Jordan circles around to face me directly. His gun is trained on my face. I recognize the barrel of that gun.

It must be the same one he used on the yacht, when he stole it.

I think about escaping. Maybe I can jump out of my busted window and run to freedom. But, I’m not free. I never was.

With Jordan here, I’m not likely to be alive much longer either.

“What? Nothing to say for yourself? You’ve been terribly naughty,” Jordan taunts.

I glare up at him and stay silent.

“You’ve been such a disappointment through all of this, Naomi. The answer was quite simple, yet you ignored it. You defied me at every turn, when I gave you some pretty stern warnings. Should I have had your friend murdered instead? Would that have taught you a lesson?”

“Last I remember, you never sank that low.”

“Last you remember? How long ago was that? I’m a changed man, Naomi. My ambition grew. My talent matched it. Now I’m into some big-time deals, and you’re missing out. You’re missing out on everything.”

“If having a gun in my face makes me more included, feel free to count me out.”

“So sassy!” he says. The gun is still trained on me, and I can barely focus on his words, wondering with each passing second if it will be my last. At least if he shoots me in the head, it will be fast.

I don’t want to suffer before I die.

My phone buzzes beside me, and Jordan looks at it with annoyance.

“Who is that? Your fucking cop boyfriend?”

I don’t look at the phone. I’m scared if I do, he’ll shoot me, thinking that I’m trying to call for help. I already tried that tactic once and it didn’t work. That was with Skippy. Jordan is much more cunning.

“I don’t know.” I keep my eyes trained on him. “Jordan, why are you doing all this? You’re a talented man. You could have done so much more with your life.”

Jordan laughs, and there is no humor in the sound. “Yes, yes. You are so right. I could have opened up my own lobster boat and been a proper Maine man. I could have come home reeking of fish every night, and maybe if I had, I would have been considered good enough for you.”

“You could have done a lot to be considered good enough for me.”

“Please. You think you’re hot shit, but you’re nothing, Naomi. If you had been smart and stayed with me, you’d be riding in a beautiful yacht across the Atlantic right now. We could be balls deep, riding the waves, and each other.”

The thought of having sex with Jordan sends a wave of bile up my throat, and I swallow it down as I glare at him. “I’d rather have my brother out of jail, free from a crime he didn’t commit.”

Jordan laughs and twirls the gun around. “Naomi, come on! Get over it already. Alex was a loser. He was more of a low life than I was. If you could have accepted me for who I was back then, maybe he wouldn’t be in the situation he’s in now.”

“Are you seriously blaming me for what you did to Alex? You paid off the cops to make him take the fall for you! I saw it myself!”

“And yet you had no proof, if I remember correctly. It’s not nice to throw around accusations like that, Naomi. Your brother is not a nice man. He’s exactly where he belongs.”

“He’s where you belong. I’m in a position to see to that now.”

Jordan hisses between his teeth. “What a shame, what a shame. You do know far too much at this point. I’m going to have to take you away from here now so you can be properly disposed of.”

I swallow, and my throat has gone dry. He’s going to take me away to kill me. He leans in and breathes me in, like a fucking psycho. “Of course, you do have an alternative. I’ve been looking for a regular whore for a long time. Who says that can’t be you? I think that’s a pretty good deal. A lifetime of exceptional sex in exchange for not being killed. Don’t you think that’s a good deal?”

I spit on his shoes. Jordan’s eyes fill with anger and he leans back, his fist lifted to backhand me.

My front door opens again, and he turns and trains the gun on my hallway.

The lieutenant, James, rushes in, and relief washes over me. How did he know to find me? Did Katie go to the cops after I didn’t answer my phone? If she did, I owe her my life.

His eyes widen as he faces the barrel of Jordan’s gun. “Jesus, Jordan, put the fucking gun down.”

I blink. How does James know Jordan?

Jordan lowers his weapon and glares at the deputy. “What the fuck are you doing here, James? I thought you were keeping an eye on the station.”

“I was, but something’s happened. That bitch managed to get a photo of you on the yacht as you were stealing it. Your tattoo is clearly visible. It’s only a matter of time before Ben finds you out.”

Jordan turns back to me and lifts his fist again. “You took a fucking picture? I should have killed you on the spot!”

“That’s what I’ve been saying this whole damn time!”

James distracts Jordan, and he lowers his fist as I stare at them both in terrified disbelief.

I have a guy on the inside. Isn’t that what Jordan had said? I never pieced it together that James could be a corrupt cop. I thought Jordan was trying to scare me, to make me believe he had more connections here than he had.

Clearly, I was terribly mistaken.

“I don’t answer to you, cop,” Jordan hisses at James.

“I’m the reason you’ve gotten this far. This would have never happened if I’d been made sheriff. Now the public and Ben get what they deserve. A murder in their quaint little town. That should shake everyone up enough to get his ass fired.”

He’s grinning from ear to ear, like he’s won a huge victory. He doesn’t seem to realize that I’m not dead yet.

How do I keep that trend going?

“So, get rid of her already and get out of town. I’m telling you, he’s going to find you. He may be an asshole, but he was a trained soldier. He always bagged his man then, and he’ll do it now. I told him I’d handle this and ran out so he’d have to stay with the other one. I can’t imagine his ego will let him stay at the station for long. You need to get the fuck out.”

“He’s right. You wouldn’t want the sheriff finding a corrupt cop and the ring leader of the biggest crime den in the area admitting to all of their delinquencies.”

The sound of two guns cocking echo across the room, and my heart soars as Ben walks right in, a weapon trained on either man. They both look up at him in disbelief. Then Jordan comes to his senses and grabs me off the couch.

“No!” I scream, and I try to struggle, but he’s strong. Why did I always have a thing for the muscle heads? Why?

He holds me against his chest and trains the gun to my head before he looks back up at Ben. “I did warn her to stay away from all this, copper. Now you’ll both have to pay the price for her bad judgement.”

Ben’s eyes are hard as he stares at the gun pointed at my face. I want to cry, but I hold back my tears as I stare at him with desperation. His eyes lock on mine, and there is a silent message in them.

Struggle. Fight. Try and break free.

I stare at him with wide, frightened eyes. I don’t know if I’m brave enough to do this. How trigger happy is Jordan? If I struggle, I might die.

If I don’t, I might die.

There is no choice. I keep my eyes on Ben and count to three.

One.

Two.

Three!

I jab my elbow into Jordan’s gut. He’s so focused on Ben he doesn’t see it coming, and it buys me enough time to fall to the ground. When I do, two gunshots ring through the air, and I’m petrified that Jordan got a shot at Ben.

“Ben! No!”

My eyes are squeezed shut, and I force myself to pry them open. I’m so scared of what I might see. When I do open them, I find Jordan and James rolling on the ground. A pool of blood spreads across my pinewood floors.

I look up to see Ben staring down at them, ferocious and stunning, like a warrior angel. He looks to me and asks the question with his eyes.

Are you all right?

I nod, and that’s all he needs. He steps over to James and reaches for a pair of handcuffs. He tugs James’s arms behind him, and the man screams in agony.

“Oh, come now, James. I only shot you both in the shoulder. You’ll heal in no time. I hear prison doctors are some of the best.”

He claps irons on James and leaves him face down on the ground, and then he moves to Jordan. This time, he’s even less gentle. He shoves Jordan’s face into the ground as he cuffs him then leans down to speak close to his ear.

“You’ve fucked with this town enough. You’ve tortured Naomi enough. She is under my protection, and so is everyone else in Stoneport.”

“You’re so full of shit, copper. I’ll get out like I always do. There’s no evidence.”

“Is that your usual line? Because I’ve already sent Naomi’s picture to every paper in town, and the mayor’s office. There’s enough copies to go around, and let me see here.”

Ben slides up Jordan’s sleeve. There on his wrist is the tattoo, an identical match to the image I took.

“Looks like we do have evidence. Do you want to try and bribe me now or later?”

Jordan hesitates, and Ben laughs in his face.

“Welcome to true justice, buddy. You’re not gonna like it.”

He looks back to me with a grin, and I nearly giggle with relief.

“Be right back.”

He takes the criminals outside, one at a time. I don’t move. I can’t. Time passes and sounds echo from outside. The whoop of sirens, a commotion, a shout, people talking and doors slamming. I’m not sure how much time passes, but finally, Ben walks back in. When he sees me still on the floor, he crouches down and cradles my cheek in his hand.

“Are you OK? Did they do anything to you?”

I can tell he’s scared to ask the question, and I shake my head.

“No. Thankfully you got here in time.”

“Good,” he says. He pulls me into his embrace, and I rest my head on his chest as he cradles me in his strong arms. My breath returns as I melt into him, finally feeling safe.

I’m finally free.

“Are Jordan and James bleeding in the back of your car?” I ask.

He glances down at me with a smirk. “No, they’ve been escorted to the hospital the town over in the back of two separate ambulances. And, likely, I’m going to be investigated for this, but it was all worth it to protect you, Naomi.” A moment passes as he continues to hold me close. He releases a breath and leans back, his eyes searching mine. “You sure you’re all right? I need to go back to the department and sort out this mess. They’ll want to speak to you too.”

I nod, though I don’t want him to go, and I don’t want to talk to anyone other than him. He grasps my hands and together we rise.

“Maybe I could come back after, and stay the night?”

I smile up at him. “I would like that.”

He grins back down at me. “I would, too.” He leans down and plants a gentle kiss against my lips, then rests his forehead against mine.

There’s a promise of a new future, and a new chance at life. This time, I’m not going to waste it.