Page 99 of Secrets Along the Shore

He checked his watch. So they’d arrive at about four. “Okay. I’ll get them to the airport when it lands.” He didn’t want to arrive early in case someone followed them. The plane needed to be on the ground and ready to leave when they arrived.

“I’ll see you then.”

“Right.” He lowered the phone and set it on the desk. In two hours, he had to ensure Elara and Rian were on that plane safely to Australia. Easier said than done. He had no doubt that the Rukas were scouring the city for them. They’d show up at the hotel sooner or later. Tyler had to keep them guessing.

He pushed to his feet and strode over to the bed. “Hey.” This time, when he touched Elara’s shoulder, she didn’t panic.

Keeping her arm around her son, she rolled over halfway. “What’s wrong?”

“We need to move.”

She sat up abruptly. “They found us?”

“Not yet. But we need to leave before they do.” He grabbed his rifle from the desk and pocketed the SAT phone. He hadn’t taken his vest off, so he was ready.

Elara turned on the bedside lamp and reached for the shoes she’d dropped on the floor. “Where are we going now?” She pulled on her tennis shoes and helped her sleepy son with his.

A car horn honked outside. Tyler tensed and headed over to the window. He stayed out of sight as he parted the curtains.

Rian rubbed his eyes. “Is it morning?”

“No, honey.” She tied his shoes.

Tyler frowned at the line of vehicles pulling into the hotel parking lot below. They stopped near the front. Light posts in the parking lot and near the hotel entrance illuminated the rifles in the men’s arms as they exited the vehicles. How’d Viktor’s men find them again? “We gotta go now.” He closed the curtain and headed to the door. Checked through the peephole. The hallway remained clear. For now.

Elara finished putting on her vest and took Rian’s hand. The boy stumbled a couple of steps as she led him to the door. He’d have a hard time running. But he might have to.

“Stay close.” Tyler opened the door and entered the bright hallway. He took careful steps to the staircase that led to the back parking lot. After peering through the window in the door, he opened it and descended the stairs with Elara and Rian behind him. As he exited the hotel, he swept the parking lot, searching for the Rukas. The area had a few cars, including the one Tyler had taken, but no people stood outside.

“Alright. Move.” He signaled for Elara and Rian to go in front of him, while he turned and covered them.

She jogged behind her son to cover him as they rushed to the car. After Tyler unlocked the car, she opened the back door and allowed Rian to get in first. “Hurry,” she whispered. Once her son was settled, she climbed in. The door shut just as Tyler backed to the front of the car.

“Hej! Stop!”

The voice drew Tyler’s attention to the corner of the building where a man with a rifle started for them. Crap. So much for a stealthy exit.

Bullets flew, hitting the car. Elara screamed as part of the windshield shattered. Narrowly avoiding getting hit and without decent cover, Tyler took the guy down with two quick shots. He stepped back and opened the driver’s side door. Shoving the M4 into the passenger seat, he started the engine and threw it into drive. Through the spiderwebbed windshield in front of Tyler, he spotted more Rukas running toward them. Not good.

Tyler spun the vehicle out of the parking lot and stepped harder on the accelerator. The windshield blocked a majority of his view on the left. He punched the glass out, not caring about the lacerations it left on his knuckles. With a clear view, he sped up and took a right. He had no real idea where he was going. He’d checked the map earlier to find spots to hide, but there weren’t many that could conceal a vehicle.

He checked Elara and Rian in the mirror. “You two alright?”

“Yeah.” Elara let out a deep breath.

“Mmmhmm.” Rian’s response was almost inaudible.

“I don’t understand how they found us,” she whispered.

Tyler half-shrugged. “The spot was a little obvious.” He’d known it when he chose it, which was why he took precautions, but it was the best place for them to stay until he knew where Von needed them to go.

Now they had to head east toward the airport. But they needed to find a secure spot until the plane arrived. Which was…who knew where? Maybe an alley somewhere they could hide in. But they’d have to ditch the vehicle. Too easy for those men to recognize. Especially since it matched their cars. Maybe the sight of it in the parking lot drew Viktor’s men here.

He made a few more turns to keep the Rukas guessing. What if they had drones? He leaned over the steering wheel to check the clear night sky. He could only hope they didn’t. If they did, he’d have to shoot it down and move his targets immediately.

After another right turn, he almost slammed the brakes. A black car in the middle of the intersection blocked their path. If that was theirattempt to stop them, then they had failed. The people inside the car aimed AR-15s out the windows. Great. More trouble.

Ducking to avoid the bullets, Tyler lowered their speed to about fifty kilometers an hour. He aimed for the back of the enemy car with the front right corner of his. The impact turned the enemy car parallel to them. He hit the accelerator hard again and took another left turn.