Running Wilde (#Wattys2015 #Urban)

Ch. 19 | Beautiful Ruin (Part 2)

Aiden propped Ava up against the side of the dumpster and took her bloodied, soot covered face in his hands, "Ava-Marie, can you hear me?" The only response he got was her harsh and wheezy breathing. He pursed his lips then slapped her face, "Ava-Marie!" Ava frowned and made a groggy, groaning sound. Aiden frowned back at her.  She didn't look like she would come around any time soon, and he'd rather not hit her again.

Sirens sounded in the distance and small tittering flocks of people began to gather at the scene, gasping and taking pictures and videos of the wreckage on their camera phones. Aiden slung Ava over his shoulder and quickly carried her through the alley and onto a quiet side street, pulling at the levers on the boot of every car he saw until one popped open.

He set Ava down again then ran his fingers along the inside of the trunk door until he located the emergency cord. He yanked on it and the backseat fell forward.  The police sirens were getting louder. Aiden crawled in and headed straight for the driver's side. He slotted the tip of his blade into the screws on either side of the cover underneath the steering wheel and loosened them so that he could pull it away. He quickly removed the wiring harness connector then yanked out the yellow and brown wires, stripped back the insulation covers and tied them together. He crawled back out and got Ava, laid her on the floor in the back, pulled the boot shut then jumped back into driver's seat and connected the yellow and brown wires the red one. The car started perfectly. Years of practice had made Aiden a pro. He put his foot on the gas and drove away from the area, smirking at the spinning red and blue lights that bounced off of the buildings on the other side of the block as more officers arrived.

Aiden headed south and called Dougie.

He picked up on the first ring. "Aiden," he sounded relieved but not surprised.

"Meet me at the back end of Drury Lane. When you get here tell the rest of them to stay put, I want to speak to you alone. Bring the money."

Dougie took a pause then said, "Okay. We're on our way."

*

Aiden pulled over to the side of the road and waited in the shadows for Dougie to arrive. Soon after, the blacked out SUV rolled silent around the corner and Dougie jumped out of the front seat with the briefcase in his hand. Aiden exited the stolen vehicle and walked towards him.

"What's going on, A?" he asked, handing over the briefcase.

Aiden didn't look at his friend as he put the briefcase on the hood of the car, "Get a bag."

"Aiden_"

"Get a bag, Dougie." Dougie raised his chin but didn't say anything more. He walked back to the SUV then returned with one of Stone's duffle bags. Aiden unclipped the briefcase and began loading half of the money into the bag. "This is for you guys to do whatever you need to do with it until I get back."

"Where are you going?"

"I don't know yet." Aiden continued piling wads of cash into the bag. "Did they get Ash out?"

Dougie gritted his teeth, "Yes. She's in the other truck. They're in their way to the hospital."

"Good. Get Baby to make her funeral arrangements. How's Trish and Jamie?"

"They're fine. They're safely in the panic room."

"Tell Driver to take them to my mother's house."

"We can't have them so local."

"We can't have them so far away either. A lot of shit's about to happen so I need everyone to stay together."

"And what about you?" he frowned.