Page 22 of Outlaw Ridge: Shaw (Hard Justice: Outlaw Ridge #5)

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Ava didn’t feel the expected panic. Only the determination to finish this. Seven years was way too long to go without final closure, and whoever was trying to kill them needed to be stopped once and for all.

Shaw threw open the door, and the thick black smoke swarmed in.

It robbed her of her breath, and her instincts were to bolt out.

To get into fresh air so she could breathe.

So they could get away from the fire, too.

But Shaw didn’t budge. He stayed put for a couple of seconds, and Ava knew he was trying to pick through that smoke to pinpoint their attacker.

“Move fast and to the right,” he instructed. “Drop down in the ditch, and if you get the chance, crawl away from the ambulance.”

Like her, he was already coughing. And his field of vision probably wasn’t that great either. Still, that didn’t stop him. He gave her one last glance and bolted out into the nightmare.

Ava was right behind him. She kept her gun ready, but she couldn’t see squat.

The smoke was even thicker out here, and the stench of the gasoline was overpowering.

It cut through what little breath she had left.

The only saving grace was that were no flames here at the rear of the vehicle so she figured the fire had started near the spike strip at the front.

Right where the engine was.

Yes, there was the possibility of them being blown to bits.

Of course, the killer probably had a different notion about that and would no doubt try to gun them down.

That’s why Ava fought through the smoke and did as Shaw had instructed.

The moment her feet were on the asphalt, she moved fast and to the right, hoping that any bullets that came her way now would hit the Kevlar vest and not her body.

Since she couldn’t see where she was running either, she tripped on something and practically fell into the ditch. Her shoulder and arm landed hard, causing the pain to spear through her.

Just as there was the deafening blast of a gunshot being fired.

She couldn’t be sure, but she thought the bullet slammed into the ground near her. Near Shaw.

Oh, God.

Had he been hit? She was about to call out to him when someone dropped down into the ditch next to her.

“Move further away from the ambulance,” Shaw said.

The sound of his voice flooded her with relief. Short-lived though because there was more gunfire, and all of these shots were coming right at Shaw and her.

He hooked his left arm around her, dragging her lower into the ditch until her face was practically in the dirt.

Shaw then scrambled over her, using his body to protect her.

Ava didn’t want the protection, not when it put him at even greater risk.

This had to end, and she needed all four of them to walk away from this alive.

She didn’t want the killer to have another victory.

She thought of Reed and Owen. Ava couldn’t see them, but she prayed they’d gotten to cover without being injured.

She doubted either of them would have a better shot at the killer than Shaw and she would since they were likely somewhere near the front of the ambulance.

Maybe though one of them would be able to circle around and figure out who was doing this.

And that gave her an idea.

“I’m going to call out,” she told Shaw.

He didn’t nix that. Nor did he ask her why she wanted to do that, which meant he knew she wanted to gauge their attacker’s reaction.

“Lorelei?” Ava shouted.

Even over the crackle and hissing of the fire, she heard a gasp. “You’re alive,” Lorelei blurted.

And there was the answer. Only the person who’d received Shaw’s texts would know about her suicide . Yes, it was possible the killer would have shared that with Lorelei, but Ava didn’t think that’s what had happened.

No.

She believed that Lorelei was the copycat killer and was doing this to eliminate Shaw and anyone else who got in her way. Lorelei would see Owen and Reed as mere collateral damage.

The shots started again, a frenzied pace, and the bullets tore into the dirt and pebbles on the edge of the ditch. To get to Shaw and her, Lorelei would have to leave cover and come toward them. Ava was trying to figure out a way to make that happen when she heard Shaw.

“Push Lorelei’s buttons,” he whispered to her. Shaw eased off her, moving to her side. “Get her to charge at us.”

Ava nodded, and she considered what button would get the quickest results.

“You’re the reason your sister’s dead,” Ava called out. “She died instead of you. How can you live with that, Lorelei?”

She got an immediate reaction. “No, she died because of you,” Lorelei shouted. “You didn’t get there in time to save her.”

Even now, that felt like a crushing blow, but Ava had to push aside the guilt. “Melissa died because you didn’t stop Dell from taking her. She would have lived if you’d fought harder, if you’d tried to save her. But, no, you saved yourself. You killed her, Lorelei. You did that.”

Lorelei howled out a wail that didn’t even sound human, and Ava heard the scramble of movement. Shaw moved, too. He levered himself up from the ditch. In the same motion, he took aim.

Ava did the same.

She caught the blur of motion and saw Lorelei tearing through the smoke. She was shooting, the bullets going wild, but the moment she had eyes on them, she shifted her gun at them.

Lorelei didn’t get the chance to pull the trigger again. Shaw saw to that. He fired twice.

And he didn’t miss.

The light from the flames was enough for Ava to see the shock register on Lorelei’s face. But only for a couple of seconds. Then, her expression went blank.

Dead.

Before Lorelei collapsed onto the road.

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