Page 29 of Scent of Death (Sullivan K9 Search and Rescue #5)

C overing Denali with her body, Alexis braced for more gunfire. Her pulse had jumped into the triple digits, and her breathing went shallow. Between her pounding headache and her screaming ribs, she wanted nothing more than to turn around and crawl back to the cabin.

But that wasn’t an option.

She tried to take a deep breath, ignoring the fiery pain that lanced through her. Tyler had them pinned down. How well could he see them in the darkness? She wasn’t sure and was afraid to move to find out.

“Paul,” Griff whispered. The deputy was on her left, Griff to her right. They spoke in hushed tones over her head. “We need to split up and box him in.”

“Okay,” Paul agreed.

“Wait.” She grasped Griff’s arm to keep him from moving. Keeping her voice low, she asked, “You’re going up the incline?”

“You have a better idea?” Griff’s mouth was near her ear. “He has at least two weapons and who knows how much ammo.”

Wincing, she knew he was right. What choice did they have? Griff and Paul heading up the mountain would leave her and Denali vulnerable. It was a better alternative than leaving the area, allowing Tyler the opportunity to escape.

No, that wasn’t an option. Tyler would kill again. He was sick, partially through no fault of his own if his mother really had abused him. Yet every abused child didn’t turn into a serial killer.

Besides, was her staying here any different than her original plan to use herself as bait? Nope.

“Okay,” she whispered. “I’ll draw his attention so you and Paul can move.”

Griff frowned but must have realized there wasn’t another option. “Use a rock, tossing it behind you while keeping your head down.”

“Okay.” She steeled her resolve to do her best. It would be easier if she didn’t have Denali at her side. She worried the white areas of the dog’s coat would be too easily seen. Tyler had made it clear he wouldn’t hesitate to kill her K9.

The ground beneath her fingers was dry. But there was some loose dirt. Digging her fingernails into the earth provided enough dust to help hide the white fur.

Griff must have been feeling along the ground, too, because he pressed a rock into her palm. “Here. When you toss it, we’ll make our move.”

Curling her fingers around the rock, she nodded. Then remembering how Tyler had ordered her to shut up, she whispered, “He has control issues. I’m going to start talking to him. He won’t like it, but you need to use that as your opportunity to move.”

“Be careful.” Griff stared down at her for a moment, then surprised her by giving her a quick kiss. Then he inched farther to the right to get ready to move. Paul mirrored his actions, inching slightly to the left.

She drew a breath, and shouted, “Tyler, it’s over! Give yourself up!” Griff and Paul moved as she spoke. On the last word, she tossed the rock over her shoulder. It hit the ground with a dull thud. She quickly bent over Denali and smeared more dirt over the K9’s coat.

The responding gunfire was instantaneous. She flinched, but the shot went over her head in the same trajectory as the rock.

Her heart hammered against her sternum, but she forced herself to stay put. It wasn’t easy. Feeling around in the earth, her fingers closed on another rock. It was smaller, though. She wasn’t sure it would draw Tyler’s attention.

But she had to try.

“The cops are going to find you,” she called. “It’s only a matter of time.” Again, she tossed the rock over her shoulder.

Tyler fired again, but this time, the bullet hit the ground just three feet away from her location. She froze, her throat tightening with fear.

Could he see her? Or was he aiming at the sound of her voice?

Likely the latter, as the rock she’d tossed had barely made a sound.

Digging in the dirt, she didn’t find any more rocks to use either.

There was plenty of debris, though, and she slowly finished smearing bits of dirt, grass, and leaves into the white patches on Denali’s coat.

She relaxed a bit when she noticed the dog was much harder to see now as a result of her efforts.

How much time would Griff and Paul need to get into position?

With deliberate slowness, she scooted backward toward the base of a tree. If she could use it as cover, she could keep Tyler occupied a while longer.

She hoped.

Her fingers stumbled over a stick. It was too light to make a sound hitting the dirt, but maybe she could toss it high enough to make the leaves flutter. A long shot, but she was running out of options.

“Tyler!” She shouted his name at the top of her lungs. “Stop this right now! You’re a very naughty boy!” On the last word, she threw the stick up into the tree branches, then quickly pulled Denali behind the wide trunk.

This time there was a momentary hesitation before she heard the resounding crack of gunfire. The slight pause in his reaction made her wonder if he’d momentarily imagined it was his mother yelling at him.

If so, she’d gladly play that role as long as possible.

Sweeping her hands along the ground, she searched for more rocks and sticks but found nothing.

She closed her eyes in despair. She couldn’t fail Griff and Paul. She just couldn’t!

Swallowing against the pain, she stretched out on her stomach, reaching her arms wide. This time, she found another rock. A bigger one than before. She drew it close, then rolled to her back. Denali licked her cheek.

“Stay,” she whispered. Then she forced herself into a sitting position. She had to wait for the pain to recede before she could call out to Tyler again. “You better listen to me, Tyler,” she shouted. “You know what happens when Mommy gets mad!”

She threw the rock with all her strength, which honestly wasn’t saying much. Again, there was a brief pause before the responding gunfire. She almost screamed, though, when the bullet hit the tree she and Denali were using for cover.

Not good. She pressed her back against the rough bark, her heart pounding so hard she feared it would jump out of her chest.

Maybe her attempt to camouflage Denali hadn’t worked as she’d hoped. Or Tyler was getting better at pinpointing the sound of her voice. Either way, she wasn’t sure how much longer she could keep him preoccupied.

Staring up at the stars she could see beyond the canopy of tree limbs, she begged for God to keep them safe.

For a long minute, she didn’t hear anything. How far up the incline had Griff and Paul gotten? Close enough to see Tyler? Would they be able to take him down?

Alexis had never felt more helpless. If Griff or Paul died there tonight, she’d never forgive herself.

As if on cue, another crack of gunfire rang out. She turned to look around the tree trunk, scanning the rocky ledge above. Who’d taken the shot? Griff? Paul?

Or had Tyler noticed them coming and taken one of them out?

Alexis crawled over the ground, following the path Griff had taken.

Denali came alongside, her darkened coat blending in with the foliage around them.

Alexis couldn’t bear the thought of either man being killed, but Griff’s face flashed in her mind.

Not Griff , she silently begged. Please, not Griff!

Why hadn’t she told him how much she loved him when she had the chance?

Now it might be too late.

Denali stayed beside her, even though the K9 could have gotten up the incline faster. Her partner was accustomed to gunfire, but Alexis knew Denali understood the danger.

She hadn’t gotten very far when another report of gunfire rang out. She instinctively ducked, drawing Denali down too.

Silence stretched for a long moment. Then she heard Griff say, “Jenkins is down, repeat, Jenkins is down. I have him in cuffs.”

Relief washed over her. She lifted her gaze to the starry sky. “Thank You, Lord Jesus,” she whispered.

It was over. Tyler Jenkins would never hurt anyone ever again.

Griff tightened the flexicuffs around Tyler’s wrists. The young man was face down on the ground, blood seeping from the wound in his arm. Griff kicked both weapons, the handgun and the rifle, out of reach.

“Alexis? Are you okay?” It had bothered him how often Tyler had shot in her direction.

“Yes, Denali and I are fine.” Her voice was strong and steady. “You’re not hurt?”

“I’m not hurt.” But Paul was too quiet for his peace of mind. “Paul? Are you okay?”

A low groan was his answer. Not good. He couldn’t leave Jenkins to check the deputy. He didn’t trust that the kid wouldn’t make a run for it.

“Alexis, can you get to Paul?” He couldn’t hide the sense of urgency. “I need to get Tyler down the incline.”

“Yes.” Griff caught movement below. He could barely make out the two forms of Alexis and Denali making their way to the other side of the incline. “We’ll take a look.”

Upset at the possibility of losing Paul, Griff yanked Jenkins to his feet. To his surprise, the kid didn’t scream out in pain. He simply stood there, his gaze focused on something in the air over Griff’s shoulder.

The young man’s ability to handle pain bothered him. Obviously, Cheri Aztec had been correct in her assessment that the killer had been abused as a child. The eerily calm expression on the young man’s face didn’t give any insight into his thoughts.

Griff almost sympathized with the kid. Until he remembered the pale waxen expressions on his three victims’ faces. Jenkins had brutally murdered them. And he would have continued his killing spree if they hadn’t found him.

Another groan reached his ears. Griff pulled Jenkins toward the other side of the mountainside. It took a moment to find Paul. He’d rolled onto his side, holding his stomach as he struggled to sit up.

“Hang tough, Paul. You’re going to be okay.” Griff couldn’t tell how badly the deputy was wounded, but the fact that he was trying to get up was a good sign. “We’re going to get you back to the cabin a soon as possible.”

Paul lifted his head, his features etched with pain. “Hurry,” he gasped.