IMMEDIATE DANGER
By CREASSYA
This takes place after Danger Among Us. Chandler and Monica meet for the first time, but not under the best circumstances. In fact, it's under the worst circumstances. They're thrown together because Chandler got into the same cab as Monica, apparently running from someone who's been following him. Things went from bad to worse as the people following him take shots at them and cause and accident…
~For a few seconds, I remain on the floor. I'm afraid to move until I remember that I'm being followed. Apparently whoever has it in for me wants me dead. I can't stick around and wait for them to finish the job. I slowly raise my head and look at the woman in front of me. I reach over and touch her hands, which are covering her head. She lifts her head up and looks at me.
"We're alive. Oh my God."
"We have to get out of here."
We slowly rise from the floor of the cab. At the sight of the driver, the woman screams and begins to cry. There's blood everywhere. He's slumped over the steering wheel with a hole in the back of his head. I look at him for a few seconds in shock.
"He's dead," the woman said crying.
"Come on. If we stay here, we're next."
We make our way out of the cab looking around us. There is nothing but trees and grass. No sign of the men who were trying to kill us, but we know that they aren't far. After looking around, we begin to run. We're not sure where we're headed, but us staying here would be much worst.
-
I keep looking out the window for Monica. She called hours ago and told me that she was on her way over. Phoebe has called her three times, but keeps getting the machine. This isn't like her. As Phoebe hangs up the phone, she looks at me with a worried expression on her face.
"What did Ross say?" I ask.
"He says he's on his way over to her apartment."
"God, I hope nothing bad happened to her."
"You think she got lost?"
"In a cab, Phoebe?"
"I don't know."
"Maybe we're making too much out of this."
"Yeah. I'm sure she'll be here."
"Yeah."
"How come I'm not convinced?" Phoebe said.
"Me either. I don't know why, but I have a bad feeling about this," I said.
Hours later, there's a knock on the door. I run to the door thinking it's Monica, but it's Ross instead. He doesn't say a word until I close the door.
"Well?"
"I went to her apartment. She's not there."
"This isn't good," Phoebe said.
"Should we call the police?" I ask.
"No. They'll just tell us we have to wait forty eight hours before they can actually say that she's missing," Ross said.
"He's right. She's only been gone for a few hours." Phoebe said.
"Gunther said he saw her at the coffeehouse hours ago."
"You think we're being paranoid?" I ask.
"Not at all."
"Hey, didn't she just get a cell phone?" Phoebe asks.
"Yeah, but she just got it activated yesterday. I don't have the number."
"What about you Ross?"
"I don't have it either."
`I hang up the phone, and lay across my bed. I've been trying to call my dad for hours. I wonder where he could be. Without Chandler and my father to talk to, I feel incredibly alone. It's times like this when I really miss my mother. Sometimes when I think about how horrible her death was, I can't help but cry. It happened four years ago. She was raped, shot to death, and thrown into the river. I wondered for years what kind of animal would do that. For four years I've been wondering. Her murder remains unsolved. I'll never have any closure until the killer is found and brought to justice. With my mother gone, there's this empty space in my heart that will never be filled. I remember the day that my father broke the news to me that they found her body. I was in shock. I didn't eat, sleep, speak, or cry for three days. And when I finally did cry, I couldn't stop. It was as if someone had ripped my insides out. It was the toughest year of my life. Despite our differences, we were close. I miss her so much. As I think about her, my eyes water and tears slide down my face.
I saw her last, three days before her body was found. I had just lost my boyfriend at the time, Ronald, who was murdered when someone broke into his house, robbed him, and then strangled him. She was consoling me before she left that day. Losing both Ronald and my mother in the same week sent me into deep depression. I found myself not wanting to live. The thing that stopped from actually going through with committing suicide was my mother. Although she was gone, I pictured her being heart broken over me killing myself when her life had been taken from her. At that moment, standing in the bathroom with a full bottle of sleeping pills, I realized that I had to be alive to see the animal who murdered her, spend the rest of his miserable life in jail. It's one of the things that keeps me going.
^
I sit on the bed in a motel room waiting for that guy to come back with our sodas. Seconds later, he comes back into the room and hands me a Gingerale. I need something to settle my stomach and Gingerale always does the trick.
"How are you feeling?"
"Horrible."
"I guess that was a dumb question."
"Can I ask you a question?"
"Yeah," he said sitting on the other bed.
"What's your name?"
"Chandler. What's yours?"
"Monica."
"Well, Monica, I'm sorry we had to meet under these circumstances."
"So am I."
"This is a nightmare."
"Are you really telling me the truth?"
"Yes. For the last time. No, I'm not a criminal. No I don't know who those guys are, and no I don't know why they're trying to kill me."
"Okay."
"I'm sorry if I'm a bit on edge."
"It's to be expected.
"Where were you going earlier?"
"Oh my God, I totally forgot. I was going to my friends new house. I've haven't been there yet. They hired movers a few days ago and I was going over to check it out and help with the decorating. I have to call them. They're probably wondering where I am."
I reach into my purse and pull out my cell phone. I scan the built in phonebook to locate Phoebe and Rachel's number. Once I find the number, I press the call button that has a blue line across it. Rachel answers on the first ring.
"Rach."
"Monica, where are you? You told me that you were coming over six hours ago."
"I know. I was in a car accident."
"Oh my God Mon! Are you okay?"
"Kinda."
"Well, are you in the hospital?"
"No, I'm at a motel. I was in a cab on my way over there when these guys started following this guy I was in the cab with. They rammed us a couple times and shot the driver twice. We ended up crashing into a tree."
"Oh my God!"
"Me and the guy are fine, but the driver's dead. As soon as we saw a payphone we called the police and said that there was an accident but we didn't say that we were in the cab with the driver."
"Why not?"
"I don't know. We were just worried about them getting to the driver. We're scared to death. This guy doesn't know who's trying to kill him."
"So now you're involved?"
"Yeah."
"You want me to call the police?"
"No, not yet."
"Well, what are you waiting for?"
"We're just trying to figure something out. We're not calling the police until we find out who those guys are. For all we know, they could be at the hospital."
"Mon, that doesn't make any sense."
"None of this makes any sense. They saw me in the cab, and I'm sure they know where he lives."
"Okay. What's this guy's name?"
"His name is Chandler."
"Mon, please be careful."
"I will, and promise me you won't call the police."
"I promise."
"I'll call you back."
"Okay."
I press the End button and sit the phone next to me.
"Y'know…maybe we should get the police involved. My ex-girlfriend's father is a Lieutenant."
"Really?"
"Yeah, but I just broke up with his daughter. He might not be too willing to help out."
-
I sit in silence along with Phoebe and Ross. I just told them what Monica had told me about somebody being after this stranger that she met in the cab on her way over and how they had almost been killed.
"What do we do?" Phoebe asks.
"I think we should call the police anyway," Ross said.
"I think so too, but she said not to. They're paranoid right now. They didn't even see who was shooting at them."
"I can't believe this. What are the chances of something like this happening?" Ross said.
"I knew something was wrong. I had this awful feeling in the pit of my stomach," I said.
"So, we're just supposed to sit around and do nothing?" Ross asks.
"I don't know."
"Was it her idea not to call the police or was it his?" Ross asks.
"I didn't ask all that?"
"Well, why didn't you?" He asks angrily.
"Guys, this isn't helping."
"She's right Ross. I think we should just do what she wants us to do. If it means sitting around and waiting for her to call back, then that's what we have to do."
~
As I open my eyes, I notice Monica pacing back and forth across the room. I slowly sit up and watch her for a few seconds before saying anything. She woke up at about three times last night crying. She said that every time she closed her eyes, she saw the cab driver slumped over with a hole in the back on his head. Neither one of us had a decent night's sleep.
"Monica, are you okay?"
"I don't know."
"I think we should get the police involved."
"You mean your ex-girlfriends father?"
"Yeah."
"You wanna call him?"
"Yeah."
"The phone is right there," she said pointing to the dresser.
I slowly get up out of bed and reluctantly place the call to his house instead of the 8th precinct. I don't know why, but I want to keep this thing pretty quiet. I get the feeling that those guys following me will find out that we got the police involved and really make it their business to finish what they started. I'm not crazy about calling Frank for help, but maybe he can find out who's following me somehow. As I wait for an answer or even the answering machine, I can't stop this feeling that's been nagging me sense Monica and I arrived here. It's obvious that we don't totally trust the cops. Sometimes getting them involved makes things worst. I get the feeling that calling Frank for his help isn't in our best interest, but I don't know where else to turn.
"Hello," the voice answers.
"Hello. Can I speak to Frank?"
"This is Frank."
"Frank, this is Chandler."
"Hi Chandler. I heard about the breakup."
"Yeah. I know you're probably pissed it me."
"Don't be silly. I'm sure you had your reasons. Besides, what goes on between you and my daughter isn't any of my business."
"Really?"
"Yeah."
"Thanks for being so understanding."
"No problem."
"Listen, I need your help."
"What do you need?"
"I'm in a lot of trouble."
"What happened?"
"I was being followed yesterday. I got into a cab and these guys were chasing after it. They shot the driver twice and we ended up crashing into a tree. The driver is dead. As soon as we got in town we called the police and reported the accident. I don't know who these guys are or why they were trying to kill me," I said, taking a breath.
"Okay, where are you?"
*I smile as Chandler gives me the location of his whereabouts. I didn't think he would turn up this soon after he and this woman fled the scene, but I'm glad he did. I wonder why he didn't mention the woman, but it doesn't matter. They'll both soon be dead anyway. The car thing didn't work out, but they won't escape this time. After I hang up the phone, I call for help. I could have them take care of this for me, but I want to be there when Chandler's deposed of. No one hurts my Jena and gets away with it.
Hours later, we arrive at the motel where Chandler and this stranger presently reside. I sit in the car with the two men who were trying to kill Chandler yesterday, going over our plan to take care of him and his friend. I want to make sure that things don't get screwed up this time. That there are no survivors. We get out of the car and make our way across the parking lot. While we were discussing our plan to kill Chandler and the woman in the room with him, we noticed that a pretty dark haired woman entered the room minutes before we got out of the car.
~~~
I watch as Chandler struggles to open the window so I go over and help him. With the both of us pushing, it suddenly rises slowly. The knock on the door startles us.
"They're here Chandler."
"Dammit, I knew I shouldn't have called him. You're sure that you saw them with guns?"
"Yes. There not here to help us. They're here to kill us. You can stay here to see if I'm right or wrong, but I'm leaving."
"Come on Chandler. Open up the door. I'm here to help you," Frank said on the other side of the door.
Chandler walks over to the door and looks out the peep hole as I get the window open for us to climb out. He comes back over to the window.
"I don't have a good feeling about this."
"Well lets go."
We climb out the window and run like hell.
*As I get the door open, the three of us notice and open window. I check the bathroom, and the other two check the window.
"I can see them running," one of them said.
"Well go after them!"
As they go out the window, I get in the car to chase them. Seconds later, I see them running. I smile as I gain on them.
"You're not getting away this time Chandler."
CHANDLER AND MONICA GET CAUGHT UP IN A………
DEADLY PURSUIT, NEXT
By CREASSYA
This takes place after Danger Among Us. Chandler and Monica meet for the first time, but not under the best circumstances. In fact, it's under the worst circumstances. They're thrown together because Chandler got into the same cab as Monica, apparently running from someone who's been following him. Things went from bad to worse as the people following him take shots at them and cause and accident…
~For a few seconds, I remain on the floor. I'm afraid to move until I remember that I'm being followed. Apparently whoever has it in for me wants me dead. I can't stick around and wait for them to finish the job. I slowly raise my head and look at the woman in front of me. I reach over and touch her hands, which are covering her head. She lifts her head up and looks at me.
"We're alive. Oh my God."
"We have to get out of here."
We slowly rise from the floor of the cab. At the sight of the driver, the woman screams and begins to cry. There's blood everywhere. He's slumped over the steering wheel with a hole in the back of his head. I look at him for a few seconds in shock.
"He's dead," the woman said crying.
"Come on. If we stay here, we're next."
We make our way out of the cab looking around us. There is nothing but trees and grass. No sign of the men who were trying to kill us, but we know that they aren't far. After looking around, we begin to run. We're not sure where we're headed, but us staying here would be much worst.
-
I keep looking out the window for Monica. She called hours ago and told me that she was on her way over. Phoebe has called her three times, but keeps getting the machine. This isn't like her. As Phoebe hangs up the phone, she looks at me with a worried expression on her face.
"What did Ross say?" I ask.
"He says he's on his way over to her apartment."
"God, I hope nothing bad happened to her."
"You think she got lost?"
"In a cab, Phoebe?"
"I don't know."
"Maybe we're making too much out of this."
"Yeah. I'm sure she'll be here."
"Yeah."
"How come I'm not convinced?" Phoebe said.
"Me either. I don't know why, but I have a bad feeling about this," I said.
Hours later, there's a knock on the door. I run to the door thinking it's Monica, but it's Ross instead. He doesn't say a word until I close the door.
"Well?"
"I went to her apartment. She's not there."
"This isn't good," Phoebe said.
"Should we call the police?" I ask.
"No. They'll just tell us we have to wait forty eight hours before they can actually say that she's missing," Ross said.
"He's right. She's only been gone for a few hours." Phoebe said.
"Gunther said he saw her at the coffeehouse hours ago."
"You think we're being paranoid?" I ask.
"Not at all."
"Hey, didn't she just get a cell phone?" Phoebe asks.
"Yeah, but she just got it activated yesterday. I don't have the number."
"What about you Ross?"
"I don't have it either."
`I hang up the phone, and lay across my bed. I've been trying to call my dad for hours. I wonder where he could be. Without Chandler and my father to talk to, I feel incredibly alone. It's times like this when I really miss my mother. Sometimes when I think about how horrible her death was, I can't help but cry. It happened four years ago. She was raped, shot to death, and thrown into the river. I wondered for years what kind of animal would do that. For four years I've been wondering. Her murder remains unsolved. I'll never have any closure until the killer is found and brought to justice. With my mother gone, there's this empty space in my heart that will never be filled. I remember the day that my father broke the news to me that they found her body. I was in shock. I didn't eat, sleep, speak, or cry for three days. And when I finally did cry, I couldn't stop. It was as if someone had ripped my insides out. It was the toughest year of my life. Despite our differences, we were close. I miss her so much. As I think about her, my eyes water and tears slide down my face.
I saw her last, three days before her body was found. I had just lost my boyfriend at the time, Ronald, who was murdered when someone broke into his house, robbed him, and then strangled him. She was consoling me before she left that day. Losing both Ronald and my mother in the same week sent me into deep depression. I found myself not wanting to live. The thing that stopped from actually going through with committing suicide was my mother. Although she was gone, I pictured her being heart broken over me killing myself when her life had been taken from her. At that moment, standing in the bathroom with a full bottle of sleeping pills, I realized that I had to be alive to see the animal who murdered her, spend the rest of his miserable life in jail. It's one of the things that keeps me going.
^
I sit on the bed in a motel room waiting for that guy to come back with our sodas. Seconds later, he comes back into the room and hands me a Gingerale. I need something to settle my stomach and Gingerale always does the trick.
"How are you feeling?"
"Horrible."
"I guess that was a dumb question."
"Can I ask you a question?"
"Yeah," he said sitting on the other bed.
"What's your name?"
"Chandler. What's yours?"
"Monica."
"Well, Monica, I'm sorry we had to meet under these circumstances."
"So am I."
"This is a nightmare."
"Are you really telling me the truth?"
"Yes. For the last time. No, I'm not a criminal. No I don't know who those guys are, and no I don't know why they're trying to kill me."
"Okay."
"I'm sorry if I'm a bit on edge."
"It's to be expected.
"Where were you going earlier?"
"Oh my God, I totally forgot. I was going to my friends new house. I've haven't been there yet. They hired movers a few days ago and I was going over to check it out and help with the decorating. I have to call them. They're probably wondering where I am."
I reach into my purse and pull out my cell phone. I scan the built in phonebook to locate Phoebe and Rachel's number. Once I find the number, I press the call button that has a blue line across it. Rachel answers on the first ring.
"Rach."
"Monica, where are you? You told me that you were coming over six hours ago."
"I know. I was in a car accident."
"Oh my God Mon! Are you okay?"
"Kinda."
"Well, are you in the hospital?"
"No, I'm at a motel. I was in a cab on my way over there when these guys started following this guy I was in the cab with. They rammed us a couple times and shot the driver twice. We ended up crashing into a tree."
"Oh my God!"
"Me and the guy are fine, but the driver's dead. As soon as we saw a payphone we called the police and said that there was an accident but we didn't say that we were in the cab with the driver."
"Why not?"
"I don't know. We were just worried about them getting to the driver. We're scared to death. This guy doesn't know who's trying to kill him."
"So now you're involved?"
"Yeah."
"You want me to call the police?"
"No, not yet."
"Well, what are you waiting for?"
"We're just trying to figure something out. We're not calling the police until we find out who those guys are. For all we know, they could be at the hospital."
"Mon, that doesn't make any sense."
"None of this makes any sense. They saw me in the cab, and I'm sure they know where he lives."
"Okay. What's this guy's name?"
"His name is Chandler."
"Mon, please be careful."
"I will, and promise me you won't call the police."
"I promise."
"I'll call you back."
"Okay."
I press the End button and sit the phone next to me.
"Y'know…maybe we should get the police involved. My ex-girlfriend's father is a Lieutenant."
"Really?"
"Yeah, but I just broke up with his daughter. He might not be too willing to help out."
-
I sit in silence along with Phoebe and Ross. I just told them what Monica had told me about somebody being after this stranger that she met in the cab on her way over and how they had almost been killed.
"What do we do?" Phoebe asks.
"I think we should call the police anyway," Ross said.
"I think so too, but she said not to. They're paranoid right now. They didn't even see who was shooting at them."
"I can't believe this. What are the chances of something like this happening?" Ross said.
"I knew something was wrong. I had this awful feeling in the pit of my stomach," I said.
"So, we're just supposed to sit around and do nothing?" Ross asks.
"I don't know."
"Was it her idea not to call the police or was it his?" Ross asks.
"I didn't ask all that?"
"Well, why didn't you?" He asks angrily.
"Guys, this isn't helping."
"She's right Ross. I think we should just do what she wants us to do. If it means sitting around and waiting for her to call back, then that's what we have to do."
~
As I open my eyes, I notice Monica pacing back and forth across the room. I slowly sit up and watch her for a few seconds before saying anything. She woke up at about three times last night crying. She said that every time she closed her eyes, she saw the cab driver slumped over with a hole in the back on his head. Neither one of us had a decent night's sleep.
"Monica, are you okay?"
"I don't know."
"I think we should get the police involved."
"You mean your ex-girlfriends father?"
"Yeah."
"You wanna call him?"
"Yeah."
"The phone is right there," she said pointing to the dresser.
I slowly get up out of bed and reluctantly place the call to his house instead of the 8th precinct. I don't know why, but I want to keep this thing pretty quiet. I get the feeling that those guys following me will find out that we got the police involved and really make it their business to finish what they started. I'm not crazy about calling Frank for help, but maybe he can find out who's following me somehow. As I wait for an answer or even the answering machine, I can't stop this feeling that's been nagging me sense Monica and I arrived here. It's obvious that we don't totally trust the cops. Sometimes getting them involved makes things worst. I get the feeling that calling Frank for his help isn't in our best interest, but I don't know where else to turn.
"Hello," the voice answers.
"Hello. Can I speak to Frank?"
"This is Frank."
"Frank, this is Chandler."
"Hi Chandler. I heard about the breakup."
"Yeah. I know you're probably pissed it me."
"Don't be silly. I'm sure you had your reasons. Besides, what goes on between you and my daughter isn't any of my business."
"Really?"
"Yeah."
"Thanks for being so understanding."
"No problem."
"Listen, I need your help."
"What do you need?"
"I'm in a lot of trouble."
"What happened?"
"I was being followed yesterday. I got into a cab and these guys were chasing after it. They shot the driver twice and we ended up crashing into a tree. The driver is dead. As soon as we got in town we called the police and reported the accident. I don't know who these guys are or why they were trying to kill me," I said, taking a breath.
"Okay, where are you?"
*I smile as Chandler gives me the location of his whereabouts. I didn't think he would turn up this soon after he and this woman fled the scene, but I'm glad he did. I wonder why he didn't mention the woman, but it doesn't matter. They'll both soon be dead anyway. The car thing didn't work out, but they won't escape this time. After I hang up the phone, I call for help. I could have them take care of this for me, but I want to be there when Chandler's deposed of. No one hurts my Jena and gets away with it.
Hours later, we arrive at the motel where Chandler and this stranger presently reside. I sit in the car with the two men who were trying to kill Chandler yesterday, going over our plan to take care of him and his friend. I want to make sure that things don't get screwed up this time. That there are no survivors. We get out of the car and make our way across the parking lot. While we were discussing our plan to kill Chandler and the woman in the room with him, we noticed that a pretty dark haired woman entered the room minutes before we got out of the car.
~~~
I watch as Chandler struggles to open the window so I go over and help him. With the both of us pushing, it suddenly rises slowly. The knock on the door startles us.
"They're here Chandler."
"Dammit, I knew I shouldn't have called him. You're sure that you saw them with guns?"
"Yes. There not here to help us. They're here to kill us. You can stay here to see if I'm right or wrong, but I'm leaving."
"Come on Chandler. Open up the door. I'm here to help you," Frank said on the other side of the door.
Chandler walks over to the door and looks out the peep hole as I get the window open for us to climb out. He comes back over to the window.
"I don't have a good feeling about this."
"Well lets go."
We climb out the window and run like hell.
*As I get the door open, the three of us notice and open window. I check the bathroom, and the other two check the window.
"I can see them running," one of them said.
"Well go after them!"
As they go out the window, I get in the car to chase them. Seconds later, I see them running. I smile as I gain on them.
"You're not getting away this time Chandler."
CHANDLER AND MONICA GET CAUGHT UP IN A………
DEADLY PURSUIT, NEXT