AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He wondered if Casper could hold Silver off long enough to wait for the police—because Kate sure needed an ambulance.
But then Casper yelped, and Silver was stretching for his firearm.
Hunter all but flung Kate into the passenger seat, practically throwing himself in after her. “Casper!” he called. “Hierr!”
Then he had the ignition started and the car in gear.
No way he could go down the driveway; the street would be packed with cops in a second.
Thank god he had a jeep. He slammed his foot into the accelerator and the car shot forward into the backyard.
“Casper!” he called again.
The dog came galloping around the side of the house, tearing through the yard. Hunter hit the brakes and the dog leapt through the window, barely avoiding Kate.
Silver came flying around the corner next.
Hunter floored it. A gun fired. The jeep took a hit but kept moving.
Almost as an afterthought, Hunter ducked, grabbing Kate’s shoulder and shoving her down. The car barreled over rocks and underbrush, and he aimed for the widest opening between the trees.
The sirens were practically on top of them; they had to be coming up the driveway. Hunter hit the accelerator again, juggling the clutch as best he could as the car rocked and slipped over uneven ground.
He knew these woods, this path. He’d just run this trail with Gabriel a few days ago. As long as he could keep the jeep moving forward, he’d come out to the main road without anyone being able to put him at the Merrick house.
“How you doing?” he said to Kate.
“Oh, I’m swell,” she murmured.
“Hospital?” he asked.
“You’re crazy. He’d find us and shoot us in the waiting room.”
Her words were slow and almost slurring. Hunter ran a hand through his hair. He didn’t know where to go. He didn’t know who would help them. Everyone he knew was a target—or had left town.
Then he remembered one person who was “off the grid.”
Someone who’d refused to help.
Hunter didn’t have a phone, so he couldn’t call, but he knew exactly who to go to.
Becca’s father.
CHAPTER 28
Bill Chandler lived in a little gray rental on the water. Hunter had only been here once, the day Bill had asked him to watch Gabriel, but he remembered the way. The clapboard siding needed a new paint job, and the gutters were coming loose along the left side of the roof, but it was secluded, private, and no one knew he was here.
Exactly what Hunter needed.
A green pickup truck sat out front, the DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES logo visible on the side.
Bill was home.
He opened the door when Hunter knocked. “Becca’s not here,” he said.
“Good. I need your help.”
Bill’s gaze sharpened, probably taking in the blood on Hunter’s clothes. “I told you not to bring your mess to me.” He started to close the door.
