Blood sprayed out the back of Jess’s skull. A dark stream that puffed into a fine mist. Even holding his breath, Seth could taste copper. He stood frozen, eyes locked on Jess as she swayed on her feet. Then she fell face-first, head cracking against the asphalt.

Seth trembled. His ears rang as the gunshot echoed through his head. He turned to Alex. Her eyes were wide, her hand over her mouth. This trip had been a mistake. He knew that trespassing was illegal, but these farmers were fucking crazy.

Earl held his revolver up and cocked the hammer.

“Fucking run!” Will dashed to the side and dove into the shoulder. The ATVs exploded into action, their engines screaming and exhaust flooding the street.

Alex hesitated for a moment before tearing after Will. The two slipped under the fence just as the ATVs rammed into the wood behind them. The wooden posts trembled, but the fence held, keeping the vehicles out of the field.

Seth was the last to move, frozen by the flash of action. Shit! His heart pounded against his chest, and he strained for breath as he sprinted at the fence.

The ATVs rumbled to either side, but neither had recovered from striking the fence, and they slowly backed up, tried to turn for him. His thighs burned as he poured more strength into them, running faster than he’d ever run before. He dove for the fence just as Riles gunned her ATV at him, clipping his legs with its rubber wheels.

Seth sprawled into the dirt. His leg stung from the impact, and he heaved for air. The ground pressed against his face, cool and wet, an earthy tang flooding his nostrils. He dug his fingers into the soil and clawed his way to his feet, glanced behind him.

The two ATVs revved their engines, and they raced along the fence, dust trailing in their wake. Where were they going? Earl remained by the car, and he trained his revolver on Seth. The sight of the weapon sent a spear of terror through Seth’s chest, and he hunched down, hands over his head.

The pistol cracked. Seth saw a flash of blood, Jess’s head snapping back. But the shot zipped past and sliced into the corn. Missed.

Seth turned and ran into the field. Corn stalks snapped underfoot, his long strides pulling him forward, deeper and deeper. Up ahead, he spotted a disturbance in the field, leaving a massive trail of broken corn in their wake. Will and Alex, still running.

He couldn’t believe those idiots had left him behind. Seth had never wanted to go on this trip in the first place. And he certainly hadn’t wanted to trespass on anyone’s property. This was all Alex’s fault, and now she’d ditched him, left him in the hands of these crazed farmers.

Engines roared behind him. Seth risked a glance back, and his heart shuddered. The ATVs cut through the field, all three of them, their riders sticking out of the corn like the fins of hunting sharks. How had they gotten through the fence? There must have been a gate nearby, or a natural break, or who the fuck cared? They were here now, gunning for him, ready to cut him down.

An ATV knifed past him. Its wheels skipped across the dirt and shredded corn stalks sprayed behind it. Earl turned back to Seth, grinning, and he wrenched the handlebar to the side. The ATV cut into Seth’s path, and he reeled back, tried to turn away. He was too late. The vehicle’s hard plastic slammed into his thigh, and he stumbled.

“Stay down,” Earl said as he leaped off the ATV. He landed in front of Seth and shoved him into the dirt.

Seth spluttered. He crawled back. His leg burned where the vehicle had crashed against him. “Wait!”

Silver light glinted off the revolver as Earl cocked its hammer back with a heavy click. He grabbed the front of Seth’s hoodie, yanked him to his feet as if he were a sack of grain, and pressed the gun’s barrel against his temple.

“Stop running!” Earl’s voice boomed across the field, loud as thunder. “Submit to us, or your friend here gets it. I’ll put one right in his skull.”

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Seth couldn’t breathe. He was a dead man. He knew it. Alex didn’t care about him. Neither did Will. They had ditched him. They barely knew him. They wouldn’t stop for his sake.

Seth closed his eyes and waited. Waited for the bullet to spear through his brain. Waited for this all to be over. Nothing happened. After what felt like an eternity, he heard movement. The rustle of corn stalks, the low rumble of engines, and muted conversations. He slowly opened his eyes.

David and Riles approached, their ATVs crawling through the field. Before them walked Alex and Will. They’d turned back after all.

A cold shiver rippled down Seth’s spine, and Earl tightened his grip, pressed the gun tighter against his head. Even so, Seth told himself that everything was going to be okay. All of this was just a misunderstanding. They’d only gone onto Owen’s field for what, ten minutes? Not even. Surely that wasn’t reason enough to kill them all.

But it was reason enough to kill Jess. Why had Earl done that? Surely there had to be something more going on. Well, whatever it was, Seth wanted to stay the fuck out of it.

“What’re we going to do with them?” David asked. “Take them to Owen?”

“No,” Earl said. “Owen’s busy. I’ll take this one and the girl back to Godwin’s. Riles, take the one with the camera to Pete for questioning. And take their car, too.”

Riles huffed. “Why do I gotta do it?”

“Cause, Pete likes you. And don’t you deny it. By the way, which one of you’s got the keys?”

David hopped off the ATV and pulled Will close. He snaked one arm around his neck, while he checked Will’s pockets.

Riles followed his lead and searched Alex. “I got ‘em, Earl.”

“Good, now watch this one for a second.” Earl tossed Seth forward, and he tripped in the grass, almost fell except Alex caught him. Her eyes welled with tears and her chest shook with every breath.

Seth had no words. He glanced to the ground, no choice but to wait for whatever these strangers had in mind. What had Earl said? That he would take Seth and Alex to Godwin’s. What the hell was that?

Earl fiddled with something beside his ATV, then he tossed something to Riles, and another to David. They were long white strings, made of plastic. No, they were zip ties. Seth blanched as Earl grabbed his arms, shoved them behind his back, and zipped a tie tight around his wrists. The plastic dug into his flesh, and his shoulders ached, stretched back at an awkward angle.

Seth strained against the tie, testing its strength. The plastic didn’t budge. He glanced up at Alex, who leaned forward, eyes clenched shut as David tied her hands. The sun hung low on the horizon, and long shadows stretched across the field. It was the last thing he saw before smothering darkness slipped across his face. A canvas bag, smelling of dust and mold.

Earl cinched the bag around Seth’s neck. Tiny pinpricks of light filtered through the canvas, but not enough to see a damn thing. A heavy hand yanked Seth back, lifted him in the air, and tossed him over the side of the ATV, belly pressed against the hard plastic.

“Don’t move,” Earl said. “Fall off, and I’ll kick your teeth in. David, let’s go. Riles, get the car. I’ll meet you at Rusties in a bit.”

“Got it, boss,” Riles said.

The ATV jolted as Earl hopped on, nearly sitting on Seth’s back. The engine growled, and exhaust spilled forth, warm against the cold air. Seth sucked in a dusty breath, then the ATV raced forward. He groaned, the vehicle bumping and jolting against his stomach. Nausea bloomed through his gut, and it threatened to spear up his throat. But the thought of vomit filling the canvas bag convinced Seth to hold it down.

Earl drove straight through the field, corn stalks whipping at Seth as they shot past. It wasn’t long before they leaped from the field and jostled up onto a cracked road, replacing the lurching hills of dirt for a relatively smooth ride. After what felt like forever, the road changed again. The ATV’s wheels crunched down on gravel, and the vehicle vibrated with an intense hum. The rubber wheels kicked up a piece of gravel into Seth’s face, and he reeled back, cheek stinging from the impact.

The ATV stopped.

“Get up.” Earl grabbed Seth by the zip tie and yanked him to his feet. The man led him forward, up a few stairs that were hard underfoot. Brick or concrete or something like that.

Another engine rumbled to a stop. Alex groaned, and he heard David pulling the girl along. At least they could stay together, wherever this was.

Earl led Seth past a doorway, into a house, he presumed. They walked across a wooden floor, the boards creaking beneath his feet, then up another set of stairs. Down a short hallway, another door, and Earl tossed Seth into a wooden chair.

The stocky man rustled with something for a moment, then he grabbed Seth’s arm and cut loose the tie. The relief only lasted a moment before Earl yanked Seth’s hand to the side, grip strong as iron, and tied his arm to the chair. Earl methodically zipped his other arm to the wood, then each of Seth’s legs. Then, finally, he yanked off the canvas bag.

Seth sat in a gloomy room, light filtering in through a shuttered window. The room was small, with only a table and the chair Seth sat in. Wooden paneling covered the walls, white paint peeling and piling against the baseboards.

“There,” Earl said. “The hard part’s done. Now that you’re nice and cozy, I’d like to ask you a few questions.”