“Lloyd Mansfield, right? Also known as Seth Baker and Adam Johnson? I know all about you, and so does she.” He waved his hand toward the Uber that Seth had parked just outside the store. Tina posed there, one hip leaning against it, her arms folded across her chest, looking like the badass she was. “She’s a police officer, in case you can’t tell.”
An expression of sheer panic came over Seth’s face. With a sudden move, he shoved Jack so hard he stumbled backwards, into a display rack of phone chargers. By the time Jack got his balance back, Seth was out the door and racing down the strip mall’s sidewalk, with Tina in hot pursuit.
Jack ran after them, ignoring the shouts of the store clerk. Seth was fast and desperate, but Tina was holding her own, just a few yards behind him. He dodged around a table set out in front of a yogurt shop, the pulled it over behind him so it would block Tina’s path. She hurdled right over it, not missing a beat.
Seth looked over his shoulder to see if his gambit had worked, then nearly collided with a kid holding an ice cream cone. “Hey, asshole!” said the man holding the kid’s hand.
“Sorry,” Seth gasped, and Jack knew he’d been right. Seth did have some redeeming qualities; Jessie hadn’t fallen for a complete jerk.
He kept running, took one more look over his shoulder, then veered into the parking lot. The sound of brakes screeching ripped through the air, followed by a horrifying thud as a Volvo slammed into him.
Seth crumpled to the pavement. Tina raced to his side and crouched next to him. “Call nine-one-one!” she yelled. “Jack! Now!”
As Jack grabbed his phone, she checked Seth’s airway and breathing. Basic triage, he knew. CAB, circulation, airway, breathing.
The driver of the Volvo, a teenage girl, climbed out of the car, sobbing and saying over and over again, “He ran right in front of me. I wasn’t even going fast. I’m so sorry, oh my god…”
Her wails were interrupted by the dispatcher.
“Someone was just hit by a car in…” wildly, he looked around for the name of this strip mall. “It’s a yogurt shop. Humphrey Yoghurt. Come quick.”
Tina kneeled over Seth’s chest and began compressions on his chest. Her movements were so quick and efficient that even the other onlookers who had gathered kept their distance. Someone comforted the teenager, while others held up their phones.
“He’s breathing now,” Tina said after a few moments. She climbed off Seth’s body. “Stay back and give him space.”
Everyone obeyed. Of course they did; Tina’s air of authority came so naturally to her. The sound of incoming sirens grew louder, and a moment later an ambulance pulled up behind the Volvo that had struck Seth. Paramedics ran toward them with a gurney.
Tina briefed them as they did their own assessment. “Officer Chen from Harbortown, Maine. I happened to witness the incident. He wasn’t breathing so I performed CPR. Could be a collapsed lung or a pulmonary contusion. I haven’t checked for other injuries. He’s been unconscious since he was hit.”
“Sounds like he was lucky you were there. Probably saved his life. We got it from here, ma’am.”
Tina stepped back so they could transfer him to the gurney. “Where are you taking him? I’d like to check in on him.”
“Sure thing. We’ll let the staff know. The nearest hospital is in Concord, Concord Hospital.” With that, they whisked him into the ambulance and a moment later it was gone.
“Show’s over, everyone!” Tina called to the onlookers. A few of them actually applauded, which made her scowl. “They think it’s a damn TV show,” she muttered to Jack. “No offense.”
He inhaled long and deep, feeling as if he hadn’t actually breathed in some time. “Is he going to be okay?”
“I’m not a doctor. I have no idea.”
His throat tightened. Not only would he feel terrible if Seth Baker died because they were chasing him, but he was their only link to Jessie. If he was gone, so was any chance of finding her. What if she was in one of those underground serial killer dens, waiting for him to bring her food? What if she died of starvation or dehydration before they could figure out where the hell she was?
Tina snapped her fingers, jolting him out of his spiral of despair. “Focus, Jack. He’s alive for now, and I intend to be in his hospital room if and when he wakes up. But first…”
“What?”
She pulled a set of keys from her pocket and dangled them before him.
His mouth fell open, a rush of hope nearly knocking him off his feet. “You stole his keys while you were doing CPR on him?”
She gave him a wink. “I like to think he owes me for saving his life. Now come on. Let’s see what we can find out from his so-called buddy’s car.”
33
After a brief struggle with her police officer principles, Tina drove the blue CRV with the Uber placard to another part of the parking lot, out of range of the security cameras. She didn’t have a warrant to search it, and shouldn’t even have his keys. Any evidence she found would be off-limits if he was ever charged with a crime. She could imagine her fellow police officers raging at her for making their jobs more difficult.
But the urgency of locating Jessie outweighed those concerns, and besides, she was on vacation. This was personal, not professional.
