* * *
“Stay here,” the driver said gruffly.
Trent watched every move the bogus police officers made. It appeared the tack he’d thrown down had finally wedged itself into the tire and led to a blowout. Thankfully, the other car had gone ahead of them. That meant that it was just Trent, Tessa and the two men escorting them. However, Trent and Tessa were at a disadvantage because of their handcuffs. But hopefully that wouldn’t be a problem for long. He’d been subtly trying to work the second tack he’d pressed into his belt into the lock mechanism of the handcuffs.
Finally, he heard a soft click. He’d done it.
Now he had to figure out how to reach Tessa without drawing any attention to the fact.
The driver jerked the door open. “You’re going to have to get out while we change the tire.”
He grabbed Tessa first and dragged her outside. Before the man could reach for Trent, he scooted from the car, making sure his handcuffs stayed in place for the time being.
“Guard them while I change this,” the driver mumbled to his partner.
The other man—the slighter of the two—aimed his gun at Trent and Tessa. He appeared youngish—maybe in his midtwenties, and he was both scrawny and obviously outranked in this merry little group of bandits. The driver had called him Grath once.
“Stay over there,” Grath said. “Don’t make a move or you’re dead.”
“We’re dead anyway, aren’t we?” Trent said.
A gleam appeared in the man’s eyes, and he nodded toward Tessa. “Not until the big man sees her. He wants to handle this personally.”
That must be Leo. He wanted to make sure Tessa suffered. Trent didn’t like the sound of that.
Immediately, visions of Laurel appeared in his mind. He couldn’t let that happen again. Laurel had been his whole world and made him feel like the luckiest man alive. Sure, they’d had their problems. But they’d been happy together.
Until one of his supposed friends had stabbed him in the back. He’d been tasked with guarding Laurel while Trent was testifying in court.
The gang he was trying put away had threatened Trent’s life if he proceeded with his investigation. He’d known Laurel would be in danger, as well. That was why he’d taken the extra precautions to keep her safe. He didn’t want to be bullied.
But then one of his own friends, Richard, had been bought off. Richard hadn’t pulled the trigger on Laurel himself, but he’d taken money and given away her location to men who’d been bent on revenge toward Trent. Those men had shot Richard in the shoulder, an injury that looked more serious than it was. Then those thugs had killed Laurel.
His friend had denied his involvement for weeks—months. But Trent had begun to trail him. He’d caught him meeting with a gang member. A check of his bank account had proved Richard had been paid off. When he’d brought the evidence to his colleagues, they hadn’t taken him seriously. They’d thought he was obsessed and desperate to find someone to take the blame.
That was when Trent had left the police department and struck out on his own. Eventually, he’d taken his evidence all the way to the top and gotten some results. He’d pressed charges and Richard had gone to jail. But the whole thing had left Trent disillusioned.
He wasn’t going to let the same thing happen to Tessa that had happened to Laurel.
Moving quietly, wordlessly, Trent slipped the tack into Tessa’s hands. She felt it for a moment before looking up at him with confusion.
Subtly, he motioned toward his handcuffs. Her eyes widened with understanding and she nodded.
As Grath looked away for a brief second, Trent swung his leg through the air. His foot connected with the man’s gun and sent it toppling to the ground. In that moment, the driver reached for his own gun and aimed it at Trent.
In a flash, Trent grabbed Grath and pulled the man in front of him to use as a human shield. The driver discharged his gun, and Grath let out a groan as the bullet hit his shoulder.
Before the driver had a chance to realize what was happening, Trent shoved Grath on top of him. The action afforded Trent enough time to grab the driver’s gun.
The two struggled with the weapon. In a battle of strength, the barrel of the gun volleyed back and forth from the driver to Trent.
Despite the chill in the air, sweat sprinkled across Trent’s forehead. The man was tougher than he’d given him credit for. Their struggle continued in what felt like slow motion.
“Give it up,” the driver mumbled, his face red with exertion.
“Never.” Trent used all the strength in him to aim the gun back toward the driver.
Both men grunted, bared their teeth. Their lives were on the line. Whoever was the strongest would live.
That man had to be Trent.
Suddenly, a gunshot filled the air. The driver let out a howl of pain. Trent’s eyes traveled to the man’s shoulder. A spot of blood grew there.
Trent jerked his eyes behind him. Tessa stood there, gun in hand. She looked shell-shocked, but okay.
She might have just saved his life.
With half of her handcuffs still around her wrist, she tucked the gun into her waistband and hurried toward Trent. “Are you okay?”
He took a step back from the driver, who was still alive but moaning with pain. “Yeah, I’m fine. We need to go.”
“I’ll get the tire. You move these guys out of the way?”
Trent stared at her a moment, unsure he’d heard her correctly. But she was already at the tire, unscrewing the lug nuts. “Got it.”
He grabbed the driver and pulled him off to the side of the road. The man would be okay. His partners would come back to check on these two when they realized they were no longer responding. Grath would also be okay. He’d been hit in the shoulder, but it wasn’t life threatening.
That meant it was even more urgent that Trent and Tessa got out of there fast.
“They’ll...find...you,” the driver muttered, teeth bared.
“We’re going to make that as hard as possible,” Trent said, patting the man’s cheek. He reached into his pocket and grabbed the man’s phone. Then he snatched the extra gun and some cash. He and Tessa were going to need whatever they could get in order to survive this.
He got back to Tessa in time to help her slip the new tire on. “A girl who knows her way around a car. Impressive.”
“My dad insisted I know how to take care of myself.”
“It’s really paying off now,” Trent said, helping her finish. “Come on. Let’s go.”
She climbed into the passenger seat as he slammed the driver’s door shut. He cranked the engine and started down the road, his heart pounding as he realized what’d just happened. That could have turned out so much differently.
Thank You, Lord.
“We don’t have much time,” Trent said.
“What do you mean? You think those other guys will find us?” Tessa glanced back, as if expecting to see the second car. Then she began fiddling with the handcuff still left on one wrist. She unlatched it and stuck the tack into her pocket.
“Unfortunately, I fear they’ll find us sooner rather than later. This car probably has a GPS and they’ll be able to track us down.”
“So what do we do?”
“We hold tight for a little while. As soon as we’re able to, we’ll ditch this car and get a new one.”
“That sounds easier said than done.” She shivered and stared out the window a moment, a certain melancholy washing over her. “You think those guys will be okay?”
He nodded. “They’ll be fine.”
“That’s the first time I’ve ever shot someone.”
“You saved my life.” He glanced over and saw the worry across her features. He reached across the seat and squeezed her hand. “You were brave. You did the right thing. Those guys were ruthless, Tessa. There’s no
telling what would have happened when we got to whatever destination they were taking us to.”
She nodded uncertainly. “Mentally, I know that. Emotionally, I’m still spinning.”
He squeezed again before pulling his hand back to his side. “I know it’s tough.”
She drew in a deep breath. “I have to stop thinking about that. I’ve got to start focusing on survival.”
With that, she opened the glove compartment.
Tessa riffled through the papers that had been left in the car. Certainly there was some information here, even if it was fake.
“What are you doing?” Trent asked her.
“I’m seeing if I can find anything useful,” Tessa told him. “Maybe there’s some evidence of what they were planning. Whatever information we can arm ourselves with, the better.”
“I agree.”
Tessa thought she saw a touch of admiration in his eyes. She continued to browse the papers, but saw nothing helpful. The car was registered to someone named John Tracy. The name didn’t ring any bells with Tessa. Some sales papers indicated it had been purchased in Alexandria, Virginia. It couldn’t be a coincidence.
Tessa had worked in a gallery outside Washington, DC, just a few miles from Alexandria. That was where Leo had based all his operations. This only solidified everything in her mind. Leo had hired these men and sent them after her.
How many were out there, searching for them? Right now, it almost seemed like an unending army. There’d been the men at her cabin who’d driven off the cliff. The ones at Trent’s cabins who’d followed them through the woods. Then this group. How many would Tessa have to defeat before she’d won the battle?
Tessa knew that someone with Leo’s power, money and influence could afford to hire as many people as he wanted. He’d made millions on his arms trade. She’d sneaked onto his computer and seen the numbers herself.
What she’d never been able to figure out was his motive. Was it just the money? Did he really hate this country that much? Maybe it was both. Maybe it was just to carry out his family’s legacy. Until eight months ago when she’d made her discoveries, Tessa had never had any indication that he had ties to terrorists.
After that, she’d been able to put some of the facts into place. Leo did have a lot of hushed phone calls and out-of-town business trips. She’d always thought it was because he was trying to secure new art deals.
Suddenly, something landed in her lap. She looked down and saw a wallet. “What’s this?”
“I took it from the man driving the car. See what’s inside.”
She opened the bifold and saw at least six one-hundred-dollar bills. The man’s driver’s license read Tom Tracy and he was from Wilmington Heights. His picture seemed to glare at her from the plastic identification card.
She continued to go through the wallet and found two credit cards, a slip of paper with an address on it and a season pass to a local amusement park.
Funny, even men like John Tracy had a life outside criminal activities.
“Anything?”
She held up the paper. “An address.”
“What is it?”
“It’s in Wilmington Heights, Virginia. 123 Arnold Drive.”
He handed her a phone. “This also belongs to one of the men who were after us. Look up the address on the map. I’m guessing it’s near DC. Within an hour, at least.”
“You think it’s where they were going to take us?”
“It’s my best guess.”
Before she could pull up the map, the phone beeped. An incoming call.
A name popped up on the screen.
Leo McAllister.
NINE
Trent stared at the phone a moment, contemplating his options and weighing the possible consequences. He didn’t have much time to make up his mind.
“What should I do?” Tessa asked. “If no one answers, Leo will get suspicious.”
Trent held out his hand, decision made. “Let me have the phone.”
Her eyes widened even more. “Are you...?”
He nodded.
After a moment of hesitation, she slipped the device into his hands. He drew in a deep breath before putting it to his ear and answering. “Hello.”
“Tom, what’s the word?” a deep voice asked.
Trent kept his voice neutral, trying to sound indistinguishable. “So far, so good.”
“You running on schedule still?”
“By all calculations, yes.”
“How’s the girl?”
“Scared.”
“Good. Wait till she sees me.” He let out a diabolical yet untethered laugh.
Trent forced himself to let out a deep chuckle, also. He had to sound as if he was on Leo’s side, even if the mere thought of it made him feel sick to his stomach. “Yes, sir.”
“All right. See you in a few hours, then.”
Trent hung up and glanced at Tessa. Again, his heart welled with compassion and protectiveness. Leo was planning something extremely painful as a repercussion for her betraying him. Trent couldn’t let that happen. Anger surged through him at the thought. How people could be that twisted, that selfish, that evil was hard to fathom. Yet he’d seen his fair share of evil. He’d fought terrorists before. He’d won. He was determined to do the same here with Tessa.
“Well?”
“He says he’ll see us in a few hours. Wherever they were going, it wasn’t terribly far away.” DC was probably three hours from here, but the suburbs could be reached in two or less.
“So what do we do?”
“Call the number on the back of those credit cards. See if we can find out how much is left on the credit line. We’re going to need a new vehicle.” He glanced at the dashboard. “And gas.”
With trembling hands, she began making the calls. “It looks as if there’s about five thousand,” she said several minutes later. “You think we can get away with using these?”
“If we find a small dealer and we go at dusk so we’re less recognizable. Or if I put a hat on to disguise my face a little more. There are a lot of factors here.” They’d all raced through his mind at once, causing a small throb to start forming at the back of his head. There was so much at stake. One wrong move could end with both of them dead.
Not on his watch.
“Okay. Whatever we have to do.”
“It’s not ideal,” he said. “But there aren’t a lot of choices.”
“You’re right. If we are where I think, there’s a town about fifteen minutes from here. It’s small, but large enough to have a variety of businesses. Maybe we can find something there.”
“Even better—look up some online ads.” Buying from a private dealer was the best option. He prayed that everything would fall into place.
Tessa got busy, her fingers flying across the phone’s keyboard and her gaze concentrated on the screen. “This one looks promising.”
“Call them.”
Tessa did as he asked. When she hung up, she said, “The seller said we can go to his house now. He has one of those credit card readers, so he’ll let us use our cards.”
“Perfect. Tell me how to get there.”
Ten minutes later, they pulled up to a small house in the mountains. A man named Jim with long hair pulled back into a ponytail met them outside and showed them a faded red sedan he was selling.
“If I’d had more time, I would have cleaned it up for you. It’s a little junky inside. My apologies,” Jim said in a West Virginia drawl.
Trent peered inside and saw some old soda cans in the backseat, along with some napkins and a few magazines. That wasn’t what concerned him. He really needed to see under the hood.
Jim popped it open for him and Trent examined the hoses and belts, checked the fluids and looked for any corrosion. Afterward, he cranked the engine
and listened to it run for a moment.
“You two from around here?” Jim asked, crossing his arms and looking as if he had all the time in the world.
“Not too far away,” Trent said. “We’ve been looking for a new car for the family. We didn’t want to let this one pass us by.”
The man tapped his knuckles on the side of the vehicle. “She may not be beautiful, but she’s solid. I fixed her up myself. It’s what I do—find oysters and make them into pearls and then I sell them.”
Trent didn’t have enough time to make all of this small talk. He stepped from the driver’s seat and held out his hand. “We’ll take it.”
A smile spread across the man’s face and he closed the deal with a handshake. “Sounds great. Let me go get my phone and card reader.”
As he hurried into his house, Tessa looked up at Trent. “You think this can get us out of town?”
“The car seems to run well, even if it is junky. And the price is right. Now we just have to hope this payment goes through.”
Jim returned with his smartphone. Trent’s fingers were steady as he handed the credit card to him.
Jim looked at the card for a moment and then back at Trent. “Since this is such a large transaction, could I see some ID, also?”
“Of course.” He reached back into the wallet and emerged with the driver’s license. He tugged at his hat as Jim studied the picture a moment. The man looked at the image there and then back at Trent.
Trent held his breath, waiting for Jim’s conclusion. This could ruin everything for Trent and Tessa. He only prayed Jim didn’t look too closely.
“These pictures really make us look horrible, don’t they?” Jim finally said with a laugh.
A chuckled escaped from Trent as he let out the breath he held. “You’re telling me. Or maybe it’s the fact I need bifocals but keep resisting. I don’t feel old enough for that yet.”
“Let me get this done.” He swiped the card, waited a moment and then looked up with a smile. “All set.”
“Perfect.”
Jim handed him his card back, along with the car keys and title. “Enjoy!”
Trent glanced at Tessa, and she nodded. She took the keys from him. “I’ll be driving this. I’ll see you later...honey.”
Deadly Mountain Refuge: Mountain Ambush ; Mountain Hideaway Page 28
