Page 45 of Ride Hard
Chaser cursed and straightened up in hisseat.
“What?”
“Fuel light ison.”
“We need to stop for gas?” I glanced out the window, not liking the uneasy feeling the vast nothingness gave me. “Outhere?”
“I was hoping it would last until the next major city,” Chaser said. “There’s no fucking cover outhere.”
“Don’t you mean, there are zerowitnesses?”
He glared at me and pulled off the road, turning toward the nearest town. Likely some little pimple with a population often.
The gas station he found was rather modern, and luckily for us, it was mostly empty. Only one other car sat at a gas pump as we stopped, obviously belonging to the woman who was just walking in to pay as Chaser cut theengine.
It boded well for us, I suppose. Less people meant less chance of being spotted by the elusive enemy. I still had no idea who they were, and the farther we drove, the more it botheredme.
“Can I get out?” I asked. “I’m a little hungry, and my ass isnumb.”
“Stay in the car, and get down,” Chaserordered.
Sliding down in the front seat, I grimaced and peered over the top of the dash at the garage beyond. The automatic doors swished open as the woman exited and walked over to her car. A dark-colored sedan pulled in off the road and turned into a spot by thewindows.
Glancing at Chaser, I wondered how he knew what to look for. The notion of detecting a threat through body language was a foreign concept to me. So was spotting a tail. I’d watched a lot of movies with those kinds of things in them, but who knew if they were real or not? I always thought a silencer on a gun made the shot gopew-pew, thanks to spy shows and James Bond movies. But in reality, it still wentboomwhen someone pulled the trigger, silencer ornot.
Chaser shoved the nozzle back into the gas pump and closed the tank on the side of the car. Tapping the window, he walked across the pavement toward the garage. A moment later, he disappeared through the automaticdoors.
Watching the second car, I narrowed my eyes as two men got out. The one nearest was tall and thin with a pointed nose. The other was more robust—which was a nice way of saying he was a porker—with a mean look about him. Fat andskinny.
Both men were wearing tidy jeans and sports jackets with open collar shirts. Hardly criminal material. Their car was rather nice, which was why I didn’t pay much attention to them at first. Then, as their gaze turned toward me, I remembered what Chaser had told me the night before.They could beanyone.
When they began walking toward the car, I realized I was borderlinefucked.
A chill shuddered through my body, and I checked the mirrors. I couldn’t be sure they’d seen me, but if I stayed put…they’d find me forsure.
I had to get the fuck out of here.Now.
I opened the door a crack, just enough for me to slide out, and crouched down on the ground. The sound of approaching footsteps echoed across the gas station, making my stomach roll. I closed the car door softly so the latch caught, then made a break forit.
Crawling across the concrete, I ignored the scraping on my knees and moved between the opposite pair of gas pumps. I rose slowly and glanced between the hoses, getting a good look at the men. The taller one cupped his hands against the window and peered into thecar.
“It’s empty,” hesaid.
The other guy nodded toward the automatic doors, solidifying myfear.
Chaser.
The men followed him into the gas station, and my heart twisted. He was smart, so he’d know something was up, wouldn’the?
Shit, I didn’t know. Chaser was a fucking enigma. Who knew what game he played behind those iridescenteyes?
I cursed under my breath and darted across the concrete and through thedoors.
That’s right, you idiot, I thought to myself.Run headfirst into danger. That’s a smartplan.
Inside, there were several aisles of junk food, magazines, various bits and pieces of hardware and motor oils. A bank of refrigerators sat along the far wall full of brightly colored soda. The dull sounds of some pop song wailed out of speakers set into the ceiling, but no gunshots or sounds of men fighting greeted me onarrival.
At first, I couldn’t see anyone else other than an attendant behind the counter flipping through a magazine. Some kid, about eighteen or so, was reading a porno magazine. He held it up, ogling a page he thought was delightful, and I got an eyeful of a pouty blonde’s snatch on the opposite side. He was so not going to get employee of themonth.
