"I know what he wants."Annie's frustration boiled over."I'm not going to stand here and watch my sister be held prisoner in that house again," she whispered fiercely.
Hunter's grip tightened, pulling her close to him.His eyes never left the house.Annie held her breath, forcing herself not to distract him, even as her chest ached with helplessness.
The minutes dragged, each one heavier than the last.Annie's nails dug into her palms.She couldn't get enough oxygen.Jason could be hurting her.His patrol car was in the driveway.God, what was Leigh thinking?
She shuddered, knowing what it felt like when Jason hit her.When he kicked her.When he slapped her.
Leigh sustained more abuse for longer.Her injuries still weren't completely healed, even though the bruises were now gone and the scratches were now scars.
Hunter lifted his hand and pointed toward the house.
Annie followed his gaze.
Smoke.Thin at first, curling above the roofline, then thickening as it rose into the sky.
Her stomach dropped.There was no chimney.It was summertime.There should be no fire.
And Leigh was in there.
Her breath caught in her throat as the thin line of smoke curled upward, darkening against the pale sky.At first, she thought her eyes were playing tricks on her.But Hunter's hand stayed raised, his finger steady, pointing.
It was real.
Smoke.
Annie's heart slammed against her ribs."Leigh..."she whispered, the plea breaking apart.
She pulled against Hunter's hold.His grip tightened, pulling her back against him.His eyes remained locked on the house, every muscle in his body taut.He didn't speak, only studied the smoke.
Baddy swore under his breath, his gaze darting between the roofline and the yard where Leigh had disappeared.
She fought every instinct to scream, to run, to break free, to get her sister out.But Hunter's arm held her firm, and she forced herself not to fight him, not to distract him.He studied the smoke as if he were reading messages.
The smoke thickened, curling higher, spreading wider.
Annie's stomach twisted.Was Leigh trapped inside?Was Jason in there with her?
The hopelessness she'd felt earlier now surged into panic, raw and all-consuming.She turned in Hunter's grasp, begging him to do something, but her pleas went unheard.
Hunter's jaw clenched, his eyes narrowing as he studied the house.He was calculating, waiting, watching.
Annie pressed her forehead against his shoulder, her voice trembling."Please...don't let her be in there."
The only answer was the rising smoke, the silent threat that something inside that house was burning.
And Leigh was nowhere to be seen.
The smoke caught the breeze and spread into a bigger cloud, and Baddy's voice cut through the silence."Flames," he muttered, his eyes locked on the roof."They're shooting out the top."
Annie's stomach twisted.Her sister was inside.
Across the street, a door opened.A woman stepped out, phone pressed to her ear, her gaze fixed on Jason's house.She paced the sidewalk, her free hand gesturing wildly as she spoke into the receiver.
Baddy hit Hunter's arm, nodding toward the woman."I'd bet my Harley she's calling nine-one-one."
Annie's pulse raced.Sirens would arrive soon.Neighbors would gather.The street would fill.
And Leigh was still inside that burning house.Nobody was helping her.
