by A R Zane
He held the envelope gingerly in his hand as he finally located the way to his car. He placed the object on the seat where Emily had sat in hours before, and then he drove away from the park. He drove about two kilometers before stopping to check the content of the envelope. Now that he was alone and posing no danger to anyone, he wasn’t afraid of the worst. A man can only die but once; that was his slogan. He tore open the flap and stared into it. As he had expected, there was a letter in it. He turned the envelope over and let the letter in it slide out. The letter was folded three times in an accurate symmetry.
He killed off the engine of the car as he unfolded the paper and read what it contained.
Hello Max,
You have a new mission. You can choose to take it or just ignore it. But there will be a consequence for your disobedience. If you refuse to carry out this mission tonight, a lot of innocent people will die. How will you receive the news of Emily’s death and her family? How about the death of the man who gave you this letter, including his adorable child Nick? Their survival depends on you. But they are not important. No, they are not as important as the mission you will carry out. I know you will do it. You cannot possibly disobey me.
You will drive down to a club named Fortune 8 tonight. There is a girl there whose life is in danger. You will go there to rescue her. You have to get there before 10pm or you will be too late. But then, those people I mentioned will be killed by then. Please don’t test me. You are a good person, I am evil. Do not let evil prevail once again.
Go to Fortune 8 and locate Barbara Burrows before 10.00. She is the daughter of an important person, and some men will get there by 10pm to kill her. You have to get her out of there before that time. Then drive her to Allison Street and drop her in front of the lion statue before 10.30, not later or some people will still die. The rest shall be taken care of.
That’s all you have to do, Max. It’s pretty simple. Please don’t disappoint me. I’m putting all my trust in you.
Oh, lest I forget. You will find the bodies of the morons that put you in a hospital in a barrel in Warehouse 59.
You’re welcome.
Switched at Bar
For a long time, Max stared at the letter in his hands as if it was a dead puppy. He must have either been in a trance or in a complete loss of thought. He felt helpless; the anonymous individual was playing him like a harp and it was royally giving him discomfort. The adversary knew exactly how Max’s mind worked and he was using that knowledge to his own benefit. He was certain that, with that kind of threat, there was no way Max was going to refuse him. Max thought about calling the madman’s bluff for once, but he only thought about it, he would never do it. He was dealing with a psychopath here; a psychopath who had made him know that he had killed the men from the bar and their corpses were stuffed in some certain barrels in some warehouse. If he could do that, surely he would wipe out two innocent families without batting an eye. No, Max would never allow that. The mere thought of seeing the corpses of those little kids – Emily and Nick – gave him the shivers. He would never be able to live with himself if he allowed that to happen.
When he finally looked up from the letter, everywhere was already dark. He checked the time on the dashboard. 8.14pm. How time flies! He quickly switched on the engine and drove off like a bat out of hell. He had to locate Fortune 8 Club before 10pm or some terrible things would happen. On his count, about six lives were at stake. Six innocent lives rested on his shoulder; he was the only person who could avert the disaster. The safety of one would guarantee that of the remaining five. He brought out his phone and turned on his GPS tracker to easily help him locate the club. He placed the phone in the open compartment beside his seat. He continued following the directions from the phone. By 9.23, he stopped in front of a neon sign that spelled FORTU E 8. The light under the N letter had most probably burnt out. He quickly got out of the car and ran into the club. He flashed the club bouncer his ID card and was immediately granted access. Time was of the utmost importance now. Lives were at stake. He ran into the open hall and nearly fainted. It was filled with about two hundred teenagers dancing and gyrating to the rock music booming from the huge speakers at every corner. A few feet beside him, an apparently intoxicated young boy and girl kissing hungrily and fondling each other vigorously. Max wondered if the girl was the same Barbara he had come here for. But he did not even know how Barbara looked like. How was he supposed to locate her among this sea of people? He stared at his watch, the time was 9.30. He had thirty minutes left. He started to panic while the rock music continued to boom and the kids danced crazily. The DJ dishing out the music was perched on a raised stage. He wore a blue cap with a NY logo and had a huge headphone over his ears.
Suddenly, an idea occurred to Max and he started locating his way to the raised stage. He had to plow through a lot of dancing people who literally and figuratively stepped on his toes. But the time he got to the DJ, he had fifteen minutes left. He had started to panic. He could feel some trickle of cold sweat run through his spine. He tapped on the shoulder of the DJ scratching away at his machine. The young man stared at him as if he was a worm that had just crawled out of a plate of spaghetti.
“What do you want?” the DJ mouthed the words. He did not bother lowering the music; the dancers would complain. It wasn’t good for his reputation as a trusted DJ.
Max replied by showing the young DJ his ID card. Then he mouthed with a very serious expression. “Kill the damn music right now or you will be arrested!” He gesticulated with his hands.
The DJ, utterly cowered by the threat, stopped the music immediately. He guessed it was better for the dancers to complain than for him to get manacled. He did not want to mess up his parole again. The dancers roared with complaint but Max paid them no mind. He knew that among them all, there was Barbara looking at him right now. He picked up a microphone and spoke into it.
“I’m sorry for interrupting your nice time,” he heard his own voice reverberate through the speakers. “I need to speak with Barbara Burrows. Wherever you are, Barbara Burrows, kindly locate yourself. Your father is worried about you. I need to drive you home. It’s getting late.”
He was responded with shouts of disapproval from the crowd. They didn’t care about what he wanted. They wanted him to leave so that they could continue their dance. Max was not ready to leave without Barbara.
“Does anyone here know a Barbara Burrows? Please point towards her if you do.”
Again, he was rewarded with leering boos. He sighed. The time was 9.52pm. He had eight minutes! Eight minutes! Barbara was not cooperating with him, the dancers were not either. “Please show yourself wherever you are, Barbara. It’s very important. It’s a matter of life and death.”
Still he got no response. Then he decided to play one last card. He reached into his pocket and counted out ten $100 bills. “One grand is available for anyone who can show me Barbara Burrows.”
Like someone had been waiting for him to offer them money, a young boy screamed from the front of the crowd. “She’s here! Here she is! This is Barbara Burrows! He was excited. With a thousand dollars, he would be able to buy cracks for another couple of days.
Max saw her. She was staring directly in his eyes, fear clouded her face. She started to run away. Max jumped down from the stage. The crowd screamed but he picked himself up immediately and ran after Barbara. The time was 9.57; the killers would be coming anytime soon. He had to grab her and get her out of there immediately. He was sure his adversary who had sent him the letter had some around watching his every move, finding out if max would keep to the time. Time was of the essence. Her ran after her and grabbed her before she could escaped through a door that led to God knew where.
“Let go of me!” she screamed.
‘Your father wants you, Barbara,” he was lifting her over his shoulder and walking quickly towards the exit.
“I don’t know you!”
“I’m taking you to your father.”
&
nbsp; “Who are you?”
“You’re not supposed to be here.”
“Help! Somebody help!”
“Keep your voice down, Barbara. There are people who are coming to kill you right now. If you don’t cooperate with me, we will both be dead in less than five minutes.” They were already out of the door. On hearing his warning, the girl had relaxed her struggle and she was now running with him towards the waiting car.
9.28pm.
Max put her in the passenger seat beside him and drove away from the club. He drove as fast as possible. For five minutes, neither of them spoke. Max was busy with getting away from the club as far away and as fast as he could possibly go. At least, he had beaten the deadline by a minute. The families would be safe. He wished those family members could see what he had gone through to ensure their safety.
“Are you really taking me home?” Barbara suddenly asked.
Max shook his head as he concentrated on his driving.
She brought out her phone from her jeans pocket. “I’m calling my Dad.”
Max snatched the phone from her. He could see that she was using a similar phone to his. He dropped it on the dashboard. The girl did not struggle with him. She was silent for a few seconds. “You don’t know my father, do you?”
“No, I don’t know your father.”
“Where are you taking me?”
“My job is to deliver you to a certain location.”
“Where?”
“I’ll drop you off at the junction of Allison Street. Some men will pick you from there.”
Surprisingly, the girl relaxed back in her sear. “So you’re kidnapping me after all.”
Max suddenly braked into a stop. “What did you just say?”
“Isn’t it obvious?” she replied, “I’m not as daft as you think. If you are not taking me to my father but dropping me off somewhere for some men to pick me up, then it’s an obvious kidnap.”
It hit Max like a matador. Once again, the sick bastard had used him. In a single day, the same day he buried his mother, he had seen the same Craig he had been seeking for weeks but he had once again slipped from him. Then he had helped deliver a kidnapped victim, now he was helping to kidnap another person’s daughter. He had been made into thinking he was saving the girl’s life but in the actual sense he was helping the anonymous bastard to further his kidnap goal. The bastard was smart, Max gave him that. He was highly intelligent; a formidable adversary indeed. And once again, Max swore that he would get him. He would have the last laugh eventually. Sooner or later, the genius would slip up and lose the game. Max was ready to show him that he had chosen the wrong playmate.
He thought about Barbara beside him. He could just drop her now and allow her to find her way back to her parents. But he knew he couldn’t do that; he wouldn’t dare. He had twenty minutes to deliver her to Allison Street or there would be an irreparable damage. He would have to sacrifice one person to save five other innocent people. It was a fair trade. Besides, he was sure that the villain had no interest in killing Barbara. He just wanted to use her to take some money from her father. As soon as the ransom was paid he would release the girl to her parent, just like he did Emily. He had used Emily to test how things would play out, and of course it had played out fine, just like the kidnap of Barbara was going to pan out too.
“Do you know who my father is?” she suddenly asked.
“Is that supposed to make me release you?” he asked.
“Senator Richard Burrows,” she said, “That’s my father’s name.”
Max had heard of the name but he really didn’t care much about that. What he was interested in right now was delivering her for the safety of five other people. To hell with Senator Richard Burrows; he sounded rich enough to pay for whatever ransom was requested.
He finally arrived at Allison Street at 10.21pm. He drove to the statue of the lion as directed and stopped.
“Pick you phone and get out,” he told her.
The girl moped at him. “Then she picked the phone beside her, opened the door and went out of the car.
As Max drove away, he noticed a black SUV parked at the side of the road, not very far from where Barbara stood in the quiet night. He knew this location had been chosen because of its quietness. The smart bastard!
He drove for another half an hour before reaching his apartment. He was very tired already. The whisky was already making him drowsy. He parked the car in the driveway and went into his room. He could neither eat nor bathe. He just collapsed on the bed and slept off.
He would later learn in the morning that his phone had been switched the night before.
Dark Alley
It happened like the first time. His bedside phone rang again; this time, the call had interrupted his dream. He was having a swords-fight with Craig who had turned out to be the mysterious man tormenting him. They were in an open field and their horses tied to the background stable. They were in a country; although the place seemed familiar in the dream but Max had never been there in reality before. And it was ridiculous that he was fighting his brother with a sword. A sword of all weapons! What happened to guns or even physical combats? Why must it be a sword? And where had he learnt the sword skills he displayed in the dream? He had never had a more ridiculous dream in his life. He blamed it on the whisky he took the day before.
He groped for the receiver and placed it against his ear. “Hello,” he half-expected that another hysterical housewife somewhere would be wailing over her lost husband.
“Is this Detective Maxwell Dunne?” It was a man’s voice.
“Yeah. How may I help you?”
“I think you need to come immediately. There’s something you need to see.”
Max glanced towards the alarm clock. 6.07am.
“Who is this?”
“This is Inspector Rudge,” replied the caller, “We’re investigating a case I think concerns you very much.”
“Okay, where am I coming?”
“Naturally, I should direct you to our station but for the respect of your profession, I will allow you to come and see things for yourself if you don’t mind. Locate the alley close to Freedom Bridge. I shall be waiting for you.”
Max knew exactly where the man was talking about; he had once arrested some thugs there himself in the past. “I’ll be there in an hour.” As he showered, he thought about the call. Surely, for an inspector to have called him then something terribly bad had happened. The memories of the previous nights suddenly flooded in and he became momentarily scared. He remembered that he had picked Barbara from Fortune 8 and had delivered her to Allison Street. He had driven away without looking back. He had left the helpless child with men he knew nothing about. And Allison Street was a stone’s throw from Freedom Bridge. He suspected what had gone wrong but he refused to consider it. No, he would not do that to himself. No, that could never have happened. The person he was dealing with might be sick but he could not possibly be a raving lunatic.
He had a quick breakfast, got dressed and went to his car. Phew! The day’s mission had started again. As he sat behind the wheel, he noticed the phone on the dashboard. He smiled; he had forgotten to take it inside when he reached home. He had only cared about resting his tired little head.
He picked up the phone and checked if he had some messages. The first thing that attacked him was a lady’s picture on the home screen. He nearly dropped the phone in shock. Who is this? he asked himself. Is this Barbara? No, definitely not! He could not yet recall the vivid details of the events of that night. But something must have happened after he dropped the girl off.
As he browsed through the phone further, he saw some strange things. Nothing familiar came up in the gallery. Then Max suddenly put two and two together and got an amazing twenty-two. This was not his phone, he discovered. Barbara had somehow mistakenly picked his phone instead of her own. But then again, if that was the case, he wondered why a strange girl’s picture was on her home screen. It probably had somethi
ng to do with the strange call he had received from Inspector Rudge.
He dropped the phone and started his car. In the space of one month, he had used the car more than he had since the past three years he got it. The bastard stalking him had made sure he was busy. Perhaps this was why he had demanded that $100 be sent to Max’s account; enough money for him to buy gas to fuel the car. But Max had a full tank already and he had not even consumed 75% yet.
He located the alley within the hour and stepped out of his car. A fat man with a big belly walked up to him. He was smoking a cigarette. He expended a dirty hand towards Max. “You’re welcome, Max. my name is Inspector Rudge, I called you earlier this morning.”
Max nodded in agreement. “So, what is so urgent that requires my attention?”
Inspector Rudge stared at him for a moment, then he shrugged his shoulders. “Please come with me.”
He led Max into a dark alley. They walked downward until they located a figure lying in front of a tunnel. It was the corpse of a girl; and not just any girl but the same girl on the home screen of the phone with him! How was that remotely possible? The phone he held was Barbara’s phone obviously. Max stared at the corpse, she was a pretty girl. Not more than 21 or 22. The hilt of a knife protruded from the side of her stomach. The area was crimson.
Max turned to Rudge and said, “It looks like murder.”
Rudge nodded. “Yes, it is murder indeed.”
“Who killed him?”
“That’s what we’re trying to determine. It’s why we brought you here. We were hoping you might shed some light to this ugly incident.”
Max stared at the corpse again; he had never seen this girl before in his life. He turned to Rudge yet once again. “You want me to investigate her death?”
Rudge shook his head. “Oh no. we can manage that. You only have to answer a few question. You can return to the comfort of your bed as soon as you answer these simple questions.”