California Schemin' - Kate George [9]
He stood up and took my hand.
“Come on. Let’s get you packed.”
“Wait.” I resisted the pull on my hand. “What if my leaving puts you in danger? What if they come after you instead?”
“I’ll be fine. There’s no reason for anyone to come after me. I didn’t see anything.”
That’s how I found myself lying in the back seat of the car, hiding from prying eyes, heading for the airport an hour before midnight.
“I’m not happy about this,” I said. Beau was in the front seat driving.
“What?” He turned the radio down.
“I don’t like this. I feel like a fugitive.” I pushed off the blanket he’d thrown over me and sat up.
“You are a fugitive. Lie back down, for God’s sake. Fogel said it was a good idea to hide you.” He turned the radio back up.
“He didn’t say I had to stay hidden all the way to the airport.” I shouted over the radio. “We’re on the freeway now, and nobody followed us out of town.”
He turned the radio down midway through my sentence.
“You don’t have to shout. I can hear you perfectly well. And just because I didn’t see anybody doesn’t mean there wasn’t anyone.”
“I was only shouting because you had the radio turned up. It’s dark, Beau, how could anyone tell I was in here if they were following us?”
“They could see the shape of your head and surmise that you’re in here. So lie back down.”
“How about if I just slide down so my head isn’t visible.”
“Whatever, Bree. I’m tired of arguing with you.” Then under his breath “It’s not like I’m trying to save your life or anything.”
Chapter Two
We pulled into the short-term parking structure across from the Sacramento International Airport and trotted across the elevated pedestrian walkway that spanned Airport Boulevard. We had checked me in on-line and planned to get here at the last minute to reduce my visibility. Now we had to hurry.
I started toward the security checkpoint, but Beau took my arm and led me to the express line for employees and first class passengers. The passengers standing in the regular security line looked at us with curiosity. A few had open hostility on their faces. Standing in line has a way of bringing out the worst in people.
“What are we doing?” I asked.
“The Sheriff’s Department got me permission to escort you to the gate. I’m not letting you out of my sight until you are on the plane.”
“You don’t actually think they’ll try and pick me off at the airport, do you?”
“There’s no point in taking chances. I can’t imagine what Tom and Meg would say if something happened to you. I’m not going to risk being on the receiving end of Meg’s wrath. No, I’m sending you back to where half the state police barracks is watching out for you.”
“Only half?” I was inwardly rolling my eyes and trying to act naturally as TSA riffled through my purse and pulled out a tube of toothpaste and a bottle of moisturizer. I took them from him and handed them to Beau.
“Mail these to me, would you? That moisturizer is worth a fortune.”
“That’s because the other half is resting up from the stress of keeping an eye on you. I’m sure after you got stabbed in the arm by Dotty Post they upped the Bree alert by a factor of at least ten.” He looked at the toiletries in his hand. “What do you want me to do with these?”
“Put them in your pocket and stop making fun of me. How many times do you think I’ll find my boss dead? It’s not likely to happen again.” I hoped.
“How can you say it’s a freak incident when you’ve already found another dead body? Why I thought California would be safe for you, I’ll never know.”
We cleared the checkpoint, pulled my carry-on off the conveyor, and he pulled me aside.
“Remember, when you get to Virginia you need to leave the airport in a taxi. Do you remember where to have him drop you? Did you bring money for the Metro?”
“Yeah, I remember. I’m not twelve you know. I can keep instructions in my head for longer than an hour.” I knew he was worried and trying to protect me, but I was getting annoyed. The elaborate ruse of sending me to Virginia seemed like a waste of time. I knew from