Within the Dead Space

by Hutchens, Gary

  All parties involved were to meet at one o’clock the next afternoon at the bank.

  ***

  Chaco was awakened by Maria in the morning. She hobbled into the living room after Carmen told her Chaco was home.

  “Where have you been, boy? We all missed you.”

  Chaco rolled over to see everyone looking at him. “I’m sorry that I didn’t call and let you know. Do you remember what I told you and Franco a few days ago about my past?”

  “I remember.”

  “Those same people discovered where I was and tried to take me back to Boston. I finally got away from them last night and came immediately here. I probably won’t be able to stay very long.” Chaco knew he was lying to her but with all the others listening he had to make up a story.

  In a little while Carmen left for work and her sister Rosa took the kids to the park. Chaco was left alone with Maria. He went into the bedroom where she was sitting up in bed.

  “Maria, I have something to tell you. What I said earlier wasn’t true at all. I just couldn’t tell you the truth in front of everybody. I hope you won’t hate me after I tell you what I did.”

  Chaco hesitated for a second, and then blurted out, “I robbed a bank. This family needed money and I tried every way I could think of to get some money. Nobody would hire me because of my visa and it’s only a matter of time before those men in Boston find me.” He sat a large postal envelope on the bed.

  Maria sat there dumbfounded. “Are you serious? I don’t believe this. You would risk your life for my family. Come here.”

  Chaco leaned over and she hugged him as she wept. “You know,” she said through the tears, “you’ll have to give it back.”

  Chaco opened the envelope and started taking the money out. Maria’s eyes widened as she watched Chaco put the stacks of hundreds on her bed.

  “I took a hundred and two thousand dollars. I am giving a hundred thousand to you.”

  She shook her head in disbelief.

  “I want you to move out of this area, Maria. It’s just too dangerous. This money should keep you going for a few years and with everybody working maybe things will get a lot better.”

  “Oh Chaco, I wish you hadn’t done this. They’re going to come after you. I already have one son missing and the thought of something happening to you is almost too much for me to bear. You’ll just have to give the money back.”

  The phone started ringing and Maria answered. It was the landlord telling her to pay the rent or get out. She slammed the phone down and started crying again.

  Chaco tried his best to console her. “You have to take the money, Maria. I know it’s not for you. Your family needs it.”

  She hugged him again. It was her way of saying she would take it.

  “I was going to have to leave here shortly anyway and this money will help. Now remember, you can’t spend very much of it at any one time. You can’t put it in the bank. They’ll want to know where the money came from. You’ll have to hide it at your home and you’ve got to move from here right away. I’ll be gone, and with Franco gone this neighborhood is just too dangerous.”

  Maria reached over and touched the money. “I wouldn’t take this money if it was just for me. It is important that you believe that Chaco.”

  “I believe it completely and I will pay this money back and pay for the damage that I have caused. First I’ll help you hide the money and then I’ll have to go.”

  The phone rang before Chaco went out the door. It was Franco.

  “Chaco, I need to talk to you. It’s about Eduardo. Don’t say anything to Mama. Can you come down to North Carolina and see me?”

  “Yes I can, but uhh, where’s North Carolina and how do I get there. When should I come?”

  “Well…..the sooner the better. Just go to the train station and they’ll help you. Tell them you want to go to Raleigh, North Carolina. Mama can give you directions to the train station”

  “I’ll leave today,” said Chaco.

  “You’ve got my number so call me when you get here. Do you have any money?”

  “Yes, as a matter of fact I do. I’ll try to catch a train today.”

  “Great. Thanks Chaco and I’ll see you soon. Now, put Mama on.”

  ***

  Everybody met in the bank manager’s office. After several hours the linguist had figured out that the message was written in Quechua, a language of the Inca. The message read ama suwa, ama llulla, ama quella, and meant do not steal, do not lie, and do not be lazy.

  “What’s with this Inca stuff? First the kid up in Boston and now another Inca down here. You don’t suppose…uhh, could it be? That Chaco guy must have a passport.” The captain ordered that his fingerprints be matched to those they found in the bank.

  While this was going on the bank manager finished reviewing the videos.

  “We only came up with two instances of somewhat odd behavior in the days leading up to the robbery and we have isolated the film clips.” The assistant manager played them.

  “See the kid right there? The guard asks him to leave and now it gets real interesting. The video shows several people entering the bank a short while later and a dog comes in and all the commotion that followed. Now look here…..the same kid hurries past the guard while the guard is busy chasing the dog. The kid disappears from view over by the desk in the corner, the same desk where the message was left. We reviewed the tapes several times and never saw the kid leave.”

  “Can you blow up his picture?” The assistant manager quickly enlarged the picture.

  “Get me a picture of that Chaco kid,” ordered the captain.

  A few minutes later they had a copy. “It’s him alright. The hair is shorter. Nothing here will convict him yet. Where are the fingerprints?” Everybody was impatient.

  The sergeant came running over, “I’ve got the results, Captain.”

  “It’s a match. Get an APB out now,” ordered the captain. “Maybe we can catch him before he leaves the country.”

  ***

  Chaco settled down in a comfortable seat on the one o’clock train as it pulled out of New York City. He was still tired and fell asleep.

  Chapter 47

  “I tell you, it’s him, the Chaco kid from Peru. They got his picture at the bank.”

  “Where did you read this?”

  Chaco awoke to hear his name mentioned. He could hear two guys directly behind him talking. He buried his head even further in his jacket that he was using as a pillow, trying to conceal his face, and listened.

  “I didn’t read it. It’s all over the radio. They even got his fingerprints. Apparently, he left a note with his fingerprints on it.”

  I can’t believe how stupid I am, Chaco thought. He tried to disappear behind his jacket. The two guys wouldn’t let it go and continued going over the bank robbery again and again. I need to get off this train before someone recognizes me.

  Chaco got off the train near Richmond and booked the first bus going south. While waiting to board, he glanced at the headlines in the local paper and saw his picture.

  What do I do?

  He panicked and ran into the bathroom. It wasn’t much more than an outhouse with running water. He needed to think. Across the street was a dollar store.

  In about ten minutes he had on a pair of sunglasses and a baseball cap.

  He caught a bus heading south to a small rundown town a couple hundred miles from Raleigh, called Sutter Junction. It was late in the afternoon and Chaco was eating at a small diner when the local sheriff and his deputy walked in and sat down in a booth three tables away. Chaco kept his hat and glasses on and hurried to finish his meal. When he rose to leave his hat accidentally fell off and his wavy black hair was displayed for all to see. The sheriff would never have made him if he hadn’t just that moment been looking at Chaco’s picture in the newspaper.

  In a flash the sheriff had his gun drawn. “Take off those glasses.” Both the sheriff and deputy had their guns pointed at him.
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  Chaco removed his glasses.

  The sheriff looked down at the paper and then back at Chaco. “It’s him! Get those handcuffs on him,” he ordered the deputy.

  The employees and the other two people in the diner couldn’t believe what was unfolding in front of them. Nothing ever happened in Sutter Junction.

  The sheriff and deputy marched Chaco over to the jail. It was a small office out front with two separate jail cells in back. Both jail cells had a cot, a toilet, and a small window. They took the handcuffs off, slammed the jail door shut behind Chaco and then barged into the office slapping each other on the back. They could hardly wait to call New York.

  “We’ve got him here,” the Sutter Junction sheriff told the police captain in New York. “What do you want me to do with him?”

  “Do you have him securely confined?”

  “We sure enough do. No one has ever escaped from my jail.”

  “Sheriff, I’ll send a car down there right away. You’ll have to keep him over night.”

  “No problem. We’ll be waiting for you.”

  Chaco walked around and around the room. He felt like a caged animal. The bars on the door and window were old but looked solid. Even if I could get those bars loose on the window, I don’t think I could squeeze through. He started with the door and tested and twisted every bar. There wasn’t much give at all and he would need a lot of time to work even one bar loose. There had to be another way. He pulled the mattress pad off the bed frame. One of the cross members on the frame was loose and Chaco twisted on it until it broke away. He now had a two foot piece of metal that he could use as a weapon. He replaced the mattress on the bed and then tried the window bars. They all seemed very old and rusty. He started twisting and pulling on them. It was barely loose and didn’t look promising. He heard the sheriff coming and sat down on the bed.

  The sheriff looked about the room. “You ain’t going anywhere,” he smiled and walked away. His deputy was standing in the doorway and smiled as well. They slammed the door.

  “Leave him alone now,” ordered the sheriff. “Don’t even go talk to him. I’ll be back in the morning.” His deputy wasn’t the brightest one on the block but he always followed orders.

  Chaco heard the front door of the jail slam shut and went back to twisting on the window bars. He had been at it a long time with little success and didn’t know that the deputy had been watching him through a small peephole in the main office. After a few more minutes of twisting and turning the deputy couldn’t take it anymore and stomped into the back room.

  Chaco quickly hid the metal strut and acted like he hadn’t been doing anything.

  “I saw what you was doing and I don’t like it. If you do it again I’ll come in here and give you a horse-whipping. You hear me?”

  Chaco stared at the deputy. He was a large man and looked to be in good shape but didn’t seem to be too bright.

  “Do you hear what I’s saying?” and he slammed his nightstick into the bars.

  “I hear what you’re saying.”

  The deputy left the room feeling pretty good about himself.

  The door had hardly slammed shut when Chaco placed the two foot strut nearby so that he could grab it in an instant. His plan had changed. He grabbed hold of the window bar and acted as if he was twisting and turning it again. It was only moments before the deputy rushed back in with his nightstick drawn.

  “You must want a horse-whipping and I’m the one to give it.” He slammed the nightstick into the bars and then slammed it again. Chaco sat down.

  “I’ve killed men before, ya know. Don’t push me. Once I start it’ll be all over for you.” He glared at Chaco trying to scare him. He turned and walked off, slamming the door to show his authority.

  Chaco jumped right back up and started faking at turning the window bars again.

  This time the deputy about ripped the outer door off to get at Chaco’s cell. His face was beet red and he was out of control. “Stop that!” he screamed. “I’ll kill ya.”

  Chaco kept turning the bar and under his breath said, “I’ve almost got it,” just loud enough for the deputy to hear him. “Do you hear what I’s saying, Chaco imitated the deputy.”

  “You sum bitch. I’m going to come in there and kick your ass,” banging the nightstick into the bars again.

  Chaco turned toward him and said, “Is that what you want? You want a piece of me? What are you, Miss Girly Two Shoes? What have I got here, a mama’s boy? You stink you pervert. Get out of here and let me finish what I’m doing.”

  The deputy blew a gasket. He fumbled with his keys trying to find the right one, becoming even more frustrated by the moment. All he could say was, “I’s going to kill you.” His mind had frozen into one thought. He found the right key and quickly unlocked the cell door and threw it open. He crouched over like a wrestler with his nightstick raised high. He really was going to kill Chaco.

  Chaco looked into the man’s eyes and saw a crazed beast bearing down on him. One mistake and this guy will kill me. Chaco backed away from the window toward the bunk. He could see that the deputy still had his gun around his waist. He lured the deputy further into the small cell.

  With a mighty blow the deputy swung at Chaco just barely missing his head. Chaco ducked toward the bunk and came up with his metal strut in his hand. The deputy was shocked for a second that his prisoner had a weapon, but it didn’t slow him down. He bulled forward with a rush.

  A quick turn away from the charge and then a sudden downward swing of the metal strut with enormous force caught the deputy on the hand.

  Owww, the nightstick went flying from the deputy’s hand. He grabbed his hand in pain, but he wasn’t through yet. He regained his balance and came hard at Chaco trying to slam him into the wall. Chaco sidestepped him and with a quick kick caught the man behind the knee knocking his feet out from under him. The deputy went down and in the same instant hit his head on the cell door knocking him out.

  Chaco hadn’t wanted to hurt the man. Just disarm him and get out of the jail. He bent down and checked to be sure he was okay. He seemed to be breathing. Chaco dragged the deputy onto the bed and then ran out to the front office. He came back shortly and handcuffed the deputy with his arms behind him and then gagged him. Chaco took his pistol, nightstick and set of keys and then locked the deputy in the jail cell. He ran to the front door and looked out. It was clear. Chaco placed the weapons and keys on the sheriff’s desk and quietly slipped out the front door.

  He ran across the street and disappeared into the shadows.

  Chapter 48

  Chaco raced down the side street to the edge of town. He saw an all-night gas station up ahead. He skirted the bushes as he quietly got closer. A car was just pulling away from the pumps. Otherwise it was quiet. He sat near the dumpster hidden from view and waited to see if a truck or any vehicle might come by that he could catch a ride with.

  After fifteen minutes a pickup truck pulling a horse trailer drove into the station and it was heading south. Chaco waited until the driver went inside before he made his move. He came from the opposite side of the horse trailer so he wouldn’t be seen. There were horses in back and he wasn’t about to ride with them. He tried to open a couple of the smaller doors along the side of the trailer but they were locked. The third door wasn’t. There were some bridles and a couple of saddles inside. It would be a tight fit and he didn’t want to be confined in there, but he crawled in anyway. He had to get out of town and this guy was heading south.

  Chaco hated every minute of it and when the trailer stopped at a stoplight a few hours later, he jumped out. It was starting to get light. He went to a nearby diner and got some breakfast to go and hid in the bushes and ate. At seven he called Franco.

  “Hello.”

  “Is that you, Franco?”

  “Chaco, I was wondering when you would call. Where are you?”

  “I’m at a town called Wendell, near Raleigh.”

  “I know right where
that is. I’m not working today so I’ll come and get you. It’ll take about two hours. Now tell me exactly where to find you in Wendell.”

  Chaco gave him the details and then disappeared into the bushes to wait. Franco had described his car so Chaco knew what to watch for.

  ***

  The sheriff showed up at the jail at seven in the morning to find that his deputy had been hogtied. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing.

  “You idiot!” he screamed as he took off the handcuffs. “I told you not to go near him and now you’ve embarrassed me big time. Get off that cot and go clean yourself up. I sure hope you at least gave him a what for before he left here.”

  Oh man, I’d give anything not to make this call, but…..“Hello. I need to speak to the Captain of the Watch. This is Sheriff Harmon of Sutter Junction, North Carolina calling.”

  The captain was on shortly. “Hello, Sheriff Harmon. We sent a car out early this morning for Sutter Junction. What can we do for you?”

  “…bad news Captain, during the night my deputy was overwhelmed by the suspect and escaped. This Chaco kid has been running since about one this morning. If he got a ride he could be somewhere in South Carolina by now.”

  “Thanks, Sheriff,” and then he heard a muffled voice say, “Damn idiots,” followed by a thud as the phone was dropped onto the receiver.

  Sheriff Harmon spent the rest of the day harassing his deputy. He forwarded a couple of new photos they had taken of Chaco to the State Patrol in North and South Carolina.

  ***

  Franco drove into the Denny’s parking lot in Wendell exactly on time. Chaco crawled out of the bushes, ran to the car, jumped in the passenger door and crouched down. Franco started to say something to Chaco when a state patrol car pulled in right next to him. Franco reached for his coat in the back seat and tossed it to Chaco to hide under. The cop got out of his car and walked along the side of Franco’s car. If the windows hadn’t been so dark he could have looked right in.

  Franco whispered, “I’ll be right back. I don’t like how that cop is looking back toward us.”

  He followed the cop into the Denny’s wearing his military uniform and ordered a coke to go. The cop’s suspicions were alleviated and Franco went back out to his car.