Haunted by the Past (Original)

Chapter 23

<<Yeah it was definitely the people I saw in those photos being shared around the internet. The two killers.>>

The next hour was an absolute blur. One second we were standing in the middle of the indoor shooting range. The next we were running to the car. I don't even remember when Eli got a hold of my gun, but he flicked the magazine out and cleared the slide before tossing both our weapons into the glove box. Swiftly starting the engine, the car squealed out of the parking lot despite his best attempt at keeping restrained. As we left, I glanced back and saw Dante standing by the door giving us a nod.

Eli gripped the steering wheel tight as he swerved around the sparse traffic on the road. Even though it was just after 11, there was still enough cars on the road to be a nuisance. Sweat beaded on his temple while he struggled to keep his driving under control. As soon as the garage was in sight he pressed the button for the doors but didn't bother to slow. Just as he approached the doors, he did a handbrake turn and reversed into the garage.

"Grab everything you can. I'll get my computer. We leave in thirty!" he yelled as we bolted out of the cars.

I started with the bedroom, shoving as many clothes as I could find into Eli's duffle bag. He didn't own much so there wasn't much to pack. My stuff was for the most part still in my backpack. After dumping our clothes at the car, I went back to the kitchen and grabbed Eli's boxes of random shit. I didn't even know what I was taking, but I assumed it had some importance if he kept these things in ready-to-go crates. When I returned to the car, Eli was loading his oversized monitor, wrapped in scratch resilient film, safely into the trunk. Not wanting to get in the way, I left the crates beside the car, then I headed back to the kitchen for any non-perishable food I could find, cursing myself for wasting so much on food that couldn't travel well. By the sounds of Eli shouting from the garage, I knew time was up. Sparing one last look around the kitchen, I almost felt sad to leave this place. Yeah, it was still an absolute dump, but it had grown on me.

As I returned to the garage, Eli was tightening the last screw on the license plate. New Yorkers no more, we were now residents of Pennsylvania. Would changing plates be enough to escape the area though? Eli cursed to himself as the screwdriver slipped and cut his finger. Sucking on his wound, he gave up and darted for the driver's side door, tossing the screwdriver into the console storage.

"Hurry up!" Eli snapped at me from his seat before slamming his door shut.

Quickly I opened the back side door and tossed the last of the bags on top of our backpacks, then jumped into the front passenger seat as Eli changed gears. I barely had the door closed before he sped off. While I struggled to buckle my seat belt, I shot him a glare, but he was too busy tapping on his phone while still driving down the road at an incredible speed to notice my annoyance. I slung curses at him as my hand bounced around with each pothole, making securing the belt a nigh impossible task.

"Can you please focus on driving!?" I yelped.

"One more second!" he insisted.

Just as our tires hit the main road, there was an explosion in the distance behind us. I glanced in the sideview mirror as a dust cloud pillowed into the sky.

"What the hell did you do!?" I spun around to get a better look, which I immediately regretted as Eli turned a sharp corner at speed and gave me whiplash.

"Erased the evidence," he replied callously.

With a few swift turns, he zigzagged us through numerous neighborhoods, driving like a bat out of hell. He operated with such intensity and determination that I didn't question his route even though it made absolutely no sense. At one point I could've sworn we were heading back towards the warehouse!