“Yeah, got it.” Ryan went for the Ducati motorcycle and quickly grabbed a spare jacket for her, cramming it into a saddlebag, putting on his and zipping it, then attaching a helmet for her to the back seat and pulling his on.
“Your intensity is starting to worry me.”
“I’m just worried,” Ryan said, getting on and starting it, as his brother hit the garage door opener. He decided to stop hiding things because his brother had probably put together a lot already. Everyone had to know Matt had vanished, and the rest of them, too, so he admitted, “Look, she disappeared on the highway, which means she reappeared on it, but without a car, and that means she might have just been hit by a car.”
“Jesus. Call me if anything has happened. I’ll stay up.”
“Love you, brother.”
“Yeah. Be careful.”
Once the door was high enough, Ryan hit the gas and flew out of the garage. As he neared the estate gates, they were already opening courtesy of Daniel and he blew past them long before they completed opening. Gratitude for his brother’s help mixed with fear for Anna. He had a bad feeling about this.
River Road was empty as he hurtled onto the two-lane road, heading away from the Capital Beltway. He expected ten minutes to reach Anna’s general location, but there was more than one way to get there, and if Daniel was right that the police were watching him, the back way offered many ways to lose them. And as it turned out, his brother was right. Within moments of hitting the road, red and blue flashing lights appeared behind him. He gunned it and turned up one road, rolling on the throttle and hoping they didn’t follow.
But they did, and he sped up more, going over several hills at 90 mph before slowing and veering off another way and gunning it again. He could not turn the lights on a motorcycle off, unlike a car, and he roared over two hills before dropping out of sight. The flashing lights didn’t follow, and he slowed, opting for several more twists and turns that made it unlikely he’d be found. He finally turned back toward I-270 and reached an overpass that made his heart sink.
More lights appeared, but this time they were below on the interstate. Police, a firetruck, and an ambulance. And a lone car with significant damage to the front. Heart in his throat, he made his way down to the partially blocked highway and used the mobile bike to get around snarled traffic. He also went around the first few cops who tried to stop him before he slowed to get off, other police rushing toward him.
“Sir,” an officer began, running up as he pulled off his helmet, “Back behind the cones!”
Ryan was hardly listening, his eyes seeing a stretcher that lifted up as EMTs wheeled the person on it toward an ambulance. It was a young woman, long blonde hair in disarray and bloody, a torn shirt dangling from one limp hand, her neck in a brace. He couldn’t see her face. The cop grabbed his arm and Ryan yanked it free.
“I know her!” he shouted, anguished and trying to get past him. “I think I know her.”
“Well, you need to stay here and let the EMTs handle this. We can get your name and–”
“Stand back!” demanded another officer. “Hey wait a minute.” His eyes scrutinized Ryan’s face and went to the bike before one hand moved to the gun at one hip. “Are you Ryan LaRue?”
“What? Yeah. How–”
“Down on the ground!” he yelled, and the first officer shoved Ryan while tripping him, several pairs of hands forcing him down, painfully yanking his arms behind his back. Before he knew it, cuffs were on him and he struggled to glimpse the stretcher again from his stomach, the pavement inches from his face.
“Is it her?” he asked frantically as hands began searching him, removing his wallet, phone, and more. “Is it Anna? Let me up. Let me see!”
“The only thing you’re seeing it the back of a patrol car.”
“He’s clean,” announced another officer.
As they hauled him upright, he fought to turn and look for the ambulance, but the doors had been closed and it began to drive away. His eyes scoured the highway nearby for any sign of any other blonde woman in the vicinity, desperate for this to be a coincidence. But the search ended when they shoved him into the back of a patrol car and slammed the door, ignoring his questions about who the victim was.
Chapter 10 – The Price
“I feel sick,” Matt admitted from behind the wheel of his father’s Prius as it sat parked on the upper, empty level of a public garage.
Eric looked over to make sure he didn’t mean it literally, seeing his own worry mirrored on the techie’s face. Both of them had changed their clothes and wore hats and sunglasses. He left his job without his boss realizing he was even there, mostly because the business had several rooms and setting up for the day meant going into more than one, leaving the foyer. The front door had beeped when he opened it, but a quick jog to a stairwell had gotten him out of sight before being seen.
Now, a handful of tall hotels loomed overhead in two directions, shorter buildings closer and across the I-270 highway. Few people were out yet, so they didn’t have to worry about anyone finding it weird that they were just sitting there in the car and never getting out.
The radio was tuned to WTOP and gave yet another update on the accident investigation on I-270, noting that a man on a motorcycle had been taken into custody hours earlier. Neither knew how that related to anything. All that really mattered is that neither Anna nor Ryan were answering their phones. Every time they tried, Matt drove around while
