Trapped on Vail Mountain (Vail Mountain Trilogy Book 2) Read online

  And the only one who even stood a chance at helping them.

  "Because he's going to help us, honey."

  "I hope so," Emily whispered, hugging her mother's side as they sat on the couch waiting for Jacob to get home from his night shift at the station.

  "Try to get some sleep, baby. Jacob will be home soon."

  For the first time since the store the night before, Emily looked over at her mother and rolled her eyes, a bit of her spirit shining in her blue eyes.

  "Seriously? Sleep?" she asked incredulously, rolling her eyes again.

  Nina chuckled. Her daughter was right. Neither of them could sleep with what they had seen and with who was knocking on their door with threats. Her father's death flashed across her mind again, the blood, his last words, and knew it had to be haunting her daughter’s thoughts as well.

  An hour later, neither of them had moved from the couch, still filled with tension and silent.

  Nina heard the lock in the front door and stiffened. She went limp, the tension leaving her when she saw the tall form of her friend walk in, but he froze just inside, his brown eyes narrowing. She saw him reach for his revolver holstered on his hip and quickly jumped up before he could draw it out.

  "It's me, Jacob," Nina said quickly, cursing herself for the surprise attack.

  Jacob swirled and relaxed when he saw the two of them in his living room, Emily sitting on the couch. His eyes widened, and he sat his bag down by the door, closing it behind him.

  “What’s going on? Are you two okay?” he asked, looking down at his watch. Nina knew why. It was six in the morning, and Emily would normally be getting ready for school.

  Nina didn’t know how to ask for help. She was usually the one who helped others but now found herself needing help desperately.

  She took a deep breath. “I need help leaving town, like now. Something happened with Joan, and I want to be there for her.” Nina hated lying to him, but she refused to put his life in danger as well. If they saw him helping her…

  Jacob eyed her. “Nin, are you sure you’re okay?”

  “Of course,” she lied, feeling her daughter jerk beside her. She prayed that Jacob missed her involuntary movement, but he was usually very observant. “I just need to leave town. Can we borrow your car?”

  “And what’s wrong with your SUV?” he asked suspiciously, having for once missed Emily’s reaction. Thankfully, Emily remained silent, letting her mom take the lead.

  “It’s been acting up, and I don’t want to risk breaking down.”

  Damn, the lies kept getting bigger and bigger, and she almost flinched but managed to control her expression.

  He shrugged at her explanation. “Sure. I don’t see why not. Let me get the keys for you.”

  When he turned, Nina’s shoulders slumped in relief, and she looked down at her daughter, shaking her head for silence when she saw her girl’s mouth open.

  He walked back in from his bedroom and handed her the keys to his Toyota Corolla. “Just drive carefully, okay? Call me when you get there so I know you made it safely.”

  Nina smiled and took the keys, really looking up at Jacob. He was a handsome man, tall, muscular, with brown eyes and black hair that always looked rumpled. It wasn’t the first time she had wished she could have feelings for Jacob. He was so sweet and kind and adored her daughter and her, but she just didn’t feel that way about him.

  “I will. Thank you, Jacob.”

  They hugged, and he bent down to hug Emily, who returned his embrace tightly. “You be good for your mom, and have a wonderful time, sweetheart.”

  Emily nodded, still silent as she drew back.

  Without anything more, Nina left everything in her SUV and walked down the back staircase. His car was parked in the back, as he rarely used it, and the location worked perfectly for her. She didn’t dare breathe a sigh of relief until she was out of town, and she quickly got in his silver car, making sure Emily was buckled into the backseat before getting behind the wheel. It fired up immediately, and she drove away, refusing to look behind her. She had hated lying to him, but she didn’t want anything to happen to her friend. She wouldn’t have been able to live with herself if he died because of her.

  Jacob watched them drive away, and something bothered him. He hadn’t missed Emily’s small reaction when her mother had said nothing was wrong. Something was seriously wrong, but Nina had never lied to him before.

  Why would she start now?

  They had known each other for too long for that shit, and he had thought they were close. Sure, he wanted more, but he wasn’t a complete idiot. He would rather have her for a friend than not at all. On intuition and a gut feeling, he walked down the flights of stairs and out the main entrance of the apartment building, heading for her SUV.

  At the sight of her vehicle sitting in front of her apartment, he stopped cold and cursed, staring hard at the slashed tires. How the fuck had he missed that coming in?

  He quickly ran back to his apartment and grabbed his cell. He dialed Nina’s number first, but given the fact she had just lied to him, he wasn’t surprised when she didn’t answer.

  Damn, woman, he thought, growling as he dialed another number.

  “Hey, Pete. Put out an APB on my silver Toyota, and no, it hasn’t been stolen. I loaned it to Nina, but I think she’s in danger. Her tires are slashed, and I want her stopped before she leaves town. Okay, thanks.”

  He hung up, grabbed his bag from the floor by the door, and raced out to track her down himself. Thankfully, he had driven home in an unmarked police cruiser, so he hopped in and took that back to the station.

  What the fuck is going on? Why would she lie to me?

  Ten minutes later, he was almost to the police station when his cell rang. He hadn’t been able to find her. It was as if she had disappeared.

  He answered, about ready to throw his fist through the window of the car. Where the fuck was she? She couldn’t have gotten out of town that fast, could she?

  “Um, Jacob? I think I know why Nina took off. You’re going to want to come down to Nina’s father’s shop.”

  “Why?”

  “Her father’s been killed.”

  He did a U in the middle of the street, horns blaring on both sides of him, but he didn’t give a shit. He flipped on his lights and slammed on the gas as he headed for Tommy William’s general store on E 18th Street.

  Why, Nina? Why didn’t you come to me? And why the fuck did you lie?

  The question ran on repeat in his head as he squealed to a stop in front and jumped out to crime scene tape wrapped around the small building.

  “DOA?”

  Pete nodded. “Sometime last night. We’re collecting evidence now, and we’ll have more once the medical examiner gets here.”

  “Who called it in?”

  Pete nodded to a man who stood outside the window, shuffling his feet and talking to another officer who was taking notes. His torn clothes hung loosely on his skinny body, looking as though a stiff wind could blow him away, and his scraggly beard covered half of his face as he rocked back and forth.

  “Keller there was walking past and saw the window shattered. He admitted he came in to steal some food, or so he says, and saw Tommy on the ground behind the counter. Called 911.”

  For a homeless person to actually be bothered to call instead of just steal and disappear was astonishing, especially in New York, where very few people cared. At least that’s been his experience of living in the area for five years.

  “Is the APB still out on my car?”

  Pete nodded. “Yes, but so far, it’s like she’s disappeared. Do you know where she was headed?”

  Jacob nodded and sighed, running his long fingers through his black hair. “Yeah. I’m going to clear it with the chief and go after her. She had nothing to do with this, Pete,” he said intently, locking eyes with the other man. “Her tires were slashed on her SUV. I’m betting she saw her father murdered, and the killer has threatened he
r and her daughter.”

  “Or she could have staged it?” Pete suggested. He was a damn good detective, and Jacob knew he had to cover all of his bases, but he wasn’t allowing Pete to go there.

  “She. Didn’t. Do. It,” he growled.

  Pete nodded and relented, to a degree. “I still want her to come in. If anything, she’s a witness. Clear it with the chief, but then go after her, man.”

  Jacob nodded and headed for the broken door and his car. “Will do.”

  Son of a bitch!

  Jacob made it to the station in record time and knocked on his chief’s door.

  “Come in!”

  Jacob opened the door to find his chief at his desk, head bent over some paperwork.

  “What is it, Tanner?” he barked, not even bothering to look up.

  Jacob cut through the bullshit and got right down to it.

  “Pete fill you in?”

  With that, the other man looked up, his eyes narrowed. “Yup,” he confirmed, watching him closely.

  “I’d like to go after Nina myself, Sir.”

  Before the chief could say anything, Jacob rushed in with his explanation. “She had to have seen the murder, Sir. Her tires were slashed last night. I came home to find her in my apartment this morning around six after my shift. She was scared, Sir. And so was her daughter.”

  His boss’s eyes intensified, narrowing to slits, but he remained silent, knowing his detective had more to say.

  “I loaned her my car this morning without knowing what had happened. Nothing is between us, Sir. We’re just friends, but I’ve known Nina Williams for over five years. I would like to bring her into the station for protection and to find out what she knows.”

  Silence.

  Finally, the chief nodded, his bald head gleaming in the fluorescent lighting of the office. “Done. I want her here as soon as possible.”

  Jacob nodded and turned to leave. “Done.”

  Leaving the office, he closed the door behind him, and muttering beneath his breath, Jacob made his way out of the station and headed for his car.

  Now to find the blasted woman without strangling her first. He’s a detective, damn it! He could have helped her. Well, now he knew what was going on, so the first step of business was finding her ass and bringing her and her daughter back.

  Yeah, that is easier said than done, he thought darkly.

  Chapter 2

  Rob Garland watched the last of the resort guests leave and sighed in relief. He was worn thin and running ragged with very little sleep. And this group had been worse than normal, demanding twenty-four seven for the past week. Pure hell.

  Thankfully, the snow was melting with the early spring, but that just left a whole new problem: the flooded rivers and closed roads.

  He ran his long fingers through his black hair and headed back to his office, his steps dragging. With the last of the guests gone always came the book work and figures for the month. He still didn’t know why he refused to sell the resort. The weather itself should have been a factor, but the resort had been his dad’s, and he hadn’t wanted to give it up.

  I might consider it now. I’m getting too damn old for this shit, he thought, thinking of the years of pulling this weight and not being able to really have a life. He didn’t know why that notion suddenly bothered him now. Maybe it was the fact that he was now surrounded by the happiness of love. He rolled his eyes at that and opened his office door. As he started to step inside, a noise behind him had him turning around to watch Joan, his ranger’s fiancée, descend the stairs, a frown on her beautiful face as she stared down at the cell in her hands.

  Yup, the pure happiness was sickening, but it wasn’t love on her face at that moment but concern, worry.

  “What is it?” he asked, turning around fully to face her as she walked up to him.

  Joan shook her dark head, still staring down at her phone. “I don’t know. I just received a voice mail from Nina, my friend who’s coming to stay for a few weeks, and there was something in her voice…” Her words trailed off as her frown deepened.

  “What do you think it is?”

  “That’s just it. I don’t know. Rob, it almost sounded like…fear. Like she was afraid…”

  Rob raised his eyebrow and frowned as he led the way into the office, leaving the door open in case Stephen came back looking for Joan. The blasted man couldn’t be two feet from Joan without hyperventilating, but Joan was the same way. Even worried and puzzled, she kept looking out the door, scanning the living room, searching.

  He shook his head, chuckling.

  “What?” she demanded.

  “You and Stephen, I swear. It’s almost comical watching you two have sex in front of everyone with your eyes!”

  Those very eyes widened with his words, and she blushed, the bright red of her cheeks causing him to burst out laughing, forgetting for a moment the reason behind her concern. He hadn’t laughed this much in years, but he took another look at her red face and started laughing all over again.

  “What’s so funny?” Stephen Brockheart asked, coming into the room in time to see Rob almost bent over laughing his ass off.

  “Rob’s being an idiot,” Joan muttered, a blush still staining her cheekbones as she glared over at his bent head.

  Stephen raised an eyebrow, eying her thoughtfully.

  “Hmmmm.”

  Rob’s phone rang, and still chuckling, he answered it. His laugh and smile disappeared immediately, and Stephen straightened at his boss’s words, all amusement sucked from the room. Even Joan was still.

  “Where?” Rob asked, nodding before realizing the caller couldn’t see him. “Okay, Stephen and I will load up and go to the north side of the mountain, looking for the group.

  “Some campers lost?” Stephen asked, confirming the conversation he had just heard.

  “Yeah, on the north side. Thankfully, the weather isn’t too bad, but the sheriff said they never checked in at their hotel yesterday.”

  Stephen nodded, and together, they prepared to go track the lost group. Just because it was early spring didn’t mean the nights weren’t below freezing. On top of that, they were now dealing with the flooding aspect of the snow melting. Rob sighed as he suited up and headed out to get the all-terrain vehicle ready.

  Never a dull moment around here, he thought.

  Three hours out of town headed toward the Colorado mountain, Nina stopped at a gas station for some gas and snacks for Emily even though neither of them were hungry. She had left the apartment with a few hundred dollars of cash she had kept stashed for emergencies and figured this was a major one. She just prayed she had enough to get to Joan and to safety. She couldn't use her debit or credit cards. She had watched enough crime shows and had the intelligence to know they would leave a paper trail. She still hadn't been able to breathe yet, her chest tight with anxiety and fear.

  Looking over her shoulder while her daughter waited in the car, she tightened her grip on the gas nozzle handle and scanned the highway and nearby stores, searching for anything out of place. Just then, a flash of black caught her eye, and she zoomed in across the street at the parking lot where a grocery mart stood. Her heart sank.

  She had seen that car.

  Oh God…

  She quickly finished filling up her tank and got in the vehicle. She didn't say anything to her daughter. She didn't want to scare her more than she already was.

  She zigzagged through town, trying to lose them as her daughter kept glancing over at her, confusion pulling her dark brows down in a frown.

  "Is everything okay, Mom?" she asked worriedly, looking around herself as Nina took another quick turn down a one-way. At the next street, she took another right turn and quickly backed down into an alley between two buildings. It was in the middle of the day, and Nina didn't think they would try anything yet, but once she left town, they would be vulnerable.

  She looked over at her daughter and tried to smile, but it probably came across pathetic.
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  "Everything is fine, baby. I'm just being careful, that's all."

  She could tell her daughter didn't believe her, but there was nothing she could do about the lie that rolled off her tongue. She had never lied to her daughter before, so instead of another lie, she kept her mouth shut and waited. The wait nearly killed her, though, as she couldn't stop the memories from assaulting her.

  Why her dad? Why had he been killed? For what? She couldn't understand the reasoning behind it. The men had seemed to know him, and he hadn’t done whatever they had wanted. Whatever it was, his refusal had gotten him killed. And why threaten her? What did she have to do with anything? She wanted to beat her fist against the wheel in frustration as the questions circled her thoughts with no answers.

  Thirty minutes later, she started the car again and got back on the road, quickly leaving town, her eyes peeled behind them.

  Besides stopping for gas, thankfully without incident and no one sitting, watching, and waiting, they drove straight through to Colorado and the base of the mountain.

  So close. They were almost there.

  Nina looked in the rear-view mirror again. The bright lights behind her nearly blinded her, and her fingers tightened on the wheel, her knuckles white. She could have sworn she had seen that car leaving town...

  Oh God. They found us!

  Her cell was in her bra, but she didn't want to risk the distracted movement and take her hands off the wheel.

  Just as the thought crossed her mind, she felt the crunch of metal on metal as the two hit.

  Her daughter's scream echoing through her, she fought to keep control of the car, not having to see both sides of the gravel road of the mountain to know that they were in trouble.

  On one side, it was a rock wall and the other side, a deep cavern of rocks and large trees.