The shadow crossed in front of the car so fast I didn’t have time to stop. I hit the brakes hard and swerved into the mud at the side of the road.

Looking out through the deluge it was difficult to make out the figure coming towards the driver’s window, but as it came closer I could see it was a girl, just a kid.

Instinctively, my hand went for my gun and rested on the grip as she approached. Her hair, dark, bobbed, was plastered to her head and face. The raccoon eye shadow smeared above her eyes had run in rivulets down her cheeks. And she looked scared, really scared, that much was obvious.

What the hell is she doing out here alone in this kind of weather? I thought as I rolled the window down a half-inch.

Get in the back, I yelled at her, and flipped the lock so she could open the door.