Star Witness - By Mallory Kane Page 0,34

tossing it over a nearby parking meter, Harte pointed toward a narrow alleyway in front of them and yelled in her ear, “Through there!” Grabbing her arm, he tightened his grip. He wasn’t going to lose her again.

Dani half ran, half stumbled alongside Harte. The only thing that kept her from collapsing onto the drenched pavement was the painful grasp of his hand on her arm—the same arm the thug had bruised when he’d grabbed her.

She could hear the pop-pop-pop of gunfire behind them, and her shoulders tightened reflexively. Then she heard the deep revving of a car engine. Harte had stunned her attacker enough to make him let go of her, but they were in their car now, and it would be no time until they caught up with them again. She could barely catch her breath in the rain, and in only her white tank top, the chill had long since seeped under her skin. She gritted her teeth and concentrated on staying on her feet. As Harte led her into the dark recesses of the alley, she glanced around in trepidation. She hoped he knew where he was going.

The overhanging roofs gave a bit of protection from the rain. Once they were safely underneath, Harte slowed to a walk, then to a stop.

Dani wiped her face and squeezed water out of her hair as she gulped in huge lungfuls of air. All at once, a massive shudder shook her, a delayed reaction to the brutish thug’s hand on her. Between that and the cold, she couldn’t stop shaking.

“Harte, are you shot?” she panted. She didn’t see any blood, but he hadn’t answered her when she’d asked before.

Beside her, Harte leaned against the building’s wall. He shook his head, breathing hard. After a few seconds, he straightened and looked toward the entrance of the alley, listening. “Come on,” he said. “We’ve got to keep going.”

“Where?” she asked as he grabbed her hand.

A bit of brightness behind them rose through the gray like a hazy sunrise. “It’s the car,” he said. “Move!”

But as he moved into the alley, he saw that it was a dead end. A high wooden fence stretched between the two buildings. They were trapped. Twisting back, Harte could see the headlights. They’d blocked the entrance of the alley. He saw two men climbing out, then a third.

Without waiting to see if a fourth man got out, Harte pushed Dani behind him so his body would shield her as he desperately searched for an escape. Even if they could climb the fence, they’d be sitting ducks. Then he saw a door set into a side wall. “This way,” he said. “Stay behind me.”

He rattled the doorknob, then stepped back and rammed the door with his shoulder. Nothing happened. He took two steps back, prepared to ram the door again, but Dani grabbed his arm.

“Get out of the way! I’ve got this!” Dani cried. She grabbed the lock-pick set from her purse and unsnapped the cover. Her hands were soaking wet, just like the rest of her, and shaking with cold and fear, but she managed to pick up the right tool. She shouldered her way in front of Harte, bent over the doorknob and after a shaky false start, got the pick inserted into the lock.

Harte grabbed her upper arm. “Dani, what are you doing? They’re coming. Get behind me.”

Gritting her teeth, she worked the pick.

“Dani!”

“Wait,” she snapped as the tumblers slid. “The door’s open. Let’s go.” She opened the door and grabbed his arm, pulling him inside. She kept her grip on the knob as Harte stumbled in behind her, then slammed the door shut and turned the dead bolt. They were inside and, at least for the moment, safe from the faceless men pursuing them. Collapsing back against Harte, her eyes closed, she gasped for breath. She’d done it. She’d picked the lock. She couldn’t count the number of times she’d picked all the locks in her granddad’s house, learning the feel of the tools and the faint differences between tumblers sliding apart and slipping back together. But she’d never dreamed she’d actually use her knowledge in a life-and-death situation for real.

Her pulse was racing so fast that it echoed in her ears. Harte wrapped his arms around her shoulders from behind, pulling her closer against him. His chest rose and fell against her back. His breath was cool across her wet forehead. With a sigh, she let herself relax against his long, lean