A Bad Day for Sunshine (Sunshine Vicram #1) - Darynda Jones Page 0,132

she was awake. Her whimpers drifted over the snow.

“Levi,” she whispered.

He reached back and took her gloved hand into his.

“If I do fail,” she started, her voice as quiet as the snow, but he turned to glare at her before she could finish. She shook her head, determined. “If I do fail, will you take care of her?”

They both knew she wasn’t talking about Sybil.

It took him a long moment to answer. When he finally did, he echoed Zee’s sentiment when he said, “Always.”

She nodded and ducked behind the woodpile as Levi slid onto the porch of the cabin from the back and slunk around to the front to head Price off.

Price started to take the first step when she realized he was carrying a hunting knife in one hand, and she almost lost her nerve. He could do so much damage to Sybil in such a short amount of time with that knife, but she had no choice.

She eased from behind the woodpile just as his foot landed on the first rung of the steps. That was Levi’s cue, and he played his part beautifully.

“Can I ask what you’re doing here?”

The plan was to make Price think Levi owned the cabin and was in residence.

Not expecting company, Price stumbled back in surprise. It was the opening she needed. She rushed him from the side, grabbed hold of Sybil, and pulled with every ounce of strength she had.

At the same time, Levi shot off the porch and, while Sun did succeed in getting Sybil away from him, she also succeeded in allowing Price to get a firm hold of her instead.

Before Levi could get to them, in a move startlingly quick, Price had his arms around her and the knife at her throat. A knife that was longer than her forearm.

“Back!” He gave Levi a warning glare as he dragged her backward.

Levi slid to a stop a few feet from them and raised his hands.

“I will slice her fucking throat so fast she won’t even know it until she sees her blood spraying onto your face.”

“Price,” she said, her voice calm.

He was beginning to unravel. All his plans spoiled.

“This would have worked if that idiot Redding had won the fucking election,” he said. He laughed helplessly. “Oh, my god, that man was so stupid.”

“Can I ask your real name?”

“Why, Sheriff? You gonna be my friend?”

“If you’ll let me.”

“Yeah, well, you can cut that psychobabble shit right now. How did you know?” He kept moving with her, turning her as he scanned the distance as though he knew Zee was out there trying to get a shot. “How’d you figure it out?”

“The divot,” she said. “The one where your ear meets your temple.”

When Sun had originally seen the slit in Price’s temple, she’d thought it was part of the injury he’d sustained chasing dogs in the middle of the night. Part of the scrapes and bruises when, as he put it, the bushes attacked him. She was wrong.

“Sybil has one, too,” she said, her breath fogging on the air. “It took me a while to make the connection, but once I realized you were somehow related, it all fell into place. That kind of dimple is hereditary. And it’s pretty rare.”

He pulled her around again. “No shit?”

“Sybil doesn’t deserve this.”

“Where is she?” he asked, spinning her around as he scanned the trees again.

“Who?”

“Zee!” he yelled into the quiet night. “I know you’re out there, gorgeous. Let me see you or she dies.”

“Zee’s not here. We didn’t have time to wait for her.”

He hugged Sun to him, his mouth at her ear. “You know, Auri and I have a lot in common.”

“Yeah?”

“I was a surprise to my mother as well.”

“Really?”

“Only my mother threw me away. Of course, the minute my adoptive mother got little ole me, that bitch got pregnant and suddenly I didn’t matter anymore. They had their dream kid. I was an inconvenience. Do you know what they did to me?”

“Why don’t you tell me?”

“They took me to meet her when I was fifteen.” He laughed, the sound bitter in the quiet night air. “I stood on the doorstep to this . . . mansion and rang the doorbell while my parents sat in the car. And Marianna St. Aubin answered the door, her redheaded daughter nipping at her heels. I told her who I was.” He squeezed her tighter as the memories washed over him. “I begged her to take me in, but she said I had the wrong