Hijacked

Chapter Three

Tom was distracted. He still couldn't believe he'd actually hijacked and kidnapped someone, let alone a young, attractive woman. He'd needed a car and he hadn't had any luck hitchhiking. He'd seen her stopped at the light, the plate had caught his eye and he'd looked into the car. She'd been alone and there was no carseat that he could see. Something in him had snapped and he'd gone up to the car, tested the door and jumped in when it had opened.

He'd never hijacked anyone, had never held a gun to someone's head and he'd never kidnapped anyone. He'd made a desperate choice, and even now he was second guessing himself.

He almost jumped out of his seat when he heard a siren start blaring. He looked behind him and saw a highway patrol car flashing its lights behind them and then leaned over to look at the gauges as she started to slow down. She wasn't slowing down fast enough to cover the speed she'd been going at, and it didn't take him long to realize what she'd done.

He just stared at her. She'd done it on purpose, and he'd never even thought of that. He continued to stare at her as she slowed down to a stop and pulled the car over to the side of the highway. She put the car in park and sat back. A glance behind him told him that the cop had pulled behind them, but was about fifty yards back.

"You did that on purpose," he said as he watched the cop's door open.

"What are you going to do, shoot me? Kidnapping is bad enough, but murder will get you more time."

"Please, don't turn me in." he pleaded as he turned to look at her. "Please."

"You have ten seconds to convince me not to turn you in." she said, looking right into his eyes. "Make them count."

"I'm being set up," he said in a rush. "Some money disappeared and I'm the suspect. If I don't get to Midland and talk to a guy there who can sort this all out for me then I'm dead."

"Are you wanted by the police?"

"No, it's not the police." He glanced in the mirror. "Please, don't turn me in. They'll kill me."

She looked at him and then at the mirror as he looked behind them again. The cop was close, only a few seconds away.

"Put your seatbelt on quick and hide that gun. Don't say word. Let me do the talking." She looked away from him and hit the button on the door to roll down her window. He slid his gun out of sight and pulled on the seatbelt, managing to do it up just as the cop came up to the window.

"Do you know how fast you were going, miss?" the cop asked as he looked at Emily first and then at him. His head was spinning and he was sweating up a storm, but he tried to look casual

"I'm not sure, officer," she said, and her voice sounded younger and sweeter than it had only a moment before. "But do you think you can help settle an argument I was having with my brother?"

"I'd be happy to help." he said with a nod, his voice deepening just a touch.

"I said that when you're low on gas you should speed up so you can get to a gas station quicker while Benny here," she motioned to him, "said that by going faster you burn the same, if not more gas. Which is true officer?"

"Your brother has the right idea, miss," the cop said with a smile. "The faster you go and the more you push a car like this the more gas it'll burn." He looked between the two of them. "Why?"

"We're getting really low on gas and I didn't want to get stranded on the highway so I was going faster to get to a gas station. Benny was telling me to slow down, but I wouldn't listen and now we're going to get stranded and I'm going to get a ticket too." She sniffed and when she glanced over at him he could see her eyes were filled with fake tears.