Chapter Nine
Melanie and Michael dashed across the car-park. Michael glanced over his shoulder, looking for any signs of pursuit. None yet. He reached into his pocket and withdrew a key and transmitter. "We need something fast, something nimble, something cool." His eyes fell upon the car several spaces away. "Oh yeah, that'll do nicely." He sprinted towards the car, a black Toyota Chaser Tourer V with tinted windows. Activating the transmitter, he disabled the alarm. Then, he opened the passenger door. "Get in!" Melanie dived into the vehicle as Michael closed the door behind her. As he made his way around to the driver's side, he heard the slap of shoes against concrete. Looking up, he spotted the four assassins sprinting towards him. As he opened the door, a shot rang out. Michael ducked as the bullet shot over him and embedded itself in a Ford parked further along. As he climbed into the car, he turned the ignition, slammed the car into gear and removed the brake. The acceleration of the car slammed his door closed as the Chaser leapt off the mark, accelerating for the road. Another shot blasted through the rear window. Melanie screamed and ducked as Michael swore and spun the wheel, sending the car fish-tailing out of the car-park and away.
Michael glanced in the rear-view mirror, looking for signs of pursuit. Beside him, Melanie sat up in the passenger seat. "What's going on?" she cried.
"Walter Handock's dead," Michael stated flatly. "Looks like we've struck upon something that the Company doesn't want to be made public."
"The Company? But they're only a myth." Another bullet pinged off the bodywork of the car. Michael swerved sideways. "That didn't seem like a myth." He looked in the rear-view mirror. Behind him, a pursuing vehicle leapt like a dark panther through the shadows. A distant street-light briefly illuminated it, revealing it to be a Lexus IS300. The executive sedan began to gain on the speeding Toyota, obviously supercharged. Michael swore, then reverted his gaze back towards the road before him. Before him, the road split. One road led west, towards the Interstate. The eastern road headed towards Lake Superior. Michael spun the wheel right, sending the sedan tearing down the eastern road, with the Lexus in hot pursuit.
In the Toyota, Melanie lay flat in the rear seat. "So what's the plan?"
Michael grimaced as he slid the vehicle around a corned overlooking the lake. "We lose these guys, then continue our dinner date." He grinned. "I know a nice little place that does a fantastic margarita." He ducked as another bullet blasted through the windshield. "Damnit, how disrespectful are these guys to such a brilliant piece of machinery?" He growled as he swept the vehicle round another corner, with the Lexus close behind.
Further down the road, a policeman sat astride his motorbike, sipping on a coffee purchased from a local coffee shop. He sighed; another boring night. His revelry was shattered as the Chaser roared by, with the Lexus in hot pursuit. The cop swigged the last of his coffee, discarded the cup and roared off in chase. He rode hard, eventually drawing alongside the Lexus. He made the gesture to pull over through the darkened windows of the vehicle. As the passenger window rolled down he leaned closer, just as the barrel of a gun emerged. The policeman bailed out, throwing himself away from the car, his bike, and the gun, rolling and tumbling to a stop. Slowly he came to his feet as the vehicles disappeared around a bend.
Michael kept his foot hard to the floor as the faithful Toyota swept around yet another corner. "That's it. I've had enough of this." Swiftly, he slipped the Chaser into neutral and threw the wheel hard right. The sedan spun about in a 180-degree spin. Michael jammed the car back into gear, smoking the tires as 276 horsepower killed the backward momentum dead, then accelerated it back down the road in the direction it had come. He wound down the window and deactivated the safety on the Glock. As the Lexus swept around the corner, Michael opened fire. The gunners in the Lexus starting firing as well. Like two ancient jousters on metallic steeds, the two blasted past each other. For a split-second, as the two vehicles slipped by, Michael saw his opponents; four men in suits. Then the two cars were clear. The Lexus immediately swerved around, while the Chaser roared back down the road, headed for Chicago. Michael turned and looked back. "You OK?"
Melanie nodded. "Yeah, but we've got to lose these guys."
Michael looked forward, and saw it. "And I've just figured out how." He turned sharply onto a side-road. The Lexus followed, heading towards a concrete structure up ahead. Beside the road stood a road-sign; LAKE SUPERIOR MEGA-MALL, 2 MILES.
The Lake Superior Mega-Mall was a concrete mass, rising into the night sky. There was no movement, no noise, at least until the two cars arrived. The Toyota leapt across the open space in front of the mall towards the glass front, before plunging through and into the building. In hot pursuit, the Lexus punched another hole in the glass. The duo tore through the mall, sending chairs and tables flying. In the Chaser, Michael tried to dodge the concrete plant features that were dotted around. He threw the sedan into a powerslide around a corner as the Lexus came up on the inside, its driver matching the Chaser move for move. As the chase continued, the Lexus was always right on the tail of the fleeing Toyota. At every corner, the Lexus was always beside them. Michael knew that this battle had to end soon.
And then it hit him.
As he approached the Food Court of the mall, Michael threw his vehicle into another left-hand turn. Only this one went wide; waaaay wide. Then, as it had before, the Lexus swept in on the inside of the sliding Chaser. The assassin in the passenger seat took aim. Michael, in turn, smiled and waved goodbye. The assassin frowned as the driver of the Lexus suddenly screamed, seeing the inevitable. The Chaser slid around the concrete wall concealing the Food Court. The Lexus did not. With the crunch of twisting metal, the Lexus plowed sideways into the wall, erupting into a fireball. The flames licked their way up, illuminating the billboard mounted on the wall. As the flames consumed it, the slogan on the billboard became briefly visible; 'Lexus – The Pursuit Of Perfection'.
Several minutes later, the battered Toyota Chaser pulled up at the hotel where the press were staying, Michael got out, walked around to the passenger door and opened it. Melanie stepped out of the vehicle as if she was disembarking a Rolls-Royce rather than a battle-scarred sedan. As they made their way across the lobby and into a lift, Michael withdrew his phone. "Hello, 911? A car just pulled up at the hotel across the road from me. I think it's stolen." He hung up. As they arrived at the door to Melanie's room, Melanie looked up at Michael. "Well, thank you for a very interesting night Mr Merkenson."
"Think nothing of it," Michael replied. "It is not the events, it is the company that makes these things exciting."
"Well then, goodnight." Melanie opened the door, stepped through and closed it again. Michael stood in the hallway for a moment, then made his way back towards the lifts. He was only halfway there when he was grabbed from behind, spun around and kissed passionately by Melanie. When the two disengaged, Melanie sauntered back into her room, leaned around the doorway and raised one eyebrow before disappearing, leaving the door open. Michael beamed and followed, closing the door behind him.