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She couldn’t let him die.
What to do? Where was Nico’s gun? Did he still have it on him? It seemed unlikely. If Sandra was smart enough to have caught Nico unawares and shoot him, she was smart enough to have taken away his weapon as well.
A certain kind of calm descended over Lacey. It was almost as if she was watching the whole scene play out before her, but was removed from the emotion of it all, an idea forming in her mind.
“I’m going to let you go,” Lacey whispered. “Slip the rope over your head once I free your hand and hang on with both hands.” She hoped Teresa understood how critical it was for her to obey. Her plan would only work if Teresa did as she was told. If she panicked, or wouldn’t let go, they may both die.
“What? No!” Lacey could hear hysteria rising in Teresa’s voice. Shit. Lacey pleaded silently with Teresa to understand what she needed her to do. Lacey’s eyes were locked on Nico’s. Almost imperceptibly, he shook his head, telling her no. He didn’t want her to let go of Teresa’s hand. Lacey had no idea what Nico might have going on in his head, but if he thought he was going to play the hero, he had another thought coming. She held his gaze, praying he could read her mind, and he didn’t do something stupid. Sandra had him standing so close to the edge. If he decided to tackle her, they might both tumble over into the abyss.
“If you don’t let go, both of us are going to die,” Lacey said as quietly as she could to Teresa, trying not to move her lips as she spoke.
“Look at me,” Sandra snapped, and Lacey dragged her gaze away from Nico. “Neither of you cops need to die. Once this slut is dead, I’ll happily go with you. I’m resigned to my fate. But my daughter’s death needs to be redressed. She needs to rest in peace. There is a price that this girl must pay. She needs to learn that her actions have consequences. Just like the other two.”
Sandra’s words shocked Lacey, but then perhaps she shouldn’t be surprised. Sandra had obviously planned these girls’ deaths in exquisite detail as revenge for bullying her daughter. In her twisted mind, everything she’d done had been in vengeance for Tia. But Sandra was also a highly intelligent woman; she’d realize it was fruitless to try to escape from two officers. And it seemed like she didn’t want to. Perhaps she thought she might feel vindicated after she completed these three murders. And she didn’t really care where she lived out the rest of her life, as long as her daughter rested in peace.
“All right,” Lacey called out as loudly as she could. “I’m going to let go, just please don’t shoot my partner,” she pleaded, hoping her near hysterical tone lulled Sandra into a false sense of security. At the same time as she entreated Sandra, she wriggled her fingers, tugging her hand gently away from Teresa. For a microsecond, Teresa’s fingers tightened around hers, but then, mercifully, she let her go. All Teresa had to do was hang on long enough for Lacey to take Sandra out of the equation. Lacey hoped and prayed Teresa had a good grip on those rocks.
Ever so slowly, Lacey raised the hand that’d been holding onto Teresa in the air. At the same time, she loosed her grip on the shrub on her other side. But instead of bringing that hand forward, she carefully reached beneath the hem of her rain jacket, searching for the butt of her pistol.
“Good.” Sandra’s face brightened, perhaps at the thought that Teresa was now dangling by the neck once more, and she took a step toward the edge to see her victim. Then she narrowed her eyes at Lacey. “And the other one,” she snarled, shaking her gun in Nico’s face to make Lacey obey.
Lacey’s fingers closed over the grip, and she eased it out of her shorts. This had to be done just right. She was still lying flat on the rocks, legs outstretched and feet hooked over a small boulder, one arm held awkwardly in the air. As she drew her gun along the ground, then beneath her chest, she transferred her gaze onto Nico, staring deep into his indigo eyes. He stared back.
Leaving her gun hidden beneath the swell of her breasts, Lacey brought her other hand around and into the air, so she now had both hands in front of her where Sandra could see them.
Sandra was leaning to the side, preparing to catch a glimpse of Teresa to make sure her death was now ensured. Nico frowned, but Lacey jutted her chin ever so slightly toward Sandra to let him know something was coming. For a split second, Sandra took her eyes off Lacey, her gun lowering away from Nico’s head as she strove to make sense of what was going on at the end of the rope.
It was the moment Lacey was waiting for. Sudden understanding lit Sandra’s eyes as she realized the girl wasn’t dying as she hoped, but clinging to life for all she was worth.
It all happened so quickly; Lacey was a little unsure herself how it all came about. Her training took over; all those hours spent at the police gun range, and real-life scenario coaching kicked in. She withdrew her gun, rested her elbows on the ground, squinted through the rain, lined up her shot, and pulled the trigger as Nico ducked away from Sandra. Sandra had swung her weapon up in an arc when she saw Lacey move, but it was too late. Her bullet went wide.
But Lacey’s bullet struck its target true. Sandra seemed surprised for a second, then covered her left breast with her free hand and looked down to see the blood running freely down her torso. Lacey’s bullet had found its mark and lodged in the older woman’s heart.
Nico was still crouched beside her, ready to attack if need be. Lacey kept her gun trained on the woman. She had sixteen more bullets, and she’d use them all if need be.
Sandra’s knees gave way, and she crumpled in a heap on the rocky ledge, as if she were a rag doll and all her strings had just been cut.
Nico straightened and approached Sandra cautiously. The weapon had fallen from her hand and landed on the rocks with a clunk. He crouched to retrieve her gun, wincing on the way down, then put his fingers to Sandra’s neck. The rain continued to fall, pounding out a rhythm on the wet mountain top as Lacey waited.
Nico stood up and shook his head. Sandra was dead.
For a few moments, Lacey was so full of relief she forgot that she’d just taken a life. It was the first time she’d killed someone. Even though it was in the line of duty, and even though it was to protect the man she loved, she suddenly felt a wave a grief, which quickly turned to nausea.
“What’s happening up there?” Teresa’s voice was both terrified and confused. “I heard a gunshot.” Lacey hadn’t forgotten about the woman on the cliff side, but the adrenaline was still coursing so hard around her body she was almost paralyzed.
Lacey let her shaking arms rest on the ground for a few seconds as she replied, “It’s all right. You’re safe. I’m going to pull you up now.”
Hauling herself up to her knees, she tucked the gun back into the waistband of her shorts, then called to Nico, “Are you okay?” He lifted his head from where he was still studying Sandra, and Lacey could see the pain he’d been hiding now clearly showing in his eyes.
He pushed a hand over the wound in his side and grunted, then called out, “I’m coming over to help you. Sandra is dead.”
She wanted to tell him to stay where he was. To sit down and stop moving. Stop pumping all that life-giving blood onto the ground. But he was so damned stubborn she knew her demand would be ignored, so she just nodded. Once he was by her side, she’d be able to examine his wound to see how bad it really was.
Lacey shifted her focus to the girl hanging onto the cliff for dear life. She popped her head over the edge and managed to raise a smile. Teresa was clinging to the rocks like a monkey, one hand firmly grabbing the lifeline of the rope, which she’d removed from her neck and was using to anchor herself.
Relief washed over Teresa’s face when she saw Lacey. Then Nico was by her side, and together, they both reached down a hand, grasping Teresa and helping her to scramble up over the ledge. Teresa tumbled into their arms and they all collapsed in a heap on the wet rocks.
“Thank you. Oh, thank you,” Teresa said over and over as she sat on the ground looking stunned, but Lacey’s concern had now turned to her man.
