They had proceeded painstakingly slow.
On purpose, Steve knew that.
And yet, the creep up the winding mountain roads was eating away at his nerves, the tension in his body becoming more unbearable by the second, every curve making his heart skip a beat as they expected to run into a well-orchestrated ambush.
Mike had taken over the role of scanning either side of the terrain for Esteban or anything that looked out of place, while he focused on the middle of the road- and driving for that matter.
With his hands clenching the steering wheel so tightly that it turned his knuckles white, Steve had exhausted his imagination when it came to the many different scenarios they were about to face.
A man as experienced as Cornelius Esteban wouldn't be easy to catch; any fool knew that by now. In their case, having to constantly watch over their shoulder after being designated a human target only added to the problem.
Several miles outside of town, a crow flew past them as they headed around another curve, startling both detectives and narrowly missing the windshield. Perhaps it represented an omen of what was to come. As much as Steve tried to stick to the facts and ignore the gloomy nature of their quest, it certainly did fit the picture.
"What do you think?"
This time it was Mike who spoke up, his voice strained with unconcealed worry, his eyes never leaving the road.
"Think what? Where he's headed?"
"Yeah."
Shrugging indifferently, Steve navigated the large Galaxy around another curve, deeply disturbed by the complete lack of traffic thus far. With every mile they conquered, the canopy of trees around them grew thicker and blocked out the light of the rising sun, the unnerving depth of the ravine to their right only adding to the churning in his gut.
"I don't think he's running at all. I think he's just trying to lure us into a trap. The question is what exactly he can do out here to target-"
He didn't get to finish the sentence when the outline of the little red sports car came into view several hundred yards out, parked across the street, effectively blocking both lanes.
Drawing in a deep breath, Steve slowed the tan sedan down to a complete stop, the warm brakes squeaking in protest. With a worried frown, he glanced over at Mike who met his gaze with stoic readiness.
"Seems to me like we're about to find out firsthand."