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A shiver snaked down her spine. Much like the damage to Jackson’s SUV, this was so over-the-top destructive that she had trouble coming to grips with it. It seemed impossible that a twenty-eight-year-old murder had spurred this on.

But it was the only conclusion that made sense. Her Uncle Mark had been killed, and now these men wanted her dead, too.

And they didn’t seem to care if they took a Texas Ranger down with them.

“Looks like our pals are back,” Jackson drawled.

She turned to look outside. Deputy Green and Deputy Sewell stood outside their respective vehicles, staring at the damaged motel in apparent disbelief.

“Well, at least now they know we weren’t lying earlier,” she murmured.

“Yeah. This place looks even worse than my SUV.” Jackson sighed and pulled out his phone. She watched his expression as he listened to the other end of the line. “Hey, Captain. We have big trouble. Nina is a target and as one of our own, we need to get on top of this as quickly as possible.”

She couldn’t hear their boss’s comments on the other end of the phone, but it didn’t take long for Jackson to fill Captain Owens in on the recent events.

A moment later, Jackson said, “I need your approval to take over this case. And I’d like some assistance.” He paused, then said, “Great. Thanks.” He lowered the phone and punched in another number.

“Who are you calling?” Nina asked.

He held up a finger. “Hey, Creed. I need your help. Can you get to the Sunset Motel in Swan, ASAP? We’re on a case, and I’ll give you the details when you get here. Thanks.”

Nina knew Creed Ramsey was another Texas Ranger. When Jackon finished the call, she asked, “How far away is Creed?”

“An hour away in Dallas.” Jackson gestured to Green and Sewell, who were making their way toward them. “We’ll be here for a while, but then we’re getting out of here.”

She nodded, thinking about the photograph of her mother she still had tucked in her pocket. She didn’t dare bring it out now as Jackson opened the door for the deputies, but she knew she needed to confess about taking it from her uncle’s crime scene very soon.

Maybe having her mother’s identity would help them figure out why this was happening.

“What in the blazes happened here?” Sewell demanded. His bald head was shiny with sweat.

“Same thing that happened to my SUV,” Jackson replied. “Two gunmen in a black or dark gray truck drove in and fired shots at us.”

“Did you get a better look at them this time?” Green asked.

Jackson shook his head. “They had me outgunned in a big way. My goal was to hold them off long enough for you guys to get here.”

“Yeah, I guess I can understand that,” Green admitted. He shook his head slowly. “These guys are serious about their intent to kill you. I’m just glad you’re both okay.”

“Thank you.” Nina was happy to see the deputies seemed more sympathetic about their plight. “Did the crime scene techs find out anything new at my uncle’s cabin?”

“Not yet,” Sewell said. “There was no phone on the body, so we think for sure the real shooter took it. The guy didn’t have any ID on him, but the techs took fingerprints. We’ll run them through the system once we’re finished processing this crime scene.”

“Get them through the system ASAP,” Jackson said in a firm tone. “We need that ID verified.”

Green looked as if he wanted to argue. But his fellow deputy spoke up first.

“Wait, are you taking the case away from us?” Sewell demanded.

“Yes.” Jackson didn’t look the least bit apologetic. “This is officially a Texas Ranger case. We’re not staying in town and if the bad guys keep finding us, the case will cross jurisdictional lines anyway, which makes it our problem. I want those prints put through the system ASAP.”

Sewell and Green exchanged a long glance. Nina wondered if they’d continue to protest, but they didn’t. Despite their obvious annoyance, Sewell spoke up. “I’ll still need your statements for our report. Even though the report will end up in your hands.”

“I understand.” Jackson quickly described how they’d arrived at the motel. He informed them the room was booked under her name, which made the deputies glance at her again. “I think it was only about twenty minutes, give or take a few before the shooters arrived.”

“And you have no idea how they found you?” Green pressed.

“No. Unless they followed you and saw us get dropped off here.” Jackson leveled Green with a solemn glare. “You’re not involved with them, are you?”