A Forever Christmas(63)
“What are you doing here?” she demanded of the man who seemed to materialize out of nowhere. The very hair on her head began to tingle.
“Taking what’s mine,” Wynters snarled at her, abandoning any pretext of friendliness. Initially ready to forgive her when he’d arrived in town this morning, he was now furious with her for what she’d put him through. “Did you think you fooled me with that wide-eyed act of yours in the diner?” he demanded. Rolling his eyes and affecting a singsong voice, he mimicked what she’d said to the deputy this morning. “‘No, I don’t know him.’ Like I was nobody,” he snapped, reverting to his own voice. There was pure hatred in his dark eyes. “Well, it’s not working. You know damn well who I am and you’re coming with me, Dorothy.”
He tried to grab her wrist in order to drag her away, but she pulled back. Fear clutched at her but she struggled to rise above it. “Don’t call me that,” she ordered, desperately trying to sound as if he wasn’t really frightening her. “That’s not my name.”
“The hell it isn’t,” he spat out. “You’re Dorothy, all right. Too bad your boyfriend had that poster circulated. Up to that point, I really thought you were dead.” His smile was cold, deadly.
Where was Gabe? What had he done with Gabe? Angel thought frantically.
“I guess I didn’t do as good a job on those brakes as I thought. You’ve got a charmed life, Dorothy.” He saw her looking toward the stairs. “Oh, your boyfriend?” he guessed, taking great pleasure in what he was about to say next. “Save your effort. He’s not coming.”
Fear for herself turned to anger and outrage, infusing her with strength. “What did you do to him?” she demanded.
He laughed contemptuously. “Don’t worry, I didn’t kill him. He’s just going to have a killer headache when he wakes up. And an empty house. Now let’s go!” Wynters ordered. This time, he produced a gun to back up his command.
She had no doubts that the man with the cold eyes could use the weapon on her without blinking. Still, she backed away until she felt the stove against her back. “He’ll find you,” she warned him defiantly. “He’ll come looking for me and he’ll find you.”
“Doubtful.” He taunted her. “That hayseed deputy’ll be looking for a San Antonio detective and his slut—and we’re not going back to San Antonio.” He paused, letting his words sink in, savoring the fear he knew she had to be feeling. “I’ve got a whole new life planned for us. And if you don’t do what I tell you, if you give me any trouble, you can be erased real quick,” he promised malevolently.
“Now you either come with me, or I’m going to go upstairs and finish your boyfriend off.” He cocked the hammer on the weapon he had trained on her. The barrel was pointed at her throat. “You’ve got to the count of five to make up your mind. One, two, three—” He stiffened as he felt the cold steel against his neck.
“Put the gun down, Wynters,” Gabe ground out. He’d barely come to and had to hold on to the walls as he made his way down the stairs, praying he wasn’t too late. He didn’t doubt for a second that the rogue detective was going to kill Angel, if not now, then soon. His type didn’t tolerate being defied, especially not by a woman.
“Guess your head’s harder than I thought,” Wynters cracked. “The next time, I’ve gotta do it right.” Then he spun around, head butting Gabe. The gun in Gabe’s hand went flying.
With his vision blurred, Gabe scrambled to his feet, holding on to Wynters so the latter couldn’t lunge at Angel.
The two men fought, winding up on the floor. Because his head felt as if it had been cracked open and was still spinning, Gabe suddenly found himself on his back. Wynters was on top of him, his hands wrapped around his throat. The detective had fifty pounds on him. Gabe struggled to claw his hands off, but he was rapidly losing consciousness.
From a great distance away, he heard it, heard the guttural scream as a crack of thunder echoed.
Or was that the sound of a gun being discharged?
He felt the pressure against his throat loosen. Beginning to suck in air, he still couldn’t draw in enough to counteract the effects of being choked. His efforts to breathe were further impeded by the sudden heavy weight that slumped over him.
Wynters.
Angel dropped the gun she’d fired. Wynters’s gun. She’d shot him with his own gun.