Ultimate Cowboy Page 5

  Agent Cord chuckled. “Hey, how about a truce, you two? The most important thing here is to stop this gang and find out who’s behind it. That is, unless it’s just a group of street thugs led by the older boy Kyle.”

  “My brother is not a street thug,” Brody said, obviously irritated. “However he’s involved in this, there’s a story behind it, and it started seven years ago when he was abducted.”

  “You still don’t know for certain that he was abducted,” Agent Cord said, raising an eyebrow. “He could have run away.”

  “That’s ridiculous, Will would never have done that. He was a happy, well-adjusted kid back then.” Brody’s gaze veered to the wall. “And if the cops had done their jobs, Will could have been saved, and so could these others.”

  “That’s not fair, Brody,” Julie cut in, her look tortured.

  Chief Hurt threw up his hands. “Casting blame is not helpful.” He pivoted toward Brody, and crossed his arms. “I agree that if the boy with the gun is your brother, then you might be able to reach him. But remember, Brody, you are not an official law officer. You will stay behind the scenes and take orders from Agent Whitehead.”

  Julie bit back a smile at the uncomfortable look on Brody’s face. He was accustomed to being in charge. Taking orders from her would probably make him change his mind.

  But he cast her a look, his jaw tightening. “I’ll do anything to get my brother back, even if it means taking orders from her.”

  Julie frowned, but Chief Hurt took the lead, assigning each of them different territories to cover.

  “I have a friend in law enforcement who might be able to assist,” Brody said. “Detective Miles McGregor. He worked the Slasher case a few months ago.”

  “Sure, I know him,” Chief Hurt said. “I’ll call him and catch him up to speed.”

  The meeting was dismissed, and Julie summoned her professional demeanor, knowing she couldn’t allow herself to feel anything for Brody now.

  He was a case, an unfinished one, but one that she needed to close.

  And that was all he could ever be.

  * * *

  “SO HOW do we do this?” Brody asked as he followed Julie through the hall and outside to her dark sedan.

  “We pick up coffee, find a place to park, look inconspicuous and wait.”

  Brody caught her arm as they made it to the car. “I... Thanks for letting me come along.” He wanted to say so much more. Tell her she didn’t have to put herself in danger to save strangers. That she should be taking care of sick animals, not carrying a gun and putting herself in the line of fire.

  But she shrugged off his touch as if she was annoyed to have him along, then climbed in the car and started the engine. By the time he fastened his seat belt she’d pulled into traffic, a thick silence falling between them.

  He couldn’t stand the quiet. Couldn’t stand knowing that she rode these streets alone looking for criminals.

  That she could get herself killed.

  Then he reminded himself that he hadn’t seen her in seven years. She might be involved with someone else now, might even be married.

  A quick check to her ring finger though and he didn’t spot a ring.

  Julie pulled through a doughnut shop, ordered two coffees and an assortment of doughnuts, then handed him his coffee. For the next two hours, they staked out a convenience store. The conversation was stilted, the air filed with tension every time they watched someone enter the store.

  A black teen wearing a hoodie entered, a white kid beside him, and Brody sat up straighter, watching through Julie’s extra set of binoculars as they combed through the store.

  “Think they’re canvassing it?” he finally asked.

  Julie sighed. “Maybe.”

  The boys approached an older man, passed him a few bucks, then the guy bought a six-pack of beer, and carried it outside. The kids bought a bag of chips and pretzels, then met the older guy on the curb and raced off with the beer.

  “You going to bust them?” Brody asked.

  Julie shook her head. “Not worth it. Besides we can’t draw attention to the fact that we’re here.”

  Right. They were waiting for the bigger fish.

  Nerves climbed his neck. “How do you do this all the time?” he asked.

  “This is not all I do,” she said, her eyes still trained on the store.

  He’d seen enough TV crime shows to know that was true. But he didn’t like the images that flashed through his head.

  Julie’s cell phone buzzed, and she grabbed it, speaking low into the mouthpiece. “Right. We’ll be right there.”

  “What?” Brody asked as she cut the connection, then swung the car around and headed south.

  “They hit a store a couple of blocks from here. Hang on.” She pressed the accelerator, and Brody’s pulse clamored as she sped around traffic. Was this it?

  After all these years, was he finally going to see his brother again?

  “It’s not good,” Julie said as she swung around the corner, tires squealing. “One of the locals moved too soon and freaked the boys. The younger one, Tray, escaped, but Kyle has a hostage.”

  Brody choked back an obscenity, then Julie threw the car up on the curb and reached for her gun.

  His heart hammered double time as he climbed out with her. “Julie?”

  Her gaze met his, her beautiful eyes tortured but focused. “I promise you, Brody, I’ll do everything I can to make sure Will’s not hurt.”

  He had trusted her with his heart years ago, trusted in their love. But this was his brother’s life.

  He didn’t want her getting hurt, either.

  “Brody, trust me,” she whispered in a raw voice.

  Pain wrenched through him, but he gave a clipped nod, then they both climbed out. The two officers on the scene, Officers Damon Lewis and Jamie Fenton, introduced themselves.

  “We saw the robbery in progress and started to go in, but the other kid must have spotted us and told the boy with the gun. Suddenly all hell broke loose,” Officer Fenton said.

  “How many are inside?” Julie asked.

  “Just the perp and the cashier,” Officer Lewis supplied. “A young girl about the kids’ age. She’s scared out of her mind.”

  Two more police cars raced up, lights flashing, the cops jumping out, taking cover behind the car where Fenton and his partner had gathered.

  “We need a hostage negotiator,” Officer Lewis said.

  Officer Fenton nodded. “And the SWAT team. Get the captain on it ASAP.”

  “Wait a minute,” Julie said. “Let me see if I can talk to the kid and diffuse the situation.”

  Brody’s chest was about to explode with fear. “No, Julie, let me. If this is Will, maybe he’ll recognize my voice.”

  Julie’s hand brushed over the weapon strapped in her holster. “And if it’s not?”

  Brody gave her a pleading look. “I know what I’m doing, Julie. I work with scared kids, teenagers that have been in trouble with the law, on the BBL everyday. Let me give it a shot.”

  Julie slanted him a warning look. “Don’t take any chances, Brody. Just talk.” She poked him in the chest, her voice edged with worry. “Even if he is Will, we don’t know his state of mind or what drove him to this point. What we do know is that he’s desperate, scared and armed.”

  Brody drew a deep breath. He knew all that, but he didn’t care.

  Besides, if he didn’t do something, these cops might get cocky or spooked and open fire or swarm the place.

  Then his little brother might get killed.

  And he would take a bullet himself before he allowed that to happen.

  Chapter Five

  Brody watched the police and agents huddle, with a sickening knot in his stomach. They had cordoned off the area, and stationed cars to keep anyone else from pulling into the parking lot. Another team had gone in search of the second boy who’d run from the scene.

  It also looked as if the TBI agent, Hurt, was having a heat
ed discussion with the officer in charge about how to handle the situation and who should take the lead.

  Chief Hurt must have won because he grabbed the bullhorn. “Order all your men to stand down,” he said. “No one fires unless I give the word.”

  “Yes, sir,” the officer growled.

  “You’re surrounded by the police,” Chief Hurt said into a bullhorn. “We know your name is Kyle and that you’re in a bad spot. You just wanted some money tonight, not to hurt anyone.”

  Brody strained to see inside the convenience store. There were two figures near the door, the boy and the girl.

  “Get out of here,” Kyle yelled. “Let me go and the girl won’t get hurt.”

  Brody saw the girl’s terrified expression and heard the desperation in Kyle’s voice. He tried to remember the sound of Will’s voice to compare it to the young man, but Will hadn’t even reached adolescence when he’d disappeared. His voice would have changed, grown deeper, more manly.

  “You’re not leaving here,” Chief Hurt said. “That’s a given. So release the girl, and we can make some kind of deal.”

  “I can’t go to jail,” Kyle shouted. “I can’t.”

  The two officers on the end looked restless. “It’s time for SWAT,” one of them muttered.

  “I can try to go in the back door,” the other officer suggested.

  Chief Hurt glared at them. “No. We can’t risk a hostage being injured.”

  Brody sensed the situation spiraling out of control. A news van rolled up, a cameraman and reporter climbing out.

  “This is Wanda Thorn coming to you live. We’re at the scene of a hostage situation.”

  “Make that camera disappear,” Kyle yelled.

  Julie motioned toward Chief Hurt. “I’ll handle it.” She headed over to talk to the reporter, then Brody strode toward the agent. If he left it up to them, they’d storm in and kill his brother. Rather, Kyle.

  He had to do something.

  “Let me talk to him.”

  Chief Hurt glanced at him with narrowed eyes then gave a clipped nod, and Brody grabbed the bullhorn.

  “Will, I know you haven’t seen me in a long time, but it’s me, Brody, your brother.”

  He hesitated, hoping for a response. Someone moved inside, then the two figures appeared at the front door. The glass was foggy though, and he could only make out part of the boy’s head behind the girl.

  “Please help me,” she cried.

  “Will, please,” Brody said. “You don’t want to hurt that girl. Just put down the gun.”

  “My name is not Will,” the boy yelled. “Now get out of here so I can leave, and the girl will be fine.”

  Chief Hurt shot him a concerned look. “Like we said, he may not remember you.”

  “Okay, Kyle,” Brody said. “I’m sorry, I was confused. I lost my brother a long time ago. He was kidnapped when he was ten, and I’ve been looking for him ever since.”

  “Well, I’m not your brother,” Kyle shouted.

  “All right, it’s just that you remind me of him.” Julie slipped up behind him, and squeezed his arm. “He was a good kid, and I’m sure you are, too,” Brody continued. “But you’re in a bad spot right now. Listen, I know this agent here, Julie Whitehead. She’ll give you a fair shake if you cooperate.”

  “Then tell her to clear out the damn cops.”

  “I’m trying to get them to back down,” Brody said. “And they have orders not to shoot. But you have to let the girl go, Kyle. If you hurt her, I won’t be able to help you.”

  The officers shifted, one moving his gun so it was trained on the door. Nerves clawed at Brody. He lowered his voice to a soft murmur so only Julie could hear, “Julie, that cop looks trigger-happy.”

  Julie motioned toward ChiefHurt, and he spoke in a low voice into the mike to the officer, hopefully warning him to back down.

  Then Brody had an idea. He’d worked with troubled kids long enough to know that this boy was scared. He’d been backed into a corner, and he didn’t know what to do or how to get out of the situation.

  Brody had to offer him a way out.

  “I’m coming in,” he said, slowly starting toward the store. “Send the girl out and you can take me as a hostage instead.”

  “Brody, stop.” Julie caught his arm, but he shook off her concern.

  “I have to do something,” Brody said. “I can’t let them hurt Will.”

  Julie hissed a protest as he strode forward. “Kyle, did you hear me?”

  “Stay back,” Kyle shouted.

  “I’m not going to do that,” Brody said. “I won’t leave you here like this. I’m coming in so we can solve this problem together.”

  “How do I know you don’t have a gun?” Kyle asked.

  Brody shrugged out of his jacket, then patted himself, turning around in a circle to give the teenager a clear view. “See, no gun. I just don’t want to see you or the girl hurt.”

  Tension thrummed through the air as he took another step closer. He felt Julie’s eyes on him, the other cops bracing for gunfire, but he didn’t stop.

  Maybe this teenager wasn’t Will. But he needed help, and Brody didn’t intend to turn back now. “Open the door,” he said as he approached it. “Send her out and I’m all yours.”

  The door squeaked open, the girl’s tear-streaked eyes meeting his.

  “Come on,” he said as he motioned her forward. “I’m yours, Kyle, just let her walk away.”

  The girl suddenly stumbled forward, and Brody grabbed her arm and pulled her behind him. A second later, her footsteps pounded behind him, but he kept his gaze fixed on the boy. In his peripheral vision, he saw Chief Hurt rush forward, grab the girl and pull her to safety. The camera flashed, the reporter speaking into the mike.

  “The female hostage has just been released, but this is not over yet, folks.”

  Brody’s heart raced as he struggled for a way to reach the boy. He searched for his brother somewhere in the kid. Kyle had brown eyes like Will, that cleft in his chin. This boy had scars though, one above his eye, more on his arms.

  He gritted his teeth. How many bruises and scars were hidden? And who had put the injuries there?

  “Just stay calm,” he said in a low voice. “I run a ranch for kids near here,” Brody said. “I think you’d like it. Do you know how to ride?”

  Sweat beaded on the boy’s face, his eyes darting toward the cops in a panicked haze. “The only thing I want to do is ride out of here.”

  Kyle raised his gun and aimed it at him, then motioned for him to turn around. “You have a car here?”

  “Yes.” He’d use Julie’s car if he needed to.

  “Let’s go.”

  “Sure thing,” Brody said.

  He turned and allowed Kyle to use him as a shield as he started toward the sedan.

  But Chief Hurt stepped from behind his dark sedan. “Hold it right there.”

  Julie inched toward them. “Kyle, let me help you,” Julie said gently. “We’ll work out some kind of deal.”

  “I told you I’m not going to jail.” Kyle pressed the gun into Brody’s back, and Brody tensed.

  A second later, the sound of a gun being cocked split the air, then a shot rang out.

  Brody jerked around to push Kyle out of the way. At the same time, Julie rushed forward, throwing herself between the shooter and him. The bullet whizzed by her head, then she hit the dirt.

  Brody’s heart stalled in his chest. Dear God, had Julie been shot?

  * * *

  JULIE ROLLED IN the dirt, braced to shoot the stupid cop who’d opened fire. But everything happened too fast. Chief Hurt and the other officer both dove at Kyle and Brody. Brody spun around and tried to block them from reaching Kyle, but Hurt was too fast and knocked the gun from the boy’s hand while the officer aimed his weapon at the boy’s head.

  “Move and it’s all over,” the officer growled.

  “Dammit,” Brody snarled. “Don’t shoot him, he’s just a kid.”
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br />   “Hold your fire,” Chief Hurt said to the officer. Then he snapped handcuffs on Kyle.

  The boy spat a belligerent string of words at Hurt, jerking in protest as the agent grabbed his arm.

  “Keep calm,” Brody said, holding out a hand toward Kyle. “We’ll figure this out together, I promise you’re not alone.”

  Chief Hurt shoved Kyle toward his car, and Julie pushed up from the ground, swiping the dirt off her clothes. She rushed toward Brody. She had to make sure he was okay.

  But when she touched his arm to comfort him, Brody stormed at her. “What the hell were you doing?”

  Julie gasped at the vehemence in his tone. “I was trying to save your sorry butt,” she hissed.

  He took her arm, then ran his eyes over her from head to toe. “You almost got yourself shot.”

  “I was just doing my job,” she said, anger mounting. For God’s sake, she’d had to battle enough male prejudice to earn her ranking as an agent. She hadn’t expected it from Brody.

  Brody’s erratic breathing echoed in the air as he tilted her face up toward him. “Are you hurt?”

  His trembling voice touched emotions deep inside her, and she realized he was reacting more out of fear than male prejudice.

  Still, she couldn’t cut him any slack. Especially here in front of her superior.

  “I’m fine, Brody. I was trying to make sure the boy wasn’t hurt.”

  His gaze latched onto hers for a long moment, the fear and pain in his expression wrenching her heart. He started to speak, but the commotion around them suddenly went crazy as the reporter raced toward Kyle and the cameraman flashed more pictures.

  Julie pulled away from Brody and strode toward the woman. “That’s enough.”

  The woman simply beamed at her. “You’re with the TBI, aren’t you, ma’am? Would you give us a statement?”

  Julie frowned at her, then cleared her throat. “I’m sorry, but we can’t comment on the arrest at this moment due to an ongoing investigation. Thank you.”

  Chief Hurt stood beside Kyle at his car. The blue lights twirled in the darkness, the other officers who’d gathered mumbling and working to control the spectators.