Chapter 11

Tammy woke up in the car that Sebastian was driving.

"Buffy..." she said.

"They killed her." Sebastian said, trying to keep his eye on the road. "I barely could get you out.. I should have warned you..."

"Where are we?" Tammy sat up straight on her seat.

"Trying to get as far as possible from Kira. I did not enjoy doing those things for her. But she had me."

"The box"

"Yes. It is here... I figured that she would not hurt Roxie while I had it, she would need to bargain..."

"I have to give it to my boss... But you can still negotiate with her over the phone."

"You cannot go back to Collinsport. Kira will have framed you for Buffy's murder by now."

"So what do you propose to do?"

"Go to Washington and rescue Roxie."

"You go there, and they'll be waiting for you. Then they can kill both of you."

Sebastian braked. "You are right." he admitted plaintively "but what else I can do?"

"I can try to reach my boss so that she can pick up this." she showed the journal "As for you, hole up somewhere. Dump this car. Remain hidden. Call her in a couple of days to try to arrange a trade. Do not stay on the phone more than two minutes. Then walk away. Walk don't ride. Don't show your face anywhere if you can help it. Buy your food before calling, and then take it with you. Be always on the move. Two days later, call again.. String her along."

"And you?"

"I am going to do the same thing. I will contact Megan and she may find you and help you out."

"We are not going together?"

"A zebra couple is going be very conspicuous. Just what we don't want to be."

"They killed her" Quentin said to the people there. "Buffy Duncan. And we know why they killed her."

Kira stood in back of him, her eyes shining. She was going to stop Mega from ever reading that journal of hers. Why had she been so blind? Why had she allowed Buffy to bring Tammy in? Did she actually believe that she could infiltrate Megan that way?

She had outsmarted herself. And if she didn't get that journal back, she better get out of town fast.

"Kill them! Kill them all!" Amy heard the screams in the street. They were all there, throwing stones, screaming...

They were at Willie' shop, at Iris'..

They were at Megan's, where Chris was.

She had to get to him.

"Hey! She's one of them! The werewolf's sister!" somebody screamed.

She was caught. Thrown to the ground.

"She is one of them." the man repeated while he and the others ripped at her clothes.

"Come, Willie" Louella dragged him to the van.

"Have to stop them...They will burn the place down."

"They will burn you too if we don't get away."

"There he is! Bastard! Murderer!" Sandy shouted while throwing as tone.

More stones flew.

"Let's get out, Willie!"

Willie screamed.

Louella turned to see him fall to his knees, clutching his right arm...

"He's one of them, too." David could hear them as he ran. They wouldn't want to kill him, would they? He had done nothing...

He heard a car stop.

"Need a ride, kid?"

He looked up.

"Hop up" Delia said. "we have to get out of town in a hurry. I am already getting Derek out of the way."

Xavier laid on the floor, pinned under a fallen cabinet... What was the matter with them? They wouldn't...would they...?

If only he could get away... He tied to push the cabinet, wriggle from under it...

But it was too heavy... and they were getting so close...

"Can't you do anything?" Chris asked the sheriff "can't you stop them?"

"I am trying."

"I am going to look for Amy" Chris said.

"You area doing nothing of the sort. You'll only make things worse."

"You don't seem to have made much good up to now."

"They took me by surprise." George said bitterly "and then Kira got my men."

"Well, I am going to look for Amy. And if any of them harmed her..."

Chris ran out of the station slamming the door behind him.

"He's right." George said to Angelique and Joe who had watched this silently. "I am worse than useless. I let Kira steal my men from under me."

So this is how it ended, Xavier thought. Trapped like a rat.

Outside, Quentin looked at the mob approvingly. He had Xavier Davenport. Once the necktie party was done with him. Carolyn would be pleased.

He felt disgust with himself, but suppressed it. It had to be done.

Then a shot ran out.

"All you better go home now." Harry Redwolf said coldly, flanked by his men, all armed with rifles.

"What are you doing here?" Quentin asked.

"Protecting my investment. And watching Christian love and charity in action. You better go home or I'll shoot you. I don't care how many of you I have to kill."

A man lifted his arm to throw as tone. There was a shot, and the man fell down, holding his shattered arm.

Then five more shots, and five more men fell down, wounded.

They shot only to wound, not kill. There was no need to. Mobs tend to be cowardly, as they attack those who are defenseless against them, and people who are willing to string up their neighbors do not fancy being hurt themselves.

So they retreated while Redwolf surveyed the scene with a cold eye.

"I hope for you sake, that Xavier is all right. Or I'll personally scalp you, Quentin Collins."

Phillip moved forward "God, what a mess." he said.

"Thanks for telling us what was happening" Redwolf said to him. "I hope that your place wasn't too badly torn up."

"Why won't she answer?" Tammy grumbled at the phone. "Why doesn't anybody answer?"

Maybe the phone was out of order.

Who else could she phone?

George Brant. He was her friend, and also Megan's friend. He could be trusted to carry the message... or could he?

She had to chance it. She had his private number, and if someone else answered she would hang up.

But it was George. "George tell Megan that I have what she wanted."

"Yeah, miss? I know it is terrible with this riot going on." George said, looking with distrusts at the deputy who had insisted in accompanying him home.

"It is not secure, you mean?"

"That's right miss. We don't expect the situation to abate. If you do not need to leave, stay home to avoid being caught."

"Maybe she can find Sebastian. As for me, I have gone up into the woods, and she can track me using the link we have."

"Glad you understand., Miss." he said, and hung up. "God, to be so out of control in his own home..."

""So you killed Aristide?" Roxanne said, amused.

"His bones are in the trunk of the car."

"I don't think that I like sharing space with him. Do we leave now?"

"Yes. We got all we need. Except gas."

"And we got an odd-numbered license plate on an even day."

"I thought about it." Sabrina took out a rubber tube. "You are going to get the gas for me."

"You mean suck it out from another car?"

"We will find a diplomatic one. Those bastards take all the parking spaces, and leave their cars for days there. And the police cannot touch them because they got diplomatic immunity. But they are not going to get immunity to this. We will leave their tank empty."

"Julia" Barnabas said sententiously "I do not want to seem like I am poking my nose into what is none of my business."

"When did that stop you before?" Julia said ironically "all right, what is it?"

"I don't think that you are helping your patients. No, most of them do. But there are at least a couple of cases when you could do things better."

"Oh?" She crossed her arms. "Like what?"

"Some patients have different body rhythms. Take Ryan. I caught him a couple of times and he seems lucid enough. I even started a conversation with him. But then the nurse gave him a sleeping pill."

"He has to rest."

"But does it have to be at night? His body rhythms are such that he's most lucid at that time. You know about different rhythms. It is all in your books. You told me that you were stalled with him. Well, accommodate his rhythm and you'll see him improve."

"So I need a therapist who is willing to work nights...Are you applying for the job yourself?"

"Julia..."

He couldn't' continue. The door opened and Louella came in, holding a fainting Willie.

"We had to get out of Collinsport" Louella said, breathlessly. "And I couldn't think of nowhere else to go. Willie has a broken arm."

Tammy waited impatiently. What could have happened that George could not trust even his own deputies? That even his private phone wasn't safe?

That woman, Kira, had power. Power enough to take over the sheriff's office. And if she couldn't get her evidence out...if she could not get to Megan.

The car stopped next to her. Tammy wondered whether to try to hide when Megan stepped out.

"Hello, kid. Here I have added grand theft auto to my list of crimes. I wouldn't risk people seeing my car.

"I got it all here" she extended the box towards Megan. And Sebastian he man who was with Kira, he too needs to hide. He's a victim too. He's on foot, so you may be able to track him...He needs money.

"You did all right, kid. You give me the stuff, then get into the trunk and I'll drive you into the next county. They are looking for a black woman, and I want to show only a white face on the road. But let me see this journal."

Tammy gave it to her, and Megan cursed.

"This isn't English. I will need to have it translated. All right, into the trunk, and let's get out before they set up roadblocks.

.