Her lower lip wobbled. Suddenly he was taking her hand, cupping his palm over hers. He squeezed her fingers and she returned the pressure. Oddly, he found himself wanting to reach for her, ease the pain from that broken place that refused to be mended. For a moment, he thought she might let their hands stay joined, but with a shake she let go, pressed the gas harder, and sent the truck rattling over his tender thoughts.
An electronic pulse buzzed from the glove box.
She stared. “What was that?”
He pulled out a cell phone as it continued to ring. The number on the screen said “Unknown.”
She stopped the truck and snatched the phone from him, flipping it to speaker mode before he could decide whether it was wise to answer or not.
“Ms. Bardine, you need to go home.” The voice was low, male, hard-edged.
Electricity jolted through his battered muscles.
“Who is this?” Mackenzie snapped.
“You know.”
“Yes,” Mackenzie said. “Bullseye, right?”
The voice dripped with disdain. “That’s your nickname for me. Clickbait for the social media trash who follow you like pigs after slop.”
“How do you know I’m in this truck?”
“A famous podcaster like yourself? I’ve got eyes on you.”
Gideon grew cold. Bullseye knew about Mackenzie’s online crusade. Had it allowed him to pinpoint when shewould arrive in town? Helped him conclude she’d be meeting Lorraine?
Bullseye continued. “Like I said, you should go home while you can. It’s dangerous here. You’ve noticed?”
She stared daggers as she clutched the phone. “I have, particularly since you keep sending goons to try to kill me.”
“They’re loyal to me. Everyone in this town is. That’s the part you don’t understand yet. You won’t find anywhere to hide or anyone to shield you from me. This is your one chance to get out alive. It’s a gracious offer. You should take it.”
Mackenzie’s eyes flashed. “I’m not going until you’re punished for what you did to my brother.”
“You need someone to blame, but Aaron did it to himself.”
“You peddle death. You profit off people’s misery.”
“The opinion is irrelevant to the issue. Your brother’s choices got him killed.”
Mackenzie’s face went white and Gideon grabbed the phone from her.
Rage painted his vision red. “Enough,” he snarled.
Bullseye’s tone remained calm, clipped. “Gideon Landry, isn’t it? Inserting yourself into a situation that doesn’t concern you. This is not your fight. Mixing yourself up with her is going to get you dead.”
“You don’t get to exterminate everyone who crosses you,” he said through gritted teeth.
Bullseye laughed. “I don’t bother. I have people to do that for me. You’ll never get near me. You’ll die long beforeyou see my face. You can’t win. Go home. The offer extends to you too. I’ll forget I ever knew your name.”
Gideon looked at Mackenzie and saw the mountain of rage and hurt and pain she was trying to contain. Too much for her to live with, too much for her to let go. In that moment he knew she was trapped, unable to free herself any more than her brother could from his torment. She was bound to this man by her need for revenge. It would blind her.
It would kill her.
His blood pounded through his veins and coalesced into a rush of conviction.
Before he could speak again, she grabbed the phone. “You’re scared of me. That’s why you sent your men, why you’re calling now. You’re scared that I’ll expose you to the world and upset your business.”
