Page 54 of Lawless Rivals

I’m already firing back, my aim precise. Taking out the driver, the van jerks hard, swerves, and slams nose-first into the bank, the wheel arch busted up.

The passenger door flies open, and a second man climbs out, balaclava pulled tight, gun already up and pointed my way.

He’s sloppy, rushed, and dead before he understands who he’s fucked with.

I take him down and keep moving, eyes sweeping the track as my breathing steadies, waiting for anyone else to make themselves known.

When no one does, I glance back and catch sight of Keira breaking toward the river.

Catching her can wait.

I move to the van first and haul the rear doors open, finding it empty.

“Harrington,” I shout, already turning away and stuffing my Glock into the waistband of my jeans.

I cut toward the trees at a jog as the ground drops away and the river opens up ahead.

The old bridge comes into view with her on it, already across the first few boards my grandfather nailed together decades ago, boards I haven’t trusted in years.

“Harrington!” I shout. “Stop. Now.”

She turns at the sound of my voice, one hand flying out to the rope to steady herself. The planks sag under her boots, the rope fibers thinned by years of weather and neglect that won’t take much more weight.

The whole thing groans.

The ropes stretch, the boards wobble, and the structure gives way in a slow, ugly lurch before it breaks in two.

“Saint—”

Her scream dies as the bridge tears loose, and she drops out of sight into the river below.

Chapter 15

Saint

“Keira!”

My legs are already moving when her name scrapes past my throat, boots skidding as I bolt down the slope toward the river.

I hear only its roar, seeing white water churn where she’d vanished.

While I run, I peel off my coat and fling it in my wake before ripping my cap and shirt off, throwing them too.

The gun follows straight after I strip off anything that’ll drag me under.

I hit the river hard, the shock of ice water slamming into my chest and knocking the breath clean out of me.

The current catches my legs, yanking my body sideways as rapid water surges up my torso as if the river wants a sacrifice.

“Keira!” I yell again, stumbling on the riverbed, eyes cutting through the spray.

I spot her downstream near the bend, clinging to a boulder with both arms wrapped tight around it while the water breaks over her face in violent bursts, dragging her under and spitting her out again.

“Hold on!” I shout. “I’m coming.”

Not giving a fuck that I’m breathless, I fight through the current instead of meeting it head-on, planting each step hard while my lungs burn.

By the time I reach her, she’s in full panic mode, fingers slipping, body shaking as she loses her grip.