Chapter 345 Chapter 345
Konner grinned when Terah hit the fourth button on the radio, trying to find more music. “We’re pretty remote here, probably won’t pick up anything else for a while.”
She hit the first button again and looked at it.
It dawned on him that even the simplest things like a radio, that everyone took for granted would be a novelty for her. He looked forward to showing her all the many wonders in this modern world.
Glancing in the mirror, he was surprised to see a vehicle behind them. This early in the morning in such a remote area surprised him. He’d been so distracted by her; he wasn’t sure how long they’d been there. When they got closer but made no move to pass, his gut told him this wasn’t some local out early for work.
He turned off the radio. “Make sure your seat belt is tight and keep your head down.”
Terah listened before she spoke. “Are they going to take me?”
The fear in her voice made him angry, that she would think that first. “No one is taking you.” He took his foot off the gas, hoping he was wrong, and they were going to go around him. They sped up, coming dangerously close to the back bumper. He wasn’t about to drive endless miles like this—if they wanted to try and overtake the van, he was going to make it seem easy for them and then beat them at their own game.
The truck pulled out and sped up, coming level with the back corner of the van. Konner braced for the hit he knew was coming. The van handled like a cement block, making it hard to counteract the force of the impact.
Terah leaned forward and put her arms around her head, protecting it. Smart girl, he thought just before the next hit. The sound of rubber sliding over the pavement echoed through the van.
He looked to see the ditch drop down along the road. Not liking the odds, he accelerated and jerked the wheel to the left, giving him more room to maneuver and keep away from the embankment. If he could toy with them long enough, they should be coming up on the part of the road that had been blasted to go through the rock formation.
“Take off your seatbelt and get in the back, so they don’t see you.”
She moved quickly without comment.
“Hang onto the bottom of the seat.” He quickly glanced to see she was listening and then slowed just enough to make them think they had a chance of hitting the van again.
He could see the tall rocks ahead of them. “Okay assholes, catch up, I don’t have all day.” He pulled out further into the middle of the road, silently thanking the first god name that came to mind that it was a straight stretch and there was no oncoming traffic.
The truck accelerated; Konner watched it in the passenger mirror as it pulled up. “Hang on tight.” The sound of metal from the impact against the back corner made him wince. “A few more hits, Terah, hang on.” He wanted to at least reassure her that this was part of his plan.
He cursed quietly when he saw the section of rocks wasn’t one of the long ones. Pulling back to the middle of the road, he made sure to give them more than enough room to pull alongside him again. To them, it would look like he was trying to move further away from them.
They accelerated, bringing it up almost even with the van. Konner kept it steady, making sure not to crowd them so they wouldn’t realize what was coming. They were close enough to the mirror now, he could see there were two in the truck.
“Pleased to meet you,” he whispered under his breath and let up on the gas, just slightly.
The window to do this right was small and he’d only get one chance. He counted it down in his head like he was on an operation. Just a little further. He gripped the steering wheel tight and watched as the front of the truck began to move in front of them. Jerking on the wheel, he drove the corner of the van right into the front tire of the truck. He stomped on the gas pedal and both vehicles slid across the pavement.
The sound of metal bending when the truck hit the rocks was loud to his sensitive ears. He was thrown forward against the seatbelt as both vehicles came to an abrupt stop. Slamming it into park, he glanced back at Terah as he reached down beside his seat for the dart gun. “Are you okay?” She nodded, a little dazed. “Stay here.”