Harlequin Intrigue April 2021--Box Set 2 of 2 Carol Ericson (short books to read TXT) 📖

“Killing Cove isn’t going to make up for the past, Tad. If he could go back and change what happened, I’m sure he would.” She’d recognized the killer. Beams of soft moonlight passed through the trees and highlighted her every move. She peeled the Velcro straps away at her sides and tossed her Kevlar to the ground. “But everything that happened in Delaware? That was because of me. You said it yourself—one of us is going down.” Blood-tinged rain rolled down her face in uneven lines. She shifted her weight between both feet and raised her fists. “Let him go. I’m the one you really want.”

She was baiting a serial killer, putting herself at risk in an attempt to save one of her deputies. Former deputies. Dylan struggled to keep the blade from penetrating his artery as Marrow increased the pressure.

“What’s to stop me from getting everything I want?” Marrow asked.

“Because there are five of us and one of you.” The muscle in Remi’s jaw ticked, and Dylan recognized the lie for what it was. There was no backup. No one else coming to save them. She was giving Dylan a chance to escape.

“I like those odds.” Marrow released his hold and Dylan ducked out from his reach.

The killer lunged forward, knife in hand.

Remi pulled a small knife from her ankle a split second before Marrow struck.

“No!” Dylan lunged.

Catching Marrow around the waist, he held tight. An elbow connected with the hypersensitive nerves around his temple and snapped his head back. Wrenching Marrow over his midsection, Dylan propelled the three of them down a steep incline.

In his next breath, cold water consumed all of them from head to toe. He lost his footing then kicked hard to get his head above water. Fisting Tad Marrow’s shirt with one hand to keep from being dragged under the surface, he rocketed his fist into the killer’s head. “Get your damn hands off of her.”

Marrow fell back into the inky wet darkness, pulling Remi with him into the depths.

Her scream cut off as she disappeared right in front of Dylan.

Bubbles tickled along his face and neck as he dove. Weeds and algae clung to him as Marrow pushed Remi toward the bottom of the lake.

He stretched to reach the killer, trying to wrench Marrow away from her, but the water slowed him down. Pressure built in his lungs. Remi and Marrow spun in circles, each trying to get the upper hand until Marrow’s blade carved through the water. Toward Remi.

Dylan gripped both hands around Marrow’s arm and pulled him back. Time distorted into a cold fluid as Dylan wrapped his arms and legs around Marrow in an attempt to weigh him down. His heart threatened to beat straight out of his chest as dark outlines appeared above the surface. Stained water blossomed around him, and he realized he was still bleeding from the stab wound he’d sustained. Didn’t matter. He just had to hold on, had to give Remi a chance. He’d promised to keep her safe, and he’d do whatever it took to keep his word. For her. He pulled them toward the bottom of the lake, and his lower back finally hit silt and sand.

Marrow’s attempt to free himself became sluggish. A series of jerks coursed through the killer’s body, but Dylan still wouldn’t let go. The man had somehow escaped death, killed twenty-seven people and attempted to kill two others, including Remi. He wasn’t going anywhere.

Several flashlight beams filtered down from the surface, and then she was there. Right in front of him. Long black hair floated around her beautiful face. Remi slid her hands over his. Her eyes settled on him, and the pressure in his lungs and the pain in his side disappeared. There was only Remi.

She smoothed her thumb across the back of his hand, silently pleading for him to let go. But Marrow had beaten death once. There were no guarantees he’d spend the rest of his life behind bars for what he’d done or if the DA could tie him to the other murders all across the country. Every second the bastard lived, Remi’s life would be at stake. Tad Marrow would never stop coming for her.

Remi set her fingers over Dylan’s mouth and shook her head. Bubbles sped toward the surface as Marrow went still his grip. Fisting her hands in his shirt, she closed the distance between them and turned his head toward her. Her lips met his, and the past two years, the New Castle Killer investigation, the scene at Del Howe’s cabin—it all faded until one moment remained. He and Remi sitting at the kitchen table eating the peanut butter, jelly and chip sandwiches, her smile brighter and more freeing than anything he’d ever experienced. He’d known then. He’d known, no matter what happened between them or if she’d discovered the truth, he wouldn’t be able to let her go. Not again. She’d become more than his chief over these past six months.

She was everything.

Dylan released Marrow, his arms and legs heavy. His chief shoved the killer toward the surface. Kicking off the bottom of the lake, Dylan followed, and the pain returned. Blood stained the water around him as hints of sunrise broke through the surrounding woods. Reality sped up as he crashed through the surface and clawed his way toward shore. He collapsed onto his back, staring up at the last remnants of storm clouds.

Reed dragged the killer’s unconscious form from the water and started counting off chest compressions. Watson breathed into his mouth, and within a minute, Marrow choked up fistfuls of water. Foster turned the man onto his side, his expression guarded as he pulled a set of cuffs from his lower back.

And Remi... She stood over them all, every bit the woman and deputy chief who’d gone out of her way to protect her team. She wiped a trail of blood from her mouth before helping Reed roll the killer to his stomach.