Page 32 of Dagger

“Location, ma’am?”

I looked around and then referred to the navigation on my map to figure out the answer.

Suddenly, a car slammed into me and sent my face crashing into the steering wheel. I screamed.

“Ma’am, are you all right?”

I blinked, ignoring the way my vision blurred, and black dots swam in front of my eyes. My nose stung and my ears rang. “Someone just rammed into me!” I managed to push out through pulsating pain. I looked into the rearview mirror and headlights blinded me. “Oh my god, he’s going to hit me again!” I screamed and braced myself.

But the impact never came. Tires screeched and gravel kicked up before the car jumped back onto the road and sped away.

“Ma’am, are you there?”

I nodded even though she couldn’t see me. “I’m here. He didn’t hit me again. He sped off.”

After an eternal silence, she told me to hang on and wait for the police.

***

Twenty minutes later, a patrol car pulled up and out ambled an older man who looked straight out of an old cowboy western. “Sinclair Bronson?”

I nodded. “Yes.”

“I’m Sheriff Cross,” he said, offering a kind smile.

“Thank you for coming.” There was something calming about his presence and I immediately felt safe.

“Do you need EMS?”

My hand went to my face, and I shrugged. “I’m not sure. I hurt, but I’m okay.”

He nodded and helped me out of the car. “Any idea who might want to do this to you?”

I shrugged. “Not really. But there’s this guy, Dagger, and he said he saw someone watching me.”

Immediately, the sheriff’s interest was piqued. “How do you know Dagger?”

Shit. “I’m a fourth grade teacher at Steel City Elementary and his daughter is in my class. I’ve been helping her.” I didn’t know why I felt so defensive, but I did, and the urge to over-explain was intense. “I don’t know who that man is, and I can’t confirm it was the same man. I didn’t get the plate either. Sorry.”

He nodded. “It’s all right. Your car looks drivable.” His gaze bounced between my face and the back of the car.

I nodded. “I’ll drive it home and get it repaired in the morning. Thank you for coming all the way out here for what turned out to be nothing.”

“Hit and run isn’t nothing, Ms. Bronson. It’s a felony.”

“Right. But there’s nothing to go on.”

He smiled. “I wouldn’t be so sure about that.”

I didn’t know what that meant, but my head was spinning so I nodded and waited for Sheriff Cross to take photos of my car before I was allowed to go home, where I planned to sleep and nothing else.

But that plan was interrupted by the tall, good-looking biker sitting on my porch.

Chapter 18

Dagger

She didn’t call me. She found herself in exactly the position I said she’d end up in and when it happened, what did she do? She called the fucking cops. I was grateful it was Cross who’d answered her call, because afterward he texted Diesel to let him know what had happened and Diesel had let me know.

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