Voices?
Oh, hell.Someone was coming.
No, not someone.A whole group of people.
I almost wept with relief when I recognised Richard leading the Wednesday Walkers through the trees like a band of arthritic Avengers.At least three of them were holding firearms.Behind them, half a dozen podcasters were complaining about the weather.
A shout went up when the group spotted Ridge.Guns came up.Three podcasters ran away, and the other three whipped out smartphones.
“Jiminy Cricket!”Richard exclaimed.“Is that man dead?”
A podcaster tiptoed forward.“Whoa, those are gunshot wounds.”He turned to his buddy.“Are you getting this?”
“Uh-huh, we’re live.”
Shit.Well, at least if there was another murder, there would be several thousand witnesses.
“Richard!”I called.“Don’t shoot me.”
“Jessalyn?Oh my goodness, is that blood on you?”
Was it?Was it?I scrubbed at my face, and where had that come from?
“H-h-he shot Ridge.”
“Who shot Ridge, hun?”one of the ladies asked.
“I don’t know; I never saw him before.And then he tried to kidnap me, but Shiro bit his leg, so he shot him, and then I took Ridge’s gun and now he’s dead.”
“Who’s dead?Not that beautiful white dog of yours?”
“No, the kidnapper.Over there somewhere.”I waved my arm along the trail.“I th-th-thought he was going to kill me.”
A podcaster came running back along the trail.“Hey, there’s another dead guy, and his face is hamburger.”
“Someone should call the police,” a gun-toting walker said.
“Ida already did that.Jessalyn, your colour doesn’t look good.”
No freaking kidding.I wasn’t sure whether to throw up or faint.
“I just need to find my dog.”
“You were walking him?”
“No, he escaped from the yard, and I went to find him, and then…and then…”
“The police will be here soon.”
Great, time for Special Agent Rimer to show up and botch another investigation.Or maybe she’d arrest me for shooting a man, and I could be reunited with Justin?Wait, did men and women go to separate prisions?
“Jessie!”Violet was running toward me with Dawson behind her.“Ohmigosh, are you okay?”
I shook my head and burst into tears as she flung her arms around me.
“Shiro’s hurt, and Ridge is dead.”Now I heard sirens in the distance.“I have to find Shiro.”
Dawson cursed liberally under his breath.“Where did you last see him?”
