Page 167 of Lush

The staccato bursts of gunfire echoed around me, and I wondered how many bullets she had left as I ducked and dodged. I crashed through the clearing, lungs on fire, sweat blurring my vision. Each breath was like swallowing glass, sharp and ragged. The only thought pounding in my head—I had to make it to the road.

Back to town. Back to someone. Anyone.

I burst through the tree line, and my feet hit concrete, but I was moving too fast—I stumbled and pitched forward, hitting the ground. My palms scraped against the rough pavement, skin tearing. Dazed, I lifted my head—just in time to see the blinding glare of headlights bearing down on me.

Tires screamed.

The car swerved, skidding across the asphalt, missing me by inches. The wind from it blasted against my skin, the scent of burnt rubber choking the air.

I pushed myself up, turning to see the car skidded to a halt, into the ditch on the side of the road.

Then the door opened.

Reese.

And beside him, Dante?

A sob clawed up my throat, but no sound came out. My body locked up, torn between relief and the sheer terror still clinging to my skin.

“Laurene!”

He was already moving, his feet pounding against the pavement.

Before I could blink, he was in front of me, kneeling, his hands gripping my arms as he lifted me to my feet. Heat radiated off him, his chest rising and falling just as fast as mine.

“Nina,” I gasped, my voice barely above a whisper. “It’s been Nina the whole time.”

I turned to Dante, and there were no sly looks and grins. He looked both relieved and horrified to see me.

Reese looked back at him and said, “He stayed at the hospital. He saw her take you just as I got there.”

Then—crunch.

My blood ran cold.

Nina.

She lurched forward from the tree line, her body swaying, a grotesque silhouette against the moonlight. Blood soaked her side, dripping in thick rivulets down her arm, but she barely seemed to notice.

With an eerie slowness, she reached down, fingers curling around the hilt of the knife buried in her flesh. She yanked it free. The sound—a nasty,wetsuction of steel leaving muscle—turned my stomach.

A wicked smile stretched across her lips, her hand shaking violently as she lifted the gun.

“No!”

The shot rang out.

Reese thrust me aside with a grunt, the force knocking me off-balance. I hit the ground hard, just in time to see the bullet punch into his chest.

No.

A strangled scream ripped from my throat. Reese stumbled, his body jerking from the impact before crumpling onto the concrete. Blood spilled beneath him, dark and spreading fast.

“Reese! No—no!” My voice cracked, panic choking me as I scrambled toward him.

Dante was already moving, his attack so sudden that Nina barely had time to react. He tackled her to the ground, the gun flying from her grasp as they tumbled, the dirt spraying up around them.

But it didn’t matter.

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