Читать книгу Saviour in the Saddle - Delores Fossen, Delores Fossen - Страница 9

Willa covered her head with the bag when the glass spewed across the bus.

The nightmare wasn’t over.

Shore was still after them, and if he managed to injure the driver, then the bus would almost certainly crash. The crash alone might not be fatal, but it would leave them wide open for another attack.

“Don’t stop,” Brandon warned the driver, “and stay low in the seat.”

The driver was cursing and praying at the same time. Brandon was mumbling something as well, but Willa didn’t think she had the breath to utter anything.

Her baby began to kick, hard, but Willa welcomed the movement. It meant her daughter was safe. For now. But they weren’t out of danger.

The next bullet proved that.

It came through the back window, tearing the glass apart, and it exited through the front. Thankfully, it didn’t come near them or the driver, and the driver slammed on the accelerator to get them out of there.

“Shore’s on foot,” Brandon reminded her. “He won’t be able to come after us for long.”

Willa held her breath, waiting and trying to brace herself for more bullets. But the shots didn’t continue.

Brandon lifted his head and looked out the window. “He’s gone,” he let her know.

Willa still didn’t move. She lay there and prayed the threat was truly over.

“Drive to the nearest police station,” Brandon told the driver, and he took out his phone.

While Brandon punched in some numbers, he helped her from the floor and moved her onto one of the seats. He dropped down onto the seat directly across from her.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

Willa nodded, but she doubted he believed her. For one thing, she was still breathing so fast that she was close to hyperventilating, and she was trembling from head to toe. It might be part of Brandon’s job to be on the business end of gunfire, but until the hostage situation at the maternity hospital, Willa had never known what it was like to face real danger.

Well, now she knew.

And it couldn’t continue.

Somehow, she had to find a safe place for her and her baby. If there was such a thing as a safe place. This was the third attack in four months. Four attacks if she counted being taken hostage at the hospital. Part of her was furious that time after time someone or something had endangered her precious baby. She wanted answers. She wanted justice.

But another part of her only wanted to run and hide.

Willa looked back at the broken glass and damage the bullets had done to the seats. She also looked out at the sidewalk that was zipping by. No sign of Shore, thank God. Maybe they had finally lost him.

She listened while Brandon gave an update to whomever he had called. He also asked about Lieutenant Bo Duggan, and then about Martin Shore. Brandon’s forehead bunched up when he apparently got a response.

“We’re on our way,” Brandon said to the person on the other end of the line, and he snapped his phone shut.

“They got Martin Shore?” she immediately asked.

He shook his head. “But they’re looking. Backup arrived, and there are officers fanning out all over the area.”

The hopeful tone was tinged with doubt. And Willa knew why. From what Brandon had told her, Martin Shore was a professional killer, and he probably knew how to evade the police. He was no doubt on the run so he could regroup.

And come after her again.

“Bo Duggan was shot,” Brandon added, his voice practically a whisper. He closed his eyes a moment but not before she saw the flash of anger mixed with pain. “He’s on the way to the hospital.”

“I’m sorry.” Not that it would probably help, but Willa reached out and touched his arm.

That touch brought his eyes open, and he met her gaze. “So am I. Sorry for the lieutenant and sorry that I didn’t get to you sooner so I could stop this attack.”