Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 75907 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 380(@200wpm)___ 304(@250wpm)___ 253(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75907 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 380(@200wpm)___ 304(@250wpm)___ 253(@300wpm)
Bridget’s eyes flash and then fill with hurt as she turns to me.
“Told you,” I whisper, feeling queasy. I’m not a fan of blood either, and it’s running in a small river down my hand.
“DO IT!” Anthony screams, and Bridget jumps, then walks to my other side.
Just when I think I’m about to pass out, people pour into the room from both the front and the rear entrances.
“Freeze!” I think that’s Callum’s voice. “Drop the weapon, and put your hands on your heads!”
“Baby.” Tanner’s suddenly at my side, his hands all over me. “Where are you hurt? What—oh, God. She’s cut! We need an ambulance.”
“Wrist,” I whisper, feeling funny.
“You’re okay,” he assures me and pushes something over the wound. It hurts, but I know it’ll stop the bleeding.
I look over to see Anthony on his stomach on the ground, glaring up at me. Bridget is sitting on a pew, her hands tied behind her back, and she continues to cry.
“Feel bad for her,” I say, as Tanner wraps me in his arms. “He’s ruined her life.”
“Yeah, well, she almost killed you, so I’m just going to be angry for a while.” He kisses my face, my lips, as someone unties me from the chair.
“How bad?”
“Scott?”
“Right here,” he says and tosses the ropes aside. “How bad is it?”
“One wrist slashed,” Tanner says briskly. “And she’s in shock. Probably from the whole incident more than the cut.”
“Cut kinda hurts,” I remind him.
“Sarah!”
June and Luna are here but are asked to go outside by the cops while they secure the scene.
“Want out of here.”
“Okay, baby.” Tanner kisses my forehead, and I notice for the first time that his hands are shaking.
“You okay?” I ask him.
“No. No, I’m not okay. But I will be.”
“How did you know?”
“She okay?” I glance up at the voice and see Belle standing next to us.
“You found something.”
She grins at me and nods. “Yeah, I did. And it’s a good thing because it looks like this party was about to go south real fast.”
“What did you find?”
“Baby, we can talk about this later.”
“I want to know.”
Belle squats in front of me and licks her lips. “Bridget’s parents reported her as a missing person a couple of months ago. There’s been no trace of her until last week when she used her debit card to rent a camper.”
I feel my eyes go wide. “How did they miss that?”
“Yeah, someone dropped the ball. I found she used her card a couple of times after that, once here in Huckleberry Bay. Knowing her connection to your ex, the puzzle fit together.”
“Belle called me and asked if you were with me, and when I said no, we raced over here,” Tanner finishes. “And her hunch was right.”
“Thank God.”
Scott arrives with a gurney. “We’re taking you to the hospital. You’re going to need stitches for that, and I want your head checked for concussion.”
“I’m not arguing.”
The guys help me up onto the gurney, but before they wheel me out, I stop them.
“Take me to her.”
“Sarah,” Scott begins, but I stop him.
“Take me to her.”
He wheels me over, and Bridget looks up at me. She looks pitiful and sad. And lost.
“There’s help, you know. He really messed with your head, but it doesn’t always have to be like that. You and your baby can get help and be safe.”
She swallows hard and nods. “Yeah, well, I’m probably going to jail, anyway.”
“Maybe. But you can turn this around. Just stay far away from me.”
She nods again. “I won’t be back.”
“Do you want to talk to the asshole motherfucker?” Scott asks.
“Absolutely not.”
“It’s good to be home.” I cuddle Petunia close and kiss her soft cheek. As soon as I walked through the door, she came racing to meet me. “I was only gone one night, but you’d think it was a year, as far as she’s concerned.”
“She knew something wasn’t right,” Tanner replies and scratches the cat behind her ears. “What do you say to a walk on the beach? Are you up for it?”
“It’s a cut on my arm, Tanner, not a stab to the heart. I don’t even have a concussion. Let’s do it.”
It’s a sunny spring day, and the wind is surprisingly light when we get down to the sand and kick off our shoes. Hand in hand, we set off toward the water to walk by the shoreline.
“It’s wild how much can happen in the span of twenty-four hours.” I blow out a breath and then take in a deep one, filling my lungs with the salty air that always seems to revitalize me. “I’m really, really glad it’s over, Tanner.”
“Me, too.” He hugs me to him, cradling me against his chest, and kisses the top of my hair. He didn’t leave me at the hospital for a minute. He even slept in the chair next to the bed and was glued to my side until they released me this morning. “I was scared out of my mind when we rushed into that chapel.”