Page 69 of The Rough Ride

It was definitelynotthe flirty giggle that had distracted him weeks ago. “Not long enough, Bonnie.”

“Oh, come on now. Didn’t you enjoy the lip stain and nail polish? I so tried to be memorable.” She swaggered a few feet closer to him, gun aimed at his head.

“Your right shoulder is bleeding. What happened?” He swung slightly left to force her back toward the guardrail.

“That piece of shit you call a girlfriend shot me.”

Pride filled his chest.Good for her.“Where’s Liz?”

“She’s dead. In the backseat. You wanna see?” She smiled and cocked her gun.

Nick’s heart lurched, and his pulse raced.No. No.

Lana spoke into his Bluetooth. “There’s movement in the backseat, Nick. She’s alive.”

Thank God.“Where you at, Lana?” he whispered.

“Fifteen feet from the perp. Hiding in the traffic. Behind her now.”

The sedan trunk latch popped, and the back door opened. Liz stumbled out near the guardrail and crawled to the trunk, flung it open, and wailed a heartrending cry. She wheeled around. “Don’t shoot her, Nick. She’s got Ella.”

He steeled his eye on Bonnie’s hand and shouted, “No, she doesn’t. I’ve got our daughter, Liz. And your mom.”

“Did you ever tell her about us, Nick?” Bonnie sidestepped closer to Liz and yelled over the sound of approaching police sirens. “This man has a mighty fine chassis, Lieutenant. Took me for a ride a few weeks ago.”

Liz stood trembling and grabbed a tire iron from the trunk. “I know all about it. He pretended you were me the whole time. Guess you weren’t that exciting.” Liz twirled the tire iron like a baton and took a step toward her captor. “You tricked me into thinking you had Ella, you vile witch. How’d you do that?”

Bonnie sneered and started boasting. “The day you went to the zoo? I was on you like white on rice and collected information to use later. It came in handy. I recorded her cries when that bird pecked her finger. Then, I pinched her thigh in a tight crowd to get her really wound up. A mother always recognizes her own baby’s cries, right?”

She continued, shaking her head. “I should’ve just killedyou then, but I’m more deliberate than Jazz. Ienjoythe torment. Fucking up your work files was pure fun. I kept waiting for you to lose your job, or at least your security clearance.”

Liz took another step closer. “And my car?”

Bonnie curled her lip and backed up a few feet. “It was supposed to be quick and clean. Merciful—which you don’t deserve. You’re just too stupid to die.”

“That’s enough, babe. Move back.” Nick stepped into the line of fire between the two women.

Lana’s voice pierced his earpiece. “While you guys are up there playing true confessions and who-did-who, I’ve got a bead on this bitch. You want her dead or alive?”

“Alive. For the feds. No collateral damage if possible.” Even so, he refocused his aim for a kill shot. “You still do that kick?” he whispered under his breath, but loud enough for the Bluetooth to catch.

“Hell, yeah. We’ve practiced it enough.”

“Go for it.” He took a step closer to Bonnie. “You planning on putting that weapon down anytime soon?”

“Fuck you.” She danced a few strides sideways, fired a shot at Liz and missed.

Shock and fury crossed Liz’s face. She catapulted the tire iron in Bonnie’s direction. It slammed into the woman’s chest causing her to stumble backward.

Lana’s high-flying kick came at Bonnie from the side and knocked the gun from her hands. Bonnie lunged to grab it, but Lana’s reverse kick plowed a combat boot into her face. Nick caught the stunned woman and shoved her face-down onto the roadway, zip-tying her hands behind her back, then her feet.

Bonnie lifted her bloody face and sneered, “You trying to ride me again, soldier?”

“Don’t flatter yourself, lady.” Nick stood and nodded at the officer who’d abandoned his cruiser and run toward them. The police could take her into custody. A chopper whirred overhead, and the sound of car horns sounded intermittently.

A few steps later, he tugged Liz into his arms. She was a limping, bruised, bloody mess. He kissed her forehead. “I love you, honey. I’ll get you to medical as soon as they arrive.”

She buried her face in his shoulder and cried. “Please tell me you reallydohave Ella.”

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