Riley slammed a fist on his desk as another guard called in to report that he hadn’t found her. He had been foolish to think they had actually had her. She was more slippery than a greased weasel, and Riley was truly amazed at either his security team’s inability to restrain her or her cunning ability to navigate being a con artist. But now it had escalated, and Rachel was in danger. Now Melissa was wanted for assault and had the threat looming over her head of jail or an institution. Riley knew she was gunning for them, and nothing was stopping her. It was all or nothing; he knew that was her train of thought.
Riley cursed as another call came in, and Richard shuffled uncomfortably next to him. Riley wished he could go back in time, that he could make it so he had never let Melissa into his life. At first she had seemed so normal, so caring and curious about his work. Then red flags had slowly started to appear—her greed and narcissism, her lack of care toward other humans. But never in his entire life had he thought someone could be capable of pulling off such a personality change, becoming someone so far from the human he knew. It was like he had been talking to someone else the entire time.
He turned to Richard, “You have them at all exits?”
“Yes sir, and we’ve already informed MPD and they’re patrolling the perimeter.”
Riley nodded and nervously clenched his jaw. He needed to call Rachel and tell her the bad news. Tom and his force had already been informed and had moved to her office floor, but she needed to hear from him what was going on. Riley pulled his phone out of his pocket and slid it open; he hit Rachel’s number and brought it to his ear. He let out a deep sigh as it rang and ran a nervous hand over his eyes. This was not how today was supposed to go.
“Hello?” Rachel's voice greeted his ears, and he felt his shoulders soften at the sound.
“Hey gorgeous, so, I’ve got some bad news.”
Rachel paused, and he heard her sit down, “Okay, go on.”
“It’s Melissa. She was at my office today.”
“Oh no, what happened?”
Riley took a sharp breath, unsure of how to explain everything that had gone down.
“Well, she attacked me.”
Rachel squeaked, “What?! She attacked you?! Are you alright?!”
“Yes, I’m fine, couple bruises but nothing big. However, that’s not the bad news.”
The other side fell silent, and Riley could feel the nervous anxiety.
“What else happened?” Rachel asked softly.
“Security was taking her down the stairs and she got away, knocked two guys out and the other broke his leg. I have a team of twenty guys here, but we haven’t found her. If I had to guess, she’s already halfway across town.”
“Shit.”
Riley sighed. “I know. Look, Tom is there with four other guys on your floor. Call them into your office and you’ll be ok until I get there in a bit. I’m picking you up and we’re going to wait it out at the house until MPD catch her. Since she assaulted me, there is a warrant for her arrest and there’s no getting out of it this time. Once she’s caught, she’ll be put away for a while. But we need to wait it out.”
He heard Rachel sigh and could see her shaking her head.
“I never would have thought my move to DC would turn my life totally upside down.”
Riley chuckled. “Sorry, beautiful, that may have been my fault.”
She chuckled back, trying to make light of the situation. “That’s the truth. This is all your fault, handsome.”
“I know, but I promise I will make it up to you, okay? Lots of trips and dinners and…” he paused and looked at Richard standing near him before he continued.
“... And other things.”
She giggled. “You better. I expect hours and hours of pleasure for this hassle.”
He smiled and looked to the guard coming through the door, shaking his head.
“Alright, I’m going to let you go, and I’ll be on my way over in a few minutes. Tom will be there and hopefully we can get this all sorted out tonight. Sound good, gorgeous?”
“You got it, Mr. Harris.”
“Great, see you soon.”
With that, Riley hung up. The guard came to a stop, let out a heavy sigh, and looked to Richard and Riley.
“I’m sorry, sir. The men have combed the building over twice, and there is no sign of her. We just got word that one of the janitors returned from her lunch break and discovered her purse and clothes missing. Looks like she slipped out.”
Riley nodded. It was just as he expected.
“Ok, thanks gentlemen. I’m afraid I’m going to have to get out of here and go pick up Rachel; she’s Melissa’s new target. I’ll talk to MPD, and hopefully they can track her down. We need her found and put away as soon as possible. Richard, follow me to the car?”
“Of course, sir.”
The men started toward the elevator, and Riley felt the anxiety creep into his spine. Melissa would stop at nothing to hurt Rachel, and he had to get there first.
…
Rachel wrung her hands as she sat in her office with Tom and the other security guards. She had never felt so scared in her life. She had never been actively hunted by someone either. She tried to stay calm by controlling her breathing, but the tension in her neck and spine gripped her.
A crackle came from Tom’s radio, and they received word that Riley had just arrived to pick her up. He nodded at Rachel, and she stood to follow him out of the building. Fear hung in the air like a dark cloud and followed her as they made their way down the hall, into the elevator, and to the lobby. Tom stepped out first and sent another man to go out and scout the area before Rachel stepped into the open. She felt the tears well in her eyes. She felt like they were in their own private war zone, and she never knew where the next strike would happen.
What if Melissa had obtained a gun? Or came at her with a knife? She had knocked out two security guards and broke the other’s leg. This woman was like the bad guy in every movie Rachel had seen. It frightened her to the core.
The man gave a clear signal, his hand resting on his pistol just in case. Tom and the others surrounded Rachel as they exited the building, the stares of a few fellow employees trailing her as she made her way out the glass doors. The car door opened and Rachel practically dove in, Tom following. The other gentlemen loaded into a van behind them.
Riley was waiting in the car, and Rachel gasped as she saw his face. His left eye was swollen, black and blue, barely evident under the puffy lid. There was a large red welt on his other cheek, and scratches were visible on his neck. She wrapped her arms around him and squeezed him tightly as tears began to stream down her face.
“I’m okay,” he whispered as he held her tightly.
“When will this nightmare be over?” she asked quietly, and she felt Riley sigh.
“Hopefully soon, beautiful.”
The car lurched forward and Rachel released her hug. She reached up and touched Riley's beat up face. He flinched slightly but wrapped his hand over hers and held it.
“We’ll figure this out, I promise. She can’t hide forever.”
They drove in silence for a few moments, Rachel’s hands clasped in Riley’s as they watched the city go by. They passed the skyscrapers and ducked into a tunnel and onto the entrance ramp to the freeway. Their speed picked up as the road opened up, free of traffic in the mid afternoon. Rachel watched traffic go by and suddenly noticed a black Toyota Corolla speeding toward them. Her heart leapt, and she felt herself go weak and cold from fear. She could just make out a blonde behind the wheel as the car sped toward them.
“It’s her!” Rachel yelled and pointed out the window as the car came up right next to hers.
Melissa peered in with that now familiar menacing grin. She was in the small beaten up car that had to have been stolen, and she was laughing as she drove next to them, her speed and swerving erratic.
“Damn it! Tom, alert the police and tell the van to keep her off of us!” Riley yelled and pressed Rachel back away from the window.
“Driver, lose her!” Riley roared, anger and fear in his voice.
Melissa swerved the car at them; the vehicle lurched as her passenger side made contact with them.
“Fuck!” Riley slammed his fist on the seat. He hated feeling this helpless, but there was nothing else he could do.
The driver punched the gas, and they sped past her. Rachel and Riley turned to watch out the back window. Melissa swayed into their lane right behind them, even as the van rammed into her bumper. She used the momentum and hit the gas, her vehicle speeding forward and into their bumper. Riley and Rachel were flung forward against their seatbelts with the force.
“Faster!” Riley yelled.
The driver frantically looked back in his rearview mirror to see the Corolla right on their heels. He punched the gas as hard as he could, the pedal all the way to the floor as they sped down the freeway, weaving in and out of traffic. Melissa stayed on their tail, the van on hers as it tried to pass or hit her, but she was all over the place in such an erratic manner they couldn’t get a hit in.
She pushed the car as fast as it would go. Rachel glanced up and saw they were going well over a hundred, then she peered back and saw an army of flashing lights coming up from behind the van and Melissa.
“The police!” she exclaimed and Riley looked back.
“Let’s hope they can stop her.” Riley watched with nervous eyes.
Melissa must have seen them as well; with a punch, the car roared up next to theirs. She met Riley’s eyes and blew him a kiss. Then she looked to Rachel, and they locked stares. Rachel felt the heat of rage pulse through her, and she flicked the woman off, but Melissa only responded with another air kiss.
Rachel and Riley looked back as a cop in a Charger sped up on her and rammed into her bumper as hard as he could. Out of panic, she slammed the brakes. The Charger had the speed and momentum and sent her car spiraling toward the median. Rachel gasped as it hit the rail and flipped again and again into the center of the freeway.
Their driver pulled over along with the van, while the police surrounded the car and pulled up to stop traffic in both directions. The black Corolla was on its back, the front end completely crushed in. Rachel and Riley got out of the car. The sun was high, and the wind whipped their hair as they stared at the surreal scene. Smoke was streaming from the engine, and the smell of smoke and gasoline was in the air. The whoosh of traffic had stopped, but Rachel felt herself shiver as she heard the shrill screams coming from the car.
The police surrounded Melissa, but as she and Riley watched, they saw her legs were pinned by the engine. She hung helplessly in the driver's seat, screaming in agony, crying as tears streamed down her face. Rachel saw the blood gushing from her legs, and she turned away, Riley grabbing her and pulling close. He buried her face in his chest and cooed gently to her.
“It’s over, it’s all over.”