There was something creepy about Sonrisa, Oregon. Mac wasn't sure what it was. It looked like any generic small town. A sprawl of middle-income houses, children playing in groups, riding bikes-it was all normal. Maybe too normal? Mac leaned forward and rubbed his forehead. His head had settled to a strobing pain that constantly nagged at him. Perhaps it was his imagination.
"You know, there's something not right about this place?" Mac looked at Jack surprised. The Delta scowled his hand automatically moving closer to his Baretta.
"I feel the same way, but I don't know why" Mac muttered.
"You know how on TV cop shows they have people hanging out in a park vending food, jogging or whatever?" Mac nodded and looked closer at the people. It wasn't every person in the town, but many of the adults turned to watch them pass. Mac leaned over and watched those they moved in the mirror. One woman who was working in her garden dropped her trowel and walked inside taking off her gloves. A man watching them from a swing on the front porch deliberately looked away as they passed. Once they had gone by he scurried inside.
"They're watching us," Mac said. Jack glanced at Mac worried.
"Do you think Corydon could be a whole town?" Mac felt a chill slide up his spine.
"Look at the reach of Valhalla," Mac mumbled.
"This might be a bit more sticky than we thought." Jack mused. He stopped at a light. Many of the cars passing them turned eyeing them with looks that a mortician might have during an autopsy. Jack and Mac exchanged a worried look, "They know we're here." Jack mused.
"Yep. Jack why don't we stop to get some gas." Jack frowned.
"Do you think stopping is a good idea? I was thinking we could keep driving." Mac smiled at a line of children all in the same red uniform who walked in perfect step with each other. They turned all at the same time and eyeballed the pair of men with mean-girl faces as they closed in ranks around a bullied student.
"Jack, we have to take precautions. I don't think they'll move until we are at the hospital. We have to contact Matty before that happens." Jack rolled his eyes and huffed. He pulled in to a gas station/car repair shop. Two old men wearing obnoxious golf clothes sat on a bench outside a large window. They held newspapers and were talking with animation until the Shelby pulled up to the pump.
"Now what, kemosabe?"
"Drop me off."
"What? Hell no!"
"Jack, we don't have a lot of options here. Drop me off go call Matty, come back in ten minutes." Jack gritted his teeth and hit the steering wheel. He shook his head. "Mac…"
"Jack! Trust me, ten minutes...oh and I need your spare tire." Mac smiled as he stepped out of the car. Jack turned off the Shelby muttering under his breath. Splitting up is a horrible idea and isn't going to end well. Jack could feel it.
Jack found a narrow alley behind a strip mall that had no cameras only dumpsters lining the brick walls and loading docks with short cement staircases. Jack drove until he found what he was looking for, a telephone junction box. He carried his Baretta along his leg and pulled the portable phone booth phone, which he christened the MacPhone, out of his trunk. He grunted at its heft. This gizmo was a far cry from his I phone. He cut the wires and clipped the MacPhone to the open cables. Jack was proud that he knew how to do this so well. He turned the can opener handle on the bottom of the phone and clicked the cradle until he heard a dial tone.
"This better be good." Matty's voice crackled with static. Jack's eyes roamed the alley. So far he was alone.
"You don't like hearing from me twice in one day?" Jack drawled.
"Funny, Dalton. What's going on? How's Mac?" Jack sighed unable to hide his worry.
"I think we stumbled onto something." Jack paused then told Matty everything. There was a long moment of empty buzzing on the line.
"You need to get out of there, Jack."
"I know that Matty." Jack groused.
"I have Beta Team Blue coming to you. They should be there in the morning."
"Ok, well I'm gonna go get Mac if you don't hear from us send the rescue party to Olivet Hospital."
"Alright, Jack…" Jack looked up as a thick black mushroom of ash and fire exploded into the sky over the gas station.
"Uh...Matty, good talk, gotta go...just got the bat signal." Jack said absently. Jack cut off Matty's voice as he yanked the MacPhone free and jumped back into the Shelby. Jack shoved the MacPhone in the back seat and sped down the alley. He was halfway to the exit when a screeching black van blocked the mouth of the lane. Jack slammed the Shelby in reverse only to have the alley behind him blocked. Jack cursed grabbed all the ammo he had and bailed.
Jack jumped up the nearest stairs and ducked into the back door of a toy store. Jack found himself in a small rear room lined with boxes on shelves covering three walls. The last wall had a small bathroom and office. Jack ducked into the bathroom and locked the door. Seconds later he heard the telltale stamp of boots on the tile.
"He came through here, go look up front." Jack looked around him. Wood paneling, toilet, sink and not much else. His heart lurched as a fist hammered on the door.
"What...I'm on break, man. Those tacos last night…" Jack slurred his Texas drawl as much as possible. He pursed his lips and made the loudest fart noise he could manage then grunted loudly, "Whew, my eyes are burning…" Jack shouted. Jack let out a breath as he heard the boots retreat. He looked up and frowned. The ceiling had stained and broken fiberglass tiles. Jack climbed on the toilet and slid the least shredded aside. The ductwork didn't look super stable, but beggars can't be choosers. Jack hopped down and listened at the door. He couldn't hear any goons near the entrance. As quietly as he could, he unlocked the door leaving it closed.
Jack climbed onto the back of the toilet and grimaced at the porcelain rattle his jump made. He stretched and managed to grab a more substantial red water main pipe and pulled himself up to balance on top of it. He crouched and kicked the tile back into place. Jack found himself in a maze of vents, pipes, and electronics. He fought back a sneeze. What little light there was came in through vent covers and broken ceiling tiles. The dust and cobwebs were thick enough to cut. Jack wrapped his legs around the pipe and inch-wormed deeper into the building. Jack did not like how much the pipeline shook with each movement.
Jack froze as he heard voices raised back the way he came. He frowned. Ahead of him was a complicated junction of grey square vents. Jack grimaced as he cut his hand pulling himself onto the top of the vent and laid flat. A blade of light sliced across the wooden roof above him as a dark-haired soldier lifted the ceiling tile and poked his head up like a gopher. Jack scowled at the barrel of an M5 that moved with precision alongside the thick blue beam of a flashlight. He turned his head away and held his breath.
"Anything?" A voice called from below. The soldier took his time turning a full 360 degrees. Jack's heart banged like a hair band's drum. It took all of his self-control not to flinch as the light ran along the roof above him. It felt like a year. Jack closed his eyes fighting a sneeze.
"Nah, do you think it was Dalton? The boss said he was off in the woods and the subject no longer had contact with him."
"It doesn't matter." Jack heard a crackle of static on the radio," Ok, let's wrap this up; they have the subject." Jack forced himself to keep breathing.
"What about…" The voices trailed off as they replaced the ceiling tile and walked away. Jack shook his head. They had Mac, dammit. He knew it was a bad idea...Jack paused and groaned. Of course, it was, Mac was planning on getting caught. It was his great idea to get into the hospital.
"Dammit, stupid kid!" Jack hissed. He wiped the dust off his face and frowned. He knew they would have surveillance on the Shelby. Jack crept forward and peered down through a vent. He sucked in a breath and jumped back covering his mouth and biting his lip to keep back a startled scream-a room full of Clowns. He braced himself and looked back. Bile bubbled in the back of his throat. He'd never had a fear of clowns until he was forced to cage fight an army of them. Jack froze then relaxed. The costumes were all on mannequins. It didn't help the creepy factor, but Jack didn't find a threat. He elbowed himself along the top of the duct. The next vent looked down at a lady's changing room. It was currently empty. Jack crept down and balanced on a heavy drain pipe. It wobbled under his boots. Jack bent to push aside a ceiling tile. The pipe shook under his feet. He heard a twang and suddenly was falling through the tiles over the changing room. Jack relaxed his body and tucked his head in, but still landed with bruising force.
Jack gasped trying to get his body to move, but his body refused. He heard the clomp of boots. The door to the booth opened. Jack had nowhere to go.
"Dammit." He panted.