Relentless Protector. Colleen Thompson

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      Chapter Five

      In spite of the bell that announced her entrance, none of the half dozen people gathered near the counter turned a head to look Lisa’s way when she walked in. Instead, they were clearly transfixed by a wildly gesticulating, red-faced man with his back to her.

      “Then I watched that scrawny, tattooed bastard make off with my Explorer, right out of this lot. Where the hell’s that deputy?”

      An attractive brunette in a blue smock gestured for calm. “Now, take it easy, Clem. I just got off the phone with the sheriff’s office. They’ll have someone out in no time at—”

      “Which way was he driving?” Lisa interrupted. “And did you see an older silver Camry with a woman and my little boy inside?”

      Every head snapped toward her, horror written in their faces as they took in her blood-spattered shirt and bandaged arm.

      “Please,” she begged the owner of the stolen SUV, “you have to help me. They carjacked me in Coopersville and took off with my son inside the Camry. He’s only five years old.”

      “You poor thing,” said the brunette, whose name tag read Karla. “You’re hurt, darling. Let me call an ambulance—”

      “There’s no time. I’ll be fine.” Though pain hovered in the background, Lisa barely registered it.

      “We’ve been trailing them in my truck,” said Cole, who had come in behind her. “I’m Captain Cole Sawyer, Army Ranger, and I witnessed the abduction.”

      The firm authority in his voice demanded both respect and cooperation as he added, “We’ll need a plate number, and a good description of the vehicle and where it was heading, a few supplies and a quick fill-up so we can try to catch them.”

      Clem was the first to recover from his shock. “You’ll find my Explorer?”

      “The boy’s our first priority,” Cole answered, “but I’ll do what I can.”

      A man with a bushy gray mustache and a cowboy hat quickly nodded. “I served our country, too, sir. Let me get you started with that fill-up.”

      As he hurried off, Karla took charge, asking Cole and Lisa, “You notify the Tuller County Sheriff?”

      “The kidnappers took my purse and phone,” Lisa said.

      Cole shook his head, his mouth tightening. “And I didn’t have one on me.”

      The waitress nodded. “Tell me, what do you need?”

      In record time, Karla, who was apparently the owner, directed her customers to help gather up first-aid supplies, drinks, food and assorted other items they deemed helpful, while the owner of the stolen Explorer described his four-year-old blue SUV.

      Once they were ready, Cole tried to press a handful of twenties on Karla, but she waved him off.

      “Forget it.” Her compassionate blue eyes found Lisa’s, and she pulled something from her pocket and pressed it into Lisa’s hand. “Just get out there and find your little boy.”

      It was a cell phone.

      “Reception’s pretty spotty out here, but you’ll find places you can use it. I’ve got another phone here.” Karla jerked her chin to indicate a corded model on the counter. “I’ll look up the Tuller County Sheriff’s number and let them know what you’ve told us.”

      “Please tell them about my son,” said Lisa. “If you have something to write on, I’ll give you his name and my Camry’s plate number so they can put out an AMBER Alert right away.”

      “Of course.” Karla hurried to get her a pen and order pad.

      “Thank you so much.” Lisa was humbled by the generosity and teamwork of these total strangers. And struck by guilt at the way Cole was stepping up, when only a few minutes before she’d been so convinced he was going to abandon her that she’d been willing to risk everything to stop him.

      The weight of the straw bag on her shoulder reminded her of the item she’d slipped inside it earlier to ensure his cooperation, but she pushed regret aside to leave her information for the sheriff. As soon as she was done, she and Cole rushed back to the truck, though this time she insisted on climbing inside on her own power.

      Heading in the direction Clem had indicated, they quickly turned onto an even smaller, southbound county road that Lisa had never before noticed, much less traveled. Out here, there were no streetlights, and the few houses were flanked by barns and other outbuildings. Stars were popping in the cloudless night sky, more of them by the minute, but they did little to relieve the gathering darkness, or the even bleaker blackness threatening to swamp her.

      She couldn’t stand to think of how Tyler must be feeling tonight, scared and alone with those two monsters who’d taken him. Couldn’t put it out of her mind, not even when Rowdy jumped onto the seat and nuzzled her hand, offering whatever small solace he could.

      “They could have split up,” she said, her voice shaking. “What if that woman took Tyler with her and went the other way in my car?”

      “I expect they’ve ditched your car somewhere nearby,” Cole told her. “Probably figured it’s too hot to keep driving. We can catch them, Lisa. If Clem’s right about how long ago his Explorer was taken, they’re only fifteen or twenty minutes ahead of us, maybe less, since they had your car to deal with.”

      They drove on, the bumping of the tires on the rutted pavement like an endlessly repeating song.

      When she could endure it no longer, she asked, “Would you like a soda?”

      “Yeah, sure—or better yet, one of those sports drinks. And you should try to eat and drink, too.”

      “Forget that,” she said as she passed him a chilled bottle. “I’ll have something СКАЧАТЬ