Star Witness - By Mallory Kane Page 0,32

like pushing through a maze of heavy drapes while fording a stream, because the water rushing around their feet was at least three inches deep, making the roads slippery. And the pain in his ankle wasn’t helping. He stumbled and his fingers slipped off Dani’s wrist.

That quickly, she was gone.

Dani lost her footing when her hand slid out of Harte’s grip. Her knee hit the wet pavement, hard. With a small cry she tried to regain her footing. But the road was too slippery; the rain pressed on her shoulders like a heavy hand and she was quickly losing strength from fighting it.

Where was Harte? She squinted through the rain and held her breath, listening. The drumming roar of the rain was confusing and disorienting. It was impossible to tell where any sound came from.

Straining, she thought she heard Harte’s voice calling her name. But she couldn’t tell for sure. Heading in what she hoped was the right direction, she was tempted to call out, but what if it wasn’t him? Was she heading toward Harte or was she about to plow right into her pursuers?

She wiped her face on her sleeve, for all the good it did, and pushed her heavy, soaked hair back.

At that instant, the roar in her ears changed in pitch. She squinted, as if that would help her see. A dark rumble rose from beneath the rain’s din. The sound was not thunder, but mechanical, rhythmic. Like a car engine.

Frightened by the closeness of the sound, she felt the hairs on the nape of her neck prickling. She blinked, trying to see. Why didn’t Harte call out again? She couldn’t tell which way to run. The rumble grew louder, seeming to surround her.

Lightning flashed. She swallowed a shriek and barely stopped herself from diving to the ground, but from what little she could see around her, she was in the middle of a street, completely exposed. Thunder cracked and roared. She moaned in fear and frustration as she trudged on.

Pushing against the rising, punishing wind, she squinted, looking for anything she could use for shelter. A dark building loomed just ahead. Her pulse jumped in excitement.

She trudged toward it, hoping to slip into an alley or a corner where the car couldn’t go, praying that she could find Harte.

As she wiped rain off her nose, she thought she heard his voice again. But then a car door slammed right behind her. That sound was unmistakable—and way too close. Terror crawled up her spine and twisted her insides. She had to run. Lowering her head, she pressed forward, her legs beginning to ache with the effort of pushing against the wind and rain. She prayed she was going in the right direction.

The rain, the lightning and her imagination were distorting everything—what she saw, what she heard. She squinted against the gray rain. She could no longer see the building she’d been headed for.

Her toe struck something and sent her sprawling. Her hands took the brunt of the fall, sliding and scraping across rough wet concrete, and her shin banged painfully against a hard edge. She bit her cheek to keep from crying out.

She’d tripped over a curb. Behind her, heavy footsteps reverberated across the ground. She didn’t dare turn around to see, but she knew from the sound that they were almost on top of her. With a great deal of effort, she managed to get her feet under her and gain some traction. Just as she straightened, a bright flash of lightning lit the street. This time she couldn’t resist. She turned to look.

A large dark form barreled toward her, too big and broad to be Harte. In the same second, she heard Harte’s voice clearly.

“Dani!”

But it was impossible to pinpoint where it had come from. Directly in front of her? Ahead and to the left? She heard the man chasing her and wondered if she had time to dig her gun out of her purse. But he was too close. So close she could see color beginning to seep through the gray. The dark blob turned to a dull tan, and as he lumbered toward her she realized that it was a raincoat with the collar turned up. Although she’d already figured out that it wasn’t Harte, still her throat seized, cutting off her breath.

She tried to run and almost fell again when she put her weight on her knee. “Harte! Here! They’re after me!” she screamed. She didn’t care if the man in