“Or what? You’ll shoot?” he yelled over his shoulder.
“Go ahead. You gave me up before, you may as well shoot me and get it over with! It won’t be that big of a deal to you.”
“What?” She’d barely met him and this was the way he was going to play her. “No, wait ... We can make this work!” She was chasing him down, desperate for him to stay. “I’ll be by your side. Promise!”
“Oh, yeah, right! Look, forget it. Just forget it!”
“I’m serious. You have to turn yourself in! I know the best defense attorneys, and if you’re innocent, we’ll prove it.”
“If?” he threw back at her, spinning, his angry, dark gaze drilling into hers. “No, thanks, Mom. I’m outta here!”
“I don’t think so.” She was ready to tackle him if need be, and as tall and lanky and angry as he was, she figured she had the moves; thanks to police training and tae kwon do, she could drop him, force him to stay, even cuff him if she had to.
She just didn’t want to go there.
Yet.
“Gabe, seriously. You need to listen to me.”
“That’s what I thought. But I was wrong.” He spun and ran toward the door just as it flew open to bang against the wall.
Gabe jumped, then stopped dead in his tracks.
Alvarez caught up with him just as Dylan O’Keefe, weapon drawn, filled the doorway.
Chapter 25
“Don’t shoot! For the love of God, don’t shoot!” Alvarez ordered. “Stand down!”
Gabe, upon recognizing O’Keefe, froze. “Why the fuc—Hell, are you following me, man?” he yelled, agitated. “I didn’t do it! Whatever they’re saying I did, I didn’t freakin’ do it! You tell him,” he said, turning to Alvarez.
“He claims he’s innocent,” she agreed, grateful that he’d been blocked from disappearing into the night. “Didn’t try to rob Judge Ramsey, that was all a mistake, and he didn’t take any of my jewelry when you chased him here.”
“Or the dog either!” Gabe insisted.
“So,” Alvarez said calmly, meeting O’Keefe’s gaze, “why don’t we all come inside and talk this out?”
The boy shot her a look. “I’m done talkin’.”
“But we need to sort things through.”
“You just want me to turn myself in. You’re gonna try to talk me into it and I’m not doing it. I know how this works. Uh-huh. Once I’m in jail, I won’t get out. They’ll send me to juvie!”
“Gabe, just listen,” O’Keefe said. “No one wants you in jail, but we do have to take you into the station so you can explain your side of things. I’ll call your mom, we’ll get an attorney and we’ll go from there.” O’Keefe’s voice was calm. Steady. But he didn’t move from the front entry hall, where he stood between the boy and the base of the stairs as well as the front door. Alvarez, where she was positioned, blocked Gabe’s path to the slider door and patio.
Trapped, sensing he had no escape, the kid looked at the ground and swore under his breath. “I shouldn’t have come here. All you want to do is get rid of me again!”
“I said I’m on your side. I meant it.”
O’Keefe’s lips folded in on themselves and he appeared to be waging some mental battle, probably the same one that raged within her, but there was no way to let him go.
“I think it would be best if I took Gabe, here, back to Helena.”
“What, no!” Gabe’s face drained of color.
“I agree. Let’s take him down to the sheriff ’s department here,” she said, thinking aloud. “I’m sure the Feds are going to want to talk to him.”
“Feds? What do you mean?” Gabe said, glaring at her.