That’s why they had to go for it.
“I’ll take the shot,” Cullen told her.
She nodded, her breath mixing with the cold air and creating a wispy fog between them. “On the count of three, you fire, and I’ll run to the side of the house. That might buy Jamie some time.”
Yeah, it would. Because the killer would turn the gun on Leigh.
“No.” Cullen couldn’t say that fast enough. “You’re not running out there.”
Leigh looked him straight in the eyes. “Neither one of us can crouch here and let Jamie die. It’s what has to be done.”
Cullen cursed, ready to argue with her, but then he spotted something he definitely hadn’t wanted to see.
Bowen.
Crouched down, his father had come out of the barn, and it was obvious he was trying to sneak up on the driver of the truck. Not directly behind it. But rather to the side. It’d be a damn good way for Bowen to get himself killed.
“What the heck is he doing?” Leigh snarled. “Text him. Tell him to get down right now.”
Even if Bowen read the text, he wouldn’t just get down. His father’s stubborn streak wasn’t reserved just for Jeb and members of his family. However, Cullen had to try, and he motioned for Bowen to drop.
He didn’t.
Bowen took aim at the back tires of the truck, and he started firing. Not one shot but a barrage of them that would almost certainly flatten the tires and prevent a quick escape. But it wasn’t escape that Cullen was immediately worried about. It was Bowen and Jamie.
The driver’s-side door flew open, and Cullen saw Jamie being dragged out of the vehicle. Now he was a human shield, and that position prevented Cullen from seeing who was holding him, especially since his captor was hunkering down.
“Keep that up, and I die,” Jamie yelled.
Again, it was the words the killer wanted him to say, and Cullen was thankful he could actually say them. Because it meant he was still alive. The killer hadn’t panicked and just taken him out.
Not yet, anyway.
However, the fact that Jamie was being forced to do all the talking meant the killer didn’t want Cullen or Leigh to hear his or her voice because they would recognize who it was.
Bowen did stop firing, and he had the sense to drop down on the ground. That, and the fact that he was on the other side of the truck from the killer, might prevent him from being shot.
Leigh levered herself up a little and took aim. Cullen had to resist the need to push her back down. To give her that small margin of cover. But she was a cop, and no way would she put her safety over Jamie’s.
“Bring the cruiser around to the back,” Jamie said.
So, the killer wasn’t panicking or giving up. He could use the cruiser to escape, and if he managed that, then Leigh wouldn’t be safe. This snake would just keep coming after her.
“I’m going to take that shot now,” Cullen whispered to Leigh. “I’ll aim for their legs. If I miss and shoot Jamie, he’ll drop down. That’ll give you a clearer shot at the killer.”
She pulled her gaze from the truck for just a second, and in that quick flash of time, he could see her trying to work out whether or not that was the right thing to do. It might or might not be. Cullen knew that. And so did she. But they had to do something before this escalated even more.
“The cruiser now,” Jamie shouted. “You’ve got one minute.”
Leigh nodded. “Take the shot,” she told Cullen.
She got into a crouch, and he knew what she had in mind. She was going to make that run to the side of her house to create a distraction. And to get herself in a better position to take a kill shot. Again, he had to do battle with his instincts to try to keep her safe. Instead, he brushed a quick kiss on her mouth and took aim.
“Now,” Cullen said.
And Leigh took off running.
Cullen kept the shot low, going for the edge of the boot that he saw behind Jamie’s, and he pulled the trigger. The shot blasted through the air. So did the howl of pain.