Page 94 of Make You Mine

“Hate to break up the jealous love triangle bullshit,” Mindy said, “but what do we do now?”

I looked to the north. There was still no sign of them. Yet.

“You all need to get out of here,” I explained. “Sid and the Copperheads will be here any minute.”

Mindy narrowed her eyes. “You need backup?”

I gave her a smile. “You think you’ll make the difference against Sid’s entire gang?”

“No, but it’d be rude not to offer.”

As tempting as it was to have some allies alongside me, it would only ensure their deaths.I’m the only one who needs to die today.And, if I was lucky, I would take Sid down with me.

I nodded at the sheriff and judge. “Take them to the motel. Or take them home. Anywhere but here.” I raised my voice. “That goes for you too, Flop. Put your guns away and hide.”

“You ain’t my boss!” he shouted back. “If I want to defend my property, that’s my God-given right as a veteran, and as an American!”

Should’ve known he would take that position. I didn’t know whether to be annoyed by his stubbornness, or grateful that I had at least one friend who wouldn’t leave me.

I turned to Charlotte and squeezed her arm with my free hand, and gave her the most loving smile I could. “Go with Mindy and hide out until all this is over.”

“No,” she whispered.

“Yes. Shit’s about to getreallybad out here, and I don’t know what I’ll do if you’re in the middle of it.”

But she was looking past me, down the road to the south. Another car was approaching.

“No,” she repeated, eyes going wide. “No, no,no!”

48

Charlotte

I recognized my parents’ old station wagon immediately. The soft sputtering sound of the engine was as familiar to me as my face in the mirror. We’d had it since I was a little girl, using it for road trips up the coast to Colonial Williamsburg, and down to Disney World. Momma was adamant on keeping it rather than buying a minivan, because she thought minivans were for yuppies.

The station wagon stopped behind Scott’s car and my parents got out. “Momma?”

“There’s my sweet pea!” Her hug was strong and loving, squeezing my arms against my body.

“Momma, what are you doing here?”

She smiled at me with tears in her eyes. “The nice young man at the motel said you were out here. Oh, it’s so good tosee you.”

“What are you doing inEastland?” A bout of deja-vu came over me. I was having the same conversation all over again.

“We wanted to surprise you! Help you pack up and get out of town.” She looked over my shoulder. “Goodness, that’s the ugliest work of art I’ve ever seen.”

She was looking at the metal sculpture next to Mindy’s diner. Behind me, Jayce grunted like he’d been punched.

“Momma, you need to listen to me…”

“We were worried about your release fees,” she went on. “The bank deposit to your account was still pending, so we brought some cash just in case there were any problems. We weren’t going to let a few hiccups keep you here any longer.”

Dad got out of the car and surveyed the area with quiet, studious eyes. “What’s going on here?” he asked in a tone I recognized: his sheriff voice. His gaze lingered on the gun in Jayce’s hand.

“Dad, everything’s okay, but you need to listen to me right now…”

Scott had been trying to open his car, but it was locked and he fumbled with the handle. Suddenly my Momma spotted him.

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