Web of Deceit

by Peggy Slocum

  “That’s better,” Sydney says, referring to Beth’s smile. He reaches for a cup and places it into an automated machine on the small condiments counter. He opens the top placing a wafer-like disc inside and clamps it closed. “Do you like hot cocoa?” he asks as the machine makes a skipping rumble.

  “Yes,” Beth responds while petting the fluffy canine. “How old is Mae?” She glances up at Sydney to watch him retrieve her cup from the machine.

  “She’ll be seven years this fall,” Sydney answers, already in route to hand her the cup of cocoa.

  “Thank you.” Beth smells the sweet aroma. “Wow, she’s so young and spry for her age.”

  “Yes. Healthy diet and a lot of love—that’s the secret to my Mae.” Sydney pats Mae on the top of the head and gives her a gentle rub under her neck. Puzzled, he stands up, placing his hands on his hips. “Hey, how did you get in here?”

  “Through the main entrance.”

  “That’s odd.” Sydney pulls a large key ring off of his belt loop. “I just checked that door, and I was certain it was locked. Well, come on, Mae.” He opens the door. “We have to check that door out.”

  Obedient to her master, Mae stands to her feet and leaves Beth’s side.

  “Wait for me.” Beth rises to her feet. “I’d like to join you, if it’s all right.”

  “Of course,” Sydney says. “Mae and I would love the company.”

  “Are those the doors you entered through?” Sydney asks, pointing past the large water fountain.

  “Yes.” Beth’s eyes search the large mall in every direction, worried Mrs. Freedman made it in as well.

  Now in front of the door, Sydney reaches out and grasps hold of the large metal handles to test them. “Huh.” Sydney scratches his head. “Are you sure this is the right door?”

  “Yes.”

  Sydney shakes the doors, verifying they are still locked. “They won’t budge. What made you choose these doors?”

  “Well, you may not believe this, but God told me to come to this door. I tried another, and it wouldn’t open, so I decided to listen to his voice. He led me to your office.”

  “You are a Blessed Savior!” Sydney says to the Lord, lifting his eyes up toward the heavens. “God knew that old Sydney and Mae would help you. You are an awesome God!”

  “Gr-r-r-ruff,” Mae interrupts, growling at the doors.

  “What’s wrong, girl?” Sydney asks. Mae’s barks becoming more fierce.

  Beth peers out through the double glass doors. What’s bothering Mae. Beth’s heart races as she succumbs to her fear. “Sydney, run! The woman chasing me! She’s coming through the …”

  Sydney’s attention fixes on the mall entrance as the gray Cadillac barrels into the first set of doors. The little man begins to run.

  Smash!

  Glass shatters as the car crashes through the main entrance. The engine races louder as Mrs. Freedman pushes her car through the second set of doors.

  Beth runs for her life.

  An evil grin is smeared across Mrs. Freedman’s face as she breaks through the inner set of doors, smashing into a wooden bench that is bolted to the floor. The bench thrusts forward sliding along the tile floor, heading in Sydney’s direction. Sydney tries to dodge the impact, but the bench rotates and slides sideways, hitting Sydney and knocking him to the ground.

  “Ugh!” Sydney grunts in pain.

  “Sydney!” Beth shouts to her new friend as she glances back at Mrs. Freedman. “We have to go!” Beth says, now at Sydney’s side, reaching for his hand to help him up.

  “I can’t, child. It’s you she’s after. Leave me and run, and take these.” Sydney throws her his ring of keys. “You’ll need these to escape.”

  Beth grabs the keys mid-air. “Not without you!” She scans the surrounding area. The wheelchair rental sign next to the escalator catches her eye. She takes a second glimpse at Mrs. Freedman, who is shouting words Beth can’t understand.

  Mrs. Freedman pounds on the dashboard because her car is stuck on a slab of concrete that held the bolts of the bench. The engine revs higher and higher as she struggles to free her car.

  “Oh God, please, keep her busy so I can help Sydney,” Beth prays as she runs as fast as she can to the wheelchair rentals. Beth jumps over the counter, grabs a wheelchair, and drops it on the other side. After climbing back over the counter, she pops the chair open and hurries to Sydney’s aid.

  Bang! Bang!

  Mrs. Freedman fires her weapon in Beth’s direction.

  “Sydney! Keep down, I’m coming.” Beth races to his rescue.

  “Forget about me and run!”

  “Not a chance.” Beth touches his arm, startling him.

  “You keep that up, and you won’t have to worry about that lady. I’ll be dead of heart failure.” Sydney teases Beth as she helps him in the wheelchair.

  Bang! Bang!

  Mrs. Freedman hits the bench this time.

  “Ugh!” Sydney pulls himself up by the chair’s arms. Beth helps by supporting his waist.

  “Are you OK?” Beth runs, pushing Sydney towards a wheelchair ramp.

  “Yeah, I think it’s only a broken bone or two,” Sydney responds.

  “Thank you, Jesus!” Beth prays. “Do you have a car?”

  “Excellent plan.” Sydney encourages Beth. “I have a truck. It’s parked at the east entrance. Keep right.”

  Zing! Smash!

  Mrs. Freedman aimed a shot at Beth’s head and missed by a fraction, causing a store window to shatter and setting the alarm off. She punches the accelerator again, only this time, the vehicle is set free. Her tires squeal and echo inside the otherwise deserted mall.

  “Which way?!” Beth asks, loud enough to be heard over Mrs. Freedman’s ruckus. They near the end of the wide hall.

  “Left!” Sydney answers. “Quick, Beth. It’s over there. The exit at the end of that narrow hall.”

  “I see it, Sydney. Do you have your truck keys ready?”

  “Yes … uh … Beth, where’s Mae?”

  “Mae! Here girl! Mae! Come on, girl!” Beth hollers each time louder than the last in hopes of being heard above the noise. Beth reaches the exit and slams her backside into the lever causing it to open.

  Bang!

  The exit light shatters, sprinkling shards of glass on Beth and Sydney.

  “Here Mae!” Beth pushes Sydney through the door.

  “Thank you, Lord!” Sydney says as Mae comes running through the door behind them.

  “Hurry to your truck.” Beth begins to close herself inside the mall. “I’ll have her chase me out the other side through the store next to us so you have time to get away.”

  “No, Beth, what are you doing?” Sydney asks as tears come to his eyes.

  “It’s me she’s after. Get out of here while you can!” Beth allows the door to close, separating her from Sydney and what appears to be safety.

  “No!” Sydney bangs on the door. Let me help you!”

  You already have … by sharing your love and strength that God has given you and reminding me of who is really in control. To God be the glory, Beth thinks.

  Bang! Spew!

  Beth ducks as another bullet misses her. Oh father, I have the keys, but I’ll never make it to the main door. Please direct my path.

  Bang!—Smash!

  A bullet plunges into the window causing an entire wall of glass to shatter.

  “Thank you, Jesus!” Beth says. God used the bullet meant to kill Beth to create a path for her to get away.

  Mrs. Freedman eyes Beth escaping into JC Penney. She blasts an opening in the front of the store and chases after her.

  Beth weaves in and out of the clothing racks as the sounds of the Cadillac, gunshots, and shattering glass grow closer.

  “I had enormous plans for you!” Mrs. Freedman shouts loud enough to be heard. “We could have created a perfect world together. You were to be my replacement. Why can’t you see what you are missing?”

  “No! Y
ou’re the one that doesn’t get it! It’s impossible to be prefect. That is why your subjects keep failing. You are looking for peace to come, but he already came, and they nailed him to the cross,” Beth shouts back at Mrs. Freedman.

  “I know the Bible, girl, and have read it several times!” Mrs. Freedman says in her defense as she moves closer to her target, now on foot pursuing her prey.

  “You keep saying that, but you miss the most important part. Jesus can set us free.” Beth watches the clothing racks in the direction of the mad woman. “I gave my life to God today, and when I asked him to forgive me, he gave me peace. You can’t find it on earth, and it can’t be bought. I know this because I have searched for it since I was eleven years old. And, Jesus was there the whole time waiting for me to believe.”

  Bang!

  A bullet hits Beth in her right shoulder, spinning her around. “Augh!” Beth screams as the impact of the bullet sends her crashing through the mannequins and landing hard against the display window.

  * * *

  “Beth, where are you!” Symphony says as she stomps on the gas pedal and lets out a scream of frustration. “Augh! When is this nightmare called life going to end!?” Symphony turns onto the highway towards Boston. Symphony flips open Beth’s phone and presses Send on the last number that called her and listens as it rings four times before …

  “Hello?” Sarah answers.

  “Sarah,” Symphony says, happy to hear a familiar voice. “I can’t find Beth. Have you heard anything?”

  “They aren’t telling me anything, and Elliot is being loaded into the ambulance. But I did hear a voice on the radio say they had a 911 call from a mall about ten minutes ago. They said it was approximately fifteen minutes outside of Boston.”

  “Do you think it’s Beth?”

  “I don’t know, but two officers ran to their cars and took off right after the call.”

  “I must be just ahead of them. I’ll check out the Townsend Mall just in case.”

  “Good idea.” Sarah pauses a moment. “Please be careful, Symphony. Without God in your life, it’s like playing with matches and gasoline. If you die without choosing him, you will go to hell. I’m praying for you.”

  “Um … thanks, and don’t worry, I’ll save Beth.”

  “Beth is safe in the arms of God. It’s you I’m worried about.”

  “OK, I’ll call ya when I find her.”

  “Thank you.” Sarah gets the hint to end the conversation. In a sweet voice she says, “God loves you.”

  She really believes all that stuff about God. I wish I could believe. It would be nice to have something to look forward to after I die. I’m pretty unlucky though. I’d find away to mess that up to. After all this is over, I’ll find myself a hobby. Maybe then I’ll find the peace and happiness Sarah’s talking about. That’s what it is—believing in God is her hobby. Well, that’s not exactly what I’m into right now. That’s it. I ran into Avery last week, and he said he was going hang gliding at the cape, and it’s as close to flying like a bird as you can get. That would be true freedom, flying in the air with nothing around you except the birds and wind. That’d be awesome. I’d probably have to jump off a mountain … “Hey! That’s it!” Symphony squeals the tires as she takes a sharp right onto the exit. She whips the wheel so fast the car almost slides into the concrete embankment flanking the ramp. Regaining control, she races for the mall entrance on the other side of a traffic signal turning red. In a blur, she drops a gear and punches the accelerator. She gains speed as she nears the light, and she takes a quick glance from left to right. All clear. Symphony barrels through the red light and takes a sharp right into the empty parking lot.

  “Man! What’s that?” Symphony reaches the mall entrance and hears the alarms. “Wow.” She slows down enough to get a better view of the gaping hole in the mall’s main entrance. “The doors are smashed.”

  Bang!

  Symphony hears the distant gunshot. That came from the other side. Symphony pops the clutch and presses the accelerator, turning right, still stepping on the gas as she rounds the front of the mall nearing the east side. The Corvette’s exhaust bellows in response.

  Symphony sees a man in a wheelchair nearing an old Ford truck and drives in his direction. Symphony tromps on the brake pedal engaging the anti-lock system. The car comes to an abrupt halt.

  “Hey, what’s goin’ on?” Symphony asks.

  “Someone has lost their mind and they’re chasing a young woman in the mall with a gun. She’s trying to escape through JC Penney. Over there.” The man points toward the mall. “Can you help her?”

  “Yep,” Symphony says as the Vette’s wheels chirp, and she speeds away from Sydney. Symphony shines her high beams on JC Penney’s storefront. Beth is up against the glass, and Mrs. Freedman is to the left raising her gun. She hears sirens. Sorry guys, I’m not stopping. She stomps the gas pedal all the way to the floor.

  Fifty yards before the front of the car impacts the window, Symphony focuses on Mrs. Freedman. I hate clichés, but, “the more you run over a dead cat, the flatter it gets.” Glass shatters as the car impacts the storefront and crashes to the floor, stopping exactly where Mrs. Freedman was.

  * * *

  To protect herself from flying glass, Mrs. Freedman drops her gun to the floor and covers her face as she runs to safety, avoiding the falling vehicle.

  * * *

  Spotting the cowardice, Symphony backs the car up and lunges forward sending several clothing racks flying. She stops three feet from Mrs. Freedman and rolls her window down and glares at her. “This time I won’t miss!” Symphony holds the brake, revs the engine and readies herself to flatten Mrs. Freedman.

  “No! Symphony! Don’t do it. I’m OK!” Beth pleads for Mrs. Freedman’s life.

  “She needs to die!” Symphony says loudly enough for Beth to hear.

  “It’s not up to us. God will take care of it. Please don’t bring yourself down. I’m begging you.”

  “OK, but I’m not moving until the police have her in cuffs. One false move, and you become part of the décor. Symphony warns Mrs. Freedman.

  “Please, my little imperfections, together we can change the world!”

  “Talking counts.” Symphony stomps the gas and break pedal again, quickly enough to lurch forward and stop inches from Mrs. Freedman.

  Mrs. Freedman collapses.

  “Just kidding.” Symphony says, returning to her monotone voice.

  As Symphony gets out of the car, a policeman enters the room. “Don’t move!” he says loudly enough to be heard over the alarms.

  “It’s the old woman on the floor in front of the car.” Beth directs him away from Symphony. “And can someone please shut off those annoying alarms!”

  “I have a key for that,” Sydney says from outside the window, elated Beth is alive.

  Pushing the rubble out of the way, Symphony reaches for Beth and helps her to her feet.

  “You know, you are beginning to sound like Sarah.” Symphony helps Beth through the rubble and leads her out of the storefront through the shattered window.

  “Thank you!” Beth says. “It’s true, Symphony, everything that Sarah has told us about God. He has given me peace that I couldn’t imagine.”

  “Praise God!” Sydney shouts with glee.

  “What is this, an epidemic?” Symphony asks.

  “Oh Symphony, after all that has happened, don’t you believe?” Beth asks.

  “I believe you have become a human being and are no longer an untouchable princess,” Symphony scoffs.

  Sydney places his hand on Beth’s shoulder to comfort her. “Don’t underestimate the power of prayer, Beth,” he says. “God opened your eyes, and he’ll open Symphony’s too.”

  “Yeah, you’re right.” Beth throws her good arm over Symphony’s shoulder. “We’re gonna keep praying, and you’ll see his love through us.” She gives Symphony a tender shake and then finishes with a big kiss on her cheek.

  “Um �
� space bubbles are still a good thing,” Symphony says without emotion, causing sweet old Sydney to burst out in laughter as they continue toward the ambulance.

  Beth’s phone vibrates in Symphony pocket. “I almost forgot, here’s your phone, Beth.” Symphony opens it for her.

  “Thanks. Hello?” Beth says.

  “Beth. Thank God. I was worried about you,” Elliot says. “They found Kelly’s body. She’s …”

  “I know. She died helping me. Her last words were ‘I believe.’ We’ll see her again. So much has happened. I can’t wait to tell you everything. God literally lead me to safety. I could hear his voice.”

  “Sweet, I wanna hear all about it.”

  “We’re on our way to the hospital, I’ll call you when I get their,” Beth says. “Hey, I’m sorry I tried to slap you when …”

  Elliot interrupts, “No, I shouldn’t have …”

  “No Elliot,” Beth says. “I …”

  “For cryin’ out loud,” Symphony says, eavesdropping. “Tell him you love him and let’s go already.”

  “Elliot, we’ll do this later,” Beth says, laughing as she presses “end”.

  Beep. Beep.

  Beth presses “enter” to read the text message: “Hello, my beautiful, beautiful, girls.” Beth shakes her head. “Wow, this guy doesn’t give up. It seems there’s another mess that needs cleaning, Symphony. Are you feeling up to it?”

  “Does it involve a raise?” Symphony asks, smiling.

  “Yes.”

  “I’m there.”

  Chapter 25: Loose Ends

  “Frank, you awake?” Elliot asks in a low voice, peeking his head through the hospital door.

  “Elliot, it’s about time.” Frank reaches up to turn on the light mounted above his bed. “I heard you got shot, but it’s been two days. You’re kinda milkin’ it out a bit don’t ya think,” He teases.

  Elliot checks his hospital gown and bathrobe as he limps through the door. “Yeah, yeah. Keep it up old man. I’m back on the Force, and I got my eye on your position.”

  “I heard someone was eying my spot. I can rest easy now, knowing I’ve got no worries.” Frank grins and reaches his hand out to greet Elliot. “So, what’s going on?” Frank asks in a more serious tone. “I heard Joanna got electrocuted.”