Page 113 of Barristers & Bones

“How?”

“Torture, threats, coercion. Maybe find someone she’s attached to–although I doubt that woman loves anyone but herself–and threaten them.”

My blood went cold, and I dug my phone out of my backpack and speed-dialed Fenn.

“Hey, Lou? What’s up?”

“Where are you?”

“I’m eating lunch. Where are you?”

“Driving with Milo. My mother and Alistair Cross were waiting for me outside the law school. I think Montgomery followed her here, and I’m worried about Ezra and Sylvie.”

He hummed. “I’ll send someone to check on them, but anyone who tangles with Sylvie is asking to get their balls sucked out of their scrotum.” I could hear laughter in his voice.

“Fenn, this isn’t funny.”

Suddenly, Milo’s arm shot out in front of me. “Hang on,” he warned. I looked up in time to see the van in front of us suddenly stopped in the middle of a three-lane thoroughfare. Its back door flew open, revealing two men with guns.

“Fuck. This isn’t good.” Milo swerved sharply to the right, throwing me violently to the side. I heard two pings and realized the men were shooting at us. The SUV bumped up onto the curb, taking out a couple of landscape shrubs. Milo maneuvered around the van and swerved back onto the road.

He glanced in the rearview mirror and swore. Ducking, he pushed my head down. “Stay low!”

Shots thudded against the back end of the SUV, the sounds ringing through the cab. The back window shattered, and two round holes spidered across the front windshield.

Fenn yelled at me through my phone. “Luna, I heard gunshots. What the fuck is going on?”

“Someone’s shooting at us! A gray van stopped in the middle of the road, and they started shooting. I think a white Mercedes is with them.”

“Where the fuck are you?”

I looked around and punched the speaker button on my phone. “Milo got around them. We’re on Tropicana, just past Eastern. Oh shit, we’re coming to a red light!” I screamed as Milo ran the light and swerved sharply, barely missing two cars and a work truck carrying landscape supplies. The van behind us clipped the truck but didn’t slow down much, and the Mercedes wound through the stopped cars.

Fenn swore, and I could hear his car starting up. “Come to the mortuary. Take a hard right on Pecos, and drive to the empty lot in the back of the cemetery–we’ll probably be there before you. Call Sylvie and warn her you’re coming in hot and with a tail.”

He hung up without a goodbye, and I speed-dialed Sylvie.

She answered on the first ring. “Hey, bitch. Are you calling to do lunch? I just got done with a consult–”

I interrupted her. “We’re coming to the back cemetery parking lot with a tail. We’ll be there in about three minutes unless whoever is shooting at us gets lucky. Fenn said he’d be there before us.” I took a deep breath, trying to ram down the terror bubbling in my chest. “Sylvie, get Ezra and get out, I don’t want you two hurt. There’s a gray van with armed men behind us.”

“Someone is shooting at you? Fuck! Tell Milo to drive faster! We’ll be fine, just keep your head down and don’t let them get too far up on your side.” I briefly wondered how many car chases she’d been in. Glancing back behind Milo, I saw the van inching up beside us.

I pointed behind him and yelled, “Milo, they’re coming–” He yanked the wheel hard to the left, pushing the gray van over the short concrete curb into oncoming traffic. A box truck hit it head-on, the vehicles smashing into each other, and the sound punching through the air. A chain reaction of screeching breaks and fender benders piled up behind them. We kept going, and the white Mercedes changed lanes and continued following us.

“Sylvie, I need to go. Stay safe.” I stared, wide-eyed, as Milo barely made the right turn onto Pecos Road, our tires screeching loudly. The Mercedes overshot, but quickly whipped into the Burger King parking lot on the corner. We’d bought ourselves a little time, but not much.

“Milo, take the second right to get to the back parking lot. It’s vacant. Fenn said he and his men would beat us there.”

He swore, slowing down for a vintage baby blue Cadillac driving ten miles under the speed limit in front of us. He passed the car and got a loud honk.

“You need to call Roman and tell him what’s happening,” he muttered.

My heart thudded loudly in my chest, and my hands shook as I hit Roman’s number. How had things gone from a boring school day tothis? He didn’t answer, so I left a voice message.

“Hi honey, this is your favorite wife. We’ve had a busy Monday. Evelyn and Alistair ambushed us outside the law school, but that’s not all. Several men with guns in a van tried to shoot us off the road. We got rid of the van, but Montgomery Cross and another man are in a white–Milo, turn right here!” I interrupted myself. “Anyway. Fenn is meeting us at the back cemetery parking lot to intercept them. I… I love you. I wanted you to know that, you know, just in case. Okay, bye.”

Milo shook his head when I ended the call. “Is that the first time you told him you love him?”

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