Page 25 of Risk It All
Now that they were on the gravel road, they traveled even faster in more of a straight line, following occasional curves in the road, but without any of the swerving from earlier.
“You okay? You’re not hit, are you?” she asked, needing to raise her voice even louder than before. Their increased speed meant that the air rushing through the car was even more thunderous.
“I’m good.” This answer was as matter-of-fact as his others, but there was a warm edge to it that made her want to examine his face. She resisted the urge and kept her head tucked down.
“Good.” Her words sounded rough, even to her own ears. “Are they still right behind us?”
“Notrightbehind.”
Somehow, that wasn’t reassuring. “Do you have a destination in mind, or are we just getting away?”
“There’s a town about fifteen miles from here. I’ll drop you there.”
Her head shot up so she could glare at him. “You’re going to dump me in some random mountain town while you face Abbott and his guys alone?”
“Down.” Cara tucked back into a protected ball as he continued, completely ignoring her indignant question. Obviously, he was determined to play the martyred hero while she hid like a coward. “There’s a police station there. You’ll be safe. You can make a report and then call your sisters.”
“My sisters!” Her stomach lurched at the reminder. They could be following her trail into danger right this moment. “Do you have a cell phone on you?”
“A little busy right now.” The car’s tires slid across loose gravel as he rounded a curve. “Let me get us clear, and then you can use it.”
“Of course. Sorry.” Despite their own life-threatening situation, she was almost more frantic with worry about her sisters. She’d been so preoccupied with escaping that she hadn’t even thought about them putting themselves into danger. She knew her sisters. They’d risk their lives in a second trying to save her. “What if they track me to the cabin?”
“How would they manage that?” he asked.
“You did, and they’re wily about finding people. It’s their job.” The more they talked about it, the more certain she was that her sisters were just a few steps behind her—and about to jump right into the hornets’ nest she’d left behind.
“Even if they do find the cabin, they should be safe enough. Most of Abbott’s men are still chasing us.”
“Oh.” All the wind had been taken out of her sails. “Well, that’s…good, I suppose?” Her own words made her laugh. “Guess we found the silver lining.”
“Guess so.” Although Cara couldn’t see his face, she was pretty sure he was smiling.
Chapter 8
The car lurched over a bump and made a sharp right turn. The squeal of protesting tires could be heard over the wind, but then Kavenski wrestled the car back into a straight line and everything smoothed out. The rattle of gravel hitting the undercarriage disappeared as the road became blessedly even. It was strange to be grateful for asphalt, but Cara definitely was thankful for paved roads at the moment. The car picked up speed, and the wind caught at her hair. She shivered, huddling into a smaller ball to try to retain heat.
“You can sit up now,” Kavenski said. “Put your seat belt on.”
As Cara uncoiled from her spot in the foot well, she gave a pained grimace.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, his gaze intense as it flicked from the road to her and back again. “Are you injured?”
“Nothing major.” Despite her words, she couldn’t hold back a grunt as she sat in the seat and straightened her legs, making him glance sharply at her again. “My muscles are just protesting being kidnapped and tied up and drugged twice, that’s all.”
The corner of his mouth twitched. “That’s all.”
“Yep. Phone?”
He pulled it out of his pocket and handed it to her.
As Cara looked down at the screen, hope made her heart beat faster for just a second until she saw theNo Serviceicon. She held it up and moved it to all the different spots that she could reach while buckled in, but no bars popped up. With a disappointed sigh, she lowered the phone to her lap.
“No reception,” she said. He didn’t look surprised.
With the useless phone in her lap, she twisted to look through the ruined rear window. The road curved behind them, partially blocking her view, but she couldn’t see any other cars. Turning back around, she looked through her side window, since the windshield was almost opaque from the extensive cobwebbing. They were climbing a slope that curved around a bluff, dotted with evergreens and aspen trees that were bright yellow with their autumn leaves. It would’ve been beautiful if the circumstances were different. If, say, she’d been taking a scenic drive in the mountains with her strong yet often silent boyfriend—whowasn’ta potential felon—rather than escaping for her life.
The thought reminded her of what she’d been too frantic to consider up until that point, and she turned away from the view to face him. “Why are you here?” Before he could answer, she added, “Not that I’m ungrateful for the assist, but what’s your involvement in this?”
