Bulletproof Badge

“Did you ever read any of the notes or keep the address of something you mailed?”

“Of course I didn’t read them. They were private.” Kenderly looked at her lap where her hands had dropped again.

The reaction was one of embarrassment, not indignation.

“You didn’t happen to keep copies of the addresses where Mrs. Tenoreno sent letters?”

She looked up, connecting with him on a level he didn’t understand.

“Yes,” she whispered. “Their husbands were—are—frightening. I sort of wanted to...well, to have some proof in case something went wrong.”

“I could kiss you, Kenderly. This is sure to be a break we’ve been needing,” Garrison said, receiving a cross look from Oaks.

“It might help us determine why they were murdered. What are the addresses?” Oaks’s pen was poised in one hand, and he pulled his cell out of his shirt pocket with the other. “We’ll get units over there ASAP before Tenoreno discovers they exist. If we can get the original letters... Is that the video crew?”

Garrison saw the headlights pull into the driveway and stay lit. He went to get the kitchen door for the TDPS video crew and to signal them to kill the lights.

“No offense to the video crew, but have you ever seen any that are over six feet and two hundred and thirty pounds of muscle?” he threw over his shoulder. Every nerve he had jumped to alert.

Was it the same guy from the murder scene? He sure had the same build. He pulled his weapon and hit the switch closest to him.

Oaks immediately moved Kenderly into the bathroom, closing the door behind her. Garrison saw the machine pistol outlined from the streetlight as the guy moved closer to the shrubbery on the far side of the drive. Garrison dove, knocking Oaks to the floor. They turned the ancient wood table to its side just before his aunt’s house began to be cut in half.

Chapter Four

“How many?” Oaks asked, covering his head, protecting it from the breaking glass raining on them.

“Just the one son of a bitch from Tenoreno’s estate.”

“How the hell did he find you here?”

Garrison didn’t have an answer. Kenderly didn’t have a phone on her. He had no landline, so she couldn’t have called anyone. She seemed as though she wanted to cooperate, so her betraying their position didn’t make sense. And he knew that Oaks didn’t do it.

Or did he?

“What if they believe Isabella was communicating with authorities, sir? Is that a possibility? Is another agency involved? They could have waited for a call or followed you.”

“However it happened, you’ve got to get her out of here. We’ll wait for him to reload, then move. Toss me that dish towel,” Oaks commanded. “He winged my leg, or your aunt’s gravy boat cut me.”

Garrison tossed the towel and admired the captain’s attitude. The force of the bullets ripped through the paper-thin walls of the side of the old house. Dishes shattered inside a cabinet, and the doors burst open. Thank God for the solid table his aunt had squeezed into the tiny kitchen. Though she was clearly going to kill him when she saw what was left.

“I’ll get Kenderly.”

Garrison belly-crawled to the bathroom, covering his head more often than not. Just as he passed into the short hall, the gunfire stopped. He didn’t wait for the captain to begin firing. He kicked open the door and pulled Kenderly from the tub.

“Out the front as soon as I give you the go-ahead.”

They moved. She was silent. Oaks fired through the shattered kitchen window. The assassin ceased firing a moment longer.

“Take mine,” Oaks shouted, throwing his keys to Garrison. “Phone’s busted. Call it in. I’ll keep him pinned down.”

Garrison had a split second to follow or disobey orders. The small feminine hand latched on to his biceps reminded him they had a witness to protect. That was his first duty.

Not to mention that no one normally argued with Aiden Oaks, captain or otherwise.

Moving Kenderly’s hand to his belt, he pointed at her shoes. “Take those off and run beside me. We both get on the driver’s side in the street. Take these.” He handed her the keys. “Unlock the door while I cover you. I’ll drive. You’re in the back. Unless something happens to me.”

She nodded.

“Go!” Oaks shouted and fired.

Garrison jerked open the door, searching for any accomplices. No shots this direction. They were still on the side of the house. He touched Kenderly’s hand, then they moved across the porch. He kept as wide a view as possible, turning, scanning. Then he saw the Tenoreno assassin to his left.

“Run. Hit the unlock button.”

She did, the alarm sounded, then he heard door clicks. They got to the far side of the car before shots were fired, but it was the captain out the front door firing at their pursuer.

Both men took cover in the yard. The keys were very steadily placed in his free palm, then Kenderly got inside and lay across the floor. Oaks had their backs covered. He started the engine and got out of there as fast as he could. He tossed his phone in the back.

“Dial 911.”

He turned a corner, hitting the brakes to slow the car to a below normal speed and then hearing an “ow” from Kenderly.

“What are you doing?” she asked leaning close to his shoulder. “Oh, the cops.” She could see the flashing lights heading past them and skidding around the corner. “Still want me to call?”

With no more flashing lights in sight, he sped up and headed for downtown Austin. “Not if we don’t have to. Oaks will be fine. No reason to give the cops my number.”

“What now?”

If they were being followed, more traffic would help them get lost. He drove the car as fast as he safely could.

“That’s a very good question. I can contact Oaks in a couple of hours to find out what story he spun.” And hope that he has a plan.

“Maybe they caught Isabella’s murderer.” She sounded a bit frightened.

He couldn’t see her face in the rearview mirror. He couldn’t hold her hand, needing both of his on the wheel. She might be scared. She should be, and he had to tell her straight.

“It’s more likely he’s right behind us.” Garrison searched all the mirrors again but couldn’t see anyone following. “You should put on a seat belt.”

Again with the silence, but she did as he’d suggested. Just ten minutes ago she might have been white-knuckled at his kitchen table, but she’d been talking faster than he was driving. Ready to help with a statement and volunteering new information.

Statements? Where had the video tech crew gone? They should have been there about the time the assassin showed. Another question for Oaks.

“I guess we can’t call your captain to find out what happened. Didn’t he say his phone was busted?”

“Yeah. They’ll try to take him to the hospital. Don’t know which one, though.” Oaks would be okay. He was their only shot at keeping this operation alive. They just had to hang on until he could contact them.

“Are we going to just drive around until he calls us?”

He shrugged. He hadn’t decided where to go. He didn’t know of any rangers who were a part of this undercover operation. And then there was the leak. Somehow the assassin had found them. Garrison couldn’t believe it was on his department’s side of things, but he’d been taught not to rule out any possibility until he had proof.

“I don’t think anyone’s following, but I still have no clue how that guy found us.”

He stopped at a red light and the back door opened. He was ready to yell and his hand was on the handle, but in the blink of an eye Kenderly sat next to him.

“Or how he did it so quickly? Do we still need to record my statement and open the box? Do we wait until your office can do that? Or can you use your phone?”

“We can’t wait. I should get hold of a digital recorder and do this thing right. That includes a reliable witness.”

“I have a friend who has several cameras. He’s an amateur photographer. Don’t cameras have a record button now? Will that work?”

“As long as it embeds date information, stuff like that. It’s definitely better than doing nothing. He’d have to be willing to testify that we opened the case in front of him.”

She waved him off like he was being silly. “No problem. He lives a boring life like me. I bet he’s hanging out somewhere on Sixth Street. All we have to do is hit a couple of bars with good music, and we should find him.”

“Sixth Street?” Clubbing on a Friday night on the busiest street in Austin was a fate worse than... Okay, not as bad as death. “Can’t we wait for him to go home?”

“Sure. He lives across the breezeway from me,” she said flippantly, knowing exactly what his reaction would be.

There was no way he was parking this car in Kenderly’s lot. Between Tenoreno’s men, the police and their assassin all searching for them...that wasn’t going to happen. And Kenderly knew it without him saying a word.

“Looks like we’re bar crawling.”

* * *

“I KNOW I’M going to regret this, but I am super hungry.” Kenderly hated bar food. It was greasy, normally cold and completely overpriced, but she was totally starving.

“This is the fourth place we’ve been inside. Do you think he went home?”

“Can I order something?” She hated to beg, but she was getting close to being that desperate.

“I’d rather find this guy and not hang around here too long.”

The toast at Garrison’s house had only reminded her stomach that it was empty. “Fine.” She shoved her hair away from her face.

The bar was crowded and hot. A huge neon sign flashed “Keep Austin Weird” against a mirror, making her want to shade her eyes.

It was hard to breathe at armpit level. For people who were tall, they never had a problem finding each other in a crowd. For someone just over five feet two inches, it was terrible. The last thing she needed was to become light-headed, but that’s exactly how she felt.

Shutting her eyes for a second brought the gory image of Isabella and Trinity. She covered her stomach with one hand and clutched her mouth with the other.

“Are you turning green or is it the lights from the dance floor?” Garrison tried to pry her hand away, and she stopped him. “Okay, that’s you. Bathroom is...this direction.”

Her hero excused himself with each gentle shove to part the crowd. He got her to the ladies’ room in record time, cutting straight across the dance floor. And he didn’t stop there. Making more excuses, he cut in front of everyone, then flashed his badge when he waltzed through the door with her.

“I’ve got this part on my own.” She tried to push him away before the bile rose.

“Can’t let you out of my sight. Sorry, miss. Give us five, will you?” Even though he sounded polite, he wasn’t really asking. He guided the last person out before she could use the hand dryer.

“Seriously, Garrison, I’m okay now. Let’s just leave.” She tried to open the door, and he stopped it with his toe.

“You’re still as white as a sheet, Kenderly. Dammit, why don’t they have paper towels anymore? Can you splash your face or something?”

The image in the mirror was sort of scary-looking. No makeup, seriously pale. Cooling her skin was actually a good suggestion. “Just getting away from all the people helps tremendously.”

She wet her hands and patted her cheeks, cooling her hot flesh. She took a deep breath of semiclean air. The need to throw up no longer registered, so she stood straight and faced Garrison.

“You really okay?” He placed both hands on her shoulders and searched every inch of her face. “Still think you can eat something? Will you keep it down?”

“Yeah, I’m sure. I’m sorry we haven’t found my friend.”

There was a knock on the door. “Management. Do we have a problem?”

Garrison flattened his lips and raised his eyebrows, sort of shrugging in the process of reaching for the door handle. He flashed his badge before they got a close look, sort of gave an explanation, and they were out on the street without the help of a bouncer after a couple of minutes.

“The cool air feels great.” She twirled on the sidewalk as they headed back to their borrowed car, thankful for the crisp feeling in her lungs. “Where do we go from—”

Garrison jerked her in the opposite direction. “Stay close.”

She had no idea what was happening. But after having her life threatened twice, she completely trusted the man at her side. He’d tell her when he could. They walked at a very fast pace away from the car.

“What about Isabella’s jewelry case?”

“Oaks will have to take care of it. Right now the cops are too close for us to get back to his car.” He cursed under his breath.

She looked up and saw the red, white and blue reflections in the windows. “Can’t you explain to them who you are?”

“Not unless I want to completely blow my cover and not find the murderer.” He slowed a little after they turned a corner. “Right now we’re both wanted for questioning.”

“So the cops don’t know you’re a Texas Ranger?” Kenderly looked up and saw a fast-food restaurant. “Can I borrow five dollars?”

“Right. Sure. We’ll get something and sit in the back corner.” Garrison ushered her through the doors and stood outside checking the street for something. He backed in the door and pulled out his wallet, handing her a twenty. “Bacon cheeseburger, ketchup, no pickles and any soda.”

She placed their order and watched him at the front window looking at his phone. He was texting one minute, then talking furiously the next.

No matter what he was currently doing, Kenderly decided to follow his original instructions and sit at the back booth.

“Hey, we’re closing in fifteen minutes,” the teenager behind the counter called out. “You’ll have to leave by then.”

“No problem,” Garrison let him know.

Kenderly ate her small, dry burger and fries alone. Her hero texted, made more calls and popped outside the door another time. She had no idea if he was leaving messages or holding conversations about her future. His food sat in its bag.

The drink gathered sweat and made a ring around the bottom of the medium cup. She was mesmerized with the droplets.

It kept her from wondering what might have happened if Garrison hadn’t been there today. She would be dead. No question about it. She felt helpless. She dipped a fry in the ketchup, and a red drop hit the table. She froze. Even though she knew it was ketchup, she couldn’t eat another bite.

The clock over the front door indicated three minutes until they closed. She should quickly use the restroom before they were kicked out. She locked the door behind her and almost immediately heard Garrison yelling on the other side.

“Kenderly, are you there?”

“Give me a second, please? I promise, I can’t get away. There aren’t any windows.”

“We have to get out of here.”

“I know, they’re closing.”

“Listen to me, Kenderly. Cops are gathering outside. The kid must have called us in. Our status changed from wanted for questioning to wanted for murder. It’s scrolling on the television. Tenoreno has a bounty on our heads.”

Chapter Five

“Do you have any idea where you’re going?” Kenderly had lived in Austin most of her life, but she was getting disoriented. Garrison had turned down almost every street and doubled back and then doubled back again. She tugged him to a stop not only to get her bearings but also to catch her breath.

“I’m certain of one thing. We have to keep moving.” Garrison reached for her hand, but she took a step away from him.

“I can see that you believe you’re right. But I can’t keep this up all night.” She glanced at her watch. They’d been walking just over an hour since the burger she’d choked down. “Don’t you have a plan?”

They’d blended in with college students for a while, but were alone again on the corner of Brazos and Eighth Street. It was late enough that hardly anyone was around in this area.

The thought of being scared fleeted across her mind. She certainly had good reason to feel that way, but she didn’t. The Rangers had convinced her they were legit and wanted to protect her. It was hard to get used to having someone else make the decisions. Limited choices as she had, every path she’d taken was completely hers.

He flashed that perfect smile at her and tilted his head like he was actually curious about something. “Sweetheart—”

“Stop right there. Your wicked gorgeous smile might work on the girls you’re trying to pick up and sway back to your tiny little house.” She caught her hand shaking as she pointed in the direction they’d come from. She quickly wove her fingers together. She might be upset, but she didn’t need to show the world. Or him. “I have no choice except continue wherever you go. I know that. So you don’t need to convince me of anything.”

“Wicked gorgeous?” He winked.

She had to turn away from him. Appreciating his cavalier attitude was one thing, falling for the charm he oozed with every movement was quite another.

“Just give it to me straight. Bottom-line it.”

“I like you, Kenderly Tyler. I really do.” He sent another text and then removed the battery from his phone before sliding both back into his pocket. “Our odds aren’t very good. Truth is... I didn’t think we’d make it this far.”

“Well, that’s reassuring.” If she’d had any choices she might have turned around and run from him. But there weren’t any other choices.

She stood beside a set of stairs leading to a church. Sitting on the cold concrete she leaned back only to jolt forward. She’d forgotten that her heels were hooked into her skirt at the small of her back. It might have looked normal for a college student, but she felt silly.

“So, what now?”

For a split second the confident young smile disappeared, and the thoughtful Texas Ranger who had absentmindedly petted his dogs stood there. Maybe he was as lost as her?

“Oh my gosh! Clementine and Bear! Are they okay?”

“They were in the bedroom at the back of the house. I don’t think the bullets penetrated that far.”

“Those poor puppies. What will happen to them?”

“They have a regular dog walker. She lives across the street. But I sent a message to my buddy, Jesse, to come get them.”

Disappointed that they didn’t have a way to find out, she rubbed her bare feet and wasn’t about to complain. Captain Oaks had been shot, and that man was trying to kill Garrison because he’d helped her.

“Can he come get us, too?” she mumbled.

But he’d heard and grinned. He casually leaned against the corner of the building. Or he tried to look casual. His body was tense. His eyes darted a different direction with each tilt of his head.

“Trouble is, no one really knew that I was at Tenoreno’s place. This operation is sort of...” He shrugged.

“Off the record?”

“More like last minute and hasn’t gone through all the proper channels.”

Kenderly jumped up and ran across the street. “Great. This is just absolutely great. And so in character for my life.”

She spun around midintersection to see her escort picking up her shoes, so she continued jogging across the road.

“Kenderly,” he said sternly, running after her. “Come on. You know we have to stay together.”

“So you have any idea when this is going to end?”

“Look. You’re a smart gal. You know life isn’t going to be the same. You might want to think about relocating.”

“You aren’t serious?” His lips pressed firmly into a straight line, and she knew that he was very serious. “What am I going to do?”

Placing both hands on her shoulders, one heel dangling from each, he looked at her for a good thirty seconds. If they’d been at her apartment door... If they’d been on a date or had met at the party Isabella said she could attend...

If. If. If. If things had been different, the moment might have been full of nervous anticipation instead of emotional dread.

“One step at a time, Kenderly. Just one small step. Our first is to find someplace out of the way to hang out for a while. We’ve got to give Oaks a chance to straighten this manhunt out.”

Headlights shone on them as a car turned onto the street where they stood. Garrison ducked his head and curled her into his side. Whoever it was kept going. Loud, happy music poured from the open windows along with the laughter of the young people inside.

Why did she suddenly feel so old? She was only twenty-three, dammit.

The music faded as she watched the taillights disappear. Her fingers curled around the folds of Garrison’s T-shirt. The tears came before she could completely bury her face in the soft, dark cotton.

As hard as she tried, she just couldn’t stop them. Mournful tears for Isabella and Trinity. Frightened tears for herself. Angry tears that everything she’d worked for was gone.

She didn’t know if he was patient about it, but her Texas Ranger wrapped his arms around her and didn’t crack a joke. He didn’t try to stop her. No attempts to rush things along.

His arms gave her the illusion of being secure. It was a strange feeling, with her body relaxing while her mind raced because she was so frightened.

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to cry again.” She tilted her head back to look up at him, expecting to see frustration or at least disappointment. There was neither.

“Ready to move out?”

She nodded. He dropped to one knee, sliding his hands down her calf and tapping on her foot.

“Oh, wow. You don’t have to do that.”

“Lift your foot. I’m down here all ready.”

Off balance, she clung to his strong shoulder and let him slip her impractical high heels back into place.

* * *

GARRISON HAD SEEN the scrapes on Kenderly’s feet. She couldn’t move fast in the ridiculous heels, but she wouldn’t be able to walk at all if she cut her foot. Putting them on was easier than her trying to accomplish it in the skirt he’d appreciated more on his bike.

What should he do?

“I need to check on Oaks.” He stood and guided his witness up the street. He recognized where they were. The capitol wasn’t too far away.

“Well, we can’t walk into the hospital. Not with our faces splashed all over the TV.”

“Right.”

“You don’t even know which one they took him to.”

“Right again.” He kept watch. Kept expecting the cops around every corner. They didn’t have time for explanations. Should he just take Kenderly to Rangers headquarters and let them straighten the mess out? Or stick with her until the captain was giving orders again?

“And I hate to be a wimp, but I’m really tired. I don’t know how much longer I can stay awake. Let alone move my legs to walk.”

“Got it.”

“You wouldn’t happen to have an emergency credit card, do you? I have one, but it’s at my apartment. I leave it there since, of course, it’s only for emergencies.”

Garrison halted and checked his back pocket. He was an idiot. All this time he’d been worried about the police tracking any transactions or his phone. He didn’t have to worry about that with his real name. Just his undercover identity.

“Don’t worry. Your time walking the streets is over.”

“If I wasn’t so relieved, I’d make you correct that street-walking phrase. But I am very grateful not to walk another step. Are we grabbing a cab?”

He wouldn’t mention aloud that he’d had his own wallet the entire time. He hadn’t had a chance to switch them after Oaks decided to send him back to Tenoreno’s.

“Are you going to call or something?” Kenderly asked, giving her skirt a habitual tug.

Her eyes looked as exhausted as she claimed. Her hair wasn’t nearly as tangled as when she’d first arrived at the house. He really liked how it was so many different colors. Every place they’d been she looked like a different woman.

There were other things he liked. Of course, being responsible for her, he couldn’t tell her how good she looked in sequins and silk. Or how the unrealistic heels made her legs look four inches longer.