Chapter 31 Hot Trail

Michelle glanced at Brook's letter which she had laid out on the passenger's seat next to her as she drove. She hadn't stopped rereading it since she found it, the words burning in her memory like a hot iron. Her anger overrode her grief and fear for Brook as she was determined to get him back and make Jackson pay for hitting him – there was no other say about it.

"Those damn Ghosts should have contacted us by now, try to cut a deal with us, or at least threaten us, now that they've got Brook," Reece said suddenly over the radio.

"Maybe they've got bigger plans. You can't tell what Jackson is planning in that sick twisted brain of his." Paige ground out.

"He's sure to try to get Michelle though. We should proceed with caution." Jett said.

"I'm not delaying this any longer! Hours have passed since they got Brook! There's no time for caution!" Michelle vented.

"Calm down, angel face, we're moving as fast as we can. At least now we've got some leads on them." Paige said.

"We should've done this sooner. If we had narrowed down the locations of the Inferno Ghosts before, we wouldn't be wasting time checking up each and every location like this." Payton said.

"So why haven't we?" Paige asked.

"Because the chief didn't trust us with such sensitive information," Payton said with heavy sarcasm. "And now we're wasting time like this putting Brook in –"

"A-hem," Leslie said, clearing her throat to interrupt him. "I'm sure Brook is still alive. Let's not dwell on any other possibility."

"But seriously guys, do you think it's safe for Michelle to be coming along with us? I mean, Jackson wants her too and we'd be bringing her right to him." Jett said.

"If you think you can make me go back –" Michelle began angrily.

"No one is gonna make you go back angel face. Why do you think I showed you how to kick butt this morning?" Paige asked.

"Jackson is not gonna get you, Michelle, I promise. And he won't have Brook for much longer either." Payton said. Michelle felt her confidence restored. The unwavering loyalty and positive thoughts of the crew helped her believe that they would get Brook back unharmed – as soon as they found him.

After hours of driving around the city checking every location for any signs of the Ghosts, they came up with nothing. It was past five when they stopped for a bite to eat. They bought sandwiches and sat on the hoods of their cars eating as they discussed their next move. Michelle refused the sandwich Leslie offered her but Paige pushed it into her hand.

"You'll need the energy if you're gonna fight some Ghosts and rescue your boyfriend." She said. Michelle couldn't argue with that and accepted the sandwich.

"I don't get it! We've checked every possible place and nothing! What's now?" Jett asked.

"You don't think they went back to the desert in Reno, right?" Reece asked.

"No, if Jackson wants Michelle, he'll stick around in Vegas knowing she's still here," Payton said.

"How would he know that? They haven't been able to track us yet." Michelle said.

"Brook is all the proof he needs for that," Paige said.

"Brook wouldn't give away anything about us," Leslie said. "Least of all about Michelle."

"What if they torture him for information?" Reece asked. Paige kicked him.

"Reece! Shut up!" she said. She eyed Michelle's face which had gone pale.

"We should get back on the road. We're gonna search all night if we have to." She said getting up. She spotted a black car parked a little further away and stopped. She squinted in the evening sunlight to get a better look at it.

"That car looks familiar." She said. The others stood up and looked toward the car.

"Hey, yeah! I've seen that car before too!" Jett said.

"Looks like an ordinary Audi TT RS to me," Reece said.

"That's the same model as one of the Ghosts' cars that was after us from the market that day!" Payton said, jumping over his car hood and running to the car. He looked inside and found it empty.

"They may be nearby," Leslie said cautiously. Paige looked around and spotted a man in dark clothes skulking off a few meters from them.

"There!" she shouted. Payton and Reece took off after him immediately but ended up missing him as he jumped in a cab passing by the main road.

"Dammit, he got away!" Reece spat. Payton clenched his fists.

"They've been following us. Who knows how long they've had their eye on us." He said.

"Guys, come back here! We found something." Paige called to them. They returned to the Audi where the others were peering through the back seat window.

"Recognize that?" Paige asked, pointing to a pair of racing green overalls thrown on the backseat.

"Road Runner's. Mario's auto shop!" Reece said, snapping his fingers.

"That was one of the places Jackson hit. It was in the clippings Soriano had." Payton said.

"Looks like they raided the place and didn't want to get rid of vintage overalls," Paige stated. "There might be more clues there. We should check it out."

"We know where we're going next," Leslie said.

"What are we waiting for? Let's go!" Michelle said hurrying back to her car.

The crew drove to Mario's auto shop, a vintage car store that featured cars from the sixties and seventies. When they got there, the building was nothing more than rubble and a few standing walls. Everyone got out and surveyed the destruction Jackson and the Inferno Ghosts had left behind.

"They're gonna pay big time for this," Reece said, slamming his fist into his palm. Payton lingered behind with Michelle while everyone else hunted through the rubble.

"Something doesn't feel right." He said slowly.

"What?" Michelle asked.

"It's like they wanted us to find that Audi and see what was in it to lead us here. But there's nothing here but rubble." A shout from Jett alerted them.

"Guys! There's a back room that hasn't been destroyed!" he said. Everyone gathered in the back room, entering through a back door that Jett had found. Three sides of the room were still standing; one wall had collapsed along with the front of the building.

"How come the cops didn't notice this? They must have known if there was some big explosion here." Leslie said.

"Jackson must've taken care of it so that they don't," Payton said, kicking some rubble.

"At least there aren't any bodies," Jett said nervously. A sudden piercing ring from a telephone which hadn't been destroyed startled them all.

"Should we answer it?" Michelle asked. Payton slowly went and answered it. He listened without saying anything for a second before putting it on speaker.

"It's Jackson." He mouthed. A smooth voice spoke through the phone.

"Well, well, well, Night Blazers. Looks like you'll follow any trail thrown your way. Not a very smart lot. I have the Havens kid. He's alive – for now. You have something that I want – the Koenigsegg. And my prize that got away. Michelle Patterson. It's touching the way you all tried to protect her. I'm almost... moved to tears." There was a sardonic laugh.

"Bring the girl. Then we'll talk. Since you want to find me so badly, I left my address in the phone book next to the telephone. Oh, and I don't think I have to warn you to keep the cops out of this. You understand how it is. I'm sure you want Havens to keep all his limbs intact. I'll be keeping an eye on you so don't try to pull one over me. Any tricks and Havens gets it. And I won't make it painless. See you soon." There was a click at the end.

"That damn," Payton began, but the rest of his curses were drowned in the noise of him flinging the phone to the ground where it smashed to pieces. Michelle's face was white.

"We have to go." She said in a hollow voice. "We have to get Brook."

"No, it's too dangerous. I won't have you run into Jackson's trap." Payton said firmly. He took the phone book and read the address Jackson wrote before setting it on fire with a matchstick. He threw it to the ground where it smoldered to ashes.

"Reece, Jett, you're with me. Paige, Leslie, you and Michelle go home." Payton said. Paige stepped forward with a glare on her face.

"Like hell, we will." She said in a hard voice.

"This isn't up for debate! It's too dangerous for you girls to come along." Payton argued.

"Paige, we have to think about Michelle. If Jackson –" Leslie began but Michelle cut her off by pushing past her and going to her car.

"You coming or what?" she asked Paige. "If the boys won't let us come, we'll go by ourselves." Paige smiled darkly.

"Good call Michelle." She said following her to the cars. Payton grabbed her arm and swung her back.

"I forbid you from coming!" He shouted. Paige twisted his arm to make him let go and kicked him in the stomach bringing him to his knees.

"Don't test me, Payton. You know better than to stand against me," she said in a low hard voice.

"Guys stop it! Can we just go already? Remember Jackson said he's watching us. If he sees Michelle drive away..." Jett glanced at Michelle.

"There's no one here! Jackson's bluffing. He probably doesn't know his stooge bailed in a cab. That gives us a little time to get away." Payton said.

"And we're coming with you!" Paige insisted vehemently.

"Forget it, I'm with Payton on this. You girls aren't coming." Reece said. He went to Paige's car, opened the hood, and pulled out a couple of wires. Paige came up behind him and tried to pull him away but he dodged. He did the same with Michelle's and Leslie's cars.

"How dare you!" Paige shouted. Reece took the wires to his car and got in. Payton saw what he was doing and got up. He ran to his car and Jett followed after a moment's hesitation. The three of them started their cars and drove out of the lot before the girls could stop them.

"One of these days I'm gonna make him regret that," Paige said watching the three cars grow smaller in the distance.

"What are we gonna do?! Without me, Jackson might kill Brook! We have to go and we're stranded without cars!" Michelle said with panic.

"And we don't have the address either. Payton burned it up." Leslie said. Paige gave a conniving smile.

"That's Payton's biggest mistake. Underestimating girls." She said. "There was a wide-angle mirror in the back room if you remember."

"So?" Michelle asked.

"So, I saw the address reflection in it before Payton burned it up. Jade Terrene football field." Michelle looked at her in surprise.

"You must have read that backward at lightning speed." She said. Paige winked.

"It's one of my many talents." She said.

"So we have the address. How are we gonna get there? Reece unplugged all our cars. Unless we're talking cabs, which is gonna take a while since we're pretty much in the middle of nowhere..." Leslie trailed off. Paige turned her torso around and pointed back to the auto shop rubble.

"His mistake was leaving us stranded in front of an auto shop." She said smoothly.

"There should be spare parts in there that we can borrow!" Michelle said.

"Exactly. Let's show those boys they can't boss us around." Paige said. Leslie hesitated.

"What?" Paige asked, seeing her linger back.

"The six of us alone against Jackson and the Ghosts might not stand a chance. We should call for backup."

"I'm not standing around waiting for backup, Leslie. If you want to go back and get back up, go ahead. Meet us at the football field." Paige said. Leslie sighed. She didn't want to let the two girls go alone but had no choice.

"Fine. But don't do anything stupid until we get there." She said. Paige scoffed.

"When have I ever done anything stupid?"

The sun had set and the night chill had crept in suddenly by the time Paige and Michelle drove onto the road leading to Jade Terrene football field.

"Where is this place? It feels like we've been driving forever." Michelle said to Paige through the radio.

"It's a good distance outside Vegas. Jackson planned this well. He's drawing us out of the city away from attention, out of our comfort zone, and into his territory. Gotta give him credit for being smart, which is more than what I can say for the boys in our crew combined." Paige said. Michelle gave a nervous laugh.

"Yeah, our guys make pretty dumb decisions." She said.

"Finally something we both can agree on," Paige said and Michelle could hear the lighter tone in her voice.

"I'm glad we're in this together Paige. I'd go crazy if I had to stand up alone."

"Don't worry, us girls aren't going down easily." They drove side by side as Paige led the way. They kept their headlights off so as to not draw attention.

"There it is. It's the only football field in town." Paige said as they drew near a huge green field lit only by the moonlight.

"It's situated pretty far from – civilization," Michelle said, trying not to sound nervous. "At least it guarantees privacy."

"Hm. Privacy is the last thing we need. Jackson chose this field for good reason. He knew we wouldn't have any cover out there."

"Cover from what?" Michelle asked, afraid of the answer.

"You know the answer to that," Paige said grimly. They cut their engines and parked a little way from the field.

"Think the guys are here already?" Michelle asked in a whisper as they walked up to the field. The moon had hidden behind a cloud throwing everything in a cacophony of eerie shadows.

"They should be. Unless –" Paige stopped suddenly hearing a crunch from behind. She swung around and gave a blind high kick. Michelle heard a distinct thud and someone said 'ow' as they fell to the ground.

"Hmph. Knew they'd try to do that." Paige said. Michelle took her stance expecting men to start fighting from all sides.

"Paige, is it an ambush?" She asked. Paige grinned humorlessly.

"No, it's just the guys thinking they could outwit us." She replied. Michelle heard a hiss.

"Shh, keep it down! You're gonna give away our element of surprise!" Reece whispered fiercely. Paige rolled her eyes.

"So who did I take out?" she asked, folding her arms. The dark figure on the ground stood up.

"You've got it in for me today, babe. How did you find us?" Payton asked.

"I'd explain but why bother? You guys don't deserve to know anyway. Any sign of Brook or the Ghosts?"

"We're not telling you anything either. You have to get Michelle away from here, she's not safe!" Jett whispered.

"I've had just about enough of you boys treating me like I can't take care of myself and telling me I'm not safe!" Michelle shouted. "I'm going to find Brook one way or another and NO ONE is gonna stop me!" a sudden clapping startled all of them in the dark.

"Bravo. What a touching show you put on. Loyal to the core, I can see." A man's smooth voice rang out in the dark. A sudden flare of light from a single flood light shone directly upon a man standing near the middle of the field. He was tall and had dirt blond colored hair with a matching stubble. He looked young enough to be somewhere in his late thirties.

"Jackson Kromer," Payton said, his expression darkening. "Where's Brook?!" he shouted.

"Watch the temper now. No need to get feisty." Jackson glanced behind Payton's shoulder and spotted Michelle.

"Ah, I see you've brought my prize. Michelle Patterson. Your picture doesn't do you justice." He said holding up her ID card. Michelle stepped forward past Payton.

"Where is Brook?! If you hurt him, I swear –"

"Uh, uh, uh. Language, Miss Patterson. You've been hanging out with the wrong crowd. Soon you'll learn their ways... become like them..." Paige groaned in fury.

"Enough chit-chat you," Michelle heard Paige yell a foul name at Jackson, "where's Brook?! What have you done with him?! I'll break every bone in your body if –"

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. These are the kind of girls you hang out with Michelle? Surprising. I thought you'd have better taste than that. Seeing where you're from."

"You don't know anything about me!" Michelle yelled. Jackson smiled in a way that made her blood boil.

"Wrong. I know everything about you Michelle. I know more than the crew that claims to be your friends. I know who you are, where you came from..."

"Paige is right, he's stalling for something," Reece said. Jackson laughed.

"Looks like some of you might have brains after all." The rest of the floodlights around the field came on in a blinding greenish-white haze. A car came into view a few feet from Jackson. Inside the crew could see quite clearly that Brook was sitting in the driver's seat, unconscious.

"Brook? Brook!" Michelle screamed and sprang forward but Jett and Payton held her back.

"Let me go! I have to get to Brook!" she shrieked. Jackson shook his head.

"Uh-uh. No one moves until I say so. That car your friend is in is rigged to blow. One wrong move and Havens will be the next fireworks show on this side of town." Jackson said, twiddling what looked like a detonator remote in his left hand. Michelle struggled to get free.

"Michelle, no! That's exactly what he wants! If you go he might blow you both up!" Reece whispered as they struggled to hold her back.

"Guys? We're not alone." Paige said, pointing to the outside of the field. A dozen black cars lined the edge of the field, several men stepping out and closing in on the crew. Payton swore.

"I knew this was a trap." He said angrily.