Page 85 of Stone
“Listen to me very carefully. You need to watch her. Do not allow Dani out of your sight.”
“I’ll keep her right here. What are you doing?”
“Catching a monster.” I moved through the crowd, avoiding Daniella’s gaze. As soon as I made it to the clump of trees, I pulled the weapon into both hands. Crouching over, I listened. With the incoming tide and the loud music, it was impossible to make out any abnormal sounds.
I crept through the darkness, heading toward the road. Movement caught my eye and I moved slowly through the trees. The further I got away from the music, the more in tune my ears became to the natural sounds.
A single crack was followed by obviously heavy footsteps. That’s when I took off running. So did whoever I was chasing. I smashed my way through the trees, determined to reach the asshole. The closer I came to the street, the more light was allowed to stream in through the thick tree canopy.
The man I was chasing was powerfully built, but capable of running quickly. I had a hard time keeping up with him, the intruder making enough headway that by the time I broke through the trees, the loud sound of a vehicle door being slammed echoed in my ears.
I rushed forward, lifting the weapon to chest level and prepared to fire. Hissing, I instantly bent my arms and kept running toward the road running parallel to Akoni’s house. The last thing I needed was to fire off a weapon at a party.
While the truck was pulling away and I couldn’t read the license plate, I managed to see the make and model.
It shouldn’t be too hard to find on such a small island. A huge part of me wanted to go after him, but my first priority was Dani. Huffing, I slipped my weapon back into the waistband of my trousers and jogged back to the house.
Kekoa caught me. “What happened?”
“Guy in a Toyota Tundra. Light blue. A newer model.”
“Sounds like a rental. What do you want me to do?”
I glanced at where Dani was being congratulated, hissing under my breath. “I need to take her back to the house. It’s safer there. Will you get some guys and see if you can hunt the person down? Even finding out who the hell he is will be helpful.”
“Yeah, I can do that. Just get her out of here.”
Nodding, I immediately pushed my way through the crowd that had gathered around Dani. When I grabbed her arm, she seemed surprised.
“What’s going on?”
“We’re leaving.” No one tried to stop us as I pulled her away.
“What now? I just won the contest. Did you see me?”
“Dani,” I growled. “There was someone watching us. Watching you. I need to get you back to the house.”
“Okay.”
To her credit, she didn’t argue with me. I kept her shielded as we walked quickly back to the Jeep. Situations like this were the single reason I hated having an open-air vehicle.
“I need you to lie down in the back,” I told her.
“Why?”
“That’s the only way to protect you until we get back to the house.”
“You’re scaring me.”
“You should be scared, Dani. Now, please. Just do as I say.”
She nodded, her entire body shaking. I helped her inside, closing the door and immediately turning in a full circle. The fucker was likely long gone by now. But again, it was a small fucking island. I’d hunt the bastard down by this time tomorrow. There were only so many places to hide.
As soon as I jumped in, I started and revved the engine. Thankfully, I knew a back way from Akoni’s house to mine. While the terrain was rough and dark, it would allow better coverage.
She said nothing as I drove, but I sensed her fear and was grateful she was taking this seriously. I drove at excessive speeds, constantly checking the rearview mirror for any signs of life.
By the time I pulled up in front of the house, I was wired for sound. Not until we were behind locked doors with the security system set would I be able to take a deep breath. With our arrival, the exterior lights came on, highlighting the entire front of the house and several yards into the surrounding woods.
