Chapter 131: The Chase Is On

“What kind of lead?” I ask him anxiously.

“Logan’s people picked up a trail heading into Mississippi. He was spotted crossing the border,” Derek replies.

“Mississippi? How did he get that far so fast?” I ask.

“He was spotted at a rest stop in a stolen car. Logan’s people let Brian go about his business unawares and called him,” Derek replies.

“They let him go? Why didn’t they stop him right there?” I ask.

“They weren’t sure if he was armed and they didn’t want to risk Anna. They made the right call. Now we have an idea of where he’s headed,” Derek replies. I’m not happy, but I see the wisdom in this decision.

“Ok, you all better eat as fast as possible and then we need to go,” I say and Derek nods.

After the guys eat and I try my best to choke down a little something, we all pile in the car. The drive is silently tense as all of us anticipate the worst case scenario. Some of Logan’s men are meeting us at the border and he has another group carefully tailing Brian. Derek puts his hand on my leg and squeezes gently.

“We found him, sweetheart. That was half the battle,” he says, trying to comfort me. I nod but my anxiety is still through the roof. Felix and Logan are quiet, neither one of them committing to any promises of a good outcome.

We pass the border into Mississippi and Logan stops to meet with his men. He talks with them for a few moments and then we continue our journey. Another hour or two goes by and I’m desperate to know how close we are.

“The tail saw him pull off for gas about a mile down the road. We are going to sneak up carefully; we don’t want to spook him,” Logan answers my silent question.

As we pull behind the gas station, a horrific scene awaits us. We all jump out of the car to find the two men who were tailing Brian lying on the ground with their throats slit. The car they were driving sits empty and my stomach starts to feel queasy.

“What the hell?” Logan says and checks the pulses of his men, even though it’s obvious they are already dead.

“He knows we’re following him,” I say with a monotone voice.

“Now that he knows, he is going to be more careful,” Logan replies. Tears threaten to spill behind my eyes and Derek pulls me into his embrace.

Logan and Felix walk around to the pumps and when they come back, they report that the car Brian was driving was abandoned.

“So he’s gone and now we have no idea what he’s driving, or if he’s driving,” Derek remarks.

“He most likely stole another car. This lot has a lot of vehicles in it so we might not know what he stole until it’s reported. I will keep a man here to follow up,” Logan replies.

“So what now?” Felix asks.

“We can keep driving and see if we can catch up to him, or stay and wait for another lead,” Logan says and then looks to Derek and me for an answer.

“I think we should keep driving. Your man will contact you either way, right?” I ask.

“Yes,” Logan replies.

“I agree, it won’t hurt to keep going,” Derek says. We get back in the car after Logan makes a call to have someone take care of the dead men. We drive for another hour or so when Logan starts to shift uncomfortably in his seat.

“What’s wrong?” I ask him.

“Seems like someone is following us. I may be paranoid because I’m on alert, but I don’t think so,” he replies. Derek and I look behind us and a black SUV with tinted windows is trailing behind us.

“Who could that be? Brian doesn’t have the resources and he lost all his men,” Derek says.

“We have more than one enemy,” Logan retorts.

“You think Antonio found us?” I ask. He doesn’t reply but I know that’s what he thinks.

“Great. His timing is impeccable,” Felix remarks. I have to agree with him. This is not what we need right now. Logan keeps driving but he continues to watch the car in his rearview mirror. I can’t help myself from glancing back as well and that’s when I see them pick up speed.

“They’re getting closer,” I warn Logan. He nods curtly and presses his foot on the gas, which makes them drive faster to keep up.

“Underneath all of your seats are guns and ammo. Get ready,” Logan tells us. My heart rate increases as I lift the weapon from beneath me.

The car behind us speeds up so they are next to us and starts ramming our car. The windows start to roll down and Logan yells for us to get down. Shots ring out and shatter the glass around us as Logan slams on the brakes, letting them pass. Then he rams them in the back and the SUV lurches forward, then stops suddenly. We slam into the back of them again and then Logan reverses and slams on the gas to go around them.

The chase continues down a long stretch of highway. They don’t shoot at us again but they play with us and try to run us off the road. Logan shoots at them while he’s driving and then we follow suit. Our aim is not great with little experience in a moving vehicle, but I manage to shatter one of their sideview mirrors.

The battle comes to a head when they get in front of us and stop fast, make us slam into them so hard the airbags go off. We are near a wooded area and Logan shouts for us to get out of the car and race towards it. I know he’s thinking we can do what we did before and trick them by shifting. Bullets fly past our heads when we jump out of the car. Derek tries to shield me as we run and adrenaline is coursing through my veins.

One shot in particular makes Derek tackle me to the ground and he falls on top of me. He doesn’t move for a moment and fear strikes my heart.