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And it wasn’t like he’d leave some woman and her kid stranded. Not when her father had contacted him and asked him to get his daughter and grandson to safety.
His part in this was going to be easy. The father would be delivering his daughter and grandson to him, he was going to drive along the Northern border all the way to Washington, then cut down through Washington and head south to California. Her parents were going to meet them there where the crew would then proceed to get them all new identities.
He was flying to New York where he’d rent a car, then he’d drive to the meeting point this side of the Massachusetts border. He’d drive them back to LA where they could protect them until they felt it was safe to start new lives for them elsewhere. Keep them secreted because there was no question that the rich bastard was going to be looking for them.
“Have a bad feeling, man,” Theo said, grabbing River by the arm as he started to stride from the room.
River paused and looked at his friend. “Took an oath to protect, whatever that looks like.”
Theo released a heavy sigh. “Just…be careful, River.”
River gave him a clipped nod then walked out.
River gripped at the steering wheel where he sat tucked back just off the two-lane road. The area was wooded and secluded, pines and oaks hugging the road, their spiked tips disappearing into the heavy clouds that hung low above.
He’d only counted three cars that had passed traveling either direction in the hour he’d been sitting there.
A river snaked through to the east of him, and he kept his attention focused on the high, suspended bridge that crossed the river, prepared for any sight of the silver Lexus sedan he was waiting for.
This was going to be quick. Make the transfer and get them the hell out of there. Time sensitive. The piece of shit was away for a business trip, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t keeping tabs on the woman.
Men like him always did.
When he heard the distant sound of an engine approaching, River sat upright and peered through the windshield. He was frustrated as fuck that he couldn’t see a thing around the trees.
Finally, a car wound the corner on the other side and came into view a hundred feet or so before the suspended bridge.
A silver car.
Anticipation lined his bones, and he sat forward even farther, squinting to try to make out the emblem on the car.
Only he realized the car was flying. Flying fast as it hit the bridge. Trepidation coiled through him when he saw there was another car behind it, some kind of black SUV, speeding just as fast. The driver of the SUV swerved into the oncoming lane, trying to pull up to the side of the silver car.
“Fuck,” River spat, and he grabbed his gun where he had it hidden on the floorboards.
Theo was right.
This job was about to get messy.
He unlatched his door and started moving, running that direction along the line of the trees.
The black SUV swerved again, and the silver Lexus veered to the right, coming up close to the edge, before it swerved back to the left. It bashed against the SUV, metal sheering, and it sent the Lexus sailing back the other direction.
“Fuck, no!” River shouted it like he could stop what he could already see playing out in his mind. The driver had no fucking experience to be driving like that.
He hit the right barricade, sparks flying from the metal grating against the car.
He overcorrected, and the tires squealed as he cut left. So sharp that he cut across the left lane behind the SUV and went straight for the left barricade.
The low metal barrier wasn’t enough to keep it in. He blew right through the barricade.
River’s heart toppled to his stomach when he saw the car fly over the side and into the river below. The SUV skidded to a stop, whipping around and stopping for the flash of a second before the driver gunned it, flying back in the direction they’d come.
River ran at an all-out sprint, fumbling down the bank. The tail end of the car stuck up, and he dove in.
Freezing cold water swallowed him, but he swam with all he had. He got to the back door and busted the glass with his gun. He managed to get the door open, and he gulped for air before he ducked under the water.
His eyes were wild as he struggled to process. To see what he could do. How he could fix this. Save them.
