Twin Peril (6 page)

Maybe he shouldn’t have called his boss for assistance so quickly. Was it possible God placed Mallory in his path not only to keep her safe from physical harm, but to assist her in finding her way to God?

If so, he was eager to accept God’s calling. He closed his eyes and prayed for strength. Mallory watched him intently, but before he could pursue the issue, she changed the subject.

“Would you mind if I borrow your phone after we’re finished eating? I’d like to find out how Alyssa is doing. She mentioned she had an MRI done of her ankle.”

“Sure. In fact, I spoke to Gage earlier and he said everything went well.” When he saw the annoyance flash in her eyes at being left out of the conversation, he quickly added, “Alyssa is scheduled for surgery first thing tomorrow morning. If you want to talk to her again, I’m sure Gage wouldn’t mind.”

“I guess there’s no rush.” Looking slightly mollified, she took another bite of her sandwich. “Jonah, would you consider sending me to stay with Alyssa and Gage instead? At least then I wouldn’t be at the mercy of strangers.”

He thought her statement was odd. Why would she feel she was at the mercy of strangers? Did she really think two cops posed some sort of threat?

“Mallory, if you go home, you’ll be putting both Gage and Alyssa at risk. Especially Alyssa, who will obviously be unable to move very well after undergoing surgery.” He’d left the hospital against medical advice right after the surgery to repair his deflated lung, and those first few days had been awful. Of course, running around the city chasing Jefferson hadn’t exactly helped his recuperation.

“Okay, but couldn’t they come to the safe house with me?” she persisted. “If this place is as safe as you think, they wouldn’t be in danger.”

He couldn’t argue her point. And it was possible Gage could be persuaded to go along with her plan, if only to appease Alyssa. “We’ll discuss the possibility with Gage, okay? If he agrees, then I’m happy to make the arrangements, once she’s home from surgery.”

“Great. Thanks, Jonah.” Mallory’s mood lightened considerably, and he couldn’t help wondering what had happened in her past to make trust so difficult. “Do you mind if I ask you another question?” she asked.

He dragged his thoughts to the present. “Of course not.”

“Do you really believe God forgives all sins?”

“Absolutely.” Now he knew God really had sent him to assist Mallory in finding her way home. Her question touched him. “‘Through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you,’” he quoted.

She was silent for a long moment. “Even if the sins are really bad?” she asked in a voice so soft, he had to lean closer to hear.

“Yes, even if the sins are really bad. It’s never too late to turn your life around, Mallory, never too late to accept God and your faith. But I find it hard to believe your sins are as bad as you claim.”

She frowned. “You don’t know enough about me to say that, Jonah.” Avoiding his gaze, she leaped up from the table and began clearing away the mess from their meal. “I’d like to call Gage now, if you don’t mind.”

He silently handed her his cell phone. Feeling restless, he crossed over to his own room, standing next to the window and staring at the highway leading into town. A few dark clouds dotted the sky, but nothing too serious. He was surprised his replacements hadn’t arrived yet.

Just ten minutes later, Mallory returned his phone. “Your boss called,” she said.

“Did you get to talk to Alyssa?”

“Yes.” Mallory flashed a brief smile. “She’s a little worried about the surgery, but is thankful Gage will be there for her. I’m thrilled she’s giving Gage a second chance.”

“They’re good together.” He called Finley back, prepared for bad news. “Hi, boss, what’s up?”

“I won’t be able to free anyone up to relieve you until tomorrow. Stay right where you are, and I promise I’ll have someone there first thing in the morning.”

He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. It was late afternoon, nearly four o’clock. “Okay, I suppose another sixteen hours won’t make much of a difference.”

“If anything changes, I’ll let you know.”

Jonah ended the call and crossed over to the connecting door between their rooms. “Make yourself comfortable. We’re staying here for another night.”

She didn’t look overly disappointed. “Another night is fine with me. Maybe we could go to the hospital tomorrow to visit Alyssa?”

“Mallory, you know we can’t take that risk.” He didn’t have the heart to remind her that Gage hadn’t agreed to their plan yet, either. And even if Gage did agree, Alyssa wouldn’t be ready for a few days. Better to give Mallory something positive to look forward to.

Now that he had extra time on his hands, he decided to keep digging into Caruso’s and Salvatore’s business holdings. There had to be another connection, besides just campaign support.

He worked on his computer for several hours, until the stupid thing died. With a scowl, he looked to make sure the power cord was plugged in. Was the outlet broken? The computer battery had gone dead, indicating the power had been off for a while, so he tried several outlets around the room, without success.

Was there something wrong with the power? He crossed the room, intending to flip on the switch to test his theory, but just then the black Lab outside the gas station began to bark.

Jonah crossed over to the window. The sun was low on the horizon, but there was still plenty of light to see. He could easily make out the image of the large black dog straining against the confines of his leash, staring in the direction of the motel.

The hair on the back of Jonah’s neck rose in warning. Something was wrong. Very wrong. And then he noticed an orange glow reflected in the window of the gas station.

Their motel was on fire.

Grabbing the car keys off the dresser, he threw open the door between their rooms. “Mallory?” He crossed over to shake her awake. “Hurry, we need to get out of here right now.”

To her credit, she didn’t argue. She rose up off the bed, pushing her hair out of her eyes as she reached for her purse. “Why? What’s going on?”

“The motel is on fire.” He tried to open her door but it didn’t budge. Panic surged as he tried the door again, putting more muscle into it.

Still, the door didn’t give. He ran over to check his door, with the same results.

The fire was no accident. They were locked in.

* * *

Mallory’s nerves were already on edge from the incessant barking of the dog, but when she realized they were trapped, her pulse soared. Illogically, she tried the door herself, as if she would be able to open the door that Jonah couldn’t.

The distinct smell of smoke made her wrinkle her nose in distaste. “I don’t understand. I didn’t hear any thunder. Could lightning have struck the building?”

“No.” He came out of the bathroom, two soaking-wet towels in his hand and another towel wrapped around his fist. “Take these and hold them over your face.” He tossed the wet towels in her direction. “Stand back.”

Before she could ask him anything more, there was a loud crash as he punched out the window. The dog continued to bark and she realized the black Lab may have saved their lives. Jonah swept the shards of glass out of the way, and for the second time in only three nights, he helped her escape.

Outside, the heat from the fire was intense. Glancing over her shoulder, she realized the entire second floor was burning. There wasn’t a storm. In fact, there weren’t even very many clouds in the sky. There was a loud crack and Jonah grabbed her arm, pulling her out of the way as the roof collapsed.

“Run,” he urged, pulling her in the opposite direction from where their rental car was parked.

“The rental car is back that way,” she argued, digging in her heels. Surely he didn’t intend for them to leave this miniscule town on foot?

“Forget about the car,” he said, dragging her along against her will. “We’re going this way.”

Jonah pulled her toward a cornfield. She tried not to think about the horror movie involving a cornfield she’d watched as a kid, as she followed him down between the rows.

“Try to be quiet,” he whispered.

She couldn’t help glancing back over her shoulder, gasping at how the orange glow from the fire lit up the sky. She shivered, in spite of the chill in the air. With the tall green stalks of corn surrounding them, her fear of tight places became overwhelming. “Jonah,” she warned.

“What?”

“We have to get out of here—I’m claustrophobic.” She struggled to control her breathing, but it wasn’t easy. She was unable to ignore the corn husks surrounding them—they kept slapping at her arms, legs and face. Only bugs would have been worse. Spiders. Instantly her skin crawled with imaginary insects and she rubbed her hands vigorously over her arms.

“Hang on, Mallory, for just a little while longer.”

She wasn’t sure she could hang on. How could Jonah see where they were going? What if they got lost in the cornfields? She’d never survive if they had to spend the night here. Panic swelled. Maybe it was because she’d read the Bible earlier, but a prayer popped into her mind.

Please, Lord, guide us to safety.

Surprisingly, she felt calmer after her murmured prayer. She took a couple deep breaths and glanced up at the sky, hoping the sun wouldn’t slip behind the horizon just yet. Seeing the open space overhead helped.

Jonah kept moving and, thankfully, seemed to know exactly where he was going. A good fifteen minutes later, they burst out of the cornfield.

Thank You, Lord,
she whispered, stopping long enough to catch her breath.

Jonah stood close beside her, keeping a hand on her arm as if he were afraid he’d lose her. “Ready?” he asked.

“For what?” She glanced around, trying to figure out which direction the highway might be. “It’s going to be dark soon, and we won’t be able to find our way.”

“We only have to go a little farther, Mallory,” Jonah urged. “But we need to hurry.”

She thought it was possible he was losing his mind, but since following him was better than standing in the middle of a field, she decided to go along.

There was a humming sound that seemed to gradually grow louder. “Come on, Mallory. Hurry.”

Hurry? What on earth did he mean? It wasn’t until she saw the train tracks that she understood what the sound was. “Is that a train?”

“Cargo train. I saw it go by earlier today.” Jonah walked over to the edge of the train tracks and turned until he faced south.

The sound of the train engine grew louder, and suddenly she knew what Jonah intended. “No, I can’t,” she said with a horrified gasp.

“You have to,” he insisted, his hand tightening around hers. “Mallory, if you want to get out of this place, we have to jump aboard the train.”

She felt as if she were frozen in place as the light of the train approached. The train was going too fast. Jonah was nuts if he thought they could really do this.

“Ready?” he asked, running alongside the train.

“No!” she shouted, the sound of her voice drowned out by the train as it went by.

“Now, Mallory!” he yelled directly into her ear. “Grab one of those railings! I’ll be right behind you!”

Her heart lodged in her throat as she ran. She gauged the distance to the railing the way she would if she were about to do a jumping snap kick to break boards in Tae Kwon Do.

She took a deep breath, jumped and grabbed. She cried out in surprise as pain shot up her arm from being wrenched off her feet. Ignoring the pain, she found another handhold along the edge of the car, securing her precarious position.

She’d made it! She wanted to laugh and cry at the same time.

Feeling like Spider-Man clinging to the side of a building, she lifted her head and glanced to her left, peering intently through the darkness.

She’d made it safely on the train—but where was Jonah?

FIVE

M
allory tried to rein in her panic, taking several deep breaths. What if Jonah hadn’t made it on the train? She wanted to believe he was farther back because he’d forced her to go first, but what if he had misjudged the distance and hadn’t made it at all?

She was too afraid to move, even though she knew she couldn’t just stay here like this forever. Would the train slow down at some point? Or did it keep going at the same speed until they reached their destination? And how many miles away was their destination anyway?

“Mallory!” Jonah’s voice brought a rush of relief. She looked to the right and could have kissed him when she saw him standing in the opening, on a narrow metal ledge between the two cars. “Grab my hand.”

She stared in terror as Jonah reached out for her. The thought of letting go of the metal railing only made her tighten her grip. “I can’t.”

“Sure you can. The distance is only about a foot. Let go of the railing with your right hand and reach out for me. I’ll do the rest.”

She looked at him across the distance, trying to trust him. Her eyes pricked with tears, but she told herself they were only watering from the force of the wind whipping past. Tightening her grip with her left hand, she took a deep breath and let go of the railing. When Jonah’s fingers closed strongly around hers, she let out a gasp of relief.

True to his word, the rest was easy. With Jonah’s guidance, she managed to find firmer footing on the small platform between the two cars. When his arms closed around her, she leaned against him, burying her face against his chest.

“It’s okay,” Jonah said, speaking close to her ear so she could hear as he rubbed a soothing hand over her back. “You were very brave, Mallory. We’re safe now.”

She wished she could believe the part about being safe. As far as she could tell, they’d have to keep running forever. She lifted her head to look up at him.

“What happened back at the motel, Jonah?” She had to speak loudly so he could hear over the noise of the train. “How could Caruso’s thug have found us so quickly? Do you think he followed your car?”

Jonah’s gaze darkened with anger. “I suppose he might have gotten the license plate number, but I’m more inclined to believe you were right all along when you voiced your fears about the possibility of another dirty cop. Considering I’ve only spoken directly to Lieutenant Finley, I have no choice but to believe he’s another dirty cop working for Caruso.”