Dark Visions (21 page)

A knock on the window made her jump. Her
heart rate spiked along with her breathing. She tried hard to
remain still. Did he notice her movement? She wouldn't risk opening
her eyes yet.

Then she heard him shuffling to the front of
the van. An attendant wanted to know if he could fill the van with
regular or super. The door opened and she felt the vehicle move a
little under Gert's weight.

He had stepped out.

This was her best chance. She was untied and
unwatched. She couldn't be with Gert any longer. She couldn't
handle more people dying.

This ended now.

She opened her eyes and got up. A Volkswagen
van was parked up ahead getting gas by a young brown haired guy. He
wore what looked like a gas station uniform with his name sewn into
the left breast pocket.

She grabbed the pad of paper Gert had given
her and removed the note she'd written for her mother a half-hour
ago. A slot between the bench and the side of the van was a perfect
fit. She left a small corner sticking out. It was just enough for
someone to see if they were in the back, but not enough for the
driver to notice.

She folded the rest of the pad and slipped
it in her pocket.

In a crouched position she made her way
towards the front. She kept her eyes peeled on the windshield,
looking for any sign of Gert.

It wasn't until she reached the passenger
seat that she saw him. He was inside the restaurant at the
counter.

She opened the driver's side door and jumped
down, her legs wobbly, but strong enough to sustain her.

The attendant smiled and nodded his head as
he lifted the nozzle out of the Volkswagen. She waved her hand for
him to come over.

"What can I do for you?" he asked.

She could tell he was staring at her
eyebrows. The makeup she used to paint them on would have faded by
now. Her clothes were in disarray and she probably looked dirty,
gaunt. She had no time to be concerned with appearances though.

Her eyes watered as she fought back tears.
What a horrible time to start crying
, she thought.

"I've been kidnapped. You've got to help me.
My name is Sarah Roberts. That man who asked you to fill up the van
is a murderer. He killed a cop on the highway." Then she thought of
something that would explain how she looked. "Look what he's
already done to me. He's torturing me by slowly pulling all my hair
out." She tugged on his sleeve. "Please help. Call the police."

"Okay, slow down. I do recall they were
looking for a guy who kidnapped a girl. I only saw the cover of
today's newspaper in the box over there." He pointed.

"He'll be coming back any minute. I have to
be gone, or he'll kill me."

"Hold on. I'll just pick up a phone and tell
him I'm calling the police. He won't do anything crazy in public.
You go hide behind a car at the back of the building or something.
Just stay hidden."

"No. No you can't. Don't you understand? He
has nothing to lose." She darted a glance at the counter where she
saw him moments before. He was gone. "He doesn't care. He won't
hesitate to kill you too."

This isn't working. She told him to call the
police discreetly as soon as he could. Then she turned and started
to hobble away. She stumbled on her weak limbs, but managed to
maintain her balance.

Exposed, out in the open, she gave it her
all. The tree line would provide cover.

The trees drew close. Twenty more steps.

She looked to her right. Cars raced by on
the highway. People in their own world, completely unaware an
eighteen year old was running for her life.

Panic set in. She could feel it. Her
breathing hitched in her throat. She felt eyes on her. She
anticipated a bullet in the back at any moment.

She didn't waste time to look over her
shoulder. If he'd seen her making a break for it then he'd give
chase or shoot her.

She'd either make the cover of the trees or
be shot, which amounted to this ordeal ending. Something about
death seemed desirable, like food. She was so hungry she could
taste the smell coming from the gas station's restaurant, her mouth
chewing.

Leaves and branches brushed her arms as she
dropped down a small three foot rise. The cover of trees swallowed
her. She stopped about ten feet in.

While catching her breath she tried to hear
if someone was pursuing her. She peeked through the branches by
pulling one down. The gas attendant was out of sight. She couldn't
see Gert either.

She made it. She'd escaped. A flush came
over her. Could this really be done?

She'd wait in the trees for a few hours.
Maybe until the cover of dark or when the police arrive.

Then the gas attendant appeared at the side
of the van pulling the nozzle out and replacing the gas cap. He
looked her way once before walking around to the front and heading
for the restaurant.

Gert came into view.

She ducked down. Being blind was worse. She
pulled on a branch and raised herself a little to look across the
parking lot.

She could see Gert and the attendant
talking. Gert was shaking his head.

She turned around and started deeper into
the thicket. This was over for her. She was determined to put as
much geography between her and Gert as she could.

***

"You're all filled up sir. It came to
fifty-eight dollars."

Gert studied the guy. He looked to be around
seventeen. But something was wrong because the kid's eyes couldn't
hold still. He looked past Gert's shoulder, then back, then over to
the pumps and on to a car going by on the highway. He rubbed his
hands together and looked down at them like the grease stains were
suddenly very interesting. Maybe the kid noticed the bulge of the
gun under Gert's shirt and recognized it for what it was.

Gert guessed they were about six feet from
the van. Could this kid have talked to the girl?

He kept his eyes on the nervous kid while he
stepped backwards to look in the vans windows. He cupped his hands
around his eyes to see all the way to the back.

No Sarah.

He spun around, dropped the paper bag of
greasy burgers and pulled his gun.

The gas jockey was running. He almost made
it to the safety of the restaurant.

***

A loud crack in the air told Sarah that a
gun had been fired.

A high pitched scream followed. Was that
male or female?

She stopped running. Her breath came out in
waves. She stood trying to get her breathing under control.

Someone was probably calling the police by
now. But could she trust the police? Gert's boss worked with the
police? Her priority had to be her mother. Somehow contact her
mother. Her thoughts started running into themselves.

She decided she had to see what was going
on.

She saved people. That's who Sarah was now.
Without that, she was better off dead.

***

Gert walked towards the attendant, his gun
extended in front of him. People were running for cover. A car
squealed out of the station parking lot behind him.

When he got close to the kid he saw what
looked like a flesh wound on the calf muscle of his right leg. He
noticed the kid's name tag said Steve.

"Where is she?"

Steve lay there with both hands on his
wounded leg. Small rivers of blood seeped through his fingers. He
responded with only grunts and groans.

Gert got down on his knees and pulled the
kid's face close to his. He pressed the gun to the underside of the
Steve's jaw line.

"I won't ask again. Where is she?"

Steve's eyes rolled in his head as he
fainted. Gert let go of him and stood up.

No sign of Sarah.

He'd lost her again.

Someone was yelling inside the
restaurant.

Gert gritted his teeth. He raised the gun in
the air and fired.

"SARAH! Come out, come out, wherever you
are. How many people have to die for you?"

***

Sarah ducked at the sound of gunfire. She
was close enough to hear Gert hollering.

She peeked through branches and saw Gert
standing halfway between the van and the restaurant. The gas guy
was on the ground.

He wasn't moving. She saw blood pooling
below his waist.

This can't be happening.

Not again.

She let go of the branch and looked down at
her hairless forearms. The Sarah of fearless rescues was in over
her head.

She could never let Gert have her again. She
had no idea what to do next.

Was this what absolute hopelessness felt
like
, she asked herself.

She leaned sideways against a small tree.
Her body was reacting to the stress in ways she wasn't familiar
with; ragged breath, weakness in her stomach and legs, and a heart
which seemed out of rhythm.

She had nothing in her stomach to throw up,
but it felt like something was coming.

She sat in the dead leaf covered ground,
dropped her face into her hands and lost the last bit of control
she had. Sarah broke down with a deep feeling of despair.

***

Gert raised his gun and fired through one of
the front windows of the restaurant.

He was careful to aim at the top of the main
window. He didn't want to be known as a mass murderer. His brother
would be proud with his restraint.

How could he leave her untied and alone in
the van? That was a huge mistake. He was getting sloppy. The boss
hated mistakes.

"That's another one dead," he yelled.

He fired into the roof of the restaurant.
"And yet another one bites the dust. How many people have to be
shot for your freedom, Sarah?"

Gert heard running footsteps behind him.

He pivoted around and saw Sarah making a
break for the highway. As she hit the shoulder of the road she lost
her balance and tumbled forward.

Gert watched as she rolled directly in front
of a large oil tanker.

The truck swerved.

Its horn blared as the driver got his
vehicle back under control. Brake lights came on. The oil tanker
was stopping, pulling over.

Gert dropped the gun to his side.

Looks like Sarah wants to get run over.

He started walking to the highway. This
ought to be amusing.

***

Sarah's right shoulder screamed. When she
lost her footing and fell, the gravel dug in. It was a mass of
black gravel and red with blood.

She scanned the road both ways. Only two
cars were coming; one from either direction.

She looked back at the gas station and saw
Gert walking towards her.

Never again, she thought as she got up and
put one foot in front of the other.

She touched the tender area of her shoulder.
Her hand came away with blood on it. Why wasn't Gert trying to
shoot her? Maybe he thought she threw herself in front of the
truck.

Gert was getting closer to the highway's
shoulder.

A large black car approached. The vehicle
wasn't slowing down. In her delirious condition Sarah guessed the
driver thought she was a hitch-hiker.

She stepped into the middle of the highway.
She closed her eyes tight; not just because the sun was in her face
but also because of the pain. Her shoulder felt aflame now. It felt
like the pebbles imbedded in her flesh were digging deeper.

She could hear the car slowing fast. Gert
still hadn't fired.

"Are you okay?"

It wasn't Gert's voice. She opened her eyes
and used her left hand to ward off the sun.

"Help me. Please take me to a hospital.
They've tortured me...pulled my hair out."

"What? Hold on."

The car stopped. A large black man opened
the door and stepped out.

"What's your name?"

***

Gert couldn't believe it. Some guy had
stopped his car and was talking to her.

He couldn't allow a stranger to take Sarah
away. He broke into a run.

"Hey!" Gert shouted.

The tall black guy turned and looked at him.
Gert saw Sarah throw herself into the backseat. From fifty yards
away he could hear Sarah yelling for the guy to get in and
drive.

She was completely inside someone else's car
now.

He raised his gun and fired. The bullet
missed the guy. A hole formed beside him in the window of the open
driver's door. That was enough to get the guy moving.

He fired again as the driver slammed his
door shut. Gert was close enough now to see the guy's hand pull the
transmission down. The car lurched forward, away from Gert and the
gas station.

It took Gert precious seconds to get back to
the van.

By the time he'd started it and got turned
toward the highway, the black car was gone.

Chapter 50

Sarah scrambled around and got into a
crouched position careful to avoid her shoulder touching anything.
She took a quick look out the back window. No sign of the black van
in pursuit.

"What was with that guy? Why would he shoot
at us?"

Sarah could detect a slight southern accent.
She turned around and looked at the driver's eyes in the rearview
mirror.

"You okay, girl?" he asked.

"He kidnapped me a few days ago. Please,
just get me to a phone, then leave."

"Is that the guy they're searching for? A
manhunt the newspapers called it."

Sarah nodded. The driver started mumbling to
himself.

"Don't worry. You won't be mixed up in this
if you just get me to a phone and take off."

"But he killed a cop and apparently two
members of a crime family out of New York. This morning's paper
said armed and dangerous."

The driver kept darting his eyes between the
road ahead and his mirrors.

Sarah turned around. Still no sign of the
van. She looked at the back of the driver's head. "He'll be coming
after me. He won't let me get away. You need to go faster."