Christmas Witness Pursuit

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“Good. But if you end up needing something—anything at all—during the night, I’m just down the hall.”

“I’m sure I’ll be fine.”

A moment later she turned around and slipped into her room.

He stared at the closed door a few seconds then made a tour of the house, ensuring all the doors and windows were locked. His parents had gone to bed an hour ago, but he had a feeling he wasn’t going to get much sleep.

The wind was still howling outside and the snow continued to lay a thick blanket on the ground, which meant he couldn’t imagine someone coming after her now. Not in this weather. But he still wasn’t going to take any chances. His brother Caden and the ranch hands were already on alert to anything out of the ordinary. And the local sheriff’s department had their deputies on call, as well.

If Jinx did manage to track her down and come after her, they were going to be ready.

He checked the mudroom door then stopped and moved closer to the window. Something shifted outside near the barn and he was sure it wasn’t simply the wind. He grabbed his heavy coat and gloves off the hanging rack, along with a flashlight, then put his service weapon in his holster. If Jinx and his men were foolish enough to try to fight this storm, he was going to make sure they lost.

The wind howled around him as he stepped outside and quickly shut the door behind him. Bitter cold slashed his cheeks, sending shivers up his spine. Steeling his breath, he headed for the barn. Shadows moved in the wind, but that wasn’t what he’d seen. Something—someone was out there.

He held out his weapon as he approached the barn. “Turn around slowly and put your hands on your head.”

He shone his flashlight into the shadows. “Caden?”

His brother stepped up in front of him. “What are you doing out here?”

“Just checking things over one last time. I can’t see those guys coming after her tonight, but saw someone moving around and had to check it out. What are you doing?”

Caden let out a low laugh. “I think we’re both a bit on edge. It hasn’t been that long since Gabby’s and Liam’s lives were in danger, and now this...”

Griffin stepped into the shelter of the barn behind his brother. “I have to admit, this situation has me rattled and they’ve crossed my mind once or twice the past few hours.”

Caden shot him a smile. “Gabby fell in love with Liam during all of that. The same thing could happen to you.”

“Seriously? There’s a killer after the woman I’m protecting, and you’re thinking about matchmaking?” Griffin frowned. “I’m not doing this because I think she’s beautiful or charming. I’m just doing my job.”

“If you say so.”

“Caden, you can’t seriously be going there. I don’t even know her.”

His brother let out a low chuckle. “You know I’m just kidding, though it has been a while since you’ve been in a relationship. I’m just thinking of your happiness. Mom told me Tory’s both beautiful and charming.”

Griffin headed into one of the stalls to check the supply of feed, even though it wasn’t his job.

Caden followed him, stopping in the doorway. “I’m sorry.”

“Forget it. That was a long time ago. I just haven’t found what I’m looking for.”

“What are you looking for?”

He headed into the next stall, wanting to ignore the question. Wanting to ignore the entire topic.

“You’re not exactly one to give relationship advice.”

The four brothers had fought like cats and dogs growing up, but in the end they would have sacrificed anything for each other. Caden and his fiancée had broken off their engagement the night before their wedding. He’d never told Griffin the entire story of what had happened, and Griffin had never pushed. Just like he’d never shared with Caden all the details of losing Lilly.

But none of that mattered right now.

“What I just said crossed the line,” Griffin said.

“Forget it. It’s just that you’ve just seemed...lost lately.”

Griffin stepped out of the stall. “I’m fine. Busy at work and church... There’s nothing to complain about.”

“But that’s not always enough, is it?”

“I just...” He stopped. Wasn’t that the same question he’d been asking himself? What was he looking for?

Satisfied the horses had what they needed for the night, Griffin buttoned the top of his coat. He needed to get back to the house to ensure everything was okay there.

“If things were different, I might not mind getting to know her, but she can’t remember much more than her name, which makes it a bit hard.” He stopped just inside the doorway leading outside and rested his hands on his hips. “I think the stress of all of this is taking more of a toll than I realized.”

“She’s going to be fine,” Caden said, heading toward the door with him. “She’s got you as her guardian.”

He was cold and tired and needed to get a good night’s sleep if he was going to be able to do his job. “We both should get some sleep.”

“Agreed. I’ll see you in the morning.”

Griffin walked back to the house and made another sweep of the perimeter, knowing he wouldn’t sleep tonight. While the chances of Jinx or his men facing this storm seemed slim, he still wasn’t going to dismiss the possibility. That meant he couldn’t put his guard down.

He glanced up at the window of the room where Tory was sleeping then shifted his gaze toward the shadows in the living room. This time he wasn’t imagining anything. Someone had broken into the house.

FIVE (#uf558d047-b5f5-5e7f-a852-889243c2fef8)

Tory woke with a start. After hours of not being able to sleep, she’d finally dozed off only to be jerked back awake. It was still dark outside and she had no idea what had startled her. She grabbed her phone to check the time. It was only half past twelve. Maybe she hadn’t been asleep as long as she’d thought.

She crawled out of bed, shoved her feet into her thick slippers and then stopped in front of the window. Snow was falling and had already covered the ground with several inches. Griffin had been right. Jinx might have escaped, but he couldn’t find her here. The authorities would catch him and all this would be over.

At least that’s what she prayed would happen. Somehow she was pretty sure it wasn’t going to be that easy.

If she testified, he’d send someone after her.

If she didn’t testify, he’d go free and probably still send someone after her.

There was no way to win.

A memory flickered in the recesses of her mind as she headed out of her room, but she couldn’t catch it. She’d head downstairs to get a drink then try to go back to sleep. Try to not dwell on the fact that her memories were locked up in a place she couldn’t access.

She’d have to read the additional case files the FBI had sent over and, she hoped, uncover clues to what for now had been lost. But there was something unnerving about trying to find out who you were in a government file.

Another noise snapped her out of her thoughts. Someone was moving inside the house. The hairs on the back of her neck prickled, but she knew it was probably just Griffin or his parents. She drew in a deep breath, trying to slow her heart rate. It wasn’t anything sinister. Like her, he was probably having trouble sleeping.

She dismissed the fear and headed down the main staircase and into the kitchen.

“Tory.”

She spun around. “Griffin?”

A sigh of relief escaped her lips. She’d let her imagination take over but she’d been right. There was nothing to be afraid of.

“There are two men in the house,” he whispered.

“What?”

The night-light in the living room went out, leaving them in darkness.

“They’ve cut the electricity.”

Fear pressed against her chest. This couldn’t be happening. She was supposed to be safe here. But now...

Griffin motioned for her to stay quiet as he grabbed her hand and pulled her across the kitchen toward the laundry room. “They’re here in the house. Upstairs. I don’t know how you managed to miss them, but I need you to come with me.”

She went willingly, an indication in her mind of how much she trusted him. But trust didn’t take away the panic engulfing her. Jinx had no intention of simply disappearing. He wanted her dead and was willing to battle a storm to take her out.

She caught the glint of the handgun Griffin held as the moonlight streamed through the window and wondered how it had come to this. She was supposed to be safe here. A shelter in the storm until the FBI could retrieve her. She had to have known she was putting her life at risk when she’d decided to testify against a man like Jinx, but now she was risking Griffin’s family’s lives, too. She didn’t want that. And she had no desire for him to put his life on the line to fight for her. But what other options did they have at this point?

He pulled her into the laundry room and shut the door behind them. She had a dozen questions to ask Griffin. Like, how were they going to escape? But all she really needed to know was that Jinx’s men—and maybe Jinx himself—were here in the house and, with the storm in full force outside, escaping was going to be next to impossible.

How were they supposed to hide when there was nowhere to go?

Griffin released her hand and pulled out a handheld two-way radio. “Caden...we’ve got two intruders in the house.”

“Where are you?”

“Downstairs in the laundry room.”

“You need to get her to the safe room.”

“That was my plan, but they’re blocking it.”

“Can you take them out?” Caden asked.

“Yes, but I could use some backup. I’d rather avoid someone getting hurt in a confrontation.”

“What about Mom and Dad?”

“I haven’t been able to get through to them.”

“I’m on my way to the house now.”

“Copy that.”

She heard movement behind them. The door swung open, followed by a bright light and then everything went dark.

Tory grabbed Griffin’s arm, though she couldn’t see or hear anything. Someone pulled her up but she couldn’t make out who it was. Was it Griffin or one of Jinx’s men? She couldn’t tell. Her ears were ringing and her heart pounded as her vision came back into focus. Someone grabbed her from behind but Griffin pounced on the man, forcing him to lose his grip. Free, she snatched an iron off the dryer and swung at a second man with everything she had. A moment later the man dropped to the ground.

Griffin grabbed her hand. “We need to get out of here. Can you run?”

“Yeah.” She still wasn’t sure where he planned to go, but she wasn’t going to wait to find out.

He swung open the outside door and helped her down the porch stairs. The cold hit her like a freight train. She was wearing sweats, a long T-shirt and slippers with soles, but that wasn’t enough to protect her from the freezing temperatures or the snow that was still falling. It wouldn’t take long, exposed in this weather, to bring on the first stages of hypothermia.

She didn’t question his decision as they headed for the barn, but there was no way they could take a horse out into this weather. That left them with no real escape as far as she could tell. But Griffin had a plan. He had to.

Her lungs hurt as she took in a breath. “Where are we going?”

“To the barn. We’ve got a couple snowmobiles there.”

They crossed the gravel driveway that was now covered with several inches of white, the only light a sliver of moon reflecting off the falling snow. She had no idea what had happened to his parents, but she had a feeling that Jacob and Marci O’Callaghan could take care of themselves.