Page 105 of Day Break

My heart was beating so fast that I couldn’t hear anything above the sound of it pounding in my ears. Whenever I yelled for them, I would stop and listen for a reply. The only sounds I could hear were the waves softly hitting the beach and the low hum of crickets.

When I finally came to the clearing, the sliver of moon in the sky provided just enough light to see the empty beach on either side of me. The soft rays bounced off the dark water as I scanned for any sign of Lane or Malory.

I called out again, this time screaming at the top of my lungs. I thought I heard a muffled voice and started running towards the sound.

Then a shot rang out and echoed in the night. For a moment, I was confused as to which direction the sound had come from. Then I heard Byron bark, so I raced towards the sound, not caring about my own safety.

I should have known where Elliott would go. I raced towards my first hiding spot, remembering the image he’d taken of me asleep in the tall grass. Cursing under my breath for not calling the police before racing headfirst into danger, I stumbled a few times in the sand and grass.

Byron’s barking grew louder. The tone changed from aggressive to happy and excited so quickly that I stopped in my tracks.

“Lane?” I called out.

“Over here,” he replied. “It’s okay. Malory to the rescue.” I heard him chuckle.

When I saw Lane’s dark silhouette in the night, I raced to him and didn’t stop until his arms were around me, holding me tight.

Byron was jumping up on my side, so I reached down and wrapped an arm around him too.

“We’re okay,” Lane said with a sigh. “Everyone’s all right.”

“What happened?” I asked, pulling back. Only then did I see that Malory was shining a light on Elliot. He was facedown in the tall grass, grunting loudly with his hands handcuffed behind his back.

I was surprised to see another man lying beside him, unconscious.

“We got the SOBs,” Malory said happily, her knee still in Elliott’s back, holding him to the ground. “Damned if I didn’t even get to enjoy one night of my vacation. Hell, I didn’t even get one goddamn home-cooked meal.”

“Did you shoot him?” I asked, motioning to the other man. When her light flashed on him, I realized I’d seen him before. It was Wesley Allen.

“No, Lane and I managed to get them down. The shot was a warning shot when Elliott tried to run after Lane knocked Allen out,” Malory said.

“Head on back to the house,” Lane said, reaching over and yanking up Wesley Allen, who groaned and stumbled.

“What about…” I motioned to Malory and Elliott.

“She’s got this. Don’t you?” he asked Malory. She quickly nodded and started hauling Elliott up off the ground.

“I can handle him.” She pulled Elliott up next to her and when he tried to jerk free from her hold, she yanked on his arm until he fell in line. “No, you don’t,” Malory said, yanking his arms even harder. Elliott groaned and then fell into step with her as they marched down the path towards the house. “You guys coming?” she called over her shoulder.

“What happened?” I asked as we made our way back to the house.

Lane was dragging Wesley along. The man was awake now but groaning and dragging his feet.

“I went to let Byron out, and Elliott was waiting for me across the yard. Then I felt a gun between my shoulder blades. It was this guy. He snuck up behind me. The two of them forced me out here,” Lane said with a sigh. “I don’t even think they knew that Malory was here. We hadn’t even made it to the spot when Byron rushed us, barking and taking their attention off me. I felt them hesitate and move the gun away from me. I could hear Malory following us and knew she was right there if I needed her. So I fought like hell,” Lane said with a shrug.

“Stupid,” Malory called back.

“Yeah, it was,” Lane admitted. “I knew they had a gun, but he was distracted by Byron. When they both turned on the dog… something snapped in me. I would have done anything to keep that dog safe.”

I stopped and gave Byron some attention.

“Luckily, I was here,” Malory said as we stepped off the pathway into the lit backyard. “Seeing as you were having a difficult time fighting off two of them.”

The light from the patio shone on Lane’s face, and I saw blood coming from his nose. He had a split lip that was bleeding as well.

“Oh!” I said, reaching up and touching his face. “You’re bleeding.”

“Not as bad as him. I broke his nose,” Lane said with a smile, motioning to Elliott. Wesley also had blood trickling down his face.