Andrew peered into the room and said, “Put down the gun. Now.” He moved into the room and Stacey joined him, both telling Nettleton to put his gun down.

  Nettleton still had his gun aimed at them, but she didn’t think he wanted to add murder to his list of crimes. At least she hoped she was right in her assumption.

  “The more criminal stuff you do, the deeper in you’re going to get,” Andrew said.

  “Give it up. We already have Rizzo, and he’s spilling his guts about what you’ve done for him,” Stacey said. “Like Agent White said, you’re getting yourself deeper into trouble if you resist arrest.”

  Andrew’s phone rang again, but he kept all his concentration on Nettleton, just as Stacey was doing.

  Nettleton pointed the gun at his own head, and Stacey felt sick to her stomach. “You’ll get time, but you have so much more time to set your life right and live it to the fullest. You don’t want to do this. Really. Believe me. I died once myself.” Not that she remembered anything about what had happened, but she would never forget her parents making such a horrible fuss over her in the hospital when she’d come out of the coma that she didn’t think they’d ever let her go anywhere by herself again. But she did remember in vivid detail when the perp she was trying to arrest blew his brains out.

  Andrew was staring at her, and she wanted to tell him to watch Nettleton and not her. But Nettleton seemed to reconsider killing himself. She couldn’t watch another perp do that in front of her.

  “What happened?” Nettleton asked, pulling the gun away from his head.

  “Drunken driver ran up on the sidewalk where I was roller skating. I was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital, but my guardian angel was watching over me. I knew then, once I was myself again, I had to live every day to the fullest, enjoying what life has to offer us.”

  Frowning, Nettleton nodded. “Yeah, hell, you’re right.” Then he made a dash for the door, but he had forgotten he’d barred it, and that stopped him from making his escape. He struggled to unbar it, but Andrew grabbed him and slammed him against the door while Stacey seized Nettleton’s gun. Andrew yanked Nettleton’s hands behind his back while Stacey holstered her gun and got out a plastic tie. She handed the tie to Andrew, who secured Nettleton’s wrists behind his back, then read him his rights.

  She couldn’t help but be amused that Nettleton had said she was right about not killing himself and then thought he could make a last attempt at fleeing.

  Stacey served Nettleton her search warrant and then began to look for any evidence in his hotel room that they could use in the case against him. She opened up his suitcase and found stacks of hundred-dollar bills. “A suitcase full of money.” She went through the bureau drawers, but Nettleton hadn’t unpacked anything. She checked the closet, under the beds, and in the bathroom while Andrew made Nettleton sit on the bed and watched him.

  Then Stacey and Andrew switched places so he could give the room another look to ensure she didn’t miss anything.

  “We’ll take everything with us because it can’t be left in the hotel room,” she said. “Let’s get him out of here.”

  Relieved they finally had Nettleton in custody, Stacey hoped Garcia was all right, and she was damn glad Nettleton hadn’t shot and killed himself during the standoff. Or gotten away again.

  Chapter 6

  Andrew hadn’t been sure if they were going to have a shoot-out or not, the way Nettleton wouldn’t back down. He was surprised when Nettleton aimed the gun at himself. Andrew was proud of the way Stacey had talked him down, but now he wanted to know the whole story about the coma she’d been in, unless she had just fabricated it to talk Nettleton out of shooting himself. Andrew was glad they were able to take him into custody without a shot being fired.

  He got on his phone and called Garcia back. “Hey, we got Nettleton. What’s going on with Rizzo?”

  “He got away. That guy is one slippery bastard.”

  “We’ll get him,” Andrew assured him. “No one was hurt?”

  “No, he just slipped away. I’m glad you got the other one. We’re turning him over to our organization, right?”

  They put all the luggage into Andrew’s vehicle and secured Nettleton inside, then Stacey checked over the BMW and found a gun in the glove compartment.

  “No. This one goes to the FWS. We’ll get the other one.”

  “Rizzo got away?” Nettleton said. “Hell, you said they caught him and that he was spilling his guts.”

  “He was,” Andrew told Nettleton. “Except after all was said and done, he escaped. But we have plenty to implicate you anyway.”

  “Our snitch says that Rizzo’s fleeing to Grand Cayman Island,” Stacey said.

  Andrew glanced in Stacey’s direction. He reminded himself Rizzo was theirs to arrest. Still, he had offered to take Stacey with him to the island. It wouldn’t be a vacation, not until they took Rizzo into custody, but they could still have fun afterward.

  Stacey was on her phone, giving the hotel name and address to someone. “I’ll leave the keys to the car at the front desk. Okay, thanks.” She turned to speak with Andrew. “I’ll be right back. I’m going to drop off the car keys so that FWS agents can pick up the car and go over it with a fine-tooth comb. Is Garcia all right?”

  “Yeah, he’s glad we caught this one.”

  “I sure am too. Be right back.” She hurried into the hotel.

  “You know, a lot of people are going to want you dead,” Andrew told Nettleton. “You might be better off if you tell us everything you know and then they’ll put you in the witness protection program.”

  “If you’re trying to intimidate me…”

  “I don’t need to. It’s your neck. You don’t have any family to speak of. No girlfriend. So wanting to see family who aren’t in the program wouldn’t be an issue. You just couldn’t return to Houston.”

  Nettleton didn’t say anything, but Andrew hoped he was thinking it over, and he hoped Nettleton would give them everything he had on the criminals he was working with. Andrew hated to let Nettleton off the hook, but if they could put away the drug lords and others that needed the illegal money laundered, they’d have a winning streak.

  He saw Stacey leave the hotel and return to Andrew’s vehicle. “FWS will take care of his vehicle. We’ve got his guns and more money so we’re good to go. We just need to return to the other hotel. I called Kim, and she’s feeling much better. Though she’s upset about the situation with Rizzo.”

  “At least we got the moneyman,” Andrew said, glad they had Nettleton, though he was sure someone else would soon fill the money launderer’s shoes. Andrew drove off to the hotel they’d been staying at, wanting to get this over with so they could all get some sleep and go after Rizzo. “I guess you have to take him back to Houston to stand trial.”

  “We do. But we still need to arrest Rizzo.”

  “Since he’s fled to Grand Cayman Island, I was thinking you could go with us.” He sure hoped she’d want to join them.

  She sighed. “I thought when you paid for my way out there, it was supposed to be a vacation.”

  “It will be, after we capture Rizzo. Or you could join me afterward.”

  “Are you kidding? Rizzo’s our collar.” She looked dead serious too.

  He chuckled. So they were back to that.

  Stacey pulled out her phone. “I’m calling my boss.”

  He needed to do that too, but explaining how an FWS agent took custody of their perp was another story.

  “This is Special Agent Grayson, sir. Rizzo got away, but we have it on good authority that he’s going to Grand Cayman Island… No, I know. We’d have to get the local police involved. We have an extradition treaty with the islands, so no problem there. The FBI has two agents going there… Yes, they helped us with the case. We’re working on this together. Nettleton’s ours, but it wouldn’t matter as long as one of us charges him with the crimes and he’s incarcerated.” She glanced at Andrew. “Yes, they still want to charge him for the crimes he committed in Alaska. Hold on, let me ask.” She turned to Andrew. “When are you leaving for Grand Cayman?”

  “As soon as we can pack and get a flight out of here.”

  “We still need to be on this case,” Stacey told her boss. “All right, the FBI is paying my way.” She smiled at Andrew. “No, I’m not working for them,” she said to her boss. “Okay, one of the FBI agents is paying my way, and once we have Rizzo, I need a vacation… Yes, on Grand Cayman Island.” She settled back against the seat, looking lots less tense. “Thanks.”

  She ended the call. “My boss said he’s paying for Kim’s and my flights and accommodations to Grand Cayman Island and that we need to get the local authorities involved.”

  “Garcia is already working on it.” Andrew was grateful that Garcia was just as determined to get these guys and put them behind bars. His partner never had to ask what he had to do next. He was always on top of things.

  “Good. We make a great team.”

  “I wholeheartedly agree. What are we going to do about Nettleton?”

  “FWS agents are going to meet us at the hotel to take him into custody. If he chooses to talk and he wants witness protection, the U.S. Marshals will get involved.” Stacey yawned, then looked at her phone. “Before we catch a flight out and on the flight, I guess we can get some sleep. Okay, there are two flights: one at six in the morning and one at eight at night.”

  “We would never make the morning flight. We’ll go with the evening one.” Andrew was thinking how he could enjoy the time before they had to head to the airport—another run through the state park, more swimming in the pool, meals together. He hoped she was agreeable, but he knew they had to sleep after they got in and handed Nettleton over to the other FWS agents.

  “We’ll have three stops and get in at eleven thirty the next morning.” She looked up something on her phone and said, “The Cayman Brac Parrot Reserve maintains 280 acres of old-growth forest. The FWS gave them a grant to do it to help protect the parrots. They’re an endangered species, native only to the islands, and some of the birds are being illegally captured and sold in the black-market pet trade. They often don’t survive before they’re even sold. The locals are building up the islands so much and cutting down the trees where these rare animals live, and it’s so sad. But we could go there for a hike.”

  “That’s wonderful that the FWS gave them a grant. And yeah, I’d like that.”

  “We do what we can.”

  Andrew glanced in his rearview mirror, seeing the headlights of another vehicle some distance back, and his skin prickled with concern. “We might have a tail.”

  She glanced over the back of her seat and watched the headlights of the vehicle some distance behind them. “It’s a pickup truck.”

  “Yeah.” Like the one that had struck his car when he was transporting his suspects to jail a month ago, the experience that still gave him nightmares. “I’ve tried speeding up and slowing way down, but they’re maintaining their distance from us no matter what speed I’m going.”

  “The driver could be tired, like we are, and not watching his speed, just mesmerized while following your taillights and keeping the same distance so that he’s not driving on top of you or having to pass you in the dark. We’ve been traveling through farmland, no main roads intersecting this one, and the few farmhouses I’ve seen through the trees surrounding their homes had no lights on. Everyone’s probably in bed sleeping. If he’s up to anything sinister, I would expect him to do it now while we’re out in the boonies.”

  “I’m sure you’re right.” Andrew glanced back at Nettleton. He was leaning against the seat, head tilted to the side, eyes closed, appearing to be sound asleep.

  Hopefully, they would continue on their way like this, no problems, just a quiet drive back to their hotel.

  “Can you get some sleep?” Andrew asked her.

  “I want to, but I need to lie down. I can’t sleep on planes either.”

  “You can put your head in my lap and sleep on the plane trip to Grand Cayman Island.”

  She chuckled. “What about Kim?”

  “I can have only one head rest on my lap at a time.”

  She chuckled. “You know what I mean. I should be sitting together with her on the plane, and you and Garcia can be together.”

  “Us wolves need to stick together.”

  She glanced back at Nettleton.

  “He’s asleep.” It didn’t matter anyway if they mentioned the wolf equation. If Nettleton were pretending to be asleep and overheard Andrew, the human wouldn’t have a clue what he was talking about.

  Andrew kept an eye on the truck behind him and swore it was creeping closer. Stacey kept glancing at her sideview mirror too. “The truck’s driving closer,” she said, confirming what he was afraid of. “Still there could be nothing to it. He’s just inching up. Not rushing up on us.”

  “Right.” Then he saw a truck driving toward him. The vehicle might be nothing to worry about, but he hadn’t seen any other traffic on this road all night long, and it seemed like too much of a coincidence that two trucks were now meeting on the road at the same time. “Here comes another truck.”

  “Going the other way.”

  He hoped she didn’t think he sounded too paranoid. But then the truck behind them closed the distance between them—fast. “The one behind us has nearly reached us.”

  She pulled out her gun and placed two clips in the cup holder on the console between them. He pulled his gun out and set it on the console.

  “There’s a road going off to the right up there. We can get to it before either of the trucks reaches us. Can you turn off on it without losing control of your vehicle?” she asked.

  “Yeah.” Andrew hoped so anyway. He eased his foot off the gas and took the hard turn to the right. His Bronco wobbled a bit on the road, but he soon had it back under control.

  She was watching the action in the side mirror. “Ohmigod, you were right about the men.”

  He glanced at his rearview mirror. Both trucks reached the road and tried to make the turn, the one just a little ahead of the other, but the one truck’s front end smacked into the other guy’s tail end. Both trucks spun out of control and flew into the ditches on either side of the road in opposite directions. Thank God for that. It would give Andrew and her a little more time to evade the trucks.

  Andrew kicked his Bronco into high gear and called Garcia on the Bluetooth. “We’re coming in hot. Two pickup trucks are on our tail.” Or would be once the trucks got back on the road. Andrew still needed to head north, and this road was taking them east.

  “Turn left up there.” Stacey was on her cell phone, looking up directions for the hotel. She set her phone on his AC vent so he could follow along while he changed direction and the GPS rerouted them.

  As soon as he made the turn, she said, “Turn right at the next road coming up.”

  “That’s going out of our way.” But he figured she had a plan.

  “Correct, but they haven’t come to the turnoff yet for this road. Hopefully, we can make a left up ahead before they know we turned off on this next road.”

  He took the next right and then the next left.

  “I’m on my way,” Garcia said over the Bluetooth. “I’m following your signal.”

  “You’ve got a tracking device on Andrew’s car?” Stacey asked, sounding surprised.

  “Yeah, in case we lose track of each other. He’s got one on my truck too.” Garcia paused. “At the rate I’m going and the rate you’re going, we should make contact in about twenty minutes.”

  Andrew handed her his phone. “You can track Garcia’s truck on the tracker on my phone.”

  Stacey checked his phone and then smiled. “Good, he’s close. I wish we knew where the other guys are. The trees between the properties and along the shoulders of the road will help to keep them from seeing us as we make the turns. I’m glad it’s not just farm fields where they didn’t leave trees around or among the crops for a windbreak.” She looked at her phone again. “Keep going straight and then up ahead, take a right again. So far, so good as far as them not finding us yet.” She watched her sideview mirror again.

  “Good thing they don’t have a GPS tracker on my vehicle.”

  “Correct. They probably split up, looking for us. They have to be some of this guy’s cohorts.”

  “Men hired to assassinate him, maybe. Us, for sure.” Andrew couldn’t believe this was happening again. He just prayed they had a better outcome this time. That was when he saw the lights of the truck that had been following them the first time. Ah, hell.

  Stacey saw the truck at the same time he did. “He’s back!”

  “And he’ll call the other one and tell him where we’re at,” Andrew warned.

  “A few minutes to your location. Hell, I think I just spotted the other pickup truck,” Garcia said.

  “Watch your back, bro,” Andrew told his partner.

  “Yeah. Hopefully, he won’t realize I’m coming to aid you. Shit, he probably figures no one else would be traveling these back roads but someone who’s coming to back you up.”

  Over the Bluetooth, they heard a loud crash of metal and Garcia swearing up a storm.

  The guy behind them was speeding up to slam into them.

  “Are you okay?” Andrew asked Garcia, getting ready to brace for impact.

  “Yeah, off in the ditch. The other guy’s coming for you, but I’m getting back on the road in a sec. I’ll help take him out.”

  “Okay, good show.” Andrew hoped Garcia could manage it with a damaged vehicle. He turned to Stacey. “We’re about to be hit. Get ready.”

  She unbuckled her seat belt, rolled down her window, and leaned way out the window. That sure as hell wasn’t what he had in mind when he wanted her to be safely buckled into her seat and bracing in crash mode.