She narrowed her eyes. Whered you get this?
He smiled. Im very good at blackjack.
Melissa followed him to the door. Be careful, okay?
I will. You do the same. He moved the Do Not Disturb sign around to the outside knob of her door. Did you bring food like I suggested?
Yes.
Good. That way you dont have to let room service or anyone else in. Just stay here overnight and leave as soon as you can in the morning, and you should be fine. He didnt think Clint Holbrook would connect Melissa to him-hed had little to no contact with her in years-but he didnt like taking any more chances than necessary. Ill be in touch as soon as I can.
He closed her door behind him and headed for the stairs, not willing to risk the elevator a second time. The fewer people who saw him, the better. Just in case.
Reno wasnt the sort of town that slept, and there were still people out and about as he crossed to where Jane sat waiting. She lowered the window and looked up at him with troubled eyes. How did it go with your stepmother?
She wont call the police, he said, hoping he was right. You ready to go?
She nodded. Ill go first. You follow.
See you at the motel. He tapped the door and gave her what he hoped was a reassuring smile. But the closer they came to leaving Reno, the more he started to wonder if they were going to get out of town alive.
He checked his watch. Twelve-fifteen, he noted with growing unease. Hed lingered too long getting Melissa settled in her room. Clint Holbrook could be in Reno already. Maybe hed already picked up their scent and was closing in.
Ahead of him, Jane pulled out of the motel parking lot and onto the service road. He started the Chevy and pulled out behind her, trying hard not to think of all the things that could have gone wrong with their plan.
JANE CHECKED her rearview mirror. Joe had gotten stopped by a traffic light a couple of blocks back, and though shed considered pulling off the street to wait for him, she talked herself out of it. She was only a block from the Admiral Arms Motel. She drove on, pulling up next to the office and parking in the side lot where Ashlee had told her to park. She cut the engine and slouched low in the drivers seat, keeping an eye on her side mirror for signs of Joes arrival.
She scooted lower in the seat as car lights swung toward her parking spot. When they passed, she let herself sit up until she could just peer over the dashboard.
A dark-colored sedan pulled up next to the office and parked in one of the three short-term parking slots at the front of the building. From where Jane sat, she could see only the back end of the car. The car shimmied a little-the driver getting out, Jane thought. She released her breath, chiding herself for being such a scaredy-cat. It was a motel. People checked in and out all the time.
She pulled her jacket more tightly around her, wishing Joe would hurry up and get there. How long could that traffic light have lasted?
Movement to her left caught her attention. Jane slouched lower again, trying to stay out of sight. At first, she could make out only two silhouettes. Both appeared to be male.
Then the taller man stepped into the glow of one of the floodlights positioned at either corner of the motel office, his features now discernible. Janes heart skipped a beat.
It was Clint Holbrook.
Chapter Fourteen
Jane peered over the back of the seat, doing her best to stay out of sight while she watched Clint Holbrook and a man who was clearly a motel employee climb the stairs to the second floor of the Admiral Arms Motel. Of course they were heading directly for the motel room that she and Joe had occupied until just a few hours ago.
They disappeared inside, and Jane turned around, releasing a quick sigh of relief as she reached for her cell phone. She punched a button and the display panel came up, complete with a low battery message. Holding her breath, she tried to call Joes number.
The cell phone did nothing but beep a warning.
Punching the off button, she jammed the cell phone in her pocket and looked back at the motel. A light shone in the window of unit 214, so they were still inside.
Time to find a better place to hide while she could.
She scanned the parking lot for a hiding place that would still give her a decent view of Clints car. There. The two metal trash bins at the far end of the lot would work. There was just enough space to squeeze between them, and the shadows would hide her from view without anything blocking her view of Clints car.
She scrambled over the stick-shift console and slid out the passenger door as quickly as she could, pausing only to push the keys under the front passenger seat as Ashlee had asked her to do, and raced toward the trash bins. Within a few feet of them, the sickly sweet odor of rotting food assaulted her nose and made her eyes water, but she pushed on, sliding between the bins and ducking into the shadows. She could still see the back end of the sedan Clint had been driving.
She forced her frantic breathing to calm, pushing back a rising tide of anxiety, but it was no use. Panic had begun to set in, making her whole body shake. Any minute now, Joe would drive up in the rental car, unaware he was heading straight into a potential ambush.
And she had no way to warn him.
AS JOE PULLED UP at the stoplight at the end of the block, he glanced up at the Admiral Arms Motel in time to see Clint Holbrook step up to the railing.
Adrenaline shot through him, taking his breath for a moment. He scanned the scene for any sign of Jane. He spotted the Honda parked in the employee lot by the office, but it was too dark to see if anyone was inside.
Did Jane even realize Clint Holbrook was there?
The light changed, and Joe drove past the motel, his heart racing. He kept his speed normal, careful not to slow down as he took a closer look at the Honda. If Jane was inside, she was down on the floorboard hiding, which suggested she might have spotted Clint.
If she was even still in the car.
He turned into the parking lot of a coffee shop about a block up the street from the motel and parked between a couple of SUVs. The lights inside the shop doubtless made mirrors of the plate-glass windows, making it easy to escape the notice of the scattering of patrons inside as he made his way toward the back of the parking lot, where a narrow alley stretched for a couple of blocks to allow access for waste-disposal trucks to empty the large trash bins behind the establishments.
He stuck to the shadows, moving stealthily up the alley toward the Admiral Arms Motel. He paused for a moment at the edge of the motel grounds, peering around the corner of the redwood fence separating the motels parking lot from the narrow empty lot next door.
He spotted Clint Holbrook and a shorter man walking across the front parking lot toward the detached building housing the front office. They disappeared from sight around the front of that building.
Joe made a dash for the two tall trash bins sitting at the edge of the alley and started to squeeze between them when he realized he was not alone. Someone was already crouched low in the space. He skidded to a stop, cursing silently as his boots made a loud crunching sound on the loose gravel of the alley.
The crouched figure moved, launching herself forward. Joe caught a flash of red hair in a narrow beam of light shining between the bins.
Jane! he whispered.
The figure froze. Joe? she whispered.
Im right here.
She scooted backward toward him, unable to turn in the narrow space between the bins. He pulled her to him when she was in reach, wrapping his arms around her from behind and pressing his face into her hair. Despite the foul odors coming from the trash bins, she still smelled good, soap-and-water fresh with an underlying essence he would recognize anywhere.
Clints here, she whispered, rubbing her cheek against his.
I know. I saw him.
She trembled wildly, her teeth making a faint rattling sound. He tightened his hold on her and peered through the narrow space between the bins. Which car is his?
The black sedan parked closest to the edge of the building. Thats its rear end there by the corner.
He pressed his lips to the back of her head and watched the black sedan for any sign of movement. A few long minutes later, the taillights lit up and the car began to back out of the parking lot. As the headlights swung toward the trash bins, Joe pulled Jane around, pressing his back against the tall metal trash container.
He pressed his lips to the back of her head and watched the black sedan for any sign of movement. A few long minutes later, the taillights lit up and the car began to back out of the parking lot. As the headlights swung toward the trash bins, Joe pulled Jane around, pressing his back against the tall metal trash container.
He waited a few seconds and peeked through the space again. He spotted the sedan turning left into light traffic. He waited until it disappeared from sight before he released Jane, turning her to face him.
You all right?
I am now, she responded breathlessly before throwing herself into his arms.
He held her tightly for a moment before gently setting her away from him. Lets go. I want to get to Twin Falls by daylight.
She frowned. Twin Falls, Idaho? I thought we were heading to Wyoming.
I dont want to take the most direct route, in case anybodys figured out where were headed. He threaded his fingers through hers and led her down the alley toward the coffee shop where hed left the Chevrolet.
SO, TELL ME about Rita, Jane said as they crossed into Wyoming just after sundown the next day.
Joe glanced at her briefly before returning his gaze to the highway. Shed been napping in the passenger seat since Pocatello, but he should have known he wouldnt make it back to Canyon Creek without the subject of Rita coming up again. Shed been too hyped about the close call with Clint Holbrook on the long overnight drive to Twin Falls, and by the time they found a dingy motel where they could rest a bit before continuing on to Wyoming, her adrenaline rush was long gone. Shed been asleep before she hit the covers of the sagging queen-size bed in their motel room.
That bad? she murmured, shifting in the passenger seat to look at him.
Rita was-briefly-my wife.