BooksBarbecue
Back The Runaway
Chapters (80)
  1. Cover
  2. TITLES BY NICK PETRIE
  3. Dedication
  4. Epigraph
  5. 1
  6. 2
  7. 3
  8. 4
  9. 5
  10. 6
  11. 7
  12. 8
  13. 9
  14. 10
  15. 11
  16. 12
  17. 13
  18. 14
  19. 15
  20. 16
  21. 17
  22. 18
  23. 19
  24. 20
  25. 21
  26. 22
  27. 23
  28. 24
  29. 25
  30. 26
  31. 27
  32. 28
  33. 29
  34. 30
  35. 31
  36. 32
  37. 33
  38. 34
  39. 35
  40. 36
  41. 37
  42. 38
  43. 39
  44. 40
  45. 41
  46. 42
  47. 43
  48. 44
  49. 45
  50. 46
  51. 47
  52. 48
  53. 49
  54. 50
  55. 51
  56. 52
  57. 53
  58. 54
  59. 55
  60. 56
  61. 57
  62. 58
  63. 59
  64. 60
  65. 61
  66. 62
  67. 63
  68. 64
  69. 65
  70. 66
  71. 67
  72. 68
  73. 69
  74. 70
  75. 71
  76. 72
  77. 73
  78. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  79. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  80. What’s next onyour reading list?

“Marine, you can barely walk. I’m calling Campbell.”

“Please don’t,” Peter said. “Campbell doesn’t have his own door-kickers, not enough for something like this. So he’ll call the city or the county or both, and they’ll send their tactical squad, just itching to use all their toys and training. Protecting Helene won’t be their first priority.” He glanced over his shoulder and changed lanes, sliding effortlessly through the gaps in traffic. “And if Roy sees them coming? What do you think he’ll do to Helene? She’s the only witness against him.”

“I don’t care about Helene,” June said. “Not as much as I care about you, anyway. If we’ve actually found Roy, let the police deal with him.”

Peter didn’t answer. She closed her eyes. She could feel the car rocketing forward, faster than it was meant to go. The tires thrummed on the sun-faded asphalt. More than anything, she wanted Peter to be wrong. But he wasn’t.

She opened her eyes and looked at the tall, rawboned man beside her, intent on the road and the traffic and the car he was pushing hard. She knew that hungry look.

“That’s not all of it.” She raised her voice over the engine noise. “It’s also about you and Roy. He tried to kill you.”

“True,” Peter admitted. “But it’s more than that. You know what he’s done, but you haven’t met him. I don’t know how to explain it. You know I’m not big on organized religion. But meeting Roy in person kinda made me believe that evil actually exists.”

She had no idea how to answer that. But she knew who Peter was the day they met. Right now, she didn’t like it. But this was the bargain they had made with each other. This was the life he needed, to put himself at risk to help people who couldn’t help themselves, to stop bad things from getting worse. It was part of what had put him back together, after his war. It kept him whole, now.

The worst thing was that she wanted to go with him. She’d killed a man once, to protect herself. She still dreamed about it. They weren’t good dreams. But she would do it again in a heartbeat if she had to. To protect Peter. To bring him home in one piece.

So she reached into her bag and pulled out her pistol. Peter took her hand and together they flew toward the merge onto I-90, maybe ten minutes out with the speedometer past a hundred and ten.

61

PETER

By the time they got to Brandon, the adrenaline was burning in Peter’s veins like gasoline. It lubricated his muscles and damped down the pain from the beating he’d taken leaping from the car, although the bone-deep ache was still there, beneath the urgency.