Chapter 9
Archer
Despite my begging and pleading, Abby was determined to return to work the next day. I was proud of how she refused to give in to me, but at the same time, waking up at four in the morning was painful.
“I'll see you after work,” I said, pulling her bicycle out of the bed of the truck.
Someone had delivered it to her apartment while we'd been swimming, and even though I planned to pick her up, she insisted that we bring the bicycle to work.
I wasn't going to argue, but the moment we could afford it, we were going to get her a car.
“If you can't make it, that's okay,” she said, taking the bicycle from me. “I can get home as long as I’ve got this.”
“I know you can, but I'd rather you didn't have to,” I said. “The traffic around here is crazy.”
She chuckled. “That's true. Are you coming back for breakfast?”
“I'll try,” I said. “But I have a lot of things to get done before my shift at Imani’s club.”
She nodded and took the bicycle from me. “Then I'll see you at one.”
“Never soon enough,” I murmured. Leaning over the bike, we kissed, then she turned to walk it to where she locked it up.
I got into the truck, eager to get back to my motel and pack up all my belongings. I couldn't believe we were going to live together.
I was leaving the tiny parking lot behind the diner when I heard Abby scream.
Terrified, I slammed my foot down on the brake and jumped out of my truck.
It was faster to run than to try to turn the truck around.
I got to the back area only to see Abby's bike on the ground next to the pole she usually locked it to.
“Archer!”
I followed her frantic scream. I rounded the other side of the diner to see Abby being shoved into a dark car parked on the street. She was struggling and then the person manhandling her pulled back his arm and punched her in the face.
Stunned, she went limp, and the man finished cramming her into the car. I roared and charged at them. The man looked up, revealing Cliff's scared face.
“Archer's here,” he yelled, diving into the back seat of the car with Abby. “Go, Dad. Go!”
I got to the door as I heard the locks engage. I yanked at the handle anyway, then I beat on the glass as the car skidded into motion.
As dumb as it was, I ran after the car for a few strides before remembering I had a truck parked nearby with the engine running.
Turning on my heels, I sprinted back to my truck. There was almost no one in the downtown streets right now, so I found them quickly.
As sheriff, I'd taken courses on defensive driving, pursuit, and the pit maneuver.
Anything I could do to stop them would be risky, and I was terrified of hurting Abby if the car crashed.
My seal was enraged that these men thought they could abduct and abuse our mate, but his anger wasn't helping me focus.
“Quiet,” I snarled at him. “If you distract me, we might lose her.”
My seal went silent, but I could feel him ready to rip the head off the selkies who hurt Abby. When the time came, I'd let him.
The old truck struggled to keep up with the new, sleeker car. Thankfully, the lack of traffic and Frank's poor driving skills made it easy to keep them in sight.
It seemed Frank was getting rattled because he couldn't lose me.
He turned onto a road that took him onto Harbor Boulevard.
From here, he could get to the airport or several marinas.
Did he have a boat or a private plane waiting?
Frank was one of the wealthier members of the colony and could probably afford a single chartered flight.
It didn't matter if he tried to get to a boat or plane, I’d be on them the moment they left the car.
The road curved sharply to the left and caught Frank by surprise. Jerking to the side and overcorrecting, Frank lost control of the car. I watched in horror as the car crossed the median and hit the barrier between the road and the ocean.
I skidded to a stop. Frank’s car was running, but the engine was steaming. The radiator was busted, and I thought I smelled leaking oil as well.
The driver's door opened, and Frank staggered out, but I ignored him. My first priority was getting Abby to safety.
Cliff opened the door and fell out of the car, his head bleeding. I grabbed him by the back of his jacket and tossed him out of my way.
Abby was half laying across the seat. Her eyes were open, but she was clearly disoriented. When I reached in to grab her, she whimpered.
“It's me, sweetheart,” I said. “It's Archer. I’m here. You're safe.”
“Archer? Oh, god, they were there. Frank and Cliff. They were there.”
“I know,” I said. “Let me get you out of here.”
Once she was outside the car, her face was illuminated by a nearby streetlight. I could see the massive bruise forming on her cheek. The left side of her lip was already swelling, and blood trickled from her mouth.
The moment I had her tucked in my truck, I was going to beat both men senseless.
“I'm going to pick you up,” I said.
“No!” Abby said, then sucked in a breath and put her hand over her mouth with a little whimper.
“Okay, no picking you up,” I agreed. “But let me help you.”
She nodded and sniffed as we turned to find Frank holding a gun on us.
“Damn it, Archer, this wasn't part of the plan!”
“Put the gun down, Frank,” I demanded, hoping my former status as sheriff and Norris's son would make Frank obey me.
He didn't lower his arm, but he shifted it to aim at Abby. “It's this whore’s fault. You can't be blamed for lusting after her. Women use their bodies to try and make us do things.”
“She's my mate,” I growled, moving myself in front of Abby.
“That doesn't fucking matter,” Frank roared.
Shaking his head, he seemed to try to calm himself.
“Fated mates aren't important when the colony needs you.
Half the colony is still there, ready for you to take over in your father's place. You can keep us together. You can keep us strong. In exchange, you can have Abby.”
He'd kidnapped Abby to force me to lead the colony? That was the dumbest idea I'd ever heard. Still, maybe I could use this to my advantage.
“Give me the gun, Frank," I said, holding out my hand and stepping closer. “Then we can all drive home together.”
For a brief second, Frank looked relieved. “You're going to come home? I want everything to go back to normal. You can do that.”
“Sure, Frank,” I said, taking another step. I was almost within reach. I could feel Abby huddled against my back, staying close as I moved. “Abby and I will live in Dad's old house and run everything.”
Frank’s brows knotted. “The mayor's house was destroyed by the kraken. He threw John's propane truck into it.”
“That's fine,” I said. “I can live in my old house.”
“He's lying, Dad,” Cliff said, stumbling into view. He was holding a hand to his head, blood seeping out from under his palm. “Shoot him. He'll never be like Mayor Norris. Let's take Abby back. We can trade her to that other colony for a wife for me.”
“No, he said he'll lead,” Frank argued, turning his attention to Cliff. I took the opportunity and reached for the gun.
At the same time, Cliff lunged for the weapon. “Let me do it, Dad!”
We ended up in a three-way struggle for the gun. Amazingly enough, it didn't go off, but it did get dropped to the ground. I kicked it out of anyone's reach, then put the full force of my body into a punch to Frank's face.
He let out a pained grunt and fell back on his ass. I turned to face Cliff, only to find that he'd gone for the gun.
But my determined mate had done the same, and she got there first. Holding the gun with shaking hands, she pointed it at her brother.
“Back off!” she screamed.
Cliff scoffed. “Give me that.”
“No.” Her hands might be shaking, but her voice was strong. I went to Abby, moving slowly to keep from startling her. As far as I knew, she'd never handled a gun before, and I could see that the safety was off. I didn’t care if she shot Cliff, but I didn’t want her to hurt herself with a recoil.
A sudden searing pain in my back made me stumble and almost fall into her. I went down on one knee, my left arm going numb.
I’d been stabbed.
I looked over my shoulder to see Frank holding a bloody knife.
“Betrayer,” he hissed and raised the knife. A roar filled my ears, and Frank jerked. His eyes went wide and blood blossomed on his chest. He fell boneless to the ground, a puppet with his strings cut.
“Dad?” Cliff cried, staring down at his father. Then he swung his eyes to where Abby was still holding the gun up. “You shot him. Goddamn bitch, I should’ve smothered you after Mom died!”
Cliff charged Abby. I tried to get to my feet, but before I could stand, she swung her arms around and fired the gun again. I could tell she wasn’t aiming, but she still managed to hit Cliff. Blood poured from the right side of his neck. He gurgled as he dropped to his knees.
We watched as he bled out and died, lying almost parallel to his father.
Abby dropped the gun, then rushed to my side. “I did it,” she whispered, holding me tight. “I killed the nightmares. They can't hurt me ever again.”
“Never again,” I agreed, using my right arm to hold her. I wished my other arm worked so I could hold her better.
“I’m sorry they hurt you,” she said. She was blinking rapidly and shaking so badly that her teeth were chattering.
“It's nothing,” I said, even though it hurt like hell. Despite the pain, I could tell it wasn't a deadly wound. It was going to take some time to heal, but I'd be fine.
She pulled away far enough to meet my gaze. “I’m dreaming, right?”
“No sweetheart, this all real,” I said, looking over to where Cliff and Frank who were both staring up at the dark sky with sightless eyes.
Abby followed my gaze, then bit back a sob. “This is a big mess. I'm going to call Will, he'll know what to do.”
“If you'd stayed in bed, none of this would've happened,” I said, starting to feel a little woozy. I sat down, my legs suddenly unwilling to support me any longer. She gasped and dropped the dialing phone to the ground as she knelt next to me.
She wasn’t in much better shape. Her eyes didn’t look like they were focusing correctly, and one eye was almost swollen shut.
“We’re a mess,” I murmured. “No more getting out of bed ever again for either of us. Bad things happen when we get out of bed.”
Her jaw dropped, then she started laughing. It wasn’t even that funny, but I joined in. When Will answered her call, frantic to know where we were and what had happened, all he heard was our hysterical laughter.