by Robin Mahle
“For God’s sake, do something! Stop her before she kills him.” This time, it was Chris Decker who pleaded, a man who had been an ally to Riley, a friend, even. Now he was as afraid as the rest of them.
“Riley!” Ward rushed to her. “Stop! Now! You don’t need to do this. This isn’t like before. You’re not a child anymore. Think about Carl. He needs you and you need him. This has to end now. I can’t protect you if you go any further.” Her eyes weren’t her own. He didn’t recognize the woman he saw before him. “Jacob’s safe, Riley. He’s in the hospital and he’s safe. It’s over now. These men will go to prison.”
“You know what they did to her. What they did to Chloe. And to Justin,” Riley said.
“I know. But you can’t take justice into your own hands. That’s not who you are. I know who you are. I remember the little girl inside the shelter. I know you don’t want to hurt these people, even if they deserve it.”
She blinked as though battling with the thoughts in her head. Riley began to realize what was happening. They all saw what she had done, what she was doing now. She’d just destroyed her life as she knew it.
Riley collapsed to the ground. The conveyor belt stopped and Virgil Howard fell. The building settled again.
Ethan rushed after her. “It’s okay. You’re okay.”
The other officers and agents took the men into custody, all steering clear of her. She sensed their fear, their confusion. They saw her as a freak.
She dropped her head into her hands and sobbed. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
Ward approached her and looked to Ethan. “Call an ambulance.” He turned to Riley. “We’re going to get you out of here now. You didn’t hurt anyone, Riley. You stopped all of them from hurting us.”
Riley woke up in a hospital bed. Dillon stood next to her, holding her hand. Ethan stood at the end of the bed.
Ward leaned in the doorway. “Glad to see you’re awake.” He started inside. “How are you feeling?”
“Better,” Riley replied.
“Good.”
“Hey, sis. We were all pretty worried about you. Mom’s coming down as soon as she finishes her shift at the diner.”
“She doesn’t have to do that. I’m fine.”
“You’re not, but you will be,” Ethan said.
She looked at Ward. “I don’t know what happened to me. Now they all know.”
“None of those men in there with you—the officers, the agents—are going to say a damn word about what happened. In fact, I don’t think they believe their own eyes anyway. You saved everyone in there from getting hurt, including me. If I’d shown up earlier, before you arrived, who knows what would’ve happened.”
Riley recalled her vision about him. Now it seemed she’d been able to prevent it after all. “What about Pryce? Did he turn up?”
“No. Feds figured he saw the cars out front of the plant and knew things hadn’t gone the way he planned. Everyone’s on the lookout for him, though.”
Riley nodded. “Where’s Jacob?”
“Right here.”
A nurse wheeled him inside the room. “You can’t stay for long, but you can say hello.”
Jacob nodded to her and stood up. “Hey, I hear you put on quite a show earlier. Sorry I missed it.”
She laughed. “That’s not funny. How are you?”
“I’ll be fine.” He approached her bedside and reached for her hand.
“I’ll step out for a moment,” Dillon said.
“I’ll join you.” Ward looked at Ethan.
“Yeah. Right.” He eyed Jacob before finally leaving with the others.
“I can’t believe what happened,” Jacob said.
“Me neither, but I know I don’t want it to happen again. I just don’t know how to stop it.”
“You’ll figure it out. You always do.” He squeezed her hand. “I called Carl, and after apologizing for taking his car and getting it shot up, I told him what happened.”
“That’s right, he did.” Carl appeared in the doorway. “Kid owes me a lot of money. You know how hard it is to find parts for that old piece of shit?”
“Carl.” She smiled.
“Hi, sweetheart.” He approached her. “Well, you sure stirred the pot this time, didn’t you?”
“I did.”
“From what I gather, Ward’s gotten everything under control. I knew he’d look after you.”
“Dan covered for me,” Riley began. “I almost killed someone and he covered for me.”
“Believe me, Moody and his men had no problem putting that whole thing in their rear-view. You left a hell of an impression and I don’t think they want to get on your bad side,” Jacob replied.
“You did your job, kid,” Carl said. “Glad you’re all right. I’d better get back to the old folks’ home. They’ll miss me soon.”
“You didn’t tell them you were coming here?” Riley asked.
“No way. I still have my independence.” He leaned in to kiss her cheek. “I don’t see any more storms coming, do you?”
She shook her head and smiled.
“Good thing. Don’t think my heart could handle it.” Carl started to leave but stopped for a moment and regarded Jacob. “You take care of yourself, kid. And I’ll be watching out for that check in the mail.”
“Yes, sir.” He watched as Carl left the room and looked back to Riley. “I’m so grateful you’re okay.”
“Back at you. What are you going to do now? Go back to the city and look for another job?”
Jacob brushed her hand with his and peered into her eyes. “I was kind of hoping I might stay here for a while. I hear jobs are coming back to town. Maybe an opportunity will present itself.”
Ethan appeared in the doorway with a coffee in hand. He stopped short as he listened in on their conversation.
Riley felt his presence and turned in his direction to smile. He returned the smile and walked away.
THE END
About the Author
Robin Mahle lives with her husband and two children in Virginia. She found her passion for writing, which later became her second career, after spending 20 years in the construction industry.
Having always been a lover of books, Robin attributes her creativity to the wonderful overseas adventures she has shared with her husband of 18 years. Traveling throughout Europe and having lived in England opened her mind and with that came a steady stream of story ideas inspired by her author-idols in the mystery/suspense genre.
If you enjoyed Ms. Mahle’s work, please share your experience by leaving a review on Amazon.
Also by Robin Mahle
Force of Nature - A Riley Thompson Thriller (Book 0)
All the Shiny Things - A Kate Reid Novel (Book 1)
Law of Five – A Kate Reid Novel (Book 2)
Gone Unnoticed – A Kate Reid Novel (Book 3)
Blackwaters – A Kate Reid Novel (Book 4)
Endangered -A Kate Reid Novel (Book 5)
The Pretty Ones - A Kate Reid Novel (Book 6)
The Last Word – A Kate Reid Novel (Book 7)
Deadly Reckoning – A Kate Reid Novel (Book 8)
Primal Deception - A Lacy Merrick Thriller (Book 1)
Shadow Rising – A Lacy Merrick Thriller (Book 2)
First Target – A Lacy Merrick Thriller (Book 3)
Landslide
Beyond the Clearing
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