04:27
Unknown
Okay, peeps, here we are with chapter seven. Things are starting to hot up now - as you'll see when you paste your peepers 'pon the following palpitating paragraphs. I won't hold you back.
******
Chapter Seven:
As Ted released the clutch and eased Karen's car silently out of her driveway, he thought over the events of the past two weeks. Jaconelli had interviewed them both separately the day after the murder, which suggested that he and Mary weren't under any serious suspicion. If they had been, the cops would never have left them alone together to get their story straight, although perhaps he was over-thinking things. After all, if they'd both been behind Ben's death, they'd have made sure their stories matched before killing him, not after. The hit had obviously been carefully planned and wasn't a spontaneous act, so their 'alibis' would've been already worked out well in advance. However, what if Jaconelli suspected only one of them? There'd be no point separating them if he thought that only one of the pair were the guilty party, but which one? Ted knew he wasn't guilty, which left Mary as the sole choice in that scenario, but there was no guarantee that the cops would see it that way. And if it became known that 'Ben' and Mary 'had a thing going', then they'd both be hot picks as perpetrators faster than a fart from The Flash. What irony! They could both wind up getting the needle simply as a side-effect of screwing their own spouse. He'd try again to impress the risk they were taking upon Mary and see if he could use it as leverage to make her back off, but he wasn't hopeful. She was a strong-willed woman, which was part of what had attracted him to her to begin with. "Shit, what a f cking mess!" he muttered.
Once out of the driveway, he started the car and headed in the direction of his and Mary's house. Lost in thought, he'd been driving for ten minutes when he suddenly became aware of a car in his rear-view mirror. Was it following him? It was hanging back at a respectful distance, seemingly trying to remain unobtrusive, but he knew his nerves were on edge and that perhaps he was just being too suspicious. Only one way to find out he thought. Ted knew that there was an all-night roadside diner that catered to taxi-drivers and delivery men about ten minutes on - he'd stop there for a cup of java and see if the car followed him in or drove on. One way or another he'd know if he was imagining things or whether his ruse had been rumbled.
"Coffee," said Ted to the hovering waitress as he took his seat in the diner. He'd only taken his first sip when the driver of the other car walked in, giving him a quick glance as he made his way to the rest room. Ted just knew it was him from something about the guy's manner - he was trying too hard to appear unselfconscious. "Smart - playing it cool by going to the john as if he had no interest in me," Ted mused. The guy didn't looked like a cop, but one could never be sure these days. He wore a tan leather jacket, jeans, and a pair of snake-skin boots - all this Ted had noticed as the guy passed his seat. Ted didn't wait; leaving a five dollar bill on the table, he was right out the door and heading for his car within seconds of the restroom door swinging shut. "That'll teach him to take things for granted," chuckled Ted as he pulled his car back out onto the road.
He'd only been driving for a few minutes when he saw headlights in the mirror, rapidly advancing on him. Was it the same car? It was going at a hell of a speed - if it didn't slow down... too late! The car back-ended him, and his head would've struck the windshield if he hadn't been wearing his seatbelt. "Sonofabitch!" Ted cursed as he tried to regain control of the wheel. Again he was thrust forward as the car struck his fender even harder than before. Whoever it was, he meant business, that was for sure. "Shit! Keep it together Ted, keep it together," he thought, as he tried to fight down the rising panic within him. He sped up, trying to lose his pursuer, but to no avail. Once more the car thudded into his rear fender, and once more his senses spun. In the mirror, Ted saw the car back off a little, before swerving slightly and then drawing up alongside. The driver from the diner stared at him, then drew his finger sideways along his throat. He mouthed something - two words - but Ted couldn't hear him and had no gift for lip-reading. Then the car drew ahead at speed before fading into the distance and out of sight. Ted pulled over to the side of the road, flung open the door and spun his legs onto the ground. Then, still seated, and for the second time in a fortnight, he emptied the contents of his guts at his feet. After a few minutes he got up and walked around to the back of the car. The fender was crumpled and scratched and the trunk was dented from the impact.
"Shit! How do I explain this to Karen?" he wondered. Something else bothered him even more though. Was this a random road-rage attack by a psycho, or was someone on to his deception? The former was unlikely, the latter was the safer bet. But if so, why hadn't they finished the job? He could make neither head nor tail of the incident as he got back into the car and headed for Mary's. What the hell was going to happen next?
Hopefully I'll have worked out what's going to happen next by the time you rejoin me - same bat time, same bat channel - here, on the pages of Crivens!
******
"Coffee," said Ted to the hovering waitress as he took his seat in the diner. He'd only taken his first sip when the driver of the other car walked in, giving him a quick glance as he made his way to the rest room. Ted just knew it was him from something about the guy's manner - he was trying too hard to appear unselfconscious. "Smart - playing it cool by going to the john as if he had no interest in me," Ted mused. The guy didn't looked like a cop, but one could never be sure these days. He wore a tan leather jacket, jeans, and a pair of snake-skin boots - all this Ted had noticed as the guy passed his seat. Ted didn't wait; leaving a five dollar bill on the table, he was right out the door and heading for his car within seconds of the restroom door swinging shut. "That'll teach him to take things for granted," chuckled Ted as he pulled his car back out onto the road.
He'd only been driving for a few minutes when he saw headlights in the mirror, rapidly advancing on him. Was it the same car? It was going at a hell of a speed - if it didn't slow down... too late! The car back-ended him, and his head would've struck the windshield if he hadn't been wearing his seatbelt. "Sonofabitch!" Ted cursed as he tried to regain control of the wheel. Again he was thrust forward as the car struck his fender even harder than before. Whoever it was, he meant business, that was for sure. "Shit! Keep it together Ted, keep it together," he thought, as he tried to fight down the rising panic within him. He sped up, trying to lose his pursuer, but to no avail. Once more the car thudded into his rear fender, and once more his senses spun. In the mirror, Ted saw the car back off a little, before swerving slightly and then drawing up alongside. The driver from the diner stared at him, then drew his finger sideways along his throat. He mouthed something - two words - but Ted couldn't hear him and had no gift for lip-reading. Then the car drew ahead at speed before fading into the distance and out of sight. Ted pulled over to the side of the road, flung open the door and spun his legs onto the ground. Then, still seated, and for the second time in a fortnight, he emptied the contents of his guts at his feet. After a few minutes he got up and walked around to the back of the car. The fender was crumpled and scratched and the trunk was dented from the impact.
"Shit! How do I explain this to Karen?" he wondered. Something else bothered him even more though. Was this a random road-rage attack by a psycho, or was someone on to his deception? The former was unlikely, the latter was the safer bet. But if so, why hadn't they finished the job? He could make neither head nor tail of the incident as he got back into the car and headed for Mary's. What the hell was going to happen next?
******
Hopefully I'll have worked out what's going to happen next by the time you rejoin me - same bat time, same bat channel - here, on the pages of Crivens!
Posted in: Cartoons
0 comments:
Post a Comment