Code Name: Nanny (SEAL and Code Name #5)(95)

Gabe managed to grip the scientist from behind and hold him steady. “Terence, can you hear me?”

The scientist gasped an answer, and the next swerve pitched him hard against Gabe’s arm.

“Blood on the Armani. I hate it when that happens.” Gabe shifted to find a better grip while the scientist twisted, oblivious. “Terence, hang in there, pal.”

Summer tried to decipher Underhill’s guttural ranting. “What’s he saying?”

“Can’t tell. Something about a panda?”

Summer saw a green van racing through the dirt behind them. One of the men in the front seat looked like the driver she had tossed out of the truck minutes before.

The road was dangerously narrow now, with almost no room to maneuver, but the van kept coming, and slammed hard against her back fender.

Summer veered to the left, racing along the very edge of the road, fighting to hold the truck steady with the van right behind her, ramming her bumper.

Below her she saw a flash of silver from the ocean, and then the road twisted sharply. To the north, weathered stucco houses dotted the hillside, and after a steep descent the road split in two.

The van hammered them again. Summer’s head snapped backward and she nearly lost control of the truck. Dust swirled through the window and she coughed hard, spit out a mouthful of grit, then drove the accelerator back to the floor. “Can you see yet?” she shouted to Gabe.

“Still blurred as hell.”

“The driver’s gun is on the seat.”

Underhill was muttering brokenly, but Summer couldn’t look away from the road.

Something struck the rear window, cracking the glass.

“We’re taking fire here. Give it some juice.”

Trying to ignore the van riding her bumper and the sheer drop to her left, Summer floored the accelerator again while Gabe knocked a hole in the cab’s rear window.

Squinting, he squeezed off four shots and then cursed. “You need to hold us straight! I’m guessing here already.”

Summer gritted her teeth. “In case you hadn’t noticed, this road is bumpy as hell.”

“I noticed, trust me.”

A bullet cracked against the roof.

“There’s a split in the road ahead.” Summer measured distances and calculated speed. “Get ready, because I’m turning hard.”

“Hold on.” Gabe’s first shot shattered the van’s windshield, and their pursuers slowed abruptly. As Summer barreled into the turn, a mother and three children walked onto the road, directly in front of the truck. Breathing a silent prayer, Summer jammed the brakes hard and spun the truck ninety degrees. With dust flying wildly, they careened into a skid.

She flipped on the wipers, half-blinded, watching the van roar past her with no break in speed. Amid a stream of curses, the driver swerved into a rock, and the van soared into the air, crash-landing against a huge cottonwood tree.

Before Summer had time for relief, the road twisted sharply to the right and she saw a cement overhang twenty feet away, part of a new irrigation canal. They were headed directly toward the unfinished edge.

Summer stared grimly down the hill, her options fading. “Brace yourself, because this is going to hurt like hell,” she shouted.

Then there was nothing but brown, rocky soil stretching out below her.





[page]chapter 36

Amanda Winslow closed the trunk of her old silver Mercedes and smiled at Cara gamely. “I told Tate to prepare to be supplanted.” She held up a dozen bags with bright bows and ribbons. “We have serious work to do, my love. Not that you aren’t gorgeous, but a bride can always use a little extra glow for her big day.”

Cara put her arm around Sophy, who was staring wide-eyed at Tate’s mother. “What a lovely idea. But you really shouldn’t have gone to all this trouble, Amanda.”

The slim, white-haired woman laughed in delight. “The only trouble was negotiating that dirt road to get here. The day spa treatments become trouble is the day I draw my last breath. Do you know, Tate and his brother used to tease me that I should open my own spa since I was already an expert.” Her head tilted. “And I actually considered it. I even signed a contract on a lovely little property in Georgetown near Tate’s old law office.” She winked at Sophy. “Thank God, I came to my senses in time.”

“What happened?” Sophy demanded, in awe of her future grandmother.

“I realized that I would have been appalling as a masseuse, my dear, and even worse as a business manager.” Shaking her head, Amanda juggled two bags and took her son’s arm. “Are the reporters leaving you alone here?”

“So far we’ve managed to fly below their radar. I’ve promised Audra a fishing expedition today.” He grinned at his mother. “Don’t suppose you’d want to give up exfoliation for standing waist-high in frigid water?”

“Blasphemy, my love.” Amanda handed one of her bags to Cara. “I think we should start with the algae rinse. After that comes the loofah scrub and the warm mud wrap. When I’m done, you’ll look like a teenager—not that you aren’t close to being thirteen already, my sweet.”

Sophy giggled. “What about me? Can you make me look older, Grandma?”

“Are you staying with us, Sophy? If so, I think you’ll fall in love with my strawberry mousse face cream. I even brought a pair of little red spa slippers, just for you.”