Chapter 7 - The Gravel Escape
The private transport men knocked harder, the heavy timber of the front door groaning under their fists. ""Mark Mercer! Open the door. We have authorization for transport under medical evaluation referral!"" Mark grabbed Lily’s hand and pulled her low beneath the shadow of the workbench. His heart slammed violently against his ribs. The driveway was blocked, cutting off his truck. His only other vehicle was his late father’s battered 1998 station wagon parked behind the tool shed, hidden from the street by an overgrown line of cedar trees.
He unlocked the rear pedestrian door of the garage, lifting Lily in his arms to sprint across the damp grass in the pouring rain. The cold wind bit at their faces, but Lily kept her face buried in his shoulder without making a single sound. Mark reached the wagon, throwing the duffel bag into the passenger footwell and strapping Lily into the back seat. ""Keep your head down, bug,"" he whispered urgently, slamming the door shut. He slid behind the steering wheel, turning the ignition key. The old engine cranked twice, sputtered, and then roared to life with a throaty rumble.
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Around the corner of the house, the two transport men heard the engine and broke into a dead run across the yard. ""Hey! Stop the vehicle!"" the taller man shouted, reaching into his coat for a walkie-talkie. Mark slammed the gear shift into reverse, spinning the wheels on the wet lawn and kicking up clumps of turf. The car shot backward down the narrow utility easement behind the fence line, bursting through the rotten wooden gate into the unpaved alleyway behind the property.
Mark threw the lever into drive, accelerating hard as the station wagon skidded onto the rain-slick asphalt of the secondary road. In the rearview mirror, he watched the men sprint back toward their black sedan. They were out of immediate danger, but Mark knew the clock was ticking down with brutal efficiency. By dawn, Ashley's high-priced attorney would file the emergency protective injunction, and the police would be looking for his car. He turned off his cellular data, threw his phone into the glove box, and drove toward the only person he could still trust.
