And now? Now, he’d never pick her up again. Never hear her tease him about being late. Never…anything.

Red splotches drenched her clothing. Bobby’s blood. Harper couldn’t help releasing a guttural cry, a primal sound among the tall trees and rain. Painful and bleak.

An ominous flock of black crows suddenly scattered across the desolate sky. Their raucous calls of outrage mingled with the rolling thunder. She watched them disappear into the sinister black clouds.

The trees seemed to shroud and suffocate her. Shock turned to despair. She was truly alone.

A crack pierced the air, quickly followed by a fracturing split and a thump punching through her thick veil of anguish. Ducking next to the cab, she saw a bullet had shattered the pickup’s windshield and embedded itself into the seat only inches away from where she’d been. The cheap upholstery had a little round tear where stuffing spewed out.

She zeroed in on the area where she’d heard the unmistakable sound of gunfire. Thunder roared and lightning spidered across the sky, illuminating the dark rain-glazed trees. Squinting, she saw a sliver of metallic sheen.

Danger flooded her mind. She knew any sane person should be hightailing it out of there, but the impulse to run was beaten down by a ravaging anger that grabbed ahold of her gut, twisting and snaking a white-hot rage through her blood, savagely replacing the utter coldness in her core. Someone had shot her brother. Deliberately. She narrowed her eyes toward the trees where she’d seen the out-of-place glint.

Harper warily rose to gently rest Bobby’s body on the bench seat. She had started to back away when something dropped from his rigid hand and thudded to the squishy floor mat, just under the brake pedal.

A key. Attached to an otherwise bare key ring. In a daze, she picked it up to get a better look. No inscription. No markings whatsoever.

Another gunshot was followed by a slow hiss. The vehicle leaned to the left as the front tire lost its air. And then another shot, blowing the other tire, which tilted the truck forward as it rested on the flats.

Harper shoved the key into the front pocket of her jeans. She slid out of the cab, but slipped in the loose mud. Relentless torrents of rain pummeled her raw body and soul as she lay on the ground, confusion warring with anger at what was happening.

She flinched when a metallic bang hit the bed of the truck. A grenade bounced to a clanking halt against the tire. Another one followed, landing near the first.

Harper came out of her daze and started to run-away from the guns, away from the impending blast.

The explosion tossed her body through the driving rain and dropped her in the brush like a cannonball. Her bones rattled on impact. Pain. There was so much pain. Harper drifted on the fringe of consciousness while she fought the blackness trying to take hold of her. She dared to breathe in the damp air and opened her eyes to the greens of rich moss and dripping ferns. Facedown in the brush, she tasted moist earth on her lips and blood in her mouth. She ran her tongue along her lower lip, confirming the source of the copper tang.

Sickening smoke began to fill her nostrils, drowning out the lush smell of the woods. Awareness flooded her mind. Fire. The truck. Bobby.

Harper pushed herself up, ignoring the sharp agony prickling through every nerve. She stood, trying to steady herself against the stinging rain and destruction.

Her brother’s beloved truck was nothing more than a fiery metallic skeleton. Burning chunks of debris littered the surrounding area. The hammering rain kept the flames from igniting the foliage. A small harbor of light in the sea of gloom.

Sheer anguish seized her, grasping her heart and squeezing relentlessly with a crushing fist.

Harper fell to her knees, hands on her head.

Her brother was truly gone.

She hopelessly watched the rain splash into brown puddles and drain down to the muddy soil in little rivers. The heavy droplets became fierce and loud. She suddenly realized it wasn’t the rain, but bullets splattering the mud.

They’d seen her, and they weren’t going to let her get away alive.

She dove onto her side and rolled into the dense brush. Peeking out between the thick branches and wet leaves, Harper saw four bulky figures emerge from the tree line beyond her brother’s smoldering truck. Dressed in dark green camouflage, they materialized one by one through the whirling smoke like every sinister ghost-infested nightmare she’d ever had. Each had a rifle drawn and ready.

She had to make a decision. Fast. Hide or run? Instinct refused to let her just lie there.

So she ran. She ran as fast as she could. Into the endless forest of trees. Into the middle of nowhere.

Gunfire rang in her ears as she sped through the woods, weaving and dodging, eating up the wet landscape. Rough branches ripped at her coat and lashed at her legs, stinging her skin through the wet denim. The rich pine air assaulted her throat with every breath she took. Her evil personal trainer had made sure she had immeasurable endurance. She was used to running miles upon miles of grueling terrain.

But her pursuers were relentless as well. She spared a quick backward glance to check on their progress. Through the speckled green branches, it was difficult to locate all four of them. Another bullet whizzed past. The men were definitely still there.

She had to lose them, but where would she go? She knew this area well enough, but in her shock and haste, she hadn’t paid much attention to her direction. She glanced up to the sky. No help there. Just treetops disappearing into the low mist of murky clouds.

Then she heard it. Rushing water. Not just showering from the sky, but the roar of water dashing over rocks, cutting its way through the forest. The river. Harper thought fast. The speed of the current could carry her farther than anyone could run. She could escape there. If the rapids didn’t kill her first.

Harper burst through the tree line to find herself at the edge of a small cliff. She slid to a halt in the mud just a few feet from the overhang. Peering over the ledge, she saw the river about thirty feet below. Racing and powerful in its chilling glory. The daunting rapids mocked her, daring her to challenge them. And she was ready for it. No one had ever bested her in the water but herself.

A last glance over her shoulder showed the four lethal figures just coming out of the trees. Before they could get a bead on her, Harper took a deep breath and jumped.

She smacked the water and immediately sank, her sodden clothes dragging her down. The cold seeped into her bones as the water swallowed her. Breathless, she fought to orient her body and find air.

Harper kicked forcefully and broke the surface. She gasped in a lungful of bitter air and whirled toward the cliff she’d jumped from just as her brother’s killers peppered the choppy water with bullets. But the swift current quickly carried her out of range. Shouldering their rifles, the four killers stood still for an eerie moment, just watching the river carry her away. Then they retreated, disappearing into the woods like phantoms.

She turned forward again and put her mastery of water to its full use. As she hit a set of rapids, swelling whitecaps and mist enveloped her, tossing her around and pulling her under. Holding her breath, Harper calmly rode with the rough, untamed waves, grateful for her lifetime of swimming experience.

Moments later she was suddenly airborne. Her fall lasted mere seconds before she made a big splash when she plunged into the water on her back. She gasped at the stab of pain and gulped down some of the freezing water. The waves felt sluggish as she used powerful strokes to break the surface. Coughing and spitting, she floated, quickly gazing at the surrounding area. More trees. But the river had widened a tad and the rushing waters had slowed considerably following the waterfall she’d just tumbled over.