Page 30

Chapter Thirty

Logan jumped off his motorcycle and dropped to the ground. Another shot whizzed past.

Reaching under his t-shirt, he drew his pistol.

He opened fire into the woods, the direction the shots had come from. He hated not seeing his target, but at least he knew there was a thick growth of trees there and not a house.

Logan loosed two more shots then paused. No shots returned. Maintaining his aim at the dark woods, he took his phone out and dialed 911, barely looking down.

He reported it and said, “Plain clothes officer in pursuit.”

Logan grabbed his stronger flashlight from his saddle bag. After moving his bike to the side of the road, he ran into the woods, sweeping the 1300 lumen beam to and fro, gun trained in the center of the light, ready for whatever he might spot.

Inside the tree line, the beam hit a speck of blue, catching his eye. He approached.

Not seeing the shooter, he inspected the object.

A gun lay on the ground. And not just any gun. One with a robin’s-egg-blue extended magazine, mag release, and trigger. Was that AJ’s gun?

He squatted and held his hand near the barrel without touching it. It was warm. Someone had tried to kill him with his wife’s gun. What on God’s good earth was happening?

That meant—Logan jumped to his feet—AJ’s stalker was … Logan ran into the woods. “Where are you? Show yourself.”

Logan kept the beam going back and forth. He had to find this guy.

A car started in the distance and squealed its tires as it drove away.

“No!” Logan kicked at the underbrush, then turned and went back to his motorcycle and the scene to wait for backup.

He walked up to his bike as Officer Stillwater arrived. Two more officers showed up before Stillwater could even shake Logan’s hand.

“You okay?”

“I don’t know how he missed me. Grateful nonetheless. So grateful.”

“Did you see the shooter?”

Logan shook his head. “But looks like he ditched the weapon. The same one we reported stolen from my wife’s nightstand two nights ago.”

“Show me.”

A few more officers arrived while Logan showed Stillwater the Smith & Wesson.

Stillwater squatted by the pistol. “Guess we’ll find some nine millimeter bullets over there.” He pointed toward a streetlamp across the road.

Logan analyzed the trajectory. “Yeah, and some more in these trees where I shot at him.”

“Let’s get out of here and let evidence collection work it.”

As if on cue, the CSU van drove up.

The men went back to the road. Logan said, “I need to call my wife.”

“My advice, for what it’s worth—call someone to get her and bring her here. Don’t let her drive right now, even if a stalker wasn’t after her.”

Logan nodded. “Good thought.” He stepped away and called Will.

AJ had tried to doze, but it wasn’t working. Anxiety ate at her stomach. Logan told her he was leaving on time. He should have been to her dad’s already. Why wasn’t he here? Maybe she should call him.

“Alice Jane, you are going to put a hole in my carpet with that pacing.”

She spun toward her dad. “Sorry, but Logan should have been here by now.”

“I know, but are you trusting God?”

“I’m trying. Keep laying down my anxiety, but I have an awful feeling something is wrong.”

Her daddy opened his arms to her, and she walked into them. “Look, there’s a headlight now.”

She twisted out of her dad’s embrace and darted to the door.

“AJ! You have a crazy man after you. Make sure who it is before you run out.”

She stopped at the door and slid the curtain to the side.

It wasn’t Logan’s motorcycle. The single headlight was Will’s truck. What was Will doing here?

Zara got out of the passenger side.

AJ swung the door open and burst outside and down the steps. “Where’s Logan?”

Will came around the front. Neither of them looked terribly grave. Were they in shock? Something terrible had happened, hadn’t it?

Zara said, “AJ, Logan’s been shot—”

“What? No! I knew something—”

Zara grasped her arms. “ At, AJ. Let me finish my sentence. Logan’s been shot at . He’s fine but wanted us to come get you.”

AJ’s knees gave out as relief mingled with the horror that someone had tried to kill her husband.

Zara caught her. “He’s okay but wants to see you. Go put shoes on.”

AJ regained her balance and nodded. Turning, she went to get her shoes. Her dad stood on the porch.

“He’s okay?” Worry lines creased her dad’s forehead. “Go get him and bring him home.” He turned to Will. “Son, you’ve got a headlight out.”

Once her shoes were on, she hopped in Will’s truck, Zara taking the middle seat between them.

Five minutes later, Will stopped on the far side of an intersection swarming with police. AJ jumped out and—after looking both ways—darted across the road, scanning for Logan.

“AJ!”

She spotted him and ran straight to him, slowing enough to not knock the wind out of either of them. They embraced.

After a moment, she leaned back and took both sides of his face in her hands. “What happened?”

“I pulled up to the stop sign and someone opened fire from the woods.” He paused.

“There’s something more.”

He looked to where the shooter must have fired from. A tech stood near the edge of the woods holding an evidence bag.

Logan took her hand and guided her over to the tech. “Is it bagged?”

“Sure is.” The tech handed Logan the evidence bag with a gun inside.

“Harry!”

“Yeah, I’m feeling like a lucky punk today.”

She chuckled, but less at the movie reference and more in astonishment at what was happening. “This proves the stalker wanted to kill you.”

Logan let go of her hand and rested his on her shoulder. “That’s exactly what this means.”

She was going to be sick to her stomach. “Does that mean the fire was supposed to kill you?”

Logan shrugged.

“Apparently, whoever it is knows we wouldn’t get a divorce.”

“And you told him you wouldn’t leave me for him.”

“I did say that, didn’t I?” She hugged herself and leaned into Logan. “What are we going to do? How are we going to catch him? What will it take? One of us ending up dead?”

“Not on my watch.” He wrapped his arm across her shoulder and kissed her temple.

Resting her head on his shoulder, she sent streams of thanks to God for watching out for Logan tonight, followed with pleas to keep them both safe. What would this guy try next?