"The cidery," she says. "Please. I need to go with you."
"Get out the laundry room door," I yell. "I'm right behind you, and I will have Olivia. There's a weapon in the glove box of my truck. Go to my truck or the cidery, wherever you can, and grab one of the weapons. We don't know who's outside."
She falters one more time, indecision written on her face, before turning and disappearing into the laundry room. I rush upstairs where Lucy is barking at Olivia's crib. Olivia howls loudly, and I yank off my t-shirt before scooping her into my arms, covering her nose lightly with the fabric, which only serves to piss her off even further. Lucy darts down the stairs in front of us, standing at the bottom and barking at us.
"Come on, girl," I say, heading in the direction where I'd ordered Autumn a few minutes before. The fire hasn't spread to the laundry room, but the heat in the kitchen radiates into the other rooms, and the smoke billows into the rest of the house. "It's okay, Olivia. It's all going to be okay."
Fuck if I know that's true. But I say the words over and over as I carry her outside into the freezing cold. I hold her against me as I jog around the side of the house, heading for the cidery.
"Do you really think I'm just going to let you run out of the house?" The voice comes from behind me, and I spin around. I'd recognize the voice anywhere. Jed Easton. He shines a flashlight in my eyes, blinding me, and Olivia screams louder than before. Lucy growls, and I know she'll lunge for Jed and he'll shoot her, so I order her to heel. "That dog comes at me, and I put her down, Saint."
"Heel, Lucy," I say, my tone low. She sits by my feet, her growl a low rumble in her throat. "A fire, Jed? With a kid inside the house? That’s low, even by your standards."
Jed chuckles. "Collateral damage," he says. "Besides, who would believe that you set the place on fire just to kill yourself? People are far more likely to believe that you set this place on fire because the slut here broke your heart. How does that saying go? If I can't have her, no one else will? That’s exactly why everyone will think you did it."
"You really think you're going to get away with this, Jed?" I ask. "Shooting me and the baby doesn't fit with the scenario you're describing."
"Walk," he says. "Away from the house. You're right, you know. But that's why you're always behind these things, Luke. You don't have the mind for anticipating what move I'm going to make next."
"Oh?" I ask, hushing Olivia under my breath, my chest tense. The first thing I need to do is get Olivia calmed down. Jed is on edge, and a crying toddler is only going to make things worse. I hum a few bars of a song under my breath – the only thing I can remember in the moment, Drunken Sailor, which is quite possibly the least appropriate toddler music choice ever – as I wrap her in the t-shirt, holding her against my skin.
"Shut up," Jed says.
"I'm calming her down," I say. "Unless you'd rather hear her scream."
"I'd rather she shut the fuck up," he says. "Or I can just shut her the fuck up now."
I hear the unmistakable sound of a shotgun being cocked. Jed's flashlight moves as he turns. I drop to the ground instinctively with Olivia in my arms as soon as I hear the sound. A microsecond later there's a shot, and Jed falls to the ground with a thud, groaning loudly.
Then Autumn is standing beside me, squatting down toward us and taking Olivia from my arms. She hands me the shotgun and Jed's weapon. "I got him in the arm," she says. "We should probably call 911 or something."
"Shit, Red," I say. Adrenaline is coursing through my veins, my entire body tensed. "Where the fuck did you learn to shoot like that? You know he had his weapon drawn on us."
She holds Olivia against her chest, cooing to her softly before breaking into a lullaby that's only vaguely familiar to me. "I'm from Kentucky, Luke," she says between lyrics. "I can handle a shotgun."
"Remind me never to get on your bad side," I say.
“If you break up with me via text message ever again, all bets are off.”
37
Autumn
“I’m a little nervous.” I’m holding Olivia’s hand and standing at the door of this cabin up in the mountains outside of West Bend. Olivia is bundled up in her bright pink puffy jacket, the hood on her head lined with fur. She looks up at me, her cheeks pink even though we’ve only just gotten out of the car and have been in the cold air for all of five minutes.
“Are you kidding?” Luke asks. “You shot Jed Easton – the town sheriff and the mayor’s son. You’re pretty much already a legend. A legend I’m totally in love with.”
The door opens before I can respond, and I stand there with my mouth hanging open, Luke’s words still echoing in my head.
A legend I’m totally in love with.
“You must be Autumn,” River Andrews says. And she holds her arms out. For a hug.
I’m hugging a movie star. And Luke just told me he loves me. Holy shit.