Quietly, Devin cut through the dark forest, careful to watch his step. At any time the darkness could turn into a cliff. This place was beautiful—but perilous.
He’d lost the trail of the man who’d been lurking nearby.
Where had he gone?
Devin’s guard was up as he scanned around him. Tall dark trees stared back, looming over him. Boulders stood guard. And there was darkness. Lots and lots of darkness.
That man could be anywhere.
And Devin could be in his crosshairs.
His spine clenched.
His gut told him something was wrong. Had this been a ploy to get him away from Sienna?
He had to get back to her. A bad feeling squeezed his gut.
Carefully, he traced his steps, still using the trees for cover. He had to make his way back to Sienna—but he had to be careful about it. The last thing he needed was to lead the shooter right to her.
Devin paused behind a fir tree and glanced around. There was still no sign of the man. But Devin could see a faint spark from the fire he’d started through the foliage.
What if he had circled back around—back toward Sienna?
Devin’s heart rate sped up, and he quickened his steps at the thought. He had to get back to her. Now.
With gun in hand, he pushed himself up the mountainside toward the location where he’d left Sienna. But just as he reached the area, he saw the shadowy figure. Standing next to Sienna. With a gun to her head.
Sienna’s face was twisted with pain as the man gripped her arm and leered toward her.
He sucked in a deep breath as she let out a cry.
No…
The fire illuminated the scene. The man beside Sienna wore a black ski mask, making it impossible to see any of his features. But it was definitely the same man Devin had encountered before.
“Put your gun down,” the man ordered. He’d obviously been waiting for Devin to return. “Now. Otherwise I’ll shoot her.”
“Don’t do anything drastic.” Devin squatted to the ground and placed his weapon there. “My gun is down. Let’s talk about this.”
“We do have a lot to talk about,” the man growled. “Where’s the baby?”
“He’s somewhere safe.” And Devin had no intention of telling him where.
“Where?” The man jerked Sienna until she let out a gasp.
Devin’s heart hammered. No. Not Sienna.
He’d already lost two people he loved. He didn’t want to lose Sienna, too. Not that he loved her. It was too early for that. But there was definitely the start of something there.
“It’s not important,” Devin said. This man couldn’t take away his chance to explore that. Yet the reality remained that he could. Devin knew that all too well.
“It’s important if I say it’s important!” The man veered on the edge of desperation. His voice grew louder and more agitated. He jerked Sienna again, and his gun flew around wildly, the barrel no longer facing Sienna.
He wasn’t a professional criminal, Devin realized. Not even an experienced one, for that matter. No, the man didn’t have a plan. He only had his desperation and gut instinct.
Devin needed to use that knowledge to his advantage.
“Listen, we couldn’t tell you anyway,” Devin said, his eyes remaining on the man’s gun. “We’d have to take you there.”
“Just give me the address. I’m not taking you anywhere.”
If Devin gave him the address, he had a feeling this man would shoot both of them and go snatch Colby.
That couldn’t happen.
Sienna let out another cry of desperation. Her eyes were wide with fear. The man had pulled her to her feet, but she hobbled in pain. Her leg obviously still hurt.
How was Devin going to get out of this one? He wasn’t sure.
But he would come up with a plan. That was what he did. He planned. He executed. Nine times out of ten, he succeeded. This would not be that 10 percent.
“I can’t give you the address,” Devin said, inching closer. “We’d have to take you there.”
“Do you think I’m stupid?” The man let out a bitter laugh.
“I’m just telling you the truth.” Again, Devin paced a little closer, trying to become nearer to Sienna. All the while, he kept an eye on the man’s gun. One wrong move, and it could be over for both him and Sienna.
“Give it to me or I’ll shoot her!” The man jerked Sienna closer.
Sienna let out another cry.
The situation was escalating—the last thing Devin wanted.
“Okay, okay,” Devin tamped the air with his hands. “Just don’t hurt anyone. It’s 23192 Issaquena Drive. It’s in Denver.”
The man paused, and Devin knew he was trying to remember the address Devin had spouted.
“Are you tricking me?” he asked.
“No,” Devin said.
“Tell me the address again.”
Devin repeated it.
“She’s coming with me.” The man jerked Sienna again, and pain rippled across her face.
Her leg.
Devin couldn’t let this happen. The man couldn’t go anywhere with Sienna. He’d never get her back alive.
As the man began backing away, Sienna still in a chokehold, Devin made a split-second decision.
In two seconds flat, he grabbed the spare gun he kept in his ankle holster, and he raised it toward the intruder.
As he did, a loud bang cut through the air, and time froze around him.
* * *
Sienna held her breath, unsure what had just happened as the sound echoed in her ears.
Someone had fired. But who? Where?
She waited for the pain. Or to see pain on Devin’s face.
Instead, she froze and the world seemed to stand still around her.
Then the man behind her moaned and fell to the ground.
She gasped and hobbled away. As she got a good look at him, she saw something on his shoulder. Was that blood? It was too dark to tell.
Devin darted forward and snatched the gun off the man, who remained motionless.
“Good try, but he wasn’t leaving with you,” Devin said. “I was never going to let that happen.”
“Is he…is he…dead?” Sienna asked.
Devin knelt beside him. “No, he hit his head when he fell. It must have knocked him out. That bullet only skimmed his shoulder. He’ll be okay.”
The next instant, Sienna fell into Devin’s arms. It was like her bones had given out, and she could no longer hold herself up. Devin caught her and pulled her close. His scent—now familiar—brought a wave of comfort over her.
“It’s okay, Sienna,” he murmured. “It’s going to be okay.”
“What…what are we going to do?” She buried her face in his chest.
“First, we’re going to find out who he is.” Devin reached over and pulled the ski mask from his face.
Sienna studied the man’s face. His broad nose. Big eyebrows. Thick jawline.
She waited for something to bring back an old memory, but it didn’t. She’d never seen this man before.
“Do you recognize him?” she asked Devin.
“No, I don’t. But we need to tie him up.” Devin glanced around, searching for something they could use.
Sienna jerked her head back. “We’re not going to take him with us?”
“He’s injured. We’d have to drag him. And your leg is hurt. The journey would be nearly impossible. I’ll call the police and tell them what happened. They’ll pick him up.” Devin pulled out his phone. “Unfortunately, there’s no signal out here. I’ll have to wait until I get back up the road.”
“What do you need to tie him up with?” Sienna asked. “I’ll help look.”
“I’m going to have to use my shirt,” he muttered. “There’s nothing else.”
He tugged off his undershirt, leaving his flannel shirt on. He then used his knife to cut the fabric into strips. Using those, he tied the man’s arms and feet together, and then tied him to a tree.
“What should we do?”
“He’s out cold. The best thing we can do is let the police question him.”
“If you’re sure.” She hated to leave the man, but she understood Devin’s reasoning.
Devin nodded. “Yeah, I’m sure. We need to have your cut looked at.”
She winced, remembering her injury.
“Can you hold out one more moment?” he asked.
She nodded stiffly. She’d do whatever she had to do to get out of this alive…and to keep Colby safe.
* * *
Devin found the man’s wallet in his pocket, along with his car keys. He slipped them into his own pocket before joining Sienna again.
Taking one last look at the man, he slipped an arm around Sienna’s waist and began helping her back up the mountain. He was worried about her. Worried about how much blood she might be losing. Concerned for her level of anxiety right now.
They’d find answers later. Right now, Devin needed to make sure she was okay.
“I’m sorry you’re in the middle of all this,” Sienna told him, her voice soft and apologetic.
“None of this is your doing, Sienna.”
“It feels like my fault.” She gripped his waist and let out a groan as she marched on like a soldier.
“Well, feelings can be deceitful. You’re just as much an innocent bystander as Colby.”
“Maybe we should wait for that man to wake up and try to get some answers from him.”
Devin had thought about that also. He desperately wanted answers. But… “I’m afraid you’re going to bleed out, Sienna. We can’t risk that. The man’s not getting away. Not in his current state.”
Sienna said nothing. Did she know how serious her injury might be? It was impossible to tell in the dark.
As they reached the top of the incline, a wind swept across them. They’d gotten out of the forest just in time. A storm was blowing in.
They couldn’t take Devin’s SUV. Not in its current condition—crushed against the side of the mountain with the airbags deployed.
But he did have the keys to the mystery man’s truck.
He glanced around. A quad-cab truck was parked in front of Devin’s. It was an older-model vehicle. That had to belong to the man in black.
He helped Sienna hop over to it and secured her in the passenger seat. He then climbed in himself and started the engine. He turned on the heat to warm them up.
The vehicle smelled like dirty shoes and rotting fast food. But it would be sufficient. Devin glanced at the gas gauge and saw the vehicle had a half a tank left. That would have to work.
“I’m going to take you to the hospital,” he said.
Sienna swung her head back and forth. “It’s too risky. Just go to a drugstore or a gas station and we’ll get some supplies there. I’ll be fine.”
“I don’t know, Sienna.”
“I will be. Please. I just need to see Colby. To get a shower and a warm meal—preferably at the Jennings Center. With Colby.”
“It’s your call.” He tossed the wallet he’d taken from the gunman into her lap. “See what you can find out about the man. In the meantime, I’m going to call the cops and have them pick this guy up.”
But Devin didn’t want one tragedy to turn into another. If they didn’t take care of themselves, then they’d be in no position to see this mission through to completion. He only hoped there was a resolution to all of this…and soon.