Ch 559 - The High-Speed Car Chase

An icy chill shot down Alex's back, and his expression grew hard. He was furious someone had targeted Debbie again, and he was determined to make them pay.

He said goodbye to his mother, giving her one last hug and making sure she got safely to her car. Then he pulled the scrap of paper with Cassidy's phone number from his pocket, scrunched it up and tossed it into a garbage can.

Rufus had sounded anxious on the phone. The Clifton family had already searched for Debbie, but they had been unsuccessful.

Alex made his way to the airport and boarded the first plane to Baltimore. The trip was torturous, and he fidgeted with the need to do something, but eventually, the plane landed, and he rushed to the shopping mall where Debbie had disappeared.

According to Rufus, Debbie had been accompanied by two bodyguards, but she had still been snatched from right under their noses. She had used the bathroom, and the guards had been forced to wait outside. When she hadn't come back out, the guards had grown worried, and when they had investigated, they had found the bathroom empty.

Rufus had already checked the mall's surveillance footage, and he had spotted someone pushing a cleaning trolley out of the bathroom. The only plausible explanation was that Debbie had been hidden inside the trolley when it had been wheeled outside.

Alex clenched his fists. He was angry, but he was also surprised by the abductors' ingenuity.

Rufus and Alex searched the mall for a while, finding nothing. Giving up, they got into a car with Will Palmer and drove away from the mall.

"We have a tail," Rufus said once they had been driving on the freeway for a while. "Check out that black car."

Alex glanced in the rearview mirror, and then he gave Rufus a grim smile.

They drove for another ten minutes until the traffic had grown sparse, and then Alex suddenly slowed.

The driver of the car following them had to brake sharply, almost causing a collision. Several other cars blasted their horns as they swerved to avoid him, and the driver swore as he fought to stay in control.

Furious, he stepped on the gas pedal and caught up to Alex's car, driving alongside it. He was so angry, he had forgotten he was supposed to follow Alex to his destination. Now, he just wanted to run him off the road and deal with him right now.

A blue car pulled up behind Alex, providing backup and making it easier to herd Alex where they wanted him.

The black car whined as the driver sped up, ready to overtake Alex and force him to stop. But he hadn't expected Alex to increase his own speed, swerving slightly and clipping the blue car, which scraped along the barrier that separated them from the traffic traveling in the other direction.

Just as the blue car moved to force Alex's car off the freeway, Alex swerved, moving into another lane before dropping his speed slightly to get behind the blue car. Then he accelerated once more, catching the blue car from behind and propelling it forward.

The driver of the blue car had no time to react, and he hit the back of a truck, the impact sending the car over the safety barrier and into oncoming traffic. Somehow, the car landed upright, and the driver screamed as he desperately tried to avoid the other vehicles.

One car was unable to evade him, and it smashed into the blue car, forcing it into the grass at the side of the road, where it eventually stopped moving.

Several men staggered from the car, and one of them bent over to vomit. They collapsed next to their car, badly injured, but lucky to be alive.

Alex kept driving, keeping an eye on the black car. He pulled up alongside it, rolled down his window, and then he reached over and punched at the other car's window, wrapping his fist with inner power. The window shattered, sending bits of glass flying everywhere.

The black car swerved, nearly colliding with a small van, but correcting course just in time. One of the passengers hit his head and passed out, slumping in his seat.

Rufus nodded with satisfaction, glad Alex was driving because he knew Alex would show no mercy.

Once again, the black car increased its speed, pulling into the lead for a moment, and then Alex moved slightly ahead.

Will leaned out of his window, reaching over to the other car, and grabbing the bag that was lying on the passenger's lap, yanking it into Alex's car.

He opened the bag, finding a walkie talkie, a crossbow, and three bolts. As he examined the bolts, he frowned, noticing they were thicker than usual and had been painted red.

"Are those special red bolts?" Rufus asked, twisted around in his seat to see what Will had discovered. "How is that possible? Where could they have gotten those?"

Alex frowned, about to ask what a special red bolt was, when he was stopped by a voice coming through the walkie talkie.

"Team one, report! What's going on?"

Alex held out his hand, and Will gave him the walkie talkie. "Who the hell are you?" Alex demanded.

For a moment, there was nothing but silence, and then the voice merely said, "You'll find out soon enough.

Alex scowled, dropping the walkie talkie in his lap.

"We need to get out of here!" Rufus yelled, looking behind them.

Alex glanced in the mirror, spotting another three cars coming up on them at high speed.

"Who are they?" he asked.

"Deal with them first, and ask questions later," Rufus suggested. "This might have something to do with Debbie, so try to keep them alive long enough to get answers."

Alex looked at the black car and noticed a man pushing open the sunroof and fitting his upper body through it. The man held a crossbow, which he aimed at Alex's car and quickly pulled the trigger.

"Watch out!" Rufus yelled.

A red crossbow bolt flew at them, and Alex had to work quickly to steer the car out of its path. The bolt flew past them and hit a road sign, immediately exploding with a loud boom, sending flames and shrapnel everywhere.

The next bolt hit a tree next to the freeway, causing it to burst into flames. Thick smoke arose as the tree fell over, weakened by the blow.

The smell of burning followed them, and Alex could still see the fire in his mirrors.

Will gaped at everything in horror. He had simply come with Rufus to meet Alex, and he hadn't expected to be drawn into such a lethal car chase. He knew if one of those crossbow bolts hit their car, they would all be killed instantly.

Alex stepped on the accelerator and sped forward. He had planned to force the black car off the road and then demand answers from them, but now he thought it wiser to escape. The men were too powerful, and Alex had to consider Rufus and Will. If he wasn't careful, he could get them all killed.

Besides, he had to ensure he survived so he could track down Debbie.

"Were you right?" he asked, shooting a glance at Rufus. "Are they special red bolts?"

Rufus nodded. "Yes. They are."

The black car drew even once more, and the man at the sunroof aimed at Alex, firing off another bolt. It sped toward them, only narrowly missing the car's tire, and then it exploded as it hit the road, leaving a small crater.

Alex narrowed his eyes and accelerated again, trying to put more distance between them and their pursuers.

The man with the crossbow swore as his own driver stepped on the gas and shot forward. He grabbed his walkie talkie and barked commands at the men in the other cars. Moments later, the others opened their own sunroofs, lifted their crossbows, and took aim.

Alex cursed under his breath as he drove, handling the car's controls with skill.

The situation in Baltimore was clearly even more serious than he had thought. He had only just arrived, and already he was under attack.