"Let me go!" Jeanie squirmed against the man's strong hands, attempting to jerk herself free. It was too dark to see his face, and frankly she didn't care who this jerk was. All she wanted was to be set free.

"Did you really think I wouldn't find you?" An all too familiar voice rasped next to her ear, making her stand still. "Did you think there was any place you could run where I wouldn't find you?"

A chill ran down her back, causing the hairs on the back of her neck to stand upright. Harvey. He'd found her, just as she'd feared he would.

Oh, why hadn't she listened to Lucas? Why hadn't she just reported him, like a normal human being would? But deep down she knew why.

Despite her absolute disgust for the man, she could never bring herself to imprison her husband's father. It would feel like such a betrayal. But it would feel better than him killing her, something he'd promised he'd do if she tried to escape again.

She'd hoped he was bluffing. But at the sound of a metal hammer clicking, she realized he wasn't.

"Drop the weapon!" Suddenly Nathan leapt in front of them, his pistol outright. Never had she been so relieved to see his face.

Harvey laughed, his chest wheezing. "So, you finally did it." He quipped, clearing his throat from a cough. "You finally squealed to the law about your conniving old father-in-law." His tongue clicked, as he shook his head. "I have to say, Jeanie. I'm actually impressed."

"Let her go." Nathan commanded, not looking amused with him in the least.

She continued to squirm, anger filling her. "Why won't you just leave me alone? What have I ever done to you?"

"You took my son away from me!" Harvey suddenly shouted, making her jump. He panted hard, his breath whistling through his clenched teeth.

Her stomach twisted, tears pricking her eyes. "I didn't."

"Yes." He breathed. "Yes, you did." His voice seemed to break on the last word. He sniffled loudly, a strained cry escaping him. "My Scottie wouldn't hurt a flea on a dog's back. He used to nurse sick kittens back to health, and help his mama with the dishes."

She felt her heart ache with his grief. She knew he loved his son beyond words. He just couldn't bring himself to believe Scottie was capable of anything illegal, let alone murder.

Suddenly Harvey's voice hardened. "No," He shoved the barrel harder into her head. "The only thing strong enough to change a man like him would be the love of a wicked woman."

She would be insulted if fear wasn't crippling her. Her lip quivered involuntarily, her voice straining weakly. "He wasn't the man you or I thought he was."

"Silence!" He roared, throwing her to the ground. She hit the dirt with a grunt, landing on her back. He then pointed his gun at her head.

"Don't move!" Nathan barked, his eyes and pistol dead set on the man. Something crossed his face, and she hoped he was formulating a plan. A second passed before he spoke.

"Harvey," His voice softened a touch. "There were multiple eye witnesses that saw your son kill the Benson Hills bank teller, as well as two innocent bystanders."

"Lies!" Harvey spat, his face turning a burning red. "They're all a bunch of lies!"

Nathan shook his head sadly. "But they're not."

Jeanie felt her body shake uncontrollably as she watched Harvey's face twist.

"Harvey your son made his choice long before he ever married Jeanie." Nathan continued, inching ever so slowly toward him. "And now you have one to make too. You can drop the gun, come along quietly, and I'll put a good word in for you with the judge."

Harvey seemed to mull Nathan's words over, but never moved his finger off the trigger.

Toe by toe Nathan slid toward him. "You don't want this, Harvey."

Jeanie watched Harvey's face, as an unreadable expression crossed it. His chest heaved, as his lips pressed tight. The pistol shook in his hand, still aimed at her head.

She barely drew a breath, as Nathan came within feet of him. His one hand still clutched his own pistol, while he held up the other out in front of him. "Just put the gun down."

Harvey squinted his eyes shut tight, his face twisting as if he were in pain. And then they opened.

The blood drained from her face as she saw the evil in his gaze. His eyes narrowed on her, his voice low. "There's always a third option."

His pistol then suddenly swung toward Nathan. Jeanie felt her chest seize. No!

Without thinking she leaped off the ground, flinging herself at Harvey. His gun fired into the air, as he worked to regain his balanced. And then Nathan darted at him.

Jeanie dove out of the way. Nathan grabbed Harvey's hand that held the pistol. Twisting it, he shoved Harvey down to the ground before the man fired a second shot into the dirt. Pressing his knee into Harvey's back, Nathan finally wrestled the gun out of his hand.

Harvey only struggled for a moment, before he finally gave up, collapsing into the dirt with a groan. Jeanie felt her eyes must have looked as big as saucers as she took in the scene before her. She panted hard, an odd mixture of guilt and worry filling her.

Harvey had been caught. She was finally free. She didn't know what to think or feel about this.

Nathan worked Harvey's hands behind his back, and secured them in a set of handcuffs. He breathed hard, sticking the man's gun under his belt. Then he turned toward her, his eyes finding hers.

"Are you alright?" His words came in a gasp.

"Yeah." She shrugged, wrapping her arms around herself. "I'm good." As good as she could be after nearly dying. And he'd barely escaped too.

Suddenly fear twisted her stomach. Had he been hurt? Oh, she'd feel terrible if she caused him so much as a paper cut. She scanned him closely, looking for any signs of pain.

"Are you…okay?" She managed, her words seeming to stick in her throat. Suddenly a shiver ran through her, and she gripped her arms tighter. It was probably shock setting in.

"Yeah." Nathan answered, his gaze narrowing on her. And then within an instant he was unbuttoning his red serge jacket. Quickly he shrugged it off, and came to stand in front of her.

He draped it around her shoulders with a gentleness that made her breath catch. His hands came to rest on her shoulders for a moment, his eyes landing on hers.

She found herself unable to look away, his blue eyes piercing through her. "Nathan…I…" She breathed, unsure what or if she should say anything.

A strange warmth swirled inside her, and she felt herself blushing. What did it all mean?

Something crossed his face, what exactly she wasn't sure. Quickly his hands then fell to his sides, his gaze dropping. Stiffly he motioned toward the opening in the woods they'd come through earlier.

"We…uh…" He stuttered, his hand going to the back of his neck. "We'd better get back."

Spurlock dragged Elizabeth across the short distance from the cabin to the shed. A lantern hung against the shed, its light and the full moon the only source of light.

"Help somebody!" She attempted to scream, when Spurlock's hand cupped her mouth.

He stopped a foot from the place he'd tried to kill her before. The place he'd burned the whale oil can, to frame Cat Montgomery. He then jerked her in front of him.

Pulling out his knife he cut the frayed rope binding her wrists. Her hands fell apart, but he quickly grabbed them. Then with a giant shove he pushed her forward so she fell to the ground. She grunted at the sudden impact, her hands pressing into the cold earth beneath her. Quickly she rolled onto her back, looking up.

The light of the nearby lantern illuminated Spurlock's dirty grin. Instantly she felt déjà vu, her mind recalling the moment he'd tried to kill her eight years ago. This couldn't be happening.

Her heart pounded as if it would explode, the cold air burning her lungs. "Please." She begged, warm tears spilling down her cheeks. "You don't have to do this."

His mouth quirked, a wicked gleam in his eye. "But I do." His face twisted, as he raised his pistol. "For eight years I sat in a filthy, cold prison cell." His words grated out. "And all because you couldn't keep your nose out of my business." His voice rose with every word, his pistol aimed straight at her face.

She shook her head, sobs overtaking her. "Please, don't."

Slowly he pulled the hammer back until it clicked. "Say hi to Jack for me."

A cry escaped her. "No!"

And then a gun shot fired. Her entire body jerked hard, her heart stopping.

But the shot hadn't come from Spurlock.

His head jerked toward the cabin. Denny, who'd been standing on the porch, suddenly raised his rifle. He aimed off into the woods, his eyes wide with worry. Spurlock turned toward the trees, his pistol outright.

Suddenly a THACK sounded, and he gasped, hunching over. Elizabeth blinked through her tears, looking up. And there stood Lucas, a rifle in his hands.

He breathed hard, his chest rising and falling rapidly. His hair dangled messily over his forehead, his face tense. Instantly he raised the butt of the rifle to his shoulder, aiming at Spurlock.

"Don't move." He ordered. His eyes darted from Spurlock, to her face. 'Are you alright?"

Elizabeth nodded her head, unable to speak. Her body shook, fresh tears surfacing as her lips quivered. A wave of relief rushed over her, leaving her breathless.

And then another gunshot sounded. Lucas jerked, dropping the rifle as his left hand grabbed for his right arm. Elizabeth's eyes darted back to the cabin where Denny stood with his own rifle outright.

Suddenly Spurlock launched himself at Lucas, tackling him to the ground. Lucas grunted as he landed with a thud. His face twisted in pain, as he looked to her.

"Elizabeth, run!"

Instantly she scrambled to stand, her feet slipping under her long silky skirts. Spurlock grunted, as he grabbed his pistol. "Denny! Get her!"

Denny darted toward her, when suddenly another gunshot sounded. Instantly he stopped, and crumbled to the ground, his hand clutching his chest.

Elizabeth looked toward the trees where the shot had come from. Suddenly a horse charged out. A sob escaped her as she made out the familiar form of the man riding it.

"Bill!"

A pistol fired, the bullet sending shards of wood off a tree. Bill leaped off his horse, ducking low. "Elizabeth, get out of here!"

She glanced helplessly toward Lucas who was wrestling Spurlock on the ground. Was that a gun Spurlock held? Another shot then sounded, and she turned and ran behind the shed.

Pain tore through Lucas, sweat flooding down his temples. His hands shook as he fought to keep Spurlock's pistol from passing over his chest.

Out of the corner of his eye he caught a glance of Bill running toward him. Another gunshot sounded from behind him, sending Bill diving for the dirt.

Lucas gripped Spurlock's hands tighter, gritting his teeth. Spurlock shoved the gun harder, his face drenched in sweat. Slowly the barrel moved toward Lucas.

Panic began to consume him. Please, God, give me strength. He silently begged.

Suddenly a rifle shot sounded, followed by a loud thud. Spurlock's head came up, and found his third man lying on the ground clutching his shoulder.

This was Lucas' chance. Summoning all the strength he had left, he shoved the pistol upright. The back of the gun smacked Spurlock in the face, causing him to loosen his grip on the handle.

Twisting it in a quick jerking motion he finally ripped the pistol out of Spurlock's hand. He then hurled it as far as he could away from them. Spurlock dove toward it, scrambling on his hands and knees.

Lucas rolled over, and jumped to his feet. His legs wouldn't quite carry him, and he stumbled forward. He launched himself into Spurlock, pinning the man to the ground. Spurlock grunted angrily, fighting to throw him off. Raising his fist, Lucas grit his teeth and laid a final punch into Spurlock's face.

Instantly the man's head lolled to the side. Unconscious.

Silence fell over the place. Lucas rolled over onto his back, pain shooting up with every rapid breath he took. Everything hurt. His chest burned with a roaring fire. His arm stung from where the bullet had grazed him earlier. He sent up a prayer of thanks that it hadn't embedded itself in his arm.

Suddenly fear shot through him like a bolt of lightning. He leapt to his feet, his eyes wide as he turned around. His heart pounded in his throat as he scanned the area around him.

"Elizabeth!" His voice rasped, his lungs fighting for air.

He looked to Bill. Hunched on his knees, he tied one of Spurlock's men's hands behind his back, his eyes searching the area the same as he was. Lucas spun around, panic threatening to overtake him.

And then he saw her. Running as fast as she could toward him. His breath caught in his throat, as he ran to her.

She launched herself into him, wrapping her arms around his neck. He gasped as pain shot through his chest, but he held her close anyway.

Quickly she pulled back, and he saw the tears threatening to spill down her already damp face.

"Sorry," she whispered. Her eyes grew wide as she began inspecting him for injuries. And his heart felt like it would explode inside him.

Grabbing her he pulled her right back against him. His chest burned like fire, but he sucked it down. All that mattered was having this woman safe and in his arms.

Her arms came up and wrapped around his neck, holding him tight. Her whole body began shaking uncontrollably, a hiccup escaping her. He held her tighter still.

She panted hard, matching his own heavy breathing. Ducking his face down he pressed a kiss to her cheek, then another to her temple.

His hands came up her back, and he ducked his face down into her hair. Breathing her in. Her face turned up to rest in the crook of his neck, and she breathed in deeply.

"I'm sorry." He whispered, his voice breaking.

She shook her head against him, her words muffled. "It's not your fault."

His heart twisted, as he brushed another kiss to her hair. Inside told him differently.

Glancing up he found Bill approaching them, an unreadable expression on his face.

Lucas wondered what was going through the older man's mind at the sight of Elizabeth wrapped in his arms. Would Bill disapprove? Did he blame him for this whole mess? He wouldn't blame him if he did.

But all Bill said was, "Let's get you two home."