Page 48 of Abducted

“Go!” Nate growled.

Lana grabbed her shoes from by the door, and Nate ushered them to the garage door access. Cal clicked the key fob, and the doors unlocked. She slid into the passenger’s seat, and Cal pressed the garage door opener.

Crack! Crack!

His shoulders tensed.

Lana’s head whipped around. “They’re shooting,” she wheezed.

The garage door rattled open, and he cringed as the sound echoed in the night. Return shots fired, splitting the air. He started the ignition. A dead calm seeped into his bones. “Get your seat belt on, and keep your head down.” He peeled out of the garage and down the narrow drive to the alleyway.

At least they’d get a head start. The truck bounced over the gravel terrain and jerked when it slammed into a pothole. Bright headlights reflected in the rearview mirror. Lana craned her neck around.

“Cal, that vehicle is moving really fast.” The headlights glared into their mirrors, making him squint. Lana breathed a curse as he whipped the truck out of the alley and onto the main road. The truck shot forward on the smooth pavement, but the vehicle behind them peeled after them.

Crack, crack!

Glass pelted the back of his neck. He shot his hand out and shoved Lana’s head between her legs. “Dammit, stay down.” He weaved through a column of cars, and the truck fell behind. Cal kept his gaze on the silver truck in the rearview mirror. He couldn’t make out the bastard’s faces, but there had to be at least three.

“We need to lose them. Where’s your place?” Hysteria pitched her voice to a squeak. She parted her hair that had fallen like a dark curtain over her face.

“Just outside Baring.”

“All right, then we need to get on WA-522 going east. Take the next exit on your right.”

“I’m not leading them to my place,” he ground out.

“They don’t know we have anywhere to go. We have lots of time to lose them.” The turn approached, and his teeth sank into his tongue. In less than a second, they would miss it.

“Cal, turn!”

He whipped the vehicle, merging onto the on-ramp. But his fast move hadn’t slipped past the assholes in the truck. They turned behind them, gaining speed swiftly behind the several cars that separated them. He slammed his foot on the gas, gunning them onto the interstate. He merged in front of a transport vehicle, cutting the driver off. His horn blared, but the silver truck had no choice but to merge behind the trailer.

“Good one.” They traveled for nearly fifteen minutes, but with every lane change the silver truck flashed not far behind them. Lana straightened in her seat and unbuckled her seat belt. He grabbed her belt before she could release it. “What the hell are you doing? Stay buckled. As soon as they fall far enough behind, I’m going to lose them.”

“You need to let me drive.”

He did a double take, but her eyes were wide and determined. “Not happening, honey.”

“It’s only a matter of time before they get close enough to shoot out one of our tires. Unless you want me to shoot at them, you’d better let me drive. I’m better at navigating than you are, anyway.”

He stiffened. “How do you figure?”

“Because you nearly missed our turn last time.”

“I was trying to lose them.”

“And I see that was successful. Now, seriously, stop being so damn macho.”

He grunted. She was right. He’d have to take them out before more of their buddies showed up. “Fine. Come straddle my lap.” She scrambled over the seats and settled her ass over his groin. His body tensed, and his blood heated. Her hands gripped the steering wheel above his, pulling him back to the moment.

“Put your foot on mine and I’ll move out from under you.”

Her dark head gave a sharp nod, and her small shoe rested on the toe of his. “Ready?”

“Yes, go! They’re behind us now.”

He moved his hands from the steering wheel to her hips, and eased out from underneath her body. She kept the truck steady and settled into the seat. He reached over her shoulder and pulled the seat belt across her chest, buckling her in.

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