The Black Sheep's Redemption by Lynette Eason Read Free Book Online

flashed her a grin. “I do, too.”
    Small talk filled the short ride to the beach, interrupted occasionally by Aaron and Brianne’s two-year-old chatter.
    Charles looked in the rearview mirror and frowned. His eyes flicked back to the road in front of him. Then up to the mirror.
    “What’s wrong?”
    “That car’s coming up behind us pretty fast.”
    Demi glanced in the side mirror and spied a dark-colored sedan gaining on them. “Maybe he’s in a hurry and will go around.”
    Charles let his foot off the gas and slowed.
    And the car kept coming. Demi shifted, uneasy. “Charles?”
    Charles’s fingers flexed on the wheel. The narrow two-lane road didn’t leave a lot of room to maneuver and she wondered what he was thinking.
    Another look in the mirror showed the car about twenty feet behind them. Ten.
    “Charles! He’s going to hit you!”
    “Hold on.” He pressed the gas pedal. Aaron, picking up on the tension, started to cry.
    The truck growled to life, responding to the burst of speed instantly. The sedan fell back, but soon gained lost ground.
    “I don’t want to go too much faster, there’s a curve just ahead,” Charles said.
    “Can you turn off?”
    “Hang on, he’s coming faster.”
    Demi felt herself jerk forward, then slam back. She yelped. Brianne cried out and Aaron howled.
    Charles went faster. “Call 9-1-1. Tell them where we are.”
    The curve ahead was sharp, the guardrail offering flimsy protection against a speeding vehicle.
    Demi clutched the door and held on while her heart thumped in terror. She held the phone to her ear with effort. The operator came on. “We’re on Lighthouse Lane headed toward the beach! Someone is trying to run us off the road!”
    Tires squealed as Charles took the curve. Her seat belt cut into her shoulder. From the side mirror she could see the car following behind.
    And then they were on a straighter part of the road.
    With another curve just ahead.
    From a side road, Demi could see flashing blue lights.
    Brakes squealed from behind them and she saw the car backing off. It did a quick three-point turn then sped back the way they’d just come.
    Charles slowed the truck. Sweat dripped from his forehead and his face had lost color, as he pulled to the side of the road and stopped.
    From the back, Demi heard a giggle. She turned to see Brianne gripping the front of her car seat. “Do it again, Daddy.”
    Aaron’s eyes were wide, but he’d stopped crying. When he saw Brianne smiling, he chuckled.
    Charles let out a breath and leaned his forehead on the steering wheel.
    Demi swallowed hard. “You did a good job, Charles.”
    “Thanks.” He paused. “You okay?”
    “Yes. We’re all okay.”
    A Fitzgerald Bay cruiser pulled up beside them. Charles rolled down his window to greet his sister Keira who exited her vehicle, walked to the window and demanded, “What happened? I saw that guy trying to run you off the road.” Her anger with the man was a visible thing. “He could have killed you!” She looked in the backseat and paled. “And the kids are with you.”
    “We were on the way to the beach. He kind of came out of nowhere.” Charles shook his head. “Did you get a plate?”
    “A partial. He went flying past me. By the time I turned around, he’d disappeared. I called it in for someone to see if they could chase him down so I could make sure you all were okay.”
    Charles swallowed. “Someone really has it in for me, don’t they?”
    “Unfortunately, it looks like it, yeah.” She pursed her lips. “Who was Olivia so close to that her death would drive someone to want to hurt you, to get revenge?”
    Charles shrugged. “I have no idea. She didn’t talk about her life that much. I did a background check and she was clean. She took care of the kids and pretty much kept to herself so I’m not sure who she was close to.”
    “What about her cousin, Meghan?” Keira asked.
    Charles gave a slow nod. “She was really upset about Olivia’s