Page 78 of Raven's Curse
The guy jerked, dropped out of sight, his body armor taking the brunt of the hits as she slammed into the ground, the report echoing through the trees. She rolled with the force, staggered to her feet as Buck gained his, yelled at her to run.
She grabbed his arm, shoved him ahead as they tripped toward her Bronco, blood dotting the gravel. Ears ringing from the report. Her vehicle door yawned open, that chime sounding around them. Loud. Incessant.
It hit her then. That Eli hadn’t been mouthing you. He’d said two. Had tried to warn her with his dying breath. And she’d missed it.
Something jabbed her shoulder blade, sent an icy ribbon weaving through her muscles. She blinked, fell, everything blurring into gray.
Buck landed on the ground beside her, legs twitching, his low moan crushed beneath the sound of crunching gravel.
A figure appeared over her, head cocked off to one side before he smiled. Bent low. “Hello, Greer. It’s been a while. I can’t tell you how surprised I was to find you and Remington together. Talk about serendipity. Only Colter’s missing, but I’ll pay him a visit, next. Now, try to stay conscious because, it’s time we got the band back together.”
Chapter Twenty-One
She was late.
Chase paced the length of the hangar, pausing each pass to stare at his phone. It had been nearly two hours since Greer had headed off to Buck’s, and she still hadn’t texted. Not that it necessarily meant anything. Cell coverage was spotty around the county, and she could have gotten tied up on another call. Was merely talking to a farmer out on one of the rural lanes like she’d done a thousand times before.
That fact didn’t stop him from worrying. Obsessing, really. Like he’d been doing every day since they’d stopped Hodges. Some deep-seated fear that he’d missed something. That it wasn’t quite over. That he could still lose her.
You won’t be able to save her.
Those words sounded in Chase’s head. They’d been looping through his mind all week, like some kind of prophesy.
Zain shuffled in beside him, clapping him on the back. “She’s probably helping some local find his missing cow.”
Chase nodded, the voice in his head already screaming. “Not like her to forget to text, though.”
Zain nodded, no witty comeback like Chase had expected. “Did you try the station?”
Chase snorted. “And be that guy? She’s the freaking sheriff. I have to let her do her job without hyperventilating every time she’s a bit late from a call.”
“True.” Zain looked him dead in the eyes. “Or, you call Shirley and find out where she is. Screw what anyone else thinks.”
“You’re supposed to be the voice of reason.”
“Not storming over there is being reasonable.”
“Does Saylor know about this side of you?”
“Hell yeah. Loves me anyway.”
Chase palmed his cell when the damn thing rang. He juggled it a few times, nearly dropping it on the hangar floor before shaking his head. Tapping the screen. “Remington.”
“Where the hell is Greer?”
Chase frowned. “Nick?”
Nick grunted. “Who else would it be? Is Greer with you?”
“She’s out on a call. Should be back soon. Why?”
Silence, then Nick muttering to himself.
Chase put the guy on speaker as his buddies gathered around. “Nick. If Greer’s in trouble, you’d better start talking.”
“I’m sending you a photo. Open it.”
Chase’s phone pinged, the message popping up on the screen. He tapped the icon, waited as the image loaded, then stared at the picture of a guy walking through an airport. Clothes mismatched as if he’d yanked them off a rack in a hurry.
