Sexy/Dangerous

  Adam wasn’t sure whether it was something he wanted to do in the future, but it was something to consider. He glanced over at the dogs outfitted in their gear. “Whoa. They look serious.”

  “Don’t want them to be hurt. Portia designed the vests and the collars.”

  Adam walked over to take a closer look. Although he and the dogs had come to a truce of sorts, he was still hesitant about touching them. He noted the new collars. “What’s the deal on these?” he asked.

  Max explained how the collars functioned.

  Adam appeared impressed. “GPS?”

  “Along with a few other bells and whistles. We’re doing a year-long field test. If they work out, Portia will put them on the market.”

  “So they’re prototypes?”

  “Basically, yes.”

  “This Portia is someone I’d like to meet.”

  “She’d probably like to meet you, too. You two can compare brains.” Max noted that he seemed more comfortable now than he’d been when he first stepped out to join her, and she was glad. “Is your bag in the car?”

  “Yes, ma’am. I’m ready to roll whenever you are.”

  “Good. Anything from Washington?”

  He shook his head.

  Max wondered what was going on with that. DOD was supposed to be doing oversight on Adam’s project; now they were nowhere to be found. Was something else in the mix impacting their getting in touch? The phone’s landline was still unplugged, but they had his cell number. “Not hearing back from Jeffries bothers me. I don’t understand.”

  “Me, either, but the government bureaucracy sings their own tune.”

  “I know that, but still—”

  There were two jet skis out on the lake moving at a pretty good clip toward the beach. The noisy machines were common on the rest of the big lake, but with this being private property, riders seldom ventured this close to the shore. Max picked up her binoculars to check out the skiers, and when she saw the black wet suits and the hoods, she said to Adam, “Inside, please, Adam. I don’t like the looks of them.” She brought the glasses down. “Please, quickly.”

  He looked grim as she picked up the weapon.

  “Now, Adam,” she growled, then trained her attention on the approaching jet skis. The dogs came over and stood by her side, their faces turned to the beach.

  Adam’s jaw tightened and he reluctantly disappeared inside.

  What with all the plants surrounding the patio railing, Max was sure the riders couldn’t see her weapon, so she waited. Once they reached the beach, one man got off, but the other stayed in the water and held on to the empty ski.

  Max stood so she could be seen, then called down, “You’re on private property.”

  The man stopped and looked up. “I wish to speak with Dr. Gary.” The accent was not one she could pinpoint with any accuracy.

  “There’s no Dr. Gary here. Try down the beach.”

  The first bullet hit the glass door behind her, shattering it and making her scramble. Another shot rang out, followed by two more, but by then, angry, she was firing back. She sprayed the hill, churning up sand and vegetation and forcing him to run for his life. Their automatic rifles were no match for the power in her well-trained hands and she let them know it. Running toward the stairs, Max tried her best to blow the skis out of the water, but the terrified men were already aboard and hauling ass back to a big boat sitting ominously on the horizon. Snatching her phone free, she held it up and took as many pics of the boat and the skis as she could. The big boat was a ways out, but she hoped a zoom during the printing process would show some details Myk and Portia could use it to track it down. By now the jet skis were too far away for her weapon to reach, so she headed back up the steps. On the patio stood Adam and the dogs. He looked grave, the dogs alert.

  When she reached the top, she met his eyes and said, “Guess the party’s on.”

  Max put in a call to Chandler and to the Bureau agent in Grand Rapids. Both promised to get in touch with their Fed contacts and call her back as soon as possible to let her know how to proceed. She also put in a call to the Coast Guard. She was pleased to hear that the Bureau had already contacted them and that a cutter was on its way, but she wasn’t planning on waiting around for them to show up. She knew the perps would be back, and if they had any sense, they’d come with more peeps and more firepower. It was time to leave.

  Because she had been preparing for this all day, it didn’t take long for them to get ready. She took a moment to activate the collars on the dogs. The signal would engage the satellite and alert Portia that they were on the move. On a quick last run through the house to lock it down and make certain nothing important had been left behind, Max saw a line of jet skis making their way back toward the house. She cursed and took off toward the front door. Adam and the dogs were already in the Honda. She scrambled under the wheel and started the engine. “The jet skis are coming and they brought friends.”

  Her adrenaline running, Max hit the accelerator and headed down the drive. Looking into the rearview mirror at the dogs, she said, “I’m sorry Ossie.”

  Seeing Adam’s confused face, she explained, “He gets car sick. I may have to knock him out before this is over.”

  As the car sped toward the gate, Max tensed at the sight of an SUV and two armed men waiting there. She cursed inwardly but didn’t slow. She had no idea who they were or why they were there, but she didn’t think they were friends. She yelled to her passengers, “Get down and hold on!”

  She stomped on the accelerator and the Honda roared toward the gate. The men’s eyes widened and they scrambled out of the way. She crashed through the gate to the sound of weapons fire. Max could hear the pings and thuds of bullets hitting the body of the car as she broke free but she didn’t slow. The bumpy unpaved road tossed them around like a ride at the state fair, and she could hear Ossie’s whimpers of distress but she kept driving.

  Adam had never experienced anything like this. A quick look in the busted mirror on his side showed the SUV barreling after them. “They’re coming!” he called out.

  “I see them. Hold on!”

  She took the curve on what had to be two wheels, and Adam felt his seat belt snap him back against the seat. He was glad to have it on. The Honda was far enough ahead that the guns being fired at it were having trouble finding the mark, but the SUV was gaining.

  Max told Adam, “Grab my phone off my belt. Hit the red button on the face, then the green one.”

  Adam fumbled for her clip. He freed it, and when he opened it saw that the phone’s face was unlike any he’d ever seen before. The wheels of the Honda hit a particularly large crater and the force almost made him drop the phone. Once he recovered, he quickly punched the buttons. A second later a female voice came over the phone’s speaker. “What’s up, sis?”

  Max hollered back, “Portia! I’m rolling and I’m hot!”

  A bullet shattered the back window and covered the backseat and the dogs with shards of glass. Max cursed.

  Portia asked, “Is that gunfire?”

  “Yes, ma’am!”

  Max steered around a crater the size of the Grand Canyon and kept her attention on the road ahead. They were coming up to the county road that led back to the highway, and she had no clue what she’d find at the junction.

  Portia said, “Okay, Max, I have you and the babies on screen. I have your perps, too. Is Dr. Gary with you?”

  “Yeah. He’s holding the phone.”

  “Okay, we’ll do intros later. Where are you heading?”

  “Big Bad Wolf. I may need to hide in the sunflowers, though.”

  “No problem.”

  “Thanks, babe!”

  “In case your phone is being monitored, use the new software you downloaded to keep me posted. It’s safer.”

  “Will do. I’ll check in once I get to the Wolf’s den.”

  “Okay. I’m still trying to ID your caller. Good luck!”

  “’Bye,” Max said. “T
hanks, Adam.”

  Adam was so dazed by all that was happening he didn’t know what to think. The people behind them were actually shooting. He felt like he was in a movie, but this was real.

  Max came up to the junction and her eyes widened at the sight of all the trailers, cars, and cameras parked on both sides of the road. The media. She’d forgotten about them. She hoped they had their cameras rolling because things were about to get wild.

  With the SUV hot on her tail, Max blew through the junction, took the curve at an incredible speed and charged onto the county road. She could see the surprise on the faces as she flew by. In the rearview mirror she watched them running like ants for their cameras while others ran for their cars. When the SUV thundered by them a second or two later, all hell broke loose as many of them scrambled out of the way. Max was grim. Knowing the media, she was certain some of the reporters were going to try and join the chase, and that was the last thing she needed.

  Adam jumped when Max’s phone rang. “Should I answer?”

  “Yes!”

  Max was rolling at a good ninety miles an hour down a road with a posted speed of fifty-five. In a few minutes she’d be coming up on a residential area. Small towns didn’t usually have high-speed chases so she hoped no one would be hurt. From the speaker phone she heard, “Max, this is Gadget!”

  If Max hadn’t been so busy dodging minivans and sedate, sedan-driving townies, she would have smiled hearing the voice of her good friend. “Where are you?”

  “With Hannibal.”

  “Why the hell hasn’t DOD contacted us?”

  “Got a couple rogue Pentagon elephants in the mix. Hannibal wants you to bring the doc to him.”

  “I’ve got armed bogeys on my ass, and the media! How am I supposed to swing that?”

  “The media?”

  “Yeah!”

  “You’re Cleopatra Jones, I have faith in you. The Wolf has a new whip ready to go. Once you grab it, meet me where the sunflowers grow and I’ll take it from there.”

  Wheels screaming, Max passed a pokey motor scooter.

  “I’ll see if we can’t get those cockroaches on your tail some Raid. Stay safe.”

  “Will do!”

  And he was gone.

  Adam stared. “Who was that?”

  “Myk Chandler’s brother.” Max passed a school bus and swerved to miss hitting an elderly driver making a slow exit out of McDonald’s. “I’ll explain later!”

  She cast an eye to the back and the dogs. Ruby was staring out of the shattered hatch window and barking angrily at the SUV, but Ossie was lying down. Max had some meds on board that would let him sleep through the long road trip they were facing, but she didn’t know when she’d be able to stop so she could administer it. Grim because she knew how uncomfortable he must be, she had to put him out of her mind for now and try and make it to Detroit in one piece.

  Suddenly, Max saw two brown cruisers from the county sheriff roar up behind the SUV and turn on their lights. She yelled a triumphant, “Yes!”

  At first she didn’t think the SUV was going to stop, but the driver must have come to his senses because as she pulled away the perps fell farther and farther back. Her last view was of the deputies with their guns drawn, approaching the vehicle. However, the media was still coming. She could see a white van struggling to catch her, but because she knew they weren’t going to be shooting at her no matter the outcome, she slowed a bit, blew out a breath, and concentrated on finding a posted sign that would lead them to the highway.

  Jan Kruger was grim. Gary had gotten away! According to the two men he’d sent in to scout, the housekeeper or whoever the woman was claiming to be had fired on them with a weapon powerful enough to make them run for their lives. So much for the laughable security. He cursed Kent again and tried to figure out what to do next. After the disastrous assault attempt, they’d abandoned the big boat and were now on a smaller one speeding away from the scene as fast as the engine would go. He assumed the Coast Guard would be showing up soon to investigate, and he wanted to put as much distance as possible between him and the now empty big boat. He glanced over at Oskar. The man was sweating and looked a bit green. Apparently, water travel didn’t suit him, but that was the least of Jan’s worries.

  Once they docked, Jan, Oskar, and the two mercenaries with them jumped out and the operator of the boat roared away. There was supposed to be a car waiting for them. Just as Kruger grabbed up his phone to find out where it was, a Hummer and a pickup truck drove up. Jan ignored them for a moment. “Where’s Gary now?” he demanded of Oskar.

  The short squat Oskar took out his laptop and punched in a few numbers. He studied the screen. “He still has his cell phone on. They’re heading east.”

  “Good.”

  The driver of the Hummer—a member of a South African family now living in Grand Rapids—handed Jan the keys then got into the pickup and was driven away. Jan and the others piled into the Hummer and followed the narrow country roads to the highway.

  Fourteen

  Merging onto the interstate, Max took the Honda’s speed up to seventy-five, then hit the cruise. Pulling her foot off of the accelerator, she relaxed and steered. Now that they’d seemingly shaken all of their tails, Ossie was her chief concern. She looked up at the mirror. “Ossie?”

  Ruby put her head up instead and barked a couple of times as if to relay Ossie’s poor state.

  “I know, baby,” Max responded sympathetically. “I’m going to stop first chance I get.” She watched Ruby resume her position close to her brother’s side and her heart swelled. Max looked Adam’s way. “How you holding up?”

  “I’m blown away, but I’m fine. Never been shot at before.”

  Max nodded her understanding. “Nothing like a bunch of bullets to get your attention.”

  “Got that right.” He then asked, “What was all that talk about Big Bad Wolves and elephants and Hannibal? I’m guessing they’re code names?”

  “Yes. Big Bad Wolf is Mykal Chandler.”

  Adam smiled. “Okay.”

  “I guess his wife gave him the name.”

  “Gadget?”

  “A friend named Saint, and like I said earlier, he’s Chandler’s brother. Half brother, if you want to get technical. Only man I know who can enter and exit a locked room. He has almost as many toys as Portia.”

  “Hannibal?”

  “The President.”

  Adam stared. “Of the United States?”

  “Yeah.”

  “I’m going to see the President?”

  “Apparently.”

  A stunned Adam sat back against the seat. “Why?”

  “For your safety, I assume. Things must be real ugly if he’s taking you in.”

  Adam thought about that. “This is serious, isn’t it?”

  “As a heart attack,” she replied gravely. “And it’s all connected to your prototype. Any idea why?”

  “No. The thing heats homes, that’s all.”

  “Saint mentioned rogue elephants in the Pentagon. I wonder how that ties in?”

  Adam shrugged.

  “Maybe Chandler will know more.”

  Adam hoped so, because right now he was having trouble telling up from down. While she drove, he tried to make sense of his new, upside down world. The President! He had always wanted to meet the nation’s first African American chief of state. The former five-star general and ambassador to the United Nations had taken the oath of office three years ago and was leading the nation in an unprecedented renaissance of technology, education, and public works. Had Adam been told a few months back that he’d be meeting the President courtesy of a woman with a big gun and two dogs with GPS capabilities, he’d have asked if the person had been doing crack, yet here he was, on his way to the White House—to be protected, no less, from what or whom he didn’t know.

  He looked over at Max. Her face was serious and her jaw set tight. After watching her sweep the beach with her Terminator and experiencing the
way she drove to escape that SUV, he made a promise to himself never to cross her. Girlfriend did not play. However, being male, Adam wasn’t sure how he felt about having to hide behind her skirts, so to speak. He had no problem with a law enforcement officer being female if he needed rescuing from a mugging or something else requiring that type of assistance, but this situation with her being the alpha individual was different.

  Or was it? He had been raised by a strong female who also didn’t play, and because of her he’d always prided himself on being all for gender equality. But this? Being told to go hide inside while she whipped on the bad guys wasn’t doing it for him, on any level. Would he feel differently if the command had come from a man? Probably. So his problem, he had to admit, was him. Was he man enough to step back and let the lady do her job? That was the question. He wasn’t sure, but he hoped that his indecision didn’t get him killed.

  It was seven in the evening when they pulled into a gas station outside of Grand Rapids. Max, dressed in a dark brown shirt, shorts, brown hikers, and socks, looked like a park ranger instead of who she really was—a woman packing weapons of mass destruction in the well of her Honda. She swiped her credit card through the slot and pumped the gas while discreetly keeping an eye out for trouble. The station had eight pumps. Five were occupied. There was a teenage boy in a turned around baseball cap. Across from him stood a young mother fueling a green minivan holding the requisite 2.2 kids. Beside and behind Max were three seniors, one of whom was a woman. The shot-up Honda with a cracked window was drawing attention, so Max turned her back on the curious eyes and mentally willed the pump to hurry up. Adam had gone inside the convenience store to buy water and snacks. As he came back out with his purchases, she was pleased to see that he hadn’t been inside messing around. The sooner they got back on the road, the sooner they’d get to Detroit.

  With the car fueled up, she grabbed the receipt from the pump, climbed back in under the wheel and said to Adam, “I wanted to give Ossie his med, but time to go. Too many eyes on us right now.”