Chapter 14
Nick
The rope around Nick’s wrists was cutting off circulation, but he kept working at the knots anyway. George had positioned him perfectly—far enough from the others that he couldn’t coordinate an escape, and tied to a chair that made any movement awkward and noisy.
Gina sat across the room, back to back with Brooke, her face pale in the flickering light. Too far to reach. Too far for her to see that he’d never stopped trying to be the man she could trust.
Every protective instinct he had was screaming at him to get to her, to put himself between her and George, but he was trapped in a chair like a helpless spectator.
“You know what I find interesting?” George said, pacing near the windows. “How quickly people turn on each other when things get desperate. You five have been a tight little group, but look at you now. Nobody trusts anybody.”
“We trust each other,” Gina said, but Nick could hear the strain in her voice.
“Do you? Because from where I’m standing, it looks like you’ve all written each other off.
” George’s gaze flicked to Nick, then back to Gina.
“Finding out the truth about Kelsey’s got you doubting everyone and everything.
Especially you and the drifter over there.
I saw it plain as day. One minute you were all in, the next you were done.
Shame, really. A woman like you probably doesn’t let men get too close.
Always ready with an excuse to walk away before anything real can start. ”
Nick stared at him, the anger sharp and cold. “Leave Gina alone.”
“Ah, the mighty protector.” George’s smile was cruel. “Too bad you’re powerless here. Besides, Gina’s made it plain she doesn’t trust you and wants nothing to do with you. Can’t say I blame her. Who wants a man unable to keep her safe when it counts?”
“Stop talking,” Brooke said, her voice sharp with anger.
“Why? Because it’s true? Because your cousin is exactly what he appears to be—a guy with nothing to offer, who brings trouble wherever he goes?”
Nick tested the rope again, ignoring the pain as it bit deeper into his wrists. One way or another, he’d fix this. He’d get himself free and make sure they got out of this alive.
The storm tore at the building, wind shrieking through cracks and shaking the timbers. Something above him groaned under the pressure. The old structure was taking a beating.
“It’s getting rough out there,” Joe said, nodding toward the window Nick had tried to fix earlier. The boards rattled, and snow blew in through the cracks.
“Perfect weather for what needs to happen,” George replied. “Amazing how many people die in blizzards. Tragic, really.”
Kelsey was standing near the far wall, still holding the knife George had given her. She’d been quiet since finishing with the rope, staring at the floor like she was trying to disappear. But Nick noticed she hadn’t put the knife down.
“Kelsey,” George said. “Come here. I need you to check those knots, make sure our friends are properly secured.”
Kelsey looked up, her face pale. “They’re secure. I did what you asked.”
“I want to be sure. These people are resourceful. Can’t have anyone wiggling free at an inconvenient moment.”
Nick watched Kelsey’s face as she processed George’s order. Something shifted in her expression—a flicker of resolve, maybe even defiance.
“Come on,” George said impatiently. “Check the rope on the women first. They’re closest.”
Kelsey walked slowly toward Gina and Brooke, the knife still clutched in her hand. Nick held his breath, hoping she would do the right thing, but afraid to hope too hard.
“Everything tight?” George asked.
Kelsey knelt behind Gina and Brooke, ostensibly checking their bonds. But Nick noticed she positioned herself carefully, keeping her body between the knife and George’s line of sight.
“Looks good,” she said, her voice steadier than it had been in hours.
“Now check the men,” George ordered.
Kelsey rose slowly, moving toward Joe before stopping. She squared her shoulders and set her jaw. “Actually, I need to tell you something.”
“What?”
“I lied about the flash drive,” Kelsey said. “What I gave you isn’t everything. There are more files. Insurance files. I kept copies.”
George’s face darkened. “What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about the fact that I’m not as stupid as you think I am. Did you really believe I’d hand over my only leverage?”
“Where are the other files?” George demanded.
“Safe. And if anything happens to me, or to my friends, those files go straight to the FBI.”
George raised his gun and pointed it at Kelsey. “You’re bluffing.”
She flinched but quickly recovered, her voice still steady. “Am I? You want to bet your employers’ freedom on that?”
While George watched Kelsey, Nick watched Gina and Brooke. Kelsey had cut the rope, and Gina’s hands were free. Now Gina was working on Brooke’s rope.
“Even if you have copies, you’ll never use them,” George said, his voice rising. “You’re in too deep. You use those files, you destroy yourself too.”
“Maybe. But I’ll take them down with me.” She lifted her chin. “I’ll take everyone down.”
The wind outside reached a new level of intensity, making the whole building shudder. Something crashed against the exterior wall.
George stepped in to check the windows again.
Kelsey moved.
She lunged, the knife flashing, and slashed at George. He jerked back, but the blade caught his forearm. Blood welled up as he cursed and stumbled backward.
The knife flew from Kelsey’s grip as George backhanded her, sending her sprawling across the floor.
“The knife!” Gina shouted as the weapon skittered toward Joe.
George raised the gun toward Kelsey. Then came the sharp crack—wood, not a gunshot—and the window shuddered violently.
A board splintered inward, another followed, and snow and wind whipped into the room.
Nick’s vision blurred in the wind and stinging flakes, and for a moment, he couldn’t see a thing.
The temperature dropped sharply. Cold bit through him. George was shouting something, but the words were lost in the howling wind.
George staggered backward, trying to shield his face from the sudden assault while keeping the gun raised.
The wind roared so loudly Nick couldn’t think, and debris whipped through the air like missiles.
He used the chaos to finally work his hands free from the rope, the howling storm masking any sound.
Across the room, shapes shifted through the swirling snow, indistinct and fleeting. Kelsey was crawling toward where the knife had fallen, while Gina worked frantically at Brooke’s restraints with her freed hands.
“Gina!” Kelsey cried, sliding the knife across the wooden floor toward the bound women.
Gina grabbed it with her free hand and went to work on the ropes tying her to Brooke.
“Nobody moves!” George shouted, struggling to stay in control. He pressed his injured arm tight against his side while his other hand fought to keep the gun steady. Snow and debris tore at him, and every moment made it harder to keep his targets in sight.
“Run!” Nick shouted, bracing his feet against the floor and yanking hard. The old chair legs splintered and broke, and he crashed to the floor as the chair collapsed beneath him. He rolled away from the broken wood and scrambled to his feet, finally free.
Joe had managed to get loose while Gina and Brooke worked to untangle themselves from the last of their restraints. Wind and snow poured through the broken window, piling into drifts that claimed half the room.
“The door!” Brooke shouted, pointing toward the hallway. “We have to get out of here!”
George raised the gun, squinting through the blowing snow. “Nobody goes anywhere!” But the wind coming through the broken window was so strong he could barely keep his footing, and his injured arm was hampering his movements.
Nick grabbed one of the broken chair legs before running to Gina’s side, hoisting her up by the arm as she freed herself from the last rope. “Move! Everyone to the trucks!”
They stumbled out of the dining room and into the hallway. Kelsey reached the front door first, but the wind pushing against it made it impossible for her to open.
“I’ll help!” Brooke shouted above the din.
George yelled something from the dining room, but Nick couldn’t catch what it was in the mayhem.
“Go, go!” Brooke cried. “He’s coming.”
Joe appeared, bear spray canister in his hand.
Nick positioned himself between George and the others as footsteps pounded through the dining room. The broken chair leg felt solid in his grip—not much of a weapon, but better than nothing.
George appeared in the doorway, gun raised and steady now that he was away from the chaos of the broken window. Blood from his injured arm had soaked through his jacket sleeve, but his aim was clear.
“Drop it!” George shouted, pointing the weapon directly at Nick.
Nick didn’t hesitate. He swung the chair leg like a baseball bat, catching George’s gun hand before he could pull the trigger. The impact sent George stumbling backward into the dining room, the gun clattering across the hallway floor.
“Now!” Nick yelled to the others. “Get that door open!”
Brooke and Kelsey threw their combined weight against the front door. It burst open, letting in the full fury of the storm. Wind and snow blasted through the hallway as they stumbled outside into the blizzard.
The wind was so fierce he could barely stand upright. Snow whipped around them with blinding intensity, and the cold cut through his clothes like knives.
George was suddenly in the doorway behind them, no longer armed but desperate and furious. “You’re all dead!” he screamed over the howling wind. “You can’t get away from me!”
He lunged at Gina, seizing her by the arm and yanking her close. George twisted her slightly, keeping her off balance while planting his feet firmly in the snow, using her as a shield as he squared off against Nick.
Joe lifted the canister, hesitating. The wind whipped around them, and George had Gina pulled too close. If he sprayed now, she’d get hit too.
Gina drove the knife into George’s leg. He roared, his grip loosening just enough. Gina wrenched herself free and stumbled forward.
Joe didn’t hesitate. The stream of bear spray hit George square in the face. He clawed at his eyes, bellowing, staggering unsteadily as he moved.
Above them, one of the massive beetle-kill trees swayed dangerously, its dead trunk no match for the storm.
“Move!” Nick shouted and charged at Gina.
The tree came down like the hand of God, its enormous trunk crashing directly on top of George. Nick tackled Gina, rolling them both out of the way as branches exploded around them.
When the noise stopped, George was pinned beneath the massive trunk, unmoving.
Nick pulled Gina against him, both of them shaking from cold and adrenaline. She pressed her forehead to his shoulder, her breath coming in shuddering bursts.
He didn’t say a word as he tightened his hold. After everything, words felt unnecessary. The only thing that mattered was that she was still breathing.
“Is everyone okay?” Brooke called out.
“We’re alive,” Joe answered, his voice shaky but relieved.
Kelsey was staring at George’s body, tears streaming down her face. “It’s over,” she whispered. “It’s finally over.”
Looking down at Gina in his arms, Nick saw exhaustion and trauma in her eyes, but also relief. They were alive. Against impossible odds, they were alive.
The storm was still raging. They needed to get back inside, get warm, and figure out how to get down the mountain safely. But for now, holding Gina while the snow fell around them was all that mattered.
George was dead. They weren’t.
Everything else could wait.