Page 1 of Fire Peak

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Charlie Santa Lucia had gotten into plenty of messes in her life, but this one had to be the most ridiculous. Why had she thought driving a cherry-red BMW convertible down a road to nowhere, deep in the Alaskan wilderness—with a goldfish tank strapped into the passenger seat—would solve her problems?

Now she was trapped on a one-lane road with no exit, with another car in hot pursuit. How the heck was she going to scramble out of this one?

It had all made sense at the time. Sort of.

The BMW belonged to her best friend Molly, and she didn’t even have the title, so couldn’t trade it in for a less eye-catching car. The goldfish belonged to another best friend, Lila. Since she didn’t know how long she was going to be on the run, she couldn’t leave Goldilocks behind.

She checked the rearview mirror. Yup, that same vehicle was right behind her, about a half mile back. Following steadily, not trying to catch up and not falling back. As if he knew that once she reached Firelight Ridge, there would be nowhere else to go, so he could just take his time. Toy with her, and then pounce. Like a cat waiting for a mouse to hit a wall.

The car looked official—dark sedan, tinted windows, classic law-enforcement vibe—but hadn’t turned on a siren or lights. It had been waiting for her in Klutna, the tiny village where the road to Firelight Ridge began. It had pulled out behind her and stayed a consistent distance back ever since.

Testing, she pressed the accelerator and sped up just a tad. The car behind her did the same. She couldn’t see much about the driver in her rearview mirror because the BMW kept jerking and bouncing and swerving. It wasn’t designed to handle the deep muddy ruts and winter-worn potholes of a road that had been buried under several feet of snow all winter.

Charlie wasn’t used to driving roads like this, either. All she could do was keep a grip on the wheel and mentally apologize to Molly for what she was putting Red through.

Was poor Goldilocks okay? She seemed to be taking the bumpy ride in stride. Maybe it brought back vestigial memories of storms at sea.

“Don’t you worry, Goldie. I’m taking you back to Lila. You won’t have to put up with me much longer.”

She took another peek in the rearview mirror.

The driver was a man, she could see that much. Dark aviator sunglasses. Dark hair. Could it be…

No. Impossible.

Had Nick Perini tracked her all the way to Alaska?

If so, she was screwed. He was the whole reason she’d decided to disappear. Nick was smart. Wily. And hot, curse his sexy Italian ass.

She hit a pothole and felt the BMW’s undercarriage crunch against gravel. Sorry, Molly!!! I’ll get you a new paint job as soon as I get out of prison!!

Shuddering, she gripped the steering wheel tighter. For most people, prison was a theoretical fear. Not for her. Her father—her adored, innocent father—had been in prison for fifteen years, and the injustice—the outrageous, cruel injustice of it—burned in her soul. It had shaped every part of her life. Now, he was sick and she was getting him out, no matter what it took.

Granted, she’d never imagined that it would take rattling down a lonely forest road on her way to a remote outpost in the Alaskan wilderness…but hey, a girl had to do what a girl had to do. Too bad she couldn’t really enjoy the magnificent spruce forest she was driving through.

She checked the odometer. The road to Firelight Ridge was sixty-five miles long, with no signposts along the way. One mile to go. What was going to happen when she reached the town? Molly was there, along with their other friend, Lila. Her initial plan had been to lie low with them until the Hobbs Corporation stopped looking for her.

But if that was Nick Perini back there…she checked the rearview mirror again. Shit. He’d picked up speed, shortened the distance between them. He didn’t want to take a chance on her disappearing once she hit town, no doubt.

She hit the accelerator again, then bounced across a gaping pothole that rattled her entire skeletal system. She swore, but kept her foot on the pedal. Show your stuff, German engineering.

A rock loomed up ahead. Why was there a boulder in the damn road? Didn’t they want people coming to Firelight Ridge? Wasn’t this the kind of place where outlaws were welcomed?

Yup, that was her. Outlaw Charlie Santa Lucia. She hadn’t started life that way, but shit happened, and now here she was. Running from…if not exactly the law, then some very angry corporate executives.

Up ahead, she spotted the first signs of a town emerging from the forest. A farm appeared, with a greenhouse covered in white plastic and various rusty pieces of equipment scattered about. Then came a warehouse type of structure, sided in bare, weathered wood, without a single window. Maybe she could find a back door and hide in there.

Stupid idea. Nick would see her drive off the road.

If it really was Nick behind her, she had to be extra smart and careful, because he wasn’t easily fooled. She’d have to come up with some brilliant plan at the last second.

But that’s your thing, she told herself. That was when she worked best. When she’d gotten herself into an impossible situation and had no way out, that was when her instinctive survival brain got to work. Better do it fast, then.

She zoomed across the bridge that marked the edge of town. Beneath it, she heard the roar of the Snow River, swollen with glacial meltwaters. She’d officially arrived in Firelight Ridge. Now what?

Squinting up ahead, she noticed a small crowd of people gathering in the heart of town. Firelight Ridge had one central road, called Pioneer Boulevard, with a few side roads wandering into the ridges on either side. Most of the businesses were located on Pioneer, and that group of people were clustered at…the gas station? Was it some kind of party? A celebration for a new shipment of fuel? You never knew with Firelight Ridge.

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