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A nurse appeared at the door and screamed, then ran off.
“Now you’ve done it,” Maddy said. “Give me your gun.”
“Why?”
“Because it will be easier.”
“I’m not carrying illegally.”
“Yeah, but the paperwork is less complicated if I’m the one who did the shooting. And I imagine you’ve got more important things to do right now than answer a lot of questions. They’re already investigating my attack. We can add this guy to it. I was defending myself.” She took the gun and press checked the chamber out of habit. “But what I’d really like to know is who he’s working for. And also, how’d you know?”
An alarm went off in the building. “That’s gonna give me a headache,” he said.
“You didn’t answer my question.”
“Trust me, you don’t want to know the answer.”
“Let me guess, you’re going to say God told you?”
“Yes.”
“Or maybe it’s because you’re well trained, and you knew what to look for.”
“If that’s easier for you to believe.”
“Don’t patronize me.”
Two officers entered the room with their weapons out.
“It’s okay.” Maddy held up her badge. “I’m a special agent. This guy came in here to kill me. Now he’s dead. I’ll call it in.”
“You’re very calm about all of this,” Peter said.
“Why shouldn’t I be? The guy’s dead. But really, I’ve been needing some action. This hit the spot. I mean, I’d rather not have a dead guy in my room, but the adrenaline is nice.”
“Until it wears off.”
“I’ll deal with that when the time comes. But what I need to know now is why they came today to finish me off. What makes today different?”
“You think something has happened?”
“I know it has.”
* * *
After clearing the wall, Will didn’t take the time to contemplate his freedom until he’d sprinted as hard and fast as he could before curling up in a ditch. He covered himself in debris to make sure he couldn’t be spotted from the road while he recovered enough to keep going. They would have seen him go over and would send out a team to find him.
The wound on his arm throbbed, and the blood loss made him woozy, but thankfully, the wound wasn’t bad. It just meant he couldn’t push himself as hard as he needed to. But if he didn’t give himself a few minutes to recover, he’d be no good to anyone, and he held onto hope that somehow both Maddy and Charlotte were still alive.
A car approached and he slipped lower, ducking as close to the ground as he could until it went past. He stayed in place as several more went by, then bolted for the woods where he’d have to cut through to get to a safer road and hitch a ride. He knew it was too late to warn Maddy, but he ignored the truth just like he had with Kelly. He wouldn’t face it until it was impossible to avoid.
* * *
Charlotte stared out the barred window. Her eyes were puffy from crying. Her lips moved over the nail she was chewing as she prayed. If she stopped, the anxiety was unbearable. Most of the words she prayed were simply saying the name of Jesus. Trying to form sentences was too hard.
She had an image of Will and Maddy in her mind, and even though she knew they were most likely dead, she didn’t stop believing God would save them. Allowing the truth of their loss was too much to bear. Right now, the best she could do to stay sane was keep her petition to God at the forefront of her mind. It meant she didn’t hear the door open.
“There’s nothing to see out there,” Antonio said. “My men are not sloppy. Your friend and your sister are dead.”
