by Luis Samways
She unlocks the phone and reads the message. She smiles. It’s someone she knows. She messages the person back while being cautious of her surroundings as she makes sure none of her class is attentive to her text messaging. She hits send and looks back out of the window. She notices the figure on the bench in the distance reach into his jacket and pull out a phone. She smiles again.
The figure on the bench is wearing casual clothes. He is sporting charcoal washed blue denim jeans and a brown leather jacket. He fiddles in a text and hits send on his flashy phone. Mrs Gardener’s phone vibrates again. She reads the new message and laughs.
The student’s attention goes from their work to her. She immediately puts the phone back in her jeans pocket and carries on marking her papers.
She looks out of the window again and notices that the figure on the bench is now gone. She sighs in contempt as she reaches into her pocket and quickly glances at the new message on the phone.
“I’ll see you tonight at yours. Wear something revealing, ideally nothing. Kiss.” It read
She smiled once again, her heart beating hard in her chest at the thought of her being with another man consumed her. She looked at the name above the message and glee filled her like air fills lungs. She knew who it was anyway, but enjoyed seeing his name. It meant that this was real. The relationship was real and her feelings were real. He made her feel like she was worth more than money and dates. She felt as if she was worth time its self. She glanced at her class room and noticed that nobody was looking at her. She took the opportunity to take one last look at the name above the phone.
“617-338-7786.
JASON BORDELLO”
Fifty Two
Nathan is sat down on an oil drum in a store room. He looks up at an opening in the ceiling, a man made one. He looks at his watch impatiently as if he is waiting for something to happen. He gets up to straighten out his legs and looks at his watch again.
‘Fuck sake, Hurry up!’ He says to himself
At that moment some ash drops on his shoulders. Nathan brushes them off and looks up at the hole in the ventilation system. Fredrick has his head poking out of the hole and a smile on his face.
‘Come on star, it’s all safe up here.’ Says Fredrick
‘Yeah I’d appreciate it if you don’t drop cigar ash on me thanks’ Says Nathan still brushing his shoulders off.
Fredrick holds his arm out so Nathan can grab it. Nathan hoists himself up onto the oil drum below the gaping hole. He balances himself, trying not to take a fall. He steadies himself and reaches for Fredrick’s arm that’s still extended just above him. Nathan grabs his arm while Fredrick pulls him into the ventilation system. The vent is a lot darker then the store room, which only shared one characteristic. It’s very confined. Nathan turns around to Fredrick who has begun crawling.
‘Where the hell are we going?’ Asks Nathan
Fredrick turns around slightly
‘We are going to get out of here’ whispers Fredrick
‘Yeah I know that, but where does this lead to?’
‘It will take us right through the 1 floor of the M.I.T building. Straight through the hornet’s nest right out to the wastes my breda’
‘Hornet’s nest, are you mad?’
‘No it’s the only available route. They have destroyed the entrance foyer; no one can get through there. Not to mention they have got plenty of guards walking patrols man, so if we get caught we will die, I’m sure you don’t want that to happen now do you.’
‘Course not, but how did you get into the building?’
‘The same way we walking out star, through the ventilation ducts’
Nathan grabs Fredrick’s arm
‘This better be safe’
Fredrick pulls his arm away from Nathan
‘Course it’s safe; I never put myself in danger. Why you grab me like that? I’m no batty boy star!’
‘Batty boy?...’
There is nothing but complete silence in the duct
‘Never mind, let’s get going’ says Nathan
‘Fine by me star’
‘Lead the way “Star”’ Says Nathan Sarcastically
‘Ah my man likes the word star now, that gwan’ be good hear you say that’
‘Yeah whatever let’s get going, we need to get the hell out of here Fredrick. Let’s leave the playing around shit for the outside. I’ll make you a deal, you get me out of here and I’ll tattoo the dam word on my ass for you’
‘I would settle for a beer Breda, no need to get your ass all bruised. Come, let’s go’
Fifty Three
Chief Shaw is sat on a chair staring at the big screen in the incident room. His mind is racing as he gazes at the blue screen flickering in the now quiet room. He looks around and notices officers sitting at desks motionless trying to get a grip on the day’s events. He looks at his watch and sighs. Seven more hours till the FBI will take the case over. Shaw finally snaps out of his solitude and gets up. He starts to pace the immediate area like a man with a plan. It is all part of his job. Look concerned, act in control. In reality he feels everything around him slipping. The phone rings. Everyone in the room gasps as they all look over to the phone planted on the big oak desk a few meters away from Shaw. He sighs as he walks over to the ringing phone, taking a few steps to consolidate his thoughts. He stops dead and reaches for the shiny black phone, his hand visible in the reflection of the matt style plastic that cases the handle. He knows that particular phone line is dedicated to one thing only, communicating with Connor Chase.
‘Chief Shaw speaking’
A clicking sound pops into Chief Shaw’s ear as he speaks; the recording equipment is doing its job.
‘Hello Mr Shaw. It’s Connor Chase here. I’d like to speak to your esteemed Detective, Mr Frank McKenzie if possible.’
Shaw begins pacing once more, this time slow and methodical as if the way he walks helps him stand his ground. By now the incident room is full again with officers taking seats around desks. They are all wearing head phones and listening into the phone call. Standard procedure when it comes to terrorism. Chief Shaw starts to bite his nails as he continues to talk to Chase.
‘I’m sorry Connor, that won’t be possible.’
There is a long silence, the only audible sounds in the whole room is the deep breathing coming from the other end of the phone.
‘Why won’t my request to speak with Frank be possible?’
‘The thing is we fired him after coming to know about some of his questionable decisions’
‘Oh, what sort of bad decisions did he make Chief, was it anything to do with the fact that he behaved unprofessionally and slept with a so called key witness or did he, I don’t know, just shoot up a down town storage facility?’
The room bursts into sinister chatter as officers start dialling in calls.
‘What are you talking about?’ Asks Shaw
The line goes dead.
‘Shit, he’s gone sir’ says a technician from across the analysis desk.
‘I can see that!’ Shouts the Chief in frustration
He turns around to face his men.
‘Okay, you all heard what Chase had to say, and for those of you that did not hear what he said, I’ll make that clear right now. Chase just told me that Frank was down town in some storage area shooting the place up. Obviously we don’t know if that’s true but unfortunately giving the situation, we need to find McKenzie and bring him in. I have a feeling that this cock sucker chase is going to ride this out for as long as possible so we need to get Frank in just in case he demands to speak with him and use him as another reason to kill more civilians. I need people to look into all the storage facilities in down town Boston and make sure we find the building and Frank. I’m going to send out a combing party of officers to surround the area and sweep it for McKenzie. When we find him, I need him arrested and taken back to custody, right here. Is that understood?’
Agreeing silence fills the room.
‘Good get going people!’
Fifty Four
Frank is leaning his weight against a brick wall, looking up at the sun; he covers his eyes from its rays. Sweat is pouring down his brow as he wipes it away, smearing blood on his temple. He looks down at his feet, his shoes once black are now covered in mud and muck. His clothes are torn and worn out. Blood stains his clothing and dirty blonde hair, his muscles ripping through his lacerated apparel, showing more than veins and scars. His marine core tattoo is visible; it’s plastered on his right shoulder. He looks down at the marine insignia and shakes his head. Fear and loathing are not feelings Frank feels often, but at this moment both of them are running through his body quite like the blood that once ran through the guard he beat to death a short while ago. The voices start talking.
‘Fear is for the weak frank, knuckle up you pussy’ Says the briskly voice. At that moment Frank darts his head from right to left, trying to pin point the voice’s location. He looks around, nothing but open woodland and concrete tanks surround him. He looks up at the sun again and goes down to his knees. He reaches into his ripped shirt pocket and pulls out his empty pill container. He starts sobbing and moaning, visibly in pain. He holds his hands out in front of him, as if he doesn’t recognise himself.
‘Man up!’ Shouts the voice in his head
‘Don’t be weak, you don’t need those pills my boy, you have me!’ Snarls the voice
Frank turns his hands over and looks at his palms. The lines on his hands contour much like his life. He never believed in psychics or palm readings, but he could tell how someone could read some one’s life through his. Busted fingers and broken knuckles are few of the things that serve as a footnote for his life. Frank stops looking at his hands, as he pulls himself back up using the railing attached to the wall. He brushes himself down and looks back up at the sun, and then to his front. He sees the gate that he entered a few hours earlier. The guard that let him in is in his booth watching the CCTV. Frank takes out his gun and slowly pulls the hammer back.
‘Forgive me’ Says Frank as he reaches the window of the booth and takes aim.
Fifty Five
Officer Mullins walks into the foyer of the incident room in midtown Boston. He is greeted with a buzzing of chatter as he stands still and witnesses the chaotic poetry of the building. Masses of officers are walking and running around urgently as they scramble for offices and phones. He turns around to his partner and throws him a cautious blink. Mullins carries on walking with his partner towards the incident rooms’ central operations area which is boarded up with plaster wood. He is met by a few smiles and nods from his co-workers. Mullins notices the people acknowledging him are doing so in politeness rather than need. He looks out of place in the building as he is a street officer who walks a beat; most of the people in the incident room are decorated members of the police force, not to mention the ever growing presence of the FBI and CIA. He suddenly jumps as some one’s hand pats him on the shoulder, jolting him out of his haze. It’s the DA, Eddie Smith.
‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you there’ laughs the DA
Mullins nods his head in relief, happy to see a familiar face
‘No problem sir. What’s going on here then?’
‘Chase has been in contact with us and it seems he has taken a liking to Frank McKenzie. He wants to talk with Frank on the phone, but obviously that’s slightly impossible since he is MIA. We need to locate Frank as soon as possible, or I fear Connor might start killing more hostages.’
Mullins glances at his partner and back at Eddie; worry washing all over his face
‘Don’t worry kid, everything will work out. Just worry about keeping the streets safe and doing your part in the case.’
‘The thing is sir; I’m finding it hard to sit around. I want to do more, and I feel that I could do more to help the investigation.’
Eddie nods at Mullins sympathetically
‘I understand kid; we all want to do more. How do you think I feel being cooped up in this office all day? We all want to be the guy to take this sucker down. Truth is we can, we all play an integral part in the success of this case. My job is to run the ship; your job is to be the much needed man on the streets. There’s a lot more going on in Boston then what’s happening down in the M.I.T Building, we need people like you to man the streets and make sure the city doesn’t turn into a playground for chase and his so called followers, is that clear?’
Mullins nods
‘Good, now I want you to go down to the garage and meet your team. We want you to lead them on point, and search down town for any signs of Frank. You will be leading them into possible hostile areas, if there is any form of resistance from Frank or any of Chase’s men on the streets then plant a couple of bullets into their legs, I want them alive and able to talk. I’m trusting you kid, you have shown initiative, if you play your cards right you could be bumped up to Homicide after this is all over.’
Mullins lights up with smile and he nods emphatically.
‘No problem sir, I’ll make sure I’ll bring Frank home.’
Mullins and his partner walk away from Eddie and make their way out of the Incident room. Eddie smiles to himself, a self-smile of satisfaction. He takes out a cigarette and lights it up, inhaling the smoke as if he was victorious already. He strolls over to his office and walks in, shutting the door behind him. He gets out his phone and starts mashing the buttons. He takes another drag on his cigarette and smiles as he looks down at the message he just typed.
“It’s done” The message reads.
He clicks send and flips the phone back shut. He chucks it on to the sofa carelessly as he walks over to the mini bar. He once again pours another drink; the sound of the liquor hitting the tumbler is music to his ears, as he raises the glass in the air saluting himself, he downs the whisky.
Fifty Six
The year 2006: SIX YEARS BEFORE BOARDING THE TRAIN
Mrs Gardener is standing on her suburban porch watching the traffic go by. It’s a delightful evening of colours jumping out of the sky. The stars are shining brighter this night more so then she had ever seen. It seems as if the air its self is cleaner and the people passing by saying hello are more forgiving. She has always gotten along with her neighbours, but living in suburbia has taken its toll on the way she sees most people. It seems people change when receiving bonuses on their already meaty cheques. She isn’t one of them, or so she has always thought. Mrs Gardener has always enjoyed the good things in life, but what most people see as the luxuries in life, she sees as burdens. She enjoys good wine and people. Enjoys looking after kids and gets a tremendous satisfaction when cooking for her mum and dad on thanksgiving. People see her as a giving person, while she sees herself as a shadow of what she wants the world to be.
While she carries on watching the light traffic go by her family style home, she snaps back into reality as a car horn on the street jars her conscious. She shakes her head in disappointment as she notices two men shouting at each other a few hundred yards down her street. They are both out of their cars screaming obscene words at each other while holding up the traffic. She walks into her house, opening the classic style porch door within a door. She strides into her living room and admires the view, as it’s pristine and clean, as if she is expecting someone. She glances at the time on the clock on her wall. She starts to strip down to her French underwear. Her body looking immaculate and well-kept as if she goes to the gym regularly. Her front door bell rings and she turns around, walking over to the door she opens it wide and sees his face. She grabs him and pulls him into the house, closing the door behind, she pushes him up against it and starts kissing his neck.
‘Hello Mrs Gardener’ He says
She carries on kissing him, finally looking up at him and smiling.
‘Hello Jason’
Fifty Seven
Fredrick is tiring by now. The long crawl through the air ducts is one filled with cramp and hot air, as the sweat drips
down his forehead he turns around to Nathan who is a mere few feet away.
‘It’s funny how an air duct for the AC can be so damn hot’ Whispers Fredrick
Nathan laughs quietly as he taps Fredrick on the leg
‘It’s okay man, let’s just keep going. We need to get out of here.’
‘Why are you touching me again? I told you star, I’m no batty boy’
Nathan stops crawling and punches Fredrick in the leg
‘I told you, I don’t know what that means, but I’m gathering that now you said that, you assume I’m gay, well I’m sorry to disappoint you, I’m not a batty boy. You call me that one more time; I’m going to kick your ass!’
Fredrick grabs his leg in pain
‘Why you do that for man? You crazy or something, you want to fight me, the man who is saving you, in an air duct? You crazy white boy’
‘Racism is not the answer Fredrick. Have I called you a black boy?’
Fredrick shakes his head
‘No, but if you did I would make sure I cave your face in bombaclart’
Nathan hears voices in the room below them. He signals Fredrick.
‘Be quiet, there’s someone below us’
‘No shit, there’s a whole bunch of people below us, guards, hostages, guns, explosives.’ Says Fredrick