Chapter 5

Tony pulled at his restraints with all of his strength. He was hoping that the old bars on the horse stall were rotted enough for him to break. He had to escape before one of them came back and did God knows what to him. He wasn't sure how long he'd been there, only that it had to be several hours. The sunlight that had been seeping through the cracks in the side of the barn had faded into darkness.

Where the hell is McGee? Did they find him? Is he dead in a cornfield? I have to get out of here and find him.

After a while, his efforts were rewarded by a loud crack, and the rusted bar he was handcuffed to snapped in half. He crawled over to the door and pulled himself up. There was no one in the barn, and he could not hear anyone approaching outside. He tried to push the door open, and to his relief it moved outward. He moved quietly across the barn and peeked through a small window next to the door. He saw a light on in the house across the small yard.

They're probably going to see me if I open this door.

Tony looked around for an alternate exit, and saw one toward the back of the barn. He went to it and slipped outside. There was about three feet of grass, that ended at more cornfields.

Like I expected to see anything else... doesn't anyone grow stuff other than corn around here?

Tony ran into the cornfield without looking back.

John stopped the truck at the edge of the Cobbs' property and turned off the ignition.

"What's the matter?" Tim asked.

"I can't go any further."

"Why not?"

"It's a private road. If we cross this intersection, it's trespassing."

"Tony could be on that property somewhere. I'm not going to stop until I find him." Tim picked up his bag from the floor and rifled through it until he found his SIG. He saw John's eyes go wide as he checked it for ammo.

"Who are you, really? And why do you have that gun?"

"It's all right, John. I'm a Federal Agent, and so is Tony." He showed John his credentials. "I'm going out there and I'm going to find him."

"It's dark... you'll get yourself killed!"

Tim opened the door of the truck and got out. He slung the pack over his shoulder. A thought suddenly occurred to him, and he pulled out his cell from his pocket, and handed it to John.

"Take this. A friend of mine back home is tracking the signal. If my Boss finds you before I get back, tell him what's going on. He'll be able to find us."

"Tim, are you sure you want to do this? You don't know what you're up against."

"I'll be fine. Thank you for everything, John."

"You're welcome, son. Be careful out there, will you?"

"I promise."

Tim closed the door and slipped into the cover of the cornfield.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The cornstalks whipped across Tony's face and arms as he ran through the cornfield. He wasn't sure where the hell he was, or where he was going to end up. He could come out right back where he started, if he wasn't careful.

Suddenly, he heard shouting, and a couple of gunshots rang through the air.

Shit... they're coming.

Tony ran as fast as he could away from the gunshots. If they caught him, he sure as hell wouldn't be going back to that barn.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Tim heard the gunshots as he walked down a row of corn. They sounded like they were coming from a western direction.

Tony has to be running away from the shots.

Tim ran straight ahead, hoping he'd bump into him. Together, they could escape the Cobb brothers and get back to John's truck before anyone got hurt.

A sound to his left stopped Tim in his tracks. He pointed his gun straight ahead and moved carefully. Whatever it was sounded big, and he wanted to be ready.

The rustling sound got louder, and before he knew what was happening, he felt himself being tackled to the ground. His gun slid into the corn, out of sight. He felt his arms being yanked behind his back, and a knee pressing down on his spine.

"What do we have here?"

Tim tried to get loose, but the man's grip on him was solid. He saw another set of feet coming toward him.

"Who are you?"

"My name is Thom," Tim said quickly.

"What are you doing in our cornfield, Thom?"

Tim didn't respond. He felt the foot dig deeper into his spine.

"He asked you a question, asshole. Answer him or I'll break your spine."

Tim didn't say anything. He didn't want to tell them he was looking for Tony, and put his friend at risk.

"He'll talk when we get him to the barn," said the man on top of Tim.

"There's no time for that, Jake. Shoot him in the head, and help me find the other one."

Tim felt a renewed strength, and brought his leg up to hit Jake, who lost his grip momentarily. It was long enough for Tim to shove him off and roll toward his gun. he snatched it and pointed it at Jake's face. Jake was pointing a weapon back at him.

"Drop it, asshole," Jake said. "You'll be dead before you get a shot off."

Tim didn't hesitate to pull the trigger, and Jake Cobb dropped to the ground.

Breathing heavily, Tim scrambled to his feet and started running as fast as his legs could take him.

Tony, where in the hell are you?

TBC...