Chapter Twenty-Three
Brantley felt his blood heat.
It had started a ways back, when he noticed a red truck following them onto Flat Creek Road.At first, he figured it was someone who lived down there, so he waited until they turned off.Three minutes into the drive, they did.But strangely enough, a black, older model SUV pulled out not much later, this time from the other side of the road from where the first guy turned.
Since he wasn’t the paranoid sort, Brantley had merely kept an eye on them, but he kept driving, doing the speed limit, taking stock of their surroundings.
But it was the third guy, this one in a silver Honda, that had given away their little game.They had been waiting at a stop sign, making it obvious what they were doing.Especially when Brantley paused long enough to let them go, only for the guy to wave him on.Brantley had waved back, flashing a good ol’ boy grin.
“They think they’re stealthy,” Brantley told him.“Probably trained by the FBI.”
“How do you know they’re followin’ us?”
He had to give Reese credit for not looking back and making it obvious.Although his truck’s windows were tinted, he didn’t doubt the guy was close enough to see if Reese turned around.
Brantley explained the leapfrog game they’d done.
“How would they know we’re here?”
“My guess is Bobby was asked nicely to let good ol’ Marty know if anyone came to town lookin’ for him.”
“Wouldn’t that make him look suspicious?”
“Sure.But flash some cash and you can buy yourself some buddies who’ll keep you apprised.”
“True.”Reese looked over at him.“Where to now?”
“Figure we’ll stop at a gas station up here,” he said when he turned right on 290, which would take them back the way they’d originally come.“See what they do next.”
“And then?”
Brantley smiled.“If they follow, we’ll lead them outta town, circle back.”
“And if they don’t?”
“We’ll grab some lunch, wait a bit, then double back.”
“To where?”
“The safe house.”
Brantley could feel the intensity of Reese’s stare.“What safe house?”
“The one they don’t think I know about.”
“And howdoyou know about it?”
“I was trained by Uncle Sam’s Navy.How do you think I know about it?”
He could tell Reese wasn’t impressed by his response.
“Did the store owner tell you?”
“No.”
“You saw a sign?Safe house herewith an arrow pointing to it?”
Brantley chuckled.“No.Now hold your questioning until we’re done.You get Tesha out, let her do her business.I’ll get gas.”
