by Donald Wells
“Sara, what are you doing up? I’m on watch tonight, remember?”
Doyle smiled at him as she walked over.
“I thought that you might like some company.”
“That’s an offer I can’t refuse, but why don’t we make some coffee?”
Price headed towards the counter and Doyle grabbed his sleeve.
“Caffeine’s good, but I was thinking about a different kind of stimulation.”
Doyle kissed Price, but a moment later, he gently disengaged himself from her.
“Sara, I’m attracted to you, God knows I am, but, I love my wife. I’m sorry if I ever gave you the wrong—aaaarrgh.”
Price stopped talking as Jones jammed a knife into his back. Sara reached over and took the gun from Price’s holster as he fell to the floor, and afterwards, she removed his phone from his belt.
Jones stepped over Price and put his face an inch from Doyle’s.
“Take me to him. Take me to the man that killed Bob.”
“Follow me,” she whispered.
As they reached the hallway, a noise came from the kitchen. It was the sound of the table turning over as Price attempted to pull himself up off the floor.
“Shit, I thought he was dead,” Jones said.
“Do you think that anyone heard that?”
“They might have, let’s hurry.”
***
He opened his bedroom door and heard the sound of whispering coming from downstairs. Across the hall, Carly stuck her head out of her room; she was in her robe and slippers.
“I heard a noise, sir.”
“We all did, Carly. Why don’t you come over here with us until I learn what made it.”
Carly stepped into the hall just as the sound of running feet came from the stairs. He grabbed her by the wrist, pulled her into the room, and then snatched a gun from atop his dresser.
He nearly dropped his arm when he saw Doyle, but a moment later, he spotted Jones limping along behind her and fired a shot at him.
Jones grunted in pain, as the shot took off a piece of his left ear. Doyle returned fire, but the door was already closing.
***
Inside the bedroom, he engaged the four locks on the steel door and then turned to find Carly trembling in Jessica’s arms. He grabbed a second gun from atop the dresser and handed it to Jessica.
“It’s Jones, along with Doyle, she must have been working with him all along.”
Jessica took her phone from her purse and found that it wasn’t working.
She held it up. “I’ve got no signal.”
“They’re probably jamming it. I have to get you out of here. That door won’t hold forever.”
Carly looked back and forth at them.
“What do we do?”
In answer, he opened the closet door and pushed aside the clothing hanging on the right side. He then pressed against the wall, and it slid to the left, revealing an unused guest room.
He motion for Jessica and Carly to follow, as he walked over to a window and gently opened it.
As she entered the closet, Jessica reached down, grabbed two pairs of sneakers, and handed one pair to Carly.
“They might be a little big, but they’re better than a pair of slippers.”
He called Carly over to him.
“There’s a rope ladder outside this window. After Jessica unties it, follow her down and then you two drive somewhere safe.”
Jessica grabbed his arm.
“You’re staying?”
He smiled without a trace of warmth.
“I have to see to our guests.”
***
Jones kicked at the bedroom door in a fit of rage, but halted his rampage as the stitches in his side threatened to tear open. He leaned against the door while breathing heavily, as blood dripped down the left side of his face from his wounded ear.
Doyle placed a gentle hand on his cheek.
“Oh God, half your ear is gone. I’ll go find something to stop the bleeding.”
Doyle rushed into the bathroom and began searching the medicine cabinet. From the corner of her eye, she spotted movement and looked out the window to see Jessica and Carly running away from the house.
She ran back to Jones.
“They’ve gotten out somehow! I just saw the doctor running away with the girl.”
“What about her husband?”
“I didn’t see him.”
Jones pushed her towards the stairs, as he handed her his car keys.
“Go after the women. I’ll stay here and find the husband.”
“Be careful,”
Jones gripped his gun tighter.
“He’s the one that needs to be careful. Now go!”
***
After Jessica helped Carly down from the rope ladder, she ran over to her car, only to discover that all four tires had been slashed. The only car with undamaged tires was a green Lexus that must have belonged to Jones.
Jessica took Carly by the hand and began running towards the stream at the back of the house.
“Where are we going?” Carly asked.
“We have to get across the stream and up the hill. Our nearest neighbor is up there.”
“But the stream is too wide, and the water is moving fast.”
“It narrows farther along, hurry,”
They ran along the stream for over a mile and came to a bend, where the banks climbed upward and were only a few feet apart.
Jessica gripped Carly by the shoulders.
“Get to the other side and you’ll find a trail on your right. It’s steep, but it will take you up the hill. Once you get to the top, keep straight and you’ll find an old Victorian home. The woman who lives there is named Sylvia. Tell her that I sent you and she’ll help you.”
“You’re not coming with me?”
“No honey, I just wanted to get you to safety. I have to go back and help my husband.”
“But, Doctor I—”
“Go, Carly. I’m not leaving until I know you’re safe.”
Carly nodded in acquiescence and then followed Jessica’s instructions.
She shivered as she stepped into stream, but at this narrow junction, the water was only two feet deep and in seconds she was on the opposite shore. After slipping twice on the steep incline, Carly finally made it to the top. She stood on the edge of the cliff and waved down to Jessica.
As Jessica raised her hand to wave back, she watched as Agent Doyle wrapped an arm around Carly’s neck, and placed a gun at her temple.
“Get up here, Doctor, or I’ll kill her.”
“Don’t hurt her; I’ll be right up.”
“I know you have a weapon. I saw it in your hand as you were running away from the house. Toss it into the water.”
Jessica hesitated for just a second, before taking her gun from the pocket of her robe and throwing it in the water. She then followed Carly’s path up the hill, and soon stood before Doyle.
As the sun breached the night, its rays illuminated the Lexus. The car looked worse for wear, as steam leaked from beneath its hood.
Doyle gestured at the car sitting on the dew-covered field.
“I had to go off road to catch up to you. Johnny should have stolen a Jeep instead.”
“Why are you helping him, Sara?”
Doyle shrugged.
“I love him. I know what he is, but I love him anyway. Nevermind, you’d never understand. Now get in the car, you’re driving.”
“That car will never make it back to the house.”
“I know that. That’s why we’re not going to the house.”
“Then where are we going?”
Doyle’s only answer was an enigmatic grin.
***
Three minutes after Jessica and Carly had reached the ground, he climbed out the window as Jones fired shot after shot into his bedroom door. Once he hit bottom, he headed for the door off the kitchen, hoping to come up behind Jones and take him by surprise.
The d
oor was unlocked, and as he opened it, he heard a moan. He slid into the room silently and found Price lying on the floor near the overturned kitchen table. There was so much blood on the floor that he had to watch where he stepped.
“Doyle’s helping Jones,” Price wheezed.
“Don’t try and talk,” he said, as he grabbed a dishtowel and pressed it to Price’s wound. “Hold that there; it’ll slow your blood loss.”
Price nodded in agreement, but then his eyes grew wide as he opened his mouth in warning, but it was too late.
Fifty thousand volts shot through the doctor’s husband as the probes of a Taser sank into his back.
He fell to the floor in a limp heap, as his gun tumbled from his numbed hand. Jones walked over, picked up the gun, and stared down at him.
“Does that hurt? You’re going to wish you felt this good again by the time I’m done with you.”
Then, Jones fired the Taser again, and laughed.
***
Doyle opened the driver’s side door and gestured for Jessica to climb in.
“You’re driving, and Carly, you get in the back and be a good girl.”
Jessica placed a foot into the car as if she were getting in, but at the last second, she dived at Doyle and knocked her to the ground.
“Run Carly run!”
Jessica’s surprise attack momentarily fazed Doyle, but soon, the trained agent got her in a sleeper hold and gained control. After taking her to the brink of unconsciousness, Doyle let Jessica drop to the ground and took aim at the fleeing Carly.
Just as she was about to pull the trigger, Carly veered to the left and disappeared among the trees.
“Damn it!” Doyle cried. Next, she grabbed Jessica by the hair and dragged her to her feet. “Get in the car and drive, and so help me bitch if you try anything again I’ll shoot you in the face.”
Jessica laughed.
“Carly made it, she made it and she’s coming back with help.”
Doyle pointed out the windshield.
“I said drive.”
Jessica put the car in gear and drove in the direction that Doyle indicated, as the car stuttered and released more steam in protest. A short time later, they arrived at the cliff that overlooked their home and Jessica came upon a scene that sank her heart.
***
Jones looked up at the cliff and watched the car labor along. Lying nearby was Jessica’s husband, and also a five gallon container of gasoline. Jones had just hit him with yet another blast from the Taser and he was flat on his back.
When the car stopped, Doyle got out and called down.
“I got the wife, but the girl got away. We have to get out of here now.”
Jones turned red with rage as he shouted up at Doyle.
“How could you let her get away? Now there’s no time. Damn it Sara, this ruins everything. And what the hell are we going to leave in? I see you’ve fuck up the car as well, you stupid bitch.”
Doyle was near tears as she answered him.
“Don’t talk to me like that... I love you, Johnny.”
Jones began to chuckle.
“My God but you’re dumb. Tell me something, why do you think that I never bedded you, despite the many times that you threw yourself at me?”
“You were afraid of getting too close, afraid of falling in love with me.”
“Bob wasn’t my brother, Sara.”
“What? What do you mean?”
“I don’t have a brother, Bob and I were lovers. I’m gay. This man here, he killed the only person that I ever loved and I am going to make him burn for that.”
Doyle shook her head as if the motion would dislodge Jones’ words from her ears.
“You can’t be gay. I love you.”
Jones aimed his gun at her.
“You’re too stupid to live.”
He fired seven shots at her, but the upward angle was difficult and he managed to only hit her once in the hip.
Doyle fired back, her shots were close, but they all missed and when Jones fired his last round, it caught her in the neck, causing her to lurch forward and tumble off the cliff, screaming, to fall into the water below, where her arrival was followed by a splash that sent water high into the air.
***
Jessica got out of the car and looked over the edge of the cliff; below, Doyle’s body was being swept downstream by the current.
Jones called up to her.
“Dr. White. I can’t get to you yet, Doctor, but I’m going to make you watch your husband burn.”
Jessica looked down at her husband. He was still recovering from the Taser blast she’d seen him receive as she pulled up in the car.
Jones walked over and grabbed the gas can; afterwards, he walked back over and began pouring the gasoline over the doctor’s husband, drenching him in the noxious liquid.
“No!” Jessica cried, as she locked eyes with her husband.
He looked back at her and said one word. “Run!”
Jessica looked about in desperation, as she tried to think of a way to save her husband.
As Jones stepped back and took out a lighter, Jessica got back into the car.
Jones flicked the flame of the lighter on high and locked it, then, he called up to Jessica.
“That’s right, Doctor, run, run while I burn your husband to death.”
Jessica threw the car into drive as she opened the door.
“I’m not running.”
She took her foot off the brake and leaped from the car. The heavy vehicle lumbered forward and then flipped off the cliff and fell upside down, to hit the water below with a tremendous crash, causing water to geyser about in all directions.
***
As the last of the water fell to earth, Jones stood drenched from head to toe, while the lighter in his hand fizzled. He looked over and saw the doctor’s husband rise to his feet, as the cold water refreshed him.
Jones tossed the now useless lighter aside, as he realized that the gas had been so adulterated by the deluge of water, that it would be senseless to try to ignite it.
He bent down and picked up the Taser just as the doctor’s husband charged at him. As he brought it up to fire, he was rammed in his midsection and fell backwards, as his stitches ripped open and caused him to cry out in pain.
The doctor’s husband knocked the Taser from his hand and followed it with a punch in the face.
Two strong hands wrapped themselves about Jones’ neck and he felt the life being squeezed from him. As he struggled frantically to break free, he saw the husband’s eyes staring into his with a ferociousness that sent a chill through him, then, something in his neck gave way to the pressure and the world grew dark, before fading away forever.
***
Carly returned in the company of three police cars and an ambulance, as Jessica tended to Agent Price.
It took the rest of the day before the chaos was sorted through, but by nightfall they were settled back at home and saying goodbye to Carly, as her boyfriend Michael arrived to pick her up.
“It sounds as if you guys have been through hell,” Michael said, as Carly leaned against him.
Jessica reached over and patted Carly on the arm.
“We’ll be okay; I’m just worried about your girl here.”
Carly lifted her head from Michael’s shoulder.
“I’m okay, Doctor, but it was scary there for a while.”
Jessica kissed her on the cheek, and then they told Carly and Michael goodbye.
They stood in the doorway and watched them get into Michael’s car.
“Carly’s right, it was a scary day,” Jessica said.
“Do you think that she’s been frightened off?”
“What do you mean?”
“The... research she does for us. Having her life threatened wasn’t part of our deal. Maybe she won’t want to work for us anymore.”
“Oh, I hope not, but I guess we really couldn’t blame her if she wanted nothing to do with us anymore.”
The car doors opened up and Carly walked back over with Michael.
“Doctor, sir, I’ve something to tell you.”
“Yes?” Jessica said.
“Well it’s, it’s just that I really liked learning to shoot a gun. I was wondering if I could get another lesson soon, and Michael wants to learn too.”
“If you don’t mind, sir?” Michael said.
They looked at each other and smiled and then he turned back to Carly.
“The two of you come by for lunch on Saturday and we’ll have another lesson, okay?”
Carly beamed up at him.
“Thank you sir,”
“Anytime, Carly,”
As Carly and Michael drove off, they walked upstairs to their bedroom.
Jessica took him in her arms and hugged him fiercely.
“I nearly lost you today.”
“You saved my life.”
She grinned.
“I think I owed you one.”
He brushed back her hair and gazed into her eyes.
“You save my life every day, you know?”
“In what way?”
“I don’t know who I’d be without you. I don’t want to know.”
Jessica took him by the hand and led him to sit beside her on the bed.
“Doyle said something to me earlier. She said that she knew that Jones was a bad man, but that she loved him anyway.”
He hung his head.
“And that reminded you of us?”
“In a way,” she said, before reaching over and turning his face towards hers. “We first met because you did a bad thing, but I’ve always known that you’re a good man, and I’ve always loved you.”
“I love you too,” he said, and kissed her.
As their passion ignited, he reached over and doused the light, and in the darkness, they set the night on fire.
TAKEN! 14 – MIRROR IMAGE 2
As he returned home, Jessica met him at the car and they kissed.
He had spent the day in a nearby city at a technology conference, one geared primarily toward advances in 3-D imagery. A field he had become increasingly interested in.
“How was the conference?” Jessica said.
“Very informative, it’s amazing how far 3-D technology has progressed in the last few years. In fact, I’m thinking of building a workshop here so that I can explore it further, would you have any objections?”