Part 28 (1/2)
I dart to the inward side of the room, as far as the chain will let me, and lean back.
There's a noise outside, like distant thunder, or a big, big animal snarling. Then the sound of rubber on pavement, squealing, and the loudest noise I've ever heard, even louder than the flashbang. The wall folds in, cracking all around the middle, folding and breaking into pieces like a Pop-Tart in a kid's hands. Chunks of masonry fall inwards and dust slides off the surface of a... thing.
It's on tires half as tall as I am, big k.n.o.bby swamp rompers, it's all black, and as it backs up I swear a see a freaking tank tread in the back, like it's some kind of weird whipped off half-track trike. The whole thing shudders backwards, the top opens, Jennifer leaps out, and runs over to me, jumping over the debris. She's all in black, the same outfit she had on the other night. Without a word she grabs my hands and undoes the cuffs with a key.
”Let's go.”
”Where-”
”Go!”
Then the door swings open.
She looks up. A Paradise Falls cop steps into the room, holding his gun out in an awkward, improper Isosceles stance.
Jennifer whirls, pivots on one heel, and kicks the gun out of his hand. In the same motion she turns on her other foot and her heel catches him square in the face, and she yanks the door shut.
”I said go!”
Okay.
I tromp over the debris and alongside the... thing. It does have a tank tread in the back. The engine is loud. Jennifer climbs up inside and offers me a hand. I find handholds and climb up the sides, and she hands me a headset as I slip into the seat behind her, and the canopy slides shut.
Her voice is tinny in my ear.
”Are you hurt?”
”The h.e.l.l with me, where's Alexis?”
”They're moving her. I heard on the police scanner.”
”What the f.u.c.k is this thing?”
”My other car.”
She pulls back on a yoke, like an airplane, and the big machine rumbles backwards, lurching with surprising power. She turns the yoke and it turns in place, rumbling, and she kicks in her foot and it starts forward, throwing me back into the seat.
The big front tires. .h.i.t the front end of a Paradise Falls cruiser, the tires lift up, and there's a crunch and a metallic squeal as the tread in the back shreds the front end of the vehicle.
I blink a few times. I heard about these things. This is one of those experimental high speed tactical vehicles. I read an article about them in a magazine. Popular Science. The government sc.r.a.pped them, they were too expensive.
f.u.c.k that, I have to get to Alexis.
”She's not at your house,” Jennifer shouts. ”Any ideas?”
”Yeah, get this thing off the road before they call the National Guard.”
”Relax. I do this all the time.”
”What, is this an extracurricular activity?”
”Yeah,” she snaps. ”Let's go get your girl.”
”Where's hubby?”
”He's busy.”
”With what?”
”You know that meth lab?”
”What, the Amish one?”
I could almost laugh. The Amish meth lab. I'm talking about an Amish meth lab riding with an English teacher in a f.u.c.king tank.
”Yeah. He's going to blow it up.”
”At least tell me you got something off my father's computer.”
”Yeah,” she shouts. ”We got what we needed.”
”What the f.u.c.k are we going to do?”
”Where would they take her?”
”I don't know!”
Think, Hawk. He didn't take her home. He'd have to- ”f.u.c.k,” I snap. ”The hospital. He'll put her back in the psych ward.”
She glances back at me. ”You sure? We might only get one shot at this.”
”Yes, I'm f.u.c.king sure. Do you know where they took her before? Which hospital?”
”Yes, I do. That's where we're going?”
”Yeah.”
She touches her ear. She's talking to someone else.
”Yeah, I read. Where? Good. Got it.”
”What was that?”
”Jacob. He has somebody listening to the police scanner. A Paradise Falls cop just called in, trying to raise the police station. Secret's out.”
”s.h.i.+t.”
”The good news is, he was at the hospital. Let's go.”
”How far?”