Promise Cove (A Pelican Pointe Novel Book 1) (251 page)

Em
i
l
e
brough
t
he
r
k
n
e
e
u
p
,
conne
cti
n
g
t
o
h
is
c
r
o
t
c
h
. The
ins
t
ant
she
made
con
t
ac
t
,
the
second
he
doubled
over
in
a
go
n
y
,
she
cl
o
sed
her
fist
and
w
ith
an
upper
c
ut
t
o
his
throa
t
, punched
him
harder
than
sh
e
’
d
e
ver
hit
a
n
ythi
n
g
before
in her
lif
e
.

The
man
s
ta
g
gered
bac
k
w
ard.

The
second
she
heard
the
me
t
al
of
the
k
nife
c
l
a
n
g
t
o
the con
c
re
t
e,
she
reached
out
and
shoved
him
w
ith
e
ve
r
ythi
n
g she
had
the
r
e
st
of
the
w
a
y
do
w
n.

S
he
g
r
a
bbed
for
the
han
d
le
on
the
doo
r
.
T
h
e
door
came back
hard,
hitti
n
g
him
in
the
side
of
his
head.
H
e
c
r
umpled
t
o
the
p
a
vement.

Emile
did
n
’t
w
ait
for
him
t
o
l
and.
S
he
sh
o
t
out
of
the s
t
ai
r
we
l
l
r
unni
n
g
in
three
-
and
-
a
-
half
inch
J
im
m
y
C
hoos
unt
i
l her
feet
pr
o
t
e
s
t
ed
and
her
lu
n
gs
bu
r
ned.
A
l
l
she
could
think
a
b
ou
t
w
as
get
t
i
n
g
a
w
a
y
f
ro
m
th
e
s
t
ai
r
we
l
l.

And
the
man
sent
t
o
k
il
l
he
r
.

N
o
w
,
as
she
sat
in
s
ide
he
r
li
t
tle
BMW
323,
st
oppe
d
at
th
e
light
o
n
L
a
ke
S
h
ore
D
r
ive
and
th
e
ramp
to
th
e
ex
pr
e
s
sw
a
y
,
she
did
he
r
b
e
st
to
st
o
p
sha
k
ing
and
catch
he
r
breath,
t
r
ied
to
calm
do
w
n.

A
b
s
entl
y
,
sh
e
clu
t
che
d
a
t
he
r
ta
t
t
ere
d
shi
r
t
w
it
h
no but
tons
.
S
he
shuddered
.
E
ve
n
thoug
h
i
t
w
as
mid-
Ma
y
an
d
a
w
a
r
m
mug
g
y
nigh
t
,
sh
e
fel
t
l
i
k
e
sh
e
’
d
l
anded
on
an
iceberg.
S
he
t
u
r
n
e
d
th
e
ca
r
hea
t
e
r
u
p
t
o
hig
h
.

S
h
e
’
d
fough
t
.
God
help
he
r
,
sh
e
’
d
g
o
t
t
en
a
w
a
y
.

B
ut
for
how
lo
n
g?
T
h
e
man
sent
t
o
k
il
l
he
r
,
sent
t
o
deliver
th
e
m
ess
a
ge
,
ha
d
g
o
t
t
e
n
throug
h
.
B
i
g
ti
m
e
.
H
o
w
lo
n
g
ha
d
he
been
fo
l
lo
w
i
n
g
her
through
the
par
k
i
n
g
g
ar
a
ge?
W
h
y
had
n
’t she
n
o
ticed
him
sooner?

Beca
u
se
sh
e
’
d
been
t
oo
deep
in
thought
a
bout
the
s
t
u
p
id in
t
e
r
v
iew
sh
e
’
d
blo
w
n
n
o
t
twen
t
y
minu
t
es
earlie
r
.
I
t
w
as
t
oo
l
at
e
no
w
,
she
realized.
N
o
sense
bea
t
i
n
g
he
r
self
u
p
.
B
ut
f
rom now
on,
she
p
l
anned
t
o
be
more
care
f
ul,
a
l
o
t
more
care
f
ul.

W
hen
the
light
t
u
r
ned
g
reen,
she
breathed
out
a
r
a
gged breath
and
pr
e
ssed
do
w
n
on
the
accele
r
a
t
o
r
,
s
c
reechi
n
g on
t
o
the 55 ram
p
,
g
aini
n
g some se
r
io
u
s speed.
S
he spared a
ne
r
vo
u
s
g
l
ance
in
the
rear
v
iew
mirro
r
.
I
t
did
n
’t
look
as though
a
n
y
one
had
fo
l
lowed
he
r
,
at
leas
t
,
n
o
t
y
e
t
.
S
ince
she could
n
’t
be
sure,
as
soon
as
she
could,
she
merged
in
t
o
the s
t
eady
stream
of
traffic,
cha
n
gi
n
g
l
an
e
s
unt
i
l
sh
e
’
d
reached the
fa
r
thest
on
e
. And
simply
drove
and
drove
and
drov
e
.