A Justified Kill Read Online Free PDF Page B

To get her mind off of Gerald she started asking her questions. 
    “What’s your name?” Amber’s brows drew together in a frown. She had no idea what she was going to do.
    “ Hanna Barton.” The girl mu mb led without meeting her eyes.
    The whisper of clothing rustling caught her attention and Amber whipped her head in the direction of the campsite. She not so gently pushed Hanna towards the door of the jeep, encouraging her to hurry and get in . She was surprised she ’d heard the sounds of Gerald stirring at the campsite since it was so far away from the road. The distant sounds filtered through her senses and her entire body became alert. Runni ng around the front of the jeep to the driver’s side door, she yanked it open and jumped in . Then she heard his loud cursing and thrashing sounds echo ing through the trees .
    Hanna glan ced over her shoulder, a horrified look on her face at the thought of him fighting his way through the woods and getting her again.
    Gerald crashed noisily through the brush and they could hear him yell ing .
    The look on Hann a ’s face told Amber that she w as terrified. The open jeep offered no protection at all. Amber wished she had thought to put the top up , but the material an d plastic would offer little shelter if he were to reach them . She should have grabbed the knife she had used to cut the duct tape and brought it with her instead of tossing it back onto the table . The thought crossed her mind of telling Hanna to stay put so she could go kill him and just get it over with.
    I t tore at her heart . I t was the innocent children who always seemed to pay for adult’s stupidity. Refraining from reacting like she really wanted to, she frow ned and glared at the mirror . Pushing in the clutch , the jeep began rolling, turning the key, the engine fired right up. Pulling off the shoulder, t he tires crunched in the loose gravel and dirt, and then hit packed dirt. His battered form came into view of her rearview mirror once he stumbled free of the woods.
    “I will hunt you down and kill you both!” The jeep fled down the highway, Gerald screamed in frustration when it left him in a cloud of dust.
    Amber couldn’t help but think, join the club. After all, being on the run was her way of life, being chased and hunted was nothing new to her. She knew he couldn’t see much in the dark ness and the cloud of dust her tires had kicked up when she ’d spun them tearing away from the side of the road . There was no way for him to see her license plate and hoped he was still intoxicated enough that he wouldn’t recognize her vehicle from the bar’s parking lot . There were plenty of people who drove jeeps around in the mountains , so it was not a major concern. But what did concern her was Hanna, who was staring , terrified, out the back window at the dark road behind them . T ears were sliding down her bruised and dirty cheeks.
    She knew she was becoming way too involved. Taking a deep breath and releasing it slowly, Amber knew it was time for her to get out of town. But she couldn’t leave Gerald to go after other young girls or possibly find Hanna again . From the conversation in the bar, Gerald had lived in the area all his life . S he couldn’t help but wonder how many other girls he had abused this way. A thought struck her and she quickly glanced at Hanna again . More than likely , she had saved the girl ’ s life. A man with a sick mind like Gerald ’s would not ju st abuse and release his victims . I f there were others, there would be bodies. A chill ran down Ambe r’s spine. She felt a strange nudging at her mi nd, and couldn’t push the brutal thoughts away.
    “Buckle up , Hanna . I’m taking you to the hospital. Y ou can call your parent s from there .” Amber tried to sound calm, but felt far from it.
    Hanna shook her head.  “I , I, I can’t call my parents . ” Her voice was strained with tears and s he stared at her filthy, bloody hands clenched together