the Mustang and slammed the door.
Carjacking?
Shit. Lisa was in the backseat.
Dave raced around the car just as the guy flicked the door locks and started the engine. Dave grabbed the nozzle off the gas pump, spun around, and smacked it through the driver’s window. The glass shattered and sprayed. Dave had just flipped the door lock when Lisa flew up out of the backseat and wrapped the blanket around the guy’s head, pulled him back hard, and pinned him against the headrest. Dave flung the door open and yanked the gun out of the guy’s hand. Grabbing him by the wrist, Dave hauled him out of the car and threw him onto the ground.
The guy swatted the blanket away and started to rise, but Dave gave him a smack across the face that sent him tumbling backward onto the pavement. Dave leapt into the car, tossed the gun into the passenger seat beside him, jammed the Mustang into gear, and took off.
“Lisa?” he said, breathing hard, searching for her face in the rearview mirror. “You okay?”
She looked up from her sprawled-out position in the backseat. “Yeah. Sure. Plane crash, carjacking—I’m doing just great.”
“Nice move with the blanket.”
“It was all I had. I had to improvise. Problem, though.”
“What?”
“I know our carjacker. Ivan Ramirez.”
“The guy you talked about earlier? The one who’s part of a local gang?”
“Yeah. That’s the one.”
“Does he know who you are?”
“Yeah. He knows.”
“Did he get a good look at you?”
“Eye to eye as we were pulling away.”
Shit. “Do his criminal skills go beyond carjacking? Say, to drug counterfeiting?”
“This isn’t a very big town. I’m betting he’s into everything illegal he can get his hands on. But even if he’s not involved with the counterfeiting, all he’s got to do is tell somebody that I’m alive and it’ll eventually get back to Robert.”
“Then we need to hotfoot it to Monterrey. And I still want you to stay down. No need to push what little luck we have left.”
Lisa slid onto the floor of the backseat. “Speaking of lack of luck, what are the odds of Ivan coming into that station and grabbing the car we’re trying to get out of town in?”
“Pretty good, since the flat was no accident.”
“What?”
“The tire was slashed.”
“What?”
“Nice system they’ve got going. Fernando spots a nice late-model car. He flattens the tire, then phones his partner. During the time it takes to change it, the other guy gets there. He grabs the car, and Fernando gets a cut of the profit.”
“And since Ivan is into all things criminal—”
“Guess who showed up.” Dave shook his head. “Unfortunately, I didn’t spot the scam until I saw the tire. By then it was too late.”
Dave braked at a stoplight, an antsy feeling crawling up the back of his neck. Pedestrians crossed the street in front of them. He found himself searching every face for anyone who looked a little shady, which was pointless. Hell, right about now, everybody in this town looked like a criminal.
He hit the gas again. Before long they approached the northern edge of town. One more stop sign, and nothing but open road lay ahead. As Dave brought his car to a halt, another car pulled up to the stop sign on the cross street.
A patrol car.
“Lisa, we may have a problem.”
“What?”
“Just stay down. No matter what happens, just stay down.”
Dave began to pull away from the stop sign, only to have the cop on the cross street hit the gas hard, wheeling his car in their direction.
“Damn it!”
“What?” Lisa said.
“Just stay down!”
The patrol car cut in front of Dave, screeching to a halt only inches from his front bumper. A cop leapt out, his weapon drawn.
“¡Salga del carro!” he shouted. “¡Manos arriba!”
Dave understood that loud and clear, but he had no intention of getting out of his car and putting his hands up, now or anytime in the near future.
He threw the car into reverse, swung it around
Carjacking?
Shit. Lisa was in the backseat.
Dave raced around the car just as the guy flicked the door locks and started the engine. Dave grabbed the nozzle off the gas pump, spun around, and smacked it through the driver’s window. The glass shattered and sprayed. Dave had just flipped the door lock when Lisa flew up out of the backseat and wrapped the blanket around the guy’s head, pulled him back hard, and pinned him against the headrest. Dave flung the door open and yanked the gun out of the guy’s hand. Grabbing him by the wrist, Dave hauled him out of the car and threw him onto the ground.
The guy swatted the blanket away and started to rise, but Dave gave him a smack across the face that sent him tumbling backward onto the pavement. Dave leapt into the car, tossed the gun into the passenger seat beside him, jammed the Mustang into gear, and took off.
“Lisa?” he said, breathing hard, searching for her face in the rearview mirror. “You okay?”
She looked up from her sprawled-out position in the backseat. “Yeah. Sure. Plane crash, carjacking—I’m doing just great.”
“Nice move with the blanket.”
“It was all I had. I had to improvise. Problem, though.”
“What?”
“I know our carjacker. Ivan Ramirez.”
“The guy you talked about earlier? The one who’s part of a local gang?”
“Yeah. That’s the one.”
“Does he know who you are?”
“Yeah. He knows.”
“Did he get a good look at you?”
“Eye to eye as we were pulling away.”
Shit. “Do his criminal skills go beyond carjacking? Say, to drug counterfeiting?”
“This isn’t a very big town. I’m betting he’s into everything illegal he can get his hands on. But even if he’s not involved with the counterfeiting, all he’s got to do is tell somebody that I’m alive and it’ll eventually get back to Robert.”
“Then we need to hotfoot it to Monterrey. And I still want you to stay down. No need to push what little luck we have left.”
Lisa slid onto the floor of the backseat. “Speaking of lack of luck, what are the odds of Ivan coming into that station and grabbing the car we’re trying to get out of town in?”
“Pretty good, since the flat was no accident.”
“What?”
“The tire was slashed.”
“What?”
“Nice system they’ve got going. Fernando spots a nice late-model car. He flattens the tire, then phones his partner. During the time it takes to change it, the other guy gets there. He grabs the car, and Fernando gets a cut of the profit.”
“And since Ivan is into all things criminal—”
“Guess who showed up.” Dave shook his head. “Unfortunately, I didn’t spot the scam until I saw the tire. By then it was too late.”
Dave braked at a stoplight, an antsy feeling crawling up the back of his neck. Pedestrians crossed the street in front of them. He found himself searching every face for anyone who looked a little shady, which was pointless. Hell, right about now, everybody in this town looked like a criminal.
He hit the gas again. Before long they approached the northern edge of town. One more stop sign, and nothing but open road lay ahead. As Dave brought his car to a halt, another car pulled up to the stop sign on the cross street.
A patrol car.
“Lisa, we may have a problem.”
“What?”
“Just stay down. No matter what happens, just stay down.”
Dave began to pull away from the stop sign, only to have the cop on the cross street hit the gas hard, wheeling his car in their direction.
“Damn it!”
“What?” Lisa said.
“Just stay down!”
The patrol car cut in front of Dave, screeching to a halt only inches from his front bumper. A cop leapt out, his weapon drawn.
“¡Salga del carro!” he shouted. “¡Manos arriba!”
Dave understood that loud and clear, but he had no intention of getting out of his car and putting his hands up, now or anytime in the near future.
He threw the car into reverse, swung it around
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