Page 51 of Ranger Bravery

With the grace and speed of a professional boxer, Todd’s fist slammed into Paul’s face. The crack of cartilage proceeded a blast of blood and a howl of pain. Paul bent over, and Todd took advantage by smashing his fist a second time into the older man’s face. Then he grabbed him by the scruff of his blood-stained shirt and shoved him against the wall.

Todd leaned over Paul. “You made a deal with the devil, old man, and you know what they say, the devil always gets his due. I killed Elena and I have the receipts tying you to the murder. Do you want me to give those to the police?”

Paul wheezed in response.

“My brother protected me from our dad when I was a kid,” Todd continued. “I’m going to stay loyal to him. So I don’t care what you need to do, but you’re getting Wally out of this.”

Paul held up his hands in surrender. “Okay.”

Todd smirked and punched him again in the gut. “Don’t threaten me again.”

The violence was brutal. Was this a sample of what Elena and Gerdie had gone through? Is this what Todd was planning on doing to her? Piper’s heart rate spiked. Fear tasted sour in her mouth and her breath came in short pants. She couldn’t even draw in full breaths to counteract the adrenaline coursing through her. She pulled air in through her nose and held it for three seconds before letting it out. Then she did it again.

A flash of metal caught her attention. Piper winced as she stuck the fingers of her right hand in between the couch cushions, and they brushed against something hard. She tugged it free.

A letter opener. It had a sharp point and an intricate handle engraved with lady justice.

Thank you, sweet God in Heaven.

The blade was short and not very sharp. It didn’t guarantee her survival, but it was a weapon. It was a chance. Piper just needed to wait for the right moment.

Paul lay on the ground with Todd standing over him. He pushed himself into a sitting position. Blood coated the lower half of his face and stained his clothes. He spat a tooth onto the carpet. “You broke my nose.”

“I’m gonna break a lot more than your nose.” Todd grabbed Paul by his shirt and lifted him to his feet, hurrying him over to the desk chair. “Call the governor. Call a senator. I don’t care who you call, but you need to get the charges against my brother dropped now.”

Piper couldn’t believe what she was witnessing. Did Todd really believe that Paul could get Wally out of criminal charges simply by placing a phone call? It wasn’t going to happen. Which, it seemed, Paul already knew. But now that he’d taken a beating from Todd, he was desperate to figure out how to get away from him.

Paul held up his hands. “I need a few minutes to think.”

“You’ve got two.”

Todd shifted his attention to Piper. His gaze was predatory. Blood-thirsty.

Bile rose in the back of her throat as he stalked closer. She wanted to sink back into the couch but resisted. Fear was Todd’s drug. He fed off of it, craved it. She wouldn’t give him a drop. Instead, she jutted up her chin and met his gaze with one of her own. “You won’t get away with this.”

He chuckled. “I have so far.” Todd reached the couch. He trailed a finger along the curve of Piper’s cheek and it took every bit of willpower not to shudder at the contact. “I wanted you from the beginning, but you always thought you were too good for me. You preferred Jackson, a weak-willed moron, when you could’ve had a real man. I thought when Lionel attacked you, it would kill my obsession, but it never went away. You’ve haunted me.”

In a flash, his hand wrapped around her throat. Piper’s heart rate spiked. His fingers constricted her airflow, and his body crushed her already damaged ribs. She nearly passed out from the pain alone. Todd hovered above her. His eyes were dark pools of hatred. “I knew you ran along the path in the nature preserve. Elena was a preview. I shot her and made her run toward you, so you could see what was coming.”

He lightened the pressure on her throat. Piper sucked in a tiny bit of air. Her fingers were locked around the letter opener. She wanted to wait for the right moment, but if Todd choked her enough that she passed out and then moved her while she was unconscious, she’d lose her chance to get away.

He chuckled. “I’m gonna have so much fun with you.” Then he growled and squeezed her throat again. His shoulders dropped as he added pressure.

Piper’s vision narrowed. She had one shot at this.

Without warning, and faster than she could’ve believed possible considering her injuries, she jabbed the letter opener into Todd’s neck. He screamed as the blade wedged deep into his skin. Blood spurted from the wound. The pressure on her throat immediately eased as Todd jumped back. Piper sucked in a much-needed breath. Her ribs screamed in protest.

Todd, red-faced and panicked, held his fingers to the wound. Piper had aimed for his artery. It wasn’t clear if her aim had been accurate. Fear propelled her to her feet. At best, she’d mortally wounded him. At worst, she’d enraged him. She wouldn’t wait to find out which one it was.

On shaky steps, she stumbled for the door. Paul didn’t make a move to stop her. He gaped openmouthed at Todd, as if he couldn’t believe this was happening in his home office. Under other circumstances, the expression on his face was comical, but now, it was simply a relief. She wouldn’t have to fight off two men in her condition.

Piper yanked open the office door. The house was a mansion on a wide expanse of property. Was there a housekeeping staff? Gardeners? Not everyone who worked for Paul was crooked, right? Then again, if Todd was merely injured, he would kill anyone who attempted to help her.

She limped down the hallway. Her left leg had been badly bruised in the collision with the truck and screamed with pain. Adrenaline masked some of it. Behind her, in the office, she heard Todd bellow her name. It was coarse and wild. Like a monster being unleashed.

Her breath came in pants as she rounded the corner into an expansive living room. Couches were arranged around an elegant coffee table. A hutch along one wall. Todd’s footsteps pounded behind her.

The sound of glass breaking erupted from different parts of the house. A second later, smoke filled the room.

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