Page 29 of Edge of Danger

Once she was inside with the door locked, she looked around. No, the windows were too narrow. No escape through there.

With a deep breath and a silent prayer, she erased the contacts in her phone—she couldn’t leave Brax vulnerable—before leaving it lying on the counter and ducking out of the room.

It wasn’t easy, cutting her last tie to the rest of the world, and it would be hard to explain how she lost it again. But whatever it took to make Brax believe her, she would do.

She kept her head down, taking the exit closest to the restroom rather than the main door out front. It was dark, almost eleven o’clock, with plenty of cars in the lot to hide behind.

The car pulled up near the door she’d just come out of. An older model, a little banged up. Professional villainy must not pay much, she guessed.

A few panic-filled minutes later, the passenger went inside. She could barely see over the hood of the car she’d hidden behind, crouching in weeds and broken glass. The pockmarked driver stayed behind the wheel, peering out over the lot.

She hardly dared breathe, much less move. Could he see her? Did he know she was there?

After a few minutes, the man came out from the diner and muttered something to the driver before getting back into the car and slamming the door. He was angry. They both were. Their voices carried her way, faint but audible. Plenty of unsavory words were thrown around.

Brax’s car was only four down from the car she hid behind. The only real shot she had of getting away was putting as much distance between those two buffoons and herself as possible. As soon as they left, she’d have to get out of there.

She moved slowly, carefully, one eye always on her pursuers. They were arguing over what to do next, she guessed, too busy to notice any movement up ahead.

Or to notice Brax’s car parked right in front of them. It was the same car she’d used at the mall, so one would think they’d stake it out until she appeared. They must not have considered it. Too busy wondering why they couldn’t pin her down.

The driver pulled away—slowly, cautiously, like he was waiting for her to pop out from the shadows at any second. He wasn’t a complete idiot. But he couldn’t stay there all night, idling in the lot and blocking cars from leaving or entering.

She crept alongside the door and opened it just enough to slide inside, closing it quickly to kill the interior light. Her pursuers were gone. There was nobody to see.

That didn’t mean she was out of danger, and she knew it.

Seatbelt fastened, hands at the perfect ten and two on the wheel—which she was practically crushing with her grip—she eased out of the lot and started driving.

But where could she go?

She certainly couldn’t spend the entire night driving. There was only so much gas in the tank, and she had no money to refill it.

A deep, head-splitting yawn answered any further questions. She’d been up since five with Walker, and it was now half past eleven. Even a gallon of coffee couldn’t combat her deep fatigue.

She eyed the parking lot of a supermarket. Would it be a good place to pull into and go to sleep?

Before she could make a decision, a flash of headlights in the mirror almost blinded her. She turned her head away, blinking hard. Some people were such jerks. There was no reason to follow so—

Her already cramping hands gripped the wheel harder as that familiar tingling sensation prickled at the back of her neck.

A sudden right turn pointed her in the direction of downtown. The car behind her took a right too.

He’d only gone around the block again.

Tears threatened to spill onto her cheeks. She couldn’t let them. Wouldn’t. It would mean she was beaten, but she hadn’t been beaten yet.

The cars and cabs and pedestrians of a downtown Friday night were just what she needed. Not that she expected to blend in, but tailing her would be more of a challenge with so many obstacles to get around. As it was, groups of people crossed in the middle of the street, not bothering to walk to the corner. Cars double-parked to drop off and pick up. It took time just to creep from one light to the next.

Tessa steered around one of those double-parked cars and was glad to see the double-parker pulled out before her pursuers could get past. The pockmarked man leaned on the horn, shouting something that blended in with the noise of the street.

She took advantage of this and made a sharp left at the next corner, barely missing a couple who’d started to cross without seeing her. She winced, waving in apology before flooring the gas pedal, then took another left at the next corner.

Right, left. Doubling back on herself. Always checking in the mirror. She’d thought she’d caught a glimpse of her tail now and then, but never for long. There were too many people in the way, too many cars suddenly pulling out of spaces and blocking the view.

After an hour of playing cat and mouse with Robert’sfriends, Tessa was fairly confident she’d lost them for good. Her vision was starting to blur, and real, true exhaustion set in once the adrenaline rush calmed down.

She pulled in behind a dark strip mall. Another alley. She sensed a pattern, but at least nobody would come looking for her behind the row of stores.

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