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“I’m sorry,” Ricky whispered next to her ear.
“What?” The gun disappeared from her temple. “Ricky, no!”
A shot exploded next to her ear, and two seconds later, Moose collapsed to the ground.
“Moose!” Daisy screamed and lunged for him. Her ears rang with a high-pitched sound that drowned out any other noise. Ricky caught her around the waist with surprising strength. “Let me go!” she shouted at her brother. “Please. I need to help him.”
“No. We’re leaving.” He half carried, half dragged her away from Moose.
Daisy kicked, screamed, and fought like hell to get to her man. All she could think of was the shock and pain on his face as he fell. “Ricky, please… please let me go to him.”
“Ow… fuck, Daisy!” Ricky shouted as her heel connected with his shin. He dropped her.
She hit the ground with a thud but immediately scrambled to her feet.
Yes!
She started to run back to Moose, but the click of a gun ready to fire had her freezing.
“Don’t make me do it,” Ricky said behind her.
She turned, leaves crunching beneath her feet, and found the gun leveled at her chest.
“Ricky…”
His eyes were eerily calm. Not an ounce of nerves showing. “I might not be able to kill you,” he said, shifting the gun so it was level with her thigh. “But I can make it so you can’t run to him, and I’ll still drag you out of here.”
“You wouldn’t,” she whispered.
“I would. I’m that desperate, sis.”
As she looked into his bleak eyes, her stomach bottomed out. He meant it. If she tried to run back to Moose, he’d shoot her and lug her bleeding from the woods. She cast one last heartbreaking look at Moose’s still body.
“Okay,” she said as she lifted her hands in defeat. “I’ll come with you.”
She could only pray that a hiker came across Moose and got help before he bled out. She’d known the man one day, but she wasn’t certain she could survive if he didn’t. Somehow, she’d fallen for the man in their short but intense time together. She’d never forgive herself if he died because she’d gotten him involved in her brother’s mess.
She walked ahead of Ricky, aware he had a gun on her back. She kept her ears peeled for hikers as they tromped over leaves and fallen branches. If just one person would walk by, she might be able to get help. She’d left her purse in her car, phone and all, which was about the stupidest thing she could have done, but never in a million years had she imagined Ricky would take her hostage.
“Where are we going?” she asked after a few minutes of charged silence.
“Out of the woods. Got a car parked on the side of a road.”
Not what she meant, but at least he was talking. “Where are we driving? Maybe we should drive to our house. See if we can brainstorm some ideas to get you out of trouble.”
“I’ve already got an idea.”
“And would you like to share with the class?”
When he didn’t elaborate, Daisy sighed. Another five minutes passed in tense silence before he said, “Veer left. Car’s about fifty feet ahead.”
Sure enough, the trees thinned, and a two-lane country road appeared. A brown Chrysler she’d never seen before sat on the side of the road. “That’s your car?”
“Borrowed it from a friend.”
Borrowed?
Right. At this point, she no longer believed anything he said.
“Get in,” he ordered, waving the gun toward the car.
Daisy slid into the passenger seat. A quick glance around revealed nothing useful to help her escape.
“Where are you taking me, Ricky?”
“Shh…” He sat beside her in the driver’s seat, keeping the gun pointed at her as he started the vehicle.
Her frustration mounted with each passing minute he kept her in the dark. That and her worry for Moose was nearly a tangible thing. She tried for twenty minutes to get him to talk, but he only warned her to shut up. Eventually, she gave up and gazed out the window at the passing foliage while worrying herself sick over Moose.
Had he survived? If so, how badly was he hurt? Would she ever see the man again? Even if Ricky hadn’t killed him, Moose would probably get the hell out of town as fast as possible. Why would he stay? By his own admission, he hated people, and she’d brought immense amounts of drama into his life in such a short time. At least if he drove away, it’d mean he was alive and well, and that’s all that mattered to her.
Her heart would heal eventually. No one made it through life without at least one heartbreak. If only she’d been warned to be prepared for his brutal level of pain. She rubbed a hand over her chest and blinked away tears.
Moose was strong, so even if he left her, he’d be okay.
