Part 41 (1/2)
”It'll explode.”
Gabe felt anger and futility well inside him. ”And Kanan won't dispose of it?”
”By now he doesn't even remember that he has it. He can't possibly know it's a ticking bomb.”
They jumped into the 4Runner and Gabe peeled out.
”Does Kanan know who's behind this whole thing?” Gabe said.
”No.”
”Jo said somebody named Riva Calder was in the Tahoe.”
”Calder? She's an exec at Chira-Sayf.” Diaz braced himself against the door. ”She arranged for Misty and Seth to get s.n.a.t.c.hed?”
”Looks like it.”
”She knows them. She was Misty's sorority sister. This is bad, man. She spooks Ian.”
”How?”
”She has a major thing for him. Always has.”
Gabe tossed him a look, disbelieving. ”That's crazy-making trouble for Kanan and for his wife.”
”You ain't kidding.”
Racing down Palm Drive, Gabe steered with one hand and dialed 911 with the other.
”Calder will probably have Ian's cell phone number,” Diaz said.
”So when his phone goes live at ten P.M., she'll contact him and pretend to play innocent.”
He swept out from under the trees, turned onto Campus Drive, and sped in the direction of the football stadium. The stadium's field lights bleached the night above them, turning the trees black and white.
”Nine-one-one emergency,” said the dispatcher.
”A woman's been abducted. Men hauled her into a Chevy Tahoe and took off.” He gave the dispatcher a fast rundown of what was going on and turned to Diaz. ”What's your truck's license number?”
Diaz held silent.
”What is it?” Gabe said.
”It's not exactly loaded with Girl Scout cookies, you dig?”
Gabe's anger heated. ”It's a rolling bomb. What's the plate number?”
”s.h.i.+t.” Shoulders slumping, Diaz rattled it off.
Gabe repeated it to the dispatcher. ”And send police and fire units to Stow Lake in Golden Gate Park. Man named Alec Shepard's in trouble near the bridge.”
He hung up, ran the stop sign, turned left onto Galvez Street, fishtailed, and straightened out. He floored it toward the exit from campus.
”Kanan was messing around with the nano sample in the pickup, while you were with him?” Gabe said.
Diaz shot him a look. ”Why?”
Gabe exhaled.
He raced past huge stands of eucalyptus trees. The stadium loomed on the right, a hulking mother s.h.i.+p that filled the night with deathly white light. Several hundred yards ahead, at the intersection with El Camino Real, he saw the exit from campus. They heard a siren. In his rearview mirror Gabe saw flas.h.i.+ng lights.
”Don't stop,” Diaz said.
The cop's headlights inflated in the mirror. Behind them, another black-and-white zoomed into view and joined the pursuit.
”If you stop, it all goes to s.h.i.+t,” Diaz said. ”The thing is to get Misty and Seth back.”
”Without blowing anybody up.” Gabe looked at him. ”Or is that your plan?”
”n.o.body you should worry about.”
The sirens drew nearer. At the intersection of Galvez and El Camino, the light was green.
”The doc-you care about her?” Diaz said.
The flas.h.i.+ng lights grew brighter in the mirror.
”Like crazy,” Gabe said.
They raced toward the intersection. Gabe tightened his hands on the wheel. Then he stomped on the brake, pulled the handbrake, and spun the wheel hard over. The back end of the 4Runner squealed around in a half circle and lurched to a stop.
”h.e.l.l you doing?” Diaz said.
”Get out,” Gabe said.
Directly in front of him the police cars laid rubber, red and blue lights wheeling, and braked to a halt.
”They'll arrest you,” Diaz said.
”Playing Lone Ranger won't cut it here. We need a helo searching for Kanan. We need to get you to hazmat decontamination, because you may have been exposed to Slick.” He opened his door. ”And I need the whole state of California hunting for Jo.”
He climbed out with his hands locked behind his head and dropped to his knees in the road.
* 34 *