Page 6 of Caught
“No, Ryan. I do.” Her voice softened. “I do have to do this because if I lose you, I won’t be able to bear it.”
With that, she exited the car, closed the door softly behind her, and rejoined Holly on the lot.
“Everything okay?” the saleswoman asked with a look that was more curious than concerned.
“Oh, you know men,” Leilah said. “He thought he should be involved in the purchase.”
“Well, if you’re a couple, maybe he—”
“—Trust me. I know a lot more about cars than he does,” Leilah said.
She shrugged. “Okay then, let’s go take that ride. Can I get your driver’s license?”
Leilah removed her wallet from her pocketbook and took her driver’s license out.
“Great, Ms. …” Holly glanced down at the ID card. “… Kahn. Oh my gosh, you’re Leilah Khan. I knew I recognized you!”
Judging by her kid-on-Christmas-morning excitement, she was, in fact, a racing fan.
“Guilty as charged.”
“Why are you buying a car here? I mean, there’s nothing wrong with the cars here, but I’ve seen photo spreads of your stable of exotic sports cars.” She paused and threw a puzzled look at the Subaru, which was sitting at the mouth of the parking lot, with its left turn signal blinking. “Your boyfriend drives a Forester?”
“It’s a long story. He’s not my boyfriend, and that’s not his car. I really can’t go into details right now. But I need a street car, this car, for a special project.” Leilah figured ‘special project’ was sufficiently vague and important-sounding.
“I guess I should tell you—but you probably already know this—this car isn’t your typical Volvo.”
“That’s why I’m interested in this one,” Leilah told her with a grin.
“Of course. Okay, I’ll be right back. I can’t believe I’m going for a test drive with Leilah Khan!” Holly squealed, then ran across the lot toward the trailer.
Leilah watched her go. Then she placed a gentle hand on the car’s dull gray hood and said, “Okay, baby, what are we gonna name you?”
3
Ryan’s gut twisted as Leilah maneuvered the Volvo, circling the block around the building where Natsuo and his cousin Juno had shared a two-bedroom, two-bath condo. He’d made a handful of feeble attempts to change Leilah’s mind before they’d left the state park. She’d been unmoved. He’d even offered to swing by the parking lot near Embassy Row, where they’d left her Porsche, but she’d waved him off, unconcerned about her beloved car.
Her insistence on coming along to talk to Juno hadn’t exactly surprised him. Leilah had always been stubborn. Always. He glanced over at her. Although her legs were concealed by the black pants he’d purchased earlier, he knew that, beneath the fabric, her knees bore large shiny scars. According to her parents, Leilah had insisted on having the training wheels taken off her bicycle as soon as her older brother’s had come off. The fact that she wasn’t yet four years old didn’t deter her, despite her parents’ reservations. She’d simply found her father’s tools and removed the training wheels herself. Then, to hear her mother tell it, she’d gone flying down the long, hilly driveway behind her big brother without so much as a starting push.
She’d fallen plenty. She’d return to the house bloodied and scraped up, her knees and elbows like raw hamburger meat under her torn shirts and pants. But every time, she’d get her wounds cleaned and bandaged and go back out. By the time Ryan’s family had moved into the neighborhood, little Leilah Khan enjoyed a hard-earned reputation as the fastest kid on two wheels.
He sighed. Even though he knew his efforts were destined to be futile, he took one final crack as she zipped neatly into a spot that seemed impossibly tight for the sedan.
“You don’t have to come up.”
She arched one eyebrow. “And sit in the car waiting for a police officer to recognize me and arrest me for murder? No thanks.” Then she jerked her chin toward the file he’d been reviewing during the drive from Delaware. “Find anything new?”
“Not a thing.” He slid the papers back into the folder and stuffed the redweld into his bag. “Let’s go then. We’re right on time.”
“Excuse you? We’re ten minutes early. I always beat the estimate.” She grinned.
He’d called Juno when they’d crossed over into the District from Hyattsville, Maryland, and she’d told him they were welcome to stop by.
She killed the engine, and they walked briskly from the car to the building. He pressed the button labeled ‘Ito.’
“Yes?” A woman’s voice came through the speaker, surprisingly clear and crisp.
“It’s Ryan and Leila.”
