02 Hunted - The Chosen

by Denise Grover Swank

  ***

  Will looked through the peephole. “There’s still one guard in the hall.”

  “What are we going to do?” He heard the anxiety in her voice.

  He never should have brought her along. Goddamn that James. Now he had to worry about keeping Emma safe, although he had to admit she had gotten information from Kramer. The way she controlled him...when had she learned that? Shivers crawled down his spine. What was Emma capable of?

  “I’ll take care of the guard,” he said.

  “Don’t kill him.”

  He looked down at her, shaking his head. “You know he wouldn’t hesitate to shoot us.”

  “That doesn’t mean we need to sink to their level.”

  He took a deep breath. “Okay, stand over there.” He pointed to a corner in the entryway then cracked the door open after she’d moved.

  After a few seconds, the guard shoved a shoulder through the crack. “Mr. Kramer?”

  Will smashed the shotgun butt onto the man’s head and he crumpled to the floor. Will dragged him out of the opening while Emma shut the door behind him.

  Kramer rocked the chair in the other room, the gag muffling his shouts.

  Will took off the guard’s belt and tied his hands behind his back, looping it around a table leg in the process. Reaching into his pants pocket, he pulled out a set of keys. He figured the guy had to have a car on the grounds. The only problem would be finding it. He walked over to the window and saw a parking lot scattered with cars at the other side of the complex.

  “That will detain him for awhile, but not long,” Will said. “We need to get moving.” He glanced out the peephole again and mumbled, “It’s clear.” Opening the door, he peered into the hall before he grabbed her arm and pulled her out the door and into the stairwell.

  “Where’s James?” she whispered as they sprinted down the stairs.

  “I sent him to the car. I told him I’d call him after we got away.”

  “Aren’t you worried? You said they found him.”

  “No, they found the diversion he created. He should have been long gone by the time they found it. I sent him off when Kramer came into the apartment. He snuck out the window.”

  “He jumped four floors?”

  “No, he rappelled.”

  “Of course he repelled.” Sarcasm dripped from her words.

  Will couldn’t help his smile. They reached the first floor and Will continued descending.

  “Where are we going?”

  “The basement.” It amazed him that she didn’t ask why and just followed his lead.

  He’d prefer to go out the back door and slink along the back of the buildings, working their way to the parking lot full of cars. But the guards would be out there after finding James’ pipe bomb. The front was more inconspicuous, but he doubted Emma would be inconspicuous. She was a woman in a compound filled mostly with men. She’d draw the attention of the guards.

  Which meant he had to hide her.

  They stopped at the basement landing of the stairwell. After checking for activity, they entered a large room with concrete walls filled with discarded furniture.

  “What are you looking for?” she asked.

  “This.” He walked over to a rolling trash cart, half full of trash bags. He took her hand and led her to it.

  “Oh. No.”

  “Oh, yes. But not yet.” He opened a closet door and rummaged around until he found a work shirt, shrugging his arms into the sleeves.

  “Carl?” she asked, reading the name on the shirt. “I knew a Carl once.”

  Lifting an eyebrow. “Did you, now?” He put his hands on her waist. “Time to take a ride.”

  She didn’t argue as he lifted her up and swung her over the cart edge. He released her as her feet touched the bottom and she began shoving bags out of the way.

  “This is disgusting.”

  “Exactly, that’s why it’s the perfect place to hide.”

  “Are you sure I can’t push you?”

  “No way. When I was a little boy I wanted to be a trash man. It’s the fulfillment of a lifelong dream.”

  She squatted down and looked up at him, surrounded by bags. “Far be it for me to keep you from fulfilling your fantasy.”

  “Princess, I’ve had plenty of fantasies about you and none have ever involved trash.” He handed her his gun and backpack. “I hope this works, but in case we get into trouble, don’t hesitate to use this.”

  “What about you?”

  He tucked his handgun into a holster under his shirt. “I’ve got this, but hopefully I won’t need it.” She nodded.

  “Sorry, time to for you to hide now,” he said as he moved some to the bags to cover her head.

  “You get us out of this and maybe we can work on one of your non-trash-related fantasies,” she said, her voice muffled by the bags.

  “Now there’s an incentive.” He pushed the cart toward the elevator. “No talking from here on out.”

  The doors opened to an empty box. Will released a sigh of relief as he wheeled the cart inside and pushed the button for the first floor. He tried to act lackadaisical for the camera in the corner. It would be a miracle if they got out of this without gunfire, but he still hoped for the best.

  The first-floor lobby was empty with the exception of a security guard at the front desk, the hum of the floor polishers noticeably absent. The guard looked up at Will with narrowed eyes and stood up from his chair. Will pushed the cart toward the front doors, ignoring the man.

  “Where’s Mitch?” the guard asked.

  “Uh, I think he’s off tonight.” Will kept his head down.

  The guard walked around the desk. “What’s your name? I need to check your credentials.”

  “Stan McEntire.”

  “How come you’re wearing Carl’s shirt?” His hand gripped the handle of his gun on his belt.

  Will shrugged, trying to look bored. “I’m a temp. Got called in the last minute and had to use his shirt.”

  The guard studied him, dropping his hand from the handle of his gun. “I wasn’t notified that you were filling in. After the incident a few weeks ago, they always notify me of personnel changes.” He walked behind the desk.

  “Incident?” Will asked in a anxious voice. “I never heard anything about an ‘incident.’” He looked around. “I dunno if this job’s gonna work out if you’re having incidents.”

  “Relax,” the guard said picking up the phone. “It’s not as bad as it sounds.”

  Will walked up to the chest high counter and pulled his gun out from under his shirt, keeping it below the ledge. “I better go. I was told to take this trash bin down to the medical building on the end and I don’t want to get in trouble.” His thumb pointed to the bin behind him.

  “This will only take a minute.” The guard held the phone to his ear as he punched the numbers.

  Will glanced over his shoulder toward the cart. He wished he could ask Emma to stop this guy with her mind control trick but even if he did, he doubted there was time for her to do it before he got someone on the other line.

  Shit.

  “That call isn’t necessary.” Will lowered his voice.

  The guard looked up in surprise.

  Will raised his gun over the counter, pointing it at the man. “If you could be so kind to just get up and step away from the phone.”

  Anger flashing in his eyes, the guard took a step back and reached for his gun. Will squeezed the trigger before the man got the weapon out of the holster. He fell backwards, blood splattering the wall behind him. Will moved behind the counter and shoved him under the desk. The now-familiar burning in his mark returned. Of course, Emma had no idea who got shot.

  Since his mark burned, he knew he had a connection to her and decided to use it.

  Emma. I’m okay.

  Thank God.

  I didn’t want to shoot him. He reached for his gun. He found it odd that he felt the need to explain himself to her for doing what h
e was trained to do.

  I know. It’s okay.

  But it wasn’t okay, he thought, trying to keep it from Emma as he pushed the bin through the front door into the warm, humid night. He hadn’t wanted to shoot the guy. For one thing, there was a good chance it was caught on a security camera. For another, the sound alone was bound to alert someone. Either scenario meant that they needed to move before the other guards figured out what happened.

  The vibrations of the rolling cart along the concrete sidewalk rumbled through the night, calling more attention to Will than he would have liked. He ambled down the sidewalk from the farthest building on the west side to the farthest building on the east, having to pass two buildings in between. Jagged shadows filled his path. His goal was to look like a janitor avoiding doing any more work than necessary instead of a man desperate to escape. But it was all about perception. You could make people believe you were whom you wanted them to believe just by playing the part well. And Will was an expert. He’d fooled everyone for so long he’d even fooled himself the last few years. But until the last few weeks, he’d never had so much at risk.

  Halfway down the sidewalk, he heard a commotion from behind. He glanced over his shoulder. Men ran from the building he’d just passed toward the entrance of the one he just left.

  Fuck. He pushed the cart faster but tried to look like a confused temp worker caught in the middle of chaos.

  He’d almost made it to the medical structure when five armed men ran out and moved toward him. He tensed but realized they were focused on the scene behind him, barely giving him a second glance. One of the men stopped in front of the cart, forcing Will to stop.

  “Hey buddy, you seen anyone suspicious tonight?”

  “Yeah,” Will grimaced. “I saw two guys dressed all in black run off that way to that building.” He pointed behind him. “They almost knocked my bin over halfway here.”

  The guard rested his hand on the edge of the cart and looked Will up and down. Will gave him an annoyed glare, like he was tired of people interfering with his work.

  “All right then,” the guard said, standing upright and shifting his weight to his side. “You might want to stay inside until all of this is over.”

  Will nodded and pushed the cart to the doors, releasing a sigh and some of his tension with it. He opened the double doors maneuvering the cart halfway through.

  “Wait a minute,” the guard called, his voice sharp.

  Will leaned over the cart and grabbed the barrel of the shotgun. Rising, he kept the gun behind him, still inside the trash bin. “Yeah?”

  “Why do you look so familiar?”

  Will shrugged. “Dunno, got one of those faces, I guess. I hear that all the time.”

  They locked eyes and Will kept his face expressionless.

  “Yeah,” the guard scowled. “I guess so.” He turned and took a few steps as Will moved the cart inside the lobby.

  “Stop!” The guard shouted as he spun, gun in his hand.

  Will shoved the cart into the building as he swung his shotgun out and fired, hitting the guard in the chest.

  “Emma! Let’s go!”

  She threw bags out off of her and stood in the cart, starting to climb over the edge. Will wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her out in one movement, carrying her several steps before her feet touched the ground. He raced for the back door.

  “This is going to get hairy,” he said pulling the keys out of his pocket. “I’m gonna need your help.”

  “Okay.”

  He hoped the security guard had a halfway decent car. Then again, anything would be better than the beat-up Honda that Emma drove the night he met her. He shoved Emma against the wall next to the back door before he opened it, expecting to find half a dozen men or more shooting at him. But the lot was empty. He realized they had all rushed to the other end. He definitely planned to use that to his advantage.

  He pushed the lock button on the keys. The brake lights of a sedan flashed and he wrapped his hand around Emma’s wrist and pulled her out the door.

  His heart hammered in his chest. He was used to the adrenaline rush and even fear. It was the guys who were no longer afraid when in battle who were dangerous, but he wasn’t used to the building terror. They were hopelessly outnumbered, locked inside a chain-link fence. Even if they got out, they still had to outrun who knew how many cars. As he reached the sedan and shoved Emma in the driver’s seat, he realized that the car wasn’t fast enough to out run them all.

  Shit.

  But at the moment, he had the advantage and he planned to buy all the time he could.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Emma jammed the gear into drive. “How fast do you want me to drive?”

  “Like there’s a rabid dog on your ass.”

  She pressed on the gas, tires squealing. “You realize this will get all kinds of attention?”

  “Princess, no matter what we do, we’re going to get attention. Let’s do it with style.”

  “Alrighty then.” She forced a grin and headed toward the circular one-way road that looped around the compound, going the wrong direction. Throwing a glance at Will, she tore down the asphalt. “This is the shortest distance to the front gate. I thought it best not to drive past all those men with guns.”

  “Good thinking. Where’ve you been all my life?”

  “Waiting for you,” she snorted.

  They neared the guard station at the front entrance. Headlights glowed on the road behind them.

  “We have two choices,” she said. “We drive right on through or we stop and try to talk our way out the gate, although I doubt even your smooth talking will get us through.”

  Will released a tight laugh. “I don’t feel like talking.”

  “Okay, you might want to bend down in case something flies through the windshield.”

  “I was thinking about ducking to avoid bullets, but I guess it’s dual-purpose.” He braced his hand on the dashboard and looked out the back window. “When you get to the road, turn right.”

  She floored the gas pedal and ducked down as they flew past the guard station. Bullets shattered the side windows, but she held onto the wheel, hoping she stayed on course. She rose in time to see the wooden gate arm as the car crashed through. The board ripped apart, flying over the roof. The tires screeched as she reached the road and turned right, trying to keep the car from skidding off the road.

  “Are you all right?” Will asked.

  “I’m still driving, aren’t I?” She looked in the rearview mirror and saw headlights closer than before. “They’re coming.”

  He looked over his shoulder. “Shit, just as I suspected. There’s a fleet back there.”

  “What are we going to do? They’re gaining on us.”

  Will ran his hand through his hair. “We need to go to the airport. Once we get there, do you think you can take care of them?”

  “Take care of them?” she asked, raising her eyebrows. “You mean like feed them and tuck them into bed?”

  Will let out an exasperated sigh. “You know what I mean. With your…”

  “Power?”

  Will grunted.

  She could see he hated asking her to use it. She also knew it wasn’t because it stung his male pride. The fact he always had her drive in situations like this assured her of that. He worried that it would hurt her, yet she’d warned him that she needed practice. What happened with Kramer proved just how little she knew about what she could do. “Have anything in mind? Blow them up?”

  “Yeah.”

  “So is the plan to lure them to the airport, blow them all up and then leave?”

  “Kind of.”

  “Kind of how?”

  “We’re not driving out.”

  “Then how are… we’re flying?”

  “Yep.”

  “I guess now’s a bad time to mention I’m afraid of flying.” She groaned. “Are you planning on kidnapping a pilot?”

  “Nope. I’ll fly it.”


  “You know how to fly?”

  “No, but I figured, how hard could it be?” He turned to see her shocked expression. “Of course I know how to fly a plane.”

  “Of course, James repelled down a forty-foot wall. Of course, I know how to fly a plane. No, Will, these are not of course situations for me.”

  Will reloaded his gun. “But after everything we’ve been through…”

  She checked the rearview mirror and saw the headlights getting closer. “You forget that I’d never been in a gunfight until I met you. Outrun them with my car? Sure. But never with guns. So forgive me if I seem a little slow.” Her voice rose along with her panic.

  Will put his hand over hers on the steering wheel. “Emma, it’s okay. I’m gonna get us out of this.” He squeezed her fingers and she gave him a quick glance before turning back to the road. “We’re both going to get us out of this. Okay?”

  She nodded.

  “We’re almost there.” Will pointed to the tower in the distance. The spinning red and green light called like a beacon. “Can you crash through a chain-link gate?”

  “Yeah, I guess so. But I remember the gate being fairly close to the road. I’ll have to turn and I’m worried I won’t have enough speed.”

  “You’ll have about fifty feet after the turn. You okay with that?”

  “Do I have a choice?”

  “No.”

  She gripped the wheel and took a slow steady breath. If she didn’t angle it right, they could end up in the ditch and flip over. The headlights in the mirror reminded her of the alternative. She focused on the turn first, thankful that the side road was paved. Twisting the wheel left, she let off the gas then swung the wheel right, the back end of the car sliding to the side. Once the nose faced the side road, she punched the gas pedal, shooting down the road.

  “God, I love you.”

  “We’re not there yet.” The wheel was slick in her hands.

  Her heart raced as she aimed for the padlocked opening, wondering if this was suicide. But it was too late to back out now. The car hit the gate and flung it open as they flew through. The car bounced on the uneven pavement and Emma fought for control.