Shit. She wrung her hands as she gazed out over the parking lot, which was only half-full. She could see the motel manager moving around in the office, most likely setting out the breakfast included with the room. For other people, this was the start of a day just like any other. But it wasn’t for her. As long as Ink and Lloyd were on the loose, there was too much at stake for anything to feel normal.
With a sigh, she let herself back into the motel room. She was waiting for something. She couldn’t say what. Some word from Virgil or Rex. News that the police had found Ink, or, better yet, that he or his partner was dead, thanks to Myles hitting one of them when he fired. Either would be good news.
She didn’t want to consider the bad news that could come. She just knew that the dawn felt heavy and ominous even though there wasn’t a cloud in sight.
Was it her state of mind? Or some kind of premonition?
Returning to her vigil at the window, she spent the next several minutes staring out at the town, as much of it as she could see from this vantage point. Where could Ink and Lloyd have gone? Were they running or hiding? And why couldn’t the police find them and put an end to her misery?
Would it put an end to her misery if the two of them went back to prison? Or would The Crew send someone else in Ink and Lloyd’s place?
Knowing they could easily do that made her attempt to stay and fight for the life she’d established here feel hopeless. She’d been crazy to think she could escape the past. She needed to leave, to get on the next plane to New York and never look back—
“Hey.”
Startled by the sound of Myles’s voice, she pivoted toward him. “What are you doing awake?” she asked. “Last I heard from you, you were pretty drugged. And that was only two hours ago.”
“At least I slept. Doesn’t look like you’ve been so lucky.”
“I’m too anxious,” she admitted. “I can’t get hold of Virgil or Rex or Peyton. It feels as if something terrible is happening, as if… I don’t know. I can’t put my finger on it, but it frightens me. And here I am, unable to do anything about it.”
Eyes dark and shiny and unfathomable, he watched her for several seconds, then pulled back the blankets. “Come here.”
She shook her head. With two beds in the room, they didn’t have to lie down together. She wasn’t even sure she wanted to be that close. Part of her did. Part of her wanted nothing more. The other part felt too guilty. Without question, she’d stayed in Pineview for the life she’d created and all the promise it afforded. She’d put a lot into this town and gotten a lot out of it. But it was her handsome neighbor that distinguished this place from every other. She could buy another house, find a new town, a school Jake and Mia enjoyed, a talented dance instructor for Mia’s ballet. She could continue her business from anywhere. And she could maintain her relationships with Claire and Nana Vera from a distance. She just couldn’t maintain a relationship with the sheriff, not if she left. She’d known that from the beginning.
Had she done what she’d sworn never to do? Had she put her romantic interests above the welfare of her children, the way her mother had always done?
She’d thought she was fighting for all of them, for what staying here could mean to them as a family. Jake wanted a father so badly. She knew how thrilled he’d be to have Myles permanently in his life. But now she feared that she’d hoped for too much and reached too far.
She should’ve packed up and left town with the kids immediately. No one could beat The Crew. They were too determined, too vicious.
“I wish I could offer you some reassurance,” he said. “I wish I could say it’ll all work out. But I can’t guess what’s going to happen. I only know that as far as I’m concerned you’re where you should be.”
“And how do you know that?” she asked. “I’m here because of you. You know that, too, right? I—I’ve had a thing for you for a long time. And now…”
“Now you’re wondering if you’ve made a mistake.”
She rubbed her face. “I’m pretty sure I have. I appreciate everything you’ve done. But…I’ve got to go.”
His attention suddenly far more acute, he pushed himself into a sitting position. “Where?”
“To New York State to get my kids. Then…Salt Lake. Cheyenne. Denver. Anywhere but here. I have to keep Jake and Mia safe. I’m all they’ve got.”
“Don’t go.”
Tears caught in her lashes before spilling down her cheeks. “I have no choice.” She started for the door, but when he got out of bed and came limping toward her, she couldn’t walk away.
“Rex wouldn’t let anything happen to Jake and Mia,” he said. “Or you wouldn’t have allowed him to take them. And even if you relocate, there’s no guarantee The Crew won’t find you. They could show up in Salt Lake or Cheyenne or wherever just as easily as here.”
“That’s the excuse I’ve been using, but I should’ve packed up and gotten on the first plane out of Montana. I shouldn’t have sent them away or put you in danger. I’m sorry.”
“Vivian, you didn’t put me in danger. Ink and his buddy did.” He placed one hand on the door to keep her from opening it. “I can’t promise you’ll be safe here. I can promise I’ll do all I can to protect you.”
She wanted to hear that, wanted to believe it. But he was standing in front of her with two bullet wounds, and Ink and Lloyd were still at large. What if it had gone the other way? Just like it did with the U.S. marshal? Her mother was dead. Pat, too. If things didn’t change, she wouldn’t even be able to attend his funeral next week. “But don’t you see? Even if you catch them, it might not be over. The Crew could send more and more—”
“Then we’ll take them on, too. You don’t give in to a gang. That only builds their power.”
“But you have Marley to worry about. Why would you be willing to remain involved in this?”
He was the sheriff. He could’ve said it was his job. But he didn’t. His voice deepened as he held her gaze. “For the same reason you risked staying.”
He was doing it for her, for what could happen between them. “But it’s because of me that you’ve already been shot.”
Hobbling a bit closer, he took her chin, tilting it toward him. “It brought you out in your underwear, didn’t it?”