Chapter 22: Highway 90
Chapter 22: Highway 90
The windshield wipers of Mrs. Hargrove’s old Buick LeSabre screamed against the torrential downpour as the car flew down Interstate 90.
In the backseat, Sarah clutched baby Hope against her chest. The infant was warm, wrapped in three layers of hospital blankets, her tiny breaths soft against Sarah's neck.
"Penelope, how did you know?" Sarah asked, her voice trembling as she looked at the rearview mirror.
Mrs. Hargrove kept her eyes locked on the dark, rain-slicked highway. "James told me the day he drafted the trust, Sarah. He said, 'If Arthur ever learns about the Sterling name, his military loyalty to my father’s memory will override his heart.' James loved Arthur like a brother, but he knew the man was a soldier first. A soldier protects the flag. The Vance legacy is Arthur’s flag."
Sarah looked down at the crumpled piece of paper in her hand. The Sterling accounts. She didn't even know what a corporate raider was until an hour ago. To her, Thomas Sterling was just a name on a birth certificate she had found in a locked box in her mother’s attic after she died.
"I don't want the money, Penelope," Sarah sobbed. "I just want to keep her alive."
"The money is the only thing that will keep her alive, child," Mrs. Hargrove said grimly. "Julian has mercenaries. Eleanor has lawyers. You have nothing but a birthmark and a dead man’s promise. We have to reach the vault in Toledo before the board freezes the sub-sectors."
Suddenly, headlights flared in the rearview mirror.
A large, black heavy-duty pickup truck was gaining on them fast, its high beams blinding in the dark storm.
"Is that Arthur?" Sarah gasped.
May you like
"No," Mrs. Hargrove said, her knuckles turning white on the steering wheel as the truck slammed into their rear bumper with a deafening crunch. "Arthur drives with strategy. This... this is a hit."
The LeSabre fishtailed across the wet asphalt, the tires losing grip. Sarah screamed, throwing her body completely over Hope as the dark highway spun out of control.
