Page 26 of One Night Years Ago

This is a bad idea.

Aaron and Roy squeezed into the backseat on either side of Hunter. It was a tight fit for the three of them. James rode shotgun, looking straight into the distance. The man whose name he didn’t know drove the car.

A few minutes later, Hunter realized they were heading to the cliffs that had originally given Sharp’s Cove its name. Hunter had been to the cliffs once since getting out of prison. He’d wanted to see if they were as beautiful as he remembered, and he’d ended up spending the night outside, looking at the stars.

He knew he could still overpower the men. In his mind he saw himself headbutting the retired sheriff and taking the gun from him. He’d use his shoulder to ram Roy against the window before pointing the gun at the driver and politely requesting that he stop the car. But suddenly he was so tired, and violence couldn’t always be the answer.

“You know where we’re going, don’t you?” Roy asked almost gleefully.

“I didn’t hurt Natalie or Lanie.”

“Don’t say her name. Don’t you fucking dare say my daughter’s name!” Jones spat out.

“Stay calm, James, stay calm. He’s going to pay for what he did to Lanie. To both of them,” Aaron Bowmann promised.

The driver parked the vehicle in the visitor’s parking next to the cliffs.

Such civic behavior.

He let himself be pushed out of the vehicle. He looked up at the stars. They were brighter than he’d ever seen them before. From where he was standing, he could smell the fresh ocean air.

“We’re going to hurt you like you hurt our daughters, and then we’re going to throw you off the cliffside. The birds will feast on your eyes and your entrails.”

“That’s very poetic,” Hunter said caustically. “I still didn’t hurt either of your daughters.”

“Don’t talk about them!” James screamed, his voice made shrill by grief. Too late, Hunter realized the restaurant owner had a wrench in his hand. He whipped it towards him. Hunter brought up his arm to stop it from reaching his face.

His arm went numb almost immediately. By the time he stood up, the four men surrounded him. Suddenly, his odds didn’t seem that good anymore—because they were armed and because he didn’t want to fight them. Family men who thought they were doing the right thing, protecting their daughters.

“I’m not going to fight you.”

Aaron Bowmann sniggered.

“You’ve become a pacifist? That’s not what I heard about you. I heard you fought to the death when they took you down in the shower to rape you.”

“I didn’t hurt your daughter, Mr. Jones. And I’m not going to fight you,” Hunter repeated. He turned his body so his shoulder received the brunt of Roy’s bat as he swung it. He was lucky the man was out of shape, but it still hurt like a bitch.

Aaron punched him in the nose. Hunter heard the cartilage break. Blood spurted everywhere.

“Shit, he’s bleeding like a stuck pig,” the driver said.

“He’ll bleed a lot more before we’re done with him, Paul,” Aaron said. “Come on, Hunter, you know you want to fight back. Let out the demon.”

“I’m not going to fight you,” Hunter repeated. He clenched his fists to stop himself from hitting Aaron. He reminded himself that this was Natalie’s father.

The next hit caught him in the ribs. He gasped, doubling over in pain.

“This is the end, Hunter. Admit your guilt and let God have mercy on you,” the one called Paul said.

“God? More like the Devil. What did you do to my baby?” James wailed. He dropped the wrench and fell to his knees, sobbing.

“You can do anything you want to me, but I didn’t hurt either of your daughters. You need to be looking for someone else.”

For the first time, Aaron Bowmann’s hand trembled. He caught himself quickly and slammed the gun against the side of Hunter’s head. This time, Hunter fell to his knees. His ear rung.

“I’m not going to fight you,” he whispered, more to himself than to the men. He waited for the next blow, but instead, all four men were looking at the road. The cruiser appeared, its engine strangely silent. Hunter realized his eardrum had burst.

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