He tried to wave away their hands, but they were too quick for him. “I’m fine. We need to look for Cooper.”
“You’re far from fine,” Marina stated in a no-nonsense tone. “There’s blood covering your face and clothes.”
Jace couldn’t comprehend what they were saying. “I found the bump.”
“Not only a bump. A laceration,” Karl told him. He grabbed Jace’s hands and held his gaze. “We need you to be still. If you want to help Cooper, you need to let us help you first.”
Jace wanted to argue with them, but he didn’t have the strength. As soon as he stopped fighting, Karl and Marina worked seamlessly. Jace closed his eyes and tried to think back to what had happened. He remembered getting the boxes and walking outside. He even remembered reaching the truck. As he’d stopped to press the boxes against the vehicle to free one hand to open the door, he’d seen a figure come up behind him in the glass. Then, everything went black.
His eyes snapped open. “I was attacked.”
Danny leaned against the doorway of the bathroom to give Marina and Karl room. “We figured as much. I also found the bullet hole in the wall. No slug or casing, however. Did you hear a shot?”
“I think he came at me first.”
“You?”
Jace blew out a breath while Marina cleaned the blood from his face. “I saw him in the window of the truck before he hit me.”
“Whatever he struck you with was meant to kill,” Marina stated. “It would’ve killed others.”
Karl chuckled. “It’s Jace’s hard head that saved him.”
“We didn’t look for anyone when we got here,” Jace said as he lifted his eyes to Danny. “We should have. We know better.”
Danny got down on his haunches and shoved his cowboy hat back on his head. “You got your bell rung pretty good. You’re going to need to take it easy.”
“That’s my best friend out there,” Jace said as he shoved Karl’s hands away.
Marina grabbed Jace’s arms and gently lowered them. “You won’t be of any help until your pain subsides. You have a concussion and a deep laceration that needs stitches to stop the bleeding.”
“Then do it,” Jace ordered angrily.
Danny sighed and straightened. “You might as well do it, Marina. He won’t go to the hospital.”
“Damn straight, I won’t,” Jace stated.
Karl flattened his lips and got everything ready to begin stitching. Marina pulled out a syringe for a localized anesthetic, but Jace shook his head. He was well accustomed to pain. Deadening it might affect his senses, and he needed to be ready for anything.
“Tell me everything,” Danny said.
Jace allowed them to roll him onto his stomach with his face turned toward Danny.
“Ready?” Karl asked.
Jace nodded and took a deep breath. He released it as Karl stuck the needle into his scalp. Instead of giving in to the pain, he focused on Danny and telling the sheriff what he knew. “There were a few vehicles in the parking lot when we drove up. Nothing looked out of place, but we didn’t search as we should have. Cooper and I were talking, and I think we both assumed the bad guys wouldn’t be interested in us.”
“They want Marlee, is my guess,” Danny said as he ran a hand over his mouth. “If they know anything, then they know about Marlee and Cooper.”
“If they killed Cooper, his body would’ve been left here.”
Danny nodded and removed his hat, turning it around by the brim in his hands. “Then why shoot him?”
“Because Cooper never would’ve left with them otherwise.”
“Would he have gone regardless?”
Jace thought about that for a moment while remaining perfectly still. His wound throbbed uncontrollably, and the feel of his scalp being stitched closed only added to the agony. “No. Cooper would’ve fought them.”
“Then they took him the only way they could. By force.”
“In order to get Marlee to come to them.”
Danny pulled out his phone as he turned away.
All Jace could think about was finding the bastard who had done this to Cooper and him. Because he would find him. And he would tear him apart.
Chapter 38
Marlee was by herself in the front room at the ranch when her phone buzzed. She had been looking for a sign of Cooper. It was ridiculous for her to worry about him, but she couldn’t seem to help herself. She didn’t want the others to know that she was a worrier, so she walked away from them to peek outside and look at the drive to see if she could spot Cooper’s truck.
She hurriedly reached for her phone, hoping it was Cooper. Only she saw Jace’s name pop up. Still, they were together, so that was enough. “Hey, Jace,” she said. “I’m getting a little worried, you two have been gone awhile.”
“There was a lot to do.”
The voice was deep, gravelly, the same as the voice of the man she had encountered yesterday at the house. Her stomach dropped to her feet. She started to turn and run back to the kitchen to tell the others.
“Before you do something stupid, you should listen to what I have to say,” the man stated.
Marlee hesitated. She knew men like him. He didn’t threaten unless he intended to follow through. Not to mention, he was one of those who murdered pregnant women and cut their unborn babies from them. You had to be the worst kind of human to do that.
“I’m waiting,” she finally said.
He laughed softly. “I always knew you were smart. So, here’s how this is going to go. If you want your precious Cooper back, you’re going to meet me.”
“I need to know he’s alive. And Jace, as well.”
“Sorry, sweetheart. Jace is dead. However, there’s still a chance for Cooper.”
She took in a steadying breath. “You could be lying.”
“I could be, but do I seem the type? You know I’m not. Stella has kept me from slicing your throat for years. I could’ve killed you a hundred times over. Well, now that you found Stella, all bets are off. You’ve got a chance here. You can come to me, and I can take your life. Or you can go to your friends and tell them everything. If you do that, I will kill Cooper and disappear. But I’ll still come for you. You’ve done enough damage to our world.”
His words were so ludicrous that Marlee had to bite back a laugh. She considered his words. “The men here are trained military men.”
“So am I, sweetheart. How do you think I got the drop on Jace and Cooper?”
Damn. What was she going to do? But she knew. She was going to do the only thing she could. “Where do we meet?”
He laughed, the sound grating on her nerves. “I knew you’d see reason. Head west for thirty miles.”
“That’s it? That’s all I get?”
“You think I’m going to tell you everything now? Give me some credit. Call Jace’s phone when you’ve done that, and I’ll give you the next coordinates. And let me be clear, Marlee. I know you’re at the East Ranch. I know the others are there, that the sheriff is at work, and so is the police chief. If you tell any of them or call them while you’re on the road to help you, Cooper dies. Do you understand?”