skin.
Then he grinned at Harper. “Still up for a spin on a bike?”
Chapter Six
“A re you crazy?” Harper whispered—too loudly, because a hundred feet away, one of the dogs swung its head around to look into the trees where they were hiding. She dropped her voice. “The cops are right there, Levi. We can’t steal a motorcycle out from under their noses!”
In the darkness behind the tree line, Harper could see only his silhouette, but she heard the smile in his voice even though she couldn’t make out his features.
She didn’t trust that smile.
“Hey, I’m not saying we go up and shake their hands,” he said softly back.
Harper wondered if it was possible to shout while whispering. “No, you’re just saying we should steal their bikes! Because that’s totally not going to attract anyone’s attention.”
She would have continued, but a car flew by them then and drowned her out, going north to be waved through the checkpoint and deeper into Pennsylvania. And when it was gone, so was Levi.
Harper stood frozen at the edge of the woods, watching Levi standing bare-assed naked at the edge of the highway not more than thirty yards away from the nearest cops. He grabbed the handlebars of the nearest bike and kicked the stand up, the moonlight catching the chrome and making it shine against the black fiberglass.
Breathing a c urse, Harper stumbled after him, her heart racing as she kept an eye the up the road. The floodlights there were aimed at the cars at the checkpoint. The cops milled in a bunch, their skin unnaturally pale in the harsh light. They were night-blind, Harper realized, even as shadows danced in front of her eyes when she looked away. They were close enough that she could hear their conversations, but there was no way that they’d be able to see beyond their circle of light.
This just might work.
“Don’t look at the light,” Levi whispered in her ear.
“Yeah, I figured that out the hard way,” she muttered back. She blinked a few times to clear the last of the dancing images, then surveyed the motorcycle that Levi had chosen.
And she almost laughed. The keys dangled from the ignition—all the better to set off in fast pursuit, she assumed. It worked just as well for them to make a fast getaway.
Levi was already turning the heavy dualie around. With the keys in the ignition, the steering lock wasn’t engaged. She put both hands on the back of the seat and pushed to help get it rolling.
There was some kind of commotion at the checkpoint. Her stomach dropping, Harper risked a look around to see the cops all swarming around a pickup truck. The driver was yelling, his words slurring together as the cops dragged his door open.
“I only a beer! Jus’ one beer. This is ’Merica, and it’s not a crime to have a beer!”
“Step out of the car now, sir.”
“You have to come out, sir .”
“It’ll be all right, sir. We just need to have a talk with you out here.”
“No! It’s the land of the freeeeee and the hoooome of the braaaaaave.” The drunk man was singing now.
Harper turned to put her back into pushing the motorcycle, hardly believing their luck.
“Just one moment, sir.” The cops were sounding impatient They were looking for Levi and Harper, but they couldn’t let a man that drunk pass.
“I have rights, you know. Free speak. Free speaking. Or something!”
“You can have all your rights, sir, but we’re going to help you out now, okay?”
“No!”
There was a lot of shouting then, and a noisy scuffle. And suddenly, Levi swore.
“Hold the bike,” he said, and Harper barely had time to shift her grip to the side of the seat before he let go of the motorcycle, letting the weight lean on her.
She watched Levi as he dropped back toward the cops—and her heart almost stopped.
Coming up the road, its head down and swinging side to side, was one of the cops’ German shepherds, its lead dropped in the fracas with the drunk.
And freed of its
Then he grinned at Harper. “Still up for a spin on a bike?”
Chapter Six
“A re you crazy?” Harper whispered—too loudly, because a hundred feet away, one of the dogs swung its head around to look into the trees where they were hiding. She dropped her voice. “The cops are right there, Levi. We can’t steal a motorcycle out from under their noses!”
In the darkness behind the tree line, Harper could see only his silhouette, but she heard the smile in his voice even though she couldn’t make out his features.
She didn’t trust that smile.
“Hey, I’m not saying we go up and shake their hands,” he said softly back.
Harper wondered if it was possible to shout while whispering. “No, you’re just saying we should steal their bikes! Because that’s totally not going to attract anyone’s attention.”
She would have continued, but a car flew by them then and drowned her out, going north to be waved through the checkpoint and deeper into Pennsylvania. And when it was gone, so was Levi.
Harper stood frozen at the edge of the woods, watching Levi standing bare-assed naked at the edge of the highway not more than thirty yards away from the nearest cops. He grabbed the handlebars of the nearest bike and kicked the stand up, the moonlight catching the chrome and making it shine against the black fiberglass.
Breathing a c urse, Harper stumbled after him, her heart racing as she kept an eye the up the road. The floodlights there were aimed at the cars at the checkpoint. The cops milled in a bunch, their skin unnaturally pale in the harsh light. They were night-blind, Harper realized, even as shadows danced in front of her eyes when she looked away. They were close enough that she could hear their conversations, but there was no way that they’d be able to see beyond their circle of light.
This just might work.
“Don’t look at the light,” Levi whispered in her ear.
“Yeah, I figured that out the hard way,” she muttered back. She blinked a few times to clear the last of the dancing images, then surveyed the motorcycle that Levi had chosen.
And she almost laughed. The keys dangled from the ignition—all the better to set off in fast pursuit, she assumed. It worked just as well for them to make a fast getaway.
Levi was already turning the heavy dualie around. With the keys in the ignition, the steering lock wasn’t engaged. She put both hands on the back of the seat and pushed to help get it rolling.
There was some kind of commotion at the checkpoint. Her stomach dropping, Harper risked a look around to see the cops all swarming around a pickup truck. The driver was yelling, his words slurring together as the cops dragged his door open.
“I only a beer! Jus’ one beer. This is ’Merica, and it’s not a crime to have a beer!”
“Step out of the car now, sir.”
“You have to come out, sir .”
“It’ll be all right, sir. We just need to have a talk with you out here.”
“No! It’s the land of the freeeeee and the hoooome of the braaaaaave.” The drunk man was singing now.
Harper turned to put her back into pushing the motorcycle, hardly believing their luck.
“Just one moment, sir.” The cops were sounding impatient They were looking for Levi and Harper, but they couldn’t let a man that drunk pass.
“I have rights, you know. Free speak. Free speaking. Or something!”
“You can have all your rights, sir, but we’re going to help you out now, okay?”
“No!”
There was a lot of shouting then, and a noisy scuffle. And suddenly, Levi swore.
“Hold the bike,” he said, and Harper barely had time to shift her grip to the side of the seat before he let go of the motorcycle, letting the weight lean on her.
She watched Levi as he dropped back toward the cops—and her heart almost stopped.
Coming up the road, its head down and swinging side to side, was one of the cops’ German shepherds, its lead dropped in the fracas with the drunk.
And freed of its
Similar Books
