Alice and Knox ran to the car, amid mass confusion. Sirens blared everywhere. Smoke fogged the air. A loudspeaker barked. Airport personnel in reflective vests bolted toward the fires. At the limo stand stood a black Town Car, with its front door and trunk open.
“No driver!” Alice called out, reaching the driver’s side. She caught a glint of keys in the ignition. “He left the keys. Get in.”
Knox slammed the trunk closed, then jumped into the passenger seat.
Alice twisted the keys in the ignition and hit the gas. She sped out of the lot as police cruisers sped directly toward them in the same lane.
“Move over!” Knox yelled. “We drive on the other side!”
Alice steered into the other lane. “Tell me how to get out of here.”
“Go left.” Knox pointed, and Alice took the turn, then zoomed for the exit gate just as a red fire truck raced toward them, its headlights blinding. She veered around the fire truck and hit the main road leaving the airport, then reached a fork.
“Where now?”
“Right, then left.” Knox pointed again.
Alice zoomed onto a side road and kept driving until the car rental places and businesses disappeared. She found herself in a neighborhood of small, run-down houses, their pastel hues faded and peeling. People were going to their cars and into the street to see what was happening at the airport, so she kept driving until she spotted a clearing with a dirt road. She pulled over, stopped the car, and looked over at Knox, who looked nervous in the lights from the dashboard.
“Now you gotta step up,” Alice said. “I need an employee at BSB. You have to find me one.”
“I know no one.”
“Think harder. You have to know someone who knows someone.”
“How much is it worth to you?” Knox’s eyes glittered. “I know you’ve got more in that bag.”
“Five grand.”
“Twenty.”
“Ten.”
“Fifteen.”
Alice faked a smile. “Don’t push me.”
“Fine.” Knox paused. “My cousin’s friend might know someone, but I’m not sure.”
“Then make the call.”