Page 92 of Wild Justice

Lulu’s bare feet had run across the concrete of her front porch and then down to the gravel and dirt of her driveway, cutting the tender flesh of her soles. Ignoring the pain, she’d turned to head toward her aunt and uncle’s house when she heard the sound of Ramsey’s footsteps behind her and the sound of an engine not far in the distance.

A vehicle was barreling up her driveway, a cloud of billowing dirt and dust behind it. In that split second, she changed her mind completely, spinning so that she was now running up the driveway toward it instead of away.

Ramsey was directly on her heels, a mere few feet behind her - perhaps closer. If he could reach out and grab her the belt of her robe…he’d have her.

Her heart pounding wildly, Lulu let out a grunt as she pushed herself to move faster and get closer to the SUV that she could now see clearly. It was Kai’s vehicle.

She didn’t know why he was here instead of the sports bar in town waiting for her, but she was damn glad that he was.

Stumbling, she fell onto the gravel driveway, the rocks digging into her knees, feet, and palms. A hand grabbed the hem of her robe, yanking her backward, but Kai had already jumped out of the car, along with Chase and Henry, and was running straight toward her. Ramsey wasn’t going to win. Not this time.

When she was safe and sound, she was going to take great pleasure in arresting him for the cold-blooded murder of Dana Cartwright. And the attempted murder of the town sheriff. Assaulting a police officer was a serious offense. Even if he somehow managed to slip out of the murder charges, he wasn’t going to skate on attacking her.

Kai knocked Ramsey away from her before pulling her into his arms, wrapping them tightly around her. Henry and Chase, in the meantime, had corralled Ramsey a few feet away.

“Are you okay? Did he hurt you? When we were driving up, we saw him chasing you.”

Kai’s expression was anxious, his brows pinched together in concern. She reached up and smoothed his forehead with her fingertips. The love and concern on his face made her own heart squeeze painfully in her chest.

I love this man.

“I’m okay. He was chasing me. He killed Dana, and he was going to kill me.”

Her hand dropped to her sore neck where Ramsey’s hands had been only moments before. When Kai saw the red marks she was sure were livid on the skin, he snarled in anger and fury.

“Don’t,” she said when she could see that he was about to stomp over and punch Ramsey. “He’s not worth it. Please stay with me.”

His expression softened, and he pulled her closer into his arms, warm and protective. She could happily stay here and never move from this place.

“I ought to beat him to within an inch of his life,” Kai muttered. “He tried to?—”

“It’s okay,” she whispered, placing her scratched palms on his chest. His heartbeat was fast but steady. “You got here in time. I’m alive.”

“We thought we were saving you from Allie,” Henry said. “But when we got here, Ramsey was chasing you. We’re kind of confused. If you could fill us in that would be great.”

“I’m dirty, sweaty, out of breath, and cut on my hands and feet, but you want an explanation?” Lulu shakily laughed. “Of course, you do.”

Henry’s expression turned from curious to horrified in a split second.

“Oh my god,” Henry groaned. “I’m so sorry.”

Kai placed a hand under her legs and lifted her up, carrying up onto the porch and placing her into one of the chairs.

“You shouldn’t be standing on your feet,” Kai said. “Chase is calling out Deputy Steve and some other backups. Should I tell him to add an ambulance?”

Oh, my heavens, no.

“I am not going to be shoved into the back of an ambulance for a few cuts. We can drive to the hospital at the regular speed limit. No flashing lights or sirens. I’ll be fine. And by the way, Henry, the reason I was running from Ramsey is because he killed Dana. I’m pretty sure I was next on the list.”

“Ramsey?” Chase asked, his eyes wide. “Shit, we had no idea.”

“You thought Allie was coming for me? Why?”

“Because she said she was, sweetheart,” Kai replied, pressing his lips to her cheek. He was looking at her like she was the most precious thing in the world. She could get used to this. “I’m just glad we listened to our gut that something wasn’t right. You weren’t answering your phone.”

He’d listened to his gut? She had, too. Looks like that had worked out just fine. Her dad knew his stuff, but then he always had.

“So, you were the ones calling me over and over? I was a little busy realizing that Ray Ramsey was a killer.”

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