8:39 am, September 10th, present year.
Riley was entranced by Toy Story 2, and I was getting wrapped in it myself. I had forgotten how much I loved this movie.
It was weird. I felt peaceful, yet nervous at the same time. I was peaceful because nothing happened for quite a while.
But I was nervous because nothing happened for a long time.
That couldn’t be good.
* * *
The figure was back in the hotel room, contemplating his options.
He decided to call Terri.
“Hello?”
“It’s me.”
“What’s the matter?”“Events may force us to move up the plan.”
“What events?”
“The cop got away.”
Silence. “How?”
The figure recited what happened and Terri listened without saying a word.
When he was done, Terri asked, “When did you want to start the plan?”
The figure paused. “Now.”
* * *
Another knock at the door.
Dad answered, and it was Sophie, yet again.
“Hello again. What’s the problem?”
She got right to the point.
“Chase, come here.” I left the couch and went towards her.
“Give me your phone.”
My phone? “It’s not on. Why do you need it?”
“Give it to me!” She held out her palm and I obeyed, giving her my Blackberry.
Without missing a beat, she disassembled the back and carefully inspected it.
“What is it?” Dad tried to catch a glimpse of what she was looking for.
She stopped abruptly, obviously finding something.
“Get me a cooking pot and its lid, NOW!”
I didn’t hesitate. I pulled open the cupboards and grabbed the first one I saw. I handed it to her and she dropped it in the pot, putting the lid on top of it.
“Do you have a trash can? The bigger and stronger, the better.” She was very serious.
“Follow me.” Dad started towards the front door. “Chase, open the garage door!” He and Sophie went out the door.
I went over to a basket on the counter containing Dad’s keys, and I found the garage door opener. I pressed the button, and quickly darted outside.
Sophie ducked under the garage door and quickly spotted the trash can. It was our largest one, and constructed of tough plastic.
“Perfect,” she said. She dragged it out of the garage and away from the car, and ran with it into the middle of the driveway. She opened the lid and placed the pot inside.
“Do you have any bricks? If so, get me some!”
Dad rushed into the garage and grabbed a few bricks, with me following. We both brought them back to Sophie, and she set them inside, surrounding and on top of the pot. All three of us dashed back and picked up more bricks. This time, Sophie closed the lid, and the remaining bricks went on top of the can, on the lid.
“Close the garage door and get back inside, NOW!” As Dad sprinted to close the garage door, Sophie and I retreaded into the house. Dad soon joined us.
Riley tapped my back. I whirled around.
“What’s going on?”
“Nothing, go back and finish your movie.”
“Who’s she?” He pointed at Sophie.
“She’s a policewoman. Your movie is playing.”
He shrugged and went back to the living room.
We all crowded around the window of the front door, waiting for something to happen.
“I’m guessing there’s a bomb in my phone.” I commented.
“Yes. You had received that threat earlier today, but for some reason he decided not to blow it until now.”
“How did you know he would set it off now?” Dad never took his eyes off the trash can.
“In the cells where he broke in, we found a scrap of paper with a note scribbled on it. It said, ‘A literal Blackberry Torch’. We could only assume one thing.”
A minute passed and nothing happened.
Two more.
Three.
Nearing the fourth minute, I loosened up. Maybe he meant something else. Or maybe it was something totally unrelated. Maybe…
A muffled explosion sounded outside.
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Mystery / ThrillerChase Mitchels gets an email from Facebook saying he's been tagged in a post by Unknown. The post says, "In 24 hours, Chase Mitchels will be dead." Who is Unknown, and why is he after Chase? As each hour passes, Chase must fight to survive while Unk...
