Page 58 of Breaking Rules

But even as the words left his mouth, Sam knew. He saw it in Rickman’s face, in the set of his shoulders.

The man was going to jump.

Lucy growled, her body coiled tight. Jo’s hand hovered over her holster.

“It’s over, Rickman,” Jo called, her voice steady despite the chaos. “Come back from the edge.”

Rickman’s laugh was a bitter, broken sound. He shook his head, his feet shifting on the uneven ground. “You don’t understand,” he spat. “I won’t go to prison. I don’t have much time left, and I won’t spend it rotting in a cell.”

He took a step back, his heel hanging over the void. Sam’s breath caught in his throat.

Time seemed to slow. Rickman’s eyes met Sam’s.

And then he jumped.

But even as Rickman’s body tipped backward, a blur of fur and muscle shot past.

Lucy leaped, her jaws wide. She seemed to hang suspended in the air, a silent, snarling guardian.

Her teeth closed on Rickman’s sleeve, and the two tumbled to the ground, a tangle of thrashing limbs and snapping jaws.

Sam’s heart stopped. They were too close to the edge, the crumbling rock giving way beneath their struggle. Rickman hung from the edge. The only thing keeping him from dropping was Lucy’s grip on his sleeve.

Lucy’s claws scrabbled for purchase, her powerful haunches straining. But Rickman fought like a man possessed, his free hand clawing at the dog’s face.

“Lucy!” Sam’s voice cracked, fear and desperation warring in his chest.

He lunged forward, his fingers closing around Lucy’s vest. The fabric bit into his palms, his muscles screaming as he heaved backward.

But it wasn’t enough. Inch by terrible inch, they slid closer to the abyss.

Jo appeared at Sam’s side, her hands joining his on Lucy’s vest.

“Hold on,” she gritted out, her face a mask of determination. “Pull!”

Together, they strained against the inexorable pull of gravity. Sam’s heart hammered against his ribs, his breath coming in ragged gasps.

Rickman twisted, his hand finding Lucy’s throat. The dog yelped but kept her grip.

“You’ll never take me alive,” he snarled, his eyes wild. “Never!”

With a final, desperate heave, the fabric of his sleeve tore, the sound sharp and sudden in the chaos.

With a scream, Rickman pitched backward into the void.

Lucy lunged, her jaws snapping shut on empty air. Sam and Jo hauled her back, their chests heaving, their hearts in their throats.

They collapsed in a heap, the ground solid beneath them. Sam clutched at Lucy, burying his face in her fur, his body shaking with adrenaline and relief.

But even as they caught their breath, the reality of what had just happened began to sink in.

Rickman was gone, and with him, the answer to many of their questions.

Sam and Jo approached the cliff’s edge, their steps cautious on the uneven ground. The adrenaline of the chase still thrummed in Sam’s veins, his heart pounding in the aftermath.

They peered over the precipice, the wind whipping at their hair and clothes. Far below, the river churned, its waters white and frothing as it wound through the jagged rocks.

And there, on a narrow ledge beside the raging torrent, lay Rickman.

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