Chapter Sixteen
Cullen didn’t think. He just pulled the trigger, double-tapping it and sending two shots into Rocky’s chest.
The moment seemed to freeze with the sound of the bullets echoing through the icy air. Rocky just stood there, his face masked with shock, and the blood already spreading across the front of his coat. Finally, he crumpled, dropping first to his knees before collapsing to the ground.
With Leigh right beside him, Cullen ran toward him. And behind them, he heard Jeb shout for the EMTs to come to the backyard. Rocky still had hold of his gun, and Cullen didn’t want him having a chance to try to kill Leigh. They reached Rocky at the same time, and Leigh ripped the gun from his hand. She also frisked him for other weapons and found a backup gun and a knife in his boot holsters.
“Where’s Cecile?” Leigh asked, aiming her question at Bowen.
“I used the ATV to take her to the ambulance. I left her with the EMTs while I came back to try to help.”
Leigh released the breath she seemed to have been holding. “Thank you. You did help. Thank you for that, too.”
Cullen doubted this would be the end of the bad blood between their families, but it was a good start. It was too bad that it’d nearly taken them all being killed before it happened.
Jamie pushed himself away from the truck and staggered toward Bowen, who caught him in his arms. “You okay?” Bowen asked him.
Jamie nodded, but Cullen thought the ranch hand was far from okay. He’d likely have to be admitted to the hospital again. But at least this time, there wouldn’t be the threat of danger.
Well, maybe.
Rocky probably didn’t have much time left. He was bleeding out fast, and even the EMTs likely wouldn’t be able to keep him alive. That’s why Cullen had to press him for answers now. If not, Leigh and Jamie might never have peace of mind.
Cullen got right in Rocky’s face. “You said Alexa got herself killed? How?”
Clamming up, Rocky laid his head back on the frozen ground and looked up at the sky. Leigh didn’t stay quiet though. She read Rocky his rights. That was the smart thing to do in case Rocky survived.
“You really want to take all of this to the grave?” Cullen shrugged and shifted as if to get up. “Suit yourself. You’ll be remembered for being an idiot and a coward.”
“I’m neither of those things,” Rocky snapped. He coughed, grimaced and then gathered his breath again. “Alexa got herself killed because she hated your guts. That’s why. And she wanted me to help her set you up because she knew I could. She knew I was just that good.” He was actually bragging now, puffing up his bloody chest. “Alexa was going to bruise up her face some and get me to say I’d witnessed you assaulting her.”
Cullen felt his jaw tighten. Hell. If Alexa and Rocky had done that, it would have definitely caused him some trouble. Leigh might have had to arrest him after all. Especially with Alexa and Rocky pushing her to do just that.
“You were going to help Alexa frame Cullen?” Leigh demanded.
Rocky narrowed his eyes and gave her a defiant glare. “Yeah. But when I met her in Cullen’s bathroom the night of the party, she said she’d changed her mind, that she was giving up on Cullen and wanted Austin instead.”
Cullen gave that a moment to sink in. Yeah, he could see Alexa moving on to her next mark, and she might have enjoyed trying to twist up Austin and Kali.
“I told Alexa no, that I wasn’t going to let you off the hook,” Rocky snarled, and he aimed all that anger at Cullen. “I told her that if she didn’t go through with it, then I’d go to Leigh and rat her out.”
“I’m guessing Alexa didn’t care much for that?” Leigh prompted.
“She didn’t,” Rocky verified in a snarl. “That’s when Alexa called me, well, a lot of names. She shoved me, told me to get lost. Nobody talks to me that way.Nobody.I got the horse statue and bashed her on her idiot head.”
Cullen could see all of that playing out. See it playing out with Jamie, too. He was betting that Alexa had mentioned Jamie bringing her to the Triple R. Rocky had probably wanted to make sure Alexa hadn’t told Jamie that she was there to meet him. It would have been something similar with McNash. Rocky couldn’t risk that Alexa had told the thug about her hiring Rocky.
And that left Kali and Austin.
With everything Rocky had just spelled out for them, Cullen doubted Austin and Kali had had any part in the attacks. Austin had lied and cheated, and Kali had set up the ruse to get back at Austin, but if Rocky could have put some of this blame on them, he would have.
The EMTs came closer, but Rocky waved them off. “Nobody touches me. You think I want to live behind bars for the rest of my life? I don’t,” he said, answering his own question. He shifted his gaze to Leigh, who was staring down at him. “I want to say my piece. I want both of you to know how much I hate your guts.”
The hatred was obvious, but it didn’t enrage Cullen nearly as much as Rocky using that hatred to try to kill Leigh. He darn near succeeded, too. Any one of those fired shots could have left her dead.
“You’re the one who called me,” Jamie said. “Threatened me. You told me you’d kill me if I went to the cops.”
Cullen glanced at his ranch hand, who was now being treated by the EMTs. Jamie was still plenty shaky. With good reason. He’d just come close to dying again. But there was some steel in Jamie’s eyes, too. Ditto for Bowen’s. His father moved away from Jamie to come closer to Rocky and them.