Her Mistletoe Protector

Gerry was one of the few who’d known about how her father had helped her escape Anthony. Maybe he’d used the Mafia link on purpose to scare her. She wasn’t sure if he’d killed Josie Gardner, too, or if the researcher had really committed suicide, but it was clear he intended to kill her and Joey, right here, right now.

Everything suddenly made sense in a sick, horrible way.

How could she have been so blind? So stupid? How could she not have known? Edith must have suspected something wasn’t right with Gerry, which was why she’d quit.

She should have asked her assistant for more information. But it was too late now. She forced herself to keep facing Gerry even as she whispered to her son. “Stay hidden behind the tree.”

Joey soundlessly moved deeper into the branches. She lifted her arm to shield her eyes against the glare. “Don’t shoot!” she shouted. “I’m not armed.”

“No, but your boyfriend was.” She tried not to react to Gerry’s use of the past tense in reference to Nick. “You and Joey need to come back to the cabin, Rachel. Right now,” Gerry demanded.

The cabin? Was he crazy? No way was she doing that. What was Gerry thinking to suggest she take her son anywhere near a burning building? If the cabin wasn’t on fire yet, it soon would be. She’d rather take her chances getting lost in the woods. But how long could she hold him off? Gerry must know that she’d already called for help, especially if he caught a glimpse of the glow from Nick’s cell phone.

And where was Nick?

“Why?” she asked, stalling for time. “Give me one good reason why I should make it easy for you to kill us?”

Another crack shattered the night and she gasped and ducked, half expecting to feel the searing pain from being hit by a bullet.

“That was just a warning shot,” Gerry snarled. “Next time, I’ll make that kid of yours an orphan.”

She sucked in a harsh breath, feeling trapped. If they tried to run, Gerry could easily follow them with the light. She had no idea where Nick was, and she prayed he wasn’t lying in the woods, bleeding to death. As the seconds stretched into a full minute, she wondered why Gerry didn’t just shoot her and get it over with. What did he hope to gain in this weird cat-and-mouse game?

The glow of the fire burned bright behind Gerry, and suddenly it dawned on her that Gerry wanted them to burn inside the cabin. Maybe he thought that would make their deaths look like a tragic accident. Bullet wounds would be too obvious.

Grimly, she realized he had no intention of letting any of them live through this.

“Why are you doing this, Gerry? You have the money! And the company!” She thought it was best to keep him talking.

“Your father promised the company to me! That idiot Morales was supposed to kill you both. You’re too smart for your own good, Rachel. I knew you’d figure out that I was the one behind this sooner or later.”

She wasn’t about to admit she hadn’t realized that until right now. “Why did you decide to take over the company now? Why not back when my dad died?”

“Because Nancy was threatening to divorce me,” Gerry said in a vicious tone. “I signed a prenup so I get nothing. I needed that company. And you were going to give all that money to settle the lawsuit!” He released a ragged breath. “You didn’t deserve to keep it. But just taking over the company wasn’t enough. Everyone kept asking about what it would take to bring you back. Leaving me no choice but to get rid of you both once and for all.”

He was crazy, no doubt about it. How were they going to get away?

Another gunshot echoed, and this time she saw the spotlight waver, as if Gerry had ducked.

Nick! Nick was alive!

The next gunshot hit the spotlight dead on, shattering the bulb. But even with the spotlight off, there was too much light from the roaring fire that quickly engulfed the dry timber of the log cabin.

Rachel took the opportunity to move from their current location, urging Joey to stay shielded behind her as they darted around more trees. But then she froze when another crack of gunfire shattered the night.

She whipped around and, from the glow of the fire behind her, Rachel watched Gerry’s dark shadow stagger and then finally go down.

She hesitated, torn by indecision. Was Gerry dead? Or at least hurt badly enough that he couldn’t keep shooting?

And where was Nick?

She crouched beside her son for long, agonizing moments. She didn’t want to risk Joey’s life by taking him over to find Nick, but at the same time, she didn’t want to leave him here, alone.