“Hold on!” Hunter says.
We turn sharply and then speed up again. I glance between the seats and out the now-open back window. The car following us also turns sharply, but they don’t quite make it, and the front passenger tire ends up going into the ditch. The driver tries to get out but manages to get them deeper in. Hunter continues to speed down the road, gaining more distance from them.
“We lost them for the moment,” he says. “You can sit up now.”
I slowly straighten up. Bob actually shot at us. He really does want me dead. And if it weren’t for Hunter, he would have succeeded.
“Are you all right?” Hunter asks. “Did you get hit?”
“No,” I say. “I didn’t get hit.” But am I fine? No. I put my seatbelt on and stare out the passenger window so he doesn’t see the tears.
He reaches over and takes my hand in his. “Hey, you still with me?”
I wipe my eyes. “Yeah.”
He squeezes my hand and then lets it go to focus on driving.
“I don’t understand how he keeps finding us.”
He glances over at me. “I’ve been thinking about that. We assumed he was heading to your cabin, but now, after tonight, I think he’s tracking you.”
“How would he do that?”
Hunter pulls to the side of the road.
“What are you doing? They might catch up to us,” I say as I glance behind us.
“Let me see your phone.”
I hand it to him, and he checks something on it. “I’m sorry,” he says as he tosses the phone out the window and across the road.
“What? I have everything on there!”
I reach for the door handle, but he pulls out onto the road so I can’t exit safely.
“You aren’t sharing your location with him, which means he’s found some other way to find you.”
I stare at him. “What if he put an AirTag on this car?”
He frowns as he glances at me. “When would he have done that?”
He’s right. The only time Bob might have seen his car before was when we were leaving the first cabin.
“I guess he couldn’t have.”
Then how does he keep finding me?
“When this is all over, I’ll buy you a new phone. All right?”
I slump down. I hope this is over soon. But how will it end? “What is the plan? To keep running from Bob? He’ll find me eventually.”
Hunter gets on the highway going north. “The plan isfor the FBI to gather enough evidence to put Bob away. Then it won’t matter what you know because it will be on record, along with other evidence. And no, he won’t find you. Not as long as you’re with me.”
I stare at this man I barely know. Despite that, I believe him.
“I believe you will keep me safe. But let’s say Bob does get convicted and goes to prison. He’ll know—or figure out—I was the one who tipped off the FBI. He’ll send someone after me.”
Before all of this, I never thought Bob could be vengeful or involved with illegal guns or any criminal activity. I can’t believe I was so wrong about him.
