Ashley took another step forward. “I’m not coming any closer until you release Trina.”
Blackwood shoved Trina, and the knife clattered to the hardwood floor. He reached in his jacket and pulled out a gun. Behind her, a weapon fired. Instinct had her dropping.Roll. Josh had told her to roll. She turned so fast she became dizzy.
Another gun fired. Two sharp barks in succession.
“Stand down,” Nelson shouted.
“Quick,” a man ordered. “Get behind us.”
Ashley crawled on her hands and knees. “What’s happening? Is Trina okay?”
“The gunman is down. Girl is okay,” the cop said.
“Josh?”
The cop hesitated, and Ashley scrambled to her feet, wanting to see for herself. A cop had helped Trina up and was checking her neck. He pulled out a hanky and pressed it to her throat. Other cops surrounded Stephen Blackwood. They had him under control.
Josh. Where was Josh?
She spotted him on the ground with Gerry at his side. Another cop spoke on his phone. Ashley rushed over to Josh.
“Josh! What happened?”
“Ashley. Ashley!” Gerry spoke louder, his words piercing her panic. “He’s okay. Blackwood shot him in the shoulder. It’s not a fatal shot, but it’s worse than last time. We’ve called an ambulance.”
Ashley sank to the ground beside Josh and stroked his face. His eyes flicked open, fierce but pain-filled. “I’m fine, sweetheart. I might have a scar from this one, but I was too pretty, anyway.”
Gerry snorted, and Ashley issued a small, relieved laugh.
When Nelson prowled over to them, he scowled at Gerry and shared his displeasure with Josh. “Thanks to you two, I’ll have a ton of paperwork.”
“He intended to kill Ashley,” Josh said.
“I would’ve done the same thing,” Nelson replied quietly. “You took the only possible action.”
The doors behind them opened, and two ambulance officers strode inside. Ashley stood, her attention snagged by the dog on the screen. This time, it looked familiar, and things started to click.
22 – The Real Deal
Summer and Nikolai rushed into the waiting room, Nikolai shouldering a cop away from his wife. Ashley sprang to her feet. The uniformed policeman chased them, determined to carry out his duties.
“It’s fine.” Nelson gestured the cop back to his post. “They’re family.”
“What happened? Coverage from the Labor party ceased without warning, and no one knew what was happening.” Summer gripped Ashley’s shoulder and clung, her eyes demanding information. “Then I got your phone call and nothing made sense.”
“Josh will make a full recovery, but they needed to dig the bullet out of his shoulder. I told you that,” Ashley said.
“I wanted to see for myself.”
“You can wait with me.” Ashley led Summer to a chair. “The nurse I spoke with told me we’d hear soon.”
Summer dropped onto the seat. “But what happened?”
“My stalker. Stephen Blackwood. He took a guest at knifepoint, but she’s okay.”
“But why?” Summer asked.
“You know the accident I had where my passenger died?”
