Al reached the Port Mann Bridge and sped across as fast as he could without attracting a speeding ticket. One advantage of being in Coquitlam to see his mother today was that he didn't have to start from all the way in downtown Vancouver to get to Aldergrove, so he could shed about half an hour from his commute, but any amount of time would be too long if Lauren was heading into danger and he wasn't with her yet.

Calling Rachel wasn't only the right thing to do, but it would take his mind off his worries. He dialled her on speakerphone and put the phone on the passenger seat.

When she answered, he said, "Hey, honey."

"Did Lauren call you?" Rachel asked.

"She did, in fact. She's currently following a person of interest she spotted talking with Carrie MacDougall at a Denny's in Abbotsford. She said she called you about following her before."

"Oh! Yes. So... did she ask you to go over there?"

He hesitated a moment before saying, "Yes. And I am."

"Good."

Al blinked in surprise. "Really?"

"Yes, Al. You have a car, you were closer than any of us, and she needs assistance. Of course I'd rather have you go there and make sure she's okay than come home to me. We didn't have anything planned tonight anyway."

"Oh. Okay."

"You sound surprised."

He shrugged, even though she couldn't see him. "I guess I am a little."

"Why? She's our friend, she's on her own, and if this person of interest is a man?"

"He is."

"Then her safety could be uncertain."

"We could call Joe instead. He is her husband."

Rachel was silent a moment. "I was given to understand that he may be occupied at the moment. And anyway, he only just recovered from a nasty beating himself."

"Ah. So, you know about Joanie."

"Yes. Lauren told me. I have to admit, she's braver than I am."

"I guess she's placing a big bet on Joe's commitment to her, that he wouldn't leave her for Joanie if she loosened her hold on him a little."

"Yes. She's a gambler, that one. She gambled on an affair with me, didn't she? And Joe's still with her."

"Yes. And I'm still with you."

Silence for a moment. Then Rachel said, "Go make sure she's safe. Then make sure she gets home safe. Then come home to me. Whatever you get up to in the midst of all that, I won't hold against you."

Did she just imply what Al thought she did? "I'll find her, make sure she gets home safe, and then come home to you," he repeated, leaving out the rest.

She was silent for another moment before she said. "Okay. That's good enough for me."

"I'll call you as soon as I have an update."

"Okay, Al, thanks. I love you."

"I love you too."

She hung up, and Al redialled Lauren.

"Hey," she said.

"Where are you now?"

"On the Fraser Highway, heading back to Aldergrove."

"Okay. I'm going to take the 264th Street turnoff from Highway One and drive until I connect with the Fraser Highway. Hopefully you won't stray too far from there."

"I won't follow him onto any property, if that's what you're worried about."

"I'm just thinking about all those little streets with nothing around. I don't want what happened to Joe and Rachel to happen to you."

"Aw, you're sweet, but if they had me with them they wouldn't have gotten beaten up and stranded in the middle of nowhere."

"Sure about that?"

She chuckled. "Well, I wouldn't have done what Joe did, I mean, my God, he took my sword? The poor guy has no idea how to use it; he could have hurt himself worse than the ones who beat him up, and I'm sure they disarmed him quickly enough if they had bats."

"That was a planned hit, though, from what I heard, and rather devious; I'd still be careful."

"Well, this guy doesn't even know I'm following him, or I don't think he knows."

"Just stay far back, and be ready to take evasive action if he suspects you're on his tail."

"I will."

He smiled. "Lauren, Rachel said something to me that was interesting."

"Oh, yeah? What?"

"She said she was glad I was coming to see you were okay."

"Oh, that's sweet. That's why I fucking love her."

"She also said, and I'm paraphrasing her here, that I should make sure you get home safe, and that whatever we get up to in the meantime, she won't hold against me."

Silence for a moment. Then, "Wow. That is interesting. Did she say against you in particular? Did she say anything about me?"

"Uh, well, she used the word you. It could mean the singular or plural."

"That is true. So, you and I, being the plural you, could get up to something and, conceivably, she wouldn't hold it against either of us."

He swallowed hard. "That could be an interpretation."

"I'm going to go with that."

He took a deep breath and said, "So, why do I think I'll feel guilty about anything we do?"

"Because you're a good guy who doesn't want to be a cheater, just like Joe; I practically had to push him into Joanie's arms."

"I won't need much pushing, believe me."

She chuckled, and he felt himself swell. "Can I ask you something?" he asked.

"Of course."

"Why do you want me? Don't get me wrong, I consider myself a very lucky man to be receiving your attention in addition to Rachel's. But I see me, and I see Joe, and I can't help wondering what you see in me."

She was silent for a moment before she answered. "Al... attraction isn't anything you can really explain or quantify. It's biology, right? I didn't always want you, you know. When we reunited two years ago, you were just an old but good friend, and I'd intended only on rebuilding our friendship. Rachel was different, of course; I never stopped loving her."

"Yeah, I know."

"But... I don't know... I didn't even know I wanted you until recently. It wasn't even when we woke up in your apartment naked, but I think, even when I was on autopilot thinking I was with Joe, I sort of knew I wasn't, and I responded to you anyway. I think that put the seed in my mind. It wasn't that I wanted your body, specifically, although it's fine enough."

"Um, thank you?"

She chuckled. "That seed sprouted and grew, I think, when we spent those two days together looking for them. We bonded, and I got to know you in a way I never could have done when we were all together with the others."

"Yeah. Me too. I mean, I always thought you were beautiful--"

"Always? Even as kids?"

"Okay, well, no, I was smitten with Rachel."

"Ha! Yeah. Everybody knew that."

"But when I first saw your Facebook photo, I thought, damn, what happened to the girl with the bowl-cut hair and the overalls?"

"Well, you looked exactly the same, just older."

"I know. I shave twice a week at most."

She laughed out loud, and he couldn't help laughing too.

"Anyway," he said, "it's not just that you're beautiful. You're the strongest person I've ever met, and the bravest, and when I'm around you I feel like I can follow you to the ends of the Earth."

She was silent for a moment, and he heard her sniffle a little before she could speak again. "That's the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me. I don't feel strong or brave a lot of the time, though."

"Nobody does. But you power through, anyway, and that's what I admire most about you."

She took a deep breath and let it out. "Al, when you get here, I'm going to kiss you, and I might not be able to stop."

"I won't want you to."

She sighed shakily and said, "Okay, look, I better let you go. I don't want to be too distracted in case he changes direction, and I'm feeling very... distracted right now."

He chuckled, still aware of the pressure in his pants. "Okay. I'll call when I get closer."

"Okay, see you soon."

She hung up, and he concentrated on driving a while, trying not to think about what they would do or where they would go when they met up. All desire aside, Lauren was following a potentially dangerous person, and the priority was completing their surveillance safely, and they might not even have the opportunity to do anything at all.

He waited until he took the turnoff for 264th Street before calling her back.

Her phone rang, and rang, and rang. His stomach sank further with every ring. Did something already happen to her? Was she already in trouble?

Her phone went to voicemail, and he began to sweat. He hung up and called again. No answer, again. Voicemail.

He sped up as he headed south on a straight road, feeling that same sick feeling he'd felt when he couldn't reach Rachel that dark Sunday morning. At least Rachel had Joe with her. Lauren was alone.

He knew he was going faster than he was comfortable with, but panic and urgency were overtaking his normally sedate style of driving. He tried dialling again, knowing he was taking a risk by taking his eyes off the road even for a second at his speed. The only blessing was that the road was quiet at this time of day, being the weekend and the evening, and there were no farm vehicles on the road slowing cars down.

Once again, the phone rang until it went to voicemail. Lauren's chipper voice expressed regret that she wasn't able to come to the phone right now, but if he left his name and number she'd call him back. Al had the sinking sensation that she wouldn't be calling him back, and now his armpits were damp, his mouth was dry, and his eyes were seeing very far in the distance to make sure he'd be able to see something soon enough to slow down safely, because he was tearing down this rural stretch of road.

He was so focused on seeing ahead that he didn't think about seeing to his right or left, and as he sped through a light that was so yellow it might as well have been red, he didn't notice the police cruiser at the intersection.

Soon he saw the flashing blue and red lights in his rear view mirror, and the warning blep of the siren to let him know he should pull over.

Fuck, fuck, fuck, he thought. What should he do? The law-abiding citizen in him wanted to pull over. The worried friend in him knew he was close to the Fraser Highway intersection. He didn't spot Lauren's car on 264th, so the only recourse he had, without being able to reach Lauren, was to go to the last place she'd indicated she was going.

Pull over? Keep going?

Lauren might be in trouble.

He could get arrested for fleeing a police officer.

Fuck, fuck, fuck!

He floored it.

It didn't take long for the cruiser to catch up to him, its sirens on full whine, now. He was committed, though, and prayed that every light he hit would be a green one. The moment he stopped, he was done for.

The cruiser pulled into the oncoming lane and sped up to be side by side with him. Al couldn't take his eyes off the road, but out of the corner of his eye he saw the officer pointing at him and gesturing to pull over.

A car was coming the other way, so the cruiser had to pull back again, but its sirens were still going, and the approaching car dutifully pulled to the side while he kept going, pushing the little Honda Fit to its limit.

He realized he could be fatally injured if he got in an accident. An unhelpful memory of the crash that had killed Rachel's ex-husband played in his mind, the crunch of metal, the screech of tires. It was the loudest thing he'd ever heard, the most shocking thing he'd ever seen, and he was heading to that now, as the intersection for the Fraser Highway approached.

Maybe the traffic gods were smiling on him that day, because he got to the left turn lane just as the advance light came on. He slowed just enough that he could make the turn safely, but he could still hear a screeching of tires that he knew would leave black marks on the asphalt.

Now the cruiser was so close Al feared it would mount him like an elephant in the wild. He grimaced as it dawned on him that he couldn't run any longer. Traffic was heavier here, and he had to slow down to avoid a crash. Worse, another cruiser was approaching in the other direction, maybe called to assist, and its lights and sirens were blaring too.

All he could do now was find a safe place to pull over, and as he desperately scanned the streets, he suddenly noticed Lauren's car parked at the side of the road, and Lauren in a desperate struggle with a much larger man, both with their hands on something and struggling for possession.

He braked, hard, and the cruiser rear ended him with a crunch. The cruiser on the opposite side of the road braked right across from him.

He was barely aware of how much trouble he was in. He flung open his door, rushed across the street to help Lauren, and was soon tackled to the ground with the force of being rammed by a bull.

He struggled to get his breath after having the wind knocked out of him, and as his hands were cuffed behind his back, he screamed with everything he had, "Help her! Help that woman!"

Uh-oh, it looks like Al's in a bit of trouble, but at least he found Lauren. Things are heating up. Let's see how Lauren got herself into a struggling match by clicking "Continue reading." If you like what you just read, hit the "Vote" button to send this title up the ranks, and leave a comment.