Gunfire On The Ranch. Delores Fossen

from the direction where Gabriel had said he would be. Their attacker would obviously soon know that Gabriel was back there.

      Theo leaned out, aiming low, and he fired two rounds. Almost immediately, he ducked back behind cover. Good thing, too, because the gunman fired off two rounds of his own at Theo. But Theo could also hear the man cursing. Maybe because he’d been hit. Perhaps because he realized that coming here alone had been a stupid mistake.

      That last thought had no sooner crossed his mind when Theo felt that bad feeling crawl up his spine. It was a feeling that had saved his butt a few times, so he didn’t ignore it. He pivoted, looking around him.

      And spotted the second man near Theo’s own truck.

      He was dressed all in black, armed with multiple weapons on an equipment belt. He had one weapon in his hand, as well. That’s the one he aimed at Theo.

      Theo fired first.

      He double tapped the trigger, the shots slamming directly into the man’s chest, and the guy dropped to the ground. Maybe dead or dying, but it was equally possible that he was wearing a Kevlar vest and had simply had the breath knocked out of him. If so, he could still be dangerous.

      “There’s a second gunman,” Theo called out to Gabriel. “And there might be others.”

      Of course, Gabriel didn’t need him to add that last part, but it was also, hopefully, a reminder for everyone inside to stay down. Especially Ivy. She was on the bottom floor and could easily be hit by bullets meant for Gabriel and him.

      The guy by the barn fired another couple of shots, one of them in Theo’s direction. At least one went toward Gabriel’s office, though. Maybe the guy had thermal equipment or something because he seemed to know that there was still someone in that particular room. When the goon sent another shot at the office, Theo knew he couldn’t wait.

      He leaned out and fired.

      Not low this time.

      Theo sent some rounds in the area of the shooter’s chest. And finally the shots stopped. Just like that, it was quiet again. Theo didn’t hear any moaning or sounds of pain. Definitely didn’t hear anyone trying to run away.

      It was a risk. Anything he did at this point could be, but Theo left the porch and ran toward his truck, where the second gunman was still on the ground. He kept his gun ready, kept watch around him, too, but as he approached the man, he didn’t see any movement.

      But he did see blood.

      It was on the ground around the guy, which meant he hadn’t been wearing Kevlar after all. Theo touched his fingers to the man’s neck.

      Dead.

      He didn’t curse, though that’s what he wanted to do. Maybe the other one was still alive.

      Using shrubs for cover, Theo started making his way to the barn. “I’m back here,” he called out to Gabriel.

      But calling out to him wasn’t necessary because Theo soon spotted the sheriff at the back of the house. Gabriel was closer to the barn now, heading toward the first gunman. And he wasn’t alone. There was another man with Gabriel. One of the hands no doubt.

      “Are the hired killers dead?” Ivy asked, and that’s when Theo realized she was at one of the blasted-out windows.

      “Get down!” Theo ordered her.

      He hurried past Ivy but not before he got a glimpse of her face. She was too pale and had a death grip on the gun she’d taken from her brother’s desk, but she appeared to be unharmed. Physically, anyway. This had to be triggering flashbacks of her parents’ murders. Also triggering new fears of the danger to her son and family.

      Gabriel and the hand got to the gunman ahead of Theo, and Theo braced himself for Gabriel to say the guy was dead. He didn’t.

      “Ivy, call an ambulance,” Gabriel shouted. “Tell the medics to hurry.”

      Theo soon figured out why the hurry part was necessary. Just like the guy in the front yard, this one had gunshots to the chest, and he was bleeding out fast. Theo kicked away the guy’s weapon just as Gabriel got right in the man’s face.

      “Who hired you?” Gabriel demanded, sounding very much like the lawman that he was.

      The guy shook his head, and he opened his mouth as if to answer. But he didn’t. His eyelids drifted down, and his head flopped back, prompting Gabriel to check for a pulse.

      “He’s still alive,” Gabriel said, glancing at Theo. “Go back in and check on Ivy and the others. Ivy still has my phone so tell her to disarm the security system. Also let Jameson know what’s going on.”

      Theo didn’t like leaving Gabriel out there with just the hand, but he soon saw two other men making their way toward them. Not gunmen. These were dressed like ranch hands.

      “I heard Gabriel,” Ivy volunteered. Which meant she was still too close to the blasted window. “I turned off the alarm.”

      Good, because the sooner Theo got in the house, the sooner he could chew her out for taking a risk like standing too close to the window. But he didn’t get a chance to even start the chewing out. By the time he was through the door and into the foyer, Ivy was already headed up the stairs. Theo shut the door and followed her.

      She stopped at the top of the stairs, looked at him, and he saw that her bottom lip was trembling. Actually, she was trembling all over.

      “There really could be others?” she asked. Her voice was as shaky as the rest of her.

      “Maybe.” And he hated that he even had to say that to her because it certainly didn’t help with her frayed nerves. “We just don’t know who or what we’re dealing with right now.”

      She nodded. But didn’t budge. “I need a second to calm down. I don’t want Nathan to see me like this.”

      Theo understood that. As a single mom, she probably wanted to be strong for her kid. But she took more than a second, and the trembling seemed to be getting worse. He figured it was a mistake, but since Theo didn’t know what the heck else to do, he put his arm around her.

      Ivy automatically stiffened. Maybe because the last time she’d been in his arms, they’d still been lovers. But there was no trace of that attraction now, and Theo heard her try to choke back a sob.

      She pulled away from him, hiking up her chin. Or rather, trying. She wasn’t doing a very good job of it until one of the doors opened and Jameson stuck out his head.

      “Are you okay?” Jameson asked, his attention going straight to his sister.

      She gave another nod. “Gabriel’s with one of the gunmen, the one who’s still alive. The other guy’s dead. Theo had to shoot him.”

      Jameson’s attention went to Theo then, and he stepped back when Jodi came out of the room and into the hall. She didn’t hurry to Theo. She didn’t curse him, either. Considering that he hadn’t contacted her in a while, he deserved the cursing.

      Ivy didn’t linger in the hall, though. She pushed past all of them and hurried into the room, no doubt to see her son.

      “You came because of these gunmen?” Jodi asked him.

      “Yeah,” Theo verified. “I tried to stop this.”

      Jodi made a sound of understanding, and this time she went to him. Just as he’d done to Ivy, Jodi hugged him. For a couple of seconds, anyway. But then she eased back and punched him in the arm.

      Hard.

      “That’s for not calling me.” She punched him again. “That’s for letting me think you might be dead or dying somewhere.”

      The emotion surprised him. So did the tears that sprang to his sister’s eyes. Jodi wasn’t the crying sort. Or at least she hadn’t been the last time he’d seen her. But she hadn’t been engaged to Gabriel Beckett then. Obviously, his