Chapter 29
Both of them braced for the truck coming for them as if it were an orca whale, diving past all the other "boats" and targeting just one—Gregory's used car.
"It's gaining," Sascha warned, watching it through the sideview mirror.
"Traffic is so heavy. I'll try to get off on the next exit but not signal like I usually do so that the driver might miss us getting off here."
"You're not slowing down."
"Nope. Okay, here goes." Gregory dove for the exit at the last minute, though he'd made sure that he wasn't cutting anyone else off.
The truck nearly hit another car while trying to get around it to take the exit.
Gregory called the police about the truck driver, who was driving as if experiencing road rage, and provided their location. He wished now that he had a cam recorder recording everything that was going on.
Unfortunately, the truck managed to take the exit at the last second, nearly hitting the divider. Then it tore down the ramp and onto the access road.
"Are you going to the gas station?" Sascha asked.
"Yeah, that's where I'm headed. The one at the grocery store. I’m getting low on gas. I can maneuver a little better in this car, I think. Plus, with other onlookers, maybe the driver won’t pursue this."
He was still on Bluetooth with the 911 operator. "Hey, we're at the gas station at the grocery store and going to get gas, but the truck followed us into the gas station."
Before he could pull up next to a pump, the truck rear-ended him, sending him crashing into the gas station booth where the gas attendant was sitting. The truck drove up on top of the back of his car.
The car’s engine began to smoke. "Get out! Get out!" Sascha screamed. She threw open the passenger door and jumped out of the car.
Gregory found he couldn't get out of his side because the door was wedged in, and he hurried to climb over the console and out of the passenger’s side of the car.
The truck on top of the back of his car was revving, caught, trying to get unstuck.
Gregory grabbed Sascha, who was waiting for him to get out of the car, and ran away from the vehicle. His car’s engine was smoking and suddenly caught fire. It exploded in flames.
The driver of the truck was still frantically trying to get the truck free from the burning car while people gassing their cars were all moving their vehicles away from the pumps. The gas station attendant had left her "safe" place while the booth she was in was starting to burn.
A fire truck and police cars, their sirens blaring and lights flashing, tore into the gas station.
"The police and fire truck are here," Gregory told the 911 operator, and then they ended the call.
Police officers pointed their guns at the cab of the truck while Gregory and Sascha moved farther away from it. He wanted to take Sascha to the grocery store, just far enough away that they would be protected if bullets started flying.
Whoever the driver was didn't budge from the driver's seat but kept trying to dislodge the truck from his car as if he thought he could get away this time.
Gregory called the sergeant and told her what was happening right now, in case she wanted to be at the scene since this undoubtedly was the same person who tried to kill him before. He couldn't imagine it wouldn't be.
"Oh, yeah, I heard about that. I didn’t know it involved you again. I'll be right there." She ended the call.
It was a tense standoff, but then the truck's engine caught fire.
They still didn't know if the driver was armed and dangerous, other than when he or she was driving the truck.
The interior of the cab of the truck began to smoke, and the driver struggled to get the driver’s door open.
"Come out of the vehicle with your hands up!" one of the officers shouted.
The driver finally wrenched the door open. But the truck was way on top of the car, and flames were everywhere.
"Show us your hands!" two of the officers shouted.
Then they rushed to get her out of the truck when she couldn’t climb down while the firemen put out the blaze.
From where Gregory and Sascha were standing, they couldn't see the driver until they pulled her beyond the truck and out of danger, then handcuffed her.
"That's Francine Drury," Gregory said.
Her forehead was bloodied, and Gregory figured she must have hit the windshield, airbag, or steering wheel when she crashed into them.
"I don't understand why anyone would risk their life to do this," Sascha said.
"I suspect she thought that she was going to destroy the car, me in it, and then she could make her get away like she had the other times, only this time, she couldn't."
"Talk about karma. Which makes me think of Red and him tearing up my place and why he would do it."
"We'll have to ask him."
Gregory wanted to do it right this minute, but then the sergeant showed up, and she shook her head. "Don't tell me that Ms. Lassiter forewarned you about all of this."
"She did. We tried to get ourselves out of trouble, but didn't quite make it," Gregory said.
Then one of the police officers came over to get their statement about the road rage incident and what had caused it. But the sergeant spoke up and said, "It wasn't a case of road rage."
"You're with homicide," one officer said.
"Yeah. Several attempts have been made on Mr. Landry’s life. This appears to be the last one, if Francine Drury was involved in the other cases."
Gregory explained how Francine had come after them on the highway, and though he tried to escape the confrontation, she managed to take the exit while nearly wiping out a couple of cars too.
The driver of the 18-wheeler had sent in video footage of her cutting him off and nearly causing an accident. Someone else had driven off the highway and reported they had video of the reckless driving also.
"Why did you do it?" the sergeant asked Francine after she had been read her Miranda rights.
"I didn't do anything."
They all looked at the truck sitting atop Gregory's car, both smoldering. A couple of tow trucks arrived.
The cashier's booth would have to be repaired.
Several eyewitnesses were giving their accounts, including one in which Francine had gone after Gregory like a mad woman.
When the police had gathered as much information as they could from all the witnesses, everyone began to leave. The sergeant asked Gregory if she could drop them off somewhere.
"I just texted someone for a ride," Sascha said. "Thanks."
"Okay, well, I've got some interviewing to do and lots more investigating into Ms. Francine Drury."
"Thanks," Gregory said.
Then he took Sascha away from all the wreckage and asked who she had called.
"Raymond. He's bringing the new limo promptly, but he asked if they had her in handcuffs so that she wouldn't wreck another of your limos while we're in it."
Gregory smiled. But then Sascha got on her phone, put it on speaker, and said, "Red, you'll probably hear this on the news as the reporters are just arriving, but your mom has been arrested for attempting to kill us again."
Gregory took her hand and led her to a snow cone booth set up outside the grocery store so they could avoid the reporters now at the scene.
For now, some of the witnesses were giving their statements to the reporters.
But the reporters missed interviewing Gregory and Sascha, who were at the center of the whole mess.
He was glad they had avoided them for now.
"I had another question. Why did you trash my place if you weren't involved in the attempted murders?" Sascha asked Red.
"I'm sorry about that, but I was afraid whoever it was would go after you again.
So I thought if I scared you by breaking into your apartment the first time, you would move in with some of your family, and they would watch over you.
But then you were with Mr. Landry, and I was afraid you might still return home and be in danger.
So I went ahead and trashed the place, so it wasn't livable. "
"Aww, okay. I wondered about that."
"Yeah, I'm sorry. I just didn't know who the person was at the time, but I was afraid for your life."
"Okay, thanks for clearing that up.”
“About my mother—"
"They've arrested her and taken her to jail."
"Do you think I can see her?"
"I think they'll want to talk to you about what you know concerning any of this and your sister too, though it appears she might have wanted to help in her own way."
"All right. I'm heading to Dallas then. Janie is coming with me. We'll let you know what's going on with us as soon as we can."
"We're almost home. We’re just waiting for Raymond to pick us up.”
“I’m glad you’re okay.”
Then they ended the call.
Gregory saw the limo drive into the parking area, and Gregory got on his phone and said to Raymond, "We're getting snow cones. What flavor do you want?"
Sascha and Gregory were ready to go home and enjoy being together, but first they enjoyed eating snow cones with Raymond.
She thought the world of Gregory for treating his staff like they were family, just like Red had said.
She hoped Janie and Red could settle in Dallas eventually, share their love with each other, and forget what he'd had to deal with while growing up, but she suspected he would still always think back to the way he was raised.
Maybe working for Gregory and seeing how he treated his staff and how she would also, he would come to learn that not everyone was bad.
When they arrived at the house, the press was parked all over the place. They had just missed them when Gregory and Sascha went to the snow-cone place. But since then, the reporters had learned just who they were and probably what this was all about. It wouldn't be just about a case of road rage.
It wouldn't be just a vehicle accident either, but something much more sinister, and they would be all over it.
Gregory squeezed Sascha's hand and kissed her. "If you want to talk to the press, we can do it, but we'll do it later. For now, I want to be with you."
“Same with me with you.”
When Raymond got to the door, Sascha got out of the limo, and Gregory quickly joined her and escorted her inside.
The staff greeted them. The bodyguards looked relieved that they had come home safe and sound. The traffic accident was all over the news, and Raymond had told everyone on the staff that he would pick Gregory and Sascha up and bring them home.
So everyone wanted to see them for themselves and make sure they were okay.
She loved how his staff was, and she was glad Red would rejoin them. She hoped that they wouldn't be angry with him because his mother was the reason for trying to murder Gregory. She figured Gregory wouldn't let on that Red had trashed her place. She definitely had no intention of doing so.
“We saw it on the news,” Maria said, wringing her hands. “The wreck and fire looked awful.”
"We're good. And I need to let you know that Red is taking some time off from being a bodyguard so he can renovate a farm that he inherited from his grandparents. He’ll be gone for a couple of months, then sell it, and then he'll join us again.
He went to see his girlfriend and proposed to her," Gregory said.
Sascha was glad everyone seemed happy about Red’s plan to return to the staff and about him getting married.
Gregory and Sascha then had a cocktail on the patio, and Maria came out and said, "I'm sorry. Everyone thought that maybe Red had been involved in trying to run you over."
"We were afraid of the same thing. But it turned out to be his mother instead."
"Okay, good. I'm so glad. I really like him."
Maria liked everyone.
"Well, he'll be back," Sascha reassured her.
"I guess now that they’ve arrested Francine Drury, you’re safe," Maria said. “Will you let some of the bodyguards go?”
“No, not unless they want to leave,” Gregory said.
“Good. They wanted to continue working for you but were afraid you wouldn’t need them.” Maria smiled and left them in peace.
Then Kat called. Sascha should have known she would. And then the rest of the family would. She loved them.
"We're fine," she quickly told Kat.
"And when were you going to tell me?"
"We just got home, for heaven's sake. "
"Well, I love you, and we are glad you both are fine."
Then Lucy called. "I've got to go. Love you too, Kat. Lucy is calling."
"Everyone will be. Talk to you later."
"Soon."
Then Gregory's phone rang. He smiled. "Yeah, Mom, we're fine."
"Hey, Lucy, we're good," Sascha said to her cousin.
"I know. I had a vision of it after the fact. But I didn't see the outcome. I'm glad you're okay," Lucy said.
"Thanks. It was harrowing for sure."
"Aunt Meg's going to call you."
"Okay, love you, Lucy, talk soon. Bye. Hello, Aunt Meg, we're good."
"We're not. The darn press is all over the place out here. Uncle Jimmy is having a fit."
"Well, that shouldn't be a problem for you."
Aunt Meg didn't say anything for a moment and then laughed. "There's going to be a sudden, unexpected storm that hits the area."
Rose suddenly arrived and joined them, hugging them both, tears streaming down her cheeks.
"It's over with," Sascha said, then hugged Rose back. Then she continued her conversation with Aunt Meg. "There you go. Love you, Aunt Meg." Then they ended the call.
"What shouldn't be a problem for Aunt Meg?" Gregory asked.
Rose and Gregory exchanged glances, smiled, then said, "What is she going to do?"