Duke nodded. It appeared he was having a similar thought. At this vantage point, could they get to the perp without him seeing them? It was dark enough in this part of the property. Except Trey’s eyes had no doubt adjusted to the darkness. Another bright full moon wasn’t helping. It would be fine once they entered the tree line. They could end up shot.
Risks had to be taken. This was one of them. She locked gazes with Duke for a few seconds. He gave an almost imperceptible nod before starting toward the trees. He broke into a sprint, running in a zigzag pattern to make it more difficult to shoot him.
Audrey did the same, keeping pace as best she could.
By some miracle, she and Duke made it to the tree line without a shot being fired at them. There was no time to stop and count their blessings. They bolted toward the spot Duke had in mind.
Branches slapped her in the face and torso as she ran. She tore through something that felt a whole lot like a spider web. Spitting and swiping at her face, she kept pushing. The very real knowledge Nash was back at the barn all by his lonesome was enough to keep her running.
At this point, she was almost one hundred percent certain she’d busted Dr. Garcia’s handiwork with the stitches. He wasn’t going to be thrilled with her, but that was a future problem. Right now, she needed to make an arrest more than she needed to breathe.
Duke ran smack into something that seemed like a brick wall, considering the way he bounced backward. He’d managed to get far enough ahead for her to stop and duck behind a tree trunk.
Had she been seen? Heard?
She had no idea. The ringing noise in her ears was starting to subside, and she could hear, if not see, a fight unfolding not far from her.
Rather than run into it and end up right where the perp wanted her, she made a circle around the fight. Giving them a wide berth hopefully kept her below the radar. Based on the grunts and commotion, Duke and the perp were engaged in a tough fighting match.
This was the time Audrey wished she had her weapon. She’d removed her ankle holster inside the house because her SIG Sauer had been taken in for processing after she used it in the woods. Was there something here she could use? A rock? A sharp stick?
With no time to waste, she palmed the first solid rock she could find. It would make her punches much more effective.
Audrey slowed her pace as she neared the struggle between the ox of a man and Duke. One minute they were on the ground wrestling, and the next they were on their feet throwing punches. Duke had just been blown up in the barn, so he was probably operating at sixty to seventy percent strength. Otherwise, ox or not, Duke would be waxing the trees with this dude.
Trey’s back was to Audrey. It was now or never.
Like a wild banshee, she came out from behind a tree and jumped on the perp’s back. One arm hooked around his shoulder, she pounded his skull with the fisted rock, throwing punch after punch in rapid succession.
The move caught the perp off guard. But she was nothing more than a fly on his back, despite wrapping her legs around him and squeezing her thighs as hard as possible. Trey wriggled, almost tossing her off.
In the nick of time, Duke came at the perp like a prizefighter. He threw a punch that connected with the Trey’s nose. Blood squirted as his head snapped to one side. Duke threw a few kicks aimed at the perp’s shins, but the monster of a man fought back hard.
An idea came to Audrey. He had another weak spot: the shoulder she’d put a bullet in. She’d shot him while holding the weapon in her right hand, and the fragment took off a piece of his left shoulder.
Gathering as much anger and force as she could, she dug her fingers into the approximate spot as Duke landed an almost knockout punch.
Trey dropped to his knees and screamed as the cavalry arrived, surrounding them and shining bright lights to illuminate the area.
Audrey was still clinging to the perp’s back as he fell facedown with his arms out. She tossed the rock out of his reach, just in case, as Deputy Roark traded places with her. Her coworker was a tank in and of himself. He was more than capable of restraining the perp.
Trying to catch her breath while searching for Duke, Audrey’s legs gave out. Before she hit dirt, two strong hands were guiding her upright.
“Hey,” came Duke’s voice in her ear, piercing through the bubble. He helped Audrey sit against a tree as the twins, Clifford and Clinton, came rushing over.
Audrey tried to slow her breathing, in through her nose and out through her mouth, like she’d been taught in the yoga class she’d forced herself to sign up for a couple of years ago.
Clinton knelt down in front of her. “How are you doing, Deputy?”
“I’ve been better,” she said, cracking a smile.
“You’re looking good to me,” Clifford joined in.
“I got this one,” Clinton reassured him as Duke took a seat beside her.
She immediately reached for his hand, and he linked their fingers. She was certain this simple act dropped her blood pressure by serious degrees. They both sat there, panting, trying to catch their breath while a twin worked on each one of them.
“It’s over,” she said to Duke as relief washed over her. “He’ll go to jail for the rest of his life.”
She didn’t have enough energy to speak as emotion washed over her. It was over.
“Justice will be served for the deputies who lost their lives,” Duke reassured her. “And this bastard won’t see the light of day or be able to harm anyone else ever again.”
Clinton snapped fingers in front of her eyes and then asked her to follow his index finger. “You’re bleeding. Can I take a look at your underarm?”
She cooperated, allowing him to stitch her up while the piece of trash they’d called Work Boots was forcibly removed from the property.
“What about Nash?” she asked Clinton.
“He’s on his way to the hospital now,” Clinton reassured. “He was giving lip about taking him in the back of her ambulance.”
She smiled. Sounded about right for Nash.
Soon, they would give statements to the sheriff, and then this ordeal would finally be over. Audrey could turn in her resignation and then move on.
Why did her heart break in half at the thought?
DUKE’S PATIENCE WAS running low by the time the EMTs worked on him and Audrey, but he appreciated the fact they carried her to the house instead of taking her to the hospital. He’d used up most of his strength in the fight and had about enough left for a shower and to make it upstairs to crash after a house visit from the doctor.
