“My car’s in the front,” Harley realized once the bright light hit them, “freakin’ shot up too!”
“My boat is down at the St. Marks docks, we’re about twenty klicks away.”
“Are you finally going to take us for a ride?” asked Hannah, trying desperately to keep up the pace on the other side of Tai.
Irritation clouded Harley’s mind, not only was she within arms’ length of Christopher Alfaro without making any serious contact or arrest on the man, she now needed to run with her niece in tow for a good twelve miles. Who knew when the next time would be when she got the opportunity and the element of surprise? At this point Christopher was sure to be suspicious of her if they ever met again. She only hoped she could use the balloons popping as an excuse and claim she got scared and took off running with her niece. Hopefully Dante didn’t ruin everything. What the hell kind of agent was he? Totally unprofessional. What was with him and outing their marriage? And to make matters worse, why was he still parading around with that blasted ring? And where was he? Did he make it out okay? She and Tai had been working together so long they read each other’s minds. Did Dante and Roman know to run?
Tai slowed her pace to glance over her shoulde
r when Harley stopped running and placed her hands on her hips. “What are you doing?”
“What?” Harley asked innocently as she started back to a slow jog for Hannah’s sake.
“You stopped.”
“No,” Harley countered, “you stopped.”
“I stopped because you slowed down.”
They ran down the back alley between garbage cans and the fences of other homes hosting their own parties. The white gravel road had enough space for one car. Green grass or green weeds ran down the center of the road like the yellow lines on a street. The gravel crunched beneath their feet. “I did not.”
“You did, Harley,” Hannah breathed heavily bringing up the rear. “I saw.”
“I was looking at you.”
Hannah shook her head, “You didn’t even make eye contact with me. You were looking for your husband.” Harley stopped walking so Hannah could catch her breath. She sometimes forgot Hannah’s age did not mean she was in shape. The teen’s body folded over, hands on her knees as she inhaled deeply. “I think it’s cute.”
“I wouldn’t slow down for him.”
“Whatever,” Tai rolled her eyes. “You guys, let’s go. I don’t like being stuck on a one-way. It’s the easiest way to get trapped.”
They picked up their pace again. The main street was just up ahead. Harley ran every morning rain or shine. Right now, running with her niece meant she needed to keep an even keel pace and keep an ear out for any surprises—surprises such as the scrubbed down to the base paint Monte Carlo skidded to a halt just as the three of them reached the end of the alley. The three ladies came to a halt, kicking up dirt of their own.
When the dust cleared Dante stood by the hood of the car, his friend behind the wheel. “Hey Charlie’s Angels, want a ride?”
Harley and Tai shared a smirk. “I’m Farrah!” they both cried out.
“Who’s Farrah?” asked Hannah, “Can I be the Cameron Diaz character?”
Harley playfully pushed her niece forward. “Get in the car, young lady. You’re in some serious trouble.”
****
Dante did not like to think of himself as a sexist, but once the car doors closed-securing Harley and her people—he breathed a deep sigh of relief. For a photographer, Harley had some moves, but even moves couldn’t stop a bullet.
“What were you thinking back there?” Harley demanded to know as she settled into the middle of the back seat.
“If you’ll just take us to the docks,” her friend with the balloons said over the roar of the engine and the boom in Harley’s voice, “I have a ride waiting for us.”
Small colorful homes passed by in warp speed thanks to Roman’s NASCAR like driving. It took Dante a moment to realize Harley’s screeching was directed at him. “What? I was saving you.”
The way she snorted, Dante imagined her in school as the student who corrected the teacher. She came off as a know-it-all. Had he not shown up and spoken, God only knew what could have happened. He would have lost his lead on Leonardo because he’d be in jail for murdering Christopher Alfaro in broad daylight because he laid a finger on Harley.
“Are you crazy?” Harley yelled in disbelief.
Dante’s blood boiled with excitement. He grew up in a small Italian family but in a big Italian neighborhood. Everyone argued and yelled loud but they loved something fierce.”I assure you I am as sane as possible. You were the one who drove into a hail of gunfire.”
“The gunfire stopped by the time I blocked the street.”