The scene played out in front of him like something from a nightmare. Lights, sounds…all of it faded. His focus narrowed to the struggle happening just a few yards away. He knew he was moving, running balls out with enough power to make his heart pound and his blood pump, but every second stretched into an eternity. He couldn’t get to her fast enough.
An instant later time snapped like a rubber band, and suddenly he was there, almost on top of them. Sound crashed into his ears—Joy’s furious screams, the guy’s ragged curses—Bitch…fucking bitch…let her go. They’re going to kill me—and Madison’s breath coming in fast, harsh pants that told him she put every ounce of her energy fighting him off.
His brain processed a kaleidoscope of details as he launched himself at the other man—Cody Fucking Winslow. Five-ten. One hundred and seventy pounds. Beat to shit. For a split second he attributed the damage to Madison, but by the time he slammed into the guy and sent them both to the ground with a bone-jarring thud, he realized it had taken someone bigger, heavier, and packing a hell of a lot more power than Madison to break this asshole’s nose, bruise his face, and knock out an incisor and a canine.
He inhaled dirt along with the sour stench of whiskey and cat piss—meth sweat, a voice in his head diagnosed. The mixture left a gritty, coppery taste in the back of his throat. He choked it down and sprang to his feet. Despite the beating someone else had already inflicted, the other man scrambled up as well. Hunter couldn’t see a weapon, but that didn’t mean the guy didn’t have one. What he could see, from the corner of his eye, was Madison rushing toward him, and the thought of this shithead pulling a gun and taking aim at her made his blood run cold. He waved her away, but Winslow saw her, too, and charged.
“Go,” he shouted and stepped in front of her, then repeated the order louder when she didn’t move. He leaned into the body blow, absorbing the force and holding his ground. Winslow hit the dirt again but immediately scrabbled up. Jesus, he was like some fucking animal—all cranked up with relentless energy and no concept of pain.
“Madison, go!” Hunter puffed the words out before starting toward Winslow, and he had the satisfaction of hearing her footsteps retreat behind him. He caught the guy off balance this time, knocked him down, and went for the battered nose. The slam of a car door blended with the crunch of cartilage.
Blood streamed over his knuckles, but Winslow barely grunted. The slippery bastard twisted and kicked, trying to get his feet under him. Hunter wrapped his hand around the guy’s throat and hauled him up. His limbs felt like lead. Every breath exploded from his lungs and echoed in his head. Over this, he heard an engine gun and then scrape of tires spinning on gravel. A measure of relief filtered through him, knowing Madison and Joy were out of range. Voices came from behind him now, along with the sound of footfalls beating a rapid path his way. In his mind he saw a well-dressed cavalry closing in. He wasn’t going to need them.
He staggered forward, dragging Winslow by his skinny neck. The guy clawed at his wrist, but Hunter kept walking. Apparently Winslow wasn’t so far beyond reality he didn’t realize Madison had left with the baby, because his wild eyes locked on Hunter. “They’re going to kill me,” he whimpered.
“I’m going to kill you,” Hunter replied, and threw him in the pond.
…
Madison pulled into Hunter’s driveway and stomped on the brake hard enough to make her tires squeak. Her hands still trembled, even after the two-hour sprint back to Atlanta. Cody’s voice echoed in her ear. I have a gun. Don’t make me use it.
Did he really have one? Apparently he hadn’t used it, thank God. With her and the baby gone, there would have been no point.
Joy had slept in her car seat for most of the trip. Madison had managed that much. She’d hit the pause button on the overpowering instinct to flee, as fast and as far as possible, and had stopped at a gas station near the freeway onramp in Magnolia Grove to make sure the baby was okay, and then call the police. They’d told her they already had units on the scene, and no injuries reported, but that was all the information they could provide. She’d tried to reach Hunter’s phone, but it had gone straight to voicemail. Out of options, and unsure if Cody was in custody or still at large, she’d raced back to Atlanta.
Miraculously, the tug-of-war with Cody hadn’t left a mark on Joy. But with that fear put to rest, plenty of other concerns circled her mind like hungry birds, swooping down to stab at her ragged nerves every few seconds. Was Hunter okay? Was everybody else okay? Where was Cody? Should she call the police again?
The answers to all these questions were a phone call away, but she’d lost her cell somewhere in the battle to hold on to Joy. She’d probably dropped it in the parking lot, but wherever it was, it couldn’t do her any good now.
You’re as misplaced and useless as that phone.
God, she was. She closed her eyes, covered her face with her hands, and tried to figure out what to do next. Think, Madison.
A knock on her driver’s side window brought her bolting upright again, a scream in her throat, but the terror rushed away just as quickly when she saw Nelle standing there. She opened the door and started to get out, only to sag back in the seat. Her weak knees refused to support her. “Hunter?” she managed.
“I talked to him about an hour ago. He’s fine. He asked me to assure you everything’s under control, including your ex. Honey, let’s get you and that sweet little girl inside, and I’ll tell you what I know.”
Strangely, the wave of profound and utter relief Nelle’s words generated broke the dam on her anxiety. Tears burned her eyes. A stinging, blinding outpouring, accompanied by a sob so deep it made her chest hurt. She clung to the steering wheel, helpless and mortified, while Nelle—poor woman—rubbed her shoulder and whispered, “It’s okay. You’ve been through the wringer tonight, but now it’s done. Everything’s going to be okay.”
“I took Joy and ran. He said he had a gun. I didn’t know… I didn’t know if Hunter was—”
“Hunter can take care of himself.” She squeezed Madison’s shoulder. “You did what you had to do to protect your daughter.”
The sympathy wrenched deeper sobs out of her ragged throat. She’d almost lost her daughter tonight because she’d been so focused on stupid things, like making Hunter see her in a new light, and making an impression on his friends, she’d dropped her guard. Because of her, Hunter could have been hurt…or worse. The same went for other wedding guests she’d seen in her rearview mirror, running toward him as she’d burned rubber out of the parking lot.
Making him see her in a new light? What a joke. Why would he see her as anything except a pathetic mess in need of rescue? As for making an impression on his friends, she’d inadvertently brought her deranged criminal of a baby daddy to their wedding, and endangered every one of them. She’d made an impression, all right.
A little wail sounded from the back seat. Right. This pity party was an indulgence she couldn’t afford. She needed to pull her shit together and take care of her daughter. The thought straightened her spine. She sat up and wiped her face. “Mama’s coming, baby.”
Nelle stepped aside and carried the diaper bag, while Madison got Joy out of her car seat and led the way to the door. Once inside, Madison keyed the c
ode into the alarm and then flipped on lights. “I need to feed her.”
“You go ahead. I’m going to make us some tea. Be right back.”
Unpacking one of the bottles she’d prepared for the trip would have been easier, but she wanted—no, she needed—to nurse her daughter, so she worked the zipper at the back of the dress down until she could shrug out of one sleeve. By the time Nelle returned a few minutes later, carrying two mugs of tea, Joy was quietly nursing, and Madison was quietly figuring out how to get the train wreck of her life back on track without inflicting any more damage on Hunter.
Nelle sat next to her on the sofa and put the second mug on the coffee table in front of her. “I sent Hunter a text to tell him you and Joy are home, safe and sound.”