Cliff's Good Deed

59 - Cliff's Desperate Plan

During the ensuing chaos at the club over Hannah's kidnapping, Cliff managed to wrangle his sister and Aaron away from the crowd. They huddled behind the hedge that had been used as a backdrop for the photos. Izzy shivered from the night air and couldn't stop her drunken blubbering.

Aaron embraced her and tried shushing her.

"Lemme go, I think I'm gonna be sick." She pulled away and vomited at the base of the hedge.

Aaron held her hair and tended to her.

Cliff didn't have time to pamper his sister. "Aaron, can I borrow your car? Can you and Izzy find another way home?"

Before he could answer, Izzy said, "I'm so sorry for embarrassing you, Aaron. I've had too much to drink."

"That's pretty obvious."

"Cliffy, I spoke with Hannah. I tried getting through to her. Oh, poor Hannah, what's gonna happen to her?"

"Listen to me!" Cliff exclaimed to get their attention. "The lady assigned to protect Kayla is wrong. I wasn't thinking straight at the time, but I do know how to find them."

"How?" Aaron asked.

Cliff extended his hand. "No time to explain. Please, give me your valet ticket. The police have been called. When they get here, they'll button up this place tight, and I'll never be able to leave. I need you to trust me."

"Sure," He reached into his pocket and handed Cliff the ticket. "Just keep in touch, okay?"

"I will and thank you. Take care of Izzy." He dashed to the valet stand and butted in line ahead of everyone else who was hurrying to leave.

"Sir, you'll have to get in line," the head valet protested.

He pushed the man aside. "Get out of my way." He matched the ticket to the pegs on the board and retrieved Aaron's keys. Before anyone else could protest, he ran to the valet parking lot.

Where was Aaron's car? Cliff couldn't make sense of how the cars were parked. He pushed the alarm button on the fob. Aaron's car chirped and the headlights flashed. Moments later, he was in the car. Cliff pulled the SkyLink card from his wallet and punched the number into his cellphone.

A female voice at the other end greeted him.

Cliff read his car's ID number from the card.

"Sir, how can I help you? Are you locked out?"

Cliff knew he had to be careful since he wasn't actually calling from his car. "I'm a little lost and need turn-by-turn instructions."

"Sure, what is your destination?"

"The town of Hershey, Pennsylvania."

"Please stand by." She returned a few moments later. "Sir, you are heading in the opposite direction of Hershey. You'll need to find a way to safely turn around."

This is where Cliff knew he might expose himself. "Okay, I'll do that. Can you tell me where I am? Since it's dark, I can't make out the mile markers."

"You're on U.S. Route 322 westbound approaching the exit for Interstate 283 south. I advise getting on the interstate and then exiting onto state route 441. After reaching the top of the ramp, you'll be able to turn left and get back onto the interstate in the opposite direction."

Cliff started Aaron's car and drove from the lot. He knew where James and Hannah were. The question remained, where were they going? "Can you stay with me until I get back on track?"

"Certainly, sir."

A couple minutes later, she came back. "Sir, you missed the exit!"

That meant James was continuing to drive south. "Oh, gosh, I'm sorry, I was in the left lane and another vehicle blocked me. I couldn't get over in time."

"Now, you'll have to drive all the way to the next exit which is either the Pennsylvania Turnpike Interchange or route 283. I would advise you to take 283."

"Will do. Please stay with me."

Cliff drove onto route 322 and floored it. He was miles behind and worried he would never catch up. He also worried the SkyLink representative would catch on to his deception.

The woman at the other end soon came back on. "You're on 283 southbound. It won't be easy making a U-turn. The next exit is the airport connector road. Your best bet will be to circle around the airport. That will bring you back going in the desired direction."

Airport? Was it possible James was heading to the airport? A plan like that would take a lot of coordination. He'd have to purchase tickets in advance and his timing would need to be perfect. How would he know to purchase a ticket in Hannah's name unless he knew he would nab her? That wasn't possible. Her appearance had been serendipity for him. No, he couldn't be planning on a commercial flight.

The thought struck him. He might have prearranged a private charter. He had the cash to do so.

Minutes later the SkyLink lady came back online. "Sir, I see you took the terminal exit."

It confirmed James's destination was the airport. Cliff would have to keep up his ruse a while longer. "I'm not familiar with this airport complex. How do I get turned around?"

The next time she came back online, she sounded exasperated. "Sir, I show you parked at the Cray Aviation Services terminal. I don't understand what you are doing."

"Cray Aviation. Did I understand you correctly?"

"Sir, I'm seeing your caller ID is different from the transceiver built into your vehicle. Please explain."

He had been caught. "No need. Thank you for helping me. You may have saved a life." He ended the call. It would take Cliff the better part of a half-hour to reach the airport. He hoped it wouldn't be too late. He knew his next move should be to call the police. How long would it take for him to explain the situation and convince them he wasn't a nutcase? Then how long would it take them to mobilize? If they rolled up with sirens blaring and lights flashing, how would James react?

For now, Cliff figured, he would have to get to the airport, stop whatever plan James was working on, and he'd have to do it with stealth, with no weapon, and alone.

He prayed he wouldn't be too late.

Cliff had better hurry!