MUCH EARLIER THAT NIGHT, JUST AFTER DUNCAN'S ATTACK ON ROLLIE, ANGIE, AND JACK IN THE LOFT (see "Hellfire", part seven)
Rollie chose to go with the police, who had just arrived, back to the precinct.
But Angie didn't feel like going. For now, at least, the situation
seemed over. She suddenly felt tired.
Jack, who had been the senior officer, chose to stay with Angie.
It was in part because there was still danger. Although they had
caught Torrens, there was still a lot of his followers out there who were
dangerous. As Duncan had said himself, as they took him away: By
midnight I will be in total control.
Neither Jack nor Angie knew what he meant. But it couldn't be
good.
Not good at all.
The phone rang suddenly, making both Angie and Jack jump. "Uh, Blue,
speakerphone," said Angie, her shaking slightly.
"Angie? It's me."
Angie recognized the voice immediately. It was her friend Kim.
They'd known each other ever since they'd been kids. Kim had helped
Angie when they had boarded Telemark's plane, obtaining a set of schematics
and refit specs for his flying casino. She'd helped them out with
information on other occasions as well.
"Hey," said Angie.
Jack looked at her quizzically, raising his eyebrows, as if asking who
it was. Angie mouthed the word "friend." Jack relaxed slightly.
He too, was still shaken up from their close incident with Duncan Torrens.
"Have you seen what's going on out there?" said Kim. Angie knew her
to be a strong person. But Kim sounded nervous.
"I ... I know," said Angie. "Torrens."
"What did you say?" Kim asked, sounding a little confused.
Angie ignored her question. "Listen, uh, Kim, do you want to get
together? I'm feeling a little shaken up at the moment ... I'll,
uh, explain later."
Kim exhaled into the phone, and there was a whooshing sound on Angie's
end. "Wow, good," she said. "It's kind of scary here alone.
I was hoping we could stick this out together."
"Yeah," said Angie. You have know idea how scary it is, she
thought. "Do you want us to drive by and pick you up? I'd prefer
staying here at the loft 'cause, well ... it's safer."
"Alright," said Kim, quickly. "That's good ... I didn't want to drive
out there alone. Will Rollie be coming?"
"No," said Angie. "He's at the precinct at the moment," she said.
"But I've got a policeman here who's keeping me safe. We can come
by ... I think ... ?" she said, in a question, looking at Jack. He
nodded.
"Police bodyguard?" said Kim. "Angie, what's going on?"
"I'll, uh, explain once we pick you up," said Angie. "Is it okay
with you if we come back here to the loft? It's got better security
than my apartment."
"Yeah, that's fine," said Kim. "I'll see you in a few minutes."
"Yeah, bye," said Angie. There was the sound of Kim hanging up.
"Blue, speakerphone off," commanded Angie. There was a faint click.
"We can take the truck," said Angie to Jack.
As they walked out the door, Jack asked, "So what's the name of this friend
of yours we're picking up?"
"Kim," said Angie. She typed a code into a keypad by the door, activating
the security system and listening sensors.
"Is she cute?"
Angie looked up at him, one eyebrow raised.
Jack grinned boyishly. "Just asking," he said.
They didn't say anything else on the subject.
"I can drive if you want," said Jack.
Angie paused. "Yeah, that may be a good idea," she said, finally.
"I don't know if I'm in a good enough shape to drive."
Off in the distance, there was the squeal of tires. It echoed down
the empty streets. Angie handed Jack the keys, and then climbed into
the passenger side. Jack entered the drivers' side, and started the
engine. "Which way is it?" he asked, pulling off the gravel driveway
and into the street.
"Straight along to twenty-first, hang a right, go five blocks down to Ruxton,
hang a left, and it's the second building on your right," said Angie, quickly.
She leaned back, and closed her eyes. God, she felt tired.
"Ooookay," said Jack. "Can you say that one more time, and --
" He didn't finish. There was the sound of a horn blaring,
and headlights came rushing at them from the other lane. Jack swore
as the car in the other lane swerved into theirs. He yanked the wheel
hard to the right, then to the left. The car veered back into its
own lane with a squeal, and raced on past.
"Jesus!" said Jack, glancing in the mirror. "He must have been doing
sixty-five, seventy at least!"
Angie said nothing. She looked out the mirror. The streets
were usually quiet at night. But right now, they were almost deathly
quiet. Almost no cars were travelling by. Those cars that were
on the road seemed to be driven by reckless, panicked, or simply crazy
drivers.
It's the fear, she thought. God, I feel it myself.
It's Duncan.
She swallowed. "Do you want to keep going?" asked Jack, quietly.
"Yeah," said Angie, "it's okay. Just ... we'd better be careful."
A few minutes later, they reached a quiet apartment building. The
lights in this section of town seemed to be out. Angie found two
high-powered flashlights in the back of the truck. They got out of
the car quietly. Just in case, Jack unsnapped his gun holster, so
that he could pull it out quickly and use it if he had to.
The three-story building was not big enough to warrant an elevator -- not
that it would have been useful anyway, with the power out. Angie
knew Kim's floor, number two, and her apartment number, 206. The
climbed up the stairwell to the second floor.
The floor was dark. The emergency lights, which were supposed to
come on during a power outage like this one, weren't functioning.
There was no sound from most of the apartments. Down the hall, a
door opened slightly. Someone peered out, and called nervously: "Angie?"
"Kim!" said Angie. She ran down the carpeted floor and hugged her
friend. Kim looked worse for wear now that the power was off.
Her short, black hair was slightly tousled, and she looked pale.
Inside, her apartment seemed to be lit only by a single flashlight beam.
Kim was shaking as Angie hugged her tightly. "Let's get out of here,"
said Angie. Kim agreed.
Kim locked her door, and followed Angie to where Jack was standing.
"Kim, Jack the bodyguard, Jack the bodyguard, Kim," said Angie, introducing
them.
Jack smiled. "Hi Kim," he said.
"Hi," said Kim. She smiled back.
The three of them climbed into the pickup, and drove back to the loft.
Angie was glad to be back in the part of the city with power. Angie
unlocked the door to the loft, and they went inside.
"Blue, lights!" called Angie. Then she caught herself, and turned.
"Jack," she said, slowly. "Didn't we leave the lights on?"
Jack stopped. "We did," he said.
"What's wrong?" asked Kim.
A voice came from above them, up the stairs to where Rollie's room was.
"Hi Angie."
Angie recognized the voice immediately. She could never forget it.
Loubar stood there, a gun pointed directly at them.