Scene Four
Jarod is in a cheap hotel room sitting at a desk, building something. He attaches it to his cell phone and plugs the cord, hanging from the other end, into the computer. Then he gets up and begins to pace back and forth.
"Come on, Alex, contact me!" The phone rings. Jarod takes and deep breath, turns the switch on the phone, and picks it up. "Hello?"
"Did you miss me, Jarod?" asks Alex.
"Alex. Haven't heard from you for a while." Jarod sits down and stares at the computer.
"You don't sound surprised to hear from me."
"I've already learned that nobody, expectedly you, dies at the Centre."
"True, true. You are smart. But you forgot one thing, I like making new rules."
"Why do you have Broots?"
"Wow. Your intelligence is really superior to the rest of us, isn't it?" Alex is walking back and forth in front of Broots, who is tied to a rusted gold poll.
"Why, Alex?"
"Why? To use you as my puppet, silly. You see I like seeing you and Miss Parker suffer. I figure I can get a lot of use out of you two. How is she by the way, I hear a little confused about her family, is it?"
"You leave her out of this!"
"Whoa, testy aren't we. Tell me though, where is the fun it that? Oh, I suppose I could, but only because I'm such a nice guy. Besides, I'm going to have so much fun with you anyway."
"Let me speak to Broots." Jarod watches the screen as it tracks where the call is coming from.
"Um…no."
"Alex, he has a daughter, for god's sake. Let me get a message from him to her."
"Um…nah."
"Please, Alex."
"Aw, there's that character flaw again. Oh, all right." He puts the phone by Broots' ear.
"It's me. Sydney has Debbie; she's safe. I will find you, Broots. Trust me. Now he's letting me talk to you to give a message to her but I need you to put a few clues of where you are in it."
"Thanks, Jarod. Please tell her that I'm fine, just on a little hike, sitting around a fire. And tell her that I love her very much."
"I will, thank you, Broots, talk to you soon."
"Bye, Jar—" Alex grabs the phone.
"Had enough mushy stuff."
"How do I get him back without it being in a body bag?"
"Money."
"Money?"
"Yes. You're good at stealing money from the Centre. I want $200 million in an account that you will learn about later. Just get it ready on my word."
"Stealing money is not going to buy your freedom from the Centre."
"I know that. But if I get you back to the Centre they won't care about me anymore."
"What?"
"You heard me. Now do what I say or no more Brootsy."
"Okay, Okay."
"Ta, ta." (Click)
Jarod hangs up and begins typing on the computer. Zoom on screen. On the screen you see the call being traced. It shows that it is in a city 50 miles from where Jarod is at now. Jarod closes his computer and grabs his things and runs out of his room. He gets in his car and drives away. He grabs his cell phone and begins to dial.
