Chapter Eight: Revenge
When Theresa told Jack what Miguel had said, he waved it off. He told her that Miguel couldn't do anything to them or he'd go to jail. It was now two weeks later, and Miguel hadn't carried out his threat. Kay and Jack had been married for a month. It was Saturday night, and Jack had just been called into work.
"Bye Kay, bye Maria," he said, kissing them both.
"We'll see you later," Kay said.
"Bye Daddy!" Maria yelled as he went out the door. Kay looked at the clock. It was eight o'clock already.
"Okay honey, it's time for you to go to bed," she told Maria.
She walked upstairs to Maria's bedroom, changed her into her pajamas, and put her in her bed. She read her The Princess and the Pea, her favorite bedtime story, and by the end, Maria was fast asleep. Kay kissed her forehead and turned on her night light. She walked away, turned off the light, and quietly closed the door behind her.
Kay went back downstairs, got herself a snack, and sat down on the living room couch to watch some television.
Miguel was hiding in the bushes as he watched Jack go to work. He had to act quickly since he was the one who called him in. As soon as Jack got to the police station, he would realize that something was up. He waited patiently for about fifteen minutes, until he saw Maria's bedroom light go off. Through the window he saw Kay sit down and turn the TV on. He put a ski mask on over his head, and patted the gun in his pocket, just to make sure it was there.
"This is probably the stupidest thing I've ever done," he said out loud to himself. "But I have to get my revenge." He stood up and tried the door, but it was locked. Pulling the gun out of his pocket, he aimed and shot twice, breaking the lock. Those were the only two bullets in the gun, I'm not going to hurt anyone, he assured himself. He ran into the house to find Kay in front of him, startled by the noise. She screamed and he pointed the gun at her.
"Shut up bitch," he hissed.
"Miguel?" she asked. "What are you doing?"
Shit, she recognized my voice, he thought to himself. He waved the gun at her and yelled. "I said shut up!" The gun went off as he waved it. Miguel had forgotten that there were three bullets in it. Kay fell to the ground, and hit her head, blacking out. Miguel ran up the stairs to Maria's bedroom and gently lifted her from her bed, grabbing a stuffed animal near her pillow. She was such a heavy sleeper that she never woke up. Just then, Miguel heard a car pulling into the driveway. He saw that it was Jack and ran back down the stairs. He was out the back door the second Jack walked in the front. He ran around the block to his car, stuffed Maria inside, put a seatbelt on her, jumped in, and drove away.
"Kay!" Jack yelled as he saw his wife lying on the floor. He saw a puddle of blood and ran to her side. He checked to see if she was breathing, and she was. He called her name a few more times as he dialed 911. When he could hear the sirens, he hung up the phone and Kay's arm moved. He yelled her name one more time, and she opened her eyes.
"Miguel…" she whispered.
"What?" Jack asked her.
"It was Miguel." Jack heard her the second time, and his fists instantly balled up.
"Jack, check on Maria," she told him as the paramedics rushed in the door. Jack ran upstairs and into his daughter's room. She wasn't there. He ran back down the stairs, to see the paramedics wheeling Kay out on a stretcher.
"Is she going to be alright?" he asked the woman closest to him.
"She should be. She was only shot in her left arm, but we have to get to the hospital and get the bullet out. Are you her husband?" the woman asked.
"Yes, I am. I'll follow you to the hospital," he told her and they left. Before leaving, Jack dialed Sam's number. As soon as he answered, Jack started yelling hysterically. "Miguel came here tonight! He shot Kay in the arm and kidnapped Maria! I have to go to the hospital, please find Miguel and our daughter!"
"Jack, calm down. I'll get all my men on it," he told him, trying to calm himself at the same time. Jack slammed the phone down and jumped in his car. He got to the hospital in record time, and tried to get to Kay. She was in surgery, and he had to wait until she was out. The doctor came towards him and told him that she was going to be fine, and he could see her now. Jack quietly walked into her room.
"Where is she?" was the first thing she asked him. He looked at her sadly, trying not to cry.
"He took her," Jack whispered. Kay immediately burst into tears. Jack walked over and sat on the bed next to her, pulling her into a loving embrace. "I called your dad, he'll find her," he whispered in her ear and kissed the top of her head.
By the time Kay had gotten out of surgery, Miguel was already out of Harmony. There were no police cars around, and he was grateful for that. He got on the highway and drove for hours, finally stopping to rest in Jamestown, New York, which was on the border of Pennsylvania. He decided that he could stop for the night, and continue his drive in the morning.
He checked into a hotel under the name of Nathaniel Johnson. He had Maria wrapped up in a blanket in case she was recognized. He brought her up to his room and put her to bed on a pile of pillows on the floor. He was afraid that she would fall off of the bed if he put her up there. He lay down and went to sleep, anxious for the next day to come.
Back in Harmony, Sam knew that Miguel had gotten out of town, and most likely out of state by now. He issued an amber alert, and sent out photos of Miguel and Maria. All police in the surrounding states were to look for them. He was now at the hospital with Kay and Jack.
"How are you feeling sweetheart?" he asked Kay.
"I'm fine dad; I just want to know if Maria is okay. I can't stand to think about what could happen to her," she answered.
"You and I both know that Miguel wouldn't do anything to hurt her. He's just mad that you were going to shut him out of her life," Sam told her.
"Don't worry, we'll find him," Jack reassured her. "Does it hurt a lot?" he asked, about her gunshot wound.
"Not even half as much as that metal rod that went through me," she complained. "And oh, look, Miguel did that one too. Now I really know why I hate him so much," Kay said.
"Don't use that word. It's so strong. Miguel is just a scared kid who has made some stupid mistakes," her dad said.
"I just hope Maria's not really scared. She's old enough to know if he's 'being bad' or just friendly. If he lays one hand on her I swear I'll ki…"
"That's enough Kay. You need to get some rest," Sam said sternly. "I'm gonna go back to the station so I can be there if any calls come in. I love you," he kissed Kay on the cheek and left.
Early morning came quickly and Miguel woke before Maria did. He picked her up and put her on the bed. She stirred a few minutes later and was completely awake. As soon as she opened her eyes, she became panicked, unfamiliar with her surroundings. The first thing she did was sit up and cry when she saw Miguel.
"It's okay sweetie," he cooed at her. "I'm your daddy."
"Not Daddy!" she yelled at the top of her lungs. "Stranger!" Before she could scream any more, Miguel clapped a hand over her mouth.
"Now Maria, you can't be screaming like that. I'm friends with your mommy and she asked me to pick you up. We're going to see her in a little bit okay?" Maria nodded her head yes. "No more screaming, you might wake someone up," he said to her in a soothing tone. Miguel lifted his hand away from her mouth, and Maria stayed completely silent.
Miguel left all of his stuff in the car so that he could make a fast getaway if they were discovered. He brought Maria downstairs to check out of the hotel. As they approached the desk, she started screaming again.
"Stranger! Stranger!" she yelled over and over again, struggling to get away from Miguel. When the concierge at the desk raised his eyebrow in question, Miguel lied to him.
"I taught her to be afraid of strangers, and you're a stranger," he explained. "I'm really sorry about that. I better get her to the car before she wakes anyone up.
"That's quite alright sir. I hope you'll come and stay with us again!" he yelled after Miguel as they walked out. Once Miguel put Maria in the car, she stopped screaming because she knew it wasn't doing her any good.