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The leader nodded curtly, a grudging respect in his gaze. "Fine. You come with us. But if you don’t lead us to where she is, I’ll be the one to put the bullet between your eyes.”
Rose met his threat with a defiant lift of her chin.
As they led her away, Rose cast one last look at the bookstore, at the fallen Gio, and the fear etched on the faces of those left behind.
The men forcefully led her outside.
Rose was unceremoniously tossed into the backseat of a nondescript car, the door slamming shut with an eerie finality. The men flanked her, their presence an unspoken threat that left no room for escape. As the car peeled away from the bookstore, the leader turned to her, his eyes sharp and demanding.
"Where is she?" he pressed, his patience clearly wearing thin. The gun in his hand not pointed at her but still at the ready.
Rose took a deep breath, steadying herself against the rising tide of fear. "Topeka knew you were closing in. She panicked and fled," Rose lied, her voice steady despite the rapid beating of her heart. “You could track her phone.”
“We did that. It led nowhere. I’ve got men there now. It’s just an old empty truck with her phone in it.”
“She was going to flee and then hop a ride with whoever would pick her up next. She must have ditched the old truck and got a ride with someone else. I told her to get rid of the phone, maybe she finally listened. She’d been waiting to hear from Russ but I told her it wasn’t worth holding on to the phone if she really didn’t want to deal with her dad.” Every word she was saying seemed to shore up the doubt the men might have been feeling. Rose knew just enough from talking to Topeka to make these men think she was telling the truth.
The leader made a quick phone call, asserting to the person on the other end of the line that the truck was abandoned and Topeka likely hitched a ride somewhere else. They’d all need to regroup.
"What is her plan? Where is she going next?”
Rose met his gaze, her mind racing as she concocted a plausible story. "There's a small airstrip, a couple of hours north of here. She mentioned it once, said it might be her last resort if things got too... complicated."
The men exchanged glances, weighing the validity of her words. Rose continued, her lie gaining momentum.
"You know why she’s running?” It was a calculated question. Was Rose a loose end or not? If she knew too much and offered no other helpful information, they’d shoot her here and toss her out of the car.
“Her father didn’t like her boyfriend,” Rose said simply. “Russ, right? She told me that she needed to get out of town because she was pissed at her dad. He was cutting her off financially unless she broke up with the guy. I don’t see what’s so special about the guy or why her dad is so over-protective. Like come on, guns? Let the girl have a life and date who she wants.”
The men were skeptical, exchanged glances, then the boss nodded. “The airstrip, what else do you know about it?”
“Like I said, I know it’s north and she had a couple connections with people who could maybe fly her out. The people here are kind of over it though. They're scared of what you might do, the lengths you'd go to just to take her home. So they’ll probably be happy to see her go.”
The leader leaned back, his expression unreadable. "And you expect us to believe this?"
Rose's resolve hardened. "Believe it or not, that's what she told me. If you want to find her, that airstrip is your best bet. She knows she’s burned here and does not want to deal with her dad or his major overreaction. She’ll fly to the next place and keep hiding. Maybe even meet up with Russ. I think that’s her big plan. She’s obsessed with him.”
The car hummed along the dark roads. Rose knew the risks of her dangerous tactic. Topeka wouldn’t be at the air strip. There was no way to alert Kenan or Harry to what was going on. But if her lie could buy Topeka and the others at Verde Lago extra time, it was worth it.
The men whispered among themselves, their words a muted buzz that Rose strained to hear. Finally, the leader nodded, a decision made. "We'll check out the airstrip. But if this is a wild goose chase, you'll regret it."
Rose nodded, her heart racing. She had played her part, now all she could do was hope that her deception would lead these men away from those she sought to protect. The stakes had never been higher, and in the deadly game of cat and mouse, Rose had just made her most daring move yet.
CHAPTER 22
"The plan didn't work," Mick relayed after a brief exchange with Kenan, his frustration evident. "They took the bait, followed the phone, but something changed. They pulled back before we could engage."
Harry's jaw clenched at the news, a sinking feeling in his gut. The failure to draw the men out into the open meant that the threat to Verde Lago was far from over.
Kenan's voice was calm but carried an undercurrent of urgency as he outlined the immediate steps to secure the sanctuary. "I just heard from Gio. I think I know why the men didn’t engage with you. Some showed up in town, found the group in the bookstore. Rose told them she had information in order to draw them away from hurting anyone else there.”
“Dammit.” Harry punched at the dashboard of the old laboring truck. Mick was clearly driving as fast as it would go, but there was no getting it to move any quicker.
Kenan, clearly reluctant to share the news went on. “We're locking down Verde Lago. Everyone stays inside, and the guards are on high alert. We can't take any chances. As for Rose, the only lead we have on where she might be heading is a tip from someone who passed the vehicle we believe Rose is in. They’reheading north. I have no clue why or what she would have told them.”
“There aren’t many roads in this direction,” Mick said, a hint of optimism. “Can you get one of the small aircrafts up? Can we get eyes on the car? Maybe Harry and I are close and can intercept.”
“I’m already on it. I’ve got a chopper, usually does search and rescue in the mountains nearby. They’ve agreed to fly over the area in the direction the car was headed and see if they can spot her. If they do, I’ll send you coordinates. It’s a black SUV with tinted windows and a gold grill.
