Holly clutched Alexei’s hand in hers, threading their fingers together as Caleb drove out of their valley toward the motel.

Caleb talked in rapid staccato bursts, betraying his anxiety. “After we talk to the marshals, we need to meet with Nate. I want to see what they’ve come up with on this guy.”

Holly wished they were still in bed. When Alexei had awakened her, she’d reached for him, hoping for a kiss. She’d immediately known something was wrong by his frown and the sad look in his eyes.

Alexei’s hand squeezed hers. “I don’t want you or Holly hurt. I hate that we cannot leave Mick in house alone. Perhaps I should go so you would be safe.”

Holly had asked Laura to watch Mick. Despite the fact that he was seventeen, she couldn’t leave him there alone when someone was stalking one of her men. The assassin didn’t seem to discriminate, either. Whoever this killer was, he didn’t mind who he hurt. He’d nearly killed them all at one point in time. She couldn’t risk her son. But she also couldn’t imagine her world without Alexei in it.

“No.” There was nothing anxious about Caleb’s pronouncement. There was a determined finality to his favorite word.

Alexei sighed. “You cannot be saying no. No is not an argument. We need to be talking about this.”

“No.” Caleb’s eyes focused on the road ahead of him.

Despite the seriousness of the situation, she couldn’t help but smile. “I don’t think he’s going to relent on this one, babe. And I agree with him. And Alexei, you’re forgetting that the good doc there has some serious connections with the justice department. I don’t mind calling Eli Sommerville and telling him exactly what I think he should do. We can get these people to take threats to you seriously. And if we can’t find the proof, I bet Micky can fabricate it.”

Her son was damn fine at manipulating situations to his liking.

“I need you to understand that I must be keeping you safe,” Alexei said.

“How exactly are you planning on doing that from some cheap motel room in the Midwest? Or will they take you back to Florida, and you can go back to being Howard? Is that what you want?” Caleb asked, looking at them through the rearview mirror. His eyes were narrowed, and Holly could practically feel the frustration pouring off him. He’d been so peaceful before, as though something had finally fallen into place, and now he’d had it snatched from his grasp.

“I do not wish any of this. I thought this was over.” Alexei turned his head, looking out into the night.

“It is over,” Holly insisted. “We just have some cleanup to do.”

“And when the next person comes after me?” Alexei asked.

“We handle it,” Caleb insisted.

Holly was glad she and Caleb were presenting a united front. “We deal with it. But we don’t walk away. Anything could happen to any one of us. We stay vigilant, but we don’t let fear ruin our lives. I’m willing to talk to the marshals. I’m even willing to leave town for a while, but we will all go.”

“We can go to Chicago if we have to,” Caleb offered. “My family’s compound is well guarded. We’ll talk to the marshals, and then we’ll pack up Mick and head there for a while. Alexei, you can play referee for me and my brother. Holly, I know you don’t want to deal with my family, but this is better than breaking up.”

“I can handle your family.” She could. She wasn’t the same girl who had gotten torn apart by the Langs. She was sure of herself now. She’d built a life and a home and found love. She had more work to do, but she could handle anything the world threw at her. Anything except losing her men.

Alexei put a hand on Caleb’s shoulder. “You would do this for me?”

Caleb was silent for a moment. “I would. I know you think you owe me, but I owe you, too. I wouldn’t be here without you. I wouldn’t have Holly without you. I would have gone on the way I had been. If you leave, I’ll take care of Holly. I won’t go back to the man I was before, but we will be incomplete. You have to see that. And don’t give me a bunch of bullshit about how you don’t have a job and I’m smarter than you. I don’t want to hear that crap. You can go to school. I’ll take care of it. You can figure out what you want to do. And so can Holly.”

“Really?” She hadn’t thought about it. She’d lived paycheck to paycheck for so long that the idea of finishing college hadn’t even occurred to her. But she could. She could go back to school. She was forty years old, and she felt like the world was new again.

Caleb’s eyes were warm in the rearview mirror. “Yes. I would love it if you studied nursing, but I won’t tell you what to do.”

She might enjoy being a nurse. “Maybe I’ll be a doctor and give you a run for your money, Caleb Burke.”

Caleb’s whole face fell. “Oh, god, no. I don’t even want to think about that. My point is I don’t want to listen to Alexei whine about his lack of a job. It’s not an excuse to walk away.”

“I have job. I am to be tending the bars at Trio. But I can go to school at same time.” Alexei turned back to her, and there was a confidence in his eyes that hadn’t been there before.

“That’s great, babe.” Up ahead she could see the Movie Motel, its lights blinking, announcing a vacancy. The movie was apparently in full swing as Holly could see the light from the screen illuminating the night.

Caleb turned into the parking lot. Holly could see the marshals’ SUV up ahead. “While we’re here, we can check you out of the motel. I think we should all stay at Holly’s until we’re ready to go to Chicago.” He pulled into the parking space and turned back to them. “Do you have your gun?”

Alexei nodded. “I go nowhere without.”

Caleb nodded. “I put the tranq gun in the back.”

“Do I get a gun?” After all, everyone else had a gun.

“No,” they said at the same time.

She should have a gun. She’d talk to Laura about it.

There was a sharp knock on the window. Holly startled but then looked up. Logan stood there glaring down.

“I want to talk to you,” he said, staring at Alexei.

Alexei nodded slowly and stepped out of the car. “What do you be needing, Deputy?”

Logan’s eyes were hard. “I need you out of my town. I figure you owe me, Markov. I took a lot of pain so your ass could live.”

“Logan,” Holly started. She felt for Logan. She’d known him for years, since he was just a kid, but she wasn’t about to let him run Alexei out of town.

The deputy turned on her. “Stop. I don’t want to hear it from you. I’m sick and tired of everyone telling me to be tolerant. I don’t have to be tolerant. He doesn’t belong here. He’s the one who brought those mobsters here, and now he’s brought another killer along with him. You might like to fuck him, but I’m not going to let my town go to hell because Holly Lang needs to get some.”

Holly Lang had had just about enough of Logan Green. She knew he’d gone through hell, but it was time for him to start coming out of it. “You back off. You have no right to try to run him out of town. If it hadn’t been for Alexei, you would be dead. I would be dead. I can’t imagine what you went through, but you’re alive.”

“He doesn’t want to be.” Caleb’s eyes had softened as he looked at the deputy. He placed himself between Holly and Logan. “And I know what that feels like. You’re not just mad at Alexei. You’re mad at everyone who walks around like the world is the same place it was before you were taken into that room. You hate every one of those fuckers who don’t get what you know—that the world is a fucked-up place just waiting to tear you up.”

“They don’t even see it. They expect me to get over it because the wounds scabbed over and the broken bones healed.” Logan’s face was drawn in pain, but his eyes still stared at Alexei. “They don’t get that it could all happen again. Which is precisely why assholes like this guy shouldn’t be allowed in our town. I’m going to get rid of you one way or another. If you won’t leave on your own, then I can make your life hell.”

Her blood started to boil. She heard everything he’d said, but he was pushing her too far. “You back off and do it now. Everyone in this town has been putting up with your crap for months. Don’t pretend that everything will be fine if Alexei is gone. You were drinking and fighting and endangering everyone in this community before he came back. You need help and everyone has done their best to give it to you, but you just tell everyone you’re fine and go back to the bar. It can’t go on. You’re a cop. You can’t be out of control.”

Logan laughed, a bitter, nasty sound. “We’re all out of control. Don’t be stupid.”

“You will use nicer tone of voice when you speak to woman. And don’t ever call her stupid.” Alexei’s tone had deepened. She was getting worried that he’d had enough of Logan’s bile, too.

Instead of backing down, Logan’s lips turned up in a feral smile. “I’ll call her whatever I like, asshole. What are you going to do about it?”

Caleb’s hands came out. “We’re not doing this. Logan, back off.”

One of the motel room doors came open, and Holly saw Jessie standing there. She wore jeans and a T-shirt, her shoulder holster on display. There was a shiny gun resting against her left side. She quickly closed the door behind her and surveyed the group. “What the hell is going on? Alexei? I thought we agreed you would come alone.”

Alexei’s eyes widened as he looked over her. “I never say such thing. Where is Michael?”

“Busy,” she said shortly. “I’m in charge right now, and I don’t think your friends should be here.”

“He’s not going anywhere alone as long as someone out there is trying to kill him.” Caleb pointed to Jessie. “And you’re not taking him anywhere without us.”

“See,” Logan said with an ugly grin. “Everyone wants you gone, asshole. And take Holly and the doc, too. We don’t need them.”

“You need many things, Logan,” Alexei said with a shake of his head. “I don’t think you will accept anything good I could give you, though. You will have to have patience because I am not going to leave. I live here now. I have a family here, and I will not leave them.”

“We’ll see about that.” Logan didn’t move, but he seemed to realize there were more people than he wanted around.

Jessie crossed her arms over her chest and gave a long-suffering sigh. “Alexei, we need to talk, and I don’t think we should do it with an audience. Dr. Sommerville, I mean Burke, why don’t you take Ms. Lang home, and I’ll talk to Alexei. I promise you, I can keep him safe.”

“Where is the other one? The other marshal?” Caleb asked.

“Michael is working on the case with the sheriff. He should be back any minute. We need to get you someplace safe. If you two are serious about going with him, then you should go home and pack a bag. Time is of the essence,” Jessie said, her eyes going back to the door of her room.

Logan stiffened, his eyes narrowing, confusion plain. Holly saw his shoulders straighten and then relax as though he’d figured something out. He exchanged a look with Alexei, their eyes meeting and something passing between them. “Yeah, maybe you two should go do that.”

“I can handle all of this. I will deal with marshals, and then we can do what we planned on doing,” Alexei said, pulling a key from his pocket. He leaned over and brushed his lips against Holly’s. “Dushka, everything will be fine.” He turned back to Jessie. “Allow me to gather my things and speak to Holly and Caleb. I will return in moments.”

Her face tightened. “All right. You’re stubborn, you know. Maybe you should all go down to your room and discuss this. You’re putting them in terrible danger. You’re going to realize that soon.”

“I guess I’m not needed here anymore. Looks like you got this under control, Marshal.” Logan stepped back, tipping his hat with a mocking smile. “And Alexei, hope your trip goes well. Be sure to watch out for strangers. You never know when one is going to come up from behind—or in front.”

“I am going to talk to Nate about him. He’s lost his damn mind,” Holly grumbled. She turned and saw Logan jogging out toward his Bronco. She noticed that he passed it by and ran around to the front of the motel. What kind of trouble was he going to cause now?

“Don’t to be worrying, dushka.” He took her hand. There was an air of urgency about him. He tugged her along, his eyes watching as Jessie went back to her room. “Caleb, let’s take her to my room, and we can talk.”

Alexei led her to the next door. His protectors had apparently wanted to keep a close eye on him.

Caleb talked in a low voice. “I don’t know why, but I don’t like this. Let’s call the sheriff when we get in the room. I think it would be best if we don’t tell the marshals what we’re planning. The first chance we get, we pick up Mick and haul ass for Chicago. Once we’re there, my brother can protect you. Until then, I worry they might haul you into protective custody. We wouldn’t even know where they had taken you.”

Alexei pushed the key into the door and turned it. He looked down and gasped. Holly couldn’t see anything to be worried about. There was just a piece of string lying in the doorway. She could see it plainly because the door faced the movie screen, as all of the motel’s doors did. The whole parking lot was lit up as Doris Day searched for love. But Alexei’s face went stark white, and he ducked to his knees. “Caleb, protect her.”

The door exploded as a bullet crashed through. Caleb tackled her just as she felt it whizz by. She hit the concrete with a crash, pain flaring along her skin. Alexei got to his feet and knocked in the door with one kick. He immediately started firing, the sound cracking through the air, exploding all around her.

Her heart nearly stopped. Alexei had walked in there.

“Don’t.” Caleb put an arm around her waist and rolled from the sidewalk to the cement of the parking lot, positioning their bodies between two cars. “He knows what he’s doing. We need to get to my gun, sweetheart. It’s in the trunk of the Benz.”

Alexei came back out of the room, firing as he stumbled backward. Blood coated his shirt. Holly felt the scream build inside her chest.

Alexei dove for the protection of the parked cars, coming to Caleb’s side. “I’m hit by bullet.”

“No shit,” Caleb said, getting on his knees. “That’s what happens when you walk into a room where a dude’s got a gun.”

“I thought you said he knew what he was doing. God, Caleb, you have to fix him.” Her heart was in her throat, panic threatening to take over. Had the danger passed? They had to get Alexei out of here. The blood looked like it was everywhere. Was he dying? God, he couldn’t die.

“I am only hit in shoulder.” Alexei popped up over the car for a moment, and two quick shots rang out. He came back down. “I had to see how many. There is only one man. I do not recognize. I hit him in leg, but he get me, too. I thought it best to retreat. The sheriff should be here soon. I have no doubt that everyone has called.”

He grimaced as he took two more shots over the hood of the car.

“Caleb, where are you hit?” Alexei asked.

Holly gasped and looked down at Caleb. He had blood on his pants.

Caleb’s voice was steady as he talked. “It’s a through and through. He got my left gastrocnemius muscle. It hurts like hell, but I’ll live. I can’t run though.”

Calf. He was talking about his calf muscle. She was the only one who wasn’t shot. She slipped her hand into Caleb’s pocket and pulled out the keys. “I’ll go get the other gun.”

“No, you will not. You will sit here. Help is coming.” Alexei grabbed her arm. “You will be obeying me now.”

She wanted to, but the air split around her as whoever had been in that room fired again. “I don’t think this guy is going to wait for Nate. We need another gun. Why isn’t the marshal taking this guy down?”

“Because she sells me out. Logan didn’t like what she say about Michael meeting sheriff. That was why I wanted to get you two into my room before I confront her. She is one who wanted me out here alone.” Alexei’s eyes clouded with pain. “Caleb, you need to get Holly out of here.”

“I might be able to walk,” Caleb said. “But I told you, I can’t run.”

They were trapped.

Alexei held the assassin off, firing another shot over the car. He yelled at his assailant. “The police are on their way. You should be running. Do you wish to be caught?”

“I’m getting this job done, Markov,” a deep voice yelled. “I can take you out alone or get your friends, too. But one way or another, I’m finishing this tonight.”

Holly put a hand on Alexei as though she could keep him there. She wasn’t about to let him walk out and sacrifice himself. “You are not going anywhere. Put that out of your mind.”

Alexei fired again. “Start moving back. We need to get somewhere where we can protect our backs.”

“We need to stop your bleeding,” Caleb argued.

Alexei shook his head. Even in the low light, she could see he was getting pale. “No time.”

Holly crawled to the back of the car, the concrete under her knees biting into her flesh. Ahead of her she could see the drive-in playing the movie of the week. Doris Day fluttered on screen, but all she could see was another woman creeping behind the row of parked cars. Jessie Wilson had that gun out now, and she was making her way toward them.

“She’s coming,” Holly whispered, terror making her heart pound.

They would be surrounded with nowhere to go.

“I am be coming out!” Alexei dropped the gun and stood with his hands up.

“No!” Holly shouted. She tried to reach for him, but Caleb pulled her down.

“Don’t. Don’t make this harder on him,” Caleb whispered fiercely in her ear.

There was a solitary shot that split the air. Holly screamed against Caleb’s chest, his arms tightening around her. He held her so close she could barely breathe.

Alexei slumped down, his hand reaching for her. His eyes were bright, and a smile covered his face. “Can you reach gun, dushka? Can you give to me?”

Caleb looked him over. “Where are you hit?”

“I wasn’t,” Alexei said with a tired smile. “Assassin is dead. We have a savior.”

“Just because I saved your ass doesn’t mean I like you, Markov,” Logan shouted from somewhere behind them. “It means I’m still a cop no matter what anyone says. And I know you’re in on this, Marshal. Nate is home with Callie. I talked to him five minutes before I got here. There’s no way you met with him. Is your partner dirty, too?”

“Michael doesn’t know anything,” Jessie called out. She sounded close. “I drugged his beer tonight so he wouldn’t give me trouble. I didn’t want to do this. I didn’t mean to be the one to pull the trigger, but you know what they say. When you want a job done, do it yourself.”

“You’re going to jail, Marshal. You can’t kill all of us,” Logan said. He sounded like he was on the move.

Holly picked up the gun. She tried to hand it to Alexei, but he shook his head.

“My arm is numb.” He tried to move it but it lay against his chest.

“He’s lost a lot of blood.” Caleb pulled his shirt off, balling it in his hands before he put it on Alexei’s shoulder, covering the wound. “I don’t like the color of his skin. I think he’s going into shock.”

The gun was heavy in her hand. Alexei couldn’t shoot. Caleb was busy. She was the only one left.

“You want to tell me why?” Logan called out.

Jessie’s voice sounded closer. “You know what a government job pays, idiot. I got nothing. I bust my ass for years, put myself out there, and I get nothing. Why should I turn down a hundred grand to look the other way? All I was supposed to do was make it easy for the pro, but no, nothing is easy in this piece-of-shit town. But I have to finish the job or DiStefano will finish me.”

Caleb looked back at Holly. He pressed down on Alexei’s shoulder, putting his weight behind it. “We need to get him out of here. Maybe I can get him into the room now that the hired guy is dead.”

Where was Logan? Holly couldn’t see him. From where she was sitting, she couldn’t see anything. Her heart was pounding. That adrenaline thing was threatening to take over. Caleb and Alexei were counting on her.

“And it doesn’t bother you that you’re killing a man?” Logan asked.

Holly turned and realized she could see Logan creeping along. The lights from the movie screen shone down on the parking lot, illuminating it. She could see him in the shiny hubcaps of the SUV they were hiding behind. He was watching for the marshal, his gun in hand.

Jessie didn’t seem to mind the game of cat and mouse Logan was playing. “Markov is a criminal. I don’t give a fuck that he turned around. He should be in jail, too. I’m more than happy to off the asshole. My partner is a good lay, but not a smart man. He never did see things my way or this would have been easier. Ah, there you are.”

A gunshot rang out.

Holly stifled a scream as she saw Logan’s body fly back and blood bloom across his arm.

It was all going to hell. Logan was down. She couldn’t tell if he was dead or alive. Caleb couldn’t run, and he wouldn’t even if he could. Caleb’s hands were on Alexei, trying to save his friend. In the distance she could hear a lone siren. There was only one siren wailing in the night, but she doubted Nate Wright was by himself. Soon every able-bodied man in Bliss would descend, but it would be too late.

“No one to protect you now, Markov. I guess you should have taken up with someone scarier than a doctor and a waitress.” Jessie’s boots thudded against the concrete. She came into view in the mirrored surface of the hubcap. She drew down every time she reached a new car. Two cars separated them. Two more cars and she would be on them.

“Holly, I want you to run,” Caleb whispered. “Give me that damn gun and get out of here.”

And leave them behind?

“No.” It was Caleb’s favorite word, and she gave it back to him. She was pretty sure he understood it.

Jessie was one car away. Holly found herself strangely calm. She’d never fired a gun before, but she would do it now. She would do it because if she didn’t, she lost so much more than her life. She lost her love, her heart, and her soul. Alexei was pale, so pale. Caleb couldn’t run. Logan wasn’t moving.

It was up to her.

Jessie took a step toward the car. “Nowhere to run, you piece of shit.”

She hated to do it, but Holly moved to the other side as quietly as she could. She couldn’t see Jessie in the hubcap anymore. If she stayed watching the marshal, she couldn’t shoot her. She could only see what was coming from behind her. She had to give up her line of sight in order to be ready to shoot.

Holly shifted, her eyes meeting Caleb’s.

“I love you,” he mouthed. He held on to Alexei, giving this job to her.

She felt his strength. They were united. He had his job to do and she was left to this. She would save them or they would all go down together. Not a single one was willing to leave the others.

Holly braced herself. She straightened her back against the SUV, protecting against the inevitable kickback. She might not have shot anyone, but she’d heard all the lectures.

She forced herself to focus. Only one thing mattered. One moment.

“I think this is the one, you piece of shit,” Jessie said. “Your running is over.”

The minute the marshal came into view, Holly pulled the trigger. She kept her eyes open and fired at the largest part of the marshal’s body.

Jessie’s arm dropped as blood blossomed across her chest. Holly watched as the gun the marshal held slipped from her hand and hit the ground. Jessie stared at her for a moment, a weird recognition on her face before her eyes went blank. She fell to her knees and slipped away.

“Holly, baby, don’t you ever do that again! I love you. I love you so fucking much, but don’t do that again.” Caleb kept his hand on Alexei’s chest, but there was no denying the horror in his eyes. “I’m going to let him spank the hell out of you. When Stef gets back from his honeymoon, we’re going to talk about paddles and whatever the hell that thing is with all the tails. That’s what I’ll use.”

“Thank our woman.” Alexei managed to bring his head up. “Caleb, stop yelling and thank our woman.”

Holly’s hands shook as she let the gun go. She crawled to Alexei. They could thank her later. “Logan got shot. He’s down. I don’t know if he’s alive.”

Caleb reached for her hand. “Use your weight on this. Don’t be afraid to put a little force behind it. We have to stanch the bleeding until I can sew him up.” He looked down at Alexei. “You don’t go anywhere. You understand me?”

Alexei smiled up at him. “I will live to annoy you, Doctor.”

Caleb nodded and forced himself to get to his feet. He grimaced as he moved, but he was obviously determined to see about Logan. He held on to the car above them as he hobbled away.

“I am so sorry, my dushka. I should not have come here.” Alexei placed his good hand over hers.

She pressed against his shoulder, praying she could keep the blood in his body. “No. No more of that. I love you. Caleb loves you. No apologies, and if you think you can run, you’re wrong. You’re never allowed to leave.”

He smiled. “I must listen to such fierce woman. I wouldn’t want to be on side of you that is so bad.”

She didn’t bother to correct him. He would never really be on her bad side. “I love you.”

“And I you. I will not go. I will never to go.”

His eyes closed, and Holly prayed he could keep his promise.