“Look, I’ve been doing this for four years. When was the last time you went on the run?”
“Considering that I’m a law-abiding citizen, never.”
I glared at him, but even though he didn’t know it, he had a point. “Can we just eat and get to work? We should get a new car and get on the road in a few hours.”
“I leave this up to your expertise.”
We ate in silence and when we were finished, I helped him cut his hair down to practically nothing. Then he cut my hair in a straight line at my chin and helped me dye my hair. When we were all done, we gathered up the hair and used supplies and bagged it up. I was walking it out to the dumpster when I noticed a car driving very slowly past the parking lot. I was instantly on alert, but when they slammed on the brakes, I knew we were screwed. I tossed the garbage into the dumpster and booked it back to the room.
“We have to leave!” I shouted.
He jumped up off the bed and grabbed the small bag of supplies from the pharmacy. “They’re here?”
I locked the door and put the chain on the door, then grabbed his hand and dragged him back to the bathroom. “Come on, we have to go out this way.”
“There’s no way I’ll fit through there.”
I popped open the window and looked out, but no one was there. That’s when I heard the banging on the door. Josh slammed the bathroom door shut and flicked the lock.
“That’s not going to hold them. Give me a boost.”
His hands landed on my ass and shoved me up and through the window. Gripping the edge of the window, I lowered myself down and caught the bag he tossed out. I heard the bathroom door fly open and then a gunshot.
Josh
The bathroom door broke in half just as I pushed Hannah through the window. I saw the gun just a second before I ducked. The shot hit the tile of the bathtub. I grabbed the lid of the tank on the toilet and swung without thinking. It cracked against the guy’s skull and he dropped to the ground. My eyes widened as a second man appeared, raising his gun straight at me. I held up the tank lid, hoping it would block his shot. The porcelain cracked as the bullet hit, skimming across my cheek as it flew past me.
I flung the piece still in my hand like a frisbee and cracked him right in the nose. Blood gushed and he fell to the floor. I didn’t waste another second sticking around to see what happened. I grabbed my plastic bag and booked it to the front door. I ran out just as Hannah was rounding the corner. She skidded to a stop and stared at me in astonishment.
“You’re alive.”
“Don’t look so surprised.”
I raced to the car and got in the passenger side as she got in the driver’s side. She started the car and backed out, smashing into their vehicle in her attempt to flee. Dirt and gravel kicked up as she peeled out of the lot and hit the road.
“I can’t believe you’re alive,” she said again.
“Yeah, I already got that part. Thanks for the vote of confidence.”
“I just…I didn’t think you had it in you. How did you do it?”
“Toilet tank,” I said, glancing behind us to see if anyone was following.
“What?”
“The lid of the toilet tank. I smashed it into their faces.”
She looked over at me and shook her head slowly. “I just…I didn’t see that coming.”
“Yeah, well, I didn’t think I’d have to defend myself like that. It was the first thing I saw. And it was either that or skewer him with the curtain rod.”
She nodded. “I’ll keep that in mind for the next time we’re attacked in a motel.”
“Let’s hope there’s not a next time.”
“I don’t understand how they found us. Dammit, they weren’t following us. How did they find us?”
“I have no clue.”
“What did you do when you went out?”
“I went shopping.”
“Yeah, I know, but did you hide your face?”
“Of course, I did. I’m not stupid. I followed your instructions to a T.”
“And you paid in cash?”
I sat there in silence, not really understanding why whether or not I paid in cash or with my credit card was a problem.
“You didn’t pay in cash?” she asked incredulously.
“You didn’t say anything in your rules about paying in cash. I paid with my credit card. Why is that a problem? It’s not like just anyone can access that.”
She stared at me and then she exploded. “Are you fucking kidding me? Of course they can! I told you, these aren’t regular people we’re dealing with.”
“Actually, you haven’t told me much of anything,” I pointed out. “And next time, tell me all the fucking rules for escaping psychos while on the run!”
She faced forward and fumed and I sat on my side and did the same. I glanced down at my hands and noticed I had blood on them. I swiped at my face and realized I was still bleeding from my close call with the bullet that was meant to be implanted in my head.
“He fucking shot me!”
“Well, that was kind of the point,” she snapped.
“No, I mean, I realize that he was trying to kill me, but he actually fucking shot me in the face. It’s one thing to know that you’re about to be shot at, but it’s a totally different thing to know the bullet actually hit!”
“Oh, would you relax? It’s a graze.”
“A graze that could have killed me if it was just a few centimeters over!”
“You know, you’re gonna have to learn to let this shit roll off your back if you’re going to handle being on the run.”
I slowly looked over at her like the mad woman she was. “How are you so calm about this? Does this happen on a regular basis for you?”
“Actually, in the four years I’ve been on the run, this is the first time this has happened.”
I shook my head slightly. “How the hell did you manage that?”
“I faked my death.”
“You…” My eyes slid closed and I blocked out all my thoughts for a moment as I contemplated all I had learned in the last twenty-four hours. It was all too much. “How did you fake your death?”
“Car bomb.”
I stared at her for a moment, completely speechless. “Car bomb,” I finally said. “You ran from your husband and killed yourself with a car bomb.” She nodded. “Who actually dies from a car bomb?”
“You’d be surprised,” she muttered.
I shook my head. This was ridiculous. I couldn’t even begin to comprehend how one would fake their own death in a car bomb. That was stuff that happened in movies, not real life.
“I’m not sure I should ask, but how did you even manage to pull that off?”
“Well, it wasn’t the easiest thing to do.” She sighed heavily, like she didn’t really want to tell me. “The coroner was a friend. She gave me a body to put in the car, and when my ‘body’ was sent to the morgue to be identified, she swapped out the dental records.”
“Wow, I wish I had such a good friend that would help me fake my own death,” I said dryly.