Kissed Blind (Hot Pursuit #2)(53)

“That’s not your concern.” Vance inched closer to them as I crept closer to Oliver.

Bobby spoke over his shoulder to Ray. “Knew we couldn’t trust her.”

“Look, we’re walking out of here with him. You can let us do that and live, or you can die. Your choice.” Vance’s boots shuffled and stopped when he was standing in front of them.

Bobby laughed and turned to his friend. “This fuckin’ guy, do you hear him? He’s got some balls. He the one you got the other day in the park?”

Ray nodded. “Yeah, that’s him. Got my knife dirty. How’s that head, princess? Couldn’t take a hint, could ya?” He took a couple steps my way, but I’d almost made it to Oliver’s side.

Bobby turned back to Vance. “Cut ya good, did he?”

“Take one more step toward her and you’re dead.” The calmness of Vance’s voice sent a chill through me.

“You can’t just shoot us, we aren’t even armed.” Bobby stared at Ray out of the corner of his eye. Ray leapt toward the table and reached for something underneath one of the bags of garbage.

“Vance!” I dove toward Ray but was a moment too late. A shot was fired and another and another. I dropped to the ground and scrambled toward Oliver shielding his body with mine.

Oliver sprang to life, yanking on his fastened wrists. “What’s going on?” His words slurred together.

When no more shots were fired, I released my hold on him. I patted his knee and assessed him. He was unharmed. I checked myself. I hadn’t been hit either. “It’s okay. We’re here to get you out. Vance?”

I turned, and Ray dropped to his knees. His chin smacked the edge of the table before his face planted on the concrete. Blood collected under his body and began to trickle away in a thin stream. He was dead.

“I’m cool,” Vance answered.

The room was still as I loosened the ties around Oliver’s ankles. “You got the other one?”

Vance’s boots shuffled on the floor somewhere behind me. “Yeah, I got him.” I took my eyes off Oliver to locate Vance’s feet.

He was checking Bobby’s pulse. Crouching, he peered under the table. “You good?”

“I’m fine. Is he dead?”

“Still has a pulse, but he’s not looking good. Get Oliver out of here.”

I worked on the final tie holding Oliver’s hands behind his back. He rubbed his wrists and blinked. I helped him from his chair and wrapped my arm around his waist.

“How’d you know where I was?” he asked.

“The tracking chip in your wallet.”

He released a drowsy laugh. “Guess it was a thing good… good thing I convinced you… let you guys convince me to keep that.”

“Vance, he’s not all here. I might need your help getting him down.”

“I’m fine,” Oliver offered.

I patted his stomach as we ambled toward the edge of the platform. Bobby had been rolled on his back. His chest rose and fell slowly. He’d been shot in the lower abdomen, and blood dripped from the side of his mouth.

I walked Oliver to the edge of the platform and made sure he stopped before stepping off. “Can you sit down and slide off?”

He blinked and swallowed, swaying with his arms extended. “Yeah… yeah, I think so.”

Vance came to Oliver’s side and helped him sit before he went head first into the tracks. Vance hopped down, lifted his arms up, and lowered me to the ground. He grabbed Oliver under his forearms and assisted with his descent.

“I’m not crazy about leaving you here,” I said.

Vance hopped back onto the platform and squatted next to Bobby again. He pulled his phone out. “Go. What’s gonna happen now? The damage is done.”

“How’re you going to explain this?”

“Tell the truth. They were both reaching and were going to shoot me at the same time. It was self-defense.” He searched in his pocket and tossed me the keys to the Rover. “I’ll call the cops, Camille, and everyone else. Just go. Get him to a safe house. That’s all I want you to worry about.”

“Okay.”

“Why do we have to go to a safe house? I want to go home.” Oliver wobbled a bit at my side and caught himself against the wall.

“I know you do,” I said. “But we need to make sure those were the only two men involved in this before we take you home. Given what just went down, we have to be certain.

I grabbed my goggles off the ground and slid them over my eyes. Vance’s voice echoed in the distance as he phoned the incident in. Oliver and I walked down the black tunnel, his arm draped over my shoulder.

“I can’t see anything,” he said.

“I can. Just follow my lead. We have a little ways to walk until we reach the doors to the outside. For now, there’s nothing but gravel under your feet.”

“Okay.”

Another rat ran across the tracks in front of me, and I shuddered. I quickened my pace and pulled Oliver. We hustled the rest of the way to the doors, and I escorted him through, helping him up the grassy embankment.

“The car’s just down the road there. Can you make it that far?” I pointed to the Range Rover. “I can bring the car to you if you want to wait here.”