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Oka-a-a-ay.Terrified tears sprang to Prim’s eyes. She sniffed damply.
He shot her a worried look and cursed beneath his breath. “I didn’t mean—listen! I just meant that Heart Lake cop you’re dating will come looking for you, right?” There was no mistaking the underlying hope in his question.
“Of course.” It might be too late, though. Tears spilled down her cheeks at the thought of never seeing him again.
“Please don’t cry, Doc…er, Prim.” His voice was agonized.
Though the road ahead of them was blurry through her tears, she could see he was driving her toward the big garage she’dtoured with Adriel and Shep. This time, however, she wouldn’t have the policemen or the dogs to protect her. She would be going in alone. In handcuffs.
“Prim!” Mato’s shout brought her head back up from the dizzy path it had been taking toward her chest. “Stay with me. Are you the one who called the Feds?”
“What?” She blinked at him, trying to bring his pale features back into focus.
“Where did you guys go after the tour my dad gave you? Straight to the FBI?”
She shook her head. “Shep took me back to his place.”
“And then what?”
“He, um…wanted to show off the training area he built for the K-9s.” The spark of curiosity in Mato’s gaze propelled her to continue. “His uncle helped. There are hurdles, a balance beam, a seesaw, A-frame ramps, you name it. A total doggy paradise,” she bragged shakily.
He eyed her sharply. “I thought they were scent-and-track dogs.”
She raised and lowered her shoulders, thinking frantically for a way to steer the conversation to safer ground. “Yeah, they’re trained to sniff out survivors during disasters and stuff, but we mostly work on their obedience and agility.” It wasn’t true, of course. Shep had a whole series of scent-and-track exercises laid out on the obstacle courses. His dogs knew how to sniff out everything from drugs, to explosives, to money.
When Mato fell silent, she added, “Shep gave me my own dog to train with. Her name is Pink.” She liked how un-threatening it sounded and hoped her captor was picturing a fuzzy teddy bear of a dog.
He snorted in disgust. “What kind of name is that?”
“A sweet one to fit her sweet personality!” Prim tried to sound indignant, though she wasn’t sure she succeeded. “She’sthe most beautiful Saint Bernard I’ve ever laid eyes on, with the cutest, longest, pinkest tongue.”
“Chill.” Mato’s mouth twisted. “Not sure why you’re getting so worked up over a dumb dog.”
Real indignation churned in her gut. She was no longer faking it when she spat, “Dude! I’m about to die. Let me enjoy a few happy memories before you…” Her voice broke before she could finish the sentence.
“I’ve got a gun,” he reminded in a mild voice. “Ain’t gonna let nothin’ happen to you.”
“Don’t patronize me!” She studied him in fury, momentarily forgetting she was supposed to be establishing rapport with him. “I’ve been around long enough to know when I’m being lied to.”
“There she is!” He laughed at her, actuallylaughedat her! “Listening to you mouth off is a lot better than listening to you boohoo.”
“Mato Paddock,” she seethed, “in case nobody’s ever told you before, you’re a jerk!”
“Plenty of women have,” he bragged. “That’s what they love about me.”
She lapsed into fuming silence.
A motor gunned in the distance, revving menacingly as the driver of the vehicle drew up behind them.
“This isn’t good,” Mato muttered. “Listen, Doc. I don’t care how much of a jerk you think I am. I need you to keep quiet when I roll my window down. You say one word, and we’ll both be dead.”
The menacing rev-rev sounds continued. Prim was too shaken to turn around and take a look. The car finally gunned it around them. No, not quite. It hovered beside them, just like Mato had done when he’d challenged her to a drag race.
From the corner of her eye, she caught a flash of silver paint. As the driver continued to rev forward, the ornate flair of metalforming an arc over the tires was unfamiliar to her. Like Mato’s car, it must be a custom model. The driver honked at them several times.
“This is it,” Mato growled. “Not a word, you hear?” He rolled down his window.
A man hollered, “Is it done?”
