The Escape

While Eagle Scout was thinking about what his next move would be, he over heard what the bad guys were saying.  Eagle Scout heard some where between three or four different voices, and like he expected they were discussing and searching for their missing buddy. 

Now down on the first floor and on the other side of the mall resides the security office, where Billy is frantically flipping through all of the security camera’s trying to spot Number Eight.  Billy was able to locate the rest of his crew on the security cameras, but for some reason Number Eight is nowhere to be seen.  Billy has even tried calling to him over the walkie-talkie head-set, so far no response. 

Then Billy thought that maybe one of the crew members has seen Number Eight.  So Billy ordered an all points check.  “To all units has any one seen or heard from Number Eight?” 

“I can’t say that I have, Billy.” said a voice with a deep southern drawl.

 “I thought I said no names.” pounding his fist on the counter.

“The last I saw him he was at the far side of his end by the escalator.” said a voice with an Irish accent.

 “Now where getting somewhere.” Billy started.  “Now here’s what we’re going to do.  Number Four…”

“Listening, Number One.”

“Put the laser alarms on escalator at your far end and then continue your rounds.”

“Right away.”

From up in the video store Eagle Scout sees a guy on the lower level running to the escalator who starts pulling security lasers from a pack and places them on the lower end of the escalator.

“So you must be Number Four.” Eagle Scout mumbles to himself and making a mental note of the security lasers.

Billy watching this from the security camera smiles to himself.  “Number Six head on over to Number Eight’s position and check all the stores, and whatever doors are at that end.”

At that moment Eagle Scout’s eye got really big as he realized that the videos were still scattered over the floor.  He knew that if the guy named Number Six saw the mess then his search would be over.

“Angie, we are about to have company.”

Coming out of a deep thought at the sound of her name, she hears her so called savior mention something about company.  Seeing that the gate was still closed and from the tone in his voice, she knew it wasn’t the police.

“Well, you’re the one saving me.  I’m sure you’ll think of something.”  Then she went back to her deep thought, about all of the stupid decisions her savior had made.  The fact is she did not trust him for all she knew he could be one of them.  Even though he knocked that other guy out and tied him up, it could be an act he’s playing for what purpose she did not know.  But if he was in this by accident, like she was, any fool could’ve told him that you don’t dismantle a gun when your life maybe at stake.  She probably could find a way out of this situation, after all her brother is a detective.  No matter what this strange guy keeps telling her, for some reason she knew she wasn’t going to make it out of here alive.  She just began think about he boyfriend and going home when her savior starts talking to her again.

“This is not the time for sarcasm or arguing.” turning his head to look at her  “If we don’t get these videos cleaned up and put back on the rack, the guy headed this way will see this mess.  He will then call his buddy’s and they will all be in this store, with their weapons pointed at us from every angle, faster then you can say pop goes the weasel.”

  He then does a one eighty and walks over to the scattered videos and begins clearing the area to put the rack back in its proper spot.

Watching him do this Angie wonders what his true intentions are.  If he was with them he would have left the mess, but there he is starting to clean it up.  So keeping her guard up she heads over to help her savior.

“Pop goes the weasel.”

Stopping what he was doing Eagle Scout gives Angie a strange look.  “What?”

 Angie looking over at the store entrance, “You said there would be guys in this store faster then I could say pop goes the weasel.”  Turning and looking at him she smiles, “I don’t see anyone at the gate yet?”

Recognizing what she had just done he gives an inward laugh.  “Trying to be funny know aren’t we?”

They finished the remainder of the clean up in silence and had just gotten behind the register counter when a light appeared into the store.  It was too late when Eagle Scout remembered that the weapons were still on the counter.

Standing outside the store Number Six held a flashlight and was scanning the store.  He saw a couple videos underneath one of the racks, but nothing else out of the ordinary.  Stretching and shacking his head Number Six looks behind him at the stores he had just checked.

“This is ridiculous.  I’m spending my efforts looking for Number Eight instead of concentrating on the mission.” Number six mumbles to his self, then moves on to check the next store.

While hiding behind the counter Angie considered that maybe this guy trying to save her is what he claims to be.  He’s had plenty of opportunities to turn her over to them, but time and time again he’s been doing everything he can so they don’t get caught.  Like even right now there is a bad guy right there at the store entrance, but Richard, was that his name, looks more nervous then what she does. 

Finally Eagle Scout sees the light from the flash light disappear from the store and lets out a long breath.

“It’s alright he doesn’t suspect that any one is in here.” he hears Angie tell him.

“Ya, but that doesn’t mean they are giving up the search.”

“True nevertheless we are safe for now.  So tell me how you got in this mess.”  It was now her turn to find out some truth about tonight’s madness.

Thinking nothing of it he tells her about the call from his cousin and the movie he was sent to pick up.

That is a convincing alibi Angie thought, but she was determined to see how well it held up.  “So why didn’t you grab the movie instead of sticking around?”

Not liking where this line of discussion was going he paused to organize some thoughts of his own.  After a moment Eagle Scout came to the conclusion that this lady was out to prove him wrong but why?

“Like I had told you before my cousin called me to pick up a movie that he had on hold.”  Eagle Scout started “Only that when I got here you were busy so I took a look around, but somehow I lost track of time and the next thing I knew I was knocking some guy out with a video rack.”

Without giving him time to breathe Angie starts talking.  “A movie on hold, so then him name will be in our order book.” reaching for the stores order book.  “What would your cousin’s name be?”

Not believing this is happening he tells her.  “His name is Arnold Zired.”

 After a long pause she says.  “Nope, no one ordered a movie by that name in here.”

“What?  Let me see that.”  Taking the book from Angie, Eagle Scout thumbs the pages of the book.  When he couldn’t find is cousin’s name he dropped the book in disbelief.

Why would his cousin send him here if he didn’t have a movie on hold Eagle Scout speculated?  He began to recall the phone call from his cousin wondering what he missed. 

Seeing the shock in Richard’s eyes, Angie judged that maybe she went too far, or found out something that she wasn’t meant to.  “There is another video store on the lower level.  Your cousin probably told you the wrong one.”

Laughing to himself he realized that his cousin never told him what video store he ordered the movie from.  Eagle Scout then heard a voice from the head-set.

“Number One, areas secure no sign of Number Eight.  I am resuming my normal rounds.”

Without further delay Eagle Scout moves into action.  “Alright Angie, it is time to leave this place.”

“You mean we can go home now?”

Eagle Scout looks at her with truthful eyes.  “I don’t want to lie to you.  There is still a chance we will get caught, but for now the way is clear.  So we need to hurry.”           

As Eagle Scout opened the front entrance, Angie started to trust him more as the night deepened.  She was still staying on the side of caution just incase.  Slowly standing she grabbed her purse and walked to the entrance.  When she reached the entrance and seeing that the way was clear she took off running towards the escalator.  Angie didn’t know why she was running; she only guessed that the relief of finally getting to go home got the better of her.

Eagle Scout tried to stop Angie as she ran towards the escalator, but he didn’t count on her running away.  Since the escalators had laser alarms Eagle Scout knew he had to stop her, otherwise she would trip the alarms and every bad guy in this mall would be at this escalator within seconds.

She was half way down the escalator when Eagle Scout finally caught up to her.  He grabbed her left arm and brought her to a stop.

“Let go of me.” Angie said struggling to get his arm off of her.

Tighten his grip on her arm he looks at her with a hard stare.  “If you go any further you will set off an alarm that will bring everyone in this place to this spot in a matter of seconds.”

Stopping her struggling she glances up at him.  “What are you talking about?”

 Why does she keep testing me Eagle Scout wondered?  He’s proven himself time and time again and after everything he’s done there was still no way to remove that ounce of doubt from Angie’s head.  So here was another to fully gain her trust.

Letting go of her arm Eagle Scout asks.  “Do you have any hair spray or any type of spray bottle in you purse?”

Curious about what he was up to now she began rummaging through her purse she thought; typical of a man to ask if a woman has a can of hair spray in her purse, like we don’t think of anything else besides her hair.  Then she pulls out a small bottle.  “Will this work?”

Gazing at a pump bottle of perfume it was better then nothing he thought.  Eagle Scout grasped the bottle and began to lightly spray the area where the invisible laser is situated.

“Now watch what you’re doing that’s expensive perfume.  So don’t go wasting it.”  Then to her amazement she started to see faint red lines near the base of the escalator.  “Oh my, if you hadn’t stopped me I would’ve went right through that.”

“Yes you would have.”

Angie opened he mouth and before she knew what she was saying it was too late.  “I knew it you are one of them.  How else would you know that was there?”

Eagle Scout acted surprised already suspecting that there was some reason Angie wasn’t trusting him, and now he at last knew why.  “If I was with them, then why did I stop you from going through?  Besides I over heard them on this head set.”

“So now how do we get out of here?”

Eagle Scout answered.  “Well if you didn’t go running off I would have told you.  Now we’re going have to go back to the upper level.”

As soon as he regains her trust her savior does something to bring the doubt back.  “What kind of game are you playing?  You want us to go back up stairs, when the way out is down here.  Are you really one of them or not?”

Eagle Scout was definitely thrown for a loop here, for he was at a loss for words.  He saved her life twice already, and she has the nerve to tell me I’m one of them.  Then he thought, can this day possibly get any worse. 

“Like I already told you if it wasn’t for my good for nothing cousin, you would be here by yourself right now.  But since I am here you have to trust me.  So you can disperse with this speculation you have of me.  I will get you out of here I promise.” Then as an after thought he added.  “Or you can find your own way out and possibly get caught in the process.  I could care less one way or the other.” 

“I am sorry.” Angie begins.  “But this has been a rough night for me, and I didn’t know if I could trust or believe.  Plus we don’t even know what these people with guns want from me?”

Starting back up the escalator Eagle Scout glances at Angie.  “Who ever said it was you they wanted?  I don’t even know why they are here.  Let’s try not to worry about that.  Let us get out of here first, then we will call the police and then they can handle this.”

With that said she nodded her head in agreement and they both went back up escalator together.