“Kendra.” Hadley lowered her voice. “You don’t have to do this. You deserve to be with someone who truly loves you.”
For a second, something flickered in Kendra’s eyes. Uncertainty, maybe—or something close to it.
Then the emotion vanished, and her gaze turned cold. “Don’t try to talk me out of it. It’s too late anyway. It’s already done.”
CHAPTER 42
Max sat forwardin his seat as Sheriff Sutherland sped down the road.
The sheriff had just finished talking to someone from the railroad. They’d confirmed that a freight train had come through the area about twenty minutes ago, running east to west.
“Kendra wanted to go somewhere close,” Max said.
“And somewhere you’d think to look,” Sheriff Sutherland added. “Because I think she ultimately wants to lure you out. You’re her prize, as twisted as it sounds.”
Max didn’t respond, but the truth of it settled in his chest.
Kendrawantedhim to find her.
That thought sat wrong in every possible way.
Backup had been called in. Two additional units were en route, still several minutes out. Too far. Too slow.
Max’s gaze flicked to the dark stretch of road ahead. He remembered being here a month ago when a dangerous cult had invaded his family’s land and tried to take over the property. Thankfully, his aunt and uncle had been okay.
But now this? He hated to put them through more than they’d already been through.
Sheriff Sutherland slowed just enough to take the next turn. The tires crunched as they veered onto the smaller road leading toward his aunt and uncle’s place.
The farther they went down the road, the more secluded it became. His relatives had wanted to live where there was plenty of land and away from the world. But they’d recently learned such seclusion could also be a danger.
Max’s pulse kicked higher as they got closer.
Sheriff Sutherland eased off the gas, his posture shifting.
Something ahead caught his eye.
Max leaned forward and squinted. “Hold up.”
The sheriff slowed further, the headlights stretching out over the road.
A truck was parked sideways, blocking access.
Max’s stomach dropped. “I don’t like the look of that . . .”
Sheriff Sutherland brought the SUV to a slow stop, leaving several yards between them and the vehicle. The engine idled low, the only sound in the stillness.
For a second, nothing moved.
Then the driver’s side door of the truck opened.
Max’s muscles tensed as a figure stepped out into the headlights.
Kenny.
Recognition hit instantly.
The man didn’t rush or shout. Instead, he moved with a deliberate, almost eerie calm as he rounded the front of the truck.
