Page 11 of Sam's Salvation

Absorbed in her search, it took a moment for the loud squeak of the back fence gate to register. When it did, her head popped up, and she froze, listening. Everything stayed quiet, but that gate wouldn’t have made noise unless someone opened it.

Audra closed her laptop and set it on the coffee table. She stood up and rounded the sofa, reaching into the small chest on the low bookcase against the wall to her left. The thirty-eight caliber handgun nestled snuggly in her palm as she crept toward the sliding door.

The trill of Theo’s ringtone echoed through the condo. Audra jumped, then muttered a soft curse. She gave the back garden another glance, then dashed upstairs to answer. The ringing stopped as she reached the landing, then immediately started again. She ran into her room, crossing to the closet, and dug it out of its hiding spot just before it rolled to voicemail again. “Hello?”

“I chased someone out of your garden, but now I think I’m being followed. Get out here. I’m headed toward the park,” Theo said.

“What?” The line clicked in her ear. “Theo?” She looked at the phone to see he’d hung up. Groaning in frustration, Audra set the phone down and grabbed a pair of leggings and hastily put them on. As she shrugged into a zip-up hoodie, a sense of déjà vu hit her. She hoped tonight turned out as innocuous as last night.

Slipping on some shoes, she picked up the burner phone and her gun and ran downstairs and outside. For a moment, she debated taking her car, but she wouldn’t be able to drive it through the park. She’d have to park, then jog down the trail to their meeting spot. It would be faster if she ran from the start.

Audra took off at a steady jog. It was still early enough the neighbors wouldn’t think it weird to see someone out running. It was late, but not late late.

Her feet pounded the pavement in a steady rhythm. Her calves protested the exercise after being strained by her four-inch heels earlier, but it didn’t take long for the muscles to stretch and warm. She neared the last intersection before she reached the park and slowed, looking for Theo or anyone suspicious. Cars lined the street, parked near a multi-story apartment complex. Nothing moved. She turned, jogging up the road. The concrete walkway ended, and she veered into the street.

A car started behind her, and she heard a quick squeal of tires.

Audra drifted to the side to get out of the way. Near the edge of the pavement, she glanced back.

Headlights flipped on only yards away, blinding her. Alarm rang in her head. She tensed, her muscles flexing to propel her out of the way, but it was too late.

The car clipped her hip as it sailed past and sent her flying to the berm; her head smacked the pavement.

Audra’s lungs refused to work, the muscles frozen from the impact. Her vision went fuzzy, and all the sound around her receded behind the swish-swish of her heartbeat in her ears. She laid on the ground, not moving, and closed her eyes.

A soft thud penetrated the fog in her mind. She cracked one eye open and saw a blurry pair of feet coming toward her. As they neared, they came into focus. Black running shoes. Jeans rested on the tops.

The person stopped a few feet away. Audra screamed at her muscles to move. To reach for the gun tucked into her pocket. Her fingers twitched, brushing the edge of her jacket. She didn’t have the strength to do more.

Suddenly, the feet turned. A moment later, they ran away. Audra fought the darkness edging her vision, but it was too strong for her. A second squeal of tires was the last thing she heard.

Six

Abuzz filled Audra’s ears. Her eyelids fluttered, and bright light burned her retinas, making her moan.

“Hey, there. Can you open your eyes and look at me?”

The female voice reverberated through Audra’s head. She moaned again and tried to roll away from the noise. A sharp pinch in her hand stopped her and brought a bit of clarity to her mind. What was going on?

“Open your eyes, honey. You’re in the hospital.”

Hospital? Why? Audra struggled to remember what happened, but her head ached something fierce. Another low moan escaped her. She raised her other hand to touch it, but someone pulled her hand down. Panic shot through her. Instinctively, she rolled her arm inward, breaking their hold, then lashed out. She connected with someone’s chest, and they let out an oomph.

“Let’s not do that, hon. We’re here to help you,” the loud voice said.

“Stop shouting. Blimey.”

“That’s a pretty accent. How about you look at me and tell me where you’re from.”

Audra groaned and blinked, then scrunched her eyes closed. “Can you turn the lights down? My head’s about to split.” She groaned again, but not from the lights. She’d spoken to the nurse in her native accent. Blimey was right. She’d blown her own cover.

“Claudia, hit the lights,” the nurse said. A moment later, the room dimmed.

Audra blinked again, and this time, was able to focus. A woman around her age, wearing navy-blue scrubs who had her blonde hair scooped into a messy bun, smiled at her. “Hey, there. My name is Gabby. Do you remember what happened?”

“No.”

“How about your name? Can you tell us that?”