“Don’t defy me, son,” Dan warned. “It never ends well. Now, back away.”
Avery stared up into the burning eyes of Seth Ryland. Though her vision blurred, she could see what she hadn’t seen before—the resemblance between Seth Ryland and her own biological father.
She tried to bring her knees up, but Seth’s body pinned hers to the cold concrete floor, his hands choking the life out of her.
A loud bang sounded, echoing off the walls.
Seth jerked, his eyes widened. “No...” he said, “you didn’t.” Then he dropped down on Avery, his hands slackening around her throat.
Warm liquid soaked into Avery’s clothes as she dragged in what breath she could. Gathering her returning strength, she pushed and shoved until she could roll Seth’s limp body to the side.
Avery sucked in a rush of air, breathing in and out several times before she sat up. Bree lay motionless on the floor behind her. More than anything, Avery wanted to check for a pulse, give her CPR or anything to keep her alive.
With a gun pointed at her chest, all she could do to help Bree was to use her body to shield Bree and try to talk Dan out of killing another soul.
In a cold, measured tone, Dan said, “It’s not the way I would’ve chosen for you to die, but Sarah will watch, nonetheless. You’ll pay for her choice to forsake her vows and disappear with my children. The choice that cast suspicion on me and ruined my life.”
“You ruined your own life. She wouldn’t have left, wouldn’t have abandoned her children if she’d thought she had any other choice.” Avery poked her finger toward Dan. “You’re the villain, the monster who drove her away. You’re the one who chose violence. You ruined your own career. You’re a monster and a murderer, all to prove your power over women. You disgust me.”
“I am your father. You and your sister would not exist if not for me.”
“You’ll never be my father,” Avery said. “You have no idea what it means to be a father. You’re nothing but a sperm donor. Nothing.”
His eyes narrowed. “Whoever raised you forgot to teach you how to talk to your elders. Your betters.” Dan moved slowly, circling her.
Avery rose to her hands and knees, crawling closer to Bree in an attempt to keep her body between her twin and Dan.
“Are you watching this, Sarah? Can you see, or do I need to bring you closer?”
“No,” Sarah moaned. “Don’t hurt them. Take me.”
Dan shook his head, his gaze firmly fixed on Avery, where she hovered over Bree. “No, that’s not the way this ends. After thirty-four years of hiding, Sarah made the mistake of underestimating me. She thought she was smarter than me. I knew she’d come back to this shitty little town. I watched and waited. When her mother died and she showed up for her funeral, I had her. Then I set up the lure to bring in her children. I already knew one of our daughters from the photo on the news of the FBI agent involved in a sting operation. I pulled strings and got her a gig in San Antonio. Then all it took was to put her DNA up on ancestry websites and wait. I knew eventually, our babies would want to find their biological parents—the only parents they should have had if Sarah hadn’t stolen them away.”
“Parents don’t kill their children,” Avery said. “I take it Seth was your son. My brother. And you killed him.”
“Half-brother. And he was getting too cocky. Becoming a liability. He was creative in the way he killed those women and staged them. The boy always had a weakness for theatrics.”
Dan stepped forward, closer to Bree than Avery liked.
A hand touched Avery’s leg.
In her peripheral vision, Avery could see that Bree’s eyes were open. Since she was turned away, Dan wouldn’t know.
He needed to be closer for Avery to have any chance of knocking the gun out of his hand.
Avery stayed low, hoping Dan would think she was injured and couldn’t stand. She needed time to ease closer, without him knowing. She needed time to get into position before he tried to shoot her.
“Time’s up. Today is the day I keep my promise to your mother. It’s the day her babies die in front of her. The day she pays for the choice of leaving me.”
He raised his hand, aiming at Avery’s chest.
“You’re right.” Avery pushed to her feet. “It’s time.”
Bree rolled over and swung her leg out in a fierce sweep, catching Dan’s ankles as he pulled the trigger.
The bullet went wide.
Dan staggered backward, off balance.
