Heat of the Storm
Page 10

“Yes, she is.”
A short silence fell over the kitchen, finally broken by the sound of Shelby slapping her hand on the counter with an eureka expression on her face. “Then it’s time we do something about it.”
Will narrowed his eyes. “We?”
“Yes, we.” Shelby shot him a grin. “Obviously you’re not having too much success on your own, so it’s time someone stepped in and helped you.”
He held up his hand. “Oh no, you guys are not stepping in. Mackenzie and I will straighten this out by ourselves.”
Holly snorted, the determined glint in her green eyes telling him exactly whose side she was on. Not his. “Shelby’s right, you need our help.”
Sliding off the chair, he edged his way to the doorway. “The two of you are not getting involved in my love life.”
Another snort from Holly, and a giggle from Shelby. “What love life?” they said in unison.
He stabbed a finger in their direction. “The answer is no. I don’t need or want your help. I’m serious about this.”
Shelby and Holly exchanged a look.
“I’m serious,” he insisted. “I command you to put a pin in whatever scheme you two are about to cook up. Stay out of my business—that’s an order.” With that, he strode out of the kitchen, for all the good it did him. He could hear Shelby and Holly already whispering to one another, and if he knew those two, they’d show up at his door tomorrow morning with some hare-brained plot that would no doubt make his life miserable.
Though how his life could get even more miserable than it already was, he didn’t know.
Will was going to die.
Mackenzie wandered around her kitchen on autopilot, brewing a cup of tea, eating but not really tasting a piece of toast. Staring at the sunlight streaming in from the window. Doing the dishes.
And all the while, her mind was somewhere else. Somewhere dark and terrifying. A place that held not even the tiniest flicker of hope. A world without Will.
With a strangled groan, she sank into one of the chairs around the kitchen table and buried her face in her hands, a position she’d found herself often during the past five days. She hadn’t heard from Will since he’d walked out that night, and a part of her almost wished his silence dragged on a bit longer.
What was she supposed to say if he called?
Did she tell him about what she saw?
But how could she? She’d tried warning people before when she had a vision about them, but no matter what she did, the visions always came true. She couldn’t change them. Couldn’t stop them.
And what she’d seen… God, she wished like hell she could stop it.
Out of nowhere, the memory flooded her brain, streaking to the forefront like a bolt of lightning.
The gunshots. The shriek of the helicopter rotors, the heart-stopping explosion rocking the chopper.
The smoke.
Chopper falling from the sky, hurtling toward the canopy of green below.
A sob choked her throat as Will’s face flashed across her mind. The grim realization in his dark eyes when he realized his fate. When he accepted it.
“No!” she burst out, shooting to her feet.
It wouldn’t happen. It couldn’t happen.
Say you want to be with me.
Why, why hadn’t she been able to say it? She’d already crossed a line anyway, slept with her best friend, so why couldn’t she take that final step and admit what they both knew to be true?
Because you don’t want to lose him.
No, she definitely didn’t want that. Will was the only steady male in her life. Even after he’d joined the Navy and left town, he always came back. Weekends, holidays, any time he could get leave, he came back to Hunter Ridge. To her.
Would he come back this time? After everything that happened last week?
And what would she say to him if he did?
Hey, Will, I acted like an idiot. The sex we had was incredible, the best of my life. And oh, you’re going to die.
She paced the kitchen, her bare feet slapping against the hardwood floor, as her heart pounded against her ribs in a steady rhythm of panic. She had to tell him. Warn him. So what if he was probably furious with her? Maybe if she said something, she could alter what she’d seen.
Lifting her chin in determination, she grabbed the cordless phone from the counter. She jumped when it started ringing in her hand.
Hope bloomed in her chest. Quickly pressing the talk button, she lifted the phone to her ear and said, “Thank God you called!”
There was a beat, then a soft female chuckle. “Why do I get the feeling you were expecting someone else?” came Paula Durtz’s amused voice.
Disappointment jolted through her. “Oh. Hi, Paula. I, um…what’s up?”
“I just wanted to see if you’re still coming into town today.”
Town? Oh, right, she’d promised to drop off that necklace for Paula. “What time did we say again?” she asked.
“Two. So are we still on?”
Mac glanced at the clock hanging over the sink. It was quarter to, which meant she needed to get going. Yet the idea of leaving the house troubled her. She wasn’t in the mood for socializing, not when she couldn’t stop thinking about the vision. About Will. About what it would cost her if she lost him. Actually lost him.
But Paula was the closest thing to a friend she had in Hunter Ridge. Maybe if she talked to her, told Paula what she’d seen…? Maybe her almost-friend could offer some advice.