Her stomach clenched at the sound. “What’s wrong?”
“His van is still here,” Alex said. “Which means we can’t track that anywhere.”
Ava straightened, her muscles going tense. “Is he in it?”
“Ummm,” Alex murmured.
“Alex…are you checking?” She groaned. “Does this thing have a video chat?”
“Don’t turn that on. We can’t take a chance of anyone seeing you. We’re just…”
“Just what?” Ava’s heart thudded hard against her ribs as she waited, her frustration building.
Alex heaved a sigh. “We’re, uh, we’re playing Rock, Paper, Scissors to see who has to check the van.”
Ava clicked her tongue. “Are you two serious?”
“Yes, Avs,” Alex said, his voice tense. “Shadow is scary. And if he’s wounded and cornered, he may be even more scary.”
She shook her head. “Just go check. Both of you go.”
The sound of doors opening met her ears. She drummed her fingers against the arm of the chair as she waited to hear what they’d found.
“Approaching the front and peering in,” Alex said. “Nothing in here.”
“Nothing from the driver side either,” Kyle added.
“That leaves the back.”
Kyle blew out a long breath. “The one with the big door that we can’t see through.”
“Right, that one. Okay, we’re going to check in there. Doc’s going to open the door…”
“No,” Kyle hissed. “No way, Mav. This feels like a lead male operation.”
“What? That doesn’t even make sense,” Alex countered. “Lead male operation?””
“Yeah,” Kyle answered. “Like when the movie comes out, it would be Alex Stone who opens the door and does the big reveal, not Doc. Doc is just here for emotional support. He’s the witty sidekick, the bumbling, yet endearing second.”
“Or,” Alex countered, “because Alex is the lead male, Doc opens the door, that way if there’s like a bomb or something in there or Shadow has a gun, Alex lives to fight another day while Doc recuperates in the hospital with jello.”
“First, Doc hates jello, and second, there’s a bomb, you think?” Kyle’s voice lowered to just above a whisper.
Ava slammed a fist against the arm of the chair. “Will one of you just open the door already?”
“Together?” Alex asked.
“Count of three,” Kyle said.
“Okay, one, two, wait,” Alex interrupted his own count. “Are we pulling it open on three or the count after three?”
“Uhh, one, two, three, pull. We pull on pull,” Kyle suggested.
“Okay.” Alex huffed out a shaky breath before he counted to three.
The sound of a van door sliding open reverberated through her speaker as she held her breath, waiting for information.
“Nothing. Empty,” Alex reported.
