Billy only stopped once on his way back to Blossom Hill, and that was to trade the dirt bike out for is pickup when he got to the parking lot. Before he started the truck, he pulled a leather case out from underneath the seat. He took out his handgun and tucked it into the waistband of his pants before pulling his truck into gear and speeding out of the lot. He broke every speed law between Canyon Lake campgrounds and Blossom Hill, thankful that the back roads didn’t have much traffic. The last thing he wanted was to hurt anyone, but he had to get to Joy.
When Billy drove up in front of the B&B at last, there was an ambulance and two police cars parked out front. His heart was racing and he could hardly breathe as he ran up the steps. The familiar deputy at the door put his hand up, but the look Billy gave him had him stepping aside quickly. Billy burst in through the front doors, already calling for Joy.
“Billy!”
He turned at the sound of Sheriff Glass’s voice.
“Dan, what happened? Where’s Joy?”
The sight of the older man shaking his head sadly tore at Billy’s heart and he stared at the sheriff’s face without really seeing it. He kept repeating a mantra in his head over and over. “Please, God, let her be okay. Please, God, I’ll change my ways. I’ll do whatever you want me to do, just please let her be okay.”
“We don’t know where she is.”
“How the fuck did that happen? Jesus!” He ran a hand through his hair. He felt like he wanted to throw up. He was barely holding it together. “Where’s Grant?”
“He’s in the kitchen, but Billy…”
Billy didn’t stop to listen to whatever the sheriff had to say next. He rushed to the kitchen where he found a chaotic scene. Grant stood with his arms around Rosa. Her face was pressed into him and there was blood on her hands and on the front of his shirt. The paramedics had someone on a gurney and Wanda was tending to Sadie, who was sobbing uncontrollably and looked like she was having a panic attack.
“What the hell happened?” he asked, fear overtaking his every nerve.
Grant looked up at Billy and over at the gurney without a word. Billy got closer and looked over one of the paramedic’s shoulders. Marcus lay on his back with bloody pressure bandages across his bare chest. He had on an oxygen mask and one of the medics was starting an IV. There was blood everywhere. It looked like a massacre had taken place in the kitchen.
“Got it,” the medic said. “Let’s go.”
The other one reported on his radio that they were moving. Billy was frozen to his spot for a few seconds before he shook himself out of his reverie.
“Jesus, Grant, what the fuck happened?”
“He took her after he shot Marcus. I’m sorry, man.”
“Fuck. What was Marcus doing here? He wasn’t even supposed to be back.”
That statement made Sadie sob harder and Wanda wrapped her up in a hug. “Sadie…God, I’m so sorry.” He looked back at Grant. “Ana?”
“Angel came home and found us where he left us locked in the pantry. She didn’t let her see anything and when Wanda got here she took Ana out to the cottage.”
“What’s he driving?”
Grant shook his head. Wanda looked up and said, “A burnt orange van with California plates. It looked like there was wording on the side but it had been spray-painted over with black paint.”
“How long have they been gone?”
“About an hour,” Grant said. Billy had to step out of the way as they rolled Marcus toward the exit. His eyes were fluttering and Billy grabbed his hand as they went by.
“I’m so sorry, man. Stay strong. You’ll get through this.” He felt a slight pressure on his hand before the medic asked him to step back. Sadie was already on her feet and following them out. Billy’s heart was breaking for her. He wished he could be there for his friend but if he didn’t find Joy soon, he was afraid that he would be too late.
“You guys are okay?” he asked Grant worriedly.
“We’re fine,” Grant said. “Go find that son of a bitch.” Billy nodded and placed a hand gently on Rosa’s back. She looked up at him and smiled sadly.
“Joy was so brave,” she said. Billy bent down and brushed his lips against Rosa’s cheek before running back out to his pickup. Dan tried to stop him again on his way, but Billy kept going. When he got into the truck, Dan was there.
“Damn, boy, slow down. Listen, old Colt was just coming up the drive when that boy took off with Joy. He said they were headed for the highway.”
Billy frowned. “So he’s not taking her into the hills. Shit. I have no clue…” His phone rang at that moment. His hands were shaking so hard that he had trouble pulling it out of his pocket. He looked at the face of it and was disappointed when he saw it was Cade. “Hey, Cade, I can’t—”
“Listen, Billy. I got a trace on Joy’s GPS.”
He should have known Cade would already know what was going on and already be on it. “They were just outside of San Antonio when we lost the signal.”
“Shit. We lost it?”
“Yeah, but I called her manager and had him check with the man that handles her financial accounts. He just called back. She just signed for a withdrawal of fifty grand in cash from a Bank of America in San Antonio.”
“Damn, so we missed them again?”
“No, they’re still at the bank. I’m sending San Antonio PD over there. The branch manager has been informed to act like it’s taking them some time to get the cash together, but I’m not sure he can pull this off. He was a nervous wreck when I spoke to him on the phone and he said that Joy’s brother was already pissed because she asked for a hundred grand but they couldn’t give them that kind of cash in one withdrawal. They told her if she wanted to come back tomorrow, they could have the rest for her.”
Billy had already slammed his truck into gear and was backing out of the driveway. He spun the truck around when he hit the street and headed toward the freeway. San Antonio was ordinarily a forty-five minute drive; Billy planned on doing it in less than twenty.
“I’m on my way. I doubt he’ll be willing to wait around town. He has to know everyone is looking for him and in an orange van with California plates, they won’t be hard to spot.”
“Be careful. This guy is not right in the head. There’s no telling what he’ll do when he’s cornered.”
“I will. It’s not me I’m worried about, it’s his sister.”
“I know. Did you see Marcus?”
Billy felt a stab of pain in his gut again. “Yeah, they were just taking him out when I got there. I’m so damned sorry he got hurt.”
“It wasn’t your fault. I sent him back early because Sadie had news she was dying to tell him. It sounds like he happened to just get there at the wrong time. He’s a tough SOB. He’ll be okay.”
“I hope so. Thanks, Cade.”
“Call me as soon as you know anything. And Billy…”
“Yeah?”
“At the risk of sounding like a 1970’s girl band, don’t be a hero, okay?”
Billy wouldn’t have thought he had it in him to laugh at a time like this, but he chuckled. “Got it.” He tossed his phone on the passenger seat as he pulled the truck onto the freeway entrance. If Trent hurt Joy, he’d better hope he was gone or dead by the time Billy got there because he already wanted to kill him.
********
Joy heard the sirens approaching as they walked out of the bank. Trent looked at her with wide, crazed eyes.
“What the hell did you do?”
She shook her head in panic. “I didn’t do anything, Trent, I swear. The people you left back in Blossom Hill probably called the cops.”
“Shit! I should have killed them all. Hurry up!” He grabbed her by the arm with one hand. He had the bag with the cash they’d just gotten underneath the other. It suddenly dawned on Joy that he was no longer holding the gun. If she was going to escape before he killed her, this was going to be her only chance. As he pulled her toward the van, her eyes searched the ground for something—anything to use as a weapon. The parking lot was clean. Panic was building in her chest as the sirens got closer. If they made it to the van, Trent wouldn’t just surrender. He’d either use her as a shield or take them all on a high-speed chase. He wouldn’t give up until he was dead, especially now that he had a bag full of money.
When they reached the van he pulled open her door and said, “Get in.”
Joy did as she was told and he slammed the door behind her. She pulled her seatbelt across her lap and stuck it into the holder, stopping just shy of the click. Trent was in panic mode as he jumped into the van. He started it before he even closed his door and he was fishing out his gun as they pulled out onto the street. Joy looked in the side view mirror. The cops were just turning the corner at the far end of the street, heading for the bank. Trent was headed back to the highway. There were two lanes of traffic to her right. The pavement would hurt like hell if she jumped, and one of those cars would undoubtedly kill her. Frustrated, she had to force herself to bide her time.
As the cops pulled into the parking lot of the bank in the rearview mirror, Trent pulled onto the highway. Joy glanced over at him. He was still looking in the rearview mirror every few seconds, but he was now smiling. “Stupid cops,” he said with a chuckle.
Joy kept her eyes straight ahead as he weaved in and out of traffic. As they headed away from San Antonio she knew her hours on this earth were numbered. Traffic wasn’t too heavy on their side, leading away from the city. On the other side, it was heavy and almost at a standstill. She wished they were on that side. If she jumped out and ran, even if he got off a shot, there was a chance that he’d miss. There was still too much traffic on their side for her to jump, however, and he was going too fast. She felt the burn of defeat in her chest and she had to fight away the tears.
“We’re on our way now!” Trent said with a smile.
“Where are we going?”
“None ya,” he said, like he was still ten years old, and then he laughed maniacally. She was beginning to wonder if he was insane. “Damn it!”
Trent had to slam on his brakes to keep from hitting the car in front of him. Traffic on their side had suddenly come to a standstill. Joy looked around as the cars inched along and told herself it was now or never. She glanced over at Trent. He still had the gun in his hand and his hand in his lap. Joy’s mind started to go through all of the what if’s again, but she shut it down. If she took the time to weigh them all, she’d lose her chance. Traffic advanced slightly and while Trent’s attention was focused on the car in front of them, she quickly opened her door.
“What the fuck? What are you doing?” Trent was still talking when Joy was out onto the highway on her feet. She didn’t take the time to close the door; she just started running. She could hear him screaming at her and horns were honking and people were shouting. The yells told her that he was out of the car with the gun, but she didn’t look back. One look, one hesitation, and she was dead. She was literally running for her life and she wasn’t going to stop. This time, Trent was not going to win.