In the Woods, Bears

Chapter 62 - Out of the Fire and...

Doc Terry...

"We need gas," Jeremiah said.

Terry nodded in agreement, but he didn't slow down. They were going to be in Knoxville soon and hopefully outside of the people's reach. They would not pull in anywhere that didn't have lines of sight, good lighting, and cameras. Two vehicles were following them now, keeping pace like shadows.

They had decided that Red wouldn't be joining them. The two cousins had been communicating through texts and brief calls. Red was headed into the high country, in case they tried to bring them in. He could make things difficult. The gas light taunted Terry. How far could he push it? Coming up the hill, the truck hitched and gave a jerk. Shit. Shit. Shit. In the distance, he could see a Tedco that was well lit.

Gripping the wheel so hard he thought it might snap in his hands, he willed the gas in the tank to swell, to get them that far. Another hiccup, a jerk. The seat belt pulled tight across his chest. When a cop car flicked on its lights behind them and their shadows, Terry glanced into the rearview mirror and saw with relief that Kennedy's seat belt was across her chest. They'll be okay. He had to trust that. There might only be one chance. When the police car pulled around and passed them, Terry pressed the gas pedal to the floor and accelerated. Their truck slammed into the moving police car's back bumper with a screaming metallic crunch.

Hands braced on the dash, Jeremiah yelled, "What the fuck?" Behind them, Kennedy gave a grunt as things tumbled to the car floor from the seat. The smart girl drew the guns across her lap and covered them with a blanket.

Lights and sirens came on ahead of them, illuminating the inside of the truck. An angry hand came out of the cop's window, with a jerking gesture telling them to pull over. With relief, Terry did just that.

The shadowing cars kept driving. When they passed, faces contorted with anger twisted behind their tinted windows. Jeremiah reached behind his seat to make sure the guns were covered, as Terry brought them to a stop on the shoulder, walking distance from the gas station. Safe for now.

Short and solid, the cop stood by the back of his cruiser, looking at the damage to his bumper. His cursing was loud enough to be heard through the window. He stalked toward them, speaking into his shoulder. When he reached Terry's window, he said, "Insurance and ID." Glancing into the back seat, he asked, "Just where are y'all headed in such a hurry?"

Terry fished his identification out of his wallet as Jeremiah explained. "I'm sorry Officer. We are passing through. Two vehicles were following us really close, and we thought they were gonna carjack us."

"We don't have those kinds of problems here. And I wasn't asking you, son."

Terry signed to the officer as Jeremiah explained, "The Doc can't speak."

Snatching the cards from Terry's hand, he inspected them. The officer grimaced. "What made you think they were following you and not just going home?"

"They had been behind us a while, Sir. Our car is on fumes. The situation was too uncertain to stop for gas. We didn't mean any trouble and appreciate your help. I work at a garage, and I'd be more than happy to fix your bumper, Sir."

"Somebody is going to pay for that damage."

"You were our hero tonight. It'd be my honor."

The officer stomped to the back of Terry's truck to get his license plate number.

"You stay right there." He snapped as he passed Kennedy's open window to go run the plates.

"Why did you do that?" She hissed from the back.

He pointed behind them to where their followers no longer were. She turned to look, and he watched as the realization hit her. "How is a cop better?"

Jeremiah turned toward her. "It's better. There were at least seven guys in those trucks. Probably Shepherds, I don't like those odds, even if some of them can't change." Terry nodded in agreement.

Ever since she had entered his life, he felt like his existence had become taking chances, one after another, deep into a badger hole. Nothing good was going to happen, but he couldn't stop. He looked at her through the rearview mirror, at the worried crease on her forehead. The way she always had her hand on her belly these days made his heart raw. They belonged to each other. He wouldn't leave her unless he was arrested. Jeremiah would get her out of here if it came to that.

Sullen, anger draining from the cop. The officer walked back to their car with a knitted brow. "Do you know they are looking for you back home?"

Anxiety itched under his skin. He shook his head no.

"You're the Vet, there?"

Terry nodded.

"Have you been selling ketamine?"

"For horses?" Jeremiah asked.

The officer clarified, "To people?"

Terry shook his head no.

"I'm considering believing you." The cop shook his head. "I don't care for their department." He looked at them evenly. "They weren't much help when my niece went missing. They shut down the search party we tried to bring over." He tapped the ticket pad against his wrist, leaned over, and looked at Kennedy. "She had a boyfriend from over that way. Always a little wild, that girl, but not a runaway. Never." Terry fought the urge to reach out and push him away from their truck.

"Yes, Sir."

"Were there people following you?"

"Two vehicles, Sir. I don't know how many people. Terry was trying to get us somewhere with lights and witnesses, but there isn't much out here. We were afraid to stop. If you let us go, we will have to push the truck to the Tedco to refill."

"And where do you plan to go?"

Jeremiah answered for her. "Somewhere they can't find her. Somebody important wants to kill her. And she has done nothing, I swear."

Chewing on that answer, he asked their woman. "Is that so?"

"Yes, Officer. They get furious when people talk about things they don't want anybody to know. And I wasn't even trying to offend anyone. It just happened. I don't want to disappear like your niece did."

With of flip of his wrist, he opened his ticket book. "You know you are getting a ticket."

"We know we deserve one, Sir," she said from the back. "We were terrified." Terry shot her a look, and she added. "We were, Terry. And you better not deny try to deny it."

"Son, are you willing to take a breathalyzer?"