Chapter 74

• As she landed heavily on her shoulder, a whimper escaped her lips, pain radiating down the length of her arm. She spat out the flesh lodged in her mouth with a gag, blood staining her lips while tears streamed down her cheeks, a mixture of pain and fear marking her features.
• In a torrent of Italian, he howled, clutching his bloody ears while staring between the crimson staining his hands and the bloodied visage of her face. His fierce swearing—filled with contempt—needed no translation for her to understand that there would be no more messages, no final words to be exchanged; only the chilling shadow of death glimmered in his eyes.
• He took a step forward in search of something—his rifle. She spotted it just as he did, realizing quickly that it lay out of her reach. Not bothering to see him pick it up, she scrambled to her feet and dashed down the path, screaming at the top of her lungs, the sound echoing into the night.