Chapter 35
Max leaned forward in his seat as Sheriff Sutherland turned onto the narrow road.
The GPS had gone quiet a few minutes ago, but Sheriff Sutherland didn’t slow. If anything, he pushed harder.
Max scanned the area ahead of them, every muscle in his body tight. He and Sheriff Sutherland had talked through the possibility that this could be a trap, that Kenny might be using Lyndee to draw them in. They’d need to be on guard, just in case.
Sheriff Sutherland turned off the road and onto a smaller lane leading to the cabin.
He slowed near the end, and a small wooden structure came into view.
It looked like your typical cabin that people might rent for a weekend getaway or hunting trip. There didn’t appear to be anything special about it.
No cars were out front or unusual tracks in the snow.
Nothing about the area suggested this was a setup.
Sheriff Sutherland braked hard, and both of them were out of the vehicle in mere seconds.
As they hurried to the door, it opened.
Lyndee stood there, wrapped in a dirty beige blanket that swallowed her frame. Her face was pale and streaked with tears.
Max exhaled hard, something in his chest loosening. “You’re okay.”
She nodded, though her hands trembled as she clutched the blanket tighter around herself. “I—I think so.”
Sheriff Sutherland stepped forward, his voice steady but firm. “Anyone else here?”
She shook her head. “No.”
Sheriff Sutherland gave a short nod and skirted past her to search the cabin.
“You’re safe now.” Max remained beside her. “We’ve got you.”
Her composure cracked, and a quiet sob slipped out. “I didn’t know if I’d—”
“You made it out.” He kept his tone soft. “That’s what matters.”
Sheriff Sutherland returned a moment later. “Clear.”
Max nodded before looking back at Lyndee. “Where is Kenny?”
“I don’t know.” Her voice wavered, but she forced the words out. “We were at a different cabin, and I heard him leave. I was tied up, but I managed to get the ropes around my wrists free. Then I ran and ran and ran until I found this place.”
“And you don’t know where he was headed?” Sheriff Sutherland asked.
“No. I don’t. He left . . . with someone.”
Max’s brow tightened. “Someone?”
“Whoever it was, I didn’t see them.” She shook her head again. “I couldn’t. I was in the back room. I just heard Kenny talking to someone.”
Sheriff Sutherland stepped closer. “You didn’t see this person at all?”
“No, I could only hear things. Whoever he was talking to was pretty quiet. But he was definitely talking to someone. Then I heard the door open, an engine start. Then nothing.”
Max exchanged a quick look with Sheriff Sutherland before turning back to her.
“Did Kenny say anything before he left?” Sheriff Sutherland asked. “Anything that stood out?”
Lyndee hesitated, her brow furrowing as she searched her memory. “He was . . . off. He sounded agitated or something.”
Max’s gaze sharpened. “What do you mean?”
“I don’t know. He didn’t explain anything. But it felt like . . .” She trailed off, then shook her head. “Like he didn’t want to be working with whoever showed up.”
Max stilled as he considered her word choice. “Working with them?”
“He never said it like that,” she admitted. “It was just like . . . like he didn’t have a choice.”
Sheriff Sutherland’s expression hardened as he pulled out his phone. “We need Kenny’s cell phone unlocked. We need to read his messages and figure out who the accomplice is.”
Max nodded, his thoughts already racing ahead.
If Kenny wasn’t acting alone, that changed everything.
Hadley couldn’t stop staring at her computer screen. The words there refused to settle into anything that made sense.
The message couldn’t be true.
Or could it?
Her stomach twisted, not with nausea now—but with something even more painful.
Max.
The thought came unbidden, and this time she couldn’t push it aside as easily.
He’d hesitated when she asked about his past. She’d noticed that. She’d chosen not to press him for more details. She’d figured he’d tell her when he was ready.
She swallowed the lump in her throat and reached for the keyboard. If this was some kind of lie, she could prove it. If it wasn’t . . .
She didn’t let herself finish the thought.
She typed Max’s name into the search bar and hit Enter.
Results populated the screen almost instantly.
A local article. A short mention in a public record.
Enough to confirm what she hadn’t wanted to believe.
Max had been arrested.
Convicted.
Sentenced.
Her chest tightened as she read, the words blurring before she forced herself to focus.
Assault. The details were sparse, but the conclusion wasn’t.
Max had been to prison for hurting someone. She’d tried to live her life above reproach. To keep her reputation clean. And now she was dating a violent ex-con.
She didn’t know what to think of that.
Hadley sat back, her mind racing to catch up.
A strange mix of emotions tangled together inside her—shock, confusion, something close to betrayal. Not because of what Max had done—she didn’t even know the full story—but because he hadn’t told her.
Yes, she’d known he had something to tell her. But she’d assumed it was something about a past relationship or something.
Not prison.
But did this change her feelings? Did this change her wanting to be with him?
She pressed her lips together, her thoughts shifting.
Going to prison didn’t automatically make someone dangerous or bad. People made mistakes and did the time to pay for them.
Yet dating someone with that kind of past wasn’t something she’d ever imagined for herself. It didn’t fit the clean and wholesome life she’d always lived. The choices she’d always made.
Of course, neither did divorce. That hadn’t been on her playlist. But not everything in her life was in her control.
Whether or not to date an ex-convict was her decision, however.
Her stomach turned again, and she pushed back from the desk, suddenly unable to sit any longer.
She needed to talk to Max. She stared at her phone, unsure what to do.
Then she shot off a text.
We need to talk. About your past. Call me when you can.
Instead of waiting for him to respond, she decided she needed some air—or something.
Juno.
She should check on the dog and her puppies to make sure everything was still going well, she realized. Maybe Naomi would be there, and the two of them could talk.
Hadley grabbed her coat and slipped it on, her movements quicker now. She needed to do something—anything—other than sit there and think.