Page 36 of The Cauldronball Run
He went stock still.Deputy.Teddy bear.Smokie.
"Which way?"The question came out as a growl that made the windows rattle.
"Zeus man, chill.They went east, toward the roadblock."
Roadblock.
J.J.was running before he consciously decided to move.The ambulance roared to life, tires screaming as he tore out of the gas station.They'd taken his mate.Arrested her while he'd been distracted by his goddamn phone.He pushed the ambulance to one hundred, then one-ten, eating up the distance between them.He was going to ram that patrol car off the road, rip the doors off, take back what was his.
J.J., stop.
Farrah's voice in his head nearly made him crash.A telepathy spell, weak but there.
I'm coming for you,he thought back, not sure if she could hear him.
I know.But there's a roadblock ahead.Eight patrol cars, spike strips, the works.If you try to ram through, you’ll be taken too.
He could see it now—flashing lights across the highway like a wall of law enforcement.Smokie's patrol car was slowing, preparing to pass through.
I can take them.
No, you can't.Not without killing someone.And that's not who you are.
They took you.The mental scream probably hurt her, but he couldn't help it.They took my mate.
And I need you to be smart about getting me back.Her mental voice was strained but firm.J.J., listen to me.Really listen.Smokie's taking me to a holding facility, not federal prison.I can talk my way out.I can manipulate the situation.But only if you're free.
I'm not leaving you.
You have to.Win the race.Get the money.
Fuck the money!
The money is the only thing that can save me.Her mental voice was fading, the distance stretching the spell too thin.Think about it.A quarter million gold buys the best lawyers.Pays bail.Makes problems go away.But if you're arrested too, we have nothing.You have to win this race.Win for me.
J.J.watched Smokie's patrol car pass through the roadblock.In seconds, the opportunity would be gone.He could ram through—probably make it, given the ambulance's modifications.But Farrah was right.He'd be arrested, and then they'd both be trapped.
I can't lose you,he thought desperately.
You won't.I promise.But I need my clever orc now, not just my dangerous one.Be smart.Turn around now.Win the race.Use the money to free me.
The connection faded completely, leaving him alone on the highway, watching the wall of police between him and his mate.
Every instinct screamed to attack.To fight.To reclaim what was his through violence, if necessary.
That’s not what Farrah wanted, though. What she asked him to do.
Instead, J.J.pulled a fast U-turn and hauled ass in the opposite direction of the roadblock, heading towards the East Coast and the end of the race.
She wanted him to win the race for her. Wanted him to leave her in custody while he did it.
The decision felt like tearing out his own heart, but he made it.Not because the money would make him worthy.He understood now that wasn't how worth worked.But because the money was a tool, and right now, it was the only tool that could get Farrah back.
I'm coming back for you,he promised the empty air where their bond was stretched thin.Win the race, get the money, free my mate.
The ambulance's engine roared as he pushed it back toward the highway, using every back road and detour to avoid the police.He was still in the lead, still had a chance to win.
But victory without Farrah felt like ash in his mouth.
