CHAPTER 25
DREW
Lola was quiet, the look in her eyes indicating her thoughts were swarming madly inside her head. I kept checking on her through the rear-view mirror as we drove out of town, taking a long, twisted maze of side roads and sprawling suburban communities to make sure we weren’t being followed. Finally, we were on a secluded open road, which would eventually take us to the highway, and I allowed my foot to press down on the accelerator. Feeling the Hummer pull away from the nightmare behind us gave the turmoil inside me some reprieve, but not enough. The need for blood was so powerful I knew I was going to go AWOL on Dillon and Braiden. I could understand their need to do this mission the right way. Ben Crane was high profile with powerful people behind him. But they would understand. This would be on me, though. If there were repercussions, I’d be the one to face them.
My eyes lifted once again to the rear-view mirror, needing to see Lola, to know she was there and she was safe. Something had changed in her. She didn’t look so lost anymore. Right now, if I had to guess, I’d say she was pissed. Anger I could deal with. Her lost and despondent eyes had come close to slaying me. Her rage would make her stronger; it would make me stronger.
“Drew,” Gabbie whispered beside me.
The urgency in her tone had my eyes return to the road only to find what had her sitting to rigid attention. Three big black SUVs were parked across the asphalt, and what looked like at least eight men were standing in front of them, weapons raised. Rather than slowing down, I pressed my foot, planting the pedal to the floor.
“Mouse, get down,” I growled. The Hummer was as bulletproof as a bulletproof vehicle could get, but it didn’t mean a slug couldn’t penetrate it.
“Keep your seatbelt on. Just lay across the seat,” Gabbie explained in a calm voice while she watched to make sure Lola did as she was told. Then she pulled her own seatbelt to make sure it was tight over her chest. “We going through?”
“Yep.”
From the corner of my eye, I saw her grin as she shrunk down in her seat, making herself smaller in case a bullet did penetrate the glass. The men began firing their weapons, but they simply pinged off the steel. When they hit the windshield, it didn’t shatter as it normally would, but instead cracked as the bullet became lodged in the thick glass and polycarbonate layers. My hands held the steering wheel so tight my knuckles turned white as I braced for impact. We hit hard, Hank busting his way through the smaller, weaker SUVs like they were nothing more than toys. The steering wheel pulled to the right, and I went with it for a moment before pulling back to the left. We quickly straightened out, and I stomped on the accelerator again, putting as much space between us and the wrecked convoy. Two of their cars were smashed up pretty bad, but I didn’t know if they were out of commission completely. The third was already throwing gravel and pulling onto the road as it took off in pursuit.
Gabbie reached beneath the seat and pulled out two weapons, then ducked back down to grab two more. Making sure the guns were loaded, she handed one to me, which I slipped into a strategically placed holster on the inside of the door, then she placed one Glock down the back of her pants, a second down the front, gripping the third between her steady hands.
I knew exactly where I was and what roads I had between here and the open highway. In five more miles, I would reach a crossroad: left heading further into farmland, right swinging back towards town. So far, only one SUV was behind us, so I assumed the other two were not drivable. One pursuer would be a piece of cake. I could lose them in the traffic of town.
“Call Dillon and tell him the Dorsons should be extracted until this situation is contained. They need a safe place,” I growled as I glanced over my shoulder to make sure Lola was still pressed to the seat. She was with wide eyes full of fear. “I got this, Mouse. Just stay down.”
She nodded, and then I heard Gabbie speaking quickly into her phone. The crossroad was before me, and the SUV was keeping pace in the distance. Slowing marginally, I pulled Hank over to the right-hand side, hugging it tight before pulling hard into the right-hand turn. The heavy-duty tires gripped hard, squealing as we took the corner. Straightening out, I planted my foot again.
“You gonna lose them?” Gabbie asked.
“Does a bear shit in the woods?”
“You tell me, you’re the only bear I know,” Gabbie sassed.
“I’m gonna lose them. Dorsons?”
“Dillon’s on it. He's putting Braiden on a chopper. They'll be here within the hour. In the meantime, he’s putting in a call to local PD.” She cast a quick glance over her shoulder, checking on Lola before pulling her concerned gaze back to me. “He also said Claymont is a no go. Sam discovered chatter on the net that BlackOut is on this.”
“Fuck!” I spat out. BlackOut was a mercenary team that seriously lacked morals. They were all about the cash and would take out their own mothers without blinking an eye if the price was right.
“You think that’s them behind us?” Gabbie’s voice was calm and curious, proving what a good soldier she was, keeping her shit together when things got real.
“No, this isn't their style. They're far more discreet. They prefer to creep around in the shadows with a silencer than barricade the damn highway,” I murmured.
BlackOut, fuck, I’d almost taken a job with the bastards when a lick of common sense finally hit me upside the head. I chose Toporov over BlackOut, and though one might say I’d chosen one monster over another, Alexander had far more scruples than the BlackOut operatives.
“We have a chopper now?” I asked after a moment’s silence.
Gabbie grinned. She was a woman who loved her gadgets and vehicles, the bigger the better.
“Why the hell didn’t we take the chopper?” I growled, thinking this situation could have been avoided if we had flown.
“It was unavailable, but it came in this morning. Not to worry, we have Hank,” she said proudly, patting the dash.
Shaking my head, I took another right, then left, and the open fields quickly disappeared under homes and civilization. Not wanting to put families at risk of being hit by a stray bullet that still pinged the back of Hank every now and again, I took a left that pulled into a more industrial area on the outskirts of town. A sudden red light forced a growl from my lips. I slowed but didn’t stop, my eyes on the rear-view mirror as I watched the SUV in the distance gain on us.
“You’re clear.”
My trust in Gabbie was unwavering, and I pressed my foot on the accelerator before even checking the intersection. Taking a hard right, Hank hit the curb and rolled over it with ease before all four tires were back on the flat asphalt. Taking another right, a tirade of impressive cursing left my lips as my foot moved from the accelerator to brake. A bus had pulled to the curb to let people off, but the street was so narrow between the buildings it didn’t leave us room to get around them.
“Down there,” Gabbie pointed to a narrow side street to our right.
“We won’t fit.”
“Sure we will. Hank might be a chunky beast, but he’ll fit, trust me.”
I did. Throwing us into reverse I pulled back and turned into the side ally. We fit . . . just. The side mirrors caught the building in a few spots, and the sound of metal scraping filled the silent car.
“They’re behind us,” Gabbie confirmed as I reached the end and pulled onto the street without checking traffic. Brakes screeched and horns screamed as I moved into the flow. It wasn’t heavy traffic, but enough to help lose the SUV behind us. The closer to town, the traffic did begin to thicken, and as we approached another red light, I took a left then a right, pulling onto the main road.
“You see ’em?” I asked, not wanting to take my eyes off the busy street before me.
“Not yet.”
With that, I pulled hard into a driveway which led down beneath a building. As soon as we stopped, Gabbie was out, taking up position by the entrance.
“Don’t move,” I commanded Lola before jumping out, pulling the gun from the holster in the door as I did. Taking up position behind the Hummer, I watched Gabbie meld into the shadows, her eyes on the street. I saw the minute her body tensed, her gun raising up by mere inches, and then quickly sagging with relief as she watched what I assumed was the SUV pass us by.
“We need to get out of town,” she said, jogging back towards us. “There is a place about an hour north from here, a bed and breakfast that’s off the main road. It’s secluded and surrounded by farmland and trees.”
“What if they’re full?” was my first thought.
Gabbie’s smile was soft when she shook her head. “Even if she has guests, she has a converted barn we can use.”
“Can it be secured? Where is it? Maybe you should call ahead and see if they have room.”
“Trust me, the barn will be available, and I’ve stayed there plenty of times. It's safe.”
Even though Gabbie was being evasive, I did trust her.
“Drew?” came Lola’s voice from behind me.
Shit, I’d forgotten she was still lying in the back of the Hummer. Pulling her door open, she looked up at me, the fear still heavy in her eyes.
“It’s okay, Mouse. They're gone for now. We need to leave Hank here, though, so unbuckle.”
Gabbie was already emptying our stuff from the back as Lola released her seatbelt and slid towards me. With my hands on her waist, I lowered her to the ground and relished the feel of her arms as they slid around me.
“We’re leaving the Hummer?” she asked into my chest.
“It’s too recognizable. There’s a shopping complex above us. We're gonna go up there and grab a cup of coffee while Gabbie gets us another vehicle.”
Gabbie patted the back of Hank as she shut the back door. “One of the boys will come get you soon, baby,” she murmured to the car, and I shook my head. She really did have an unhealthy attachment to this vehicle.
Lola had since stepped out of my embrace and was hugging her stomach as she leaned against a concrete pillar beside me. She looked like she might be in shock if the blank look on her face was any indication. Slipping my Glock into the holster under my jacket, I took a second weapon from Gabbie and slid it down the back of my pants. She threw me my phone, which I slipped into a pocket, and then reached down for my and Lola’s overnight bags. Gabbie already had her backpack thrown over one shoulder.
“I’ll grab us a rental and call you as soon as I get back.”
With a nod, I took Lola’s hand and pulled her toward an elevator. She remained unerringly quiet by my side as we reached the ground floor, and her hand felt weak and cold in mine. Doing a quick visual sweep, I saw nothing out of place as we stepped from the elevator. Noticing a coffee shop a few doors down, we made our way there. I ordered us something to drink and eat at the counter before taking a table in the back of the store. I sat with my back to the wall and was careful to put Lola in front of me, facing away from the shoppers who passed by. I didn’t want whoever was looking for Lola to find her to easily.
The coffee shop was winding down for the day, and only a few customers lingered as the waitress moved around like a hummingbird, cleaning tables and righting menus as she went.
We remained quiet as we waited for our coffee and food. Lola messed around with the things on the table; she arranged the salt and pepper so they sat side by side, then moved the menu, which sat in a metal holder, so it layed beside the salt and pepper, all in a neat line. Her hands shook ever so slightly, and her skin was pale. She was definitely in shock, but trying hard to get a handle on it. As soon as our order was delivered, I took the liberty of adding two sugars to her coffee. Her nose scrunched, and I smiled.
“I don’t like sugar in my coffee,” she whispered.
“I know, Mouse, but the sugar will be just the kick you need right now.”
Pushing the mug closer to her, Lola reluctantly raised it to her lips and took a sip.
“Coffee is not just a beverage,” she murmured on a sigh, “it’s liquid sanity.”
Another of those cute quotes she sprouted, one of her many quirks I liked. Grinning behind my own cup of coffee, I took a sip, feeling life pour back into my veins as the hot beverage left a warm path down my throat and into my stomach. It had been a long ass day that we had started at dawn. The stores would be closing soon, and we needed to get back on the road.
A toasted ham and cheese croissant was placed in front of Lola and an all-day breakfast of ham, eggs, sausage, and bacon in front of me. We devoured our meals as if they were our last. Neither of us had eaten since breakfast.
“How do you think they found us?” Lola asked around a mouthful of croissant. Her hands were steady now, and the color was back in her cheeks.
I shrugged. “They probably had eyes on the Dorsons. Once we were confirmed as being there, they would have scrambled to put a team together.”
“How did they know we’d be on that road?” she wondered out loud.
“There were only two ways into town: north and south. As soon as we left, they probably had eyes on us, tracking us.”
“You didn’t see anyone following us?”
“I didn’t. Neither did Gabbie, and we were both alert and watching. No doubt, at some point, they realized which direction we were heading and put the team closest to the south side in position. It’s what I would have done.”
“Who are the BlackOuts?”
As quietly as Gabbie and I had conducted that conversation, she’d still heard. Not wanting to worry her further, I kept my tone light and unconcerned.
“An organization, much like Montgomery’s.”
“But,” Lola whispered, “they’re on the other side? They’re the bad guys, like storm troopers?”
I tried to hide my smile at her analogy. “I guess you could say that, but I sure as shit don’t swing a lightsaber, honey.”
At that she smiled, too, but it vanished as fast as it appeared. “Montgomery’s is pretty good. I mean, you’re all trained soldiers and stuff. What about the BlackOut team?”
I shrugged, playing it nonchalant. “Not as good as us,” I said, truly believing the words. They were good, but they were missing one thing we had . . . heart. When you truly believed in what you were doing, when you really felt as though you had something to lose, you fought harder for it. The BlackOut organization might have skilled employees, but none of them cared about anything past their pay check.
“Why aren’t we going home?” Lola asked as she pushed her empty plate away.
“We’re going off the grid, somewhere safe, just for a day or two.”
“Like a vacation?” The smile on her face was back. “I’ve never been on a vacation before. I mean, I traveled around a bit, but that was relocating. I’ve never actually gone somewhere and just done nothing.”
I looked into her dreamy gaze, the excitement over the simple idea of having a vacation was bringing a look to her face I hadn’t seen before . . . vibrancy. We weren’t exactly going on a vacation, she’d probably be stuck indoors for the most part until Dillon pointed us in our next direction. I wasn’t sure if that would lead us back to Claymont or not. In the meantime though, if I could offer her some semblance of a vacation, I damn well would.
“Yeah, Mouse, we’re going on a small vacation.”
The light in her features as her smile grew was too much. I leaned forward and caught her lips in a fierce kiss. My tongue traced the seam of her mouth, and she opened immediately for me. Dipping into her soft mouth, I tasted, I devoured, and as fast as I took that kiss, I pulled away, leaving her breathless, with cheeks full of color and eyes full of shock and awe. A hand rose to her lips in wonder as she felt the remnants of that fierce possession, then she smiled again.
My phone, buzzing away in my pocket, caught my attention, and I raised it to my ear.
“Yeah?”
“I’m out back.”
“What are you driving?” I asked, as I began to stand from the table.
“Oh, don’t worry. You won’t miss me,” Gabbie said with humor in her voice, then she hung up.
Damn, now she had me worried. Knowing she hadn’t eaten all day either, I bought her a muffin and a cup of coffee to go before pulling Lola through the center toward the enormous sliding doors to the back parking lot. When I stepped out into the fading light of day, I came to an abrupt halt.
“Fuck,” I whispered, partly annoyed, partly impressed.
“What’s wrong, Drew? You don’t like the color?”