Chapter 24: Alex

My hands tightened around the rifle as I made my way across the side of the house. I kept my head low, looking behind me every few steps to make sure no one was going to surprise me. The lights inside the house were on, but the curtains were drawn, and there was no way I would be able to take a look inside without bringing too much attention to myself.

This is a trap. You know that, right?

I heard Janice’s voice in the back of my head, loud enough to make me believe she was standing beside me and whispering urgently in my ear. Of course, I knew it was a trap. I was a lot of things, but naïve wasn’t one of them. There was no telling what Garth had planned for me, and every precaution I could take was only for my benefit. Ultimately, anything could happen.

I stopped just before I turned the corner towards the back. I leaned against the wall of the house, closing my eyes and listening to the sounds around me. Everything was quiet, except for the chirping of crickets and the occasional croak of a frog. The house was dead silent, and I began to immediately rethink my decision to come here. If Jenni really was inside, there would be some noise, anything at all, even if muffled moans of protest or the occasional shifting of furniture.

Unless they have her in the basement.

But the basement windows were dark, and a quick inspection of the one nearest to me assured me that no one was down there. The silhouettes of construction equipment lined the walls, and the shadows that shifted came from the light of the moon. No, she was definitely not in the basement.

Then why was the house so damn quiet?

A lick of a lighter immediately brought me back from the questions in my head, and I heard the faint sound of a cigarette lighting and someone blowing out smoke. I cocked my head to one side, trying to hear for anything else, and a muffled cough soon followed.

Would he be that stupid?

I doubted it, which could only mean that he wasn’t alone. I don’t know why that took me a little by surprise, although I knew that at least Heath should be here, if not others. But, for the entire drive here, I had convinced myself that Garth was the kind of guy who was a little too proud to let one of his men take me down. A part of me truly believed that he would try and do it on his own. As if he had to prove how efficient he was. It was an instinctive feeling, something that had never let me down before, and I was a little taken aback that I had been wrong about this.

This doesn’t feel right, I thought to myself. My mind was throwing up flags left and right, and I turned and looked behind me again, frowning at the other houses that lined the street. Some of them had their lights on while others looked completely abandoned. Maybe I was being drawn to the wrong place. Maybe Jenni wasn’t here after all. Garth had an entire compound at his disposal, with more than enough places he could have hidden her in. This felt a little too convenient.

Only one way to find out.

I stood up slowly and adjusted my hold on the rifle, taking a deep breath before I burst out from my cover and aimed.

It wasn’t Garth after all, and I stared at the surprised look on Jack’s face, arm still in a sling. He dropped the cigarette from his good hand and reached for his gun. I raised the rifle and aimed it at his head.

“Don’t,” I said.

Jack was apparently as stupid as he looked, because he went for his gun anyway. I lowered he rifle, aimed at his leg, and fired. His leg shot out from under him, his kneecap exploding in a shower of blood as he screamed out in pain and fell to the ground. I rushed to his side and kicked his gun away, pressing the muzzle of my rifle against his head.

“Where is she?”

Jack cried out in pain and slapped his hand against the ground several times.

“Where the fuck is she?”

I heard the gunshot before the window burst, and quickly dropped to my knees. I was suddenly back in Miami, the bullet whizzing past my head and lodging in the tree behind me, showering me in barks of wood. I raised my rifle and fired into the open window, cursing when I realized that I could be shooting at Jenni. The curtains flapped in the wind, and another gunshot tore through the fabric and whizzed over my head.

I heard footsteps race deeper into the house. Jack was trying to push himself up, and I brought the rifle down hard against the back of his head, knocking him out. I grabbed his gun, made sure the safety was on, then lodged it into my belt. I waited, listened, and when I was sure no one was going to shoot at me again, I raced forward and kicked in the back door.

The sudden bright light blinded me, and I whirled back out, hiding behind the protection of the doorframe. I half expected gunshots to follow me, but whoever was still inside had decided to abandon his post and find another vantage point somewhere else. I lifted the rifle up and stepped inside the house, glass crunching under my feet as I moved.

The house was barren, devoid of all life except for a few tables here and there where drills and saws had been left behind. Planks of wood lined the hallway, and a barrel had been pushed up against the front door.

He really expected you to come in through there.

Garth might have been out of his mind, but it was apparent that he was nothing more than a power-hungry amateur who had no idea that he was in over his head.

Careful. Those are usually the dangerous ones.

The unpredictable ones. The ones that would go as far as kidnap a woman to lure a DEA agent into a trap and try to kill him.

I made way deeper into the house, careful as I passed every door, making sure no one was waiting for me inside. I approached the staircase carefully, keeping my aim high, ready to fire at anything that moved. If Jenni was here, then there was only one place she could be. Which meant Garth was up there, too.

“You know, Alex, I would have expected you to be a lot more cordial,” Garth called from the second floor. I crouched down immediately. “I mean, there’s so much that could get done if people would just amicably work together.”

“Those are two big words right after each other, Garth,” I called back. “Careful, you might give yourself an aneurysm.”

Garth laughed, and a gunshot followed that struck the wall ahead of me and showered the staircase with plaster. The point of impact was too far away from me to be of any effect. Garth was just showing me where my limit would be.

“I never told Heath to hurt your old man, you gotta believe me,” Garth said.

“I believe you,” I said. “So how about you let Jenni go and we can sort this out another time.”

“Oh, come on, Alex,” Garth laughed. “You’re a smart guy. I’m sure you’ve figured out by now that she isn’t here.”

Fuck! Always listen to your instincts.

“Where is she, Garth?”

“Across the street,” he called down. “Heath is with her. I told him to do it quickly, but hey, you know Heath.”

I eyed the barrel blocking the front door and decided against testing whether or not I could move it. I jumped to my feet and raced back down the hallway and out the back. I stayed close to the wall, making myself less of a target in case Garth decided to use me as target practice from up there. As soon as I stepped out into the driveway, the front door opened.

Garth came out shooting, gun shaking in his hand and his eyes blazing in anger as he fired at me. The first shot missed me and the second grazed my shoulder as I jumped across the hood of his Mustang and dove for cover. He continued shooting, bullets lodging into the sports car as he screamed bloody murder. I waited for the distinct sound of lifeless clicking, and stepped out, rifle held high and aimed directly at him.

“Drop it!” I yelled.

Garth dropped the gun and raised his hands into the air, glaring at me yet smiling. “Whatcha gonna do, big boy?” he hissed. “Arrest me? Or go save your girlfriend before Heath rips her to shreds?”

I glanced at the house across the street then brought my attention back to Garth. “On the ground, Garth.”

Garth laughed and clapped his hands. “Bravo, bravo!” he said. “Always the long arm of the law, aren’t we? You’d rather try and take me in than save your sweet Jenni? I’m impressed, agent Logan.”

I winced at his shrill laughter, and my eyes darted to the house where Jenni was supposedly in. This was just another game. There was no telling if there was any truth behind what he was saying. This could just be his way to distract me while he got away.

“On the ground!” I yelled, my mind racing.

Garth got down on his knees and put his hands behind his head. “I’m not exactly sure how you’re going to cuff me, but make sure you read me my rights. I know Sheriff Blake is going to be incredibly interested in what happened here.”

I wanted to shoot him right there and then, and fought the urge back. I approached him slowly, rifle held tight, and tried to think of the next best move.

“Alex!”

I turned to see Jenni racing out of the house and across the street towards us, and realized my mistake a second too late.

Garth lunged for me, slamming his body against mine and pushing me back until we slammed into the side of his car. The rifle fell from my hands, and he kneed me in the side twice before I even had a chance to collect myself. I cried out in pain, tried to block his attack, and felt my head snap to one side after his fist connected with my jaw. I stumbled and fell to a crouch, Garth’s knee slamming into my chin and almost knocking me out completely.

I rolled away from him, blood pouring out of my nose and into my open mouth. I watched him rush for the rifle, and I quickly pushed myself to my feet and rushed after him. Before his hands could reach the weapon, I threw my weight against him and brought him down hard. His head smacked against the rear bumper of his car as we fell, and he rolled away from me, groaning in pain.

I tried to stand up, my eyes watering from the pain, and I waited as he used the rear of the Mustang to hoist himself up. He swayed on his feet, and I immediately grabbed him by his collar and threw my fist against his nose. I felt it break against my knuckles as he fell back against the car. With one hand holding him in place, I landed one punch after the other, screaming in rage as I attacked him. I don’t know how many times I hit him, but by the time Jenni grabbed my arm and pulled me back, he slid sideways and fell in an unconscious heap onto the ground.

I staggered away from his limp body, and immediately turned to Jenni, holding her tight in my arms as she cried against my chest. I ran my hand across her back, burying my face in her hair.

“You’re okay,” I whispered, trying my best to soother her. “We’re okay.”

I closed my eyes and held her tight as sirens sounded in the distance.