Her hands shook as she reached for the flask again. “I pieced together some of it. If a truck driver with valuable cargo, booze or cigarettes, made the fatal mistake of stopping at Milly’s Diner for a midnight dinner, then your dad would let Landon know and they’d hop into action. Don’t know the details, but the trucks would always end up at the bottom of the ravine charred beyond recognition.”

She offered me another swig, but I turned it down. Something told me I was going to need every fucking brain cell when I got back to town. “Why the hell would my dad fold under a weasel like Landon Gregor?”

“You’ll need to ask him. I think there was some blackmail involved. Landon talked your dad into believing he was responsible for Elizabeth’s death and that he would go to jail for it if he didn’t do my brother’s bidding.” She closed the flask and scooted back on the bed to lean against the wall. “I think her death really chipped away at his soul and took whatever was left of it, leaving behind the cold, harsh man you grew up with.” She fidgeted with the ends of the blanket. The trembling in her hands wasn’t fake. “We were all living with a serial killer in our midst.” A sad laugh fell from her mouth. “He was even mayor for a decade. The girl, the one living with Everly, she’s the one that got away.”

I took a deep breath. “I thought Dane had locked her in there for fun. I let her go and didn’t tell anyone. I was protecting Dane. Like always.”

“The girl’s in danger,” Rebecca said. “My brother will stop at nothing to protect his reputation.”

“I’m heading back there right now.” I got up and turned back to her. “I’m going to kill him.”

She rested her head back and closed her eyes. “I was hoping you’d say that.”

Rebecca’s housemates looked up from their television and books as I walked back through the house and out the front door. By the time I climbed on my bike, the hair on the back of my neck was standing at full attention. I fired up the motorcycle, twisted the throttled and sped off toward the highway.

Chapter 32

Tashlyn

As things came into focus, I shut my eyes again, hoping I would fall back asleep. The cold, stark room with solid wood walls, no windows and a putrid smell had to be a figment of a leftover nightmare. It couldn’t be real.

“You are a pussycat who has finally used up her nine lives,” a voice sneered my direction from the shadows. The now familiar and terrifying sound of it startled me wide awake. A yellow light swayed above my head, a flashlight dangling from wire. The dreaded reality of my situation struck me like an icy hand.

My skull ached and the images around me were slightly blurred, a result of the blow to my head. Instinctively, I moved forward, ready to flee, but my arms wrenched painfully behind me and rope cut into my wrists. With hands behind my back, I was tied to a square column of splintery wood. Pulling away caused severe pain in my shoulders and wrists and sent a shower of dirt down on my head. The long piece of ancient timber was one of only three pieces of wood that seemed to be holding up the entire structure.

A glacial shiver ran through me. It was the trappers’ shelter. I had been here before. All of it, the entire horror of those few days was coming back to me.

“You won’t be getting away this time.” A face followed the voice as the man stepped out from the dark corner of the shelter. His teeth were stained brown, and the thin crown of hair on his head hadn’t stopped him from growing a long, stringy ponytail. He grinned as he pulled something out of his pocket. He dangled the shark’s tooth in front of me. His close set eyes focused on my gold chain. I tried to pull away from his grimy fingers as they clumsily grabbed the necklace. It cut into the back of my neck as he held it tightly. His breath sent a wave of nausea through me, and I swallowed back the bitter taste in my throat.

“Still wearing the chain? How sweet.” He pressed his face closer. “Do you remember when I pulled the shark’s tooth off the chain? It was right after I smashed in your daddy’s skull with a rock.”

I stared at him long and hard and then spit in his face. His hand came across my cheek, turning the throbbing in my head to a sharp ringing pain. It took me a second to focus again. The metallic taste of blood replaced the bitter bile in my mouth. It trickled from my lip and down my chin.

He grabbed hold of my face, pinching it hard and causing tears to burn my eyes. “You and your daddy were a problem right from the start. We stole his liquor and sent his truck over the edge, but the fucking thing stopped short on the rocks. That’s why I had to finish him off.” He grinned proudly. “But then I looked through the windshield, and there was this little blue eyed kitten staring back at me as I bludgeoned her old man to death. I knew then that I was in for a bonus from the boss, cuz he always craved the kittens, if you know what I mean. Then you got away. Never did figure out how, but this time the boss intends to finish what he started.”

Draven stepped back and eyed me with a lascivious grin. “Guess I’ve got some time until the boss shows up. I’m thinking of having a little fun first.”

My head and back smacked the wood column as I made a worthless attempt to pull away from his groping hands. He reached for my shirt. I kicked him hard in the knee. His hand flew across my face again. Darkness swept through my head, and I collapsed against my restraints. The rank smell coming off of his clothes and skin revived me quickly.

Rage flared in his face, and I cried out as he stomped down hard on my feet, holding them captive with his heavy boots. He reached into a leather sheath on his belt and pulled out a blade. He grabbed the bottom of my shirt and shoved the knife under it. I held my breath as the sharp tip pressed against my skin. The sound of fabric ripping echoed through the squalid shack. Cool air brushed over my skin as the torn sides of my shirt were pushed open.

I twisted and turned my hands. My palms were wet with blood. My bindings only seemed to tighten more as they ground into my flesh.

Draven licked his lips as he stared down at my breasts. He left a thin, painful scratch as he dragged the tip of the knife from my throat down to my belly button.

His grubby fingers grabbed my bra, but before he could rip it, the solid metal door on the shelter opened. Landon Gregor stepped inside. For the briefest second, I let myself believe that my earlier suspicions were wrong and that he was there to save me from Draven. But then he walked over and stood in front of me. His sickening expression made the room sway. I could barely keep my legs beneath me.

“Well, boss, here she is again. A little older but still just as pretty.” Spit sprayed from Draven’s mouth as he spoke.

Landon looked at me. There was no sign of the weak, shaky man I’d seen standing behind his grocery counter. “You got away the first time.” He clicked his tongue. “Too bad you came back.”

Chapter 33

Jem

I rode like my hair was on fucking fire but it still felt as if I was plodding along. I pulled the bike up to Everly’s house and hopped off. I’d told Tashlyn to stay near Everly this morning. Long before my visit to Rebecca, I’d had a hunch that Landon Gregor was behind everything. I decided he wouldn’t try anything in front of his niece. They were going to spend the morning stocking shelves, right under the murdering asshole’s nose, but as long as Tashlyn was near Everly, she’d be safe. I hadn’t been able to find Draven yet, and I was sure he’d slithered off to one of his holes to hide. But I would find him, and he’d be plenty fucking sorry.

I reached the porch and knocked. The door hadn’t been latched shut, and it popped open. I stepped inside. “Tash! Everly!” No answer. The house was empty.