Page 73 of Run for Her Life
Viktor stood just beyond the porch, his silhouette sharp against the flashing lightning behind him. He had a pistol in one hand, a smirk on his face, and was absolutely calm.
“Viktor,” she called out. “I should’ve known you were too much of a cockroach to stay buried. I see Darren sent you my message.”
Viktor laughed, tilting his head slightly. “He did. I thought I should oblige and pay you a personal visit. Clearly, you didn’t get my message in Harborwood.” He took a step forward, tapping the barrel of his gun against his thigh. “Now, be a good girl and step outside. I only want to talk.”
Zoe shifted slightly, silently signaling to Jeff to stay put. Her heart raced as she quickly tried to figure out how to get to safety. She pulled up her phone and dialed 911, but before she could tapthe call button, there was an ear-splitting sound and the front door blasted open.
“Ah!” Jeff shouted.
Zoe fired a bullet but Viktor ducked, laughing, dodging her shot by inches as he disappeared behind a tree just beyond the porch.
“You aren’t as good a shot as your mother!” Viktor called out.
Zoe’s pulse was a roaring drumbeat in her ears. He knew her. Of course he did. She wasn’t surprised. She moved fast, cutting toward the side of the cabin, her gun steady. She caught sight of Jeff moving behind the kitchen counter, trying to get to his phone.
Zoe’s phone was lying a few feet away from her after falling out of her grip. She contemplated reaching for it when another shot blasted through the air.
This time there was another sound that followed. A squelching, sickening, wet sound. Zoe lifted her eyes to Jeff standing in front of the window. Blood poured from a hole in his chest, trickling down his white robe and turning it red.
“No!” she screamed.
Jeff staggered against the counter, eyes wide, his breath coming in short, shallow gasps. He slipped down the wall, landing on the floor with a thud.
Viktor stepped into the house. “Tsk, tsk,” he mused. “Are you going to put up a fight, Emily?” Zoe was still crouched behind an armchair, her heart thundering. “Your mother certainly did before I killed her.”
Zoe didn’t stop to think.
She fired three times. Fast, sharp, her aim clean.
Viktor barely had time to react before one of the bullets slammed into his shoulder, another grazing his ribs. The last one lodged in his stomach. His laugh twisted into a grunt of pain, and he stumbled back.
Zoe didn’t hesitate. Her instincts took over. She advanced, gun steady, her heart ice-cold. Viktor choked out a breath as his legs gave out. His jaw hung open as he took raspy breaths, his beady eyes wide in disbelief.
Zoe towered over his withering frame, satisfaction swelling inside her. “Who do you work for?”
Viktor’s smirk flickered, just for a moment. Then he tipped his head back and laughed. “You’ll find out soon.”
Her eyes darkened. “This is for my mother.”
Zoe drilled a bullet through his skull. He fell limp at her feet. His blood pooled around her boots. The spell broke. A strangled whimper escaped her throat and her knees knocked together.
Her chest heaved, adrenaline still racing through her as she turned back to Jeff. He was on the floor, blood pooling beneath him, his breathing ragged.
Zoe dropped beside him, pressing both hands over the wound. “Jeff, stay with me,” she whispered, panic bleeding into her voice. Where the hell was her phone? Her frantic eyes searched the place, but her eyes were stinging with tears and everything was a mess.
He gave a weak chuckle, coughing. “Never thought I’d go down in this damn house.”Zoe shook her head. “No, don’t—don’t do that, don’t talk like that. I’ll get help. Please hang on.”
He gritted his teeth, his fingers curling weakly against hers. “Listen,” he rasped. “Your mother… I loved her. Tell Gina about me. I know I wasn’t there because I felt so g-guilty for betraying my family. I owed it to them to stay away b-but she was always on my mind.”
Zoe swallowed past the lump in her throat, nodding. “I will. I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t be.” He coughed, blood sputtering out of his mouth. “The man your mother worked for…” And then under the dwindling light of the day, Jeff went still.
All the air squeezed out of Zoe’s lungs. She leaned back on her hands, taking in the carnage of the cabin.
Two dead men, and the name of the man behind it all had died with them.
FORTY-FIVE
