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I’m stalling for time, taking another step back so Hana is just in front of me to the left. Her head is bowed, and her blonde spirals hang in a curtain, hiding her face. Her shoulders shudder, and I’m afraid she’s crying.
One more step, and I’m at the back wall. I slowly move my hand around behind me, and my fingers land on the slim handle of a shovel. Closing my eyes, I say the shortest prayer I know,Guide my hands.
My fist closes over the wooden pole, and I scream at the top of my lungs as I rip it from the hay and swing it with all my might. A gunshot rings out, but I don’t register being hit. I only register the vibration of the shovel through my arms and elbows as it makes contact with Rick’s skull.
Blood spatters against the white wall, and he drops like a tree.I hope I killed him,is my last thought before I fall to my knees. My head spins, and a heartbeat is in my side. The sounds of struggle draw my attention, and I look up to see Hana and Natasha fighting for the gun.
“God, no!” I gasp.
Hana apparently lunged at Natasha after the shot was fired, and my stomach knots as I watch the barrel of the gun swing wildly. Another beat in my side, and I look down to see an ugly crimson circle growing larger on my side. It’s sticky. I've been shot, but it’s so strange… I don’t feel pain.
I try to stand, but my legs won’t cooperate. Hana screams as Natasha tries to throw her down. I can’t seem to get my footing, so I decide to crawl, lifting the shovel and swinging it like a scythe at Natasha’s legs. It works. The metal makes contact with her knees, and a horrible yell rings out.
Natasha falls, leaving Hana holding the gun. My old nemesis is on the ground, her leg bent at a sickening angle. I’m not sorry I broke her leg. In fact, I’m a bit pleased until I realize she’s digging in her coat.
“She’s got another gun!” I yell, looking up to see Hana’s hands gripping my Ruger.
Her blue eyes close briefly, and she exhales slowly as if she’s been trained to shoot.
“You won’t shoot me, Hana van Hamilton.” Natasha’s voice is a hoarse snarl. “You’re nothing but a spoiled, Upper East Side socialite who’s been coddled her whole life.”
“I’m a mamma bear, and I will protect my family.” Hana’s eyes open, and she pulls the trigger slowly.
I fall onto my forearms and army-crawl away from her line of sight just in case. One staccato pop echoes in the small space, and I look over my shoulder to see Natasha lying on her back in the hay, eyes open, staring blankly at the ceiling overhead.
My head drops, and I begin to sob.
It’s over.
The murders, the cruelty, the revenge…
“Rainey, can you get up?” Hana kneels beside me, touching my shoulder. “You’ve got to get up, Rainey. We’ve got to get out of here. I’ve got to find Blake. The barn is still burning, and the horses… We’ve got to save the horses.”
She’s talking so fast, I think she might be in shock, and I want to tell her it’s all going to be okay. It’s over. Doesn’t she understand? She ended it. She ended all of it—her pain, my pain, the years of lies and torture. Tears blur my vision, and I can’t make my mouth speak. I’m so cold, and my legs are completely useless.
“Rainey, please get up!” Hana’s voice shakes, and I see tears on her face now. “You’ve got to hang on a little longer. Help is coming. Help is coming, Rainey, please…”
Help is coming…
This makes me smile. Help has never come for me, and now someone wants to save me. Does this mean I’ve made it to redemption? I must have, because as I close my eyes, I see the most brilliant white light, and the purest joy warms my chest.
29
Dirk
After hoursof no one answering my texts, we made it back to the airport in Charleston just before dawn. All three of us were on edge as we flew to my Jeep. I burned rubber out of the parking lot, holding the pedal to the floor as we broke every speeding law to cover the short distance to Hamiltown.
When we arrived at Hugh’s, the place was in chaos. Fire trucks were on the scene, and while the barn fire was under control, it was still burning.
Hutch ran immediately to Blake, who was sitting on the edge of an ambulance with an oxygen mask on her face and a bandage on her head.
“I had just left Rege at the paddock,” her voice shook as she explained, “and I was racing into Dancer’s stall when someone or something hit me in the head.”
Hutch’s jaw clenched, and he held her in his arms as the emergency workers filled in the rest of the details.
“We sent Mrs. Lourde and her friend on to the hospital in Miranda Bay.” Scar was moving before the worker finished speaking.
“Hana and Rainey were helping me evacuate the horses when we all got separated.” I waved to Blake as I turned and jogged to catch up with my partner.
