Ezra quickly fell behind the pair of youngsters. At the first intersection, he was a few yards back. By the next one, he trailed by fifty yards.
“Come on, old man,” Butch laughed as he waited with Haley by the post for the traffic lights.
“Are they still back there?” he asked, winded.
“A few,” Butch replied. “Let me take the pack.”
Ezra could barely breathe, so giving up the pack wasn’t a difficult choice. Haley offered to take his rifle, but he wasn’t ready to be unarmed in a city full of hostiles.
The short break had given the pursuit a false sense of catching up. The shotgun guy stopped, lined up another shot, then let it rip. The birdshot sprayed the red, amber, and green stoplight bulbs.
He pointed to the on-ramp for the interstate, which appeared to run on a viaduct to the west. “Up there!” The same abandoned traffic from the downtown street continued onto the highway. If they could get up there, they’d have a superior position to either hold off the people chasing them, or they could run ahead and get lost among the many vehicles.
“Bring it back!” the man in the white T-shirt complained.
“We don’t have it!” Haley shouted.
“Don’t bother,” Ezra advised. “They’re in shock. I think.”
There were perhaps twenty men chasing them, though many had stayed inside the building, stealing the same rocks they’d been accused of taking. Ezra didn’t think they’d be receptive to allowing him to explain the logic to them.
Another shotgun blast boomed.
“I’m in shock, too,” Haley snarked. “Why don’t they give us a break?”
Butch took her hand and they ran together toward the highway entrance.
He let himself have five extra seconds, aware he couldn’t keep up with them, even without the heavy pack. If he had to hunker down and hold off the men with his rifle, he figured it might go his way. However, he realized his ammo supply was running away from him.
“Dang it,” he exhaled, running across the street to give chase.
Minutes later, exhausted, he made it to the top of the ramp. The highway went due west, as expected, but it also crossed the western edge of the new lake. He figured the area had once been a floodplain filled with warehouses and other industrial buildings. The structures beneath the long span were partially washed away. Some were underwater.
“You going to make it?” Butch asked as he arrived.
He looked back. The only man who’d stuck with them the whole way was T-shirt guy. The rest of the men had turned around or flat-out given up. The owner of the shotgun strode back toward the building with his gun over his shoulders.
Still breathing hard, Ezra could only ask for help.
“Will you put one over his head? I don’t want anyone following us on this bridge. We’re getting the hell out of Kansas City.” Looking to the west end of the span, the greener region of Kansas suggested they didn’t have far to go to escape the urban center.
Butch lined up the shot, but Haley interrupted.
“Let me do it. I’m the one he accused of stealing.”
The big man smiled at Ezra, then winked.
Ezra gave his blessing. “Sure, Haley. You’ve earned the right. Take your shot.”
“Make sure you miss,” Butch added quickly.
She paused. “What do you take me for? An expert markswoman? Of course, I’m going to miss.”
Butch laughed, obviously admiring the young woman.
He watched to see what would happen.
CHAPTER 22
Rawlins, WY
“You can’t be serious,” Grace said with exasperation in her voice. Misha held two rifles pointed at her. Asher shuffled next to her, leaving his rifle on the ground. She thought he did the right thing. There was no chance of drawing a weapon on the guy who already had his guns aimed.
“I am sorry,” he drawled with his thick Russian accent. “This was nothing like what I wanted. We were to go to Yellowstone. Fight noble fight. Win against bad guys.”
“We still can,” Asher said matter-of-factly. “All you have to do is figure out another option.”
“We cannot, my friend. I need you two on your feet.” He slid closer to the switching equipment, then turned a little to face Nerio. “I will do what you ask. I bring them to you!”
Nerio laughed in disbelief. “Like I would trust you! Shoot them where they stand. Then you and I will talk.”
Asher grabbed her hand, which she readily accepted. She turned to face him and his big brown eyes. She’d never noticed they also had speckles of emerald, giving them a deep, rich texture. They were the kind of eyes she could spend a long time exploring. “Ash, I’m so sorry for trusting him. You can blame this entirely on me.”
“Okay,” he joked, barely containing the fear behind those same eyes. “But, seriously, I believed him, too.”
Misha became agitated. “You must get up. We have to cross tracks and go to her.”
“Aren’t you going to shoot us?” she snapped.
“Stand up. I show you what I will do.” He lurched forward, forcing her to rock back on her heels. It seemed like he meant business, so she got out of her crouch and stood up. Asher came up with her.
A second later, Misha stood up as well. To her relief, he was between her and Nerio. It would be sweet justice if she shot him first. Then they’d have a chance.
Misha waved her sideways, out from behind the switches. He yelled to Nerio at the same time. “I bring them to you. I cannot shoot them.”
The assassin sounded shocked. “Did you lose your mojo? You need me to hold your hand?” She yelled to her
