Suddenly, Madelaine’s thoughts were interrupted.
A gunshot sliced through the air, and even before they could hear its thunderous echo, Tinsel released a bloodcurdling squeal, tipping to her left side.
The horse raised its head in sheer panic, tried to find its footing, and stumbled wildly through the deep drifts of snow.Madelaine couldn’t control her movements, and before she knew it, all three of them were thrown off the mare’s back as she fell. The poor thing kept squealing in obvious pain, kept kicking its legs, and then Madelaine saw it.
There was blood. Crimson droplets painted the crisp white snow bright red. Someone had shot Tinsel in the leg.
Belle immediately started crying again, and Simon whined, obviously scared about what had just happened.
Another gunshot rang out, which forced Madelaine to grab Simon by the collar of his jacket and drag him down to the ground as they scrambled to hide behind Tinsel. The echo bounced off the mountains and through the valley from all sides, so at first, Madelaine had no idea where these shots came from.
Then she heard shouting, looked around, and saw them. Several dark figures rode straight toward them from the west, waving guns in the air…
She didn’t waste any time trying to figure out who they were.
Grabbing Simon by the hand, Madelaine lifted her heavy skirt with the other and began to run. Leaving a kicking and screaming Tinsel behind, she ran toward the nearest building she could reach—an abandoned shed—dragging Simon with her.
The snow felt like sticky sludge holding them back, but she fought with everything in her to get them to safety. She had to.
However, luck was not on their side.
They were merely ten yards away from the shed when Madelaine slipped on something hidden beneath the thick layer of snow. She lost her balance and fell forward. Everything happened in the blink of an eye, but she was quick to twist herself around to protect Belle and cushion her fall.
Madelaine landed in a puffy cloud of whirling snow with Belle on top of her.
The back of her head hit something hard, and a sharp stabbing pain immobilized her. Her vision blurred.
Madelaine heard Simon’s fearful outcry as he scrambled to her side, calling her name and shaking her. There was ringing in her ears, but she could still hear the muffled shouting from those riders in the distance, racing ever closer toward them.
Madelaine fought to get going, but as much as she struggled to get up to her feet, to run, and to bring the children to safety, she couldn’t. Her body didn’t want to listen to her commands, and before she was able to tell Simon to take Belle and run, her vision lost all its color and light.
“Please, God!” she whispered desperately.
She was cradled in darkness...
Chapter Four
Sheriff’s Quarters, Stevensville
Early morning
The room was freezing cold when Luke stirred. A piece of paper stuck to his face when he lifted his head, blinking wildly, trying to wake up. His Stetson had fallen off and lay next to his boots on the floor, but when he bent down to pick it up, thundering drums inside his skull forced him to move very, very slowly.
Drinking all that whiskey last night clearly hadn’t been his best idea, although it had helped numb his broken heart for a short while. The half-empty bottle was still standing right there, next to his hand on the pile of cluttered papers.
He hadn’t even made it home last night.
Home. That one word once held so much promise. Now, it felt like a bottomless pit.
He peeked at the clock on the mantelpiece and saw that it was very early in the morning. It probably wasn’t even light out yet. His shoulders hurt, and his back was strained. At only thirty-three years old, he shouldn’t have been this broken and achy already.
Get yourself together, Luke!
Carefully raising his head again, he straightened himself up and stretched his long arms above it. That’s when the icy cold in the room really hit him. The fireplace was pitch black, not one ember to be seen. As if to confirm his sorry state, his dry throat made him cough, and his breath created thick clouds in front of his face.
Looking back at the mess on his desk, he couldn’t face it.
It was overwhelming, because this despicable murder case… itwashis family they’d been writing about.
