cabin was in view now. He would have bars on his phone.
“We should call this in,” she said to Duke. “This one hit way too close to home.” Literally and figuratively, as far as she was concerned. It was a bold move, attacking her at her own home while a US marshal was inside. The perp might have figured out that Duke was asleep but still. He had to get close to the windows to learn that information. Audrey distinctly remembered closing the blinds in the living room so Duke could rest better.
Duke made the call to her boss as they walked into the cabin. He set her down on the couch so she could assess her injuries and then cleared the home to make certain the bastard wasn’t hiding somewhere inside.
