The trunk of the tree next to Dane lit up with more than the moon’s light. That couldn’t be good. Two headlights crawled down the row of trees.
I shoved my hands in my pockets, happy to find them empty. “How long is the jail sentence for breaking and entering?”
“Why?” Dane asked and turned around. “Mother effer, Delaney. I cannot believe this.”
“What? This is not my fault.” Who would have thought there’d be a car on this road late at night?
The growl of tires as they crawled on the road silenced us both.
“Run!” I said, my eyes wide as the perfect plan came to me.
Dane grabbed my arm, not letting me get away. Behind him, red and blue lights flared to life. A quick squeal of a siren blasted just once in warning. A spotlight snapped on, flooding our path and burning my eyes.
I used my free hand to cover the glare. “There’s still time. We can make it,” I tried to argue.
“Let me handle this,” Dane growled in my ear.
The black and white cruiser pulled closer and stopped. A car door slammed. I squinted to see better, but it barely worked.
“Evenin’,” a male voice called out. “Mind telling me what you two are doing out there?”
I turned slowly, putting Dane at my side as the officer stepped away from the spotlight, making it easier to see him. He looked cranky. We were so screwed.
“Just took my little lady on a walk tonight and she wanted to see the oaks,” Dane answered, calling back to the officer.
He walked closer, his hand on his gun. “At midnight?”
“Bad sleeper.” I gave a nervous chuckle.
The officer stopped a foot from us and stared into our faces. With one hand holding his gun, he used his other to shine a flashlight directly at us. “This part of the road is not open to tourists this time of day. You’ll have to come back tomorrow and buy a ticket. Did you two miss the gate?”
“There’s a gate?” Dane asked, looking around like he’d forgotten how we slipped through the side twenty minutes earlier. “I guess we got turned around.”
The officer studied us for a long moment. Too long. Sweat beaded at my hairline. Somewhere above us, a tree branch creaked under its own weight. “You got any ID on you?”
Dane tensed beside me.
15
“I’d like to see those IDs, please,” the cop said again as he stood in front of us. He held his hand out.
Dane reached into his back pocket slowly and pulled out his leather wallet. “Is this necessary? I’ll just take my new bride out. We’re sorry about the mistake.”
Wind blew heavily in the tops of the trees. The hanging Spanish moss gave off creepier vibes now that we were about to be in federal prison.
The cop took his license and turned to me. “I’m having a hard time believing you just happened to miss the gate and find yourself here,” he paused, “in all black.”
I glanced down at my black leggings and thin long sleeve shirt. “It’s almost Halloween.”
“In three weeks. Now I’m going to need that ID, little lady.” He seemed pretty serious.
This was not going to go well.
I groaned and gave Dane a grimace. He’d never let me live this down. “I don’t have mine on me.”
Why did Dane have his on him? You didn’t bring an ID to a crime scene, and we were about to make this place a place of interest. He was supposed to be the smart one. I couldn’t handle every aspect of this crime spree.
“You don’t have it on you?” he asked skeptically.
