The yellow dots on the highway raced past, as fast and furious as her erratic heart. Audra clutched the wheel with both hands, leaned forward, and accelerated. Were they following her?

She glanced out the rear view mirror for the hundredth time in the past 10 minutes only to see empty blacktop behind. Still, she kept pressing on, not slowing down. She had to get away, had to run. They weren’t safe.

No matter how safe she’d felt in Diggs’ arms.

And how stupid was she, because every other heartbeat she wanted to turn around and run back to Diggs. But she couldn’t allow herself to be lulled by a false sense of security. As soon as he found out her identity, she’d be toast.

These past couple of weeks had been nothing but a nightmare of constant fear and anguish, anguish that culminated with nearly losing Trigger. Thank God, he was still out in the backseat. She was taking the curves like a damn speedway racer, but she couldn’t slow down. Not now. She had to figure out somewhere to hide, and then regroup.

She could do this alone. She was strong and independent and had always taken care of herself. But investigating her brother’s death and possible involvement by his unit in the military would be a whole different story.

Sweat broke out along her hairline and her insides trembled. She hadn’t done anything adventurous in her entire life. As a matter of fact, these past two days had been the most exciting thing she’d ever been part of. She had no intention of giving up the fight to bring justice for Jeremy’s death. Even if it meant singlehandedly taking on Jeremy’s commander.

Audra glanced in her rear view again and reached back to give the unconscious Trigger a reassuring pat. Diggs had handled Trigger so gently. Why did he have to be military? It wasn’t fair. None of it was fair. Not Jeremy, not her father, and not Diggs.

An unexpected sob hitched in her throat and Audra bit her lip, jamming her emotions back down deep. She couldn’t afford the emotional breakdown that had been looming since her brother’s funeral. Not now. Not until she finished her mission.

A sharp curve appeared and she braked, yanking the wheel right. Trigger slid across the backseat bumping into the door. Crap. She had to slow down before she hurt him. Not even sure of where she was heading, Audra slowed to the speed limit and pulled up the GPS on her car. A little round circle appeared as her smart car sought for service out here in the country. While it was thinking, she tried to formulate a plan. She could rent a motel room, somewhere near a veterinary clinic. But what would she tell the veterinarian when she brought in her badly injured dog?

Trigger running out in front of a car just didn’t seem plausible, he was too smart for that. From videos she’d seen of his training, this dog was an athlete. He was intelligent and loyal. The thought of telling someone he’d blindly raced into the road into oncoming traffic put sawdust in her mouth. But still, what choice did she have? He needed medications that she couldn’t provide without the help of a professional.

Finally, her GPS loaded and Audra hit the talk button on her car’s navigation system and said, “Veterinary clinics.”

The GPS zoomed ahead about 50 miles to Washington, DC. Dozens of clinics were highlighted on the screen. No, that was too crowded with too many witnesses. She needed a smaller town, somewhere out in the country—or did she? Maybe she could blend in better in the city, where people came and went without noticing each other in the least. Audra glanced back at Trigger—there would be no blending in with him strapped to a stretcher like that, no matter where she went.

She glanced at the GPS again, swiped across the screen and paused over a town with one clinic in it. She needed to alter her path, maybe that would throw Diggs off, if he was chasing her.

Her decision made, Audra drove for another thirty miles and then turned left, headed to Wilderness, Virginia.

She made it to the motel before sundown, at which point she put the car in park and lowered her head to the wheel, taking in a deep breath as she attempted to get all the tiny muscles in her back to unclench. She’d made it. She could relax. As long as she laid low, she’d be fine.

Audra repeated that chant over and over in her head as she grabbed her purse and got out of her car. She walked to the front desk, where her blood-stained shirt got some strange looks while she paid for a motel room. When she got back to the parking lot and opened the back-seat door, Trigger was awake. She squatted down and ran a hand over his head, careful to keep from touching anywhere that was injured. “How are you feeling, boy? Does it hurt?”

Trigger didn’t whine or even move, he just stared at her with his deep dark brown eyes like he was trying to tell her something.

“What is it? I wish you could talk. I wish you could tell me what happened.”

He let out a low, soft keening whine and shifted his front paw toward her. A hard lump formed in her chest. The white bandages were standing out stark against his dark fur. “I’m so sorry I didn’t make it in time. But I swear I’ll never let anyone touch you again,” she whispered brokenly.

Trigger lifted his head about an inch off the stretcher and nudged her hand.

Audra’s breath hitched as she stroked his cheek. “Are you trying to comfort me? You crazy dog. No wonder my brother loved you so much.” Audra lowered her head and placed a soft kiss on Trigger’s head. “I’m the one who’s taking care of you.”

Trigger growled as a shadow fell across them. Audra jumped to her feet. A tall man wearing a plaid button up, in jeans and cowboy boots took a hasty step back, shoving his hands into his pockets. “Didn’t mean to startle you, ma’am. Saw you down there and thought you might need some help.”

It took Audra a moment to process the Southern accent and Wranglers, but not Trigger, she figured. Trigger let out another growl, and Audra shifted between him and the man, trying to put up a barrier. “It’s okay, I was just checking on my dog. Everything’s fine.”

Trigger growled the third time and Audra glanced over her shoulder and shot him a glare. “Trigger, hush.”

The dog completely ignored her and continued to stare at the stranger.

“He been in some kind of accident?” the man asked in a soft Southern drawl.

Audra took a deep breath and cast Trigger an apologetic look before answering the man’s question. “He ran in front of a car. I’m trying to find a local veterinarian.”

She could practically feel Trigger’s disgust. They both knew he would never run out in front of a vehicle.

“Old Doc Palmer is a couple of miles down from here. He’s been seein’ to my pups for ten years now. He’s one of the best.”

“Thank you. I was worried I wouldn’t be able to find someone,” Audra said.

“No problem. ’Course he ain’t one of them fancy doctors like they got in the city. But he’s really good at taking care of injuries and births and normal stuff.” The guy continued with a smile, keeping his hands tucked into his pockets the whole time. He looked almost nervous to be talking to her.

But then Trigger growled again, and she realized he had a good reason to look wary.

“Shoot, ma’am, looks like he’s a fighter.”

“He is,” she said. “But you said there was a Vet nearby?”

“All you have to do is hang a right out of the parking lot. Go down about a mile, take another right, then you’ll hang left on Boone Road.” The guy gestured random directions with his hand, drawing an invisible map in the air. “Once you’re on Boone Road, you’ll go up the hill. Once you reach the bottom of that first hill you need to hook a right where the road Y’s. Go on down that ways, take your third left, and then your first right. The doc’s clinic is right there. Blue house, white shutters. Can’t miss it.”

Audra thought her eyes might cross. She’d missed everything he’d said after the second turn, but she just politely nodded and prayed her GPS would figure it out.

As if the guy was reading her mind, he smiled. “Some of those roads ain’t on a map. Not many folks come out this way, you know?”

Audra agreed, doing her best to look confident. “I think I got it.”

The guy tipped back his hat and pulled a piece of gum out of his pocket, popped it in his mouth and shoved the wrapper back into his jeans. “You sure? You got that same look on your face like my sister does when I give her directions.”

“I do?” she squeaked out.

His nod held all the wisdom of the world. “You look as sure about where you’re headed as a jack rabbit in a fox den.”

She’d never seen a rabbit in a fox den, but she didn’t need to be a genius to figure out he was telling her he knew she’d get lost. “Is it that obvious?”

“Pretty much,” he drawled. “Tell you what, my truck’s right over there. Doc’s place ain’t too far from where I’m headed. You just follow me and I’ll lead away.”

“Oh, I can’t. Really—”

The man held up his hand. “I know you women have to be extra careful with strangers, but you can keep your doors locked and just follow me. You start feeling funny, you just keep on driving. Mr. Reese’s Café is about half a mile past the vet clinic, and there’s always locals in there having a cup of coffee this time of day. You can go there and one of them can point you back in the right direction, if that makes you feel more comfortable.”

Audra crossed her arms over her chest, indecision making her shift from foot to foot. He really was nice, and he was clearly giving her an out—if she felt weird she could just keep going. Not like he could do anything if she was in her car with the doors locked. “That would be nice, thank you.”

“Name’s Rex.” The man held out his hand. “I’m in that blue pickup truck over yonder. I’ll go slow so you don’t get lost.”

As soon as Audra took his hand and shook it, Trigger growled.

“I’m Audra. Thanks again.”

Rex walked away and she immediately felt better. If he was a predator he would’ve tried to crowd her into a corner or something instead of shaking her hand in broad daylight. Maybe she should think about moving out to the country when all this was over with. She’d always lived in the city and was so careful and aware everywhere she went. People were just nicer in the country.

Audra went around the car and slid inside the driver seat, pulling out her phone to double check the vet’s name, just in case. Palmer’s Animal Hospital was the first search result on Google. She clicked the link and a picture of a house with blue siding and white shutters surrounded by beautiful green trees and shrubs popped up.

Trigger whined, making his displeasure known from the backseat.

Audra dropped her phone into her purse and started her car. “Now that was rude, growling at Rex like that. He’s just trying to help.”

The blue truck backed out of its spot and pulled to the edge of the parking lot. Rex had an arm hanging out the window, and sat there, waiting for her to get behind him. Audra pulled her car right behind his bumper and glanced back at Trigger, who was staring at her.

“Look, you need a hospital, and I need to take care of you. The vet clinic checked out on Google. I swear, you’re too much like my brother.”

When she turned back, Rex was pulling out of the parking lot. She followed, keeping a careful eye on all of her surroundings.

He turned right, just like he said he would. Yes, it was a risk trusting a stranger for help. But honest to gosh, if anything happened to Trigger, she didn’t think she could live with herself. Who knew how long it would take for infection to set up and poison his blood. Melissa had said he needed antibiotics and painkillers and anti-inflammatories. She couldn’t just sit in a rundown motel overnight and allow Trigger to lay there in pain.

Audra continued to follow Rex’s truck, turning down another road, the trees growing thicker and the lanes narrowing. She hit a pothole, jarring her teeth together, and barely straightened up when she hit another one. “No wonder this place wasn’t on the map,” she muttered to herself.

They turned down another road, this one without any pavement. A long cow pasture stretched out on the right side and trees on the left, not one single house in sight. Her internal radar let out a little beep of alarm. If Rex was a psycho, she was following him to where there’d be no witnesses to his crime.

Maybe this hadn’t been such a good idea. After all, how many times could you follow a stranger somewhere like this without something bad happening?