Page 123 of Counter Attack

“Money.” Her voice indicated it was obvious.

“The video game.”

“Give the chief a gold star,” she said. “As of today, I’ve banked a million dollars in cryptocurrency.”

“How does Alexis fit into this?”

“She’s part of the game.”

“I don’t understand.”

“It’s all a game and I’m the creator. I decide who lives and dies. And the money ... You won’t believe how many people will pay to be a killer.”

“You killed people for a game?”

She shrugged. “It wasn’t as hard as you’d think.”

“So it had nothing to do with your brother?”

“Of course it did. Alex Stone needed to pay for shooting an unarmed man, but I couldn’t very well kill a cop—”

Kayla lived in a fantasy world. “So you killed women who looked like her.”

“Bingo.”

Her nonchalance sent a chill through him. She had no conscience at all. Nathan swallowed down the nausea in his throat. “But I don’t understand this game you’re playing today.”

“It should be obvious.”

“Explain it to me.”

“The media had it right with the Queen’s Gambit, you know. I always play Black and accept the gambit—makes the game much more interesting, and when I win, it shows how much smarter I am. The whole world will find that out today.”

She had completely broken from reality.

Ten minutes later, they arrived at the deserted lake, and she instructed him to drive down to Harper’s Point, where there was a small, sandy beach near the pier. She held the gun on him as she climbed out of the SUV and walked around to the driver’s side. “Get out. There’s a chair in the back. Get it.”

Nathan searched for a way to run, but the nearest tree was at least fifty yards away, and he couldn’t outrun a bullet.

He had better try.

64

You can’t be serious!” Alex stared at Mark. “Kayla is Phame? And Phillip Denton’s sister?” She turned toward the mouth of the cave where she’d been certain Phame had taken Kayla.

“That’s what Nathan said.”

Gem nuzzled her hand as Alex scanned the men who had come to help find Kayla. “Where’s Harvey?”

“He left at lunch, something about a doctor’s appointment.”

Harvey always seemed to be missing when she needed him. She nodded to each man as they gathered nearby. Practically every deputy and all of Nathan’s on-duty city officers were here. Why had Phame drawn most of the police force of Pearl Springs and Russell County out of town? Except for Nathan.

Her face turned cold as blood drained from it. She whipped out her phone and dialed his number.

“I’m afraid Chief Landry is unavailable.”

Kayla!Alex’s knees threatened to buckle. She had to keep it together. “What have you done to him?”

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