Escape, the Complete Trilogy

by David Antocci

  He took off out the door. His middle-aged legs weren’t used to running, or exercise of any kind, but Robert was kind enough to offer Frank a chance at a new start in life, and he wasn’t about to let that scumbag get away with whatever he was up to.

  Fortunately, Greg’s back was to the main house, and he was preoccupied with whomever he was talking to on the phone. He never saw Frank ambling across the lawn toward him. The pilot jumped down into the boat just as Greg was disconnecting the call. “Hey, asshole!” he shouted.

  Greg whirled around in shock, his spinning head perfectly positioning his jaw for a collision with Frank’s fist. Frank had been in more than his share of bar fights and knew how to throw a punch when he was drunk off his ass. He was shocked to see how much easier it was to hit a target while sober. His fist smashed into Greg’s jaw, snapping his head to the side and laying him out on the deck of the boat as the gun went rattling to the floor.

  Greg came back low, landing a solid fist into Frank’s ribs, knocking the wind out of him, and teaching him that it also hurts a hell of a lot more to get hit while sober. Frank doubled over on top of Greg and repeatedly smashed his elbow into Greg’s back, to little use. Greg expertly wrapped his arms around Frank’s mid-section and tackled him to the deck of the boat.

  It was obvious that Greg had formal training, but Frank had a lifetime of “on the job” training, and he knew how to improvise. He in turn wrapped his arms around Greg’s head and started thrashing about like a maniac. Greg quickly went from having the upper hand and control of the situation, to struggling and trying to back up out of Frank’s grasp.

  Frank let go, sending Greg tumbling backwards, and smacking his head on the side of the boat. Captain Frank quickly scrambled to pick up the gun and held it on Greg as he slowly staggered to his feet.

  “Don’t shoot, don’t shoot. I can explain,” Greg begged.

  Frank looked over Greg’s shoulder to see Robert standing in the doorway, his two other security guards running across the lawn toward the boatyard. He chuckled at Greg, “I’m sure they’ll love to hear this.”

  * * *

  Jack’s cab crawled along the highway with Abby and Eric in the back. The thirty-eight minute trip that Jack had promised, so far, had turned into nearly an hour and thirty-eight minutes.

  “I’m so sorry,” Jack said. “I know you’re excited to get to your kid, but...” he threw up his hands at the traffic in front of him, the veins on his forehead much more pronounced than when the ride had started.

  “Don’t blow a gasket,” Abby said, teasing him. “It’s been long enough. We’ll get there when we get there. It’s not your fault.”

  “Thanks,” Jack said.

  Abby turned to Eric and said more quietly, “Like I said, she knows about you. My sister Sarah didn’t let her watch the show. It was too violent, but she’s seen your picture and knows that you’re my friend. I just think it would be best for me to meet with her alone. She’s got to have some hang-ups about me. Once we work through those, then you can be in the picture.”

  “It’s up to you – you’re the mom. You just tell me what to do, and I’ll do it.” He spoke louder, toward the front of the cab. “Jack, you know any good hotels around where we’re going?”

  “Plenty,” Jack said. “And you’re far enough away from the tourist spots that you’ll find a room without a problem.”

  Jack looked down at the dash and noticed the temperature gauge looked a little higher than usual. Probably from sitting in traffic the past hour, he figured. He assumed that once they got moving, it would settle back down. Looking ahead and seeing five wrecked cars pulled off the side of the road a few hundred yards up, he was hopeful that they would get moving soon.

  Eric noticed where Jack was looking. “So that’s the hold up?”

  Jack called over his shoulder, “No one up here knows how to drive. From here it’s less than twenty minutes, so just sit back, I’ll get you there.” Jack smiled as he depressed the accelerator and his cab picked up speed as they finally passed by the scene of the accident.

  However, that smile only lasted for about half a mile before the temperature gauge climbed into the red, “Shit.”

  “What’s that?” Abby asked.

  As the engine gave up, Jack coasted to the side of the road. “Engine overheated. I’ll take a look.”

  Abby traded glances with Eric.

  28

  JJ SPENT THE better part of the last hour and a half – since he last spoke with Robert – sitting in traffic in his rental car. Therefore, he was not the least bit pleased when traffic began to slow again less than a mile after he got past the accident. Fortunately, it wasn’t backing up yet.

  Looking ahead, traffic seemed slower in the right lane, so he moved to the far left and breathed a sigh of relief as things picked up. He saw a cab with its hood up and the driver scratching his head in the right-hand breakdown lane. Apparently this was the first time anyone had seen such a sight, as people were making a point to slow down to take notice. There was nothing JJ could do but accept that it would be slow going for the next few minutes.

  He was not at all comfortable with the fact that he had lost Abby and Eric at the airport. They were somewhere in front of him, heading toward her sister’s house in Saint-Colbert, and he was bound and determined to get there as soon as he could to ensure that there were no more issues.

  He checked his phone again. Still nothing from Ace. What the hell happened? he wondered. If something had gone drastically wrong, Ace would have called, if he could. It was the last part of that statement that made JJ uncomfortable – if he could. JJ told himself that he would turn up, and there was nothing to worry about. Ace could take care of himself.

  As he set the phone down on the passenger’s seat, it rang again. The moment he said “Hello,” a panicked Robert was off and running at the mouth.

  “JJ, thank God. Wherever you are, stop. Abby and Eric cannot go to her sister’s house. Something bigger is going on here.”

  JJ sat at attention, “Robert, I don’t know where they are.”

  “You lost them?”

  “It’s a big airport. They were first off the plane, way before me. I couldn’t find them at the rental companies, so I just grabbed a car myself. I’m heading to the address now. I assume they’re somewhere in front of me. Probably not too far in front either. What’s going on?”

  “One of my security men might have had something to do with what happened at the airport. He’s the one who arranged their travel. He was one of the only people who could have told someone they would be there. I’m certain he had something to do with what happened to Eric.”

  “What makes you so sure?”

  “Right after I got off the phone with you, he assaulted me, grabbed Abby’s sister’s address, and took off running. We caught him, but he talked to someone on the phone first. JJ, if he gave information to those men who tried to grab Eric, he’s probably passed along the address in Saint-Colbert, as well. We can’t let Abby and Eric get there without knowing they could be walking into a trap.”

  “Well, that’s a little tough, Robert. I have no idea what they’re driving, and no way to get ahold of them. I’ll get there as fast as I can.” As JJ passed by the stranded cab, he glanced at the obviously frustrated driver. He picked up speed, quickly putting the cab and the traffic in his rearview. “Traffic is clear now. I should be there real soon. That’s the best I can do.”

  “Damn it! Why didn’t I give that girl a phone?” Robert said to himself. The thought had never even occurred to him when she was leaving the island. He let out a long sigh.

  JJ interrupted with a pressing concern of his own. “Not to change the subject, but any word on Ace, yet?”

  “No, but we’ll let you know the moment we hear something.”

  “Whoa!”

  “What happened?” Robert asked.

  “Some Mercedes a few cars back just went nuts and swerved across a couple lanes and almost caused anoth
er accident. Everyone is beeping their horns. I’ll tell you, Robert, these Canadians aren’t impressing me as drivers.”

  “Just stay safe and find them, OK?”

  “I’ll call you when I get there.” JJ disconnected the call and pressed on the accelerator. He figured Abby and Eric couldn’t be too far ahead. If he couldn’t stop them, maybe he could at least pass them and beat them there.

  * * *

  Bryce was going out of his mind. He had been sitting in stop-and-go traffic for the better part of the last hour and a half and was ready to explode. Finally traffic cleared and he punched his foot down on the gas, bringing the five hundred German engineered horses under the hood to life.

  His excitement lasted all of half a minute before traffic slowed again for some unknown reason. “At least it’s moving a little this time,” he said aloud to no one but himself. He moved over to the far left, where traffic seemed to be moving a little more than the other lanes. He glanced down at the navigation screen on the dashboard to see that he had about twenty minutes left on his trip.

  As he moved past a disabled taxi on the side of the road, he picked up speed, finally reaching thirty miles per hour, and put some distance between himself and the traffic. Just a few moments later, something caught his eye in the rear view mirror. He looked back to see a woman standing next to the cab. She was petite. Then a man walked up next to her and they joined the cab driver looking under the hood.

  Suddenly it struck him. “Holy shit!”

  Bryce slammed on the brakes and jerked the wheel to the right, swerving his black Mercedes across several lanes. Car horns all around him erupted in unison, but he just yelled at them. He drove forward, staring in the rearview at the people a few hundred feet behind him on the highway and getting more distant, “You’ve got to be kidding me!”

  He looked ahead to see a sign that marked an exit ramp coming up in half a kilometer. He hit the map view on the GPS and figured he would get off the highway and double back. Abby and Eric were standing helpless next to a cab on the side of the road. He chuckled to himself as he thought about how shocked they would be when he pulled up behind them.

  * * *

  JJ looked down at his ringing phone, and immediately punched it on when he saw who was calling. “Bro, are you OK?”

  “I’m fine.” Ace sounded stressed, and exhausted.

  “What happened?”

  “I’ll tell you in a minute. Where are you?”

  JJ looked at the dash. “The GPS says I’m on the 40, heading north, about thirty minutes outside of Montreal.”

  “Do you have eyes on Abby?”

  “Negative, but I’m doing my best. I just talked to Robert a few minutes ago. Something is going down. One of his security guys is in on it. He thinks they’re walking into a trap.”

  “That’s probably not too far from the truth,” Ace said. He recounted what happened at the airport. “I just got out of holding. I had to call Pete back in Boston to get me in touch with one of his friends out here to spring me.”

  “Pete’s the best attorney there is,” JJ said.

  “How long was the flight up?”

  “Just over two hours, I think.”

  “I’ll be on the next plane,” Ace said.

  JJ thought about that for a minute. “Things are moving pretty quick here. Sit tight. There might be some loose ends in Chicago when I wrap up here.”

  “Good idea. I’ll have my phone on me, so keep me in the loop. I’m going to check into one of the airport hotels and order room service. Airport prison food sucks worse than regular prison food.”

  As they disconnected the call, JJ thought about what he had said. Things were indeed moving quickly. He would feel a lot better if he knew exactly where Abby was, but for now, he depressed the accelerator, pushing the speed limit, and continued on his way.

  * * *

  Bryce got a little lost on side streets as the GPS chirped over and over, “Recalculating... Recalculating...” but he was finally back on track. The cars from the accident had finally been cleared and traffic was moving. It had taken fifteen minutes, but he was back and approaching his target. His heart pounded with anticipation when he saw the bright yellow cab with its hood raised a quarter mile up ahead.

  Putting on his directional, he eased into the breakdown lane and rolled to a stop a respectable distance behind the cab. The driver was the only one standing outside. He figured Abby and Eric must have gotten back inside. He reached down and checked that he had a full clip in his gun, and one in the chamber. He smiled as he screwed on the silencer and slid it into his pants pocket as he flicked off the safety.

  He checked around, making sure no one else had stopped, then drove up closer behind the cab. It was perfect. He stopped right behind them and would get out as a good Samaritan. He didn’t feel badly that he was going to kill the driver, too. Poor guy was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. It was rush hour at dusk, and people were in a hurry, so it was likely no one would notice him.

  He decided he would shoot Abby and Eric inside the car. No one driving by would see or hear it. He would stand on the right side of the vehicle, open the rear passenger-side door, and shoot them. When the driver came around to see what was happening, he’d shoot the driver at close range, and either sit him next to the car or in the front passenger’s seat.

  Bryce was disappointed that he would not be able to prolong and enjoy Abby’s death more, but this would have to do. A job done is a job done. He smirked at the thought that maybe he would take a memento from her with him. Hell, she’s small enough – maybe I’ll just carry her over to my car and take her with me. He sneered at the evil thoughts of what he would do to her.

  He took a deep breath and stepped out of the car. His loafers crunched the sand and gravel as he walked the twenty feet or so to the cab. The driver was still at the front of the car on the other side of the hood. He couldn’t see Bryce coming, nor could he hear him over the sounds of traffic racing by.

  He stopped next to the car, just behind the rear passenger-side door so he wouldn’t be seen by either of his victims. His heart raced and butterflies flew through his stomach. He had killed before, but he never wanted it this badly. He took a deep breath to calm his hands, shaking from the adrenaline. In one smooth motion, he slipped the gun from his pocket, threw open the door, and shoved the gun into the cab as he yelled, “Surprised to see me, bitch?”

  29

  WHAT THE HELL? Bryce couldn’t believe his eyes. The cab was empty. He jumped out and looked around. There was no one. He whipped around, looking back toward the woods off the side of the highway, gun as his side. “Where is that little bitch?”

  The cab driver peeked around the hood of the cab and saw Bryce standing, crouched down looking in the car, “Hey buddy, can I help you?”

  Bryce was startled by the cab driver coming around the corner of the car. However not as much as the driver was startled by the sight of this man with a gun and a crazed look in his eyes.

  “Whoa, buddy,” the driver said, holding up his hands. “I ain’t got no money.”

  “Where are the passengers, your passengers, a man and a woman? Where did they go?”

  “My engine is shot, so another cab pulled over and he gave them a lift. Maybe five minutes ago.”

  “SHIT! Shit, shit, shit!” Bryce was pacing and cursing, paying little attention to the driver, who was reaching down to his belt to pull out a can of pepper spray. As Bryce turned toward him, the driver’s hand flew up to spray Bryce in the face. He never stood a chance.

  Bryce put two bullets in his chest and was back in his car before the driver hit the ground. No one saw a thing, or at least no one stopped. The only thing the commuters noticed was Bryce tearing out into traffic and nearly causing another accident. He floored the large sedan and sped down the freeway, scanning the traffic for another taxi where he hoped to find his prey. Yet a full ten minutes later he was still a ball of rage. He had seen two other cabs, neither of which h
ad the passengers he was looking for.

  The GPS chirped up, snapping him back to reality, “Exit on right in one and one half kilometers.” He looked down. Five minutes to his destination. He hadn’t found them, but he knew where they were going.

  He jerked the wheel to the right as he raced down the onramp, dreaming of killing them – Abby, Eric, Ava, and anyone else he found. His gut wrenched as he hoped there would be more. Children, dogs, anything that breathed. He intended to kill them all.

  * * *

  JJ had rolled by Abby’s sister’s house fifteen minutes ago. He was sure Abby and Eric weren’t there yet. He never did find them along the way. There was a beautiful little girl with long brown loosely curled hair tied back in a ponytail, sitting in the window and watching the street with a serious look on her face. It was a look that he was well familiar with, and there was no mistaking it; she looked just like a little Abby, the mother she hadn’t seen in over a year.

  Somehow he beat them, though he wasn’t sure how. As far as he could tell, there was nothing untoward going on at the house. Occasionally a woman, a little older than Abby, would come to the window and talk to the little girl, then she would disappear back into the house.

  JJ knew he had to talk to Abby and Eric, but he also didn’t want to ruin the reunion. He parked a few houses down with his rental car pointed at Abby’s sister’s house. It was a well-kept upper middle class neighborhood, and the modest sized houses all sat on nicely landscaped properties. The street was only about a quarter mile long and straight as an arrow. In his rear view he could see the intersection behind him, and anyone who might approach from that direction. Out the front window he could anyone coming from that direction. Abby was going to the house exactly halfway down the street.