Chapter 7: Jailbreak!

My truck was parked on the street in front of Kevin and Rachel’s. I had spent the rest of the early morning at the State Patrol headquarters, giving my statement and reviewing (in painful detail) all of the mistakes I made leading up to this point. Fortunately, they kept me bolstered with strong coffee and I was still buzzing when she dropped me off at the Sinclair residence.

I called ahead and they were waiting for me on the porch. Travis was tied to the porch rail and he kept standing on his hind legs testing the strength of the leash, post, and foundation. He began lunging against his restraint the second he saw me get out of the car.

“Jesus H!” Allison muttered under her breath at the sight of him, “he looks even bigger outside.”

I waved to Kevin and Rachel while Trinity ran up and hugged me tightly, squeezing my cracked ribs painfully. I hugged her back and went over to Travis who hunkered down and began whining excitedly and sweeping the ground with his tail. I spent several minutes loving on him before stepping onto the porch.

Rachel hugged me gently while Kevin clapped my back and steered me inside. I could smell breakfast the second I entered the door and my stomach rumbled appreciatively. Rachel had prepared all my favorites; waffles, scrambled eggs, and maple sausage links.

Allison took little coaxing to join us.

“I don’t suppose we have any idea who this assassin is or who sent him?” Kevin asked, quickly addressing the big white elephant in the room.

Allison politely chewed her food and swallowed before answering, “We don’t have any idea at this time but it is still very early.”

Rachel sipped a cup of tea next to me. “It’s pretty clear that this goes much higher than just those local yokels we busted last month for trafficking,” she pondered aloud, “it goes way beyond the infiltration into our local Sheriff’s department too.”

I probably appeared indifferent about it all as I stuffed my face, though I was listening to every word.

“I think the ADA got one of the Ex-Deputies to flip and spill more than was expected,” Mercurio added, “but she is keeping the information locked up tight.” She sat back and nodded appreciatively as Trinity took her plate. “I think she may have a lead on where the shots are being called from. The informant has already been separated from the group and the rest are due to be transported to another facility very soon.” She didn’t go into specifics and I could understand why.

I too pushed back my plate and stood up from the table. For some reason, I felt the urge to kick back on their overstuffed sofa in the living room. Kevin stayed behind to clean up with Trin while the two ladies joined me. Travis positioned himself so that his massive head lay in my lap.

“Let’s be honest here,” I said finally, “we know this goes way up the chain. Are we thinking Cartel or crime syndicate or what?”

Allison shrugged, “Carter, we just don’t know yet. But it’s clear that, whoever they are they had no qualms about blowing their inside connections to the Sheriff’s Dept. Frankly, I’m worried just thinking about who else they have under their control.”

I looked tiredly at Rachel. “You and Kevin need to be careful,” I yawned, “these freaks have already proven how far they will go with me.”

“Kev has already considered that and has decided to put us up in the penthouse of the Westin for the remainder of my pregnancy,” she replied dreamily, “he is going to have our home remodeled and install some kind of safe room.” She smirked at me as I nodded back at her, several times too many. “Why don’t you put your feet up and rest hon?” she suggested.

“No, I want to get back to the Canyon and start planning for contingencies,” I mumbled. I found myself turning and laying back against the armrest as Travis dropped his head down to the carpeted floor. It did feel amazing to just close my eyes for a minute. The last thing I remembered was my shoes being removed as my feet were lifted to join the rest of me on the comfy couch.

It was the delicious aroma of freshly brewed coffee that brought me back to the world. Trinity stood over me grinning, a steaming cup in her hand. “Wakey wakey, eggs and bacy,” she sang as I struggled to an upright position reaching for the proffered succulent.

“Damn, how long was I out?” I mumbled, taking a sip.

“All day and all night,” she replied plopping down beside me. Travis was nowhere to be found.

“I miss anything?”

“Only an army of movers who came and went with Kevin and Rach’s most precious and fragile things.”

Wow! I must’ve been comatose. My recliner appeared to be missing from the other side of the room.

“It wasn’t an Army!” Rachel chided as she waddled down the stairs carrying an overstuffed bag. “But I’m glad you are finally awake,” she muttered once she made it to the landing, “we were about to carry you out to the porch and lock up.”

I looked from her to Trinity askance.

“We are moving out for the contractors, dummy!” Rachel scoffed, “I can’t wait to climb into that supersized tub...” she added dreamily.

“So that’s it?” I rebuked, “You’re just kicking me to the curb like so much garbage?” I found my shoes on the floor nearby and reached for them.

“Did you want a foot rub and a light snack, too?” she grumbled as she took my cup.

“Well...”

“Oh, just get your shoes on and get out!” she grumped dismissively.

“I already loaded up the truck,” Trinity said grinning as I stood and searched for my keys and phone. She held them up. Hmph.

“Well, goodbye then...” I called toward the kitchen.

“You still here?” she replied with a little extra drawl.

I was hoping for a little peace on the drive home but Trinity wanted to talk Kung Fu. So, I spent a while describing to her the difference between Living and Being. It was a lot harder to explain than to simply do. But I gave it my best.

“Next time you are in town I want you to pay special attention to everyone around you,” I said quietly. She was sitting beside me with her legs crossed beneath her and her eyes closed, practicing the breathing exercises I taught her. “I bet you will find most of them just carrying on about their lives with a cell phone 3 inches from their noses.” I saw the side of her mouth curl up from my periphery. “Those people are just living their lives completely oblivious to what is going on around them. It’s like they have a bubble of static noise surrounding their brains. They only see the things that they are willing to let past the bubble.

“As you become more centered within yourself and learn to use your other senses, you will begin to feel like everyone around you is a bubble. When you kick it into overdrive it will sometimes seem like they are moving slowly compared to you. This is what it is like when you are focused on Being. You can identify a target, be it an opponent or a competitor, and you can analyze everything about them—their expressions, postures, emotions, thoughts and even start to anticipate their intentions.”

I looked into my rear view for the hundredth time and began noticing the same familiar vehicle behind me, about a mile back. It looked like a brown truck or SUV but I couldn’t see it very well. Trinity remained still as I flew down the interstate. Travis lay in the back snoozing. “Something as simple as a smell, or a sound can clue you into what actions you might anticipate. Depending on your target’s posture you will interpret possibilities and define their limits and probabilities. For instance, if a person just stepped down with their left foot, they are likely to pick up their right. Knowing this, you can determine where their center of gravity is and how best to use that information to put them on their ass.”

I slowed and turned off onto the county road heading northwest toward the canyon. “What exit did I just take?”

“CR HH,” she replied without hesitation. Lucky guess. I came to a stop as I pulled onto the snow-covered road. The lack of tire tracks suggested little traffic coming ahead. I set my plow into a V-shaped wedge and lowered it onto its roller skids. As I continued, I stayed under 25 mph, clearing a ten-foot-wide path while I watched my rearview mirror. Sure, enough it was a medium-sized brown pickup and it slowed to a halt after it took the off-ramp. It could only turn right or left or continue back onto the interstate. I slowed even more without tapping my brakes. The driver hesitated for about 30 seconds and then turned left to pull back onto the interstate and return the way they had come. Interesting.