Chapter Twenty-Three
Summer
Pulling the black sweatshirt over my head and pulling my hair up into a messy bun and off my face, I hook my fingers up over the waistband of my thick yoga pants. Wearing underwear and actual clothes that fit for the first time in days feels weird. Turning to my reflection in the mirror, I take a deep breath. Placing one foot onto the bed, I tug the laces of my sneakers tight before changing feet.
When the door swings open, Bhodi stands in the doorway, he swallows hard whilst his deep green eyes roam my body before reaching my face. Straightening my spine and adjusting the sweatshirt slightly, I take a step closer to him as he opens his arms and I fall into his embrace. Inhaling his woodsy scent, I allow my eyes to close for a moment.
“Is it safe?” I mumble.
“It’s the only option we have right now.”
I instantly feel my shoulders tense and the shadow of sadness passes over us. I clutch my hands tighter into the material of Bhodi’s sweatshirt, terrified that if I let go, he’ll be gone forever.
“Please come back to me,”
I whisper, squeezing my eyes shut. “I’ll follow you into the dark, but I’ll always guide you back towards the sunshine.”
His warm hands move to my cheeks and he pulls my gaze towards his. Staring lovingly into my eyes, a sincere smile breaks across his face, his thumbs gently smoothing over my cheeks.
“Not everyone has a Sunny Sunshine, but I know I have mine.”
His eyes are intense. “I will want that answer when I get back though.”
He smirks.
I slowly nod as he pulls me into his strong embrace one final time. We both stare out of the window as the sun begins to set. The pink, lilac and orange hues swirl together before night descends and the potential for chaos ascends.
Moving through the house and heading for the garage, Eva, Pam and I slide into the back of the old black van. Seated on the floor at the back, we pass each other reassuring smiles before the door is slid shut. Rob slides into the driver’s seat, slowly pulling out of the garage and down the driveway before pulling onto the road. The van picks up the speed a little and I can feel my ass sliding along the floor as he takes a few turns and the short turn around the block takes no more than five minutes. Switching off the ignition, he lets out a heavy sigh but remains facing forward.
“We’re back outside the house, parked up on the other side of the road.”
He slides a gun and a cell phone over to us. “Eva, please be careful. You all remember the plan?”
“Yes,”
we mutter in unison.
“It’ll be dark out soon, the keys for the van are in this seat. You know what to do if anything happens?”
Rob tries to remain calm, but he can’t hide his fears. His words are stuttered and broken, he has no idea what lies ahead for this evening.
Shutting the door behind, Rob leaves the three of us in the back of the van. Pulling my knees up to my chest, my back rests against the panel and I drop my head back. Closing my eyes, I focus on the sounds of the outside and as the night falls, the street becomes quieter and quieter. The three of us remain silent, unsure what to say, unsure really what to even do. Their concern was that someone could come to the house, and this was all a trap, they didn’t want us heading back towards the hotel in case someone had been watching, so the best idea we could agree on with little time to plan was for us to be outside in the van. Initially it got me a few funny looks but it seemed the most reasonable for now.
“I’ve never fired a gun before,”
I murmur, looking towards the weapon placed between us all.
Pam nods in agreement, but Eva leans forward, reaching for the gun. She racks it back before pointing out the window with both hands. I feel myself flinch, but she eventually lowers it, placing it next to her.
“Safety’s on, don’t worry.”
She gives me a reassuring smile, before letting out a small huff.
A couple hours have passed, occasionally feeling the cold shivers run through my body. Glancing down at the phone, it’s only nine p.m.
“What time were they meant to meet the captain?”
I ask, turning to Pam.
“They said sometime around nine, at the warehouse.”
A few more minutes pass and I feel my body being jolted. When my eyes snap open, I see Eva gently sitting over me. I blink a few times in confusion before she presses her finger to her lips immediately. My mouth falls open, the question about to spill from my lips as the initial panic wears off. She points towards the windscreen, as two figures stand in front of the van smoking cigarettes. I slide over on to my hands and knees to get a better look of the house.
Observing the house, the lights remain off and there’s no movement surrounding the property. Glancing up towards the front bedroom, a shadow quickly passes before two loud shots ring out. I throw myself back into the van, managing to stifle a scream. The two figures outside are now alert and begin shouting and barrelling towards the front door. The house quickly descends into chaos, multiple shots are fired, followed by shouting and screaming.
Diving into the driver’s seat, I fumble with the keys before managing to slide it into the ignition. As the old van roars to life, I slam it into gear and press my foot hard onto the gas, tearing out of the street as fast as possible. I hear a gasp from behind me. Checking in the rearview mirror, I feel my entire body buzzing with adrenaline, my white knuckles clutching onto the steering wheel for dear life.
“What is it?”
I shout behind me, panicked.
“Someone’s following us,”
Eva calls back. “Some dark SUV”
“FUCK FUCK FUCK!”
I scream out.
Pamela jumps into the passenger seat next to me. “Take a left after this street.”
“Where the hell are we going?”
“It’ll take us towards the bridge, we might be able to lose them.”
Doing as I’m told, the turning nears. “Hold on!”
Swerving onto the next street, I narrowly miss a parked car as the tyres screech, and we’re all shunted into the panels of the van.
“After this one just put your foot down and head straight, when you see the sign for the freeway, take the slip road to the left. If we can get far enough ahead they won’t see us.”
My eyes dart between the mirrors and the road ahead. I listen to Pam’s directions intently, my body going into auto pilot and frozen with fear.
“Eva, call the boys. Tell them what’s happened.”
“Sure.”
I glance behind me as she pulls the phone to her ear, it shakes in her hand.
“Shit,”
she mutters.
“What, what is it?”
Pam immediately turns around in the seat.
“It’s off.”
Eva’s response is blank, and I fear the worst as the slip road nears.
Immediately pulling off the road, it begins to descend. The van begins to rattle, as I aggressively swerve towards the underpass, the tarmacked roads turning into mud and gravel. The darkness continues whilst I drive towards some old disused building materials and pull up behind some old, abandoned oil drums. My shaky hand pulls the car out of gear whilst it sits idle, the desolate underpass offering little light and no sign of life.
“Everyone OK?”
I ask, looking to both Eva and Pam who just nod. “What the fuck was that?”
Letting out a shaky breath, my hand runs across my mouth, trying to think of that to do next.
“That didn’t seem right.”
Eva speaks quietly, as though we can hear her thoughts.
“What?”
Pam turns to her.
“Who fired the shots?”
Eva’s brows pinch, her question sending goosebumps over my arms. “There was no one in the house.”
She’s right, my head falls into the headrest for a moment as I take a deep breath. The short memory replaying in my mind, once, twice and then three times. There wasn’t anyone in the house, we didn’t see or hear anyone go in and it wasn’t until the shots were fired that the two men headed inside. Multiple voices were shouting, along with multiple weapons being fired.
“There was someone else in the house,”
I say coldly.
“So the two outside were waiting and someone else already got inside?” Pam asks.
“Must have….Jesus, I need some fucking air,” I gasp.
Pushing open the door of the van, both Pam and Eva follow me. I take a few solid steps, the sneakers leaving sandy footprints imprinted in the ground and my legs continuing to shake. Somehow I manage to stay upright and the cool night air blows against my burning face. Wiping the sweat from my forehead, I begin to fan out the sweatshirt I’m wearing, as the drips slide down my skin. The vehicles continue overhead. I glance up towards the bridge, unsure if we have managed to ditch the SUV following us. My eyes adjust to the underpass. The water laps against the rocks, the noises flooding my ears along with the passing cars.
Eva holds the phone to her ear once again, but the concern is permanently stitched across her face and the nervous shake of her head tells me exactly what we didn’t need to hear.
“Can we head towards the warehouse?”
Pam looks to me, her eyes wide with concern.
“No, we can’t.”
I feel my shoulders drop, I glance towards Pam and the tears well in her eyes.
We’re all thinking the same thing, as she slams her hand to her mouth to stifle the sob. I pull both her and Eva close, whilst we shake with dread and the unknown. Holding them tight, I cling onto anything positive, but it’s no use, without any word we’re all fearing the worst, that we’ve all been set up and will be picked off one by one.
“What time is it?”
I look to Eva, she pulls the phone from her pocket and the screen lights up.
“A little after eleven, they were meeting at around nine.”
“Two hours and no word,” I mumble.
Moving around the van, I look around towards the entrance of the underpass. Nervously chewing on my lip, I debate with myself whether to stay or head somewhere safe.
Where the hell is safe?
Lost in thought, I feel my arm being tugged back around the oil drums. My eyes snap to Pam, who pulls me towards the ground and points between a crack in the steel. Moving my head into position, I blink a few times and my eyes begin to focus on the lights flickering off the concrete, before three figures come into view carrying guns.
“Shit,” I mutter.
“Can’t we drive off?”
Eva leans over.
“They’ve likely blocked the exit, we’ll drive straight into their car.”
“Worth a try though.”
Pam cocks a brow, as I look back towards the slowly approaching figures.
“There were only two at the house, who the hell is the other guy?”
I mutter, shooting a concerned look.
Tapping my fingers to my lips, I cock my head towards the van. Both girls begin to move, I follow suit checking behind me every now and then before jumping into the driver’s seat.
“Here.”
Eva passes Pam the phone. “I’ll take the gun, you have the phone. If anything happens we’ll split and get help.”
She tries to smile, but it doesn’t quite meet her eyes.
With the key already in the ignition, I feel my body begin to gear up. Turning the key, I slam my foot back onto the gas, lurching forward. I soon spin the wheel and head towards the exit. As all lights turn to us, followed by shouting, I can feel my body tense as shots ring out.
“Get the fuck down!”
I call out to both girls, as the van barrels towards the figures.
As they jump out of the way, I feel the panels of the van skid and smack along the concrete barriers, the steel scratching against the hard surface, but my foot remains pressed into the floor. I keep the wheel spinning, taking each curve as we make our ascent back onto the main road. The van lifts off the ground slightly before landing with a jolt as we find ourselves back above the underpass and heading for the bridge.
“Fuck!”
Pam shouts.
As those words leave her mouth, the van is rocked. A sharp aggressive shunt comes from the right side of the road. I hold onto the wheel as tight as I can, but it’s no use. I feel the motions run through my body, mirroring the plummet of a rollercoaster. All screams, screeches and cries turn to silence, nothing but a ringing in my ear as my body is thrown from the seat, my skull bouncing off the panels, before landing with a sharp thud. My eyes grow heavy, followed by a sharp ringing in my ears. My fingers press into the hard surface, as the doors of the van are wrenched open and bright lights are shone into my eyes. I wince but I can’t fight it. I will my body to move away but the dark cloud of weakness blankets me.