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They dashed through the trees at a breakneck run. They were headed straight downhill toward the highway below.
Leilah stumbled, nearly turned an ankle, and cursed her choice of footwear. She bent and fumbled with the straps, breathless and shaking, terrified she’d hear three men thrashing through the woods behind her. Ryan must have realized she wasn’t running anymore. He skidded to a stop several yards ahead and turned back to her, waiting.
She held her shoes in her right hand and sprinted, barefoot, over the rocks, roots, and hard earth. When she caught up with him, he grabbed her free hand.
“We have to stay together,” he breathed.
She bobbed her head. “Right.”
They ran on, and as her sore feet beat out a rhythm on the ground below, one thought looped through Leilah’s frightened mind:Her brakes had definitely been tampered with, and whoever was responsible didn’t want to intimidate her—they wanted to kill her.
6
The traffic rushed by,loud and fast, on the interstate. From their hiding spot in the drainage ditch, Ryan’s head was level with the tires of the passing big rigs that caravanned past in the slow lane just a yard away. He was reluctant to climb out of the trench and expose themselves to the cars and trucks speeding by. But they had to keep moving.
The men who’d swarmed the car had moved with the smooth choreography that comes from training. Their approach, their garb, and their semi-assault rifles all added up to one inescapable conclusion: they were professionals of some kind and were unlikely to accept defeat and go home.
Leilah had been unusually quiet since they’d slid down the hill and hunkered in the channel designed to capture rainwater. He glanced at her now. Her feet, still bare, were bloodied and dirt-crusted. Otherwise, she looked every bit as poised and polished as she usually did. Her shiny black pumps dangled from the fingers of her right hand as she dug into her matching handbag and pulled out her phone.
“What are you doing?”
She blinked up at him. “Calling Omar so he can pick us up.”
“Don’t.”
“Ryan, we’re miles away. You can’t possibly want to walk back.”
“We can’t go back.”
“What are you talking about? Of course we’re going back. And if we hurry and call now, those men might still be on the campus. Jake can send out a team to apprehend them. They’re trespassing, if nothing else.”
He grasped her forearms and spoke in a soothing voice. “Leilah, those men were not just trespassing, and you know it. Someone went to a lot of effort to kill us. You can assume that if they had the balls to do it under Potomac’s nose, they’re not amateurs. I’m sure they’re long gone.”
He forced himself not to look over her head at the wooded hills. He had to resist the urge to confirm to make sure the commandos weren’t running toward them right now.
She shook her head, perplexed. “Okay, fine. I’ll call my garage. Keisha should be there by now. She’ll come get us.”
He eased the phone from her hand and stowed it in his pocket. “No. We need to put more distance between us and the scene.”
“But people will worry. They’ll freak out when they find Marie tangled up in the deer fence.”
“I’m not saying we won’t check in. We will. We need to keep moving for a while longer, though. Once we’re a town or two away, then we’ll call.”
She caught her lower lip between her teeth, thinking. “Fine, okay. But how are we going to do that? Trudge through this drainage ditch the whole way?”
“Just a few more miles. Put your shoes on. I’m sure Miss Patty’s Roadside Diner has a no shoes, no shirt, no service policy.” He pointed to the tall faded sign announcing the diner’s location just two miles ahead at the next exit.
As she fastened her buckles, she tilted her head to look up at him. “Hungry?”
“No, hopeful. How much cash do you have on you?”
She gave him a doubtful frown. “Cash? None.”
He grunted. “Me neither.”
“Who carries cash anymore? I mean, aside from Olivia.”
“It’s a smart habit. It came in handy when she and Trent had to run from the safe house.”
