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Hunter’s blood was charged. Every interaction in traffic only pushed his raging urgency to get to her. He hoped the girls were there. He hoped he could get to them in time.
25
Tys, Eloise, and Eloise’s daughter—whom Tys had called Hannah—continued blocking the door to the room. Tys stared at his phone and lowered it again. “Once they get here, we’ll take off,” he said.
Hannah grinned. “Or we could leave now. No sense in having someone catch us with them.”
“No one is going to catch us. Right now, the police are investigating Hunter. They came here already and searched before we brought Snow and Kassie in. They won’t come back again.” Eloise sounded a little too assured.
Snow eyed Eloise’s gun. Then she glanced to the door. If she were the only one here, she would risk making a break for it, but how could she leave Kassie? She couldn’t signal to the girl without drawing attention to the fact that she was about to try something. What could they do?
Car wheels crushing the asphalt sounded outside. Tys crossed to the window and peered out. “Looks like they’re here,” he said, grinning over his shoulder.
The traffickers? Snow couldn’t wrap her head around that. Panic shot through her. Forget her fears—she couldn’t allow them to take the little girl.
“Make for the door,” she muttered to Kassie.
Kassie glanced up at Snow with wide tear-filled eyes and nodded. Snow charged toward Eloise, gripping the gun and directing it upward. A shot fired—Eloise had pulled the trigger. Fortunately, it struck the ceiling.
Kassie screamed and hit the floor. Tys and Hannah charged toward Eloise and Snow. Tys called her a deplorable name and ripped Snow away from Eloise. Eloise shuffled, readjusted, and pointed the gun at Snow.
“Run, Kassie,” Snow commanded as she faced Eloise and lifted her hands in surrender. “Get out now.”
“I can’t!” she cried.
“That was stupid,” Eloise said, cocking the gun and directing it at Snow once more.
Snow’s pulse was in her throat. In her ears. “Shoot me. Do it.” She’d rather die than be taken by whoever was here.
Pounding sounded on the door, and then the sound of splintered wood cracked. Footsteps followed—more footsteps than Snow anticipated. They thundered overhead, shaking the floorboards. Eloise froze. She, Tys, and Hannah lifted their gazes.
“Go see who that is,” she ordered.
Tys bolted to the door only to find it being pounded on.
“Snow? Kass?”
Snow’s gaze darted to Kassie, whose smile beamed. “Daddy!”
“We’re here,” Snow cried. Tears filled her eyes. He’d found them. He was here. Except…more voices could be heard mingling with Hunter’s.
“Kick it down,” one of them said.
“I’ll do it.”
“Move—”
“Here, I got it.”
Snow couldn’t mask her shock. Had the bachelors come with him?
“Come in and we’ll shoot her,” Eloise called. She charged toward Kassie, took her by the arm and pointed the gun at her head. Kassie let out a whimper.
Snow couldn’t believe this. “Eloise, don’t.”
“Shut it,” she snapped, securing the gun harder against Kassie’s head.
Snow lifted her hands. “This isn’t what you want. You want the show, remember? The chance for Tys to be a producer there? This isn’t going to get you that.”
