Debby Giusti - Plain Danger

Leaving the office, she hurried to her car and clicked the remote opener. Before she reached for the door handle, someone called her name. Turning, she spied Tyler Zimmerman climbing from a car parked on the opposite side of the lot.

In the light of day, he looked even taller and more muscular. Maybe it was the navy slacks and tweed sports coat he wore. For a moment she wondered why he wasn’t in military uniform before recalling that CID agents wore civilian attire when working on a case. She’d stumbled upon the information while researching a speech for Senator Kingsley. Something about not wanting rank to interfere with their investigation.

“I didn’t expect to see you here,” she said in greeting.

He smiled as he neared. “I wanted to talk to Mr. Gates.”

“You need a lawyer?”

His eyes twinkled, making him appear even more handsome.

“I want to talk to Mr. Gates about your father’s rental property,” he explained. “And see if he can provide information about your dad’s relationship with Corporal Fellows.”

When she didn’t respond, he added, “I’m just gathering information, Ms. York.”

“Carrie, please.”

He smiled again.

Her heart skittered in her chest, making her feel like an adolescent schoolgirl. Too young and too foolish. Needing to shield herself from his charm, she clutched the manila envelope close as if it could offer protection.

He cocked his head. “What are you up to today?”

She tried to sound nonchalant. “In search of a grocery store.”

“There’s one on the way out of town. Turn left at Harvest Road. The supermarket’s two blocks down on the left.”

“Thanks.” She opened her car door and slipped behind the wheel. “Good seeing you, Tyler.”

Leaving the lot, she glanced back as the special agent opened the door to Gates Law Firm and stepped inside. Rounding the corner, she passed an Amish teenager who watched her turn right. Seeing the special agent had put her on edge. The pensive stare of the Amish boy added to her unease.

After a quick stop at the grocery store, she drove out of town, heading back to her father’s house. Even the pretty countryside couldn’t lessen her anxiety. In the distance, dark clouds filled the sky. Her heart felt as heavy as the thick cloud cover.

If only she could go back to the stories her mother had told her about the handsome army man who had swept her mother off her feet. They’d been young and in love and...well, things happened, including babies, or so she had explained when Carrie was old enough to learn the truth.

Only part of it had been a lie.

Her father hadn’t died in a covert black ops mission as her mother had led her to believe. He wasn’t part of the military’s elite Delta Force, and the army hadn’t covered up his death and withheld information from the grieving girlfriend who was pregnant with his child.

Now Carrie knew the truth, but counter to what scripture said, it hadn’t set her free. Instead she felt tied in knots and suddenly connected to a man and a past she didn’t understand, which only confirmed her upset with God. Why would He turn His back on a woman who always longed for a father’s love? Evidently she and her problems didn’t carry weight.

The special agent only confused her more. He’d been civil enough today, and his smile had seemed sincere, yet she had to be careful and cautious, especially after his antagonistic comments last night.

Carrie glanced again at the sky and turned on the windshield wipers as the first drops of rain began to fall. A road sign warned of a sharp curve ahead. She lifted her foot from the accelerator and placed both hands on the wheel as the car entered the turn.

A bolt of lightning cut through the dark clouds, followed by a clash of thunder that made her flinch. The tires lost traction for a heartbeat on the slick roadway. She turned the wheel to the right and tapped the brake, relieved when the car responded.

Coming around the curve, she glanced ahead and gasped. A semi-trailer was bearing down on her, going much too fast. Heart in her throat, she intensified her hold on the steering wheel, feeling the pull as the truck flew past with less than an inch to spare.

Too close.

Clunk-clunk-clunk.

Startled by the sound, she gripped the wheel even more tightly. The car shimmied, then jolted as the rear left side dropped. She glanced back, seeing a tire roll across the roadway.

A grating sound. Metal dragging against pavement. Her heart raced. The car veered left, crossed the center line and crashed into the ditch that edged the roadway.

Rain pelted the windshield. She struggled to free herself and clawed at the door, unable to push it open.

“Help!” she cried, knowing no one would hear her.

“Carrie!”

She turned, seeing Tyler.

He grabbed the door handle and ripped it open. Reaching around her, he unbuckled her seat belt. “Are you all right?”

She nodded. He pulled her free.

Rain pummeled her face as she looked into eyes filled with concern.

“Where are you hurt?” He touched her arms, the back of her neck and head as if searching for an injury. “Talk to me.”

She swallowed down the fear and nodded. “I...I’m okay. How—”

“I was driving home and saw your car enter the turn. A semi passed. Then I saw you in the ditch. Did you get sideswiped?”

She shook her head. “The tire came off.”

“What?”

He turned to study her car, then glanced back to where the wheel lay on the edge of the roadway. Retrieving the tire, he pried off the hubcap. “Three of your lug nuts are missing. Have you gone to a mechanic recently?”

“I had my oil changed before I made the trip to Georgia.”

“This just happened. Since you last drove the car.”

“I...I don’t understand.”

“In town. While you were talking to Gates. Someone removed three of your lug nuts.”

Her ears roared, and she shivered in the chilly rain.

“Someone tampered with your wheel, Carrie,” he repeated, his voice deathly calm. “They wanted the tire to fall off.”

“But why?”

“Two reasons come to mind. Either to scare you—”

Her heart quickened.

“Or to do you harm.”

FOUR

The police sedan’s flashing lights drove home the seriousness of what had happened. Tyler glanced at his own car where Carrie sat, protected from the stiff breeze that had picked up once the rain eased.

“You must be working the twenty-four-hour shift,” Ty said when Officer Steve Inman climbed from his patrol car.

Ignoring the dampness, the officer smiled. “You and Ms. York are keeping me busy.”

Much to Tyler’s frustration, Carrie left the warmth of his car and hurried to join them at the side of the road.

“Ma’am.” Officer Inman nodded a greeting. “You mind telling me what happened?”

She quickly filled him in on losing control of the car and the missing lug nuts.

“Any chance your folks can dust the hubcap for prints?” Tyler asked. “You’ll find mine, for sure, and the last mechanic who checked the tire.”

“That won’t be a problem.” Inman pulled a notebook from his pocket. “So you think the lug nuts were purposely removed.”

Tyler nodded. “I’m guessing when Ms. York was in town.”

“I made two stops,” she added. “The Gates Law Firm and the supermarket on Harvest Road.”

Inman made note of the information. “I’ll see if we have video cameras in either area that might have picked up activity.”

“You’ll let me know what you uncover,” Carrie insisted.

“Yes, ma’am.” He turned to Tyler. “You were following Ms. York home?”

“I had talked briefly with George Gates and ended up not too far behind her car, which was fortunate.”