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DARCY LIFTED HER gaze froun and looked into Jih her veins like ice water, chilling her to the bone She flinched when he stepped closer

"Screa with one hand

Flexing her aching jaw, she asked, "What are you doing, Jiain? After he blew you off like a whore?"

She frowned Chris hadn’t broken it off with her; she’d ended their relationship, as gently as possible That was coured he’d be around"

"He’s around"

Her chest expanded on a sharp inhalation "Can you take the handcuffs off, too? Please"

"Don’t be sweet now You fucked everything up by sending for the Marshals Service If you’d left things alone, none of this would have happened"

"None of what? The fires?" Her lower lip quivered violently "Dani?"

"The fires were bringing us closer together again You were staying the night atthe day…"

A choked noise escaped her as her chest tightened painfully "You targeted places thatto me You wanted ht to come in and pushtotally relaxed His easy de lunatic

"The people ned those businesses you torched are our friends They trusted you to keep them safe You’ve ruined their lives, stolen their livelihoods--"

"No, I didn’t I know exactly what kind of hazard insurance covered each of those properties They can rebuild better than before"

She gaped at the man hom she’d shared her body but didn’t know at all "You’re insane"

His jaw hardened "If I a, I was conant with so with people like that? After the way Miller treated you, you of all people should kno it feels"

"I’ve never been pregnant inaway the terror "I’m not Danielle Did you kill s to her?"

"I knoho you are," he snapped, his free hand waving with agitation "And Dani killed herself She was screwing everyone, most especially anyone who had a tie of so Mitch, I confronted her We had a relationship I expected you to be faithful, damn you I was"

Darcy pushed slowly to her feet, alarhtened, tension stiffening his frame "If you hadn’t tried to leave, I wouldn’t have reached for you You shouldn’t have pulled away If you’d stayed where you were, you’d never have fallen You’d never have hit your head"

Unsure of what to do, whether it would be wiser to play into his delusions or keep re him of reality, she asked, "So what now?"

He exhaled harshly "I hate that you’re ether I don’t understand why that couldn’t be enough for you"

"It’s this place" She tried to s, but her mouth was too dry "It’s Lion’s Bay I can’t take it here, Jioing to leave and take me with him But maybe you’d take me instead? We can be happy anywhere, and with the fires…it’s better if we leave"

"I’ practical, for once I know you can make me happy I don’t know Carimly "It’s too late for that I don’t trust you anying yourself a hole you won’t be able to crawl out of," she warned, hoping he had so at er "And when they find your body with Miller’s and pin the fires on Quinn, this will all go away and I can get on withher time was just about up, Darcy took a risk and launched herself into him

"STOP THE CAR," Jared said

Trish braked to a halt "What?"

He hopped out "We don’t both need to check out Ralston’s I’ back to Miller’s If you catch Darcy, tell her to fucking call me Now"

"Be careful," she called out, then she drove off

Jared headed the two ency he couldn’t qualify He was still two blocks ahen he heard a gunshot He broke into a run The house cahbors who straggled onto the sidewalk

"Get back in your homes," he shouted "Call nine-one-one"

He’d just reached the lahen the door to Miller’s house burst open and Darcy stumbled out, her wrists handcuffed in front of her Relief burst through hi fear

He darted forward, catching her and pulling her to the side of the house, out of the line of fire "Are you hurt?"