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Ivy grabbed two go bags from the downstairs hall closet she always kept packed full of essential supplies and selected two Glock 19s from the gun safe, along with extra ammo.
This was her home now and she’d made certain modifications born from living a lifetime of uncertainty and danger. Living with a former Valkyrie couldn’t be easy but Walker had let her do what she needed to in order to feel secure.
She was shoving a Glock into the back of her waistband when Shae came downstairs from her room looking half-asleep, eyes barely open, wearing oversize sweats and her hair thrown up in a messy bun at the top of her head.
She stopped at the bottom of the stairs when she saw Ivy, her eyes widening as she took in the bags and weapons. “What’s going on?”
“A friend of ours is in trouble. We’re heading out to meet up with them.”
She raised one hand to grip the neck of her sweatshirt. “Where’s Dad?”
“On his way to get me.” Ivy tugged the hem of her black turtleneck over the butt of the pistol and slid her jacket on. “We’ll be fine, we’re only backup if it becomes necessary.” And it might, but she wanted to alleviate Shae’s fears. “Keep your phone on you and we’ll contact you once we know what’s going on.”
Shae nodded, still looking alarmed as Ivy picked up the bags and strode for the door. “Ivy.”
She glanced back at Shae. Raised her eyebrows.
“Take care of him.”
Ivy smiled, glad that Shae trusted her abilities so much. The bond between Walker and his daughter was a beautiful thing. And just one of the many reasons why she’d fallen in love with him. “Always.”
She was standing at the end of the driveway when Walker pulled up a minute later. She tossed the gear into the backseat of the SUV and got in the front passenger seat, handing him a pistol. “Any update?”
“Nothing good,” he said as he sped away. “Did you tell Shae?”
“Just now. I told her we’d update her when we know more. What’s not good?”
“The woman Warwick pulled out of the water had a picture of him on her phone along with some coded messages. Noah went to question her at the hotel, but she’d already taken off and no one knows where she’s gone.”
“You’re right. That’s not good.” She slid her phone from her pocket and accessed the app that let her track Warwick’s location.
“You got a lock on him?”
The program took several frustrating moments to load. Cell service in and around Crimson Point was always spotty, but today it just pissed her off. Then a flashing dot appeared. She frowned.
“What?”
“He’s at the side of the road just up from the house. Stationary.”
Walker kept speeding down the road. Moments later the dot began moving.
Slow at first. Retreating toward the woods on the north side of the road. Then faster. But not anywhere near a road, and not moving fast enough to be in a vehicle.
Shit. Warwick was on the run on foot. “They’re in trouble. We need to hurry.”
****
Simon instinctively ducked behind the bed of the pickup as James returned fire, allowing Marley to disappear into the trees and fighting to ignore the fire streaking through his left shoulder. But the current distance between them marked the rifle’s end range and the rounds barely punched into the metal.
He was going to change that. Any second now James would jump the ditch and charge after her.
As if he’d willed it into happening, James did just that.
Simon hopped back in the truck. He wheeled the vehicle around in the opposite direction and raced to the next street a quarter mile up, then turned north. The thick band of forest on the right where James and Marley had disappeared into led to another street on the opposite side.
They wouldn’t go back to the target house. But they would have at least tried to call for backup by now. He needed to end this before anyone else got here to interfere.
He whipped the pickup around the corner, braked hard in a rocking stop behind the wooded area and killed the engine. Rifle balanced in his hands, he climbed out and made his way through the rain into the woods. The drugs he’d taken earlier, combined with the surge of adrenaline, muting the pain in his shoulder.
Shadows and the sharp scent of cedar engulfed him. The tall mix of evergreens cut the force of the rain to a patter, their thick branches swaying and sighing in the strong wind gusts that rippled through the underbrush. He moved west, keeping parallel to the edge of the road, scanning the uneven terrain as he went.
Marley and James would want to get to this road and find help in one of the houses behind it. He had to cut them off before they made it past him.
It was perfect that they had been separated. If he could take Marley first, he could force James’s hand. Lure him into range and use her as a shield until he could kill the bastard. There was no way James would endanger her by taking a shot with her in front of him.
The only thing Simon had to worry about was ensuring neither one made it to the road.
A sudden strong gust of wind whistled through the trees. A sharp crack rent the air.
He ducked behind a thick trunk to scan for where the single shot had come from, just as something crashed to the ground twenty yards away. A long, thick branch snapped from the canopy above.
Not a rifle shot. Just a fucking snapped tree branch.
Resuming the hunt, he snuck across a thin trail worn through the brush. The forested area they were in wasn’t that big. Marley and James couldn’t hide from him in here for long.
Another sharp gust of wind cut through the trees. He dropped to one knee behind a fallen log, watching the underbrush in front of him. The wind died away, the mix of evergreen ferns and brush settling. Then, to the left, a slight movement drew his attention.
Raising the butt of his weapon to his shoulder, he tracked it. Caught a faint hint of red emerging from the undergrowth.
Marley. She was maybe sixty yards away. She had smeared mud on her hands and face to camouflage her pale skin, and into her hair to dull it, but in this landscape the distinct color was still a dead giveaway when the faintest bit of light hit it.
He edged toward her, stalking her like a predator on the hunt. Then something to the right caught his attention. He stopped and dropped to one knee again, waiting. Scanning. Finger poised on the trigger while the wind moaned amongst the trees and the rain pattered the ground.
A clump of ferns quivered in the distance a little to the left of the spot he’d been watching. He remained motionless, controlling his breathing and the sharp rush of excitement in his veins.
Seconds later, he saw a shadow move between two trees in the same area.
James. Closer to him than Marley.
Simon glanced left to check her position. Saw the giveaway glow of deep red through the undergrowth, and hesitated.
He wanted to use her to force James’s hand. To kill her in front of him. If he didn’t go after her now or chose to engage James here, she could make it to the road and possibly call for help. But if he moved at all, he would be exposed.
He refocused back on James’s current position, staring through the rifle sight where he’d seen the shadow move. James was gradually edging east toward Marley. Simon was almost certain James hadn’t spotted him yet. But if he moved, James would have a bead on him.
The decision had been made for him.
Simon curled his finger around the trigger and locked on James’s hiding spot, waiting for the shadow to move again. Willing it to so he could put a bullet through him.
