Chapter 24: Car Chase

Another couple of months went by and we got through winter. Carrie had another hour-long special on water quality that probably made half the population decide to boil anything that they drank. We’d come to the WDC-TV studios to watch the airing of the show with the production crew and Carrie – about sixty people. She was altruistic in giving praise to her ‘team,’ as she now called it, being sure that everyone got recognition and public praise in front of the big bosses. She obviously didn’t feel she needed to step on others to get ahead.

Marjorie was there, and we all enjoyed the show. She was also hitting her stride doing her own specials, and occasionally anchoring the national evening news, once for a solid week. She presented well and several people indicated she was probably next in line for the permanent anchor desk at the station.

As the party broke up, Marjorie decided to ride with me when we headed home. She was starting a one-week series on high-tech jobs in the beltway area, and wanted my perspective on the market. Finally, she was doing something I could contribute to.

We waved at Carrie as she got in her Land Rover and we got in my BMW SUV. I saw Jerry getting into his new Jeep Grand Cherokee. We led the procession out of the parking lot, and headed for the other side of the Potomac to get on the George Washington Memorial Parkway. We’d whisk out to the beltway, take that north into Maryland for a bit, and then head northwest towards our home.

Given the hour, ten-thirty at night, traffic was nearly non-existent. Washington was another city that never slept, but there sure weren’t may people doing driving at the late hour.

We lost Carrie and Jerry at a light. We made it through on a yellow, and just kept going onto the Parkway. Just as we got on, I thought I saw her car start through the green light.

I focused on the scene behind me in the mirror. “Marjorie, something’s wrong back there. Do you see Jerry’s car behind Carrie?”

Marjorie squirmed around in her seat and looked out the back window. She said, “If those are her headlights, she’s alone. He seems to be way back, still at the light - stopped.”

Suddenly, Marjorie shouted, “Oh, shit. Another car just pulled alongside her. They’re trying to force her off the road. She’s speeding up.

I was less than a quarter-mile onto the parkway, and Carrie had just started down the ramp I’d been on a minute earlier. I let up on the accelerator, and pulled to the side to let her catch up.

Carrie didn’t only catch up, she passed my slowing vehicle at about ninety miles per hour, followed closely by another vehicle we didn’t recognize that seemed intent on ramming her car.

I accelerated, but from my slow speed, I would have to go some, to catch the two cars. A third car catapulted past me, probably doing over a hundred. She obviously had two cars after her.

As I started to near the pair, my cellphone rang. Marjorie picked my phone off the car charger and answered.

“It’s Jerry,” she said.

I flicked a couple of buttons and he was on the car speakers.

Jerry said, “Carrie’s in trouble. I’ve phoned the police. I assume you’re on the GW Parkway?”

“Yes. Two cars are after her in high-speed pursuit. We’re way behind them trying to catch up.”

“Try to keep her in sight. There may be a third car involved. One of them shot out two of my tires at the light, before I could respond with my own firepower. I think there are at least four men involved: two in the lead car, one in the next, and one in another. Look hang up and call 911; they’re waiting for your call to give locations.”

The call abruptly ended. Marjorie called 911, and started the dialogue with the dispatcher about Carrie’s location. By now we were also going about ninety in a fifty-five zone, and we were having trouble negotiating some of the curves on the old parkway.

Up ahead I could see the car directly behind Carrie make an attempt to ram her back bumper. We knew if he made contact, she could lose control and have a bad crash. Maybe that’s what the driver wanted.

Carrie did a little finesse between two other much slower vehicles that put some space between her and her pursuer. The second pursuit car had caught up to the first.

She had a couple of hundred yards lead on them, but then she did something amazing. I saw the taillights on her car come on, and saw the headlights dip hard. She was doing a very hard emergency braking maneuver.