by Mark Scott
Chapter Eight
Martin arrived at his apartment around two that afternoon. Without hesitation he threw himself across his bed and fell asleep. A pounding noise slowly aroused him. He tried to gather his senses as the pounding increased in volume. Martin was surprised to see that it was now night. He stumbled out of bed, his face creased from lying on blankets. His hair was disheveled and his eyes still heavy with sleep. Opening the door he was confronted by a stocky middle aged man. He was wearing dress slacks and a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up. He held up a badge and spoke.
"Bruce Martin?"
"Yes", replied Martin.
"I have a search warrant allowing me to search these premises", said the man as he stepped past Martin.
"Search for what?" asked an obviously irritated Martin.
"Cocaine.", the cop replied flatly.
"That's ridiculous!"
The cop handed Martin the search warrant. Martin stood there scanning over the document still half asleep and barely comprehending what he was reading. A uniformed cop came strolling in.
"You check the bed room; I'll look in the kitchen." The two men rummaged around Martin's apartment until he heard the uniformed cop cry out, "Viola!" The uniform cop bounded out of the bedroom, a sly smirk upon his face and holding a Ziploc bag of white powder. Martin was shocked. "No way!" protested Martin. "This is a setup!" The plain clothed man instructed the other to bring the car to the bottom of the stairs. Then he pushed Martin into the kitchen.
"Put your hands on the counter and spread your legs".
"I want to see some I.D....who are you?" demanded Martin. The man did not respond. He began to pat down Martin. When he ran his hands down Martin's leg he steadied himself with one hand on the counter. Martin glanced at a ring he wore. To his horror Martin noticed that it was the same design as a ring worn by Hidell. Martin now realized that these were no ordinary cops, if they were cops at all. Panic shot through every fiber of Martin's body. His mind went totally blank and he now acted purely on instinct. Before he realized what was happening Martin had grabbed a marble paper towel holder and slammed it into the man's head. The man fell unconscious to the floor. Martin dropped the holder and bolted towards the still open door. He could hear the policeman coming up the stairs. He spun around and frantically scanned the apartment for an escape route. He raced to the sliding glass door that lead out onto a balcony. He threw the door open and stepped out. The balcony overlooked the complex's pool which was in the middle of a large courtyard. Martin climbed up onto the railing and stood balancing himself. Looking back he could see the policeman was now accompanied by another plainclothes man as they entered the apartment. Both rushed to the side of the unconscious man. Martin turned and leaped as far as he could into the air. He landed in the middle of the pool. The icy water enveloped him in a shock of cold. Rising to the surface, Martin flailed at the water in a panic, swimming as fast as he could to the far side of the pool. He grabbed the edge and looked back. He heard a pop sound followed almost immediately by a "thunk" in the water next to him. Martin could see the men on the balcony pointing at him. A bright flash and a pop and again the 'thunk' sound hit the water beside him. Martin realized that they were shooting at him!
Martin pulled himself from the water and ran along the building across the courtyard, his mind delirious with fear. He heard another pop and on the wall immediately in front of him he saw a tiny spark. He felt a sting on his cheek. A bullet had sent shards of concrete into his cheek. Martin ran on barefoot and his clothes, heavy with water, were barely hanging on him. Finally he came to the gate that leads from the courtyard. Pausing to look back he saw the two men run back into his apartment. Martin shot across a parking lot and dove into a thick tangle of brush that separated his apartment complex from its neighbors. Martin laid there, his lungs heaving in an attempt to meet his body's demands for oxygen. He closed his eyes in an attempt to slow his racing mind. He needed to think clearly. Where would his pursuers go? Martin guessed that they would go to the other side of the woods and await his exit, so Martin doubled back. He ran through the parking lot, staying low and hiding behind cars to shield himself from view. Martin moved as quickly and as cautiously as he dared, circling around the parking lot until he reached the far side of the complex. He crept up behind the brick wall that was the condominium complex's sign. He watched the traffic on the road. When no cars were visible Martin bolted across it and fled across the parking lot of a strip mall. The sky was nearly completely dark now. He glanced at his watch. It had stopped when he hit the water at five forty five. He deftly moved through the shadows behind the stores. He came up to a stockade fence which surrounded two green dumpsters. He sat down upon the garbage littered dirt. He leaned back against the fence. It creaked under his weight. He drew his legs up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them in a feeble attempt to stay warm. He laid his head on his arms, his mind racing wildly.
"I wonder if I killed that guy", thought Martin. "What if he really was a cop? No, no way...that was a setup! I'd be in a swamp if I would have left with them. What do I do now? Where...think...where to go...where to go. Leah! Leah lives about a mile away! She could help me!"
Martin rose to his feet. He surveyed his surroundings. He saw nobody, only an empty delivery truck idling behind a store. Martin made his way towards the truck, hobbling across the sand littered with broken glass and sand spurs. He was nearly to the truck when he heard a familiar noise, faint at first but growing rapidly in volume. Thump, thump, thump. It was the sound of an approaching helicopter. Martin spun around to see a tiny red blinking light rushing through the night sky towards him. A blinding beam of Xeon light swept from the helicopter across the city below. "Are they looking for me?" wondered Martin. He bolted for the woods but stopped dead in his tracks. "They'll still see me with their infra-red." Martin ran back to the dumpsters. "I'll have to crawl in here", he thought. Martin lifted the heavy plastic lid when he noticed the truck still idling behind the store. He dashed back to the truck, oblivious to the pain inflicted on his bare feet by the litter of the vacant lot. Martin pulled on the back door of the truck. It was open! He leapt into the truck and slammed the door behind him and not a minute too soon. As Martin wiggled in between two large crates he could hear the helicopter overhead and he could see the truck illuminated momentarily by the circling chopper. Martin leaned back, hoping that the driver would not see him. He could hear the driver coming back to his truck. He heard him step in and sit down. With a lurch the truck began to move. Martin held as still as he could as the truck wove its way through the streets of Miami.
The truck jolted to a stop once again. The airbrakes hissed and Martin heard the driver leave once more. Cautiously Martin leaned forward to confirm that he was indeed alone. He nervously opened the back of the truck and slipped out into the cold night. He found himself on a residential street. He slowly spun around in an attempt to get his bearings. He could see an intersection with street signs down the house lined road. He was walking towards them when he heard the air brakes release and the truck departed. Martin walked, barefoot and wet along the sidewalk until he came to the intersection.
"Sunset Point and Wilson. I know where I'm at," he mumbled to himself. Martin crossed his arms across his chest as the adrenaline abated and the cold now took hold of him. He trotted along one street and then down another, always staying in the shadows. Whenever a car would pass he would step behind a tree, a shrub or a parked car. Finally he found himself standing before Leah's apartment building. Caressing his forehead he tried to coax her apartment number from his memory.
"I'm pretty sure, geez I hope, her apartment is five twenty three," he whispered to himself. If I go to the wrong apartment looking like this they'll call the cops on me for sure. I have no choice, I'm freezing, I can't just wonder around. Geez Bruce you're talking to yourself a lot...you're beginning to lose it man! Well, here goes nothing."
As Martin began walking along the open breezeway in front of the
apartments an elderly man walking his dog stepped out of a door and began walking towards Martin. As the man passed Martin smiled and nodded. The man scowled at him. Martin noticed the old man's eyes dart up and down him, no doubt sizing him up in his bare feet, wet clothes and disheveled hair. With an arrogant huff, the man looked away and spoke to his dog, "C'mon Suzy." The old Martin would have cringed, hoping that the old man would not call the police. But the man's arrogance and rudeness had struck a nerve in Martin. Perhaps it was a reminder of Bruce Martin's very own attitude, an attitude that was quickly dissipating. Whatever the reason Martin noticed that the man wore an old Fedora hat with a small feather tucked into the band. "Nice hat!" mocked Martin, stopping to watch the old man's reaction. The man's only response was to quicken his pace without looking back.
Martin walked briskly until he came to apartment five twenty three. He knocked on the door. Slowly it opened. Leah stood in the door way looking at Martin in astonishment. "Hi", said Martin sheepishly. He stood there for a moment waiting for Leah to invite him in but she was frozen with surprise. With yet another departure from his old ways Martin brazenly asked, "May I come in?" "Oh...yeah...sure, sorry 'bout that," said Leah as she moved away from the door to allow Martin to enter.
Martin sat down on a chair and Leah sat on the couch across from him. Martin launched into the incredible story of the virus, starting with the cutter Courageous and ending up with the setup by the police that evening. When he finished a full forty five minutes had passed. Martin looked at Leah desperate for her to believe him. Leah was somewhat skeptical. But a sharp rap on her door would put an end to any suspicions. Martin leapt to his feet and slipped into the little hallway that led to the bedroom. He raised his finger to his mouth to signal "shhh." Leah nodded her understanding and opened the door with more than a little apprehension.
There stood a tall young man. He stepped in pushing a shocked Leah out of the way. "I'm here for Bruce Martin."
"Who?" asked Leah innocently.
"Listen lady I don't have time for games. If you want to live to see the next hour tell me where he's at!"
Martin stepped out of his hiding place. The young man looked at him suspiciously. "Bruce Martin?" Martin simply nodded. "Colonel Davis sent me for you. My name is Rob. We have to leave now! They're right behind me!" "Who?" injected Leah. Rob completely ignored Leah's inquisition and said simply, "We need to go!" Leah looked at Martin. Martin looked at Leah. Martin realized that he really had no choice but to trust this stranger. "O.K. I'll go with ya." Martin turned to Leah, " Thanks Leah...thanks for believing me." Rob said, "Uhhmm...I think your friend should go with us...I mean I don't think these people would hesitate to harm her." Martin looked over at Leah. Leah had a determined look on her face, "Let's go!" Leah jumped back into her bedroom and returned in just seconds wearing shoes and carrying a laptop and some clothes. "Here!" she said tossing some flip flops and a jacket to Martin. The three of them scampered out of Leah's apartment and bolted across the parking lot. They climbed into the Suburban that Rob was driving. As they approached the street Rob said "Quick! Get down!" Martin and Leah lay down across the back seats. They could see headlights sweep across the vehicle. Martin could feel that they were turning onto the street. He cautiously raised his head and looked back into the parking lot. There was the same dark sedan and two police cars in front of Leah's apartment. Martin sat back in his seat and exhaled loudly. Looking over at Leah he said, "Sorry I got you into this mess. Maybe we could drop you off at a friend's house or something." "Oh no, that's alright Bruce", said Leah. "Besides this is the most exciting date that I've ever had!" Leah chuckled lightly and adjusted an attaché case on her lap. Martin had been so unnerved by the day's events that he did not notice the case until now." What's that?" he inquired. "My laptop...has all of my business contacts and music. Ya never know when ya might need an internet link, ya know?" Martin smiled at her. They were both startled by a ringing phone. Rob picked up a large brick phone off the front seat. He spoke in a low voice before hanging up. Martin could see Rob looking at him in the rear view mirror. "Mister Martin..." "Call me Bruce" interrupted Martin. "Bruce that was some of my associates. They have informed me of something that may be of interest to you two." "Oh yeah? What would that be?" inquired Martin. "It's just up here." responded Rob as his voice was drowned out by the wail of a passing fire truck. Rob deftly spun the steering wheel to guide the car down a dark street lined with businesses. Up ahead the night sky glowed in a flickering orange light.
Rob steered the car around the next corner. "Oh my God!" exclaimed Leah. There before them was the Biscayne Sun building engulfed in an enormous fire. Martin said nothing. He sat there staring out the window in utter shock. Rob slowed the car to a crawl. Martin watched the flames dance high into the air. People silhouetted against the bright flames moved slowly like dark forms from Dante's lower levels of hell. It all seemed so incredibly surreal.
"Pretty obvious that they are panicked huh?" asked Rob as he stepped on the gas. "Who are they?" Leah asked. "Well it's pretty complicated but it basically boils down to this...they are elements of the government that have operated in the shadows for decades. People whose job is to insure that the elite stay in power."
"So why should they care about this bug?" asked Leah. Rob just shrugged "Long story", he said dryly.
Leah noticed Rob looking into the rear view mirror as he spoke. He made a sudden right turn and then another, all the while glancing into the mirror. "Damn!" he said.
Martin looked nervously over his shoulder. Leah did the same. Their bodies lunged back into their seat as Rob stepped on the gas. Looking out the back window Martin watched as the headlights of a car behind them closed the distance between the two vehicles. There was a hard thump and the suburban leapt forward. The car was ramming them! There was a second grinding thump followed by the sound of racing engines as the cars careened wildly through the streets of downtown Miami. Rob accelerated and yanked the steering wheel violently to the right. The car slid sideways with its tires screeching as it whipped around the corner. Rob turned the lights off and looked back into the rearview mirror to see his pursuers fly through the intersection.
"We lost them!" cried Martin triumphantly.
"Not for long." Rob replied.
They came to an overpass and Rob locked the brakes up. The car slid with its tires protesting, screeching in acrid blue smoke. Rob leapt from the car and ran to the back. Martin and Leah watched him with anxious curiosity. Rob slammed the trunk closed and glanced nervously around. Martin was alarmed to see that he carried a large military assault rifle with some kind of large projectile protruding from beneath the barrel. He ran up to Martin's door and yanked it open as he yelled, "Get out hurry! Jump up front and get the hell out of here! The phone next to you is a secure satellite phone...play with it...you'll figure it out. The Colonel's number is programmed into it. Call for help after you find a safe place. Get rid of the car quickly. Oh...here, you might need this." Rob said as he pulled a nine millimeter pistol from beneath his shirt. He tossed it on the front seat next to Martin. "Now go!"
Martin slammed the door and in a rush of adrenaline he gunned the engine. The wheels screamed as the car fishtailed down the road. Martin could hear the sharp crack of rapid rifle fire. In his rearview mirror he could see the flashes of the fire fight behind them.
"Hang on!" cried Martin. Leah hung onto the back of the front seat as Martin wildly spun the steering wheel, putting the car into a hard right.
"What are you doing?" Leah asked excitedly.
"I'm going back to help him."
"But I really think he wanted you to stay safe. He was counting on you to get the truth out."
"Listen", said Martin, "Here's my zip drive, it has everything on it. I'm going to stop up here and let you out."
"Oh no you're not!" said Leah defiantly as she climbed into the front seat.
Martin looked sternly at her. "Listen Leah I got you into this mess and I'm not about to b
e responsible for you getting killed!"
"You Listen Bruce! I'm a big girl...I can take care of myself. "
Martin smiled at her. "Alright then...game on!"
The car sped through the streets. In just minutes Martin pulled the car onto the road's shoulder. The car came to a rest just short of the overpass. Martin and Leah got out and moved stealthily across the road. The silence was broken only by a low hissing sound. As they approached the overpass Martin could see the flickering orange light of flames on a road sign. He stopped and looked around, holding the pistol that Robbie gave him at the ready. He turned to Leah and put his index finger to his pursed lips silently signaling her to remain quiet.
The two of them sat as still as a tombstone, intently listening. Then, together, they half slid, half fell down the steep embankment onto the street below. Before them was a car still burning. Martin squinted against the glare of the flames. He could make out the charred remains of the driver still sitting upright behind the steering wheel. On the concrete embankment under the overpass they found the body of a middle aged man. Martin walked up to the corpse. Martin put his foot on the man's shoulder and pushed. The dead man rolled over, his arm flinging limply as he did. Martin looked into his partially open eyes. "Ya know him?" he asked Leah. Solemn faced Leah simply shook her head, "no." Martin rolled the body back over and pulled out his wallet and slid it into the waistband of his pants.
"What a ya doin?" protested Leah.
"When we can, I want to go through his wallet. Maybe we can figure out who he's workin' for."
Leah nodded her approval. "Where's Rob?" she asked.
Martin looked around and shrugged. "I don't know...maybe he got away." They could hear a chorus of sirens off in the distance. "Let's go...hurry!" shouted Martin. The two of them raced back across the road, past the burning car and dead bodies. They scrambled back up the steep incline of the overpass and leapt into the car. They flew down the road until they came to an intersection. Martin stopped at the stop sign as police went through it with lights and sirens wailing.
"That was too close", said Martin.
"Where are we going?" Leah inquired.
"Don't know...I'm thinking', but I do know that we gotta get rid of this car quick! Wait! Yeah...yeah...I know where to go! Now I just gotta figure out what to do with this car."
Leah sat next to Martin saying nothing and constantly looking all around them as though she expected the unknown enemy to appear any second now. "O.K I got it now...feel like going for a walk Leah?"
"I guess".
"I'm going to park the car up here at Byrd Plaza and then we'll have to walk for three miles or so. We'll go to my old church, they'll give us refuge," Martin said, his voice trailing off into a mumble. After a few minutes they pulled into the dark parking lot of the plaza. Martin turned off the car and looked around. They sprang from the car. Martin brought the gun and the satellite phone with him. He tossed the keys on the floorboard and locked them in the car.
"Keep to the shadows and stay out of sight. I know that they're looking hard for us. O.K.?" he asked. Leah smiled weakly and nodded her concurrence. They stood there for a moment, Martin holding the phone and Leah her laptop. Then they walked silently across the parking lot and disappeared into the shadows.