Page 89 of Valor

Allen held in his surprise. They couldn’t have killed the Goddards if they were cops. But why had officers left evidence in Heather’s bag? That seemed like incredibly poor judgement. “They left evidence in Heather’s camera bag. That’s why she’s involved in this at all.”

Grady went silent for a moment. “I can’t tell you why they would do that. I didn’t know them. We had a tip come in from Sioux Falls that they were from there.”

Heather had suggested they were undercover. She had a good mind, and he hoped he had the chance to work with her again after this. “I wish they’d thrown that drive off a cliff.”

“But then Heather wouldn’t have found it, and we wouldn’t know who’s after her or why.”

True. They wouldn’t have known about the Goddard family until someone went out to see them. That could’ve been so long that there would be nothing left at the scene. People tended to leave neighbors alone unless they were invited. South Dakotans were known for giving privacy.

While the killing of the two undercover officers might have been figured out based on the case they were on, Grady had said they’d had no leads. No proof. Without Heather’s involvement, Eric might’ve gotten away with murder and theft.

“We have to make sure nothing happens to her. I won’t let her involvement in this case be for nothing.”

“Agreed.” Grady gunned his engine as he entered the freeway. “Let’s see if we can catch up to that car. They’ve got fifteen minutes on us though. Any idea where they might be headed?”

He prayed they weren’t headed back to the cave in the Badlands, but where else could they take her? They knew he would go there first, so where else might they think to take her? The thought hit him like a brick wall.

“They’ll go to my house.” It’s the one place Micha had attacked and been thwarted. The one place where the only person there was probably too incapacitated to be of any help at all. The place where Micha could get revenge.Please be okay, Dad. The thought came like an urgent prayer.

He told the dispatcher where they were headed, which gave Grady his address. He’d always been careful about keeping that information private, but now everyone would know. Not only would they see his house, but his dad’s issues would be on display.

“You’re sure?” Grady asked.

“Positive.” The more he thought about it, the surer he was.

“Then we’ll get there fast. Hold on tight.”

He could barely think about how fast the car was going. All he could think about was Heather, alone, facing Micha without Allen by her side.

CHAPTERTHIRTEEN

Heather grippedthe door handle with all her energy. Micha drove like he didn’t have a care in the world and the few other cars on the road were quick to get out of his way.

“Don’t even think about jumping out. You’ll never survive.” He glanced at her for a split-second.

She hadn’t considered that, but what did it matter? He’d already told her he was going to kill her and leave her where his half-brother could find her. How could it be that she was just as concerned about Allen finding her as she was for her own safety?

She clenched her eyes closed and prayed. Micha had told her Eric was going to pay for his mother’s medical bills, meaning he’d committed to killing Heather, Dad, and Allen. As long as he didn’t get caught, his life would be free after that.

She hadn’t tried to convince him otherwise. He was already aggressive and talking nonsense. Reason wouldn’t get through to a man facing two horrible decisions. He either had to kill people to help his mother get the care she needed or watch her die. She wasn’t ready to roll over and give up, but she understood his predicament. What would she do if her father was gravely ill? How far would she go to make sure he had everything he needed? Not as far as Micha, but the choice was horrible either way.

He turned off the interstate toward Wall Drug. The sign had always bothered her because so many people didn’t realize Wall was more than a bunch of connected stores. People lived and grew old here. It was their home. Even though tourists had to drive right by homes to get to their destination, they seemed to forget that aspect of Wall.

She wasn’t certain where he was headed until he turned down the street that would lead out to the countryside. The only house back there was Allen’s. “It was you, wasn’t it?”

“Who shot at you through the back window? Yes. Eric didn’t realize I had no experience with guns before this. I prefer knives, but he likes to stay farther away.”

“Then it was him who killed the men in Rapid City. You lied when he said he hadn’t killed yet.”

“No, that wasn’t him. That was Aaron. Eric and Aaron grew up living on that farm. They were cousins who hated rural living, and both went to college and never looked back. Aaron had even taken on his mother’s maiden name to separate himself from his father. That all changed when the people who bought up the land came to him looking for mineral testing.”

“The rose quartz,” she surmised.

“You’ve done your homework,” Micha snorted.

“Agent Peterson did.” She hoped that mentioning a name Micha hadn’t heard before would frighten him. If she was going to die anyway, she’d make sure Micha knew he’d be found.

“Who’s that?” He flicked his gaze toward her and back at the road.

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