Free Lost and Found by Dallas Schulze

fists still up but his breathing was painful to hear.
    Babs drew a deep breath and brought the gun up. "Freeze!" Her voice quavered and cracked but it was loud enough to get their attention. All four men turned to look at her.
    "Babs."
    "Good God, it's the girl."
    "She's got a gun."
    "She doesn't know how to use it."
    "I wouldn't bet on it." Babs's thumb pulled down the hammer. In the quiet morning air the click was ominously loud. She stared at them over the steel barrel, hoping her eyes didn't reflect her uncertainty. She knew how to shoot a gun but she'd never fired at a living thing.
    For a few seconds it was a standoff. The kidnappers might be reasonably certain that she wouldn't shoot but they weren't ready to gamble their lives on it.
    "Look, lady, you don't want to shoot anyone. Why don't you give me the gun." One of the men started forward and Babs tightened her hold on the gun, feeling trickles of cold sweat start down her spine.
    "I'll shoot if I have to."
    "Hey, what happened to Joe?" It was one of the other two. The man who'd been edging toward her stopped, his eyes narrowing. Sam edged along the wall, keeping an eye on the men.
    "He's out cold in the parking lot." Babs could only hope she sounded a lot tougher than she felt. "Can you make it to the truck?" she asked Sam while still keeping her eyes on the trio.
    "Sure." Sam laughed, the sound choking off on a gasp of pain. "Hell of a rescue, Babs."
    "Thank you."
    She backed away as Sam came even with her. Risking a quick glance at him, she had to stifle a gasp of dismay. He was upright but she had the feeling it was sheer willpower keeping him that way.
    "This isn't over yet." Her eyes met those of the man who was apparently the leader. They were cold and mean. She hadn't seen his face but she knew his voice. This was the man she'd overheard casually planning her
    death. Staring at him over the barrel of the revolver, she knew that he wasn't going to give up.
    She backed away until she could see the truck out of the corner of her eye. The man she'd hit with the door was still lying on the concrete. She had no idea if he was alive or dead. At the moment, she couldn't afford to care. Sam pulled open the driver's door and slid in, ignoring the limp body.
    Babs took one last look at the three men in front of her and then backed toward the truck. They followed but kept a respectful distance as long as she held the gun. She stopped next to the driver's door.
    "I'll drive." She kept her voice low and her eyes on the men she was holding at gunpoint.
    "I'm supposed to be rescuing you."
    "You're in no condition to drive."
    There was a moment's silence and then Sam heaved an irritated sigh. "I hate it when you're right." There was a pause and then his voice came again. "Reach back and hand me the gun. I'll keep an eye on our friends while you get in the truck."
    The awkward exchange was made and Babs scrambled up into the seat. Sam leaned behind her, his arms against her back, the gun steady. The engine roared to life and Babs threw the truck into reverse, backing out of the parking place. She thrust the gearshift into first and put her foot down on the gas.
    "Careful. This isn't Indianapolis." Sam turned to look out the back window. "They're running for their car. They didn't even check to see how good old Joe was. What did you do to him?"
    "I hit him with the door." Babs tapped the brakes in token respect to the stop sign and pulled onto the highway. "I may have killed him." She was aware of Sam's eyes slanting toward her.
    "I doubt it. Even if you did, I wouldn't waste too much time feeling guilty about it. You can bet he wouldn't have lost any sleep over killing you."
    "I suppose."
    Sam twisted to look out the back window. "They're following us. What the hell!" He grabbed for the armrest as the truck skidded into a right turn and shot down an alley barely wide enough to avoid scraping the paint.
    "I've got to lose them." Babs spun left out of the alley. Sam closed his