Page 74 of Preying Game

“Snowball!”

Lisa ducked around some brambles, and followed the increasingly frantic yelps.

Jonah and Alice had talked about how to handle this. Following their plan, they stayed separated, one going left and the other right, each of them heading for the other side of the thicket.

Jonah came out first and saw a man, dressed in a black rain jacket and dark pants. He was holding the dog, squeezing him painfully. Lisa was standing a few yards away crying. “Stop hurting him. Give him to me,” she pleaded.

“Come and get him.”

The girl was cautious. She could see that this man was dangerous, but she wanted her pet returned unharmed.

She inched closer, and as she got within grabbing distance, Hayward tossed the dog down and reached for her, one of his big hands closing around her arm and his other hand clamping over her mouth.

As Snowball streaked away, she struggled, but to no avail.

Jonah came up on the killer’s right.

Sensing movement, the man looked up, his features hardening as he saw someone interfering with his plans.

“Let her go,” Jonah called out.

“Who the hell are you?”

“Your worst nightmare,” Jonah answered.

With one hand around the girl’s throat, Hayward whipped out a gun and held it to her temple as he pulled her against his chest.

She whimpered.

“Shut up,” Hayward ordered, before looking directly at Jonah. “Stay back. I’ll kill the little bitch if you come any closer.”

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