Sarah had followed his lead throughout the half-hour they
sat at the bar with Sammy and a world-class set of bar flies. Aside from the three double Jack and Coke’s
she had managed to slam since they sat down, she kept her mouth relatively shut
and played the role of Cathy without drawing any too much undue attention.
Of course, the regulars from Finne’s past had
circled her like sharks when they walked in.
Finne had expected nothing less.
He (and Sarah) were fortunate that the night was still young in the
minds of these patrons, and they hadn’t reached their maximum intoxication yet.
Sarah (Cathy) had chased each of the desperate suitors away
by coaxing them into buying her a drink – a double Jack and Coke. As she gulped the drinks down during the
first few inappropriate minutes of each of their pick-up routines, without fail
the retreated – likely more scared of the potential bar tab she would cost them
than the stone cold confidence she had being the hottest woman to enter this
bar in decades. The attention worked in Finne’s (Charlie’s) favor as the had
immediately blended with a familiar crowd and were not drawing suspicion from
any of the other parties dining and drinking under the tent.
Helen returned through the kitchen entrance behind the
fluctuating group Charlie and Cathy had drawn around them. Charlie (Finne) had seen her coming in the
reflection of the bar taps and the face of a blackened TV monitor across the
bar that had been broken the last time he had ducked his head for cover inside
the circus. No one had entered the surrounding
parking lot since their arrival, he had assured from his strategically chosen
vantage point which included a window view looking upon the single entrance
from the road.
“The room’s still a mess, but it’l do!” Helen offered as she
approached.
“Whoop Whoop!” cackled the full-time alcoholics whom had
just been put in their place by Charlie’s gorgeous date.
“Thanks, Helen,” Charlie replied as Helen handed him the
room key dangling from a green rabbit’s foot.
“We’re gonna head up in a few. Do
you mind sharing this with Sammy?” he continued handing Helen the remaining cash
he had, a mere forty dollars.
“You don’t owe me anything for the room. How much did you drink?” she responded.
“Most of it was on Tweedle Dee, Dumb and Dumber,
actually. But, I always want to take
care of you, ou know?”
“Give it all to Sammy then, he needs it. Did he tell you about his latest DUI?”
“Not yet, I’ll have to ask him. Thanks, Helen.”
Finne led Sharah (Cathy) by the hand in an overly
affectionate manner continuing to sell the idea that they were lovers, or at
least lovers interested in “shagging” for the night.
Treading up the outside staircase to the loft above the
outside coolers, Finne stared intently beyond the property and towards the road
and entrance. He saw exactly what he was
looking for and felt both reassured and paranoid at the same time. The signal was lit. He could access the
resources he came here to collect. At
the top of the stairs the loft’s windows glowed orange as the drab window
coverings glowed softly from the light of an incandescent bulb inside. Again, reassuring. Finne was able to mentally clear the entrance
from the outside and did not fear entering the door.
“Have a seat on the bed, I need to use the can.” Finne instructed
Sarah placing his left index finger across his puckered lips. Sarah remained
silent while Finne drew his weapon and proceeded to clear the rest of the
space. Though he knew he had nothing to
fear, he still feared everything. Finne
left the bathroom light on and returned down the hallway that led to the loft’s
great room. In stride, he pulled the chain that extended down from the loft’s
exposed center light bulb. The room went
dark, with a faint glow projecting from the hallway.
“Who, this is freaky!” Sarah finally exclaimed.
“Give it a second. Your eyes will adjust.”
Finne dumped the contents of his pockets and unloaded his
weapon’s magazine on the bed’s moldy cover. He then dropped the manila folder Jack
had given him before their escape from the CIA bunker which he had stashed behind
his back and under his shirt and pants.
He inventoried what he had. One
forty caliber hand gun, seven rounds of ammunition, eighty-nine cents in
change, and a top secret package.
“Sarah, I need you to come with me on a quick errand.” Finne
stated as if his intentions would be understood.
“What? I thought we were gonna hide out here. Where the hell do you want to go?” Sarah
asked - her voice quivering with unease.
“If we leave, everyone down there will see us go. I’m nervous Finne.”
“Don’t be scared. I
have a plan.”
“I’m not scared, I’m fucking terrified!” Sarah exclaimed.
“Look, the contents of that envelope,” Finne replied
pointing to the package on the bed, “and the supplies we need to get are the
only chance we have of ending this nightmare.”
“What’s in the envelope?” Sarah asked having completely
missed the package’s exchange from Jack moments before their previous hide out
had been assaulted by military force.
Jack opened the package and spilled out its contents. Out
fell the makings of two completely new identities of significant stature. Licenses, Passports, Government IDs, cash,
and what Sarah interpreted to be cheap jewelry.
“That’s it? Not
another gun? What about plane tickets to go with the passports? What the fuck?”
“Listen,” Jack interrupted. “We have to get a few more
things. I didn’t bring us here just to
hide out. The things we need are across the
street. I need you to come with me to
get them. You’ll see why. Trust me, I am going to keep you safe, and we’ll
be back here in no time.” Finne continued. “The best time to go is now,
though. No one will expect us to be
leaving this room for at least an hour.”
“An hour, ha!” Sarah laughed. “You’re pretty confident Finne!”
Sarah’s wink and her resort to humor was reassuring. Finne knew she would continue to play her
part.
Finne collected their secret belongings and led Sarah quietly out of the
loft. Shutting the door behind them,
he inserted a dime from his pocket between the door and its jam for future
inspection. They proceeded down the
stairs, through the parking lot, and across the road following a line of shadows
that provided cover in darkness. Sneaking around the back of the small strip
mall of retailers, Finne retrieved a hidden key and they entered the rear door
of the largest tenant. The alarm panel
chimed alerting the entrants that the security system was ready to
activate. Through the complete darkness,
Finne shuffled through the cluttered work spaces and entered the digits needed
to shut down the alarm system. He ran
his hands along the wall and found the flashlight he knew would be hanging next
to the fire extinguisher.
“We can’t turn on the lights, but using this should be ok.”
Finne said to Sarah as he switched the Mag-Lite on illuminating the room in front
of them. “Just stick with me and let’s keep very quiet.”
