Page 55 of The Roper & the Author

Under the sound of gunfire and the destruction caused by it, she bent low and crept backward away from the men, keeping the large tree in front of her. If she couldn’t see them, hopefully they couldn’t see her.

The shots stopped. It was eerily quiet. She froze.

“Come out, Marci. I vow I will not kill you,” Wilhelm said. “We will tie you up and go away.”

No way was she coming out or trusting him. Her heart raced out of control, and she tried to hide her gasps for air and step softly. Her foot came down on a twig. The sound of the crack was as loud as a pistol shot.

“There,” Wilhelm said.

Pistol shots filled the air.

Marci screamed, hit the ground and scrabbled on hands and knees underneath and behind the relative safety of a pine tree.

More shots rang out, and more and more. She put her head down and prayed desperately. Cold sweat pricked at her skin. Her breaths came in heaving gulps as she bowed to the damp ground but prayed to her Father above.

This was the end. She hadn’t even told Walker she loved him.

Branches and leaves and pinecones sprayed everywhere. She heard loud thuds of something hitting the ground. Had they shot so many bullets they’d taken large branches off the tree?

Sudden silence filled the air. The only sounds were her loud breathing, a breeze through the tree, and the ocean lapping against the mangrove forest.

She didn’t dare move. Had Walker and Easton or the other guards found her or were Wilhelm and Jonah waiting for her to make a move so they could start shooting again?

A large form materialized through the trees in front of her. Marci screamed and then bit her lip. She scrabbled backwards, running into the scratchy limbs of the pine tree. She was going to die.

“Marci.”

The voice. His voice. He’d come for her.

“Walker!” she cried out. His handsome face appeared above her. “Get down! They have guns.” She grabbed frantically at the hem of his shirt and tried to haul him to the ground.

Walker crouched down and touched her face. “It’s okay, Marci. It’s over. Easton, Nick, Autumn, and I got them. It was easy to pick them off as they were focused on trying to shoot you.”

“Oh, Walker.” She launched herself at him, almost knocking him over.

Walker scooped her off the ground, straightened, and held her tight against his chest. He was so strong and brave. Her mountain. Her rock.

“You’re all right? Did they hurt you?”

“I’m okay. You’re okay?”

“I’m fine, now that you’re safe.” He held her as if she were a priceless artifact.

“Oh, Walker. Thank you.” Then she arched up and kissed him. The dark night exploded with fireworks. She was safe. She was in Walker’s arms. Everything would be okay now.

Chapter

Nineteen

Two hours after being rescued,Marci was exhausted and wished the never-ending questions from the police would stop. They’d found Wilhelm’s rowboat in the mangroves. Even better, the Coast Guard had been able to board his yacht and capture four more men and two women they hoped would give them answers and lead them to Benjamin Oliver. They found most of Abuelita’s five million dollars. Thankfully, Abuelita had slept through all the danger and drama.

Wilhelm and Jonah were dead. The men had hidden under Marci’s bed with blankets and pillows stacked around them. Walker felt horrible that he hadn’t seen them, but nobody blamed him. Though Autumn teased that she wouldn’t have missed that detail.

Earlier, Walker and Easton had noticed some odd sounds and then silence. They’d knocked and called out and then entered her room. When they’d seen the window open and her gone, they’d called Nick and ran to follow her. The four of them had cautiously approached the trees from various angles. Whenthe bullets started flying, they’d been able to take out Wilhelm and Jonah.

Marci was relieved it was over, and she couldn’t stop staring at Walker. He’d rescued her and kissed her. She wanted to talk to him about so many things and kiss him for a very long time.

Finally, the police left. Nick and Autumn turned to Easton, Walker, and Marci.

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