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"If they don’t have good adventures

in heaven, I’er

Every htened as he heard Chloe’s atte cut off A dozen horrible i around slower cars as he called Morris

The DEA agent was still pissed at Sawyer for not being available when he’d been needed last night, and when Sawyer told hi for backup as he raced toward Chloe’s last-known location, the ive a shit The job, the bust, the drugs, none of ithappened to Chloe He waited for Morris’s rant to end, confirmed the location onelink, the big dealer the DEA had been looking to nail It et Raybo on the road or at his compound Saas certain of it

What he wasn’t certain of, what he was terrified of, as happening to Chloe right this very second He wasn’t far from the B&B, but every second felt like an hour If that fucker touched one hair on her head, he was going down Sawyer had no hts as he approached the turnoff When he pulled up at the inn, Tara was standing on the porch holding her cell phone "Chloe called," she said "I think she’s in trouble"

"Which trail?"

Lance came around the corner "I’ll show you" Theyhis best to keep up, but he was breathing hard "There," he said, pointing the way "That one"

Sawyer knew the trail all too well It was the saht they’d seen the odd flare It was also the trail to the hidden clearing where he and Todd had partied through their high school years "Stay here," he said to Lance "More are coun Noout of this in one piece, but he’d uarantees about anyone else

Todd had his arular person would have trouble breathing She’d passed trouble halfway to his truck

"This is just great," Todd was reat I spent a year trying to get your fking attention, and you could give a shit And now that I’htened his grip on her, cutting off her words He smelled of sweat and fear, and his body shook with tension as he walked her forward There was a gun in his free hand, a semiauto it around like a laser pointer "I’ back to jail," he said, his jaw pressed to hers "Not even for your sweet ass But I can’t let you go, either"

"Yes, you can It’s Raybo, right? It’s all hirip, and she choked "Shut up," he said "Shut up and listen I’ him out, either; the fucker is crazy He’d kill me for sure"

"No--"

"You should be worried about you, Chloe," he said "Our fun is over I could have had you that day at the s That pisses ed"

"I was never hot for you," she ed

"Liar But after that, Sawyer had you That pissed me off, too You’re not his usual type"

"What’s that supposed to mean?"

"I don’t knohat it is about you, but you ju like a rose I fked with the boats at the marina," he said "I told everyone that you were pissed off at your sisters and wanted to get out of this place I thought everyone would blame you, but no one did, no one even believed the ru sticks to you Too bad you can’t teach me that trick," he said aled viciously on her hair "We’re gonna load up now, and then we’re getting the hell out of here Just be a good girl That’s all you gotta do"

Todd marched her past a burnt-out tree, then headed for a wild mass of Manzanita bush canopied by two-hundred-foot pines There was sorowth It looked like the rest of the forest, but then it kinda didn’t, and she struggled to inhale again She didn’t knoould happen if she passed out Todd wouldn’t lift a finger to help her; she knew that

"Stay," he said, and the minute he removed his ar, shaking, sweating, and freaking out in general, but he pointed the gun at her, and she sat back on her haunches

"Jesus I’ as you shut up"

"I…can’t help it"

"Do you have to gasp like that? I’ Not that she believed hi the trail at thisto find her Or Sawyer She was afraid Todd would shoot anyone who caoing to die, either by Todd’s hand or by suffocation, and she hadn’t told anyone how she felt about theoddaonna die, and they’d never know Not Sawyer, and not her sisters It wasn’t right, and she was so mad at herself and Todd that she could shoot hi several bundles in his ar you"

If she could, she would She’d get up, punch his lights out, and run like hell

Except she couldn’t run Not even on a good day, which this wasn’t shaping up to be

She couldn’t do anything but atteet any ht she’d been afraid of three little words What a joke

Todd dropped the load in his truck and turned back to her just as she caught soht it was a deer, but then she realized it was Sawyer It had to be

In front of her, she heard the un pulled loose frohtened in a whole neay, then realized Todd was going to tie her up using his belt Still holding his gun, he , she closed her eyes and concentrated on the little air that she was getting, waiting for an opportunity to help Sawyer Mostly, she wanted to get Todd before Sawyer shot hi sounded loud as a gunshot Todd grabbed her by the throat and spun her around

"Let her go, Todd," Sawyer said, stepping right into Todd’s line of sight, gun aiot to breathe

Until Todd squeezed her throat again He hadn’t gotten her hands tied, and she clawed at his ares

"Drop your gun," Todd grated out "Or I’ll shoot her dead"

Not going to be necessary, Chloe thought hazily…