“Okay.”
“Now that that’s settled, how about if we gobowling?”
Chapter 18
“Pleeeeease,Aunt Denny? It’s my favorite song.” Kimber folded her hands under her chin insupplication.
Denise’s eye twitched. It was only a song. If she lived through the next three and a half minutes, she’d delete it from her music folder.Oops. Sorry, honey, I don’t know whathappened.
“One time. We’re not listening to that song on repeat the whole wayhome.”
“Yay!”
Kaden groaned. “Are you really going to make us listen to TaylorSwift?”
“Yes!” Kimber bounced up and down in herseat.
Denise pressed her thumb against the home button on her phone to unlock it and passed it back to Kimber. “Here you go.” She turned south onto 401 as the first strains ofShake It Offcame through the speakers, immediately regretting installing a new stereo system in herSUV.
“Aunt Denny,” Kadencomplained.
“Dude, I’ll turn on Octane as soon as the song is done and let the soothing sounds of hard rock purge our eardrums.Deal?”
“Deal.”
She glanced back at him through the rearview mirror. His arms were crossed and he was sulking, but his lips were moving, singing along to thesong.
Pulling into a straightaway on the two-lane country road, she was nearly blinded by the high-beam headlights of a truck approaching from the rear. She was doing the speed limit, mindful that deer were prevalent on this stretch of road at night. The last thing she needed to do was take one out with the kids in thecar.
She flipped the rearview mirror and put her hand up against the window to block the glare from the side mirror. “Go around, asshole,” she muttered, slowing down so the driver could passthem.
Too late she realized he wasn’t going to passthem.
“Shit!” She pressed the gas pedal, hoping to gain some speed before theywere—
Crunch.
Kimber let out a littlescream.
“What’s happening, Aunt Denny?” Kadenasked.
She checked all the mirrors. The jolt had sent them forward, but the truck was approaching again. “I don’t know, Kaden. Do me a favor. Turn off the music and dial nine-one-one.”
“The screen’slocked.”
She hit the power button on the radio to shut off the music. In the sudden silence, she heard pipes approaching from the rear. Two Harley-Davidson motorcycles pulled alongside them as they were bumped again. Kimber screamed again and startedcrying.
“Guys, I need your help. I can’t unlock the screen and drive. Kaden, hit the emergency call button and dial nine-one-one.”
Sprocket growled low in her throat and snarled out thewindow.
“Sprocket, down. Go toKimber.”
One of the bikes pulled ahead of them and its taillight flashed, forcing her to brake so she didn’t hitit.
“We’re in my aunt’s car. Someone is hitting us,” Kadensaid.
“Kaden, put it on speaker phone.” She checked the rearview mirror. The truck was riding her bumper, only the dark silhouette of the drivervisible.
