Scott peered through the windows, but he couldn’t see much. “I’d kill for NVGs right about now,” he muttered.
“NVGs?” Valerie asked from her spot up front. The faint glow from the dashboard threw shadows across the angles of her face.
“Night vision goggles.”
“That would be helpful.” She focused on the scenery. “What are we looking for?”
“Mostly right now, I’m trying to get a baseline for the area so we’ll notice if something changes. But keep an eye out for cars parked where they don’t belong, potential sniper roosts, anything that looks…off.”
The land around them was flat, the horizon broken by occasional stretches of leafless trees. No high ground, little concealment. Bad for snipers and potential attackers. Mostly good for them.
“We also need to figure out where to wait.”
“What about next to one of the hangars?” Valerie asked. “I see at least two houses that look empty. No lights on inside anyway.”
Scott’s thoughts exactly. “Drop me at the corner and continue around the circle. I’ll meet up with you here in a few minutes.” He didn’t want to leave Valerie with Alan—what if the man convinced her to leave Scott behind?—but he wanted to get the lay of the land on foot.
All was quiet as the Acura continued down street without him, visible in the warm circles of light cast by streetlamps. Scott jogged along the side of the first house and around the back fence to the airstrip. It was a nicely maintained concrete pad that ran beyond the curve of the neighborhood loop, meeting up with a paved path that connected to the off-runway homes.
A dog barked once or twice as Scott ran by the third house, but traffic from the nearest major road provided the only other sounds. The first dark house was in the middle of the string of homes that boasted security lighting and open blinds. The second showed more promise. It was the last before the street turned away from the runway. The neighboring house to the north had all its shades drawn, and the only lights were in the living room where the blue glow of a television flickered. Faint rumblings from what sounded like an action movie escaped into the night air.Perfect.
The house on the other side was the first on the curve and was set at an angle that blocked its view of the dark home’s back yard from all but the rear windows, which were covered with sheer curtains. He and Valerie would have to take their chances.
Scott squinted as he ran over the uneven grass, trying to make out the terrain. The last thing he needed was to step in a hole and break his leg. Or step on a snake.
Something small scurried through the brush nearby. A squirrel or rabbit, maybe. Beyond the airstrip, nothing moved, nothing glinted. There was no sign of any hides, or odd breaks in the skyline or shadows. Of course, a good sniper wouldn’t be seen, but even if Hollowell’s goons somehow knew Scott and Valerie were going to be here, the chances of his getting a shit-hot shooter here on short notice were low.
Within a few minutes, Scott was back at the neighborhood entrance and found Alan’s Acura idling with its headlights off at the stop sign where Aviation Circle met the side road from the main drag. His shoulders relaxed.
Valerie opened the passenger-side door and slid out with both of their bags.
Alan grabbed for her. “Valerie, wait.”
“No.” She pulled away and smacked the top of his doorframe. “Goddamn you, Alan. How could you?”
The bottom dropped out of Scott’s stomach. What the hell was going on?
“It was the only way I could think of to force your hand,” Alan said, his voice tight. “I’m trying to save you from yourself.”
“Well, congratulations,” she said, her harsh laugh cutting the air. “You probably just killed me.”
Alan grimaced and punched the gas, leaving her and Scott in a cloud of smoke as he peeled away, tires squealing.
“What the fuck just happened?” Scott asked.
Tremors wracked her body. Would Alan really go to such extremes to convince her not to go with Scott? “He said he responded to a reward post for any information on our location and gave them the details of our meeting with the plane. Supposedly, we’re worth a hundred bitcoin—about a hundred thousand dollars, last I checked. Each.”
Scott closed his eyes for a second and let out a deep breath before fixing his gaze on hers. “Do you believe him?”
“I don’t know.” The strap on her tote bag cut a deep groove in her shoulder, and she shifted to ease the burden. “I’d like to think he was bluffing, trying to scare me into leaving, but I can’t be sure.”
“Shit. Any idea how long ago he gave us up?” Scott grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the houses.
Valerie sighed. “At Taco Tavern, after we kissed.” Ninety minutes ago, when she’d been feeling on top of the world.
He was silent until they reached the relative shelter and darkness in the shadow of the hangar behind the second-to-last house on the runway. So far there was no sign of danger.
“I can’t let Caitlyn fly into a possible trap without warning,” Scott said. “If she waves off and we get ambushed…” He squeezed her fingers. “Maybe you should—”
