Shifting Targets by Austina Love Read Free Book Online

doesn’t get the drop on you.”
    “Don’t worry. I’ll get him out of the way.
His sweet little lady did me a big favor by putting a solid frame
on Carter.”
    “What?” A baffled expression slid across his
face.
    “Nothing.” Pike gave a slight nod before
slipping out the back door.
    He paused on the stoop to light a cigarette.
With Carter out of the way he had one less problem on his hands and
knowing the land was still theirs to use pleased him. Only one man
posed a threat to his thriving business now. One determined
son-of-a-bitch who just couldn’t let go of the past.
    He wondered if Trip would be willing to make
a trade. Whatever evidence he had might be worth trading for the
girl. I wonder, he laughed to himself. Does he love her
enough to drop this vendetta with me over his brother? We’ll soon
find out. Now that the charges against them had been dismissed,
the bank destroyed and Carter permanently ruined, Shye had gained
her revenge. Her guard would be down. If Viper isn’t willing to
make a deal, maybe the sweet vixen will. Is reclaiming her family
estate more enticing than life on the road with a man who will
never settle down? Surely a woman like her possesses a deep sense
of obligation to her ancestors.
    Now that her farm was in better hands, Pike
felt more confident with his bargaining power. He wondered which
angle to pursue. Getting rid of evidence that could send him to
prison for life would mean losing any chance of owning the
mysterious Indian woman. If he did succeed in striking a deal with
Trip, the man would ride off with the woman and business would
continue as usual. On the other hand, if Trip intended on turning
over evidence before hauling him in, he’d have done it by now. So
he knew that his nemesis wanted to see him dead. Then he’d present
proof of his guilt and use his license as a bounty hunter to make
it legal.
    Viper is definitely playing is safe. He
knows that my buddies on the force will bury anything he turns over
against me if I’m still on the loose. Meeting Shye complicated
his dilemma. Life had been easier with only one thought on his
mind—staying two steps ahead of Viper.
    This ghost woman intrigued him more than he
wanted to admit. She didn’t know it but he’d seen her ride in on
the back of Trip’s bike before the bank blew to bits. He knew she
had something to do with it. He recalled the look of fierce
determination on her face as she crept behind the building then
vanished when Carter drove away in his SUV.
    Deep in thought, he drew heavily on his smoke
while racking his brain on where she’d gone and how Carter had
sauntered back into town with a rocket launcher on his shoulder.
His black Cadillac had raced out of town as if he’d been in a big
hurry. Then suddenly he was back, running across the street
carrying two sacks of money. Whatever happened inside nobody would
ever know without a shred of evidence left behind. No surveillance
camera could’ve survived the bombs fired into that building.
    Where the hell did Carter get a weapon
like that? And where did Shye go when it all went down? The
questions plagued his mind and refused to let go. His mounting
desire for her didn’t help. She’d become an increasing part of his
everyday thoughts. He needed to know more about the rare beauty and
explore this supernatural aura surrounding her. In all the chaos
he’d lost track of her and hadn’t caught sight of how she’d made it
back out of town.
    He flicked his spent smoke to the ground and
stomped it out with his boot. There’s only one way to learn more
about this captivating Indian woman, he concluded. I have to
find her and get her away from Viper long enough to make one of
them talk.
     
    * * * *
     
    After taking a much needed break lounging
around Remle’s cabin for a couple days, Shye decided the time had
come to venture back into town and investigate the status of her
farm. The three of them had gathered at Trip’s bike to say
goodbye.
    “I