Toe the Line: Jake Tanner #1 by Probyn Jack

Author:Probyn, Jack
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Cliff Edge Press
Published: 2023-02-05T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 36

SHOULDER

Mercifully, the traffic had eased, and they were finally able to open up the full power of the Audi engine as they reached the end of the A3 and merged onto the A3(M). The call with the woman named Pemberton had been a success, but he’d found it difficult to relax in the back seat. Time was running out, and they were still over twenty miles out from Portsmouth. And that was twenty miles of potential error and mistake. Nothing could go wrong. And that allowed the paranoia in his mind to wander and fester like an infection in an open wound.

They were driving in the fast lane, Luke cradling the speedometer a few miles per hour over seventy. Discretion and remaining as under the radar as possible was paramount. So far, Luke had impressed Danny. The youngest brother had shown his ability in keeping to the stringent restrictions of the Highway Code. But it was bittersweet, because it meant that Freddy had taught him something worthwhile.

In a world where they didn’t have a dad, Freddy was the closest thing to a figure that Luke could look up to. There were times when Luke and Freddy would venture to the shops together, chill together in the living room, play video games and smoke cigarettes while Danny worked tirelessly in a supermarket to put food on the table. It was unfair, and a piece of Danny had died every time he’d realised how close they were – every time he’d come home and found Freddy poorly helping Luke with some of his homework or teaching him how to roll his own joints. It was more than just a slap in the face; it was a punch in the stomach, a kick in the balls and a knife in the back. But without Freddy, The Crimsons wouldn’t have existed, which was something he was painfully aware of.

‘Uh-oh,’ Luke said, his eyes jumping up and down in the rearview mirror.

‘What is it?’ Danny didn’t like the sound of that. Not good. Not good. He tilted forward and clung to Luke’s headrest. At first he thought it was an engine issue, a puncture, or maybe they’d bizarrely run out of petrol. But then, when the sirens sounded behind him, everything seemed to slow down. Feeling like he was moving in slow motion, Danny twisted in his seat and peered out of the back window.

Over a hundred yards behind them, gaining rapidly in the right-hand line, blue and white lights flashing vehemently, was a police car.

‘Shit!’ Danny spun round and shifted himself into the middle of the back seat. Luke’s eyes were moving left and right furiously, his chest heaving and his knuckles as pale as the rest of him. ‘Just keep it steady, all right. Don’t do anything stupid. Pull into the middle lane and let them pass. We don’t know whether they’re looking for us or whether it’s—’

Luke swerved the Audi into the middle lane of traffic with a movement so drastic Danny was propelled into the door and smashed his head against the window.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.