Nate damn near lost his shit when they’d come up on Achim Akmar’s dead body. At first, he’d thought it was Gracie lying there in that tunnel.
Then, his heart shattered into a million pieces seeing her in the back seat of the car like that, with her bloody hand pushed against the glass, neck strained from screaming his name.
In the end, it was the look in her eyes that really got to him. The fading hope spreading over her face as she got farther and farther away had cut him deep into his soul.
Nate didn’t know how he’d go on if he lost her.
“There they are!” Gabe pointed toward them from the back seat.
That spark of hope he’d been holding on to erupted as Ghost sped to close the gap between the two vehicles.
Nate saw a bridge up ahead, but knew they’d never make it in time to keep Yavuz from crossing it. They’d have to wait until they got to the other side to intervene.
That was fine. They were covering a lot of ground and getting closer by the second.
Ghost drove like a NASCAR driver, expertly weaving back and forth over the dirt road to avoid the many potholes. The entire time, the man never took his eyes off their target.
Like Ghost, Nate’s gaze remained glued to the car in front of them. They were about fifty yards away from Yavuz, but Nate was confident they’d be able to stop him once they’d crossed the lake.
The car drove onto the low-lying, wooden bridge. It appeared to be about fifteen feet from the water’s surface. He just prayed the damn thing would hold the weight of both vehicles.
Nate was mentally planning for what needed to happen once they’d crossed, when Yavuz’ car suddenly veered sharply to the left.
“What the hell?” Ghost muttered, gripping his steering wheel a little tighter.
The four men watched as the car then shot to the right just as forcefully, nearly hitting the protective railing on that side of the bridge.
Nate’s heart slammed against his ribs. “What the fuck is he doing?”
“Oh, shit,” Gabe called out from the back. “It’s not him. It’s her.”
“What?” Nate asked from over his shoulder.
Having positioned himself in the center of the bench seat, Gabe was using his tactical binoculars to watch the car in front of them.
“What’s happening?” Nate demanded an answer.
Gabe lowered the binoculars. “Gracie’s fighting for control of the car.”
Nate grabbed the binos from his team leader’s hands and looked through the circular lenses. What he saw left ice running through his veins.
With her body hanging over the seat, Gracie was fighting Yavuz off as she grabbed for the steering wheel.
“What the hell is she trying to do?”
Several curses filled their vehicle as the car shot to the left again.
“I get the need to fight.” Ghost shook his head. “But if Gracie’s not careful, she’s gonna end up driving that thing right off the fucking bridge.”
Nate focused on her movements again. Fear clutched his soul when he finally realized what was really going on.
“Oh, God.” He lowered the binoculars, not wanting to believe what he was seeing.
“What?” Gabe sounded alarmed. “What’s wrong?”
Yavuz’ car continued to weave back and forth over the structure. Nate looked at his team leader, his voice turning flat with disbelief and fear.
“That’s exactly what she’s trying to do.”
