Hunter's Quest

Chapter Thirteen

Kristie drew a couple of quick breaths, trying to calm her churning stomach. "Ever since we turned out of the parking lot behind the doctor's office."

He twisted his neck to stare back at the other vehicle, squinting to make out detail. The sun was fading toward the horizon, and the sharp angle of the glare would make it difficult to see much. "Doesn't look like an official car," he commented. "Can't see inside too well, but I think there's only one person."

"What do we do?" Her palms felt sweaty where they wrapped around the steering wheel.

"Lose it," Jason said. "Can you speed up?"

"I don't want to attract legal attention, if that isn't it."

"Stay within shouting distance of the limit."

She nodded and pressed down on the accelerator. For a minute she hoped the other car wouldn't try to keep up, but just when she thought her wish would be granted, it showed up behind her again. The car blinked its headlights off and on a couple of times. "I think he wants us to stop," she said.

"No way," Jason said. He grabbed the map and studied it, bracing himself by holding onto the armrest when she rounded a bend at a speed too high to be safe on a badly banked curve. Kristie eased back on the accelerator. The car behind had to slow also.

"There's a cross street a couple of miles ahead. Go left and it crosses the Interstate after three or four miles."

She nodded. The road swooped down a long incline and the car behind flashed its headlights again. Kristie sped up. A signpost ahead indicated they approached an intersection.

She had to slow again as she neared the cross-street.

No traffic approached from the other direction, so she barely braked before careening around the turn. Her tires squealed and the car shook. Her stomach did flip-flops.

She thought sure the maneuver would lose the other car, but she'd underestimated the other driver's determination. He almost over-shot the turn but swung in a precariously tight arc to come back into it. Kristie managed to gain a little distance and pressed down on the accelerator as hard as she dared.

Jason's eyebrows went up. "Thought about trying out for NASCAR?" he asked. "You're a natural."

"I'm faking it," she said.

"Nope."

A squirrel ran out onto the road just ahead. Kristie automatically braked and swerved to avoid it, nearly sending the car into a skid.

Jason braced a hand on the dashboard. "What the—"

The right-side tires slid onto the uneven shoulder, making the car bounce.

"Damn it," he swore. "What are you doing?"

"That squirrel has a death wish."

"We're about to grant it. I don't care what the damn bumper stickers say. We don't brake for animals!"

By that time the squirrel had wisely decided to reverse course and hightailed it off the road. Kristie fought the wheel and turned into the skid, felt the tires grab hold and managed to steer back onto the road over the ridge where the asphalt started. She pressed down on the accelerator. The engine screamed as the Toyota leapt forward.

The road got smoother and straighter again for a while, then began climbing. She sucked in and let out a long breath to release some tension.

"Not far to the Interstate, now," he warned.