She took a step closer.
“I am doing the best possible thing for his memory—making sure someone as reckless as you doesn’t run around anymore. Maybe after you, I’ll make sure Damon and the other members of your team learn an important lesson too.”
Jesus, she really was crazy, and even worse, serious.
“I’ve got your attention now, don’t I, Phoenix? I can see you measuring the different options in your head. Can you get the gun from me before I kill you with it?”
“Amber…”
In the tree line just over Amber’s shoulder, a sound rang out from the woods. To anybody else it would’ve sounded like some sort of wild bird.
More importantly, to Amber it sounded like some sort of wild bird.
To Riley, it sounded like one of the Linear Tactical signals. He’d been in these very woods enough with these guys to recognize the call.
He had no idea who it was or how they’d known what was happening, but help was here. He just needed to buy them as much time as possible.
He shrugged, dropping his arms. “You can’t blame me for trying to come up with some sort of self-rescue plan.”
She tilted her head and gave him a smirk. “I would expect nothing less from the great Phoenix. Too bad you couldn’t put that sort of effort into helping my brother.”
“I’m not going to jump, Amber.” Riley shook his head, keeping her attention on him. “On sheer principle, I’m not going to give you the pleasure of swan diving off of this ledge.”
“Oh, you’re going off of the ledge. I can shoot you and drag you off, or you can jump and possibly survive.”
Wyatt stepped out of the trees about ten yards behind Amber, his weapon trained on the back of her head. He tilted his head and shrugged his shoulders at Riley.
Riley understood. Wyatt could take Amber out and end this right now if Riley wanted him to.
Riley kept his gaze trained on Amber but shook his head slightly.
He was taking a risk. He knew it, but if there was any way to resolve the situation without body bags, Riley wanted to try it. He owed Felix that much.
“How about if I make you a deal, Amber?” Riley actually took a step closer to the ledge. She did what he’d hoped she would do: turned more fully toward the ravine, leaving her back more exposed to the woods. “I’ll jump. Like you said, there’s at least a possibility I’ll survive. But if I do, you let this die with me. You don’t hurt Damon, you don’t go after Girl Riley. I was the one responsible for that skiing stunt, and I should’ve made absolutely certain everyone was qualified to be up there. So you let it end with me.”
She lowered the gun to her side as Riley deliberately took another step toward the ledge. Over her shoulder, Zac stepped out of the woods too.
Riley turned back toward the ledge. The best thing he could do now was keep Amber’s attention focused on him and believing that he was about to jump.
He was going to have to trust the Linear Tactical guys to do what they did best: save people’s lives.
This time it was his.
He held his hands out and open as he took another step closer.
“Promise me you’ll get help, Amber. Watching me dive off this ledge isn’t going to bring Felix back.”
“It’ll certainly be a start.”
“I hope so. And I hope you’ll keep your word that nobody else gets hurt.”
She shooed the gun toward him. “Quit stalling.”
“On three. One—”
The guys did not wait for three.
One had barely gotten out of his mouth before he heard a thud and moan behind him.
Riley spun, ducking, but he needn’t have bothered. Zac already had Amber pinned face down on the ground. Wyatt still had his weapon trained on her as he picked up the gun Amber had dropped.
Riley threw up his hands. “What the hell, you guys? You were supposed to move on three. That was when I was going to duck and dive to the side.”
Wyatt rolled his eyes. “Everybody knows you don’t go on three. I would’ve chosen two, but we all know Zac here goes off a little early from time to time. Or so I hear from a certain pretty doctor.”
Zac glared at them. “She’ll be awake in a minute. I can give her the gun back and just let her shoot both of you if you prefer.”
“See?” Wyatt shrugged his huge shoulders, the very picture of innocence, dropping his voice to an exaggerated stage whisper. “He’s sensitive about it.”
“How did you guys even know what was going on?”
Amber was starting to regain consciousness, so Zac zip-tied her hands behind her back. “Wyatt and I had no idea about anything.” He turned and pointed toward the woods. “She figured it out.”
Wildfire stepped out of the tree line. She’d obviously been running but hadn’t gotten there as fast as Wyatt and Zac.
She was staring at him, face pale. “I didn’t think we would get to you in time.”
Wyatt and Zac helped Amber to her feet as she began to cry. They all ignored her.
“We’re going to get her back to base camp. I’ll call Sheriff Nelson and explain what’s going on so he can officially make an arrest.” Zac and Wyatt led Amber away, the woman still crying and starting to proclaim her innocence.
Riley ignored them. Wildfire looked at him with something akin to panic in her eyes.
“I’m okay, Wildfire.”
“I’ve watched you almost die too many times over the past few days. I thought we were going to be too late. You should’ve been much farther ahead—we never would’ve caught you. When I figured out it was Amber and that none of this had been a coincidence…” She shook her head and closed her eyes. “I was sure this time we would be too late.”
He took a step toward her. “How did you know Amber was trying to kill me?”
“I caught her going through your medical file after the rappelling accident. She stole the page about your allergies. And then when a vial of penicillin came up missing…”
There was nothing he wanted more than to yank her into his arms. “That’s twice you’ve literally saved my life. You’re going to have to start a tab for how many times I owe you.”
She let out a shaky breath and a little laugh. “Fine. Next time you can rescue me.”
“Deal.” He moved in a little closer.
“You still haven’t told me why you’re this far behind. Are you having some ill effects from yesterday?”
His little nurse. “No, I just realized I was heading the wrong way. Realized that I might cross the finish line first, but there was no winning for me today. At least not in that direction.”
He crossed the rest of the way to her and pulled her into his arms. He felt nothing but relief when she didn’t pull away. And then nothing but joy when her arms wrapped around him to keep him clutched to her.
“I thought we were too late.”
“You can’t get rid of me that easily, Wildfire. Not in any possible way. I was coming back for you. I was coming back because you mean more to me than any race, any jump, any stunt, and anything else in my life.”
“Riley—”
He pulled back and placed a finger over her mouth. “Let me finish, okay?” She nodded, but he didn’t move his hand away from her face. He needed to touch her skin, see her hazel eyes. “Not only do you mean more to me than any of those things, you mean more to me than all of them combined. I refuse to accept that we can’t find a way to navigate your MS together. I know it’s something you have to live with, but I love you, and I’m going to be by your side as you do.”