Page 133 of Forever After All

“Where is she?” Ryan grunted like he was straining.

“Let her go. She doesn’t have anything to do with this,” Linc said.

Jess risked a peek over the sofa. The door was open, but Linc and Ryan must have been fighting on the porch because she couldn’t see them.

“She does now!” Ryan shouted. “You took everything from me. You ratted me out!”

The phone in her hand vibrated.

Brett: Done. On my way.

Jess gripped the phone, and her head spun. How long would it take for help to arrive?

She had to help.Think, think, think.

She had a pistol. In her bedroom. She’d have to cross the room, putting her in full view if Ryan decided to look up.

There wasn’t time to weigh the options. She had to go.

Easing around the sofa, Jess kept her attention on the door.

Ryan spat, “You got me a sentence I couldn’t get out of. You’re the reason I spent all this time in max security!”

Jess took a deep breath and made a run for the hallway, praying she’d make it back in time to help Linc.

She ran straight to the bookshelf where she kept the gun on the top shelf. Sliding to a stop in front of it, she grabbed the gun and magazine. Her hands shook as she loaded it.

The gun had sat on that shelf for years, and she’d never needed to use it. Now, she might have to. Linc needed her, and there wasn’t time to think. Her head spun from the fever, and the pounding behind her temples was back. Her heart pounded so hard, she wasn’t sure if she could hear it or just feel the thumping in her veins.

Jess rushed back into the living room. The remains of the door were swung open, and she could see out onto the porch now. Linc and Ryan were landing blows back and forth. They were too close for her to get a shot at Ryan.

The gun was heavy in her hand–a weapon in more ways than one.

Running out onto the porch, she zeroed in on Ryan and raised the butt of the gun. Putting all of her strength into it, she swung down, landing a hard blow to his head.

Ryan covered his head, and she’d caught him off guard enough for Linc to secure the upper hand. He let his fist fly, and Ryan lost his balance, falling to his hands and knees on the wooden porch with a thud.

When he looked up, his stare locked with Jess’s. Dread washed over her like a wave.

Ryan broke the stare and reached to his right. When he stood, the gun was back in his hands, and he pointed the barrel at Linc. Scrambling back a few steps, Ryan pierced Linc with a warning glare.

“I don’t have anything left to lose because of you.” Ryan’s attention turned back to Jess. “But you do.”

“What do you want?” Linc said, staying bent and ready to make a move on Ryan if he got the chance.

“Money. And suffering.”

Linc laughed. “I don’t have any money.”

“Fine.” Ryan shrugged one shoulder. “Then I’ll settle for double the suffering.”

Ryan turned the gun toward her. She didn’t have time to catch her breath before he fired.

Chapter42

Jess

Jess dove through the open front door, but a sharp pain pierced her arm. She hit the floor with a thud and immediately crawled around a corner, propping her back against a wall and tucking her knees to her chest.

---