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Chapter Ten

"Clarion"

Peter was trying his cell phone again when Celeste pointed out the 'town' of Clarion.

"I know your cell phone won't work here, Detective," she said quietly. "They never do, but my friends have a phone we can use."

Peter slipped his phone back into his pocket and asked the question that had been whispering to him from the back of his mind, "Is there a safe place where we could hide out until help arrives, if that's what my captain wants us to do?"

Celeste hesitated. "The-the only safe place I can think of would be my uncle's cabin."

"Is it close?"

"No, but it's the only fortified location I know of. We were safe there for months. Besides, you've already met my Uncle Ansel. It helps a great deal when he trusts the people coming into his house."

Peter felt his expression cloud as he tried to recall the few people he had met since arriving in this part of the country, and then scrunched up his face in sudden recognition, "Oh, you don't mean that old..."

Celeste smiled the first genuine smile he had seen on her face. "Yes, that was him. Ansel grows on you. Really, he does."

"You say he trusts me?"

Peter's incredulous tone turned the corners of her mouth upward to a greater degree. "Sure, he does. Well, as much as he trusts any outsider...About as far as he can throw you."

"Oh, this is gonna be fun." Peter's temple suddenly began to ache with the pain of things to come...and it didn't necessarily involve physical pain.

He reached backward with his notepad and pen, passing them to her as he asked, "Well, write down the directions on how to get there just in case. My captain may want a backup plan like that in place. I'll know more after I talk to him."

A look of worried concern sprang across Celeste's expression, making Peter think he'd missed something major happening around them.

"What? What is it?"

His eyes darted all around him, looking for the source of Celeste's worry.

"Do you think that's wise? To tell them about Ansel's place after everything that's just happened?" Celeste's voice took on the more familiar tones of confrontation.

As soon as she questioned his judgment, Peter relaxed immediately. There was no outside danger to contend with, only Celeste's fears and he felt he had could quiet them without too much trouble.

With a smirk, he caught her gaze in the mirror and said, "My captain also helped raise me. He was my father for a lot of important years in my life. And he knows how to take care of his family. We'll be safe. Trust me. Once he hears about what's happened, the President of the United States couldn't be safer than we will be."

"But...what about what just happened? How did they find us again?"

Peter swallowed and thought about her question for a minute. "The best thing I can come up with is that there is someone in the legal system leaking information to Wilson's assassins. And that's what I'll tell Paul when I speak with him. He'll handle the matter himself without alerting anyone else this time. Believe me, he will be pissed off when he hears about what just happened."

It took several moments for Peter's statement to sink in before Celeste's tense body language relaxed a bit. He understood why. It was almost impossible for her to trust him when her only concern in the world refused to acknowledge outside stimuli.

"Should we call Ansel and alert him that we might be coming?" Peter asked.

For a moment, he worried she was going to pass out on him again because she had become so pale and withdrawn while looking at Tommy.

"I would if I could, but he doesn't have a phone," she said softly, "Besides, I doubt he's home yet. He lives in a pretty remote area off in heart of the Misty Mountains."

Peter's eyes squeezed closed briefly as she began to write directions to Ansel's place.

"You're telling me we might be going to a safe house without a telephone. Oh, this just keeps getting better and better," he grumbled as his stomach threatened to rebel again.

An ache in his side began to burn as he vaguely recalled hitting his ribs against the car's interior door handle. Or maybe it was being jerked against the safety belt. Anyway, it was starting to hurt and he didn't have the time or inclination for pain.

"Oh, Detective, if we do go to Ansel's, you better warn your people about coming up to the cabin without a guide. Ansel has that place rigged six ways from Sunday with booby traps. I would recommend setting up a time and a place to meet off his property rather than bringing in an uninformed person."

"Ah, shit!" Peter exclaimed as he thumped the already abused steering wheel with his right hand so hard that Celeste jumped, making him temper his frustration with a slow, deep breath.

They coasted silently through the main street of Clarion. Actually, it was the only street in Clarion. For the first time that day, he was relieved they were traveling so early in the morning. They hadn't passed a single car on along the way since leaving the highway.

The detective was worried about the heavily damaged appearance of their vehicle. It might do more than alarm the locals, especially with a stranger driving it. People might start making phone calls or talk to strangers. Before he knew it, the word would be out, essentially leaving a trail for the assassins to follow.

Peter parked the car behind a grove of trees at the rear of the store as directed by Celeste. It was an old-time general store and the area's only source of shopping without traveling a considerable distance.

Joey and Judy Whitehorse had inherited the store from Joey's parents and lived in an apartment above the store. Despite the early hour, Celeste assured Peter that Joey would open up for her. She had known the couple since their teens and had a role in getting them together, so she figured they'd be willing to allow her to impose upon them.

As Peter went to stand after opening the car door, he was struck by a sudden wave of vertigo and weakness as his side burned like a raging forest fire. Reaching out to the door for support, his hand grazed the dangling glass of the shattered window and that was all it took for the glass web to collapse. The fragments dropped to the dark soil in a rain of sparkles. The early morning light caught the glittering prisms when they fell, which seemed to disorient Peter even more.

He managed to slide back down into his seat, breathing heavily as he struggled not to pass out while pressing a fist against his side. Vaguely, he was aware of Celeste calling his name as he slumped back against the headrest, still fighting against unconsciousness, but it was a pointless battle which he soon lost.

He wasn't sure how much time had passed, but there were hands gently slapping at his face and an unknown voice calling his name. Blinking furiously, he tried to get his eyes to focus. After another long moment, he could almost make out the face of a stranger talking to him.

The stranger backed away and Celeste's concerned face took his place. She had a wet washcloth in her hand and she dabbed at his forehead as she spoke to him, "Peter, you scared me half to death! How are you feeling?"

She paused in her activities to look closely at his pupils.

"Wha-what happened?" Peter asked sluggishly, his words slightly slurred like he'd been on an all-night drinking binge.

"You passed out. That's what happened. Why didn't you tell me you were hurt so badly?" Celeste scolded him as she continued to dab at the blood covering most of the left side of his head and upper torso.

"I'm fi--fine. Just got dizzy, I guess."

"Well, Joey's a big strong guy and he's going to help you into the store if you think you can manage that."

Peter swallowed, trying to assess his condition. His brain felt like it had turned to mush while he was out. His side and his forehead was killing him, but he knew they needed to get inside before they were spotted, so he nodded his head and said, "I'm ready."

"Yes, you certainly look like it...You're white as a sheet and your clothes are drenched in your own blood. Oh yeah, you're definitely ready to take on the world, Detective," she said, dripping with enough sarcasm to rival Kermit's.

She shook her head, but she backed away and spoke to Joey for a moment, and then glanced over to another woman as she stood beside the car holding Tommy. Peter was feeling so badly and his hold on his consciousness was so tenacious, he didn't have the strength or willpower to come up with some snappy retort.

Peter began to drift away again. Joey's deep voice caused nearly shut eyelids to fly open and Peter jumped violently. He grabbed at his forehead and side in obvious pain from the abrupt movement.

"Sorry about that, mister. Sure didn't mean to scare you like that. Sometimes, I can scare people without even trying," Joey said as he leaned inside the car.

The giant of a man continued to apologize as the throbbing in Peter's head eased somewhat. Without speaking, Peter nodded his acceptance of the apology and the big man said, "I'm gonna help you out of the car now. Listen, you let me do everything here. If I start moving too fast, you just let me know."

Again, Peter nodded in silent reply.

True to his word, Joey used his great strength to pull Peter from the car like he was retrieving a child's rag doll. It was a good thing too, because Peter's own strength had mysteriously deserted him.

Joey moved slow and sure, still Peter couldn't contain a groan that escaped his lips as his left forearm pressed into his side to keep it from exploding. Once Peter was on his feet, leaning heavily against Joey, the big guy paused to give the Peter a chance to collect himself before moving on.

Breathing heavily to push back his pain and gain some strength, Peter slowly scanned the people around, ignoring the telltale signs of blackness encroaching upon his vision with his fully upright position.

Celeste was beside him, cane in hand, looking like she was using her considerable willpower to hide the appearance of hovering, but she failed miserably. Peter figured he was still pale and now there was a sheen of perspiration covering his skin.

There was another woman, whom Peter assumed to be Joey's wife, Judy, holding a very still Tommy in her arms. Her dark expression was grim as she stroked the boy's back, but she was frowning at Peter...or his appearance.

Apparently, Celeste had interrupted Judy's early morning preparations because she was wearing a heavy coat thrown over her pajamas and boots while her raven black hair was pulled back in a rapidly tied knot. She handed Tommy back to Celeste and approached him.

Then, there was Joey who stood a full head above Peter, looking down on him like he was God himself, worrying over the fate of one of his wayward children. Peter's head hurt when he looked up at Joey's face from that angle with the early morning sunshine behind him, so he closed his eyes and let his head drop back down to a more natural position, thinking that Joey was the biggest man he'd ever seen.

Finally, his head wasn't throbbing as much, but his side still ached. When Peter opened his eyes again, he noticed the car at his side and was visibly shaken by the sight. Not only had his car window had been shot out, but virtually all of the windows were gone.

How could he not have noticed that before, he wondered in amazement. Then, the throbbing in his aching temple and side reminded him why his attention might have been affected.

The body of the vehicle was riddled with bullet holes, but miraculously all of the tires were still intact. The fact they had managed to survive, let alone get away from their would-be killers, was a wonder, pure and simple.

Peter went to comment on the condition of the car, but discovered that night must have descended upon them very quickly, because his world had suddenly turned black and without realizing it, oblivion claimed him.

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