“Aah,” muttered Jason as more blows rained down on his back and then he felt the man pulling hard on his jacket, which had risen up to his neck and was beginning to choke him. Desperately Jason pushed himself up trying to relieve the growing pressure on his windpipe and, as he did this, his jacket lifted away from Nicola’s face and suddenly she found herself staring into malevolent black eyes.
Screaming in shock she tried to push herself away but had nowhere to go. With a smirk of triumph the man punched past Jason’s body, striking her on the side of the face. Dazed, and with white stars filling her vision, she felt his hand grab her around the throat and squeeze tightly and suddenly she found herself choking for air. Desperately she tried to pull her arms out but could only get her left arm free and with this she tore at the iron grip of fingers wrapped around her throat, her eyes wide with terror.
Momentarily stunned, and with pain arcing across his face, the driver felt the car door pulled open as a hand grabbed his hair and pulled his head back. Instinctively, he reached for the gear stick, his hand just managing to slam the car into reverse and, as soon as he felt the gear engage he dumped the clutch and floored the accelerator. With tires screaming the car lurched backwards. Next to him the driver heard a dull thud followed by a grunt of pain and then the grip on his head was gone. At the same moment, behind him, Nicola felt her neck pulled violently forward and then the hand was gone and she slipped back heaving and coughing for breath. Stars began to fill her vision, her whole body tingling and trembling.
The car spun round as the driver pulled the handbrake and spun the wheel pushing Jason and Nicola against the car door and causing the driver’s door to swing shut. Now facing away from the square he pushed the car into first and dumped the accelerator again and the car roared out of the square and began to climb up the hill. All he could do as they pulled away was repeat over and over, “Bloody hell, Jason.”
Trembling with adrenaline Jason looked down, seeing Nicola curled up as much as she could into a ball, her moisture streaked face turned away, eyes staring into the shadows of the bottom of the car.
“You okay?” he called out but she did not respond. Her neck was throbbing and each breath burned her throat while shock numbed her for she had thought she was going to die.
“Just keep going,” said Jason turning his head awkwardly to look at the driver. “Wow, have you seen your face?”
“My face?” shouted back the driver. “My bloody face? What about my bloody car, you’re gonna owe me for life for this.” He paused as he jerked the steering wheel to the left, barely slowing as he took the corner. “Who the hell were those guys?”
“Hey, sorry TJ, I’ve never seen cops act like that before.”
“Yeah well, you’re on your own,” he replied braking hard as they approached a junction. Without stopping he swung the car out onto the road and floored the accelerator again. He reached up and began to feel his face, testing to see if his nose was broken.
“I have to go back,” whispered Nicola.
“You can’t be serious, TJ,” said Jason, not hearing her over the roaring engine and the slipstream blowing through the open window frame. “What am I supposed to do with her?”
TJ turned to him, his eyes glinting dangerously.
“You can do what the hell you want with her Jason, but I’m out of this. Jesus, they were crazed.”
“I have to go back,” said Nicola again a little louder. Paul was in the square. Like a lifeboat in a violent storm she clung onto this belief, this knowledge, and it was the only thing that was keeping her from breaking down. She had to find him. Despite everything that had happened he was the only thing left that she could believe in.
Hearing her now, Jason looked down sharply while TJ turned to him shaking his head and laughing.
“Man, that’s the funniest thing I’ve heard. We just rescued her from some total psychos intent in killing her and she wants to go back. Wow.” He turned back to watch the road still shaking his head in disbelief. “She’s nuts. You’re welcome to her.”