Harlequin Romantic Suspense April 2021 by Karen Whiddon (good e books to read txt) 📗

But Carly refused to budge. “Not without you. Come with us.”

“I’m going to double around and see who’s out front,” he told her. “Please, Carly. Micha would never forgive me if I let something happen to you.”

Reluctantly, she ducked into the storage shed, bringing Bridget with her. “Be careful,” she told her brother. “Because I won’t be able to live with myself if anything happens to you, understand?”

Jones nodded once, and then slipped off into the darkness on the side of her house. Heart pounding, feeling like the worst kind of coward, Carly crouched in the darkness, petting her dog, hoping to keep her from barking.

But although Bridget appeared restless, on edge, she kept quiet. Other than occasionally growling low in her throat. She crouched low, allowing Carly to hold her, though she never took her gaze off the exit.

After what felt like forever, Jones finally appeared. “It’s okay to come out,” he said, slightly out of breath. “False alarm. I checked all sides of the house and up and down the street. Didn’t see another person. Let’s get back inside.”

Carly exhaled. “I’m beginning to think Micha might have a valid point about me going to stay with you or Heath,” she said, her voice shakier than she would have liked. “I can’t live like this.”

“I can’t tell you how relieved I am to hear you say that. But come on.” Jones took her arm. “I’ll feel safer once we’re all behind locked doors.”

Agreeing, Carly ran for the back door, Bridget keeping low to the ground but not leaving her side. Jones made up the rear.

Inside the brightly lit kitchen, Carly turned the dead bolt. “There,” she said, slightly out of breath. “We’re safe.”

Still on the leash, Bridget snarled, baring her teeth as she faced the hallway. The back of Carly’s neck prickled as she followed her dog’s gaze. A man wearing military fatigues and body armor stepped into the kitchen. He had a huge military type of gun pointed directly at her.

“Nobody move,” he ordered. “Lady, keep your dog under control or I’ll kill it.”

Nodding, heart pounding so hard the blood roared in her ears, Carly kept a tight grip on the leash. Bridget continued to snarl, struggling to lunge toward the stranger. “Bridget!” Carly ordered. “No.”

To her surprise and relief, the dog instantly quieted, though she never took her intent gaze from the man with the gun. Carly suspected Bridget would bite him if she got the chance, but Carly couldn’t take the chance of allowing her dog to be hurt or worse.

Eyeing the man, Carly recognized the pain behind the anger in his eyes. She’d seen it too many times before in the NICU, in both men and women as they tried to deal with the cruel blow dealt to them by fate as their newborns struggled to live.

“Did you know Micha over there in Afghanistan?” Carly asked, hazarding a guess. “Are you Andy Shackleford?”

Surprise flickered across the other man’s face, though he quickly buried it. Emotionless, he stared at her, keeping his weapon pointed in her direction. “Shut up. Both of you, back against the wall.”

Ignoring him, Jones stepped in front of Carly, his body language making it plain the man would have to go through him to get to her. “What do you want?” he asked. “Micha’s not here.”

Andy Shackleford—if that’s who he was—bared his teeth in a semblance of a smile. “I know he’s not here,” he said, the twisted grimace on his face making him appear to be in a weird combination of pain and glee. “Because I have him locked up. I’ll deal with him after I make him watch me slowly kill the woman he loves.”

Carly gasped. She pushed around her brother so she could see the other man. “Why? Whatever Micha did to make you hate him, killing me won’t change anything. You have to know this.”

Eyes narrowing, he shrugged. “Maybe not. But at least I’ll get to make him pay for what he did to me.”

“You are Andy Shackleford, aren’t you?”

“I am.” His response came without inflection. “Have you heard of me?”

Behind her, Jones grabbed her arm and squeezed, his way of warning her to be careful. While she understood his concern, she figured their only chance right now would be to keep this guy talking. At some point, Sean or Charlie would have to listen to their messages. Hopefully before morning.

She lifted her chin, deciding to respond without really answering his question. “Tell me what he did to you, Andy Shackleford. I at least deserve to know the reason you want to hurt me.”

Unblinking, he considered. “I’m sure he’s told you the story. He thought he was some big hotshot spy, but he got captured. I was part of the rescue mission to get him out.”

“And the chopper crashed.” Eyeing him, she put two and two together. “You were also injured in the crash.”

“I was.” He gave a jerky sort of nod. “Lost my leg. Nearly died. And that was the end of my military career. I was going places and it was over, just like that. Because of Micha. Now the time has come to make him pay.”

CHAPTER 13

The kids dropped Micha off at the end of the block, per his request. He thanked them, dug out a twenty and handed it to the driver. “For gas,” he said. He stayed put, watching them as they drove off, wondering if he’d made a mistake by not calling 911. For all he knew, Charlie Crenshaw might be on vacation.

Too late now. Second-guessing himself would only make him less effective.

When he reached Carly’s house, he was relieved to notice Jones’s vehicle parked out front. Good. At least Jones had stayed with her, so she wasn’t alone. Between her brother and her vigilant dog, she’d have plenty of protection. And who knew, maybe Micha was wrong by trying to guess what Shackleford would do next.

As a precaution, Micha swung around to the back. As he’d suspected, yellow light