Page 123 of Before the Night Falls

He could hardly breathe as he waited.

A few minutes later, one of the Coast Guardsmen stepped toward them. “Our men found Wes. He was trying to swim back to shore and got too tired. He grabbed hold of a buoy and was hanging on for dear life.”

Relief washed through Tyson. “Where is he now?”

“We have him in our custody. We put him on a different boat in order to keep him far away from you two.”

Tyson glanced at Olivia and saw the relief spread across her face. That had been a good move, one he was thankful for. He wasn’t sure Olivia could handle seeing Wes again right now.

“This is all over,” the Coast Guardsman said. “You’ll have lots of questions to answer, of course. But you should be safe.”

Tears sprang to Olivia’s eyes. Not tears of sadness but of relief.

All these months, she’d had doubts that the real killer had died. That realization had left her living in fear.

But maybe now she could truly take some time to recover.

Tyson hoped that healing would take place with him by her side.

EPILOGUE

Olivia saton the patio behind Tyson’s house.

A month had passed since everything happened, and life was slowly returning to normal.

At least it was returning to anewnormal. She’d been staying here in Tyson’s guest bedroom as she tried to recover from the trauma of being abducted again. Despite everything that had happened here, she found a lot of peace on this property.

“Hey there,” a soft voice said behind her.

She turned as Tyson stepped out, and a grin spread across her face.

He handed her a cup of coffee before kissing her forehead and sitting in the chair beside hers.

Watching the sun rise together had become their routine over the past few weeks. They’d done that this morning, had breakfast, and then Olivia had slipped back outside while Tyson took a phone call.

A lot had happened since Wes’ arrest.

The evidence against Wes had been irrefutable. Since he’d refused to admit his guilt, he’d now be going to trial.

Olivia didn’t look forward to testifying against him, but she would do it. She knew with Tyson by her side she’d get through those days in court.

She still had questions, things she didn’t understand—like where Wes had gotten the roses. He hadn’t been able to grow them himself while in Charlotte. The police thought he may have taken them from another house in the area. The homeowner was in Europe for the summer, so he wouldn’t have noticed.

She still wasn’t sure how Wes had gotten the flowers into the gala either. He wasn’t talking or admitting anything. One thing was for sure: He was clever and sneaky.

Olivia had taken a leave of absence from Static Entertainment. Her first instinct had been to throw herself back into her work. But she knew that wasn’t the best choice. She needed first to heal.

Not only that, but she’d actually come to discover that she liked Tyson’s eating and exercise plan. She’d stuck with it even though the assignment was over.

“I just got off the phone with the tribal council,” Tyson told her.

She sat up straighter. “And?”

“The CEO of Frontier Resorts has been arrested on embezzlement charges.”

“What?”

He nodded, a grin tugging at his lips. “The cops haven’t been able to prove he’s the one who’s been threatening me, but that’s okay. His arrest has shut down the possibility of the casino being built, and the council approved the design for the school.”