Boulder - 2010

Emily and Lauren slipped their shoes on and headed out to the parking lot. They didn't see Summer Van Horn, the manager of the gym and one-time girlfriend of Steve Tanner follow them out. She knew those two girls weren't the best of friends and wondered what on earth they were up to.

Lauren and Emily stopped at the top of the stairs leading up to the entrance of The Rock, Lauren tossing a dramatic wave toward the parking lot where they both saw Emily's mom get into the Tanner SUV.

"I told you," Lauren said, frowning as her dad kissed Chloe.

Emily shrugged. "I never suggested otherwise," she said turning back to the door. She saw Summer watching them and tapped Lauren's arm. "We should get back inside."

Lauren glanced at her and then saw Summer and smiled brightly. She still preferred Summer over Chloe any day, so tried to stay on Summer's good side.

Tires squealed behind them and the sound of metal on metal had all three ladies looking back at the parking lot to see what had happened.

The front bumper of a dingy brown van and the right rear tire of Steve's SUV were apparently locked together.

Steve started the engine, waiting until Chloe shut the door to lean over the console and give her a kiss. "That's some old friend you have there," he commented wryly.

Chloe sighed. "We grew up together, you know, the boy next door. We were friends and I guess he might have had a crush on me, but we never dated. After I met Emily's father, we sort of lost touch, until I got a few letters from him while he was in prison."

Steve backed the SUV out of the parking place. "Still no idea why he came to you for help?"

Chloe shook her head. "No, but somehow he heard we were dating and decided I could get the money he wanted from you." She touched his arm. "I'm so sorry, Steve."

He gave her a gentle grin. "It's not your fault, Chloe. This guy sounds like a real nut job. I…"

He was interrupted by an abrupt jolt as the back end of the SUV was shoved violently to the left. Steve and Chloe were both jerked hard, Steve hitting his head on the driver's side door window. Chloe gasped, her seatbelt cutting into her side as she was thrown further over the center console.

Steve automatically slammed on the brake and put the vehicle in park as soon as they stopped. He tentatively touched his head where it had hit the glass as he turned to ask Chloe if she was okay and saw two men outside the passenger door. One of them opened the door, reached in to undo Chloe's seatbelt and dragged her out by one arm while Steve tried to gather his senses.

"Hey!" he shouted, struggling to get out of his seatbelt. Before he even realized what he was doing, Steve was on the other side of the car, dragging one of the men off Chloe.

Someone grabbed Steve's arm and he turned, instinctively jabbing his elbow back. A grunt and loosening of the grip was his reward, but he now had the first man's attention as well.

"Run, Chloe," Steve yelled as he blocked a fist aimed at his face, spun, kicked and punched, somehow holding his own against the two men without even knowing he could.

Chloe watched wide-eyed as Steve landed a blow knocking one of the men out cold. She frowned and opened her mouth to warn him of a third man approaching only to stammer in surprise. "Kenny?"

Steve landed another blow and the second man went to his knees. Steve stood, breathing hard. He looked at his bloodied fists in amazement. How did he know how to fight like that? Chloe's strangled word got his attention. He raised his eyes to see her staring past him.

Steve turned and saw the man from the photos he'd perused earlier in the day. Kenny Long.

Long frowned at him. "Peters?"

Sirens sounded in the distance.

Steve pointed at the man he'd never met, but who also seemed strangely familiar to him. "Stay back. The police are on their way."

"Peters?" Long repeated. "What the hell? I thought you were dead."

Steve frowned. "Do I know you?"

Long laughed wildly. "I'll say, you son of a bitch. You only ruined my life." He lifted his hand and pointed a gun at Steve.

Time seemed to slow down. Steve dove to the ground, trying to get out of the line of fire. Pop, pop, pop. The shots didn't sound real. Screams seemed far away and under water as he gasped, trying to get air. Then the pain hit.

"Kenny, no!" Chloe screamed. Her scream was matched by Lauren's "Daddy!" as the teen raced across the parking lot.

Long nudged Peters with his foot earning a pained groan. He chuckled then motioned to his men as they slowly regained their feet. "Get her," he said, pointing at Chloe as Lauren dropped to her knees beside her father. "And her. Somebody's gonna get me my money," he said, walking toward the van.

Chloe fought to get away, tears streaking her makeup. "Leave her alone!" she shouted as one of the men caught Lauren around the waist and lifted her off the ground. Lauren struggled, but her fear for her father hampered her efforts.

The van drove away, just ahead of the approaching police cars, with the three men, Chloe Kmetko and Lauren Tanner inside.

Denver - 1999

Chris paced the waiting room, ignoring Nathan's pointed looks. Both Vin and Ezra had been whisked into the emergency care unit as soon as the ambulance arrived. Ezra had then been taken almost directly into surgery. They'd received an update on Vin and knew he would be all right. He had been a little further from the explosion. He'd be sore from the multiple lacerations and concussion, but would recover. They hadn't heard anything on Ezra yet.

Kenny Long had escaped. The other teams were searching for him, but so far, he seemed to have disappeared.

Josiah had managed to contact Maude Standish and surprisingly, she said she would catch the next flight to Denver.

Chris took a seat. He ran a hand through his blond hair and wondered what exactly had happened. The other men that had been arrested at the scene worked for one of Long's rival ex-bosses. Evidently, Long had been correct in expecting retaliation for his theft of their weapons.

What hadn't been expected was Long's use of the military grade missile launcher when he felt cornered. Long had taken out the semi truck and all the weapons inside along with half a dozen of his enemies and several of his own men. Fortunately, injuries on the ATF side were minimal, with Vin and Ezra being the worst.

Long's girlfriend and her daughter were under protective custody in the hospital. The woman was in detox, so strung out she hardly knew her own name. The girl, Laurie, was being treated for a few abrasions and shock.

Chris stood and started pacing again. Why hadn't they heard anything about Ezra yet? He cast a glance at Nathan, as if his friend's medical experience could help him divine the answer to his question. Nathan just shrugged.

Chris looked at his watch. It had been over four hours since they arrived. Each of his inquiries had been met with polite but meaningless answers. "The doctors are with him… He's in surgery… We'll let you know as soon as we know something…" Chris shook his head and turned toward the desk yet again. This time he was going to get a real answer, even if he had to get ugly about it.

The elevator chimed and the door slid open. High heels clicked across the floor and a familiar Southern drawl rang out. "What is going on with my son?" Maude Standish demanded.

I hope the chapters are a good length. Still have a few more before the tbc...