Creak
She snapped her eyes open.Her head jerked toward the hall and ice coursed through her veins.
CHAPTER 12
Water sloshed overQuin’s head and ran in rivulets underneath his jacket and shirt.He’d thought the power outage was due to the storm.Now, he wasn’t so damn sure.He shined the flashlight over the ground as he made his way around the side of Josie’s cabin.Liam’s gun sat snugly in his other palm.
Quin’s boots squished in the wet earth.Lightning flashed.
A tall, dark figure stood at the line of trees.
“Hey!”Quin broke into a run.He pumped his arms, his footsteps smacking into the mud, spraying his legs.He kept the flashlight beam on his target as the man turned and dashed into the woods.
Quin followed.Anger fierce and hot surged through him.He had him—Liam’s killer.And the bastard would face retribution tonight.
“Stop!”he bellowed, his rage pushing the limits of containment.Quin barreled through the trees.Branches whacked his legs and body, but he didn’t slow.
The man slipped in the mud.He went down to his knees then scrambled back up, but Quin was getting closer.He gripped the flashlight in his fist and held it over his head.He pumped his legs and sprinted the last twenty feet.The man looked back.His face was mostly hidden in shadows, but his mouth was twisted with fear.
Quin bent low and rammed his shoulder into the guy’s midsection, taking him down—he landed on his back with a loudoofas Quin moved on top of him.Satisfaction coursed through Quin’s veins.He ripped the man’s hood off his head then shined the light directly in his face.The man blinked.Mud coated his cheeks and his hair was a mess, but his identity was unmistakable.
“You sonofabitch,” Quin breathed.He slammed the butt of the gun down on Frasier’s jaw.
Frasier fought and struggled, holding his hands up to protect his head.“I didn’t do anything!I—”
“You killed Liam,” Quin hissed.Needing to feel his fist on Frasier’s face, he dropped the flashlight and delivered a punch to his cheekbone.“You tried to run Josie over,” he said.His fury became too great.He gripped Frasier’s throat in his hand.“You’re going to pay.”
Frasier’s eyes, bulging and red, locked with Quin’s.He shook his head vehemently.
“I didn’t...wasn’t me,” he gasped.“Please.”
Quin loosened his grip.Frasier needed to be behind bars.“Don’t fucking lie,” he spat.“You’re going to jail for what you did.”
Frasier sucked in three greedy breaths of air.“I swear to god.I didn’t do anything to Liam or Josie.Why the fuck would I?”
“Why are you here?”He couldn’t let on about the photos.Giving Frasier information on what kind of dirt they had would only help the guy slip through the cracks of the justice system.
“Because of you!”Frasier shoved at his shoulder and rolled out from under him.
Quin backed up enough to let him push into a sitting position.He kept the gun aimed low but picked up the flashlight, ready to thump him again if he tried anything.
“You broke into my house.You’re the one who should be arrested.”Frasier rubbed his throat.“I have cameras on my property.I checked the footage this afternoon and saw you going into my backyard then walking right into my damn house.”
Quin jerked his head toward the property.“So you came here?To Josie’s?”
“Where else would you be?I knew if you were in town someone was hiding you.”He swiped a drop of blood from his lip.“I should have reported it to the police, but I wanted to know what you came for.”
Quin’s pulse beat frantically.If Frasier planned to press charges he’d have to run again.Have to leave Josie at a time like this when someone was after her.Desperation scratched his throat.“I’m a mess, man.I feel like someone killed Liam.It’s just not right how he died.Then a driver tried to run Josie off the road this morning and I thought you had something to do with it because Cody mentioned you were at the logging site the day Liam’s harness broke.”
Frasier let out a sigh and got to his feet.“You didn’t take anything from my house?”
Quin shook his head, the lie rolling easily.After all, he hadn’t taken anything physical.“No.I just went in to see if there was anything that tied you to Liam.A reason you’d want him or Josie hurt.”
Frasier threw his arms into the air.“Well, I don’t.Barely even talked to Liam.He was nice enough though, and geez, I’ve had readings done by Josie.Sure wouldn’t want to hurt her.”Frasier let out a loose chuckle.“She’d probably hex me.”
Quin’s body turned rigid.He was lying.He’d attacked Josie and Liam had beat the shit out of him, but he couldn’t let on that he knew that.That was for the police to figure out.Not to mention Josie was the last person who would put a hex on someone.She sure as hell wasn’t into anything dark.“Josie wouldn’t—”
“Look, I shouldn’t have come here.I could have called Josie but I knew she’d just cover for you.I wanted to see if you were staying here then was going to call the police.I don’t think I need to do that now.”
