by Peter Martin
She quietly led them up the stone steps and through the door into the cellar, telling them to stay put for a moment while she made sure the coast was clear. She then beckoned them to come to her. Chilled to the bones, they followed her closely. Garry saw fear etched on the faces of his wife and daughter; the two who had suffered the most. He felt sick from the smell of the musty food but at the same time eager, at least they were attempting to escape, which was a hundred times better than doing nothing. Now standing at the top of the steps leading into the kitchen, they watched while Charlene gently pushed open the hatchway and cautiously walked up into the kitchen. She turned giving them a thumbs up - the coast was clear.
Entering the kitchen Garry thought luck must be on their side for once as the room was totally deserted. Outside darkness prevailed, so it had to be late at night or early morning. For the first time, in he didn’t know how long, they were above ground.
On through the kitchen and into the hall, past the drawing room and dining room towards the front door, as silently as humanly possible. It seemed abnormally quiet. Perhaps Lena and her cronies were tucked up in bed and fast asleep.
‘Almost there,’ Charlene whispered to Garry.
Garry nodded, saying ‘But how do we get through the gates?’
‘With this,’ Charlene smiled, proudly holding up a small remote control device. ‘I kind of borrowed it from Lena earlier on. She was drunk and in no fit state to do anything.’
Garry shook his head, piqued his mother wasn’t the person he hoped she’d be, despite her success. She’d never hold a candle to his adoptive mum and dad, who’d loved and supported him so much throughout his life.
Charlene opened the oak front doors of the house. Outside it was pitch-dark, the night was clear, but the new moon afforded no light.
‘The people carrier should be round any minute now – and Adam, there’s someone you know very well driving it,’ Charlene whispered, attempting to reassure the little boy. He was putting a brave face on for his family’s sake, but his subdued behaviour spoke volumes.
Then out of the dead of the night came a sudden faint din which slowly got louder, until at last the people-carrier came into view, its dimmed lights showing the way out. When Adam looked up to see Benson at the steering wheel, his face broke into a smile, and he gave a silent wave. They piled inside as fast as they could, ready to go.
Garry, the last in, and about to shut the door, jumped when the whole house and surrounding area became flooded with light. All the garden spotlights which edged the drive and the security lights came on together, making it difficult to see.
Then Lena screamed at the top of her voice, ‘Where the hell, do you think you’re going – you trash?’
Garry winced at her crude words. Her small but menacing figure stood proudly at the front of the house. She looked demented, her eyes wide and twitching. Four men stood by her side, one of whom he recognised as being the man they’d met at Jersey, and who’d worn a tee shirt emblazoned with a scorpion. Lena didn’t look drunk at all, in fact, she seemed as sober as a judge. But it wasn’t the usual skin tight clothes she wore, more what she had clutched in her hand, which held Garry’s attention. A cold dread swept through his body as she waved the gun wildly from side to side. The four men had guns too, but Lena concerned him the most. He was fully aware of her manic personality and didn’t doubt she wouldn’t hesitate to fire it. The whole family were done for before they’d even started their getaway.
Chris obviously thought otherwise as he asked loudly of no one in particular, ‘Dear God, what’s the drunken old bag up to now?’
Then came a shriek of rage from Lena who must have been in earshot, as she cocked her gun, held it with both hands at arm’s length and fired it.
‘Benson!’ Charlene screamed. ‘GO! DRIVE! NOW! Everybody get down.’
Benson didn’t need telling twice. He put his foot down hard on the accelerator. The tyres of the people-carrier screeched on the gravel as the vehicle surged forward. Lena fired several more shots at them missing her target, her aim being random and high, causing sheer panic. The vehicle continued to travel at some speed along the gravel road, before suddenly the back window shattered, showering tiny shards of glass over everyone. The vehicle jerked forward and Benson gasped in pain. Slumped over the steering wheel, he’d been hit in the upper arm. The vehicle slowed down, careering from side to side as its driver struggled to control it. By this time Garry had crawled on the floor between the seats and, keeping as low as possible, attempted to get the bus back on an even keel. But with Benson sitting there it was difficult to take control of the wheel. And when the vehicle almost came to a halt Charlene yelled, ‘Garry, move him out of the way and let me take over. Sorry, but there’s no time for sentimentality.’
Garry moved aside in silence, pulling Benson into the gangway to lie beside him on the floor, as Charlene clambered into the driving seat.
She squatted down in the seat, taking full control of the vehicle. Everyone waited with baited breath unsure of what would happen next. As they drove through the gardens with dimmed headlights, beams from the search lights filtered through the trees, but there were no more gunshots.
Up until now, Adam had remained relatively quiet, the security he must have felt while Benson drove the bus was gone. Now he looked totally devastated seeing his newfound friend hurt and in pain. Adam screamed and started to cry reducing Chris to shout at his son to be quiet which made him scream louder. Then Cassie pulled her son to her, to reassure and calm him down.
Charlene must have sensed they were still in grave danger, so put her foot down hard only to find her actions caused the people carrier to skid as they turned a sharp corner.
‘Look out!’ Garry roared, but too late, the bus, ploughed straight into a huge tree, Charlene had been powerless to stop it. There was a loud bang upon impact and a tremendous jolt as the vehicle came to an abrupt halt. Branches smashed through the front windows, narrowly missing Garry, Benson and Charlene.
For a few seconds, everyone was dazed and quiet, except for Adam who wept loudly while crawling up the bus to his friend.
Chris always the one with something to say, was first to comment, shouting, ‘You idiot! You might have got us all killed driving like that. Now, what’ll we do?’
‘Shut your mouth, Chris!’ Garry snapped. ‘Come on, we have to get out. Hurry, the vehicle could explode.’
As quickly as possible they scrambled out of the bus; Tom rushed to help his father with Benson, who moaned, plainly, in agony, blood seeping through to his jacket.
‘Oh no, Benson, are you all right?’ Adam asked tears running down his cheeks.
He didn’t answer, just tried to smile, his face a mask of pain. After an almighty struggle, Garry and Tom managed to carry him from the vehicle and lay him on the ground. Chris grappled frantically with his son, dragging him away from Benson.
Garry realised they had to move fast, or Lena and her mob would be upon them. He didn’t like the idea of leaving Benson to her mercy, but he’d be a dead weight to carry and would slow them down.
Then Charlene spoke out saying, ‘We’ll have to leave him. Or else we’ll all get caught. Come on Garry, Tom, let’s make him comfortable.’ She gazed around, ‘Over there, under those bushes where he won’t be seen.’
‘But – ’Garry began
‘No, No! You can’t do that,’ Adam screamed, struggling to free himself from Chris.
‘Adam – stop it!’ Chris shouted, picking the lad up.
‘Right, let’s move, fast as you can,’ Charlene ordered them. ‘Garry, Tom, get something to tie around Benson’s arm to act as a tourniquet.’
Within minutes, they’d secured Tom’s belt at the top of Benson’s arm and gently placed him under some overhanging bushes. He’d be safe there completely out of sight, but they’d need to come back for him before long or he might lose his arm.
Charlene led the group, ordering Chris to go first with Adam, who constantly wri
ggled to free himself, followed by Jane, Delia and Cassie with Garry and Tom bringing up the rear.
Within minutes they’d put some distance between themselves and the crashed people-carrier, running through high scrub and trees, as searchlights sought them out. Charlene slowed down waiting for them to catch up with her.
Once they were assembled, she pulled Garry to one side saying, ‘I want you to have this.’ She pushed a small gun into his hand.
Totally taken aback Garry was horrified. He’d never seen a handgun this close before, let alone held one in his hand. But the question was, would he be able to pull the trigger should the need arise?
‘I don’t know about this.’
‘Look Garry Just take it, it may save your lives. I can’t protect everyone on my own. All you have to do is point it at someone and pull the trigger – it’s easy.’
‘But I’ve never fired one before. I don’t… I just don’t know if I’d be able to...’ He shook his head leaving the word ‘kill’ unspoken.
‘Give it to me.’ Chris butted in. ‘I’m not afraid to kill the bastards.’
‘No Chris, Adam is your responsibility. Come on now Garry – you’ll be surprised what you can do when you have to, especially when your family’s lives are at stake,’ Charlene told him.
Reluctantly Garry nodded, he had little choice; even so, he felt terrified.
‘All right everybody, let’s get moving again before they start to catch up,’ Charlene urged.
Garry, unsure of where they were headed, had to put his trust in Charlene, they all did. Chris continued to carry Adam who had now calmed down, having certainly endured more than a child of his age should.
They made good progress, but in the distance, Lena’s voice could be heard as she yelled out orders in the mode of a sergeant major. There was a surreal feeling about all of this, Garry thought and likened it to a screen set in a bizarre film Lena might have been making.
A few minutes later, they stopped at the edge of the undergrowth, just short of the open ground. Beyond this grew long thick grass skirting the inside of the fence; if they managed to reach this it would provide cover to enable them to get their breath back, before continuing to crawl through quietly to the fence and then onto the gate.
By the time Garry had crossed the open ground he felt totally spent and watched the rest of the group make their way across, his heart in his mouth, knowing they were sitting ducks. Now they all lay in the long grass waiting for Charlene’s signal to move on.
Suddenly she signalled for the others to creep through the grass, placing her finger to her lips to be quiet. She beckoned Garry over to her, ‘It’s not that far to the gate, I saw it when the searchlights passed over. We need to move about fifty yards to our right. I think the coast is clear,’ she pointed to the remote control in her breast pocket. ‘Then I may be able to open the gates. The jungle isn’t very hospitable, but let’s face it,’ she nodded her head in the direction of the house and with a modicum of a smile, said, ‘It’s not too friendly in that direction either. But so long as we can hide somewhere until morning, we should be all right. After all, we can defend ourselves if need be.’
Garry felt more at ease now, and for some profound reason, he trusted Charlene. He passed on the message with a thumbs up, indicating to move to their right. After a few minutes, they had reached the part of the fence, next to the gate and once again Charlene stopped them.
‘All right – we’ll have to act quickly I’m afraid. First, I’ll check to make sure it’s safe to come out. When I’m sure I won’t come back over here, I’ll press the button to open the gate, and once you can see it’s opening, I want all of you to run through as fast as you can. Got that?’ She looked from one to the other.
They were all ready, eager for Charlene to make a move.
‘Cover me with the gun – all right?’ She said to Garry. If you see anything suspicious, don’t ask any questions, just point and press the trigger – understand?’
‘Yes, but– ’ he protested.
Chris, close by, couldn’t hold back, and said, ‘Listen, mate, if you haven’t got the guts, I have,’ Blatantly wanting to take over in Charlene’s absence, much to Garry’s annoyance.
‘Don’t worry, I can do it, mate,’ Garry insisted. No way would he ever let his son-in-law loose with a loaded gun.
Then Charlene stood up from the cover of the grass, and cowering, she looked around before making her way towards the gate. After a few seconds, she pressed the button on her handset and the gate swung open.
But almost simultaneously the whole of the surrounding area became engulfed in the blinding headlights of a powerful SUV, on the other side of the fence. Standing in front of it was Lena, a loud hailer in her hand, with the same four men as before beside her. Charlene dived to the ground, then scrambled back to the grass just in time, as shots missed her by a whisker.
‘All right Garry – I know you’re in there,’ Lena barked through the hailer. ‘You’ve had your bit of fun, it’s time to give up. You’ll never escape from me, I promise you. I won’t hurt any of you as long as you come out at once. Be sensible about this - don’t make me do something we all might regret. But remember too I’ll do everything in my power to protect myself and my father. Nothing can come in our way, not you, not anyone. Now I’m warning you for the last time, give yourselves up right now, before I come in there and slaughter the lot of you. And hurry up about it – my patience is wearing very thin.’
Nobody moved, there was just dead silence for a few minutes save for Adam who sobbed, petrified in Chris’s arms. The eerie quiet was shattered by the sound of gunfire coming from the direction of the SUV, it’s target being the outskirts of the long grass – only warning shots for the moment. They all sank down onto their stomachs, Chris covering his son with his body.
Charlene pointed her gun at the SUV and fired, encouraging Garry to do the same. ‘We won’t hit anyone from this distance, but at least they’ll realise we’re armed.’
Garry fired his gun, aiming at the tree above the SUV, jumping back a little from the shock of it. He looked and felt very agitated.
‘Don’t worry, now they know they won’t get everything their own way,’ she assured him, squeezing the top of his hand.
Lena and her men had taken cover behind the SUV.
‘Charlene, you bitch – you’ll die for that,’ Lena threatened.
For a while, the shooting stopped. No doubt while Lena briefed her thugs.
Charlene lifted her head and looked around to make sure they were all right. Garry did the same, thanking God, his family were all still in one piece. The atmosphere became even tenser. Garry knew everyone, himself included, were terrified out of their wits. Any hope of escaping all but vanished.
A stalemate of sorts had occurred; one which Garry was unable to see a way out of. How could this work out in their favour? He didn’t care what happened to him now, his only concern was for Delia and his family – and he’d give anything to ensure their safety.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Something caught Garry’s eye, a figure half running, half staggering along the fence towards the SUV. He whispered ‘Charlene,’ pointing in the direction of the fence.
‘Dear God – it’s Benson,’ she murmured.
‘Benson!’ a piercing voice belonging to Adam shouted.
Chris looked stunned, he’d been caught on the hop as Adam finally managed to wriggle free from his father.
‘No, Adam come back!’ Chris screamed, but it was too late – the boy had got away.
Without any thought for himself, Garry sprang into action, rushing out of his hiding place to make for his grandson, who carried on shouting and screaming for his friend. As Chris went to follow, shots rang out, forcing him to stay where he was.
On seeing Adam, Benson looked alarmed but in his haste to help his little friend, he stumbled, falling to the ground. Garry instinctively dived for Adam, smothering him with his body. But in doing this, he’d
left himself open and in full view of Lena and her men. Looking up in horror, the smile on Lena’s face said it all. And immediately the guns pointed to where they lay on the ground.
‘All right Garry – stand up and hold your hands above your head. And get the boy to do the same,’ she ordered them.
Garry had no choice but to obey, so he lifted his hands up without hesitation. Then standing in front of his grandson to shield him shouted, ‘How can you put your great-grandson through this ordeal, you wicked woman.’
But Garry’s words went unheeded, as she growled at her former employee. ‘And Benson, get yourself over there, you traitor.’ She indicated with a pointed gun to where Garry and Adam stood.
Benson had to comply with Lena’s wishes. And with his right arm hanging limply at his side, he struggled over to where Garry and Adam stood in the full glare of the vehicle’s headlights.
‘All right, the rest of you scum, get out here with your hands up – and throw down your guns, or I’ll shoot them all,’ she shouted, waving her gun, to show her authority and meaning every word.
After a few seconds hesitation, Lena leant forward, demanding they come out again. There was a strange eerie silence. Lena had an enraged look on her face, and without warning, she fired her gun at Garry’s feet. The bullet just missed as he jumped back, causing Adam to fall to the floor.
‘I said right NOW – or I’ll shoot all three of them,’ she threatened.
At that, Chris and Cassie went straight over to Adam while Delia walked across to Garry. Tom, Jane and Charlene also made their way over to join the group.
‘Isn’t this lovely, now we can play happy families again.’ Lena gave one of her sinister laughs.
Garry was quickly losing it with her and didn’t know how much more he could take. ‘So, tell me, what’s your next move?’
‘I haven’t decided yet. But you’ll get your comeuppance that’s for sure, you bastards. The lot of you have betrayed me – and that’s after I was willing to give you everything you wanted – it makes me so mad.’
