Michael Connelly - Void Moon

They were moving through the grove of pine trees, coming up to Mulholland. Cassie realized this might be her best chance. She took a deep breath and made her move.

"When you get up there you – "

She started raising her left arm as if to point out directions but then snapped her arm straight, knocking the gun away from her mid-section. She then grabbed the wheel with her left hand at the same time her right went down the front of her seat and engaged the air bag kill switch. She yanked the wheel hard right and the car lurched off the gravel road and directly into the trunk of a pine tree. It happened so fast Karch didn't have time to scream or fire his gun.

The driver-side air bag exploded from the steering wheel upon impact with the tree. It slammed Karch back against his headrest.

Cassie's shoulder harness stopped her forward trajectory before she hit the windshield. She was momentarily dazed but knew she had to move. She unfastened the seatbelt and frantically tried to open the door. It wouldn't budge. She didn't try it a second time. She hoisted herself up and jumped out of the car. Immediately, she started running downhill through the trees. She didn't look back at the Porsche.

Karch was more than momentarily dazed by the impact. The air bag hit him like a one-two punch to the chest and jaw. The tiny explosive used to propel it from the steering wheel also singed his face and neck. The impact knocked the gun out of his hand and onto one of the tiny rear seats. As the air bag began to deflate he came out of the daze and slapped it out of his face. He tried to jump up but his seatbelt held him secure. He quickly unfastened it and climbed up with his knees on the seat. He looked in all directions and then finally caught a glimpse of Cassie Black moving quickly away through the trees.

Instinctively he knew he would not catch her. She had a lead and she probably knew where she was going. It was her turf, not his.

"Fuck!"

He looked down into the rear of the car and found the Sig Sauer on the backseat. He reached down and grabbed it and then slipped back into his seat. He turned the key and tried to start the car again. Nothing happened. He turned the key back and forth several times but all he heard was a clicking sound.

"Fuck!"

He tried to open the door but it was jammed closed. The impact from the tree had apparently damaged the car body in such a way that the doors were sealed tight. He started climbing out of the seat again and as he did so he saw the little black wallet that Cassie Black had placed in the CD holder on the dashboard. He reached down for it and opened it. Behind a clear plastic window was a California driver's license. He studied the photo of Cassie Black and then looked at the address. She lived on Selma in Hollywood.

Karch looked off into the woods. Cassie Black was long gone now. Still, standing on the front seat of the Porsche he held the wallet up as though she were in there someplace looking back at him.

"Look what I found," he called out. "You didn't win yet, sweetheart!"

He took the silencer off the Sig and fired the gun once into the air, just to let her know he was still coming.

As Cassie sprinted carefully down the hill she began to hear music and used its source as a beacon. Eventually she came out of the woods at a parking lot she recognized as being behind the Hollywood Bowl. She guessed that the Philharmonic must be practicing. She followed the access road down to Highland and then walked down to Sunset.

It took her twenty minutes to get back to the dealership. As she approached she saw two black-and-white police cars parked in the entranceway to the parking lot. There was also an unmarked car with a bubble light on the dashboard parked up on the curb in front of the showroom. Behind it an ambulance was parked but its rear doors were closed.

There were many people standing out on the sidewalk, including most of the dealership's sales and service staff. Cassie walked up to a salesman named Billy Meehan, who was staring into the showroom with a stricken look on his face.

"Billy, what happened?"

He looked down at her and his eyes grew large.

"Oh, thank God! I thought you were in there with them. Where have you been?"

Cassie hesitated, then decided on a lie that was not technically a lie.

"I was taking a walk. In there with who?"

Meehan put his hands on her shoulders and leaned down into her face as though he was breaking very bad news to her. He was.

"There's been a robbery. Somebody put Ray and Connie down on the floor in her office and shot them both."

Cassie brought her hands up to her face and stifled a scream.

"They then stole the silver cab. We thought maybe, uh, you were a hostage or something. I'm glad you're okay."

Cassie just nodded her head. Her history had been a guarded secret with Ray Morales. She realized that if other employees had known about it, they probably would have immediately suggested her as a suspect to the police. Maybe that was what Karch had been counting on.

She felt weak all of a sudden and had to sit down. She practically slid down Meehan's body and sat down on the curb. She tried to understand what had happened and could only conclude that Karch must have shot Ray and Connie because he didn't have a fake driver's license with the name Lankford on it. He knew there was no way he could leave a record with his real name on it. Not with what he had planned to do with her.

"Cassie, you all right?"

"I just can't believe – are they dead?"

"Yeah, both of them. I looked in there before the police came. It wasn't a pretty picture."

Cassie leaned forward and vomited into the gutter. It was one deep heave that seemed to empty her totally. She wiped her mouth with her hand.

"Cassie!" Meehan cried as he watched. "I'll go get one of the paramedics."

"No, don't. I'm fine. I just… poor Ray. All he wanted to do was help."

"What do you mean?"

She realized she had made a mistake giving her thoughts voice.

"I mean he was just a nice guy. Connie, too. They would have given up the keys or the money. Why'd he have to shoot them?"

"I know. It makes no sense. By the way, did you see someone?"

"No, why?"

"I noticed you said 'he' when you were talking about it."

"No, I've been gone. I was just saying it was a he because I just think it probably was. I can't think straight right now."

"I know what you mean. I can't believe this is happening."

She sat on the curb with her face in her hands, the guilt of the world weighing down on her. The words I did this, I did this, I did this kept running through her head. She knew she had to get away from this place and never look back.

She found her strength and stood up, grabbing Meehan's arm one time to steady herself.

"Are you sure you're okay?" he asked.

"Yes, fine. I'm fine. Thanks, Billy."

"You should probably let the police know you're okay and you're here."

"Okay, I will. Actually, could you tell them for me? I'm not sure I want to go in there."

"Sure, Cassie, I'll go tell them right now."

Cassie waited a few moments after Meehan walked away, then walked down the sidewalk to the alley that ran behind the dealership. She followed the alley behind the service center to the other side of the dealership and walked into the sales lot. The silver Boxster that Ray had been letting her use was there. She always parked it in the sales lot in case a customer was interested.

The car was unlocked but her key was in her backpack in her office. She opened the door and pulled the front trunk release. She came around and opened the lid and took out the leather-bound owner's manual, then closed the trunk and got into the car. Behind one of the folds of the booklet was a plastic key for the eventual owner to put in a wallet as an emergency backup. She took it out, started the car and drove out of the lot into the alley. She kept a slow, deliberate speed until she had covered two blocks in the alley. She then cut up to Sunset and took a right, in a direction away from the dealership and toward the 101 Freeway.