“Ah,” Hope screamed out before she hit her head on her window.
“Hope. Hope,” Gage cried out as he unbuckled himself. Gingerly, he undid her belt and pulled her just outside the vehicle without jostling her.
“Gage,” she whimpered, her voice weak as her head bled on him.
“Stay with me.” He reached for his phone, but it was pointless because his vision was blurred as the rain and blood poured.
Denver had slammed on the brakes when he saw their truck skid, coming to a sliding stop about ten feet from where their ride went into the ditch. They saw what happened and had a terrible feeling.
“Hope, Gage,” Denver shouted, rushing toward them as Mike was on the phone to the police, calling for an ambulance. Just then another bullet whizzed through the air, hitting Denver in the shoulder and sending him backward on the pavement. Undeterred, he drew his weapon and aimed in the direction of the shot, firing three rounds.
Movement through the trees allowed the expert marksman and Marine to find and hit his target. The quick fall of the man sent Denver in his direction, but it was too late. The shooter jumped into a beat-up truck and sped down the road. He stumbled back to their vehicles to see Mike assisting Gage with Hope.
“Sorry. He got away,” Denver panted, completely out of breath. Sirens could be heard in the distance even through the heavy rain. Even with the rapid response, Gage felt like it was taking forever to get Hope the care she needed for her and their son. “Hang in there, my love.” He kissed her temple, holding her as best he could without moving her too much. He knew there could be serious and permanent ramifications of doing so. A squad car and an ambulance pulled up to the scene along with a fire engine.
“Who needs attention first?” the medics shouted, running along with the firemen.
“Over here,” Denver said, pointing down at Hope who had lost consciousness.
Gage hadn’t been doing much better. The only one uninjured had been Mike. He had pulled out the medical kit from their trunk and treated Denver’s shoulder. It was a flesh wound, but it still needed a few stitches. The firemen shooed him away so they could take care of Denver while the two medics worked on the Gibsons.
Through a gravelly voice, Gage called out, “My family, Mike! Get to them. Keep them safe.” He then returned his attention to Hope, who they were prepping to move.
“Okay.”
“You’re the only one not hurt. Can you tell me what the hell happened?”
“We were driving back to the Gibson ranch when Denver and I heard a shot, and then Gage and his wife’s vehicle lost control and flipped over into a ditch. As Denver reached Mrs. Gibson, another shot rang out and hit him in the shoulder. Then he gave chase while I tended to Mr. and Mrs. Gibson.”
“What’s your relationship?”
“We’re their hired security.”
“Hired security? Why would they need security?”
“Aside from the obvious? Are you new to the area?” Mike couldn’t fathom that this cop hadn’t heard of their situation since they were well out of Austin and the only major incidents had to do with the Gibson ranch.
“Yes, actually. Today’s my first day. I’m from Illinois.”
“Well, they were supposed to testify against her father. The charges were dropped, but they know he’s a threat.” He made it short and to the point.
“We’ll be escorting them to the hospital just in case we have another attack. I may have more questions for you.”
“I’ll be there as soon as I can. I have to check on the rest of the family.” When they were all secured in the ambulances, they drove off.
Mike rushed to the ranch as fast as the rain would allow. Once he pulled into the driveway, he realized the outdoor lights weren’t on. Then he looked at the camera and saw it wasn’t working either. Immediately, he put the two incidents together. The main house lights were on, so he parked in front of the house. The security guys that Mike and Denver hadn’t cared for were nowhere in sight.
He ran up the stairs and unlocked the front door without seeing a soul outside. Where the fuck was everyone else? Mike knew the house should be guarded by some of the ranch hands and the extra guards. When he entered the house, to his surprise he saw Baxter Cummings holding Johnathan.
Chapter 10
A smile crept over Cummings’s face when he didn’t see anyone behind the one guard. That meant his man had done the job. Now, all he had to do was get out of here with the little bastard and leave no witnesses. Babies are a valuable commodity that he could sell and add to his current financial rebuild.
“Let him go, Baxter.”
He scoffed, turning his smile into a maniacal laugh. No one but these four fools had known that Cummings had his men cut the power as the storm struck. All their systems went down just long enough for him to break into the house. “Who the fuck are you to tell me what to do?”