Someone is after us.
Without glancing at his phone, he hit two buttons and held it to his ear. “Charles. There’s an issue. I found a .308 round on Scarlette’s doorstep. The perp wore a mask and gloves. No discernable clothing. That was my plan. Yes, the height and weight could match Angie. The walk was feminine. I can’t take a chance if it is something else.”
Charles must have been talking because Austin grew silent. He glanced back in the rearview mirror. “I have a visual. It’s Angie. She’s hanging back, but I’ve made the truck three times since we left. Yeah, that’s my next step.”
Austin was silent again as he listened, his face a mask. His body moved as he drove, but he was in soldier mode.
Angie’s following us? In her truck? That was her? It seemed a little drastic to leave a bullet on the doorstep.
Austin narrowed his eyes. “I agree.”
He ended the call and scanned his surroundings. “Just a few more minutes and you can sit up. I need to make sure.”
“What’s going on?”
His eyes shifted again to the rearview mirror after we made another turn. “Angie is following us. I assume she was the one who put the round on your doorstep. I’m going to call the cops now.”
I gasped. “Why would she do that?”
“Probably to get me on the move. She’s reckless and impatient.”
To go to these extremes, there had to be something else driving this.
“If she wanted you to move, should we have stayed?” This was all happening so fast. I was not soldier material. I needed more than thirty seconds to process everything.
We turned again. It was like we were zigzagging around. “No. I need to call the cops now. Give me a second.”
Austin hit a few buttons on his phone. “Yes, this is Austin Thomas. I’m being pursued by Angie Turnstead. We’re headed north on Old Wire Road. There’s an open field. Yes, that’s the one. Our ETA is five minutes. She’s presumed armed and dangerous—I found a .308 shell on my doorstep this morning.” Austin grew silent and listened. “Of course. I want your team to know I’m ex-military and have my concealed weapons. Yes, sir. I understand. My girlfriend, Scarlette Noelle, is in the car with me.””
He hung the up the phone. “What did they say?”
“The police are en route. We’ll most likely get there before they do. Everything will be okay.”
I hoped so.
We would be alone with Angie. And she was most likely armed. The thought sent a chill through me. “Can I get up in the seat now?” Being on the floorboard left me feeling trapped.
Austin glanced in his rearview mirror. “Buckle up, but stay down.”
Scrambling, I climbed into the seat and b
uckled my seatbelt. We turned onto a dirt road. “How far away are we?”
“Just a couple of minutes. Oh, fuck.”
He gunned his truck, and I braced myself by holding the bar above the door. “Angie is closing in. I’m going to try to keep her just out of reach until we get to the open field up ahead. I need to immobilize her until the cops arrive.”
“Immobilize?” I was not a fan of that word. At all.
“Get her secured.” Austin glanced my way. “And alive. I don’t want her hurt. She’s sick, not a terrorist.”
Phew. Austin gunned the truck again, and I gritted my teeth. I glanced in the sideview mirror. A black truck followed too closely behind. Austin expertly kept her just out of reach. She became more impatient and dangerously swerved the truck across the road.
My knuckles ached from holding on, but ahead of us, I saw the open field.
“Hold on tight.”
Austin slammed on the brakes and swerved. The black truck veered around us, and Austin gunned it again. We were in the green field and became the pursuer. I was nearly hyperventilating as we got closer to the rear of the truck.