Deceived (Free Indeed Book 2), page 18
Damn, this plan was going to shit fast, and he needed to do something before Gideon killed even more innocent people.
“You don’t need to kill him.” Jake slowly stood up from where he sat perched on the edge of the desk. He kept his movements casual and smooth. The last thing he wanted was to do something to surprise Gideon or throw him off causing him to start shooting the place up.
Gideon seemed to stop and consider his words for a moment. The gun lowered just enough that Jake thought just maybe the patriarch would listen to him.
“There’re too many loose ends,” Gideon finally replied as he once again brought the gun back to the sheriff’s temple. Leaving him alive now will just mean one more person who’ll be looking for us.”
“It won’t matter once you have the files,” Jake argued back. God, he didn’t want any more dead bodies on his watch. “Then you can just disappear with new identities, and loose ends won’t be a concern anymore.”
At his words, Gideon heaved a huge sigh, like the thought of actually leaving witnesses alive was the most inconvenient thing that could ever happen to a person. “Fine,” he finally conceded. “Jake, you and Paul go lock both of them up in a cell.”
Jake nodded in acknowledgement, trying to keep his relief from showing on his face. Before Gideon could change his mind, Jake stepped forward and grabbed the sheriff from underneath his arms. He lifted the man’s shoulders off of the ground and began dragging him across the tiled floor. With a quick glance, he saw Paul look to his patriarch for instruction. Jake saw Gideon give Paul a slight, almost imperceptible nod that sent chills running down his spine. Well damn, that was never good. He was going to have to be ready for anything. Paul roughly jabbed the terrified receptionist in the shoulder with his gun and then waved it toward Jake’s retreating body, indicating that he wanted her to follow. On shaky legs, she stood to her feet and bravely followed Jake out of the room with Paul directly behind her. The four of them left the office area leaving Allie alone with her father.
Using his shoulder to push open the door to the back area, Jake continued to drag the unconscious sheriff down the hallway to where the cells were. Two on each side, all four currently empty. That was good. At least he wouldn’t have to worry about any additional people accidentally caught up in this mess. He pulled Donaldson into the first cell he came to and dropped his still form on the cot. Paul and Amy could be heard shuffling down the hallway right behind him. Jake left the cell just as Paul approached and roughly pushed Amy inside. With a gasp, she fell to her knees throwing out her arms in front of her to try and break her fall.
Every muscle in Jake’s body tensed as he watched Paul’s arm holding the gun raise and level at the back of Amy’s head. His hand darted out and grabbed Paul’s bicep.
“Don’t do this.”
“You have your orders to put the sheriff in a cell, and I have mine to eliminate any loose ends,” Paul smirked at him. The bastard was actually enjoying this. “If you can’t handle it, then go back out and wait with Gideon.”
Jake forced his hand to drop away from Paul’s arm as he stepped back behind him to give the man some space. A whimper escaped Amy’s lips as she stared up at Paul with terrified eyes. The gun once more leveled directly in the center of the trembling woman’s forehead.
Before he could pull the trigger and end another life, Jake grabbed Paul from behind throwing his left arm around the man’s neck in a sleeper hold while the other chopped down against his gun arm. The gun fell to the floor with a clatter as Paul reached up and clawed at Jake’s arms desperately trying to get free. Jake increased the pressure on his windpipe until he finally felt the man go limp against him.
Wide eyes stared up at him in shock from the concrete floor. Frozen and afraid to move, Amy sat huddled with her knees pulled up to her chest. Uncertainty flashed across her eyes as she wondered what this new development might mean for her.
With a grunt, Jake moved his arms to slide them under Paul’s, and then dragged him into the next cell. He dropped the unconscious form in the center of the room and then walked out, locking the cell door behind him. He once again approached Amy and faced her terrified gaze. Lowering his body into a crouch, he softly asked, “Are you ok?”
He could see the mix of fear and uncertainty on her face as she jerkily nodded back to him that she was. Jake gave her a gentle smile to try and calm her as he continued.
“My name is Agent Jake Cooper. I’m with the FBI, and I’m not going to hurt you.” At his words, the woman’s eyes briefly closed as relief flashed across her face. “I’m going to get you and the sheriff out of here. Stay put for a moment, ok?”
“Ok,” came her shaky whisper.
Jake turned and walked down the hallway, past the bathrooms, records retention, and supply closet to the opposite end. When he came to the heavy steel exit door, he pushed the release bar to open it. His eyes quickly scanned the back lot until they met Cara’s eyes peering out at him from around a parked car. With a wave, he signaled her that it was ok to come forward. He watched as she pushed off of the car next to her to get to her feet and then darted forward at a sprint until she was close enough to throw herself into his arms.
Both of her arms snaked around his neck and held tight as she held their bodies close and breathed a sigh of relief.
“I’m ok,” Jake assured her as he tightly hugged her back. Cara pulled back just enough to peer into his eyes and make sure he was telling the truth before shoving her face back into his neck.
“Good,” she whispered simply. “Then let’s do this.”
Reluctantly she released him and stepped back. Jake grabbed her hand with his own and led her back down the hallway to the cellblock. They both walked to the cell where Amy waited next to the still unconscious sheriff.
“This is Cara,” Jake introduced her to Amy, then looked back at Cara. “Do you think you’ll be able to get the sheriff out of here?”
“Between the two of us, we’ll manage.” Cara shot a quick smile in Amy’s direction. “One way or another.”
Amy gave her the smallest of smiles back and nodded her head in agreement. “You’re not coming with us?” Amy asked Jake.
“I need to get back to Allie and make sure she’s safe from her father,” he explained. “Hopefully, I’ll be meeting up with you guys very soon.”
Cara gave his hand one last squeeze before entering the cell and striding over to where the sheriff lay. “Ok, how should we do this?”
“It’ll probably be easiest if you each throw one of his arms over your shoulders and prop him upright between you,” Jake stated as he looked between the two faces. “At least that way his weight will be distributed between you both and you can just drag his legs along.”
“Sounds good to me,” Cara agreed as she got into position on one side of the cot. Her determined gaze came up to meet Amy’s worried one. “Ready?” she asked.
“Yes,” Amy said as she pushed herself off of the concrete floor and back to her feet. She made her way to the opposite side of the cot across from Cara and looked at her for direction. Together they lifted the much larger man into a sitting position, and then with Jake’s help, pulled him to his feet with one of his arms draped across each of their shoulders. They kept his body wedged as tightly as possible between them to try and absorb some of the weight from his limp form. Slowly they edged their way back down the hallway towards safety.
“It’s not about the money, you bitch!” Their gazes snapped towards the door leading to the front at Gideon’s scream from the other room.
“Go,” Jake commanded as he gave Cara’s arm one final squeeze. Her worried eyes met his own as she hesitated. “I’ve got this. I promise. Just get them out of here and to a safe place.”
Cara’s free hand darted out and grabbed the side of his face. Her head leaned forward as her lips quickly pressed against his. The contact was brief but got the point across that she really didn’t want him to get dead. She pulled back and gave him one last glance before she and Amy continued to shuffle their way out towards the back exit.
So far so good. Two out of three of the hostages were clear. Now he just needed to get Allie out of here before the shit hit the fan. With quick steady strides, he made his way to the door leading back into the office area and pushed it open.
As he strode into the room, Gideon’s dark gaze broke from his daughter’s face to meet his own. “Paul will be right out,” Jake stated. May as well make Gideon think everything was going as he had planned. “He’s taking care of locking up and making sure they’re secure.”
Gideon gave him a jerky nod of acknowledgement before his gaze returned to his daughter. Without missing a beat, Jake kept walking forward until he passed behind Gideon and approached the windows facing the street. He reached out one hand to lift one of the blinds so he could take a peek outside.
“Still pretty quiet out there,” Jake kept his voice calm and level as his hand dropped back to his side. “We should be able to get out of here without any problems.”
All the response he got from Gideon was a grunt. The man’s loathing eyes stayed trained on Allie while keeping his back to Jake.
“As soon as I get what we came for.”
At her father’s menacing tone, Jake could see Allie’s body start to shake in fear. He could tell she was trying to be brave as she stared her father down, but she couldn’t stop her body from shivering as Gideon took a step closer to her. Jake left his position by the window and softly stepped up behind the other man. As casually as possible, he rested his hands on the back of one of the wooden waiting room chairs.
“I think we have enough time for me to teach my wayward daughter a lesson on who’s boss,” the sinister words dripped with malice as Gideon took another step closer to the trembling girl.
Allie visibly braced herself for the beating that she knew was coming. Her chin stubbornly raised in her father’s direction in one last act of defiance. His daughter’s challenging look enraged him even more. Gideon raised his fist to slam it into her stubborn face, but never had the chance to make contact. Jake’s fingers tightened on the back of the chair as he swung it as hard as he could into the back of Gideon’s head. The chair slammed brutally into him, splinters flying around his shoulders and head. Gideon collapsed to the floor from the impact, momentarily dazed. Allie’s eyes widened in disbelief and confusion as she stared mutely at the pieces of broken chair in his hands.
“Run!” Jake shouted urgently at her. She just stood there for a moment as if not believing what had just happened. “Get out of here! Go!”
His words finally snapped her out of her daze, and she dashed past her father’s sprawled figure on the floor and darted towards the front door. She flew past him and grasped the handle of the door, twisting it quickly as she pushed it open.
A scuffling noise drew Jake’s attention back to the man lying on the floor. His hand was reaching into the coat he wore where Jake knew his gun was. Fear lanced through his heart as Gideon pulled the gun free and swung in up and in their direction. Jake turned back to Allie, and with all of the strength he could muster, he shoved her across the threshold of the door and outside of the building just as a thunderous shot rang out from behind him.
Searing pain penetrated his back as the bullet plowed into him. The force of the impact thrust his body into the doorframe. By instinct, one hand reached out and grabbed the doorframe barely managing to keep himself from falling to the ground. Staying here would sign his death warrant, though. He could already hear Gideon behind him trying to shuffle back to his feet. Allie turned back to look at him in the doorway, and he could see her eyes flash to where Gideon was behind him. Her arm darted out and grasped the center of his shirt. With a vicious tug, she jerked him out of the doorway towards her. Together they fell down the stone steps to the sidewalk below, the door automatically swinging shut behind them.
Stunned from the bullet wound followed by the fall, Jake lay there unsure if he could move. The searing pain in his back mixed with the blow to his side and head from the impact of the concrete. He clenched his eyes tight as he gasped at the burning sensation spreading through his body. He had to get up. If he didn’t, they were dead. Gideon would come after them and shoot him again, no doubt killing him this time. Then he’d be free to take Allie off to wherever he wanted until he got his stolen information back.
Jake used both of his hands to push up off of the ground to try and get to his feet. When a sharp lance of pain pierced his back and then spread throughout his body, he couldn’t hold the position any longer and once again fell to the ground. With a grunt of frustration, he maneuvered his hands beneath him and tried once again to push himself upward.
He felt a hand reach around his bicep and yank him upward. “Get up...you have to get up.” Allie was on her feet and using every ounce of strength she had in her petite little body to pull him to his feet. With her help, Jake managed to get his legs under him and stumble down the walkway towards the street. Granted, it was mostly her dragging him along as he used her for support, but somehow they managed to make it to where the sheriff’s car was parked at the curb.
Together they shuffled around the car so they would at least be out of view from the windows in case Gideon decided to start firing. Unable to go any further, Jake lost his grip on Allie and slumped to the ground.
“Run,” he managed to sputter out looking up at Allie standing above him. She tried to reach down to grab hold of his arm again, but he waved her away. It wouldn’t do any good. In the condition he was in, he would just slow her down and wind up getting them both killed. If she was going to have any chance whatsoever, she needed to leave him and get the hell out of here.
“You have to run.” He tried again. “Gideon has no intention of ever bringing you back to Free Indeed. He’s going to kill you once he gets what he wants. Now run!”
He saw a flash of fear cross her face as his words finally penetrated. The look was almost instantly replaced by determination as she dropped back to her knees in front of him. She tore off her jacket and pressed it tightly to Jake’s exit wound in his lower left abdomen. With her free hand, she grabbed both his hands and used them to replace where she was keeping the wound sealed as tightly as possible.
“Keep pressure on it.”
A small smile crossed Jake’s lips at her stubbornness. She was in danger of being killed by her own father, and yet she still took the time to make sure he wasn’t going to bleed out. She really was a good kid.
Despite his weakened state, Jake held the jacket as firmly against his chest as he could manage and looked up to meet her distraught gaze. “Go.” He didn’t have much strength left, but he said it as forcefully as he could.
“I’m sorry,” Allie whispered as she stood to her feet. She gave Jake once last tortured look before she turned and ran down the alley.
Chapter 17
Cara and Amy had just made it to the car and deposited the sheriff’s unconscious form into the backseat when the sound of gunfire pierced her heart with fear. She had to get back to Jake. If anything happened to him now, after everything they’d been through, she didn’t know what she would do. Quickly slamming the door closed, she turned to Amy and pushed the car keys and a cellphone into her hand.
“Get him out of here and to a safe place,” she insisted.
“You can’t go back there,” Amy gawked at her in disbelief. “It’s not safe. You need to come with us.”
“I have to make sure Jake’s ok. Please, just get the two of you out of here and call for backup.” Cara turned and hurried away before she had even finished her sentence. There was no way she was going to leave Jake behind. He was too important to her. In fact, he was the most important person in her life right now.
Getting to Jake was all she could focus on as she flew around the side of the building as fast as she could. When she finally reached the front, she peered around the corner to make sure Gideon or Paul weren’t out front ready to shoot her. She could see the door to the station and could tell that it was closed. Other than the initial gunshot, everything was quiet. Too quiet. Fear trickled down her spine causing her to shiver. He couldn’t be dead. He just couldn’t. She was afraid to even think it, afraid to let that thought even cross her mind. If that bastard of a stepdad had done anything to hurt her man, she was going to kill him.
A soft shuffling sound drew her attention to the sheriff’s police car parked up against the curb in front of the station. It happened so quickly, she thought maybe she had imagined it. Wait, there it was again. This time, along with the sound she saw a large form crawling just to the edge of the back bumper of the car and a familiar face peer around the side.
Oh my God, Jake was alive! Her heart leaped in her chest at the sight of him as relief coursed through her veins. Cara cast one more quick glance at the front door to the station and then darted out from her hiding spot. Even though the blinds were all drawn, she kept low to the ground while rushing to where Jake lay huddled behind the car. Cara dropped to the ground next to Jake and grabbed him against her chest in a tight hug. At his sudden gasp of pain, she instantly released him. Unfortunately, when she did, his body slumped to the hard ground below making him grimace in pain all over again.
“Oh my God!” Cara exclaimed. “Are you ok?” He sure didn’t look very good. In fact, his eyes were tightly closed in pain, and his face was as pale as could be. And oh my God, there was blood! It was seeping out of his chest around a jacket that he was pressing tight against the wound. Her face blanched as she reached out and touched his arm, much softer this time.
“Jake,” she whispered trying to keep her emotions under control. This was not the time to freak out. After all, she had survived a bullet wound just fine, and Jake was a thousand times stronger than she was. “How bad is it?”
His eyes opened and looked up at her. She could see them clouded over in pain, and yet he still managed to get the barest of smiles across his face. One of his hands dropped from his chest to grab her hand and thread his fingers through hers. “What, this little thing? I’ll be just fine, don’t you worry your pretty little head about me.” The smile disappeared and a more serious look replaced it, “Did the sheriff and Amy get away?”
