Chapter 19
Lovelle drove to the park that backed up to his parent’s neighborhood. It was situated behind the houses across the street from their own. There, he scaled a tree and precariously balanced himself in the high branches. He only wished he had a Gilly Suit. It was an extreme form of camouflage. A suit covered in whatever type of natural growth in which you were to be concealed. But a tree branch covered suit was not something you could buy off the rack, even if it weren’t the middle of the night. And it wasn’t something he had time to fasion. He would have to hope that a few torn off branches tied to his arms and legs would suffice if he were required to stay there after daybreak.
From his vantage point he was able to train his rifle on his parent’s front door. Should Hardy come calling, he could be dispatched pretty easily from the tree. It was a long shot that Hardy would simply use the front door. But, if he wanted to make a point before Lovelle could get there to stop him, then he might act fast, which can lead to imprudence.
***
For his own part, after the conversation, Hardy decided that he would have to regroup. He believed Lovelle meant it when he said he would go into hiding. And whether by intention or not, if the man knew his parents were dead, then he would have all the more incentive to hide. So it was a question of tactics. Killing his parents might eventually bring about the confrontation Hardy wanted. But it could be a drawn out process. Men who have seen the people around them resurrected time after time, can start to think less of the lives of those people. Lovelle might suffer the demise of his parents during several lifetimes before deciding he’d seen enough. Especially if he really believed what he had surmised about the end of the world.
Hardy was angered by the turn of events, but, he did not forget who he was dealing with. As far as Hardy could ascertain, Lovelle was the only one of the time travelers, including himself, to use his knowledge of the future to try and stop Al Qaeda during that first time shift. This, back when they all thought this was a one time occurrence. While most of them were trying to take advantage of the situation, Lovelle was risking his life and eschewing personal gain to do something noble. Hardy had admired this man since long before he knew who he was. And the traits that made Lovelle so admirable were the very traits that could lead to a great deal of frustration for anyone going up against him. Hardy did not want to misstep in his haste. So he decided to leave the man’s parents alone, at least for the time being. And that left Lovelle hanging. Or rather, up a tree.
***
After a while, Lovelle decided Hardy was not going to follow through on his threat. It may have been bluster all along, but, Lovelle decided to operate under the premise that it was a change in strategy. He suspected that his adversary had decided that his parents were more useful as bait than as a motivational tool. Lovelle’s own threat to go deep underground might have even been the deciding factor. In any case, he would not be dropping in for a visit any time soon. But, he would be watching
Lovelle went back and forth in his internal dialogue. He wasn’t sure if he should simply disappear for the rest of this life, not risking an incident that he may or my not live to regret, or to try and bring things to a head. It was not his way to sidestep confrontation. But, if there was anything to Hardy’s claim, then there could be a lot more on the line than his own wellbeing. Even if he prevailed he might just cause an unprecedented disaster for humanity. But, if he ran from this fight, he was probably only postponing the inevitable. If Hardy was set on killing him, then, in a world with infinite opportunities, they would eventually cross paths. And if he let Hardy be the hunter, then his odds of survival were seriously diminished.
Lovelle decided to do what had served him well for these many lives. He would take the bull by the horns and put a stop to the affair if he could. First, he tried to track the phone number Hardy had given to his father. After a sizable bribe to a phone company employee, he found only that the number was a mobile one issued to someone other than Hardy. Hoping he had found a false identity he tracked down the owner only to find a senior citizen who had no idea his identity had been stolen. No other leads were turned up and Lovelle never figured out where Hardy had been based. Once he had decided not to involve the parents, Hardy had ditched the phone and skipped town.
***
Wiping sweat from his brow, brought on by the scorching Fort Worth, Texas sun, Lovelle watched his target from across a parking lot, waiting for him to drive off. Without Lovelle’s intervention, the man would soon open fire on the patrons of a popular restaurant. Lovelle had started going on missions again, despite Hardy’s claim to know all of his targets. The first time he’d heard news of a murder he could have prevented, he’d cursed himself and decided that he wasn’t going to let the Brit interfere with his calling. He would just step up his precautions again. He knew that Hardy would find it no less difficult to catch him in the act than Baker had. That is to say, he would have to be both patient and lucky. He knew that Hardy could not predict the timing of his missions. He had been randomizing the order almost from the beginning. But, Cedric Baker had never been so singly focused as Hardy was now. Whatever the nature of his lunacy, Hardy was sincerely convinced that the only purpose left in his life was to dispatch Lovelle’s. And Lovelle knew that if the shoe were on the other foot, and he was the one that was convinced that one individual had to die, then he would do nothing else until that person was dead. And if he knew that the object of his obsession was going to be in a particular place at sometime over the next 10 years, then he would be in that place as well for as long as it took.
Hardy had tried that in Detroit. But he made a mistake. He thought he could force the situation and missed his opportunity. Lovelle didn’t think the man would lose patience again. He would pick one of Lovelle’s targets and park himself like a guardian angel. This had to be especially true once he found out Lovelle was active again. And Lovelle was sure the man would know.
He had worried for a time that Hardy might try to use the FBI to his advantage. He certainly knew enough to set them on Lovelle’s trail. If Lovelle found himself in custody, Hardy might just try to pull a Jack Ruby on him. Lovelle would be a sitting duck just waiting for one well-placed round to put an end to him. But, as he thought about it, he decided that probably did not suit Hardy’s purpose all that well. If he sincerely wanted the vigilante’s work completed, such a scenario would turn into a race against the clock. As long as Lovelle remained alive in custody Hardy could not pick up his mantle for fear of exonerating him. Of course, given enough time, that would probably start to matter less and less. It was certainly something that would remain at the back of Lovelle’s mind.
All of this only meant that Lovelle became an even more patient sniper. With no Maria, no opportunity to go to see his parents, and no permanent home, he could afford to wait as long as it took to get the perfect shot.
He had originally turned sniper because he was afraid Baker would warn his targets. He knew that would not be the case now. The last thing Hardy wanted was for someone else to bag his prey. Lovelle’s death at the hands of anyone else would guarantee another skip. But he might be keeping very close to one of these killers, just waiting for Lovelle to show himself.
Lovelle was on particularly high alert with this mission. His current subject lived and worked in a densely populated area. The kind of place where you could easily blend in. Where not only the subject wouldn’t see you, but, someone observing the subject would miss you as well. It was the kind of place Lovelle would have chosen if he were setting up an ambush. And Lovelle wouldn’t have noticed Hardy if he weren’t looking for him. But, he spotted Hardy shadowing the man from what would have been a safe distance, if their subject were the only one to be concerned about.
Hardy was behind the wheel of a nondescript sedan waiting for the soon to be murderer to move out. Lovelle didn’t hesitate. As always, in his van, his rifle was near at hand. He slid open the little window in the back door, lay the barrel of his 30.06 on t
he padded shelf he had mounted under the access hole and chambered a round. He pushed forward until the flash suppressor protruded barely past the hole. He very quickly stilled his breathing, took careful aim, and blew out the driver’s side front tire. At a distance of nearly 400 yards, Hardy could certainly hear the crack. But, he would likely have ignored it had his car not lurched with the sudden deflation of his tire. Lovelle saw the man’s head swivel, unsure of what to do or where to focus. Then he ducked out of view as Lovelle shattered his rear door window.
Hardy might have spotted the van at that point, if he ventured to look. But, unsure if his life was in jeopardy, he decided to stay down. Given a less stressful circumstance, he would have realized that not only could Lovelle have already killed him if he’d wanted, but, that doing so would go against what Lovelle poffessed to believe. As it was, he never saw the van. Lovelle tore out of the lot before anyone could figure out what had just happened.
The quarry was oblivious to the event and proceeded home as Lovelle hoped. Hurrying, Lovelle arrived a few minutes before the man and watched him enter his apartment building. Knowing for once that Hardy was out of commission, for at least a little while, he followed the man. He topped the stairs just in time to see the target’s door latch shut. He heard the man putting the chain in place, so he knew what he would have to do. He knocked on the door and waited. After a moment an irritated voice answered. “Who is it?”
Lovelle answered quickly, “Phone Company, Mr. Swan. Were having a problem with the lines in the building and we’d like to check your phone.” Swan opened the door a crack and Lovelle kicked it with all of his strength, breaking the chain and knocking the target to the ground. “What the hell?” the man started to protest before Lovelle kicked again, this time planting the heal of his boot on the tip of the man’s nose. The man’s head flew back and struck the base of his coffee table. His eyes closed and Lovelle turned his attention the the door. He shut it quickly, but gently, to avoid drawing attention. From under his jacket he withdrew his .22 caliber revolver. From his side pocket he took his makeshift sound suppressor and installed it. Two rounds to the temple and this killer was rendered harmless for the remainder of this life.
***
When Lovelle’s mother informed him that his father was dying, this for the ninth time, he promised to visit. “That’ll be a nice surprise for him.” She said a little snidely. Although he still called regularly, he had not seen his parents since the visit to inform them of Maria’s murder. “I guess someone has to die to get you to grace us with your presence.” She continued. “I suppose I should just be grateful you don’t have something more pressing to do.”
Lovelle took the verbal abuse in silence. He knew she had every right to be angry with him. She had no idea what was going on with him, and she never would. She had never spoken to him so harshly before, but he knew what she was going through and wouldn’t lash out in his own defense no matter what she said. He couldn’t tell her that the surest way for him to see them both again was to stay away as long as Hardy was lurking around. Having bested the man in Texas, he wondered where his adversary would show up next. Would he find another of Lovelle’s targets to watch, or might he have settled in again with his parents. If he were on the other side he would have to weigh the options. Hardy had to realize that he was less likely to visit his parents than to forgo one of his missions. But, he would likely be a much more vulnerable target when visiting family than when stalking prey.
Lovelle would have his answer soon enough. Although he was on alert for the observer, he was the one to get caught off guard this time. Hardy had set up post in the Hospital parking lot. This time, he was the sniper in a van. He had all but done a cartwheel when Lovelle’s father went into the hospital. He didn’t wish ill for the man, but, if anything was going to bring Lovelle back for a visit, this would have to be it. Plus, he had a static locale where he could set up, with regular hours. If Lovelle came to town, he would have to visit the hospital, and would likely have to do it during visiting hours. That made life easy. Or at least, it should have.
Hardy figured his hunch had paid off when Lovelle arrived with his mother. Hardy knew her car well and his heart started pounding when he saw that she had a passenger. A seasoned killer, just like Lovelle, Hardy had not felt anxious like this in anticipation of a kill in a very long time. His van was not as well equipped as Lovelle’s, but he cracked open the back door and lay prone behind his rifle on its tripod. He watched through the scope as he positively identified his adversary. He might not have recognized him with his curly blonde hair under other circumstances, but, accompanying his mother gave him away. Unfortunately, Lovelle’s mother was walking right between them. He waited, trying to calm his nerves, hoping that they would separate before they entered the building. They did not.
Once again Hardy’s impatience was his downfall. He simply did not want to wait for them to exit at the end of the night. In a split second he told himself that it would be dark, and the risk of failure would be even greater. Although it put the man’s mother at risk, he was confident he could take Lovelle down. The distance was relatively short. He had made plenty of harder shots than this. Lovelle was several inches taller than his mother, so Hardy went for the head shot. He exhaled and squeezed the trigger. The shot was a little low and creased Lovelle’s mother’s scalp before shattering the lobby window.
Spattered with blood, Lovelle did not hesitate. He grabbed his mother and rushed her for the door. Hardy’s second shot tore through his jacket and into the metal door frame. The automatic door opened and Lovelle nearly carried his mother in through the vestibule and up to the reception desk. He stopped to see that her eyes were open before he left her. He knew that he was the real target, and anyone near him was at risk. So he withdrew the ever present .380 auto in his ankle holster, tucked it in his pocket, and then charged into the hospital and down a hall. He knew from past experience that there was a straight shot to the emergency room entrance. If he was lucky, he might get outside in time to catch Hardy unaware and still trying to site him in the lobby.
He was moving at top speed when a nurse pushed a patient in a wheelchair from an adjacent hall. Lovelle tried to avoid them but his shoe caught the chair and he tumbled hard to the tile floor. The nurse tried to help him up while the patient cursed him. “Are you okay?” she asked. He shook her off and charged ahead.
“Sorry, no time!” He shouted back over his shoulder. A minute later he charged out the door and into the lot. He watched as the van squealed out of the lot and into the road. It was too far to even waste a shot at the tires from his little handgun. He didn’t need anyone to know he was carrying, so he left the gun tucked in his pocket. If he hadn’t tripped, it may have been a different story altogether.
“Damn!” He exclaimed. Then he turned back to go check on his mother. He rushed back down the hall, passing the nurse and patient again, only not at quite the same pace. At the reception station his mother sat on the ground with her back against the desk. A doctor crouched next to her, cleaning the wound on her head. Lovelle knelt on the other side.
“Thank God your okay.”
She reached out and touched the side of his head. She withdrew her hand and he saw his blood on her fingers. “Your head.” She said with concern.
“My head?” he said incredulously. She smiled faintly. “I’m so sorry.” He said
“Why are you sorry? What else could you have done?”
Lovelle wanted to tell her, but, decided not to say anything in front of the doctor.
***
“That was the same man that killed Maria.” He told her later. “He was aiming for me. I’ve been hiding from him ever since she was murdered.”
“Why?” She questioned.
“I don’t know?” He lied. “But I was afraid if I came here he’d be waiting. I shouldn’t have put you in danger that way.”
“Oh, Curtis. Why didn’t you tell us?”
“Mom, what was I supposed to
say? Someone is stalking me and I don’t know why? I’d just sound like some paranoid nut case.”
“We’d never think that about you.” She said sympathetically.
“That’s what I’d think if I were you.” He replied. “I haven’t exactly been the poster child for normalcy. But, it doesn’t matter. I should have known better. I should have at least snuck myself in the back way. I can’t believe I just walked in here with you when I knew he might be out there.”
“Do you know who he is?”
“No. Just somebody who’s decided I need to be dead.”
“Did he shoot Maria by accident too?”
“No, I wasn’t anywhere near her? The bastard just took her from me.” Lovelle choked. He paused to recompose himself, “Hey…” he interjected, “I don’t think we should tell Dad. He doesn’t need to worry about me. Let’s just let him think it was a random shooting like everyone else does. That’ll be hard enough on him.” And by everyone else he meant the police, whom he’d feigned ignorance for quite effectively.
His mother argued with him, not wanting to keep something this important from her husband. But, in the end, Lovelle convinced her that it served no purpose to burden him with that piece of information.
“So what are you going to do now? Do you have to leave?”
“No, I just won’t be walking in the front door any more. He’ll expect me to run, so he’ll give up when he doesn’t see me around. And you aren’t going to see me outside of the hospital at all. You just need to act like I’m nowhere to be found. I’ll find my way in.”
Life 10
Time Skip (Book 2): The Time Skippers Page 18