It wasn’t Leland. It was the man from earlier. The one she recognized, but couldn’t place. She stood there, stunned, trying to figure out what was going on.
A tall man next to him stepped to the hotel employee, thanked her profusely for fetching Tayla, handed her a generous tip, and told her she could return to the hotel.
The mystery man stood in front of Tayla, repeating that he was glad she’d come so quickly.
And one second too late, Tayla realized his words were all an act for the benefit of the young hotel employee. Once the young woman rounded the corner again, the tall man opened the back door of a nearby black sedan. Tayla still had no idea what was happening, but every instinct inside her yelled,run!
She darted about two strides before the mystery man grabbed her, shoved her in the sedan’s backseat, and slammed the door.
Jason’s feet hit the asphalt parking lot just in time to glimpse the terror on Tayla’s face before the door shut. The man who’d slammed her door jerked his head at the motion of Jason barreling toward them.The guy Tayla was staring at during the party.
The man jumped into the passenger seat and slammed his door. The car sped, tires screeching, across the parking lot. Not willing to give up the chase, Jason darted diagonally across the lot to intercept them near the exit.
He reached the exit a moment before the sedan. When the driver tapped the brake to make the turn out of the parking lot, Jason jumped on the hood. Which probably looked awesome, but was an ill-conceived plan that led nowhere. Whoever was driving didn’t feel compelled to slow down just because Jason was holding on for dear life.
He did get a good look through the front windshield, though. Three men in the car. The driver, the guy Taylarecognized, and another man in the backseat sitting next to Talya.
The driver slammed on his brakes, and Jason lost his feeble grip on the lip of the hood. He slid off the car and rolled to the side. He dodged being run over, but felt no relief. The sedan was leaving the parking lot.
He pushed to his feet and ran toward the sedan to at least get a better description of the car and which direction they were headed.
“Hey!”
Jason whipped his head to Knox’s voice.
“Get in!”
Knox barely slowed the SUV enough for Jason to jump into the backseat. He slammed his door and yelled, “Go right! They turned right!”
Leland sat in the front passenger seat. Jaw set. “How many? Who are they?”
“Three. And I don’t know. Haven’t seen the driver or the guy in the backseat before. The other guy was at the party. Tayla recognized him, but she didn’t know where from. She said it wasn’t a big deal, but it bothered her that she couldn’t place him.”
“Apparently, it’s a big deal,”Leland growled.
“Hey, calm down,” Knox said. “We’re right behind them.” He pointed at the only other car on the road, about forty yards ahead. “They can’t lose us on this island.”
“What’s their plan?” asked Leland. He glanced back at Jason. “Why grab her?”
Everything happened so fast Jason hadn’t had time to think. Until now. Only two scenarios made any sense. And he hated both of them. Either way, Tayla’s life was in danger—and that thought nearly mule-kicked a hole in his chest.
He pushed a hand through his hair and leaned forward between the front seats. “Okay, either they think we’re onto them for Gus’s murder or the attacks on Drakos, and they’re using Tayla to lure us out here . . . “
“To take us all out?” Knox asked. “Great.”
“Or,” Jason continued. “That guy panicked when Tayla recognized him. Maybe he thinks she remembers more about him than she does. Which is nothing, as of a few minutes ago.”
Leland turned to him. “Either way, you think they’re planning on killing Tayla.” The anger and fear lacing his words gutted Jason.
“We’re not going to let that happen.”
He meant those words. But he didn’t have a great plan yet. Stopping the sedan wouldn’t be difficult. Stopping the sedan without Tayla getting hurt—that was the challenge.
“They turned,” Knox said. “Want me to stay back, or . . . “
“Get closer. I don’t want to panic them into doing something rash, but I don’t want to lose them.”
Knox accelerated, made the turn at a greater-than-advised speed, and closed the distance between their SUV and the sedan. “Okay, now what?” He glanced at Jason in the rearview mirror. “You know I can get them off the road. I can stop that car. I just can’t—”
