Reckless Desire (Saved By Desire 6)

“I know of somewhere we can go where it is quiet safe,” he said noncommittally. “Let’s go.”

They had no sooner left the sheltered protection of the crypt when the loud boom of a gun exploding shattered the silence. Marguerite instinctively ducked, and bit back a scream when a headstone nearby exploded in a shower of dust.

“Get down,” Joe barked. He ducked low and dragged her after him as he raced to put some distance between them and the gunman.

“Why is he not chasing us?” Marguerite gasped when she glanced over her shoulder and saw the motionless gunman standing in the middle of the road.

Joe mentally swore. “There are more of them around here who will finish the job off for him. He doesn’t have to waste his own shot.”

“What?” Marguerite yanked hard against his restraining hand in an attempt to get him to stop.

Joe hesitated.

It was that brief moment of hesitation that saved his life.

The gravestone at his hip suddenly exploded but, unlike last time, rather than the gunfire stopping, several shots followed which seemed to come from all directions. All of them hit the gravestone he should have been standing behind, one after the other, until it began to disintegrate beneath the force of the pummelling.

“Run,” Joe barked, yanking Marguerite off her feet.

They raced, hand-in-hand, around the cemetery, using the gravestones as cover, until they were at the farthest edge of the graveyard and far away from the main road.

“Now get down,” Joe ordered quietly.

“How do we get out of here?” Marguerite cried.

“We are going to take some of them out and then creep around the perimeter. The exit isn’t too far away now so it won’t take us long to get free of this lot.”

Marguerite shivered and fought the urge to cry as she contemplated the possibility they might be hemmed in.

Joe caught sight of a darting shadow several feet away and pulled the trigger of his gun. He didn’t need to brace himself to get a steady shot. He was a good enough marksman to hit his target, whose cry of pain was loud before he fell to the ground. It brought a temporary ceasefire-for a few minutes at least.

“Get up and run!”

Joe winced when each gravestone they passed exploded in a shower of dust but didn’t stop. From gravestone to gravestone they made their way to the exit. Joe prayed that nobody would be blocking that one, but if they were, had no qualms about shooting them out of the way. Not now. Not when their situation was so desperate.

When one of the gunmen broke cover, Joe pointed his weapon and shot him. The dull thud was the unknown gunman hitting the gravestone as he fell assured him that he had brought them a few precious moments. He didn’t bother to stop while he reloaded but nudged Marguerite closer while he dug around in his cloak for more shot.

“Over here, look,” Joe murmured as he nudged her toward a large crypt. “Wait here a minute. The gate is down there, look.”

Marguerite studied the gate now several feet away. With the tall trees lining the peri

meter of the graveyard it was impossible to tell if someone was waiting for them out on the street, but it was a risk they had to take. They were in more danger staying in the churchyard.

“Jesus, how many more are there?” Joe grunted when two more men briefly revealed their positions.

“Just shoot them,” Marguerite gasped, but then closed her mouth with a snap when Joe threw her a rueful look.

“I didn’t realise you were bloodthirsty,” he murmured.

“I am not. I just don’t want to end up like these poor people,” she replied with a nod to the gravestones they stood amongst.

“Fair point,” Joe replied.

Taking another shot, he picked off one of the gunmen and focused his aim on the other. Suddenly, the entire graveyard came alive to the sound of gunfire which made her ears ring, and her fragile bravado shatter. To her horror, she sensed movement just a few feet away. Her eyes widened. A scream locked in her throat. Her horrified gaze fell upon a gunman, his face contorted with venom as he surged toward her.

Marguerite wanted to call for Joe but her mouth wouldn’t work. Instinctively, she lifted the gun that now burned in her hand. It was her only defence because the man was twice her size and ten times meaner. Scrunching her face up in horror, she squeezed her finger on the trigger just like Joe had shown her. The violent jerk of her arm together with the loud boom it made left her quivering in fear. She watched in horror as a round patch of blood blossomed directly in the centre of the man’s chest. He looked at her with wide eyes before his gaze dropped dully to his chest in disbelief.

Without a murmur, he fell to the ground. He didn’t get up again.