Set Me Free (A Fugitive #2)(26)

I wanted to curse and swear some more, fear pulsing through me in giant waves. Biting my tongue, I moved back into the main room, crashing into Elliot. We both staggered away from each, knocking our limbs on furniture.

"Shit! Sorry!" Elliot yelled at me before running a trembling hand through his hair. "How the hell did this happen?" He muttered, his gaze running with deep anguish. "This was my fault. I told you the evidence was there. That's what it said!"

"I know, but if it makes you feel better, the lady had to really search to find out what happened to it. So the information was buried pretty deep."

"But I screwed up the IDs as well."

I sighed, giving myself a second to breathe. "We chose the wrong guy. Agent Green no longer works for the FBI and they hadn't updated their website. It's not your fault. I should have made you triple check and dig a little deeper." Stepping towards him, I placed my hand on his upper arm and squeezed. "How would you have known?"

"By digging a little deeper. I shouldn't need you to tell me that. It's common sense," he mumbled.

"It's not your fault. Elliot, look at me." He finally flicked his gaze in my direction. "It's not your fault. Now get your ass moving and help us clear out this place. Rinse those glasses in the sink, I'll start wiping down surfaces."

We got to work, moving in a frenzied silence. I'm sure we missed stuff, our brains were too frazzled to take things analytically. All I could hope is that the motel staff cleaned this room sooner rather than later.

Zach returned, surveying us quietly before snaffling up the bags in silence and heading for the car. Alex insisted on driving in spite of the fact that his hands shook when he was punching the key into the ignition.

"Go slowly." I reminded him as he reversed out of the motel lot. "No one's chasing us."

"Not right now they're not."

"We've still got a little time up our sleeves." I glanced out the back window. "You can hit the gas once we reach the highway."

Taking a slow breath, Alex pulled into traffic and calmly headed north. As I leaned back in the seat, I felt the adrenaline begin to drain from my body. My fingers started quivering in my lap. Pinching them together, I squeezed until they started to tingle.

This was hopeless.

We had nothing on Tenner and now the FBI would be after us too.

Worse than that, I'd dragged these guys into it and who knew what trouble we'd all get into.

"Are you okay?" Zach whispered.

Closing my eyes, I turned away from his question. No! Of course I wasn't okay!

I couldn't talk. All I wanted was for the world to somehow make me disappear.





Chapter 14





ZACH





It was a silent, suffocating drive back to Danville. Zach watched Lucy closely, not sure what to say. She kept her eyes out the window the entire time, sniffing every now and then, but never uttering a word. Seeing her so despondent was unnerving. He bet she wanted to run again. He could feel her thigh twitching beneath his hand. He squeezed it once more, hoping for a response, but got nothing.

Uncle Alex watched him through the review mirror, his brows puckered. Was he worried or annoyed? Zach couldn't believe his smooth uncle had punched a security guard on FBI property. Was he out of his frickin' mind?

Zach looked away from the man he had always revered, resting his head back on the seat and letting out a slow sigh.

No evidence.

And now a possible FBI tail.

This couldn't get worse.

Impersonating an agent was hardly points in Lucy's favor. If she got busted for this, they'd surely link it all back to the Tate murders and she had nothing to stand on. Nothing but her word against that of an FBI liar. One who had made a very good name for himself in the law enforcement scene.

They were screwed.

Zach's insides had been on fire since the second Lucy and his uncle burst through that motel door. Their panic was enough to turn his brain to liquid, but he'd held it together. Someone had to remain calm in the chaos and this time around it had been him. Trying to stop his hands from shaking as he paid for the room was basically impossible. He wondered if the guy at the counter even noticed.

He felt sick. Closing his eyes, he tried not to let his thoughts run wild. So Uncle Alex punched the guard. It's not like they killed anybody or stole anything. Surely the FBI had more important things to worry about.

No evidence.

Crap! Friggin' crap!

All this stress and angst was for nothing.

They had no damn evidence!

Were they just playing a losing game? If they kept going, would they just hit one roadblock after the next? It was pointless trying to pursue this if they were just going to lose anyway. Maybe they were better off trying to get Lucy tucked into a safe pocket of the world somewhere.

He hated that idea. He knew he couldn't go with her. Not yet anyway.

Turning to look at the back of her head, he traced the line of her dark ponytail with his eyes, feeling deflated and lost.

Uncle Alex pulled into Zach's driveway and cut the engine. He turned to speak to Lucy, but before he'd even opened his mouth, she pulled the latch and shouldered the door open. The guys all looked at each other, worry cresting through the space around them.