“This is a problem,” he said finally, standing up and walking to the window. “A real problem.”
“The storm?” Gina asked.
“The storm, the timing, all of it.” George turned back to face them. “See, I was supposed to meet someone here today. Someone with something very valuable. And when people don’t show up for meetings in my line of work, it usually means one of two things.”
Nick didn’t like where this was heading. “Which are?”
“Either they got arrested, or they got smart and decided to disappear.” George’s hand rested on his jacket. “Either way, it means loose ends.”
“What kind of loose ends?” Joe asked.
George smiled, but it wasn’t friendly anymore. “The kind that can identify me. The kind that know I was here.”
The room went dead quiet except for the wind outside.
“We don’t know anything,” Brooke said quickly.
“You know what I look like. You know I was here on this date. You know I was here to meet someone.” George shrugged. “That’s more than enough to cause me problems.”
Unease crept through Nick as he realized what George was getting at. “So, what are you saying?”
“I’m saying that when loose ends start adding up, sometimes the smartest thing is to tie them off.” George’s voice was matter-of-fact, like he was discussing the weather. “Clean slate.”
Kelsey whimpered. Joe went pale. Brooke shook her head. Gina stood tall, looking even more formidable than she had before, if that was possible. She was a warrior, no doubt about it.
But Nick was already moving, positioning himself where he could see both George and the rest of the group. “You’re talking about killing us.”
“I’m talking about problem-solving,” George corrected. “Nothing personal, just business.”
“That’s not just business,” Nick said.
George pulled his jacket open enough to show the gun clearly. “Actually, it is. See, my contact was supposed to show up with some...merchandise. Very important merchandise that belongs to some very serious people. When that merchandise doesn’t change hands as scheduled, those serious people start asking questions.”
“What kind of merchandise?” Gina asked.
“The kind you don’t ask about.” George checked his watch again. “The point is, I can’t go back empty-handed, and I can’t have witnesses floating around who might connect me to this location.”
Nick could see Gina processing this. Her eyes narrowed, and her shoulders went even straighter. “So, you’re just going to murder five innocent people?”
“Oh, I know for a fact you are not all innocent. One of you knows exactly what is happening and could end this right now. The rest of you...” He shrugged. “Collateral damage. You just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Unfortunate, but not unprecedented.”
“You’re insane,” Joe said, repositioning himself so he was halfway out of the tent.
Nick gave a slight nod. He wasn’t sure what was happening or who he could trust, but at least Joe seemed to recognize that things were shifting fast and danger was closing in. Provided Joe wasn’t the one working with George, that could be a good thing.
But if not Joe, then who? Kelsey, jittery and jumpy as a rabbit? Brooke, so fixated on her training plan, she was willing to risk them all? Or Gina...the memory of her lips lingered even now, sweet enough to blur his instincts when he needed them sharp.
“I’m not insane. I’m practical.” George moved to the center of the room, positioning himself where he could watch everyone. “The storm’s the perfect cover. Tragic hiking accident. Bodies won’t be found until spring, if at all.”
Nick caught Gina’s eye. Fear flickered there, maybe even resolve. Or maybe it was something else, something harder to read. He wanted to trust her, but the stakes were too high to risk being wrong.
George meant every word, which left Nick with one certainty: they needed to act, and they needed to act fast.
“How do we know you won’t just kill us anyway?” Nick asked, trying to keep George talking while he figured out their options. He thought again about the conversation with Brooke when she’d told him not to bring his sidearm and assuring him bear spray was enough. Had she insisted he leave his gun behind for a reason? Was his cousin involved in something he was unaware of?
With a sinking feeling, he knew it was possible. He’d heard talk among the family about how Brooke somehow came up with the money to buy her coffee shop. One of their cousins said Brooke’s dad had funded it, but another cousin said that wasn’t the case, that Brooke took out a high-interest rate loan. Was George here to collect on that loan?
Did that even make sense? The way George was talking, he was retrieving something important, but it didn’t sound like that something was money.
