Please,God!
Jericho knew in his bones that Mars would be chasing her. But the gunshot only confirmed it.
And worse, if Mars took a shot at her, then—then he was close enough toseeher.
Find her!He nearly shouted it to Orlando, but that would only alert Mars to his tail.
Except, what if the man had been aiming at Orlando? Aw, Jericho should have taken off the bell. He hadn’t had time to think.
Besides, without the bell, he’d be lost—except, maybe not, because even in the darkness, he recognized this part of the forest, just beyond the boundary of their land.
Toward the ridge...
Although maybe Harley was leading them back to the lake, in a circle to her house. Smart. Get there first, bunker up. Call for reinforcements.
Maybe he should turn around, meet her there. Except, no. He wasn’t leaving her in the woods. He started running.
Ahead the bell jangled, a little louder, and of course Orlando would have been jolted, spooked by the shot. He expected his Bernie to race toward him, tackle him in fear any second.
Again, no.
Oh please,let my dog not be wounded. Ordead—
Another shot, and it reverberated right to his bones, even as his feet crashed through the snow, the branches of shaggy evergreens whipping at his face, the wind burning in his ears.
Jericho broke into a clearing—a former campsite where he and his brothers used to pitch an overnight tent.
He barely made out movement from where the trail trekked back into the woods.
Mars!And the man lay on the ground tussling with—
Orlando?
The dog growled, his teeth buried in the arm of the man’s jacket.
Jericho glanced around—no Harley. His chest tightened.
Mars’s shotgun lay on the snow and Jericho leaped at it just as Mars cuffed his dog.
Orlando yelped but didn’t let go. Mars got his hand around the stock of his gun, but Jericho had a hold too. Mars rolled, kicked him, and Jericho’s grip loosed.
Mars lifted the gun, aiming to hit Orlando—
Jericho leaped at him, intercepting, and Orlando’s hold broke free.
The gun fell away, and Jericho landed on Mars.
He didn’t even remember hitting him. The fury simply unleashed in him, flashed out, and he hit the man again as Orlando backed up, barking.
Then Mars landed a blow on Jericho’s ear, and his head swam.
Mars hit him again before he could rebound, and Jericho fell away.
He managed to roll before Mars could kick him in the chest and then he bounced to his feet, despite the world still spinning.
Mars lurched to his feet, spat blood onto the snow, a flashlight lying on the ground illuminating his face. His hat had come off, revealing the tattoo on his forehead. Pretty.
And then he smiled. “Jericho Bowie.” He raised his fists. “Let’s finish this.”
