Deadly Silence (Blood Brothers #1)(82)

“Thanks.” Now all Ryker had to do was convince Zara to go along with his plan.





Chapter





29




Zara smoothed down her jeans and squinted to see through the windshield. Snow piled up so quickly, the wipers barely made a dent. “Maybe we should’ve waited.”

Ryker’s hold remained relaxed and sure on the steering wheel. “We need to take care of this before Heath and I head out on the serial killer case.”

Zara nodded. How crazy was the entire situation? “Shouldn’t you let the FBI handle it?”

“Yeah, because they’ve handled it well so far.” Sarcasm lowered his voice. He shook his head and swerved around a pile of ice. “I need you and Grams to hunker down in a safe house until we get back.”

“The police won’t like that,” she murmured.

“Doesn’t matter. You haven’t been arrested, and you don’t have to stay here. It’s time for a little vacation.” Ryker came to a stop in her driveway, sliding the last few feet on the snow-covered ice. “We need to hurry, sweetheart.”

Zara nodded. “I’ll be right back.” She slid from the truck and shut the door. Cold instantly snapped against her face, and she ducked her face down under her scarf before turning and jogging through the snow to her neighbor’s door. Mrs. Ogleby was always up by early morning, so Zara knocked briskly.

The door opened, and the elderly lady peered out. “Goodness. Come in.”

Zara stepped inside, careful to keep her boots on the tile. Ferocious heat slammed into her. “Morning. I came for my mail?”

Mrs. Ogleby nodded and smoothed back her curly white hair. “Were you at your house last night? I could’ve sworn I saw lights.”

Zara paused, and her heart rate picked up. “No. I stayed with a friend.”

Mrs. Ogleby leaned to peer past her flimsy red curtains. “Is that your friend, dear? The hot pants in the truck?”

Zara bit her lip. “Yes. Hot Pants is my friend.”

“Very nice.” Mrs. Ogleby turned and grabbed several envelopes and a small package. “Here you go.”

“Thanks.” Zara glanced toward the truck. “Are you sure there were lights at my place?”

Mrs. Ogleby nodded vigorously. “Yep.”

“Thank you.” Zara turned and stepped back outside. Had the men come back to her place? If so, why? What in the world did they want with her? She slipped on the walk and quickly righted herself before plowing through the swirling snow and reaching the truck. She was breathless when she finally jumped in and closed the door.

“You okay?” Ryker asked.

She nodded. “Yeah, but Mrs. O. saw lights on at my place last night. Do you think those guys in black came back?”

Ryker frowned. “I don’t know. How about we get you back to my apartment, and then I can come take a look around?”

She shook her head, shoving everything into the glove compartment. She’d go through her bills later. “Let’s look around now.”

“No.” Ryker reversed the truck onto the street, his control firmly back in place. “Sorry, baby. There’s too much going on right now, and I need to get you to safety.”

She opened her mouth to argue, but he quickly shook his head. What the hell? She could help search her own house, for goodness’ sake. “We’re going to have to work on this Neanderthal issue you have going on,” she muttered.

“Humph.” He pulled out onto the main thoroughfare and glared through the windshield. “I think the storm is actually getting worse.”

She shivered and flipped the knob to turn up the heat on her seat. “You guys won’t be able to fly in this.”

A siren blared through the air. Ryker leaned to glance in the rearview mirror. “Damn it.”

He slowly pulled the truck to a safe area off the road.

Zara tensed and looked around. The black car behind them wasn’t a patrol car, but it had a light in the dash and a siren. Her breath caught, and adrenaline sped through her veins. “You weren’t speeding.”

“No.” Ryker leaned over and opened the glove box, shoving Zara’s mail out of the way, to retrieve a stack of papers before sliding his window down.

Men walked up on both sides of the truck.

Her door opened. Ryker grasped her, and tugged her toward him, but a gun suddenly appeared near his ear. He stiffened.

“Zara Remington? You’re under arrest for the murder of Julie Pentley.” Detective Norton reached in and took her arm. “Please exit the vehicle.”

She coughed and let go of Ryker’s arm. Panic and shock buzzed through her mind. “I didn’t kill Julie,” she whispered as the detective assisted her into the cold. He turned her around and quickly snapped cuffs on her wrists. The metal was cold and bit into her skin.

Fury lit Ryker’s eyes, but with the gun at his temple, there wasn’t much he could do. “Don’t say anything until your attorney shows up,” he ground out.

Dazed, Zara gulped in air. “I won’t.”

Norton turned her, almost gently, toward his car. “You have the right to remain silent.” As he continued with her rights, she blanked out, her mind spinning.

What now? Her shoulders shook, and her knees weakened.