Then we can reunite Willow with her brother, and they can carry on their lives, hopefully making better choices.
My chest aches, and I rub the spot above my heart. If all goes to plan, Willow will be free in a few days. She’ll have to pay her dues for breaking her parole, which might involve more work at the center, but after that she’ll be free to carry on with her life, getting paint under her nails and having no regard for time.
It shouldn’t hurt to think about it, but it does.
I tighten the last screw and swing the door back and forth a few times. There’s a good amount of resistance. It’s not going to slam shut with the slightest breeze.
Willow is a dreamer and an artist, and there’s no universe where someone like her fits in with someone like me. Even if we could put up with each other, we’d drive one other up the wall. So there’s no point in even thinking about seeing her after this is done. I doubt she’d have a serious interest in someone like me. Except to shock me, which she seems to enjoy doing.
I throw the screwdriver in the toolkit. We’re a distraction to each other, nothing more. The catch on the toolbox snaps shut just as my wrist vibrates.
A warning light flashes. The south perimeter has been breached.
I snap into military mode. There’s a gun in the desk drawer, and I slide bullets into the chamber, then slip it into my pocket.
It’s probably tourists. The Kings have no way of tracking us here, but I have to assume the worst. Willow is outside, and I need to get to her and warn her.
I push the door open quietly, and thankfully it doesn’t bang shut behind me. My heart pounds as I crouch and run along the deck. Turning the corner, I skid to a halt. Willow’s sketchbook sits open on the chair, and the box of crayons is on the ground next to it. The blue crayon rolls along the deck as if it were abandoned in a hurry by someone who didn’t have time to put it back in the box.
They’ve got Willow. The bottom falls out of my stomach, and fear grips my heart.
The gun is in my hand in an instant. I’m down the steps and running for the trees, treading as softly as possible. But the thought of Willow, captured has my heart pounding. Panic threatens to take over my better judgment, and I make myself slow down. I duck behind a big pine and scan the trees; they get thicker away from the road.
I catch a glimpse of floral fabric between the tree trunks. Her dress.
Without thinking, I launch myself through the forest. I’m crashing over branches, announcing myself to whoever has her, but I don’t care. I need to get to Willow. I need to keep her safe.
Through the trees, her dress billows as I get closer, only to disappear behind a thicket. Now I can see her hair trailing down her back, and she looks unhurt. She’s not tied up. She’s…
As I crash through the thicket, Willow turns to face me with a surprised look on her face.
She’s alone.
“Hudson.” She puts a hand on her chest. “You startled me.”
I push her behind me as I hold out my gun, scanning the area for the bad guys.
“What are you doing?”
She seems annoyed that I’m rescuing her, and as I point my gun at the tall pine trees, I realize it’s because she doesn’t need rescuing.
“The alarm went off. I thought someone had taken you.”
She half smiles like I’m over-exaggerating. “I went for a walk.”
I put my hands on my knees, trying to catch my breath and calm my racing heart. Even in the worst circumstances when I was a SEAL, I never lost my cool like this.
“You went for a walk?” My racing heart hasn’t caught up with the fact that she’s safe yet, and the adrenaline turns to anger. “I told you there’s a sensor set up around the perimeter. I told you not to go walking on your own.”
She grins at me. “And I told you I’m not good at obeying orders.”
She has no idea of the panic she put me through. And instead of apologizing, she’s standing here with her hands on her hips, defiant as ever.
“Those orders are there for your protection,” I grit out.
She shakes her head at me like I’m the one overreacting. She has no respect for rules, and she disobeyed a direct order. In the Navy, you’d be punished for that. And that’s exactly what I’m going to do.
I pocket my gun, lift her off the ground, and sling her over my shoulder.
