Then she threw her car back in reverse as hard as she could.
The car slammed into the first motorcycle, then the second. They went flying—the police riders rolled against the pavement as Sydney veered forward again.
The gates leading into the airfield were still thrown open, as if expecting them. Her gaze searched frantically for Winter’s jet—for a second, she thought it might have been forced to leave them behind again. But this time, it was still there.
A black motorcycle screeched in front of her. The rider flung himself off the bike as it careened right into her car.
Sydney slammed her foot down, but not fast enough. The motorcycle crashed into windshield.
Her seat belt cut into her chest as the car flipped on its side from the impact. For an instant, all she could see was darkness and stars. Metal screamed and crunched around her. The car jolted to a halt on its side.
Her head swam as she forced her eyes open. Glass shards were everywhere—she was hanging sideways in her seat, the belt the only thing keeping her in position.
Just like Niall, seconds before he died.
Get out,she told herself.
She struggled to unclip her belt. When she did, she fell with a painful thud onto a blanket of glass. The twisted parts of the car seemed to close in around her like the jaws of a beast. Sydney dug her boots against thesteering wheel and pulled herself up as hard as she could, reaching for the passenger window that gaped above her.
She pulled herself out of the car’s wreckage and slid to the ground. The jet was so close now.
Behind her, she heard the crunch of footsteps on broken glass. She didn’t need to look over her shoulder to know that it was Tems.
“Stop,” he called.
She didn’t. Instead, she broke into a run again. Her lungs screamed for her to stop, but she forced herself onward. Every muscle hurt.
“Stop,” Tems shouted again. This time, she heard the click of a gun barrel behind her.
Before her, she saw the jet turn on the runway. Was it on? Sure enough, a pilot sat in the cockpit, and he was turning the jet so as to prepare for takeoff. It was headed straight for them.
Sydney slowed to a stop and forced herself to turn around and face Tems. There was blood smeared across his face—his angry grimace told her he’d gotten hurt during the chase, too. He had a gun pointed at her, and his finger rested on the trigger.
His eyes went to the jet. Then back to her. He lifted the gun higher and pushed his finger down slightly on the trigger.
She put her hands up. The jet drew closer.
Tems narrowed his eyes at her. He was going to shoot her, she realized suddenly. So much for wanting her alive.
Just as the thought jolted through her—
A figure barreled out of the darkness and slammed into Tems, knocking him off his feet.
It took her a second to recognize him.
Winter.
33Showdown
The impact when Winter rammed himself into Tems knocked the breath from him. Both crashed to the ground. The jet’s engines roared nearby.
Winter glanced up to where the plane approached them. From the open jetway, he could see Dameon crouched at the entrance, a rope ladder in his hand. He tossed it down. The ladder unfurled, its bottom snapping to a stop right above the ground.
He kicked Tems’s gun out of his hands. The weapon spun across the tarmac as Winter shot to his feet and began sprinting toward Sydney.
“Go!”he shouted.
She gauged their distance once before turning toward the jet and running for the rope ladder. He glanced over his shoulder to see Tems run for them, too.
