Chapter 16 Hot Pursuit

Michelle stared at him like she didn't understand.

"We what? You want to drive all the way to Vegas?"

"To Reno. It has the closest airport. We'll drive there."

"Airport? You're serious?"

"Keep up, Michelle. Yes, we have to fly to Vegas. There's another headquarters there."

"Why not drive there?"

"Because my Hennessey Venom is rare enough to get pulled over by every cop who sees it. And did you forget about the Inferno Ghosts? We can't drive alone for seven hours to Vegas. That's the stupidest and most dangerous thing to do. It's quicker and safer to fly there."

"Did the others drive there? They can't have left their cars behind to fly to Vegas."

"Together they're less vulnerable even though they would have attracted a lot of attention. Forgot about that. We have to see about getting to Vegas ourselves. Do you have a passport?"

"Yes."

"Then we leave before sunrise. The Ghosts will be patrolling the desert all night. We can make it to the airport and avoid them if we time it right."

"What about booking a flight?"

"I'll take care of that. You start packing. Take whatever you need but not too heavy. I don't know when we'll return."

"O-Okay." Payton heard the tremor in her voice.

"Hey, it's gonna be okay. We'll make it out of here." He said, squeezing her shoulder. Michelle nodded bravely.

"I'll go pack. Let me know any other details."

"I will."

It was past eleven when Michelle finished packing and snacking on an orange (she wasn't hungry for anything else). She packed her bag and her cross-body pouch which she would carry with her. She made sure her passport was in there before deciding she was done. She checked her wallet – she had a little over a hundred dollars in it. She rummaged through it for her ID card but could not find it.

"Hmm... that's odd. Where could it be?" she tried to think of the last time she had it.

"I wonder if it fell out in my bag..." she got down on her knees and unzipped her bag which she had just packed. Payton came in and saw her.

"Michelle? What are you looking for?"

"I can't find my ID card... I only have my passport and driver's license." Payton remained silent. Michelle looked up and saw his face was tense.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"Did you have it when you arrived here?" he asked.

"I'm not sure. I never checked all my stuff."

"That's not good."

"Why?"

"That means there's a chance you might have left it in your car."

"Oh. But my car was blown up so... I guess it's long gone." Payton didn't look convinced.

"Hmm. Maybe... Did you finish packing everything else?"

"Yes, all I have is that bag. Should I get anything for the others?"

"No, they all have emergency backpacks in their cars. They'll survive." Michelle understood the unspoken question which hung in the air - whether they survived in the first place.

"Our flight is at eight-thirty tomorrow morning. We'll be out of here at four." Payton said.

"Okay. Do you have to pack anything?"

"I'll take care of that myself." He saw her yawn.

"You should get some rest. You've had a long day."

"You too," Michelle said. "Did you eat anything?"

"I'm not hungry. Go to bed. I'll wake you before it's time to leave."

"Okay. Goodnight Payton." Michelle went to her bunk and lay down. It was hard to believe that only twenty-four hours ago the whole crew and she were together partying and playing games. She yawned again. Whatever was waiting ahead, she was too tired to think about it now.

"Michelle... Michelle, wake up. It's time to go." Michelle stirred and opened her eyes. She felt Payton shaking her arm.

"Get dressed. We'll leave in fifteen." He said. He turned to go but turned his head to say something.

"Wear the jacket I gave you," he instructed and left. Michelle yawned and checked the luminescent hands of her watch. It showed three forty-five. She had barely slept for a few hours. She was beginning to think even that was a luxury. She quickly got out of bed, washed, and dressed. Payton's jacket was stylish – and warm. She admired herself in the mirror for a second. She had never worn leather before. She packed a bottle of water and a couple of ham and cheese sandwiches for her and Payton, just in case. It was better to be prepared; who knew when their next meal would be.

"Ready?" Payton asked as she came out. She checked her high-top sneaker laces and nodded.

"Ready." Payton's eyes flickered to her jacket with a look of admiration.

"You look nice in it," Payton said. Michelle gave a smile.

"Are you checking me out?" She teased. His eyelids lowered in a way that made Michelle's cheeks warm.

"You're the one looking sexier than I ever did in leather." He said. Michelle looked away feeling embarrassed.

"Oh stop." She said. He turned off all the lights and got in the car. Michelle took a quick glance around wondering when she'd see the base again.

"There's one last thing I have to do before we go," Payton said as he drove out of the cave.

"What's that?" Michelle asked.

"Block the skylights." He parked the car outside and got out beckoning Michelle to follow him. They walked a few feet until he stopped in front of a tiny skylight set on a level of their feet.

"Keep an eye out. We can't risk being seen." Payton said. Michelle nodded and squinted in the dim colorless glow of the dawn. She heard Payton heave and huff and move stones over the skylights.

"Done. Let's go." They got back in the car and drove towards Reno. Michelle kept glancing out the windows for the Ghosts.

"They're not following us. I don't think they're even around here. They usually take the west roads." Payton said.

"Right. I guess that should be reassuring." Michelle said. Payton sniffed the air.

"Why do I smell ham?" he asked looking at the backseat. "I thought you put everything away."

"I did – I made us some sandwiches for the road," Michelle said, pulling out a paper bag from her handbag. Payton snorted.

"Really? You brought lunchboxes?"

"You don't have to eat it if you don't want it," Michelle said, opening a sandwich and taking a bite.

"I didn't say that," Payton said petulantly. Michelle smirked. She offered him one.

"Hands-free Michelle," Payton said, indicating to the steering wheel.

"Do you want me to – fine." She held the sandwich to his mouth so he could bite into it.

"Ham and cheese?" he asked.

"With mustard. Fastest sandwich to make."

"Better than flight food," Payton said. Michelle was silent for a few minutes as he ate. He noticed her face suppressing emotion.

"You look like a college student before the SATs." He said. She smiled.

"How would you know? You've never been to college, I'm assuming."

"You assume wrong." He said but he didn't volunteer any more information. Michelle lapsed into anxious silence. Payton nudged her arm.

"I won't let them get to you okay? Stop worrying." He said.

"I'm not worried about me... I was thinking about the others. I mean, we don't exactly know if they're in Vegas. And they don't know about us – wherever they are."

"Look, we've done this before whenever we've been on the run. We've never come too close to getting caught either by the Inferno Ghosts or the cops. We can do this." Payton said.

"I know. But you all risk so much... and you're risking your life too right now."

"Maybe. But I can handle it. You have to trust that."

"I –" she stopped as a flash appeared in the mirror. She turned back and saw a car following them in the distance and gasped.

"Payton!"

"It's them... hang on. Things are gonna get fast." Payton said, his expression becoming alert. He hit the gas sending the car from a casual eighty mph to a lightning hundred and fifty.

"How do we lose them now? They might get us at the airport!" Michelle said, panicking.

"Not on my watch," Payton said darkly. He stared straight ahead, his full attention on the road.

"There's a green bag in the backseat. Reach in and take a grenade."

"A grenade!"

"It won't explode; it's for blinding the enemy temporarily. It's a stun grenade. I'm gonna open the window. When I tell you to throw it out, you throw it out, got it?"

"Yes."

"Okay, one... two... now!" Payton swerved the car to the left. Michelle pulled the pin and threw the grenade out. She saw it explode in a flash of light. The car that was following them skidded and stopped.

"That should slow 'em."

"That was insanely cool! I didn't know there were grenades that didn't blow people up!" Michelle said.

"Alright cadet, settle down. We'll be in Reno in ten minutes or less. Now here's the plan. There's a mall near the airport. We'll get out there and hide the car. We take a cab from there to the airport. It shouldn't be over five minutes."

"But won't we risk getting caught?"

"No, because they're not gonna find us – if they don't know who they're looking for." Michelle looked confused.

"Just trust me; I know what I'm doing." He glanced at the rearview mirror.

"Dammit, they're fast. They want me to hit two hundred? Fine." Payton said half to himself. The car roared to two hundred mph and soon crossed out of the desert into Reno. Payton began to slow down as they reached traffic roads.

"Too exposed... gotta reach the mall fast..." Payton muttered to himself. Michelle clutched the car handle in silence, not wanting to distract him, especially since he was taking some dangerous turns narrowly missing slower cars.

"There!" he shouted as they neared a huge mall. Payton headed for the underground parking lot which was pitch black since the mall wasn't open yet. He drove to the lowest level of the lot and parked in a corner hidden by a wall. They got out carrying their bags and headed for the employee's elevator.

"Where are we going?" Michelle asked.

"Shopping," Payton replied. Michelle looked incredulous.

"What? We don't have time for this! Shouldn't we be running for our lives?"

"We should. But we're not getting out of this mall. A couple of tourists from Alabama are."

"Wait, who?" Payton winked at her.

"We're getting new IDs."

The mall was dark and empty. Payton purposefully walked towards a store on the ground floor and picked the lock of the glass door.

"We're breaking in?!" Michelle whispered in horror.

"Relax, we're not gonna get caught."

"Don't tell me we're stealing clothes too?"

"I'll leave the money on the counter, happy?" Payton said with impatience. He pulled her in once the door opened.

"Get something bright and flashy, like a tourist's clothes. Come out when you're done." Payton said. He went through the men's clothes racks and picked something Michelle couldn't see. She picked out a random dress and went to try it on.

"Perfect. That'll do." Payton said when she came out of the dressing room. She was wearing a scarlet-colored flowery mini dress with a cashmere scarf.

"And for the finishing touch –" Payton took a wide-brimmed hat and blond bob cut wig from a mannequin and put them on Michelle's head.

"We're ready." He said. Michelle noticed he was wearing a prim green plaid suit and yellow fedora. The contrast from his acid wash jeans and blue denim jacket earlier was extreme.

"You look – eye-catching," Michelle said with a giggle.

"Take a good long look 'cause I'm changing out of this once we get to the airport." He dropped some money on the counter and grabbed Michelle's hand.

"Come on, they'll be looking for us." Grabbing their bags, they fled out of the store.

"We'll take the front entrance. But first –" Payton took a pebble from the inactive water fountain.

"What're you doing?" Michelle asked.

"You'll see." He aimed it for the glass wall of a jewelry store and threw it with terrific force. CRASH! The glass shattered and fell to the floor in a loud tinkling. Immediately a loud ear-splitting alarm went off, and a red light flashed above the store door.

"What was that for?!" Michelle asked, covering her ears.

"That's our backup plan. Come on." He grabbed her hand and ran to the entrance. With a strong high kick, he broke the glass door of the entrance and ran out. Running away from the mall together, he hailed a cab and pushed Michelle in before climbing in it himself.

"Reno airport and step on it," he said to the driver. He glanced back to see if the Ghosts were following but they weren't. A couple of their cars had stopped in front of the mall a minute before a string of police cars had surrounded the mall blocking all the entrances.

"Phase one – success," Payton said leaning back.

"Would you mind explaining to me what just happened?" Michelle asked.

"Those Ghosts aren't going anywhere with the cops there. That will slow them down until we get to the airport." He said in a low voice so only Michelle could hear. He had noticed the driver eyeing them out of the corner of his eye.

"Oh – Oh!" Michelle said, realizing what he'd done. He smiled.

"You're welcome." He said. Michelle punched him in the arm.

"Hey!" he said.

"You could've told me what you were going to do!" she said.

"It would've taken too long to explain it to you," Payton said rolling his eyes. Michelle scoffed.

"Yeah, right. So what about your car? Won't they find it?"

"Either the cops or the Ghosts will. But that doesn't matter anymore. What matters is getting to Vegas." Payton slipped his arm around Michelle.

"Pretend we're a couple. The driver looks suspicious." Michelle gave a forced giggle and leaned closer to Payton.

"Oh sweetie you're so funny!" she said.

"Don't oversell it." Payton hissed. The car slowed down and stopped in front of the airport.

"We've arrived, sir." The driver said. Payton took out the bags and paid the driver.

"We have to hurry. We have to change out of these outfits before the customs realize our looks don't match our passports."

"I don't get it. Why did we have to dress up in the first place?"

"Cab drivers are the most reliable source of info. If the Ghosts or the cops track him and interrogate him, he'll describe a bubbly-looking couple who look like they're on tour."

"But if we change back to our own clothes –"

"The bubbly couple disappears into thin air."

"Hmm... smart."

"Told you not to underestimate me. Now go change. I'll wait for you out here." Payton said, pointing to the ladies' room in the airport. Michelle went in with her bag and changed back into her own clothes plus the jacket. She discarded the wig and hat in a dustbin and came out.

"Much better." She said.

"Wait here, I'll change and be right out," Payton said going into the men's room. Michelle stood keeping an eye out for any suspicious-looking set of men. She narrowed her eyes at two men who had entered the airport without any bags.

"Er, Payton?" she knocked on the door. He came out looking like himself.

"I think they found us." She said to him, pointing to the men. Payton clenched his fist.

"Not yet they haven't." he took her hand and led her through a crowd of people.

"You go through first. I'll follow in a second. Head for gate ten." He said, pushing her towards the immigration customs.

"But Payton!" Michelle called. He walked backward away from her. Feeling nervous alone, she went through the scanner and walked through the other side. She collected her bag and looked around for Payton. He was nowhere to be seen. Michelle walked slowly towards the gate, hoping Payton would hurry up. She was afraid he might have gotten caught or tried to fight them off alone or worse...

A hand fell heavily on her shoulder and she squealed.

"Calm down silly, it's only me. Sheesh, you're gonna let the whole airport's attention that way." Michelle turned and saw Payton.

"Payton! Don't you dare startle me like that again! Did you lose them?"

"Temporarily. We gotta keep moving. Staying still for too long would attract attention."

"The gate's over there but we don't board for another twenty minutes."

"Not good. We have to be on the move until we board. And we can't be recognized. Those ghosts think nothing about holding us up at gunpoint."

"But you said you lost them."

"Doesn't mean they won't try to sneak past security. We have to improvise."

"And do what? Wear a disguise again?"

"Exactly."

"Payton seriously? But I threw out those clothes."

"Not the old one. A new disguise."

"Where are we gonna get new clothes?"

"Hello, look around. Haven't you ever seen airport stores?"

"Ugh, right."

"This time we're gonna do things a little more differently."

"How different?" Michelle asked, narrowing her eyes.