was off the porch and away to the barns and the paddocks

behind. Riley didn't waste any time either. The gun cabinet

was open in seconds, and he pulled out a rifle and some

rounds. He was going to meet a gun with a gun if he needed

to.

"Daddy?" Hayley didn't sound concerned. She

clearly just wanted his attention. "Shall I take the cookies

we made yesterday?" Riley was speechless for a second.

He needed to say something. Anything. But all he wanted

to do was scoop Hayley up, dump her in his 4x4, grab Jack,

and leave. This wasn't rational. Elliot was probably holed

up somewhere with whisky, nursing his failure to get

money and all the what-if's in his life. Why would he make

his way to the D? What could he gain from facing down

Riley and Jack with a gun?

"Sorry, baby?" He'd forgotten what she wanted. "The cookies I made with Grandma Donna. Should

we take them?"

"Good idea, sweetheart. Get your bag and we'll grab

them on the way through."

In five minutes, they were out in Riley's 4x4, and

Riley had the engine ticking over warming the inside and letting the heat of the engine clear some of the snow. It was slow going, and Riley checked the time. Jack was taking too long with the horses. They needed to get Hayley over to Josh's as soon as they could. He didn't want her here with a freaking madman on the loose. He tapped his fingers in a

rhythm on the steering wheel. Come on, come on. He glanced to the left to the barns, but Jack was

nowhere to be seen.

"Daddy!" Hayley's shriek of fear sent ice down

Riley's spine, and he spun in his seat, the loaded rifle just

out of reach. He recognized Elliot immediately. Elliot stood

right in front of the car holding a snub-nosed revolver and

aiming straight at Hayley. Not him. Hayley. The gun didn't

waver. Elliot's expression was set in stone, and it was clear

what he wanted. The front of his coat was covered in blood,

and there was more blood on his face. Shit. Was that Jack's

blood? Riley was transfixed, utterly unable to think of what

to do and where to turn. Was Jack injured somewhere?

How was he going to get Hayley away from this man?

Should he drive away? Leave Jack… Shit, there was so

much blood on Elliot, but Jack would want him to take

Hayley and drive the fuck away from the D. If anything

happened to Hayley then Jack would hate him for staying. "You want me to go back and finish him?" Elliot

shouted through the window.

Relief flooded through Riley. Jack wasn't dead, but

he was lying injured somewhere. His knuckles whitened on

the steering wheel. Elliot was nearly a foot shorter than

Riley, and it would be easy to use some of that extra body

weight to maybe take the guy out. What if he floored it and

ran the guy down? The gun was still pointing at Hayley,

and Riley wasn't going to risk her life. He wasn't left with

any real choices. "I'm giving you until the count of five,

Hayes."

C

HAPTER

19

"Five."

Riley went through options for a way out of this. None of them made any sense. He glanced over his shoulder, contemplating driving in reverse through the gate and getting Jack in the car and them away before Elliot got a shot in. It wasn't going to happen.

"Four."

"Hayley," Riley said loud enough so she could hear over her sobs. "I'm getting out of the car, and I want you to stay in here."

"No, Daddy." She gripped his arm tight, and the number "three" echoed into the car as Elliot kept counting.

"Hayley, I need you to do this for me. As soon as I leave the car, you press the button to lock the doors again. Can you see it? The car symbol?"

"Daddy—"

"Can you see it, Hayley?"

"I can."

"Two. Hayes, get out of the car."

"Lock the doors and stay inside whatever happens."

"Daddy?"

"Will you do that for me, baby?"

"I will, but, D-daddy, don't die—"

Riley looked direct into brown eyes swimming in tears and saw the naked fear within them. He pasted his best reassuring smile on his face.

"I won't die, Hayley. I promise you. I love you; Pappa loves you too."

"One, Hayes."

In a smooth move, Riley was out of the car, his feet on the ground and the door shut behind him. He heard the snick of the locks, and at least for now, his daughter was safe.

"What the hell, Elliot?" he said brusquely. Putting Elliot on the defensive could possibly be a good move but might also be a bad one. "You're not taking Hayley."

"I don't want Hayley." Elliot laughed sharply, the abrupt noise dripping with madness. He appeared momentarily unfocused,and for an instant, Riley wondered if perhaps the man had left prison with one too many habits he couldn't break. "I just want money. You have money." Elliot displayed the absolute logic of a man on the edge. "Sarah won't go for taking Hayley, so I'm comin' direct to the bank so to speak."

"I don't have money here." Riley injected as much calm as he could into his voice while, inside, his heart was nearly beating out of his chest. Elliot was two paces away, not close enough for Riley to make an attempt to grab at the gun. Considering his glassy-eyed disorientation, Elliot remained lucid enough to hold the weapon with an absolute, solidly horizontal aim.