Don't Say a Word - Barbara Freethy [139]
She wished someone else would come into the garage or a car would drive by. It was too quiet-eerily quiet. The only sounds came from their feet hitting the pavement-four pairs of feet. Or was that five?
Julia took a quick glance behind her. She sensed someone was watching them.
She must have paused, because Brady put his hand under her elbow. "Keep walking," he said in a low voice.
She wanted to pull her arm away from him, but he had a tight grip on her. "Hey," she protested.
"I want to get out of here fast," he muttered. His tension seemed as palpable as her own, and that made her more fearful.
"Alex." She didn't know what she wanted to ask him, but she needed him closer to her. But Alex was on the other side of Brady, a good five feet away.
Suddenly, a man came out from between two cars. It was the same man Julia had seen at the radio station and probably the same man who had tried to grab her purse on Union Street. Up close, he was even bigger than she remembered, with a square, angry face and wild eyes. He began to move forward. She tried to back up, but Brady still had a hold on her arm.
"Get in my car," Brady said to Julia, flipping the locks open on his vehicle, which was closer than Elena's car.
"Don't move," the man said in a thick Russian accent. He reached into his coat pocket.
"He's got a gun!" Brady yelled.
Julia gasped in horror as Alex tackled the man around the knees and toppled him to the ground. "Do something!" she cried.
"Get in the car," Brady repeated, shoving her onto the front seat. He grabbed Elena next and pushed her into the back, then jumped behind the wheel, and gunned the engine. He peeled out of the parking lot, leaving Alex and the Russian fighting for the weapon.
"Stop!" Julia yelled. "We can't leave Alex on his own."
"He's already got the gun," Brady said, looking in the rearview mirror. "Don't worry, Julia. Alex can handle it. I've got to get you out of here." He pulled out his cell phone, punched in a number, and barked into the phone that he needed backup at the Hastings Street Garage.
Julia's stomach churned. She looked back at Elena, whose face was white with fear. God, she hoped Alex was okay. She knew he was tough and fearless, but how could he fight a gun? They shouldn't have run. They should have stayed to help. "We have to go back," she said again. "We need to make sure Alex is all right. Please, turn the car around."
"Alex would want me to get you to safety," Brady said. "He knows help is on the way. He'll be fine. Trust me."
"If help is on the way, then we'll be safe there, too," she argued.
"I don't know how many more men are in the garage."
Julia thought about the two men who'd followed them to St. Helena. Maybe there were more people involved. But who were they? And if there were more of them in the garage, then Alex was definitely in trouble.
"I demand that you turn this car around."
He ignored her.
"Please," Elena muttered from the backseat. "Please, do what she asks."
Brady tossed Julia a look that told her he was going to do exactly what he wanted. "I know what I'm 352 doing. I've been in these situations many time before."
She supposed that was true, but it still didn't make her feel better. Her instincts were screaming in pro test, her gut telling her something was terribly wrong.
"We need to look at that letter," Brady continued. "You may have incriminating evidence in your bag. We can't allow it to fall into the wrong hands. It might threaten not only your own security, but that of others in our government as well."
His serious words reminded Julia that this mystery had begun a world away. She wondered if the letter from her parents would finally answer all of her questions.
"We're almost there," Brady said as she began to open her purse. "Hang on." He spun around a corner on two wheels, the tires squealing in protest.
Julia's heart leapt into her throat as Brady dodged in and out of traffic. She hoped Brady wouldn't