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The jerk.

“How can I help?”

“You need to heal,” I counter, then come around to clear off the tables.

“And on that note, I’m out. See you Monday night,” Ryker says with a wave. “Goodnight, Sadie. Don’t let him give you too much trouble.”

“I never do,” she replies with a wave.

Ryker leaves the bar, flipping the lock before he closes the door behind him.

Meanwhile, Sadie ignores me and starts clearing tables anyway. “How did tonight go?” she asks.

“Like every other night,” I reply.

“Good.” She yawns again. The bruising that had been marring her face has healed, leaving behind smooth, unmarred skin. Her eyes are brighter, too, as though joy has found her once more, despite the police not having any answers as to who her captor was or where she was being held. She tried to give them directions, but since it was dark and she was sleep-deprived and terrified, they didn’t have a whole lot to go off of.

Why does she have to be so…her?

Bit by bit, her personality has shifted from the terrified woman I found a week ago to the bubbly nanny I imagine she was before being captured.

Is it because she is truly holding onto faith?

Or is there something else to it?

As I come around the bar, I lift the few bills the stranger had tossed down, only to find a hard, white piece of plastic beneath them. Great. Guy forgot his driver’s⁠—

I flip the license over and drop the tray I’m carrying onto the counter as my gaze lands on Sadie’s photo. She’s smiling out from the tiny square on the left-hand side of the driver’s license, looking absolutely radiant.

He was here.

I sprint toward the door, keeping the license in my hand as I go. Pulse hammering, I rip the door open.

“Maverick, what’s wrong?” Sadie asks as she rushes after me.

“Stay inside,” I snap, then flip the lock and slam the door behind me.

The parking lot is dark, but there’s a black truck I don’t recognize sitting in the back corner. No license plate, no lights, though I can hear the truck’s engine.

Come on then, come and get me. I shove the license into my pocket, then pull out my cell phone. But just as I’m about to dial 9-1-1, the truck accelerates. Tires screech, and the stench of burning rubber fills the air.

“Maverick!” Sadie screams and runs toward me.

“Get back in—” I trail off as the tires scream in protest a second time, right before the truck veers off course. A deep, hollow thud fills the air as the truck collides with the solid base of the pole. It waves slightly, then steadies.

Heart hammering, I sprint forward, but he throws it in reverse, tires screeching once more as he slams his foot on the accelerator. Before I can get close enough to see who is behind the wheel, the truck speeds out of the parking lot, disappearing from view.

I whirl on Sadie, fury igniting in my veins at the fact that I missed him. He was right there. This monster who terrorized this beautiful woman, and I let him get away.

“Why did you come out? I told you to stay inside!” Adrenaline surges through my system, my body having flipped on my fight switch the moment I saw her picture.

I tap Ryker’s contact and press it to my ear.

“What’s up?”

“I need you and Captain Leopold at my place right away. I don’t have his direct number, and I don’t want some random deputy showing up. Someone just tried to run me down with their truck.”

“On it.” He doesn’t ask questions, doesn’t press me for more information, just ends the call. I shove my phone into my pocket as I try to rein in my anger. Especially since Sadie looks absolutely terrified as she stands beneath the orange glow of the light outside my bar. Her entire body trembles as she stares wide-eyed at me, arms wrapped around her torso.