Page 40 of Trapped with the Covert Ops Soldier

“Can I crawl into a seat now?”

“Yeah, I guess.”

She dug her way out from under their bags and slithered into the front passenger seat. “Do you know where you’re going?”

“Mostly. Your dad gave me directions. Feel free to tell me I’ve taken a wrong turn.”

She didn’t respond to the obvious opening to needle him. “Is it me or could that shot have killed me?”

“Huh?”

“I was a pretty stationary target, unlike yesterday when that lucky penny saved me. The sniper could have killed me just now, so it begs the question.”

“Yes, it does.” Smitty took a while before he said, “Do you think JD passed on your message?”

“If the sniper believed it, he wouldn’t have taken a second shot at me.”

Smitty’s brows hung low over his eyes. “You’re right. Something has changed.”

They were both silent, considering the possibilities.

“Could it have been a warning?” Smitty asked, finally.

“For what?”

“I don’t know.”

“Damn it.” Abby threw up her hands. “Why doesn’t this person communicate like normal people? He could ask me, write me a note, something other than destroying every door in my vicinity?”

“You’re trying to apply rational thought to an irrational situation. It won’t work.”

“I hate this. I absolutely hate this. What is it with men and violence? Don’t they know that most problems can only be solved with communication not guns?”

“Hey, my gun is pretty good at getting my point across most of the time.”

She gave him a glum look. “You suck.”

That made him laugh. “You don’t like it when you’re wrong, do you?”

“Does anyone? And I’m not wrong. A simple conversation would solve this stupidity.”

“If you can believe the town’s drunk mascot.”

“JD is a lot of things, but a mascot isn’t one of them.”

“He’s a veteran, seen action in Nam. A lot of those guys ended up on the streets, though most in big cities.”

“What did you think of his warning?”

“About the sniper?”

“No, about you becoming another ghost?”

“That’s more than a little crazy.”

“Take the next right. We’ll be on gravel from now on.”

Smitty nodded and took the turn, but didn’t offer any more insight into JD’s ramblings.

---