SERIAL UNCUT by Blake Crouch, Jack Kilborn J.A. Konrath Page B

fellow cop out, then began to circle the parking
lot.
    " I had to lie," Donaldson said, "or
else we'd have to give statements. I don't want my name in any
police report."
    " I'm with you. But now we've got a big
problem. One of them is going to talk to our waitress, and she'll
mention us. The other is taking down plate numbers. He'll find
Jack's car, realize she's still here, and start searching for
her."
    " We need to move our vehicles. Right
now."
    Taylor nodded. "There's an oasis thirty
miles north on 39. I'll meet you there in half an hour. You've got
the whore's phone, right?"
    " Yeah."
    " Give me the cop's," Taylor said.
"We'll exchange numbers if we need to get in touch."
    After programming their phones, Donaldson
offered his hand. Taylor shook it.
    " See you soon, fellow
traveler."
    Then they parted.
    Taylor hustled into his cab, started the
engine, and pulled out of Murray's parking lot. He smiled. While he
still didn't fully trust Donaldson, Taylor was really starting to
enjoy their partnership. Maybe they could somehow extend it into
something fulltime. Teamwork made this all so much more
exciting.
    Taylor was heading for the cloverleaf when
he saw the light begin to flash on the dashboard.
    It was the fire alarm. The smoke detector in
the overhead sleeper was going off.
    What the hell?
    Taylor pulled onto the shoulder, set the
brake, and tugged his sawed-off shotgun out from under the
passenger seat. Then he headed for the trap door to see what was
going on with those bitches.

    -10-
    The moment the cab jiggled, I began to
gather up bungee cords and hook them to the handle on the trap
door, pulling them taut and attaching them to the foot stock. When
that door opened, I wanted it to stay open.
    Then the truck went into gear, knocking me
onto my ass. Moving wasn't going to help our situation. At least at
Murray's we were surrounded by people. If Taylor took us someplace
secluded, our chances would get even worse.
    I looked around the sleeper again, and my
eyes locked on the overhead light. Next to it, on the ceiling, was
a smoke alarm. I doubted it would be heard through all the
soundproofing, but there was a good chance it signaled the driver
somehow.
    " Candi! Press the test button on the
alarm up there!"
    She steadied herself, then reached up to
press it. The high-pitched beeping was loud enough to hurt my ears.
But would Taylor even be aware of it?
    Apparently so, because a few seconds later,
the truck stopped.
    I reached for the Tupperware container and a
broken slat from the chest, and crawled over to the side of the
trap door. Then I waited.
    I didn't have to wait long. The trap door
opened up and the bungee cords worked as predicted, tearing it out
of Taylor's grasp. The barrel of a shotgun jutted up through the
doorway. I kicked that aside and threw a big handful of salt in
Taylor's eyes. He screamed, and I followed up with the wooden slat,
smacking him in the nose, forcing him to lose his footing on the
stepladder.
    As he fell, I dove, snaking face-first down
the opening on top of him, landing on his chest and pinning the
shotgun between us.
    He pushed up against me, strong as hell, but
I had gravity on my side and I was fighting for my life. My knee
honed in on his balls like it lived there, and the first kick
worked so well I did it three more times.
    He moaned, trying to keep his legs together
and twist away. I grabbed the shotgun stock and jerked. He suddenly
let go of the weapon, and I tumbled backwards off of him, the gun
in my hands, and my back slammed into the step ladder. The wind
burst out of me, and my diaphragm spasmed. I tried to suck in a
breath and couldn't.
    Taylor got to his knees, snarling, and
lunged. I raised the gun, my fingers seeking the trigger, but he
easily knocked it away. Then he was straddling me, and I still
couldn't breathe--a task that became even more difficult when his
hands found my throat.
    " You're gonna set a world fucking
record on how long it takes to die."
    Then