Option to Kill (Nathan McBride 3) Read Online Free PDF Page B

deeply religious man, but offered a silent thank-you for the fortunate outcome just the same.
    Something didn’t track, though. That sedan should’ve been miles away by now. Assuming the kidnapper could get his wounded comrades into the sedan in about a minute, that left plenty of time to leave the area. Why had Lauren’s kidnapper been driving along Friars Road right then? Maybe he’d stayed in the area hoping to gun them down like he’d just attempted to. But with a banged-up car, a gunshot to his leg, and two wounded in the backseat, why risk cruising the area? The guy should’ve been concerned about bleeding to death, never mind the danger of being seen by police. Unless he was police. Lauren said they had badges. Would any law enforcement officer — federal or otherwise — execute a drive-by shooting? It seemed outrageous unless they were dirty, which might explain a lot. But if they weren’t cops, and weren’t dirty, what was so important? If Lauren was a protected witness and her kidnapper wanted her eliminated, why leave her alive at all? Why didn’t he just kill her and stuff her body into the back of the SUV for disposal?
    Her kidnapper obviously wanted her alive, and Nathan didn’t like the potential reasons why. She said he’d looked at her in a bad way. Anger flared at the thought of this little girl being brutalized by the creep. Maybe Lauren had information and her kidnapper planned to wring it out of her and pleasure himself in the process? Maybe they intended to use her as leverage to keep someone silent, or the reverse — to make someone talk. Whatever the case, he intended to find out.
    For now, they needed to merge with the mall’s patrons. They were just another father-daughter combo out for a little shopping. Fashion Valley Mall had a two-story, open-air design. Retail stores occupied a central walkway with smaller branches connecting to it. It shouldn’t be difficult to disappear in there.
    Nathan swept the immediate area for security guards and didn’t see any, but that could change. The unmistakable clatter of automatic-weapon fire would draw anyone with military, police, or security guard training over here to investigate. Nathan didn’t intend to be around when they arrived. As far as the authorities were concerned, he was a wanted man. If anyone had witnessed the first collision at Ulric, they would’ve reported seeing a tall man purposely sideswipe another vehicle, shoot two men in the street, grab a little girl, shoot the driver of the wrecked vehicle, and then flee the scene on foot. Quite a nasty little cocktail he’d created for himself tonight. Pour in a shot of felony hit-and-run, add some attempted murder, and top it off with a twist of kidnapping.
    A perfect time to enter the controlled environment of Nordstrom.
    “We’re going in here.”
    “What’re we doing?” Lauren whispered as they walked in.
    “We need to change our appearance. You know where to go?”
    “Well, yeah.”
    “We also need to work on our communication skills.”
    She rolled her eyes. “Yes, I know where to go.”
    He gestured with his arm. “Be my guest.”
    This place assaulted the senses: glass and glitter were everywhere. He followed Lauren onto an escalator located in the middle of the store. At the top landing, they made a U-turn, proceeded to the opposite side, and ascended another escalator.
    “What can I get?”
    “Anything you want.”
    “This isn’t a discount store.”
    “Don’t worry about that, just pick something different from what you’re wearing.”
    “Are you rich?”
    “Rich is a relative term.”
    “My stepdad was rich. He drove a Porsche. I think it cost like a hundred thousand dollars.”
    “What did he do?”
    “You mean like work? He made furniture.”
    “What kind of furniture?”
    “Mostly patio stuff.”
    “He must’ve made a boatload of furniture to be driving around in a Porsche.”
    “He owned two factories.”
    They entered the girls’