Page 37 of The Engagement Party

Mitch glanced at Alex’s still-unmoving body. “I saw a bag blowing around out there. That explains the person they thought they saw.”

“And the dead body in the trunk? Does a bag explain that?” Sierra asked.

“We need power.” Mitch moved closer to Sierra. Acted as if it were just the two of them as he tried to convince her. “I also want to look for anything that might help us get off the island as soon as morning comes.”

Cassie turned back to Alex. She checked his pulse and buried him deeper in covers.

Sierra watched it all before unwrapping the blanket around her. “I’ll go with you.” She shot Mitch a look that suggested he should concede. “It’s not negotiable, so don’t whine about it.”

“The four of us will go,” Will said before anyone could complain.

“Please hurry.” Cassie sounded desperate as she fidgeted and fussed over Alex. Not her usual angry, bossy self, but like a woman worried about her unconscious husband.

Ruthie didn’t have the strength to argue with this new dangerous plan.

“Right.” Mitch pointed to the discarded weapons. “Grab the log and the shovel.”

They all headed out, shutting the door behind them and leaving Cassie and Alex alone.

Alex’s eyes opened a second later. “We have a new problem.”

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Sierra

Trudging outside for the second time wasn’t any easier than the first. The wind caught Sierra’s shirt and flipped it up her back. Her hair whipped around, blinding her until she yanked it away and it happened all over again.

Every exhausting step stole a bit more of her energy. The mix of panic and exertion had her gasping. Her anxiety burned through the few calories she’d eaten on the drive to the island, leaving her with only hope and adrenaline to propel her on the trek.

Her muscles ached as the four of them stomped and slid and wandered farther from the relative safety of the house. She glanced back at the dark windows with the wisps of light from the candles burning downstairs, but not for long. The gusts knocked her sideways and into Mitch. He steadied her by winding his arm through hers, linking them together.

Bang.

She tried to focus on the shed, on getting to the building and that damn slamming door. She used up most of her concentration staying upright, except a tiny part. A voice in her head that asked the same question over and over—was Alex’s wound froman accident or something else? She thought about an attack by an unknown killer on the island. But a stray thought turned to a different answer, one much more devious. What if Alex had faked the whole thing?

Convenient. Convenient. Convenient.The word played on a loop in her head and refused to stop.

Bang.

They pushed forward. All four of them stood in a huddle as they made the journey that would have taken a minute in good weather. Her gaze bounced from the uneven path beneath her feet to the flapping door. Anything could be in there. Someone could have broken the lock, or even just opened it.

The flashlight Mitch had found and the light on Ruthie’s phone guided them. The beams bounced as they walked. Ruthie mumbled something as she buried her head in Will’s shoulder.

The closer they got, the faster Sierra wanted to move. Prolonging their time outside came with a myriad of dangers. Check for the generator, get what they needed to start it, secure the door. That was her plan. The bit of logic that broke through her fear.

Bang.

Mitch slipped on the grass right before the entrance. The swinging door almost smacked into his side, but he grabbed it in time. The move balanced him and sent her skidding. The thin sole of her sneaker careened with what felt like ice. She tried to hold on to Mitch but knocked the flashlight from his hand instead.

Down she went, hard on one knee. The landing thudded through her. It was like running full speed into a wall. The immediate shock of pain doubled her over.

“Shit!” Mitch’s yell echoed through the empty landscape.

“Are you okay?” Ruthie reached down to help Sierra up.

As soon as the rush of nausea moved through her, Sierra closed her eyes. She struggled to stand as the rain soaked through to her skin and the wet ground drenched her knee. She inhaled, trying to drag in enough air to calm her racing nerves, but a sick smell hit her. Blame the tension tightening her body or the adrenaline high, but she hadn’t noticed it before. Now it scalded the inside of her nose.

She opened her eyes and saw the flashlight on the ground. The beam aimed right at her leg.

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