Russia Girl
Page 23
At the next corner, the SUV turned right, off the sidewalk and onto a wider avenue, sideswiping a rusty Lada as it went. Who were these people? What was this all about? And what was she getting herself mixed up in? These questions were only quick flashes through her gray matter as Natalia struggled to keep up.
When traffic thinned, the Range Rover picked up speed until they were hurtling down the road at speeds reaching 160 kilometers per hour, heading toward the city center. Natalia kept pace, staying just far enough behind that they might not notice her. Hopefully they had more on their minds than some girl on a motorcycle. If she could figure out where they went, it would be a start. There were witnesses to their crime. She had the men on video just afterward. An arrest would bring justice, if the authorities could be trusted. All she knew for sure was that she couldn’t lose this car.
When they reached the river, the SUV turned right onto a busy boulevard, flying through red lights as they went, just missing several more collisions. Natalia scooted through an intersection after them, drawing closer as she went. Too close? Just as that thought passed through her mind, the car’s rear left window shattered. The barrel of a gun protruded from the opening. Natalia hit the brakes, ducking low as she swerved away. She saw muzzle flashes as the weapon fired once, twice, three times. Her windscreen shattered, and then one headlight. Sparks flew off her handlebars at Natalia hit the breaks, her heart sinking as the Range Rover raced onto the Palace Bridge and across the river, disappearing into a sea of traffic.
Natalia’s adrenaline surged as she pulled to a stop along the road. She quickly gave herself a once over, checking her arms, legs, chest. Aside from a few small cuts from shattered Plexiglas, she was unharmed. From a distance came the blare of sirens. Moments later, two police cars sped across the bridge in pursuit, blue lights flashing. Natalia looked over the rail into the cold, black waters of the Neva flowing silently below. With no warning at all, she was thrust back into this place of darkness, this cruel desert of the human spirit that she’d fought so hard to escape. Popping the bike back into first gear, Natalia spun around and headed back the way she had come, back along the river and toward the life of a quiet university student that she so desperately craved. Destiny, it seemed, had other plans.
Thanks for reading this excerpt from Vendetta Girl. Find out more about the author and his Natalia Nicolaeva series at www.kennethrosenberg.com. For new release and free giveaway notifications, sign up for Kenneth’s mailing list at eepurl.com/zoJuL.