Drop Dead Gorgeous

Please, let her be okay. I’ll do anything. I love her and I haven’t even taken her on a proper date yet.

My soul gasps like a living, breathing being inside me as the realization dawns, bright and pure.

I love Zoey Walker.

We haven’t gotten to know each other the way most people do, but nevertheless, I know her. Inside and out. I know her fears and her dreams, even the ones she tries to hide because she doesn’t think she can have them. I know her quirks and superstitions and would willingly, happily live in a damn log cabin if that’s what she wanted so that she’s surrounded by good-luck wood at all times.

I know her kindness and her heart, so full of love and generosity that she encircles herself with defenses, not for her own protection but for everyone else’s. And not despite it all, but because all of that makes up who Zoey Walker is . . . I love her.

Barnes’s radio crackles to life again. “Two females—one blonde, one Zoey. They’re down on the ground but alive. Zoey looks . . .” He pauses, and I feel the car rear back before jolting forward as Barnes, who was already nearly flying, pushes the speedometer even higher. “How far out are you?”

“Three minutes, tops.”

“Roger. Hurry.”

“Kid, when we get there, I need you to stay in the car,” Barnes tells me, eyes never leaving the road.

“Fuck no,” I snarl. “That’s my . . .” My what? My girlfriend? No, that’s not nearly enough.

My everything? Closer.

“Zoey. My Zoey,” I tell him.

His jaw works and his eyes tick back to me. “I hear you, son, but this is a police matter and I can’t be worrying about a civilian out there. Don’t get in the way of my doing what needs to be done to get her back.”

I don’t have a chance to argue because the radio crackles once more. “Can’t wait. Support when you arrive.”

The radio quiets.

“What does that mean?” I demand.

Barnes just pushes his car harder. “Buckle up.”

It’s the only warning I get before Barnes sends us airborne over a railroad track. We crash down to the road right in the middle of a pothole, and he jerks the car, taking a sharp turn. I slide all over the backseat, banging into the doors and trying to hold on to the cage between the seats.

Alver grabs the oh-shit handle and whoops like we’re out for a day of fun off-roading, “Whoo!” At least he warns me before the next turn, shouting, “Another one!”

“Brace yourselves,” Barnes orders, hands going white on the steering wheel at ten and two o’clock. “We’re going through.”

“Through what?” I say from the backseat, unable to see ahead from the odd position I’ve braced myself in.

“Fence!” Alver shouts a split second before metal screams over the hood of the car, tinkling on the glass windshield, and then scrapes down the back.

I don’t look back, though. I’m looking ahead to an open field. In the glow of headlights, Sebastian is wrestling with a uniformed officer, trying to take his gun. Though he’s outweighed by a solid sixty pounds of muscle and outmanned by desperation, the officer is doing his best to hold on to his weapon.

I see Yvette and Zoey, helping each other up from the ground. They’re both limping, wincing with each step as they try to get out of the danger zone.

“Zoey!” I yell, beyond thankful to see her alive but horrified at the swelling bruise on her face and her painful movements.

Barnes brakes hard, the car not even sliding to a complete stop before he throws it in park and is out.

“Freeze, Turner!” His voice is hard, cold as ice, and authoritative as he holds his gun steady, aimed right at Sebastian. Barnes takes slow, careful steps toward Sebastian and the officer, who are still struggling for control.

I’m fighting the door despite knowing it’s locked from the outside and I can’t get out. But I have to get to Zoey, an overwhelming need to help her giving me strength I don’t usually have.

Alver bangs on the glass with a hard fist to get my attention. “Calm down so I can open the damn door without you knocking me down. I ain’t as young as I used to be!”

What? Alver’s going to let me out?

I still, though every cell in my body is buzzing with energy, ready for release.

True to his word, Alver opens the door, eyeing me hard. “Go get her. Stay out of the way.”

I heed his warning, taking a loop around to the right so that I come up on the back side of Yvette’s car. Face to face with Zoey, I finally feel the smallest hint of relief.

She’s okay, or she will be.

“Zoey!” I hiss, not wanting to draw Sebastian’s attention to the women getting away to safety. She’s hunched over, her and Yvette holding each other up, but at my voice, her head jerks up in surprise.