road.”
“So it seems.” Nova pulled onto the highway, or what he could see of it, and picked up a little speed, his headlights reflecting back at him, little help against the blanketing fog.
“The locals weren’t kidding when they called this stuff the Devil’s Shroud.” Tazer leaned forward, her hand gripping the armrest. “I hope it’s not this bad all the way to Portland.”
“It should clear when we drive farther inland.”
“Sheesh, we haven’t even made it to town.” Her nose practically pressed to the passenger window. “I can’t even see the side of the road.”
“I know. I’m going to slow down. No use getting ourselves killed. We have all night to get to Portland.” Nova eased his foot against the brake pedal. The vehicle didn’t slow. He pushed his foot harder and harder until the pedal was all the way to the floorboard, and nothing happened.
Tazer shot a nervous glance his way. “I thought you were going to slow down.”
Nova’s hands gripped the steering wheel as the road curved around the side of a cliff and started the long descent toward the town of Cape Churn. “Uh, sweetheart, we’ve got a problem.”
“Don’t call me sweetheart.” She held on to the dash, her eyes wide, nervous. “And slow the hell down.”
“I would, but there are no brakes.”
As the incline grew steeper, the car’s speed increased.
Nova shifted into low gear, hoping to use the engine to reduce their speed. And it did, for an eighth of a mile when the grade dropped to 10 percent. What had seemed like a nice, scenic drive along the winding coast now felt more like riding a giant rattlesnake, twisting and gyrating out of control.
Nova jerked the wheel at the last minute before the vehicle would have plunged off the edge of a cliff he couldn’t see.
Tazer gasped. “Holy crap, Nova! Watch out!”
“The fog’s too thick. I can’t see the curves,” he called out.
“Drop off, drop off, drop off!” Tazer pointed, screaming.
Jerking the wheel hard to the right, Nova nearly hit the rising cliffs on his left. “I can’t hold it on the road. We have to bail.”
“Bail? Are you out of your—” Tazer squealed again.
Nova swerved to avoid driving off the edge of another cliff.
The road leveled out and started up a slight incline.
His hands on the wheel in a white-knuckled grip, Nova steered the car as close to the cliff as possible. “If I’m not mistaken, around the next curve starts a descent into the town on the curviest and steepest part of the road.”
“Curvier than this?”
“If we’re going to abandon ship, it’s now or never.”
“Crap, and these were my favorite shoes.” Tazer reached for the door handle.
A voice in Nova’s head urged, Jump!
“You go first. I’ll hold it steady,” Nova said, his jaw tight, his stomach knotted.
Jump!
“We don’t have time.” Tazer unfastened her seat belt. “On the count of three.
“One...” Nova released his belt.
“Two...” Tazer joined the count.
“Three!”
Nova flung his door open and threw himself out of the car, hit the ground hard, tucked and rolled to a stop.
The car continued forward until it reached the curve in the road and launched itself over the edge of the cliff.
Without wasting a breath, Nova staggered to his feet. “Tazer!”
No answer.
“Tazer!”
“Damn.”
“You all right?”
“No.”
“Keep talking until I find you.”
“I’m over here.”
“What’s wrong?”
“They’re broken. Damn.”
His heart in his throat, Nova yanked his cell phone out of his pocket. The screen was cracked, but it still worked. Or would work, if there was any reception at this point on the highway. “Any bleeding?” he asked, still angling toward her voice.
“Yes.”
“Apply pressure, I’m almost there.”
“Yeah, you are. Look out!”
He practically tripped over Tazer before he saw her pushing to her feet against a solid cliff wall. He shone his cell phone in her face. “Stay down until I can get some medical assistance.”
She held up a hand and grimaced. “I don’t need assistance.”
“I thought you said you broke something.”
Frowning, she shoved her hands out in front of her. “I broke every one of my freakin’ fingernails.” Her knees were scuffed, her elbows, too, and she had a scratch on her face.
“We almost died on this road, and all you’re worried about is your manicure?” Nova chuckled as he helped her to her feet. “One of these days I hope to understand women.”
“And one of these days, and I’m thinking very soon, I want to understand why your brakes didn’t work. And when I get my hands on whoever ruined my nails, I’ll kill him.”
Chapter 2
Molly promised a tour of the mansion the following day, offered coffee and turned her ghost-hunting guests loose for the night to settle in with a word of caution about wandering away from the house in the fog. “Don’t tempt fate.”
“Well, we’ll be on our way, too.” Gabe bent to press a kiss to her cheek. “Take care, little sis.”
“Are you sure you don’t want to stay the night?” She glanced around at Emma, Creed, Gabe and Kayla. “One of the guests canceled and I have a spare bedroom available. Gabe, you and Kayla could sleep there—it’s a king-size—Emma and Creed can have my room and I can claim a couch. For that matter, the one in the lounge is a fold-out double bed.”
“Thanks, anyway,” Kayla said. “Dakota’s babysitting Tonya. I don’t want him to have to watch her all night.”
“How’s that going?” Molly asked.
Kayla smiled. “He loves his little sister and she adores him.”
Molly’s glance shifted to the driveway, where she could barely see the outlines of the cars parked there; the light from the porch bounced off the fog rather than penetrating it. “I hate for you to get out in that.”
“If Kayla has her way, we’ll crawl.” Gabe hugged Kayla close to his side.
“I don’t think so.” Kayla swatted his chest. “But we will go very slowly.”
“What about you two?” Molly asked Creed and Emma, who hadn’t been able to get their hands off each other all evening.
Seeing how happy they were gave Molly that pang of longing she’d been experiencing all evening long. Her family and friends were finding the loves of their lives and she was still mooning over a man she would never see again.
Emma yawned and leaned into Creed’s side. “My dog needs to be let outside before he goes to sleep for the night, otherwise I’d take you up on the offer.”
“I