Chapter 10

10

Gene had his pistol; he’d carried it with him since the day those bastards had tried to take his sisters fifteen years ago. He only had a handful of bullets. And where the men had Chantal now, he risked hitting her.

He knew how to handle himself with a gun. Charlie had shown him years ago. Showed him more than his own father had—which was saying something, as George Hiller Senior’s boys all knew how to handle a weapon better than most in this county.

He stayed right where he was until one of the guys came outside again. They’d dragged her off—right in front of him. Thank God they hadn’t seen Gene out there. Gene stayed low, behind a pile of scrap wood his own brother Grady had left there when he’d repaired the door on the old cabin a month ago, as the guy drove off.

Thank God.

That left just one inside.

Gene peered through the window, checking where the asshole was again.

The man had a gun, and he was saying something to Chantal. Looming over her. Taunting her. It was on the bastard’s face.

Gene would never forget her eyes. The fear on her beautiful face. There was no hope. Whatever the bastard was saying to her was terrifying her. Gene was going to get the bastard and rip him to shreds.

He just had to think.

Gene just wasn’t going to do anything stupid.

Even if it meant staying right where he was, until the right moment. He wasn’t about to leave Chantal alone with her abductor. If he got himself killed, that was exactly what would happen to her. If something happened to him, he couldn’t get Chantal out.

Unless one of his brothers happened up here, on the most remote corner of his family’s ranch. And he didn’t want one of them walking into a trap, either.

Gene had to think. Use the head God had given him.

He wouldn’t be any use to her dead.

He fought the image of her dead in his field for far too long. Just dumped there like that woman from before. No. That wasn’t going to happen to Chantal. He wasn’t going to let it.

Gene had six bullets.

If he had to, he was going to make them count.

He just wished he could tell her she wasn’t facing this alone now.

His breath caught when the bastard went to her, grabbed her. The blond guy yanked her from the floor and shook her. It took everything Gene had to stay right where he was.

The guy had a much bigger gun, and it was pointed right at her now. Gene held his breath and waited. While the bastard yanked her shirt up and pulled something from Chantal’s skin. And just tossed it aside. There were wires, it looked like. A pad of some sort. What in the hell was that?

And why did Chantal look even more terrified than she had before?