"He really does want to kill me."

"Not actually kill you," I said.

"Kill me."

I glanced in the rearview mirror. "You really think so?"

"You don't know what he's like. n.o.body does except me. He'sa"done lots of things that people don't know about."

"Like what?"

"I'd better not say."

"But serious things."

"Very serious things. The most serious things."

Most of the houses were dark. People huddled beneath their winter blankets in their winter beds. The snow kept falling. The only ones who'd be happy would be the kids. There likely wouldn't be school tomorrow, not if the snow kept up this way. There was no greater gift to a little kid than a snow day. A whole free day to sled and build snowmen and have s...o...b..ll fights.

"Should I take you home?"

"No. That's one of the places he'll be watching."

"Then where should we go?"

"I have a frienda"Tiffany Welles. She lives a couple of blocks from here. They've got an open garage in the back that they never use. We can pull in there for awhile."

The garage smelled of car oil and old rotting wood. I had to shut off the motor. With the fumes and all, it was too dangerous to leave running.

She climbed up into the front seat with me.

"You mind if I smoke?"

"Fine."

"You can share mine."

"No, thanks. I'd just embarra.s.s myself."

"How come?"

"In the Army I tried to smoke. You know, big tough guy. All I ever did was cough and get kind of queasy."

"You have to get past that."

I suppose it was kind of funny. I was willing to risk Myles' wrath by hiding her but I wasn't willing to share her cigarettes.

She smoked two cigarettes in a row. She was very nervous. We didn't talk much. Through a dusty garage window I watched the snow fall outside.

I could smell her perfume. It made me yearn for her, ache for her.

"You think you'd ever go out with me?" she said.

I looked at her.

"Are you kidding?"

"Huh-uh."

"Sure I'd go out with you."

"I'm going to break off with David. I really am."

She lay her head back against the seat and took another drag of her cigarette.

"I just don't know why you'd want to go out with somebody like me."

It was a pretty cheap ploy, getting her to tell me what a great and desirable guy I was.

a"Who wouldn't go out with you? she'd say. A strong, handsome, s.e.xy hunk like you? You're the quiet kind, Spence, the kind girls don't notice right away. But when they do notice you...

But she didn't say that.

"It was your hand."

"My hand?"

"When you touched my eye that night."

"Oh."

"n.o.body's ever touched me like that before."

I guess I didn't know what she was talking about.

"It was like for the first time in my life somebody was really touching me. Like they really understood me. Like you really understood me, Spence."

I just sat there with my hard-on and my heart scared of being broken and all these crazy dreams about the two of us together.

"You really think we'll go out?" I said.

She laughed softly. "Yes, I really do."

"G.o.d."

"I can't wait until David finally leaves me alone."

Then she kissed me.

It happened just that fast, and just that unexpected. She'd managed to put her cigarette out without my knowing it, and then she leaned over and took my face between her two hands, and then she kissed me, her face smelling of cologne and cold and utterly perfect high school flesh, and then she took my right hand and slid it inside her coat and covered one of her b.r.e.a.s.t.s with it, and I really thought I was going to lose it right then and there, I was so G.o.d d.a.m.ned happy and G.o.d d.a.m.ned excited I absolutely didn't know what to do with myself.

And then it was over, far far sooner than it should have been, and she said, "I better go home."

"Won't he be there?"

"Eventually, yeah. But I may as well get it over with."

"You said he'll try and kill you."

"If I can make it inside to my dad, I'll be fine. My dad doesn't want me to see him anymore, anyway."

She leaned back again. "G.o.d, I'm just so glad your car was at Pizza Hut when I was running away from him. I saw you riding around the other day and recognized it."

"You jumped out of his car?"

"Yes. And just started running. Then I saw your car."

I started the motor.

"I'm glad you saw my car, too," I said.

I stayed to the back streets, taking her home. She lived in the wealthy area of town. Her father ran the stock brokerage downtown. Even against the snowy night, her Tudor-style house looked imposing and snug.

I took the driveway right up to the front walk.

"I really appreciate this, Spence."

"My pleasure."

She reached over and set her hand on mine. I thought of a colt again, all small-boned and vulnerable.

"I can't wait to see you again," she said.

"My pleasure."

"Night."

"Night."

She leaned over and gave me a quick kiss on the cheek and then got out of the car.

I watched her let herself into the front door and disappear inside. A light went on, outlined by the mullioned window.

I backed out and got righted on the street and started driving home and that's when I saw the headlights behind me suddenly.

I recognized the dark blue Bronco right away. My old friend David Myles.

He didn't wait long.

He swept right up behind me and started banging into me hard enough to send me skidding down the street.

With all his power and traction, he didn't have any problem starting and stopping when he wanted to.

He controlled me perfectly, letting me stop skidding just long enough to regain control, and then crashing into me again.

A couple of times, I tried surprise turns, anything to get away from him, but they didn't work. He was quick enough to see what I was up to so he'd hit me on the edge of my rear b.u.mper just as I was going into the turn. Then he'd send me skidding again, fishtailing, even turning around completely a few times.

The funny thing was, although I was angry and scared, I also saw this as an admission on his part that he'd lost Cindy Brasher. Otherwise he wouldn't be doing this. And that gave me the flattered feeling again. I'd become one of those chosen. Cindy's kiss, and bringing my hand to her breast, had anointed me.

We went several more blocks this way, short dark side street blocks, with n.o.body to see us.

But then we reached Bush Avenue, which was the second busiest street in town. It was well-lighted and well-plowed.

Just as we reached the intersection, he slammed into me again, sending me spinning around completely.

I just had time to glimpse the same police car I had seen earlier tonight. The number was the same: three. I still couldn't see who was inside.

Then I was backtracking the route we'd just taken, back on the dark side streets, headed toward Cindy's house.

Apparently, Cindy's was where he wanted to go because he kept ramming me in that direction. Even when I'd spin out of control, he'd spin back around so that I was pointed in the direction of her house.

The siren started about a block before we reached Cindy's street. By now, my car wasn't running at all. It was propelled only by his car hurtling into mine.

One siren became two then three.

Myles gave it one last shot. He knocked my car up off the road and on to Cindy's front lawn and right into a snow-laden oak tree.

Lights were on in all the houses.

I saw Cindy and her parents step out on their front porch, Cindy in her street clothes, her parents in pajamas and robes.

I was just climbing out of my car when the door was ripped open and Myles reached in and grabbed me.

He yanked me out of the car, threw me up against the tree, and started hitting me with a tire iron. He got me two times on the side of the head before I was able to hit him in the stomach and get him to back off a little. I ducked the next three swings of the tire iron, landing a good solid punch to his jaw, and then another solid one to his left ear.

I was just getting ready to bring my steel-toed boot up to his crotch when he connected with the tire iron. This blow drove me to my knees. He swung again immediately but I was able to move under the tire iron by no more than an inch.

"That's enough, Myles. Hold it right there."

In my delirium and pain, I recognized the voice.

My old Conan buddy, Garrett.

Officer Garrett.

I was making noises that embarra.s.sed me, mewling sounds I guess. I heard Cindy's voice saying, "Is Spence all right? Is Spence all right?"

And I wanted to stop making the noisesa"the sounds that revealed me to be a cowarda"but I couldn't somehow.