Minutes to Kill (Scarlet Falls #2)(5)

“Fucking bitch,” an angry male voice said.

What the—?

A body collided with Hannah, knocking her over. They both went sprawling across the pavement. Pain shot up Hannah’s spine as her tailbone hit asphalt. A body landed on her and rolled off. A young girl of about fourteen looked up at her. Slim and small, she was dressed in crotch-skimming spandex hot shorts and a tube top. Tears slid from terror-rounded eyes.

“Come back here!” Footsteps on pavement.

The girl grabbed Hannah’s shoulder. “Please help me. If he catches me, I’m dead.”

“Who?” Alarmed, Hannah scanned the lot.

“He’sgonnakillme.” Panic blurred the girl’s voice. Hannah could barely understand the words.

A man emerged from between a minivan and an SUV. He was a lean six two or three, with black hair and a goatee. His gaze swept the scene and locked on Hannah. He paused, hard eyes considering her.

Hannah untangled her legs and scrambled to her feet.

He focused on the girl. “Let’s go.”

Breathless and whimpering, the girl cringed on the pavement. The man moved toward her. “I said—”

Hannah scooped her purse off the ground and stepped between them. “I don’t think she wants to go with you.”

“I don’t give a fuck what she wants.” His dark eyes narrowed to mean slits. “You’re gonna want to mind your own business.” He leaned sideways to peer around Hannah and held his hand out toward the girl. His fingers curled in a Come here gesture. “Let’s go.”

“No.” The girl’s voice trembled.

His head tilted, as if he couldn’t believe she’d defy him. He shoved Hannah out of the way and grabbed the girl by the arm, dragging her upright.

Options raced through Hannah’s mind. Precious few of them. She wanted to run back to the club, but she couldn’t make her feet turn around. The pair would be long gone before she could return with club security or the police. Wanting more agility, she slid out of her heels.

The girl’s eyes pleaded. Her lips moved. Help me. The man started dragging her away. But she threw her butt backward and sank her weight low, fighting in earnest now.

Hannah sucked in a deep breath and screamed, “Help!”

“Fucking move,” the man shouted at the girl. He slapped her hard across the face. But she continued to resist.

Hannah dug her phone from her purse, her thumb already dialing 911. Come on. Come on. The dispatcher answered.

“Assault in the parking lot of Carnival. Send police.” She could hear the dispatcher asking questions. The man shifted his grip on the teen from her arm to her long ponytail and stalked toward Hannah, dragging the girl in his wake.

“Hurry,” Hannah said into the phone.

The opportunity to run had passed. Her options whittled down to one. In the split second he spent covering the pavement between them, she analyzed body targets. She had a single chance. A man of his size could easily incapacitate her with one blow. At five-ten, Hannah was tall for a woman, but he had several inches and a fair weight advantage. His fists looked well used.

She lowered the phone. If she could just get him to drop the girl. The teen could run while Hannah distracted him. At minimum, Hannah needed to keep them here, in this public space, where chances were better that eventually someone would hear or see the commotion. A patron was bound to come out of the club any second. If he got away with the girl, who knew what he’d do to her.

She had to stall him however she could until the police arrived.

He neared, his eyes shifting from angry to wary as if he was confused by her decision to hold her ground. Hannah took advantage of his hesitation. She sent up a silent prayer and lunged. Clutching the cell in her fist, she swung her arm in an upward arc as if pitching a softball into his groin. Her blow caught him square. He doubled over, swearing.

Hannah’s shoulder bounced off his torso. She stumbled, catching the movement of his arm in her peripheral vision as it arced toward her face. She turned away, but the back of his fist impacted with the side of her head and spun her around. She slammed against a minivan. Something popped. Sound muted. Hannah staggered to her feet. Her cell phone clattered to the blacktop. Her purse strap slid off, her bag falling to the pavement.

The man was on his knees, but his head was up, and he was staring at Hannah. He wouldn’t be incapacitated for long.

“Come on.” Hannah crawled to the teen and prodded her. They clambered to their feet. She grabbed the girl by the arm and pushed her toward the rental car just a few vehicles away. Hannah snatched her phone and purse from the ground and dug in her bag for the car keys. Her fingers closed over them, and she yanked them out. The club was too far. They’d never make it on foot. She clicked the fob and unlocked the car doors. “Get in!”

Sobbing, the girl jumped into the passenger seat. Hannah slid behind the wheel. The sound of the doors locking filled her with relief. We’re going to make it. Hannah started the engine and put the vehicle into reverse. She looked over the seat and pressed the gas pedal with her foot.

A weight smacked against the vehicle and rocked the car. The girl screamed from the passenger seat. Hannah startled, her pulse shooting through her veins. The man glared through the windshield. His upper body lay across the hood.

“Get out of the fucking car, now!” He slapped both palms into the glass. “Or you’re dead.” He pointed at the girl.