Sienna gasped as she watched Justin fall to the ground.
Anita had just shot him.
She’d shot him.
Sienna could hardly breathe as she peered down at the man, her heart racing out of control. Using her other hand, she wiped her rain-drenched eyes.
Justin lay on the ground, gasping and clutching his chest. His expression showed his agony as he croaked out one word. “Why?”
Anita sneered, leaning closer. “Because you have no backbone. I can’t trust you anymore. You’re not in this with me.”
“I…loved…you,” he said, his breathing heavier and more labored with each passing second.
Then his eyes went still, his body stiff, and Sienna knew he was dead.
If this woman would kill her boyfriend in cold blood, she wouldn’t think twice about killing Sienna or Devin. Sienna didn’t find comfort in the thought.
Anita’s gun was back at her side, and she turned to Devin. “Did you really think that was going to work?”
Devin’s jaw visibly tightened. “You’re more coldhearted than I gave you credit for.”
“I told you, nothing is going to stand in my way. Especially not a man. Now we’re going to have to do something else here, aren’t we?” She jammed the gun into Sienna’s temple until Sienna yelped.
Trembles raced through her. Just what was running through Anita’s head? Sienna wouldn’t put anything past her.
And that thought was terrifying.
“There’s no need to do anything else drastic here,” Devin said, lowering his gun.
“Give me your gun,” Anita demanded.
“Killing us won’t get you anywhere.” Devin squatted to the ground and placed his gun there. A calming tone overtook his voice.
“No, I need to use you first and then kill you,” she said with a satisfied smile. “Don’t worry. I’ve thought this through. I’ve had nothing better to do as I’ve been recovering from surgery. But I didn’t give you enough credit, Sienna. I thought you’d be easier to manipulate. But time after time you’ve thwarted whatever my plans were. Not this time.”
“It doesn’t have to be this way, Anita,” Sienna said, still keenly aware of the gun at her head. “You need help. Colby needs his parents.”
“I’m his parent!” Anita smacked the gun across Sienna’s face. “And I never want to hear you say otherwise again!”
Sienna grasped her cheek, feeling a new ache forming. Pain radiated from the point of impact, and she tasted blood in her mouth.
Devin’s gaze caught hers, and Sienna saw the concern there. Saw that he wanted to reach for her. To help.
But they were at the mercy of this woman—this crazy woman.
“Now we’re going to have to do things the hard way,” Anita growled. “We need to start walking. And if you try anything again, FBI man, I will kill her.”
Anita stared at Devin until he nodded.
As Sienna took a step forward, pain radiated up her leg. Her face ached. She wasn’t sure she could make this walk in her current state. She had no choice but to try.
How were they going to get out of this now?
Sienna had no idea.
But she really hoped that Devin had some kind of plan.
* * *
Devin’s heart ached when he saw the pain Sienna was in. It wasn’t just physical pain. It was emotional and mental. This situation would test every part of them.
A person didn’t quickly recover from seeing someone die in front of them—even if the person was an enemy. Plus, Anita was so desperate to get Colby back that she’d become hyperfocused. The woman wasn’t even frantic, which made her even scarier. No, she didn’t seem to feel much at all. She just wanted Colby.
Devin hadn’t anticipated Anita shooting Justin. He’d thought the woman had cared about him, that she’d loved the man. But all she obviously cared about was herself.
And that made this even more difficult.
“We’re going to have to go around the tree,” Anita said. “Try anything funny, and you’re both dead. But first you’ll watch Sienna die. It’s always a horrible thing to witness, isn’t it, FBI Agent Matthews? Having a loved one pass away and feeling helpless to do anything about it…”
His spine clenched. So Anita had done her research. She knew about Grace and Willow. And the fact she was gloating about it only made his blood boil even more.
“Move!” Anita demanded, shoving Sienna to the side of the road.
Sienna let out a gasp and started to reach for her leg when Anita jerked her upright.
“This is no time to be a wuss!” Anita yelled.
“She’s hurt.” Devin’s heart leaped into his throat. “Let me help her.”
“She’ll manage fine on her own.”
“I don’t think she will. She’s hurt.” Devin had seen Sienna limping along and knew she was in agony. He wanted nothing more than to help her.
He should have insisted that she be checked out earlier, right after she’d cut her leg and they’d gotten out of the woods. Maybe they wouldn’t be in this mess if he had. But it was too late to go back.
“You can hold on to her arm,” Anita finally said. “Or she can hold on to your arm. But that’s it. I just can’t afford for her to slow us up.”
Devin extended his hand to Sienna, and she took it, holding on to it like a crutch as she limped forward. It felt good to touch her. To have her close. He only wished he could offer more.
He looked into the distance. The rain was starting to let up some, and the first signs of dawn were beginning to show on the horizon.
Hopefully backup would be here soon. But, even when help did arrive, it would be hard to reach them with that tree in the road.
“What’s your plan?” Devin asked, trying to get inside Anita’s mind.
If he knew what she was planning, maybe he could stop her.
Maybe.
“You’re going to get me inside the complex,” Anita said. “And then if I have to shoot everyone in sight to get to my boy, I will. I have two hostages that will be killed if people don’t get out of my way.”
The bad feeling in Devin’s gut only grew in intensity.
He had no doubt the woman was telling the truth. She wasn’t going to stop at anything until she had Colby back.
Dear Lord, I could use some wisdom right about now.
He heard Sienna moan beside him and glanced over. Her face was stretched tight with pain.
He’d been crazy not to swoop this woman away when he’d had the chance. And, as soon as he did have the chance, he was going to tell Sienna that. If the thought of losing Sienna shook him up this much, then Devin knew it was time to act on his feelings.
Grace would approve. Deep in his gut, he knew she would. It had taken all this for him to know for sure.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered to Sienna.
She quickly glanced up at him, her face cinched with pain. “For what?”
“For holding back. When this is over…”
She squeezed his hand. “Tell me when it’s over. You’re going to have the chance. We can’t think differently.”
He pulled his gaze away from her and nodded. “You’re right. We will.”
He wouldn’t tell her goodbye. Not now. This wasn’t over yet.
“Stop chatting, you two,” Anita muttered. “We’re almost there.”
Devin looked in the distance. Sure enough, the entrance to the Jennings Center waited ahead.
He cringed at the thought of anyone else getting hurt. He couldn’t let that happen. Yet he couldn’t get close enough to Anita to take her down. She was on edge, and her gun was aimed at Sienna. It was too risky to approach her until he had a clear opportunity—and he didn’t.
Just as they were ten feet in front of the entrance, something ran from the woods.
Before Devin could see what it was, Anita screamed.
It was a bear, Devin realized.
A black bear.
And it was headed toward Anita.