ONE-KNIGHT STAND by Julie Moffett

Author:Julie Moffett
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: True Airspeed Press
Published: 2021-01-27T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Four

ANGEL SINCLAIR

I struggled to no avail. My assailant stood behind me, just out of reach, and had an iron grip around my neck. I dug my nails into the arms until the pressure around my neck eased.

I stumbled away, coughing. Turning around, I cautiously eyed the dark shadow who’d held me.

“Angel?”

“Who…are you?” I croaked.

The figure moved closer. “Oh my God. It’s you. I’m so sorry. Are you okay?”

Air flooded back into my lungs. “Dad?” So many emotions raced through me that I couldn’t think. Exhilaration, relief, fear, anger, confusion, and hurt. All rolled into one huge ball stuffed into my throat and gut. I needed a minute to process what had just happened and calm the rapid beat of my heart.

He took a tentative step toward me. “Did I hurt you? I thought it was a trap.”

“I’m fine,” I managed to say. “No problem.”

I’d imagined meeting my dad in a million different ways, and not a single one of them had been this way. Even though I’d actually spoken to him when I’d first encountered him in the café near UTOP, I hadn’t known he was my dad then. Now I knew, but nothing was going as expected.

That summed up my life in a nutshell.

“Come on,” he said, gently taking my arm and leading me back toward the boxcar. “We need to talk. I didn’t see anyone following you, but I heard someone shouting. Someone you arrived with. A friend, I presume.”

“That’s Wally. He’s with me. We had a flat tire. I thought I’d missed you.”

“I was just leaving,” he admitted. “I knew you would figure out the riddle, Angel. I was only worried you’d been followed or had abandoned the meeting because it wasn’t safe. Then I heard someone shouting and suspected I’d been made.”

“No one followed us,” I assured him.

When we got closer to the boxcar, Wally spotted us and ran toward us. “Angel, what happened? Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. Wally, this is my dad.”

“Oh, thank goodness you’re here, sir.” Wally held out a hand and they shook. “We were afraid we’d missed you. Unexpected flat tire.”

“So I’ve heard. I’m finally pleased to properly make your acquaintance.”

“You’ve heard of me?” He chuckled at himself. “Well, of course you have.”

My dad smiled. “I’ve actually admired some of your handiwork. You have quite a talent behind the keyboard.”

“Whoa. Did you hear that, Angel?” Wally said, turning toward me. “My reputation at the computer precedes me. Just so you know, sir, I do have talents that stretch beyond the keyboard. For example, I did accept the most dangerous part of this mission—getting Angel here.”

“Indeed. Thank you for watching out for my daughter.”

“You’re welcome, although I’m sorry about the flat tire. And, if I’m honest, I don’t think I could have changed the tire without her.”

“Wally has been great, and all my UTOP teammates helped get me here,” I said.

“I’m so thankful you have them,” my dad said. “Now, let’s go to the boxcar and get out of the open.”

We climbed up the stairs and went inside.

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