Page 32 of Taint
My heart stops, and all sound is erased with a muffling swoosh in my ears. Dale’s lips move, but I can’t hear what he’s saying. He’s pointing at thelaptop screen, screaming at me. Before I know it, I’m ripping the door open to Dale’s office only to discover it empty just like he said. In the middle of the room is a lab suit discarded on the floor. I pick it up, and Samuel’s employ number is stitched on the breast pocket.
“That fuckin’ cocksucker!”
As I reach the office door to search the factory, Dale yells at me. “Fucking look!”
He sets the laptop on the desk as Carl and Brad come to a stop next to him. “I don’t want to watch; I want to find them!”
He clicks to one of the outdoor cameras, and we watch as Phil points a gun at Joseph before Hazel hits the ground. I check the time, and it was almost ten minutes ago.
“We have to fucking go! Now,” I shout, getting up in Dale’s face. “I’m going to get my gun. Carl and Brad, get your asses on the road now and find that fucking car! Just follow, I’m taking care of that prick myself.”
They bolt from the office, running faster than anyone I’ve ever seen. I go to my office and find the gun I keep hidden there and grab all the ammo I have. Dale bursts through the door carrying his as well.
“What’s the plan, Cash?” Dale asks as I push past him to get to the parking lot.
“Use your imagination,” I toss over my shoulder.
“Fuck,” he mumbles out of breath, sprinting to keep up with me.
When we get to the parking lot, he runs ahead of me and stands in front of the driver’s side door. “You’re not driving like this, man. You’ll fucking kill us.”
“I’ll fucking kill you if you don’t move.”
The deep rumble that emanates from me is one I’ve never heard. I have never felt so in control in my life. Dale stares at me as if he doesn’t even know me. He lowers his chin in defeat and rounds the car to get in the passenger side.
“No, you go find Samuel and bring him to me. He had one chance, and he fucking blew it.”
Dale nods and walks over to his car. We both leave going in opposite directions. I hit the interstate, my hands gripping the steering wheel, and instinctively head toward Trinity. I may not trust my gut like I should, but I’m not stupid. He came for the formula. What could possibly be better than that? Someone who makes it. I don’t know how he knew Hazel was here, but I’ll find out soon enough.
Weaving in and out of traffic, I eye every single car that resembles the one on the video. Who knows where the hell they are now. I’ll never forgive myself if Phil does something to either one of them. This shit was supposed to end tonight. How could I let this happen?
My phone rings, and I dig it out of my back pocket.
“What?” I shout into the phone as I focus to keep myattention on the road.
“You alright, man?”
Fuck, it’s Bobby. He’s called several times over the last two days checking up on Hazel. I had reassured him she was just fine, but he’s asked to talk to her. He cares about her; I get it. But if Hazel knows that he was in on us taking her, she will be pissed at him too. Neither one of us needs that shit right now. We did it to protect her. Look how well that turned out.
“No, not really,” I respond.
“What’s going—”
“Did you ever get in contact with Dustin?”
“Yeah, that’s one of the reasons I’m calling,” he says quickly. “Is Hazel okay?”
“What did Dustin say?” I ask, delaying the inevitable confession.
“That Phil will need extra guys and is interested in meeting with me soon.”
I hold back the shout that wants to escape my mouth. As excited as I am to discover where Phil’s been hiding so I can put a fucking bullet in his head, I’m scared shitless how long that could take to get the information. If I can’t find Hazel immediately, I will have to rely on Bobby to find out for me and to keep his fucking cool. I don’t know if he can pull that shit off in front of Phil without him realizing why he’s there.
“Cash, what’s going on? You’re scaring me, man.”
“I’m heading back to Trinity now. Where’s the safest place to meet, so you aren’t seen with me?”
He names some truck stop outside of Swanson, and I agree to meet him there. “You gonna tell me what’s really going on now?”
