Protected Secrets - Heather Woodhaven Mills & Boon Love Inspired Suspense

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of her wanted an excuse to ask how long Harvey Jeppsen had been his lawyer.

      The brake lights flashed on the car in front of her. Delaney stepped on her own brakes and nothing happened. She shoved harder and the pedal went down to the floor, but their speed remained the same.

      “What’s happening?”

      She couldn’t answer because she wasn’t sure herself, but the distance between the SUV and the car in front was rapidly decreasing. She slid into Neutral and pulled on the parking brake. The speed remained the same.

      She glanced in the side mirror and maneuvered into the small spot between two cars. The radio crackled with questions, but she ignored them because the wagon in front of her wasn’t going fast enough. She swerved onto the shoulder, almost clipping the car full of oblivious teenagers.

      “One more inch and we would’ve hit. Sign says shoulder closed. Why are you doing this? Is there someone after us?” Bruce checked the side mirror.

      She grabbed the radio with her right hand. “Brakes are out. Taking next exit.” She dropped the radio as she used both hands to take the ramp, hoping the sharp curve to the right would slow them down or at least offer an empty pasture. “I can’t talk now,” she told Bruce.

      The radio crackled. “Affirmative. We couldn’t make that exit in time. Will take the next one and join you. No suspicious activity?”

      “I think the brakes going out is suspicious enough,” Bruce muttered. He leaned as far forward as he could and looked out the window. “There is a road to the left that’s pretty unpopulated. Think you can make it?”

      “We don’t have much choice.”

      The grade sloped and the SUV’s speed increased. She pressed the brake hard out of habit. Her head lurched forward and backward as the SUV abruptly slowed. She pressed the brake pedal again to make sure it wasn’t a fluke. “The brakes are working again.”

      Bruce put his hand on the back of his neck. “Were you just not pressing hard enough?”

      She bit back a retort and turned on her left signal. “It’s safe to say that this SUV isn’t as reliable as we’d like.” They passed a gas station on the right. There was nothing but farmland on either side of the little-used highway. She tested the brakes again. Would the rest of the marshals think the whole event was the result of human error, as Bruce did? The vehicle jerked forward and a horrible grinding noise came from the hood. All the dials on the dashboard fell to zero as the motor went silent.

      “The engine died?” Bruce shook his head. “Unbelievable. This isn’t stick shift, is it? You didn’t—” The rest of his words died on his lips.

      Delaney followed his gaze, and her chest seized. A pickup truck full of masked men rounded the corner with guns pointed at their SUV.

      “Get down!” Bruce gave her shoulder a push. While the gesture was noble, she was supposed to be the one protecting him. She turned her head to see he’d followed his own advice as she readied her gun. Rapid pings hit the windshield, side doors and side mirrors.

      “You okay?” Bruce asked. He remained hunched over, his forehead touching the glove compartment.

      While the SUV was supposed to be bulletproof, she didn’t want to take chances. “Yes. Stay down.” The shots had stopped so she jumped out and took aim at the retreating vehicle, trying to read the license plate, but, of course, there was none. Not another vehicle could be seen for a mile in either direction. Where was her team? She kicked at a rock on the road and climbed back into the SUV.

      While Bruce’s face had lost its color, he didn’t look injured. His hand shook ever so slightly as he pointed to the GPS. The blue screen had a message in the middle. Final Warning. Open your mouth and your family dies.

       THREE

      Bruce placed a hand on either side of his face. “It’s been hacked.”

      She looked at him as if he’d lost his mind. “What are you talking about?”

      He blinked and tried to slow down the torrent of emotions and thoughts so he could communicate rationally. “This vehicle has been hacked. The brakes, the engine dying, the message on the GPS... Those things can be controlled remotely if someone knows our location. They were playing with us. My daughter—” He pulled in a shaky breath. They’d only been gone from the safe house for five minutes. If someone had been tracking them in the vehicle, then it was likely the hacker knew their point of origin.

      Her eyes widened. “The safe house. You’re saying the attackers know where it is.” She picked up the handset. “We’ve been compromised. I need a new vehicle, stat. Where are you guys?”

      The speakers crackled in response. “You’re not going to believe it. Our engines died the moment we got off the highway.”

      “Both of them?” Delaney took a deep breath while she checked all three mirrors. Bruce followed her gaze. So far the gunmen hadn’t returned. “They set us up.” Delaney pulled out her cell phone and dialed the police for backup. After the call was completed, she sat back, shaking her head. “I don’t understand how this could be happening.”

      “Newer cars have a few different ways hackers can access control. If this one has a tire sensor, that’s the simplest way to hack into the brakes and disable the engine.” He waved toward the hood of the car. Talking about practical matters wasn’t helping his heart rate. If he thought he could get back faster on his own, he’d try to run back to Winnie on foot. “I need to know Winnie is okay. I need to know now.”

      “There are two deputy marshals watching over her. I’m sure Winnie is safer than we are at the moment. It’s safer if we don’t make direct contact.” She clicked the radio. “I need a status report from Deputy Marshal Jackson. Use back channels.”

      They sat in tense silence for the longest thirty seconds of his life before the radio crackled. “No response as of yet,” the deputies from the other SUV answered. “Backup units on the way from Des Moines.”

      Bruce tightened his fists. “From Des Moines?” He couldn’t wait an hour to find out if his daughter was safe or in the hands of dangerous criminals.

      “Bruce, you’ve been great so far. Look at me.”

      Bruce swiveled and stared into Delaney’s eyes, searching for answers.

      She touched his arm. “We aren’t waiting around. The police will be here in one minute. Sometimes back channels take longer to get an answer. We can’t jump to conclusions.”

      Bruce exhaled, but his insides wouldn’t stop vibrating. Winnie was his all, his everything. She had stolen his heart from the moment he held her tiny form in his arms.

      As promised, a police cruiser pulled up, but Delaney wouldn’t let him step out of the SUV yet. She kept her hand on her weapon as she approached the vehicle, likely checking the officer’s identification. Every moment of procedural caution made him want to jump out of his skin, but if he complained or fought it, he would just cause more delay. Lord, please, just get me to Winnie. Keep her safe.

      He opened his eyes as Delaney opened the door. “I’m afraid the back seat of a police car isn’t very comfortable.”

      He grunted and walked behind her to the unit. He’d walk on glass if it’d get him to his daughter faster. Bruce slipped into the back seat. Delaney slammed the door and joined the cop in the front.

      “No sirens, but get to this address as fast as possible,” Delaney said.

      The officer didn’t hesitate to punch the gas. Bruce slid across the plastic bucket seats and grasped the seat belt with one hand during the U-turn. At least Delaney was taking the threat seriously. At this rate, they really would be back to the safe house quickly.

      “Uh, how are you doing?” the

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