What Doesn't Kill Her (Cape Charade #2)(22)

“We’re ThunderFlash and LightningBug.”

“Wait. I thought I was ThunderBoomer?”

“No. I’ve decided we are ThunderFlash and LightningBug, and we have adventures and save everybody.”

“Yay, us.” Kellen was still trying to grapple with the reality of her child here, with her at the crossroads of disaster and death. “Rae, if you’re supposed to always be in a seat belt, why did you crawl in the back and hide?”

“I told you. To bond!”

“Do you think that was the right thing to do?”

“You’re my mommy, and I don’t want you to go away.”

Kellen guessed that was a good answer. “Do you know what it means to bond?”

“It’s like glue, only stickier.”

Kellen opened her mouth and shut it. Actually, that described bonding pretty well.

Rae said, “Monster MegaBond! Bonds metal, plastic, paper, silk, porcelain! Not even two monsters can pull it apart.” She grunted deeply and made a gorilla face.

An infomercial. The kid got her bonding smarts from an infomercial. Kellen couldn’t believe how stupid this was, and at the same time—damn. Funny and clever.

“When are you going to call Daddy?”

“I can’t. Horst stole my phone.” And didn’t Kellen feel stupid admitting that to a child.

“If I had my own phone, we could call Daddy right now.”

“Your own phone? You’re seven!”

“Martin has his own phone. Amelia has her own phone. Scarlett has her own phone. Jackson has his own phone.” Rae recited their names with solemn certainty.

“Your friends have cell phones? That’s appalling.”

Rae sagged in the seat. “I need a phone!”

“Why?”

“So we could call Daddy!”

“Why else?”

“So I could text!”

“Why else?”

“So I could play the game where you pop the Bubble Wrap.”

“I’m not helping you with this one, Rae. I agree with your daddy and your grandma. You’re too young for a phone.”

Rae crossed her arms over her chest, hunched down in the seat and pouted mightily. Then she pointed at the floor. “Look, your man left his phone.”

Kellen glanced down and there it was—Horst’s phone, big as life. She must have knocked it out of his pocket when she kicked him. “Can you pick it up for me?”

“I’m not supposed to—”

“I know, you’re not supposed to get out of your seat belt, but this is a special occasion.”

“Like when Grandma wants to smoke a secret cigarette but she can’t reach her Marlboros?”

Kellen grinned in evil delight. That explained that occasional whiff of forbidden tobacco floating around Verona. “Exactly like that, except I’m not doing anything naughty.”

Rae unclicked, squatted on the floor, picked up the phone and handed it over, then sat on Patrick, pulled up her blankie and belted herself in.

Kellen slowed to a crawl. “Let me see if I can call 9-1-1.” She checked for service. None. Damn it. Absolutely no cell, no satellite. They were too far into the mountains for any kind of signal. “I’m sorry, honey, I can’t call Daddy or 9-1-1.”

“That’s okay. This is fun!” Rae beamed.

“Right.” Kellen poked at Horst’s phone, trying to get around the lock screen, and the last text message slid past.

How many miles until the van blows?


11


The text disappeared.

“What?” Kellen said to the phone. “What?”

Predictably, the phone didn’t answer, but a quick glance at the gauges told her everything she needed to know. The engine was overheating, the arrow rising steadily. “You treacherous bastard.” What had Horst done? Cut a line? No, there should have been trouble before now, and anyway, the worst that could happen was an engine fire.

The text said, Blow. As in a bomb. As in...as in the explosion that had killed her cousin.

For what purpose? Horst didn’t think she was going to get away in the van, so he and his friends wanted to retrieve the head and destroy the evidence.

Smoke curled out from under the hood.

At best, this was going to mark the place she and Rae started walking. At worst—

Kellen pulled as far over toward the edge of the road as possible, unfastened her seat belt, Rae’s seat belt, opened Rae’s door and said, “Jump out and go stand—” she scanned the area “—over by the creek and behind that hemlock.”

“Okay.” Rae gathered her blankie and Patrick and lowered herself to the ground. “What did the treacherous bastard do now?”

“Run!” Later they would talk about repeating what Mommy said and what the treacherous bastard had done. Now, Kellen climbed in the back and started throwing weapons, ammunition, her bag and the mummy’s head out onto the road. Rae’s bag went last; it was open and junk flew everywhere in the van and on the road.

Kellen knew there would be hell to pay, but the van started trembling like a volcano about to erupt. She jumped out and grabbed the head and her bag and sprinted toward Rae.

Toward Rae, who was running toward her, yelling, “My princesses!”