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Back This Side of Night Save as PDF
Chapters (110)
  1. Cover
  2. ALSO BY J. TODD SCOTT
  3. Dedication
  4. Epigraph
  5. PROLOGUE
  6. I
  7. II
  8. PART ONE
  9. ONE
  10. TWO
  11. THREE
  12. FOUR
  13. FIVE
  14. SIX
  15. SEVEN
  16. EIGHT
  17. NINE
  18. TEN
  19. ELEVEN
  20. TWELVE
  21. PART TWO
  22. THIRTEEN
  23. FOURTEEN
  24. FIFTEEN
  25. SIXTEEN
  26. SEVENTEEN
  27. EIGHTEEN
  28. NINETEEN
  29. TWENTY
  30. TWENTY-ONE
  31. TWENTY-TWO
  32. TWENTY-THREE
  33. TWENTY-FOUR
  34. TWENTY-FIVE
  35. TWENTY-SIX
  36. TWENTY-SEVEN
  37. TWENTY-EIGHT
  38. TWENTY-NINE
  39. THIRTY
  40. THIRTY-ONE
  41. THIRTY-TWO
  42. THIRTY-THREE
  43. THIRTY-FOUR
  44. THIRTY-FIVE
  45. THIRTY-SIX
  46. THIRTY-SEVEN
  47. THIRTY-EIGHT
  48. THIRTY-NINE
  49. PART THREE
  50. FORTY
  51. FORTY-ONE
  52. FORTY-TWO
  53. FORTY-THREE
  54. FORTY-FOUR
  55. FORTY-FIVE
  56. FORTY-SIX
  57. FORTY-SEVEN
  58. FORTY-EIGHT
  59. FORTY-NINE
  60. FIFTY
  61. FIFTY-ONE
  62. FIFTY-TWO
  63. FIFTY-THREE
  64. FIFTY-FOUR
  65. FIFTY-FIVE
  66. FIFTY-SIX
  67. FIFTY-SEVEN
  68. FIFTY-EIGHT
  69. FIFTY-NINE
  70. SIXTY
  71. SIXTY-ONE
  72. PART FOUR
  73. SIXTY-TWO
  74. SIXTY-THREE
  75. SIXTY-FOUR
  76. SIXTY-FIVE
  77. SIXTY-SIX
  78. SIXTY-SEVEN
  79. SIXTY-EIGHT
  80. SIXTY-NINE
  81. SEVENTY
  82. SEVENTY-ONE
  83. SEVENTY-TWO
  84. SEVENTY-THREE
  85. SEVENTY-FOUR
  86. SEVENTY-FIVE
  87. SEVENTY-SIX
  88. SEVENTY-SEVEN
  89. SEVENTY-EIGHT
  90. SEVENTY-NINE
  91. EIGHTY
  92. EIGHTY-ONE
  93. EIGHTY-TWO
  94. EIGHTY-THREE
  95. EIGHTY-FOUR
  96. EPILOGUE
  97. I
  98. II
  99. III
  100. IV
  101. V
  102. VI
  103. VII
  104. AUTHOR’S NOTE
  105. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  106. Excerpt from LOST RIVER
  107. LITTLE PARIS
  108. DILLON
  109. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  110. What’s next onyour reading list?

It was a flash of hot, white light, which had left the sheriff and an older Mexican male down, and America, too, with thick smoke drifting above them, and the scrub still smoldering, as two men abandoned the van, wildly firing long guns. One of them toppled over quick, but the other was still pouring it on, changing magazines with frightening speed. A woman was also running back in Marco’s direction, appearing like a ghost out of the hazy smoke, weaving back and forth.

He wasn’t sure, but it looked like her mouth was taped shut, and her hands were tied behind her back.

Before she got very far, though, she stumbled and fell, eyes wide, and Marco didn’t know if she’d simply tripped or a stray bullet had caught her.

She probably never even saw him, just as wide-eyed, sitting in Denbrow’s old truck.

Now he caught a glimpse of Danny also on foot, running low and away from his Bronco, which was throwing sparks from a steady rain of bullets bouncing off its hood and camper shell. Danny was shooting into the side panels of the van, trying to get to the cover of the sheriff’s truck parked a few yards away, even as a third armed man was slipping out of the back.

A man neither Danny nor anyone closer to the house could see.

Only Marco could, and if he didn’t do something about him, he’d have a clean shot at Danny. He’d also be able to circle around on America and the sheriff.

It was a matter of seconds.

Marco Lucero had never actually drawn his gun on duty, and he’d never aimed it at another human being. Sitting in his lap, it weighed a thousand pounds. He wanted to turn around and drive back the way he came. For the second time that day, he wanted to be at Earlys sipping a Coke and chatting up Vianey Ruiz, watching her tattoos live and breathe under the Christmas lights.

He’d had his chance.

Instead, Marco flipped on the headlights of Denbrow’s piece-of-shit truck, pinning that third man in a circle of white light—as hot and bright as the earlier explosion—and then rolled out of the driver’s-side door with his gun in his hand.

He hoped he’d remembered to flip the safety off.

He was surprised at how suddenly light it was, as he pulled the trigger again and again.

SEVENTY-SEVEN

America didn’t feel the bullet hit her at first.