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Isabel didn’t even try to answer. She’d lost consciousness. Or worse. The deputy must have thought the worst was possible, too, because he touched his fingers to her neck.
“She’s alive,” he assured them.
Hanna didn’t have time for the breath of relief she wanted to take. That’s because she heard something that chilled her to the bone.
Somewhere out in the darkness, there was a gunshot.
Chapter Fifteen
Jesse automatically motioned for Hanna to step further back. He didn’t want to send her running to the nursery just yet because the shot had sounded far away. It was possibly even a night hunter out in the woods, looking for coyotes but considering what had happened to Isabel, that wasn’t likely.
Of course, Isabel could have done this to herself, and that’s what Jesse kept in mind while he continued to watch out the window. But if Hanna’s mom had told the truth about all that money being in her account, then that was something he could confirm once he took a harder look at her financials. The money certainly hadn’t been in there recently because Theo had looked at her accounts, but there was no telling how long ago that argument between Hanna and her mother had happened. Since Isabel hadn’t been a suspect in Hanna’s shooting, Jesse hadn’t dug into her assets.
That would change first chance he got.
Deputy Norris dropped down next to Isabel, obviously shielding her with his own body in case any gunfire came their way, but Jesse listened hard and didn’t hear anything else. Well, nothing other than the howl of the ambulance as it got closer to the house.
He took out his phone and texted Dispatch to tell them to have the ambulance hold at the end of the driveway. That way, the EMTs wouldn’t be in the line of fire if there were more shots fired. Plus, it would cut down on the risk in case one of the militia thugs had managed to get in the ambulance. Jesse wouldn’t put it past them to do something like drug Isabel all so that Hanna and he could be attacked when the EMTs arrived on scene.
“Do you think I came to the ranch that night I was shot to tell you about the argument I had with my mother?” Hanna asked, and the nerves were causing her voice to tremble. Heck, she was trembling, too.
“It’s possible,” he admitted.
Jesse had questioned himself often as to why she’d come to see him. Yes, she’d had those ultrasound pictures and medical forms with her, but there’d been nothing pressing about them. In fact, he’d later learned that she’d already emailed him the ultrasound photos. He’d also later learned that he could have signed the papers even after she was at the hospital in labor. That had led Jesse to hope that she’d just wanted to see him, to be with the father of her child so they could talk about the upcoming birth. But maybe he had been totally off base.
Instead, it could be connected to Isabel and this money her so-called friend had deposited into her account.
Soon, very soon, he’d also find out exactly who that friend was because it was possible that Isabel would put Arnie, Marlene and even Bull into that friend category. Probably not Agent Shaw, though, unless she’d stayed quiet about knowing the man. That was something else Jesse needed to check.
Because he didn’t want to leave Grayson out of the loop, Jesse continued to keep watch and sent him a text.
Isabel showed up here. It appears she’s been drugged. We also heard a shot. Not sure if there’s an actual threat yet.
He’d just hit Send when Jesse heard Miguel call out. “I spotted someone at the fence near the road.”
Maybe this was their shooter, and that was Jesse’s cue to take the security up a notch. “It’s time for Evan and you to go into the bathroom,” Jesse told her.
He looked back at Hanna, trying to silently reassure her that he’d do his best to keep them safe. Jesse wasn’t sure he succeeded though. Hanna definitely looked scared out of her mind when she ran toward the nursery.
Hell. He hated that she had to go through this when she’d already been through way too much. Too much that might have been at least partly her own mother’s fault. Jesse wasn’t sure how Hanna would feel if it turned out he had to arrest Isabel, but if the woman was guilty, she would get what she deserved.
Jesse’s phone rang, the sound breaking the silence, and he saw Grayson’s name on the screen. He muttered another, “Hell,” hoping that something hadn’t gone wrong at the sheriff’s office.
“I’m on the way out to Hanna’s,” Grayson said the moment Jesse answered. “I’ll be there in a few minutes.”
“But what about Bull?” It sure didn’t seem like a good idea to shortchange the security there at the jail when Bull might be just as much of a target as Hanna and he were. Added to that, they really needed to catch anyone who might try to go after the man.
“It’s covered,” Grayson assured him. “I asked Mason to come in to take my place. He’ll be able to handle anything that comes up.”
Jesse didn’t doubt the handling part, but this meant yet another family member was in danger.
“Did you hear any other shots being fired?” Grayson asked.
“No, but I’ve kept the ambulance on hold just in case.”
He hoped like the devil that wasn’t a fatal mistake for Isabel, but the deputy was keeping a check of her pulse while he continued looking around the yard.
“Isabel might have been talking out of her head,” Jesse went on, “but she described a situation that sounded a lot like her involvement in money laundering. I wasn’t able to get the name of who hooked her up with that, but it might be connected to Hanna’s shooting.”
