Mountain Delights (Wild Mountain Men 2)

“Move!” he shouted.

I jumped, then did what he said, went into Lucas’ room. I had no intention of obeying him, I was just glad he’d let me out of his sight. He’d never hit me before, never gotten this angry, but I’d known he had a hair trigger. Not like this though. God, who was this man?

My cheek stung, and I could feel it beginning to swell. I wasn’t going with him. No fucking way. But I had to get away from him and it wasn’t out the front door. I went into Lucas’ bathroom, locked the door and climbed in the bathtub. Why, I had no idea, but it was the furthest I could get. I needed help, but fuck, my cell was in the kitchen!

“Hailey!” Mark shouted, then banged on the door. I jumped and grabbed on to the shower curtain. “What the fuck are you doing in there?”

“Going to the bathroom before we go,” I called back. “Give me a few minutes.”

Maybe he thought I couldn’t escape the bathroom. Maybe he thought the slap was enough to put me in my place. As if. The opposite, actually.

I couldn’t cower in the tub. I climbed out, looked to the small window over the toilet. It had opaque film on it so no one could see in. No curtain. It was tiny, but I was small enough to get through it. Luckily, Lucas’ house was only one floor. I turned on the water in the sink to muffle my actions, then flipped the latch and pushed up the sash. Fortunately, Lucas had replaced the original windows with new ones. They were better for preventing heat loss, and thankfully, opening and closing as well.

Climbing up onto the toilet lid, I reached my arms through, then my head.

“Hailey!” Mark shouted.

“Just a minute,” I called back. Putting my hands on the outside of the house, I pushed off, getting the rest of my torso through the window. Angling to the side, I got my hips past, then I leaned down and put my hands out when I dropped a few feet to the ground in Lucas’ backyard.

I popped up and ran for the side gate. Sirens sounded in the distance, then louder and louder as they got closer. I heard tires squealing to a stop as I came around the side of the house, watched as people ran up Lucas’ front walk, guns out.

Shouting came from within.

“Where is she?”

I knew that voice. Lucas.

Oh god, they knew I was with Mark. But why the police? I hadn’t called them.

I ran around to the front, and back inside. Everyone turned to face me.

“Hailey,” Cy said, grabbing me and pulling me into him. He was closer than Lucas and got me first. Lucas joined him, stroked my hair.

“Where were you?”

“I… I went out the bathroom window.”

A plainclothes policewoman came out of Lucas’ bedroom. She had on jeans and a black turtleneck, a badge on her belt and a holster at her hip. “The house is empty, the door to the bathroom is closed.”

She glanced to me.

“Why the fuck did you have to go out the bathroom window?” Lucas asked.

“He… he hit me. Wasn’t happy that I was quitting. He was making me go with him to training.”

Cy pushed me back from him enough so he and Lucas could see my face. Their looks changed from concerned to murderous in a split second.

Lucas spun on his heel and launched himself at Mark, who was standing in the middle of the living room in handcuffs. With his arms behind his back, he could only turn his head away in defense, but it wasn’t enough to avoid Lucas’ wicked punch. The force of it knocked Mark down and he fell onto the coffee table, then crashed to the floor with a groan.

Another detective grabbed Lucas, pushed him back. Big, broad shouldered, dark hair. “Easy there, slugger.”

“Nix, he hit my woman,” Lucas growled. “And he fucking killed my sister.”

The policewoman grabbed Mark’s arm and yanked him to his feet, although he stumbled a few times on the way. His nose was bleeding, and he was breathing hard. His hair was a mess, and there was a tear in his pants.

“Kill your sister? Are you insane?” he shouted. “I didn’t kill her!”

“You laid a hand on Hailey.” Lucas jammed his finger into Mark’s chest. “Show’s you have no qualms with hurting a woman. Besides, you knew my sister. You were in Erin’s house. Your fingerprints don’t lie.”