Page 88 of Sheltered

I swallowed hard, the pain from the boulder lodged in my throat unbearable.

“Please,” I begged, my voice strained.

I hated that I was begging this woman for anything, but I didn’t know what else to do. Maybe, just maybe, if I could keep her talking long enough, I’d be able to buy myself enough time.

I knew Blaze.

There wasn’t a chance he wouldn’t be heading here immediately if he believed I was in trouble. And considering the agreement we’d work out regarding me answering if he called, I prayed he knew I needed his help.

Laura shot me a questioning look. “What are you begging me for?”

“I don’t… I… please don’t shoot me.”

“This isn’t personal,” she declared.

I wondered if she believed that was supposed to make me feel better. Considering I was the one with the gun pointed at me, I couldn’t take this any other way than personally.

“You’re the one responsible for what’s been happening all over Steel Ridge, aren’t you? Why are you doing this?” I asked her.

Laura’s chilling laughter filled the air. “Oh, it’s not been happening everywhere. Only where it was necessary. Only where I needed it to happen, so they could understand.”

I wasn’t entirely convinced at this point that I’d make it out of this alive, but on the off chance that I did, I figured it wouldn’t hurt to get all the information I could, so I could pass it along to Blaze and his team.

“So, they were right then? This was about the guys at Harper Security,” I stated.

She nodded. “Absolutely.”

“What did they do? And if you’re so upset with them, why are you taking it out on innocent people like me and the others you’ve terrorized?” I pressed.

The corners of Laura’s mouth tipped up in a grin as a look of pride washed over her face. It was obvious she didn’t see a single thing wrong with what she was doing. If I had to guess, I’d say she was enjoying it.

“Because they need to understand what it feels like,” she explained.

My brows knit together. Maybe if I was sympathetic to whatever injustice she felt she suffered, perhaps it would give me enough time. Maybe it would give Blaze the time he needed to get here. “I’m not going to pretend you haven’t been watching me for some period of time to know I’m dating someone from Harper Security,” I started. “But I imagine you know that’s only been recent. What did they do to hurt you?”

A look of despair washed over her, tears filling her eyes. Her hand shook as she continued to point her gun at me. My phone rang a third time, and that seemed to set her off. “Out from behind the counter,” she ordered, stepping back a bit.

I did as she demanded and tried to remain focused. My voice trembled as I pushed for answers. “Why are you doing this, Laura?”

“I want them all to know how it feels to lose someone they love,” she croaked. “While they’re all living in fear right now, it’ll be your guy who learns what it’s like first. He’s going to feel that pit of despair that I’ve been living in.”

“What did they do? Who did they take from you?” I questioned her, feeling less and less confident about my chances of survival. She was becoming unraveled.

“My father.”

“They killed him?”

“He’s in prison because they stuck their noses into something they didn’t need to,” she explained.

I wanted to tell her that if her father was in prison because of something they’d investigated, then it was likely the man deserved to be there. But I didn’t think adding insult to injury was a wise move at this juncture. “I’m so sorry, Laura. Was he wrongfully imprisoned? Who is he?”

Laura’s throat moved with her deep swallow. “Mikael Atlantico. It was just over three years ago when they did what they did. All because of that stupid woman at the doughnut shop and the guy she wound up marrying. My dad was merely providing a life for his family, and they took it all away. We were left with nothing. And now, I’m back for revenge.”

This had to be about something that happened at The Early Bird. While I never wanted to see any harm come to Tarryn or anyone else as a result of this situation, I didn’t understand how this woman could stand here, wanting to punish everyone else for something that they hadn’t been a part of.

Tears had filled her eyes. Her hands were trembling, and she couldn’t seem to stand still, continuing to shift back and forth on her feet. God, it felt like she was teetering on the edge of reason.

“Laura, please,” I begged again, fully aware I didn’t have much time left. “I wasn’t even around when any of this happened.”