Book 2-Alex Bishop in Follow That Mystery

Alex Bishop in Follow That Mystery

                                                                                         Chapter 31

                                                                                             Escape

     "Hope.  I've gotta go.  Get back with you later," Alex said, ringing off.  Alex and the others had heard a noise down stairs.  They all crept up to the wall at the top of the stairs and peered around it, gazing down at the front entrance doors.  Two burly men were standing there, one on either side of the massive doors and having a heated conversation.

     "I don't know where they are!" the man with the stocking cap said.  You thought you heard noises coming from room 220, so you sent Kirt went up there to check.  And he didn't come back.  So then you sent me and Lex up there to check on him.  Lex was supposed to check the room while I checked the other rooms down the hall.  When I look into the room he wasn't there.  But I went in anyway and checked the long closet in there and it was locked." He finished angrily.

     "Well, that's just great, isn't it!" the other man who had a ponytail said.  "They have to be here.  The cops aren't stupid!  I'm sure they have all the other exits covered!" the man shouted at his partner.  "I'm glad we didn't have to tackle them," Fletch whispered to Alex.  "One is as big as a house and the other one with the ponytail is huge like Andre' the Giant."  Alex chuckled softly.

     "Well, you hold the fort," Ponytail said, "I'm going down to the cafeteria and find out how Edgar is doing with the negotiations."  "Okay," his partner said, watching Ponytail shuffle down the hallway.  The man who was left at the door seemed nervous at manning the doors alone.  "What now?"  Lee characteristically asked.

     "I don't know Lee," Alex whispered.  "But I wish we could knock out this guy so they're numbers would be down to only two men."  His friends looked horrified at what Alex had said.  "Hand me your cell Dawn, will ya?"  Dawn passed it over without a word.  I'm calling Hope and asking for Detective Burns."

     All his friends sighed in relief that Alex wasn't hatching a plan to take the man at the door on.  "It's on vibrate Alex in case someone calls us back," Dawn told him.  Alex grinned at her.  "I would expect nothing less," he praised her.  She grinned back at him.  "Alex!" Hope shouted into the phone.  "Thank God you called back!"

   "Detective Burns has called me a dozen times, asking if I had heard from you.  Your dad told him your phone went dead when he was talking to you.  Are you alright?"  In her relief and excitement, Hope had said all of this very fast.  "We are all fine.  Please patch me in to Detective Burns."

     "Right away Alex," she said.  "I'm going to the doorway,"  Alex whispered to his friends.  They all nodded that they understood.  Alex didn't want to risk the guy downstairs hearing him.  The next voice Alex heard was Detective Burns shouting his name, "Alex!  Your dad said your cell went dead when he was talking to you."  "Yeah.  It did.  And things were too hairy to borrow another cell and call him back."  "Yeah.  Hope told us about the guys in the closet,"  Detective Burns said in a disapproving voice.

     "Listen.  You can yell at me later.  But right now I have information you need to know," Alex told him.  "What is it?" the detective asked, back in his "Cop Mode"now. "There are only three bad guys active now," Detective Burns took a moment to snicker at Alex's word usage.  "One at the front entrance and two in the cafeteria."

     "But one of guys in the cafeteria will be back at the front entrance sooner or later.  He just went to the cafeteria to check with his other partner as to how negotiations are going."  Detective Burns didn't ask Alex how he knew this.  "Okay Alex.  Let me relay what you've told me to the F.B.I. and my team.  You can talk to your dad.  He has his hand out for the phone."  "Okay.  Put him on," Alex said, now emotional.