Page 57 of Further To Fall

My hand shook violently as I reached out an arm to shut off my car and unbuckle my seatbelt. Turning around, I saw that the whole back corner of my car was smooshed in like an accordion. My Prius had been no match for the giant SUV.

The only person I wanted in that moment was Austin. I started searching the car for my cell phone. It had long since left the cup holder. I was lucky it hadn’t flown up and smacked me in the face. My fingers finally found it lodged under the passenger seat, and my hand continued to tremble as I unlocked the screen and searched for Austin’s name in my favorites. Tapping his contact, I pressed the phone to my ear. He picked up on the third ring, and I could hear Blue happily barking in the background. “Hey, Firecracker, you get lost?”

“I was actually wondering if you could come and get me.” My voice was shaking, I hated it. “Someone ran me off the road.”

“Where are you?” All humor had fled from his tone.

“On Mulholland, about a mile from the turnoff to your house.”

“I’m on my way, stay in the car and keep your doors locked.”

“Okay.”

“Do you want me to stay on the phone with you?”

“No, I’m okay, just a little wigged, but I’ll be fine till you get here.”

“Okay, hold tight.”

“I will.” A click sounded, and the line went dead. I rubbed the tender spot on my chest and willed the tears to stop. I did not want to be crying when Austin showed up.

Less than five minutes later, I saw Austin’s black Range Rover tear around a curve on the opposite side of Mulholland. With tires screeching, he swung into the overlook and was out of his vehicle in a flash, leaving his door wide open. I started to open my own door before he reached it, but he flung it the rest of the way. He hauled me up against him. My chest protested the action, but I bit my lip. “Christ, what the hell happened?”

I burrowed into his chest, laying my cheek over his heart. It pounded in a staccato rhythm against my skin. “I’m not really sure. Someone was riding my tail when I got onto Mulholland. They tapped my bumper once, but I had no place to pull over. When I saw the overlook, I was going to pull off here, but before I could, they slammed into me.”

“Fuck! Are you okay?” He pulled back and started running his hands over me like he was checking for injuries.

“I’m okay, really. My chest is just a little tender from where the seatbelt got me, but nothing bad.”

Before I could stop him, Austin was unbuttoning the top two buttons of my blouse and examining the skin there. “You’re going to have one hell of a bruise. Do your ribs hurt?” He started pressing down all around my ribcage.

I finally smacked his hands away. “My ribs are fine. I’m fine. My car, however, is not.”

He grimaced as he took in the back end of my car. “Have you called the cops yet?”

I stiffened, thinking about my last encounter with the police. “Do I have to? You saw how they were last time.”

He rubbed a hand over my spine. “Sorry, baby, we have to call them. You’ll need a police report for your insurance at the very least.”

“Crud, I forgot about that.”

“Let’s get you into my SUV, and I’ll call them. I’ll be with you the whole time, you won’t be alone for a second.”

“Thanks,” I mumbled. I was sulking, and I knew it. Austin gently helped me up into the passenger seat of the Rover and then grabbed his phone from the console. He paced back and forth while talking to a dispatcher, but I didn’t pay attention to what he was saying.

He slipped back into the car, shutting us in glorious air conditioning. “They said someone will be here in about ten minutes.” Austin reached over. Grabbing my hand, he brought it to his mouth and kissed my palm. I let out a breath at the contact. “I’m so glad you’re okay. Two more feet, and you would have gone over. I could kill whoever was driving that car.”

“Don’t tell the cops that.”

“I won’t, smartass.” Before long, an LAPD squad car pulled in behind us. Austin squeezed my hand. “You’ve got this.”

We stepped from the SUV and toward the two officers. They were polite while I walked them through everything that had happened. Austin grew more and more tense at my side when I described the black SUV idling in the road after crashing into me. One officer took photos of my wrecked car, while the other filled out a report.

When Austin asked if it was possible that the crash could be related to the break-in at my house, both officers looked skeptical. “LA drivers are crazy,” one said. “You’d be shocked by how many hit and runs we see. The driver probably just stuck around to make sure you weren’t hurt and then took off to avoid any charges. With this report, your insurance will cover everything and shouldn’t raise your rates.”

He said it like all I was worried about was having to pay for the damages. But I had been wondering the same thing Austin clearly was. Could this have been the same person who broke into my house? I shuddered at the thought of that person having a pair of my panties. Austin must have felt my shudder because he pulled me tighter against him.

We thanked the officers and got back into Austin’s SUV, both silent as we drove towards Austin’s house, lost in our own thoughts and theories. He pulled up in front of the fountain and hurried around to help me down. Ushering me inside, he guided me towards his ridiculously comfortable couch. “Stay here, I’ll get you some Tylenol and let Blue out.”

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