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  The cop stationed outside her door was injured!

  He bolted forward, leaning down to feel for a pulse along the side of his neck. The beat of the cop’s heart was reassuring despite the thin trail of blood that ran down the side of his temple.

  Vanessa!

  His heart lodged in his throat as he rushed through the front door hanging ajar, the frame cracked from where it had been forced open. He hurried, hoping and desperately praying that he wasn’t too late and that Vanessa wasn’t already dead at Boyd’s hand.

  Why hadn’t he brought his phone? He wanted to kick himself for not being better prepared.

  He swept his gaze over the darkened interior of the house, searching for signs of an intruder. The TV was still in the corner, and he noticed a laptop sitting on an end table. Clearly, robbery wasn’t the motive.

  Moving silently and with extreme caution, he made his way through the living room, toward the kitchen. He wished he’d grabbed the injured cop’s duty weapon.

  A masked man stood near the back door, holding a cardboard box awkwardly against his chest. Even from where Isaac stood several feet away, he could hear a whimpering sound inside.

  The intruder had grabbed the puppies? Why?

  “Hey! Stop!”

  The masked man jerked at the sound of Isaac’s voice. Isaac lunged toward the guy at the exact same time the intruder threw the box of puppies at him and pulled out a knife.

  Isaac instinctively caught the box, risking a quick glance inside to see that the four puppies were okay. He set the box on the floor and confronted the masked man, his combat training instinctively kicking in. He settled in a fighting stance keeping his arms loose at his side. Without warning, he abruptly lashed out with his booted foot, aiming squarely for the wrist holding the knife.

  The blade clattered to the floor.

  His surge of satisfaction faded as the intruder immediately turned and escaped through the back door.

  Isaac took off after him. No way was he letting Boyd Sullivan get away!

  The guy was smart, taking a zigzag path through the trees and leaping over bushes. Isaac easily kept pace, and pushed himself to close the gap between them.

  Boyd would not get away!

  The masked man glanced over his shoulder in time to see Isaac closing in. He instantly changed directions, running directly out onto the two-lane road leading toward the south gate.

  Isaac didn’t slow his pace, hoping the cop on duty at the gate would see the masked man, too. A sudden squeal of brakes shattered the night, followed by a loud thump-thump.

  Stumbling into the clearing, he stared in horror at the body of the masked man lying off to the side of the road in a boneless heap.

  The truck driver slid out from behind the wheel. “He came out of nowhere, running right in front of me! I couldn’t stop!”

  “I know, it’s okay.” Isaac crossed over and checked for a pulse.

  Nothing. The man was dead. Just like Jake.

  No, don’t go there. He gave himself a mental shake and looked up at the driver, who was on the phone with the cops.

  Isaac hesitated, then reached down to remove the mask. He’d expected to see a familiar face staring up at him.

  But the dead man wasn’t Boyd Sullivan. He was someone Isaac had never seen before.

  EIGHT

  The sound of a shout followed by several loud thuds brought Vanessa out of a dead sleep. Worried about her brother, she ran into the main living area, searching wildly for Aiden.

  He was crouched next to the box of puppies on the floor, attempting to soothe them.

  “What happened?” she asked.

  “I came out of my room to see Isaac running outside and the box sitting in the middle of the kitchen.” Aiden’s gaze was troubled. “I left the puppies in the living room when I went to bed and can’t see why Isaac would move them.”

  Vanessa didn’t understand it, either. Why would Isaac have been there? She heard a moan from the front of the house and quickly responded. When she saw the cop propped against the side of her house, she dropped to her knees, her nursing training rising to the forefront. “Senior Airman McDonald, are you okay?”

  “Someone hit me.” The cop touched the right side of his temple with a wince. “I’m sorry, ma’am. I shouldn’t have been caught unaware.”

  “It’s not your fault.” Vanessa glanced around her front yard, shivering in the cool night. Then she focused on the injured cop. “How long were you unconscious?”

  He shrugged his shoulders. “No idea.”

  She didn’t like being out in the open like this. What if Boyd Sullivan or his accomplice was out there watching them right now? “Let’s get you inside, okay? I’ll call for an ambulance.”

  “I need to contact my captain.” Senior Airman McDonald didn’t look happy with the idea of reporting in. It probably wouldn’t be easy to admit someone had sneaked up on him, knocking him unconscious. “He needs to know what happened here.”

  She couldn’t disagree. And where was Isaac? Aiden saw him running away. Had he chased the intruder? Was it possible he’d already caught Boyd?

  She hoped and prayed he had.

  Propping her shoulder beneath McDonald’s arm, she helped him upright. As they made their way inside, Isaac rushed through the house, stopping abruptly when he saw her, relief filling his eyes.

  “I’m glad you’re okay,” he said. “Can I borrow your phone? I left mine behind, and we need to contact Captain Blackwood ASAP.”

  She assisted McDonald into a kitchen chair, then went into her bedroom to fetch the mobile phone she routinely charged at night.

  She wasn’t sure why Isaac had shown up in the middle of the night, but was grateful for his impeccable timing.

  “Here.” She handed him the phone. “What happened? Did you catch the man who hit the senior airman?”

  Isaac shook his head. “I chased him, but he ran out onto the street directly in the path of a truck. I think he hoped to get past it as a way to lose me, but his plan didn’t work.” He hesitated, then added, “He’s dead.”

  “Boyd is dead?” she repeated, torn between horror and relief that the nightmare might be over.

  “Not Boyd,” Isaac corrected. “Some guy I never saw before in my life.”

  “What?” Vanessa didn’t understand.

  “He was trying to steal the puppies. He threw the box at me, then pulled a knife. I managed to disarm him, and when he took off, I chased him.”

  “He hit a cop to steal puppies?” The whole scenario didn’t make any sense.

  “I don’t understand it, either.” Isaac turned away and spoke into the phone. “Justin? You need to come to Vanessa’s place. It’s an active crime scene.”

  Vanessa couldn’t hear the other side of the conversation, so she focused on the cop. She pulled a bag of frozen peas out and handed it to McDonald. “Use this as an ice pack.”

  He gratefully accepted the frozen peas, pressing the bag to his temple.

  She peered into his eyes, assessing his pupils. They looked equal and reactive to light. “Do you feel dizzy? Confused? Sick to your stomach?”

  “I have a headache, that’s all.”

  She wasn’t sure she believed him; Security Forces cops didn’t like to admit to weakness. “Don’t lie to me, Senior Airman,” she warned. “Head injuries are no joke. You could die from bleeding into your brain.”

  He stared at her for a moment, then admitted, “A little dizzy and sick, but nothing serious.”

  That’s all she needed to know. “Fine. I recommend you go to the emergency room for a CT scan.”

  McDonald didn’t argue, which only convinced her he was hurting far more than he’d let on. She glanced at Aiden, who was trying to hold all four puppies in his arms at the same time, his expression laden with guilt.

  “They
’re okay, Aiden.” She placed a reassuring hand on her brother’s shoulder.

  “I should have either slept on the sofa the way I usually do, or taken them into the bedroom with me,” Aiden said.

  “It’s not your fault.”

  “I almost lost them!” Aiden’s voice rose in agitation. “Isaac said that man tried to steal them away from us. Who would do such an awful thing?”

  “I don’t know.” Vanessa couldn’t make sense out of any of it. “What matters now is that the puppies are safe, and Senior Airman McDonald will be okay, too.”

  Unfortunately, the masked man was dead.

  If not Boyd, then who was he? And why did he want the puppies?

  Justin Blackwood and his K-9, Quinn, along with two more cops, arrived at the same time as the ambulance. Vanessa gave a brief update to the medics about McDonald’s condition and then stepped back so they could get him to the hospital. Then she crossed over to join Justin and Isaac.

  “You just happened to be walking by Vanessa’s house and noticed the injured officer?” Justin asked in an incredulous tone.

  “Yes.” Isaac met his gaze squarely. “If you must know, I had a nightmare and couldn’t sleep. I decided a walk would help clear my head.”

  “Without your phone?” Justin pressed, clearly upset with how the situation had been handled.

  Vanessa instinctively moved closer to Isaac.

  “Yes, without my phone. The nightmare knocked me off balance. It was a stupid move. I should have been better prepared.”

  “Isaac isn’t the bad guy here,” she pointed out.

  “I know.” Justin let out a heavy sigh. “Go on. You were walking past Vanessa’s house when you noticed the injured cop. You didn’t have a phone so you made sure he was breathing, then went inside.”

  “I needed to make sure Vanessa and Aiden were okay.” Isaac glanced at her, then continued with the story about how the intruder was near the back door, holding the box of puppies.

  “Why would he take the puppies?” Justin demanded. “A shot at you earlier, then this? It doesn’t make sense.”

  “I know,” Vanessa admitted.

  “It’s definitely weird. When he saw me, he threw the box and pulled a knife. I disarmed him, and he took off running.” Isaac hesitated, then shrugged. “I thought it was Boyd, so I kept after him. Then he tried to cross the road in front of the truck, I assume in an attempt to lose me. But he was hit instead. I believe he must have broken his neck on impact.” The words were carefully articulated and she sensed it wasn’t easy for him to talk about this. “I removed his mask and confirmed he wasn’t Boyd Sullivan.”

  “Who was he?” Justin asked.

  “Some guy I’ve never seen before.”

  “Walk us through the path you took,” Justin ordered taking Quinn by the leash and stepping forward.

  Vanessa didn’t want to leave Aiden alone, but there were two cops standing by, so she pulled on a rumpled Air Force sweatshirt emblazoned with the motto “Aim High, Fly, Fight, Win” and followed Isaac and Justin outside.

  The masked intruder had taken a jagged path through the base neighborhood and when they emerged from the trees, she saw the truck sitting in the center of the road, the apparent driver speaking to a couple of cops she assumed had come over from the south gate.

  An ambulance stood by, waiting for direction. There was obviously no rush to remove the deceased man. Vanessa had the distinct urge to verify for herself that it wasn’t Boyd lying there.

  It wasn’t.

  And like Isaac, she’d never seen this man before in her life.

  “I don’t recognize him,” Justin said thoughtfully. “We’ll need his fingerprints to verify he’s not military.”

  “Can we take him to the morgue?” one of the medics asked.

  Justin examined the front of the semitruck, likely making note of the new dent. The two cops from the south gate crossed over to join them, greeting the officers with a sharp salute.

  “Did you see what happened?” Justin asked.

  “Yes, sir.” The airman first class named Steele stepped forward. “I caught a glimpse of a man running into the road in front of the truck. The semitruck couldn’t stop in time and made contact with the pedestrian. He flew up in the air and landed at the side of the road on his head.”

  The airman first class’s account validated Isaac’s statement, so Justin gestured at the medic. “Go ahead and take him to the morgue.” Then he turned toward Airman First Class Steele. “I want to see your report first thing in the morning.”

  “Yes, sir.” The airman first class saluted again, then turned away.

  Vanessa glanced between Isaac and Justin. “Is it possible this could be linked to the missing dogs and the Olio Crime Organization?”

  “I don’t see how,” Justin admitted.

  “I stand by my earlier theory,” Isaac said. “I believe it’s possible members of the Olio Crime Organization are attempting to infiltrate Canyon Air Force Base. Maybe they returned to steal the puppies back?”

  “Why would they?” Justin countered. “What value is there to the puppies? Besides, why try to infiltrate the base at all? There are easier places, dozens of other cities in the area, in which to organize crime.”

  “Maybe it’s military related,” Vanessa pressed. She was sure there was something else going on, something other than Boyd’s killing spree, which really was bad enough. “You must know something about what they’re involved in.”

  Justin hesitated, shrugged. “I’m really not at liberty to say. Base Command hasn’t given me clearance to discuss it.”

  Vanessa tried not to show her impatience. “This masked man attacked a cop, broke into my home and tried to steal four puppies, and you’re not allowed to discuss it with me?”

  Isaac put a reassuring hand on her arm. “He’s just following orders.”

  Vanessa had been in the Air Force for six years, going in right after she’d graduated from a four-year nursing program. She knew that the command structure was hierarchical and teams often worked in silos. But this issue impacted her on a personal level.

  Shouldn’t that count for something?

  “You brought me in when I received a red rose from Boyd. I’ve been attacked twice, maybe a third time if you assume I was the shooter’s victim at the airfield the other day. Why shut me out now?”

  Justin’s expression was noncommittal. “I’ll discuss your concerns with our Base Commander Lieutenant General Hall.”

  Great. That would help about as much as placing a bandage over a brisk arterial bleed. Isaac’s arm slid around her waist and he steered her away from Justin and Quinn, back toward her house.

  She leaned against Isaac, grateful for his support. When they were out of Justin’s earshot, she glanced up at him. “I’m glad you were there to protect us.”

  Isaac gently hugged her. “Me, too.”

  It was scary how much she was coming to depend on Isaac. And how much she cared about him on a personal level.

  Keeping their relationship on friendship terms felt impossible.

  Despite being burned in the past by Leo, she wanted more. Much more.

  * * *

  Isaac paused outside Vanessa’s back door, fighting the urge to kiss her.

  Not just because he was relieved to find her safe and sound, but because he needed her.

  Yet at the same time, it wasn’t easy to trust his instincts. These circumstances were anything but normal, and he knew that feelings were amplified in crisis situations.

  He was grateful to have been able to prevent her from being harmed yet again. When he’d thought she might be lying inside the house, injured or worse, he’d prayed to God that he’d find her in time.

  Praying had felt right, and it occurred to him that maybe he’d been wrong to shy away from his faith.

 
Maybe God was watching over them.

  The thought brought him a sense of peace.

  “I’m so glad the puppies are safe,” Vanessa said, flashing a relieved smile. “Losing them would have been a huge setback for Aiden.”

  “I know. Just like Beacon’s head injury has set me back.” Was that why the nightmare had returned with such vengeance? It was as if he’d been right there, living the experience all over again. “I think that’s why I was plagued by a recurring nightmare tonight.”

  “Oh, Isaac, I’m sorry about Beacon and your nightmare, but thank you so much for arriving in time.” Vanessa lifted up on her tiptoes and brushed his rough cheek with a light kiss. Before he could haul her into his arms for a proper kiss, she moved away and went through the back door into the kitchen.

  He followed her inside and found Aiden corralling the puppies from the wet newspaper. The young man glanced up at his sister with a hesitant smile. “Even as scared as they were, they didn’t make a mess in the box.”

  “I’m glad to hear it.” Vanessa helped dispose of the soiled newspaper and then washed her hands at the sink as her brother followed suit.

  “Aiden, will it bother you too much if I camp out on the sofa for what’s left of the night?” Isaac asked. “I don’t want to leave you and your sister alone.”

  “I don’t mind.” Aiden tightened his grip on the box. “But the puppies are staying in my room with me.”

  “Understandable,” Isaac agreed. “I don’t want to make you uncomfortable, either.”

  Aiden glanced at his sister, then back at Isaac. “I’d feel better having someone to protect us here, inside the house,” he said frankly. “It’s obvious having a cop stationed outside isn’t good enough.”

  Isaac silently agreed, although he suspected Justin would take issue with the young man’s assessment. “Great, thanks.”

  Aiden nodded and headed down the short hallway to his bedroom, disappearing inside.

  “That’s settled,” Vanessa said. “I’ll find a spare blanket and pillow.”