Chapter 8 Chance Results – The price of oil went up on November 14 and therefore the story will proceed on Possibility A:” If the price of oil goes up on November 14, 2007, then Dalton will not have enough gas in the tank and the soldiers will catch up with them.”
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Luke and the McMurchy Brothers didn’t have to worry about being heard as they hobbled through the halls of the prison. The drunken cheers of the guards coming from the rec room were more than enough to drown out their footsteps. Governor Baines must have left for the night for the security to be that lax.
As they hurried toward the unguarded exit, Andreas filled Luke in on what he and Julian had been up to since they parted ways.
“Bank robberies, mostly, although we’ll throw in a train heist every now and again.” Andreas fell silent as Julian peeked around another corner. He jerked his head signaling the coast was clear and Andreas continued. “After you got nicked, Jack Holley took over and told the Gang we were going legit. That he was setting up a mercenary outfit.”
Luke clenched his teeth at the mention of Jack’s name.
“After you got arrested, the idea of getting off the Governor’s most wanted list appealed to a lot of the Gang. So, in a matter of weeks, the Pocket-change Gang had disappeared and was replaced with the Gravehounds.”
They rounded one final corner and Luke’s heart started to quicken. They could see the front door now. He had expected the security here to be out in full force but the prison anteroom was empty. Even so, Andreas lowered his voice as they tried to look in every direction at once.
“Of course, not everybody wanted to be one of Holley’s Hounds,” he whispered. “Anyone with half a brain knew Jack had set you up. Me and Julian laid low for a while up in the mountains.
“Got back to work about a year and half ago. I guess business got a little too good because the Governor contracted Holley’s Gravehounds and they busted us about five months ago. Besides Holley, the only interaction we’ve had with the old Gang has been our weekly visits with dear old Casper Pitt. Although I did hear that Mickey, Dalton Lane and your old girl, Annie are—“
“Standing outside!” Julian interrupted. Luke and Andreas rushed to the barred window that Julian was standing in front of and peered out into the courtyard beyond.
Sure enough, Annie, Mickey and Dalton were standing in the rain, handcuffed and illuminated by the headlights of an army truck behind them. Annie did not look pleased. Dalton had a sheepish look on his face as though their being there was somehow his fault. Mickey merely yawned as he leaned casually against the hood of the truck.
It didn’t surprise Luke to see Mickey and Annie together but how they had been reunited with Dalton eluded him.
The two soldiers who had accompanied Luke’s comrades ran the short distance to the main door with aggravated looks on their faces. They clearly didn’t appreciate being left waiting in the rain.
“Open up!” shouted the soldier as he pounded the massive wooden doors. “We didn’t chase these scum bags for two hours for nothing!” The pounding intensified but did little to drown out the profanities the soldier was screaming.
Luke moved toward the door. “What are you doing?” whispered Julian.
“Drunk or not, the guards are bound to hear them eventually,” said Luke as unlocked the door with the keys he had stolen from the Cobbler. “And besides, the sooner we can get Annie out of the rain, the less likely she is to kill us.”
The McMurchy Brothers shrugged at the logic. Thankful the Cobbler hadn’t had the chance to work on his feet like he did to Andreas and Julian, Luke kicked the door as hard as he could, sending it flying into the soldiers outside.
The first soldier took the brunt of the blow and was laid out flat on his back and before the startled second soldier had a chance to reach for his gun, Luke had tackled him to the ground. Julian fished around inside the first soldier’s pockets until he found the keys he was looking for. Julian tossed them to his brother who used them to free Annie, Dalton and Mickey’s from their handcuffs.
Luke and Julian dragged the two unconscious soldiers into the nearby guardhouse and jogged back to the others. For once Annie seemed absolutely speechless.
Dalton wiped the water from his eyes and squinted in the darkness, as though Luke might still be a figment of his imagination. “How…but, where..” he stammered.
“We’ll tell you all about it on the way, Dalton,” said Luke. “But unless you want a twenty drunken guards using us as target practice, I suggest you get us out of here as fast as that truck will take us.”
Luke, Annie, Dalton, Mickey, Julian and Andreas all squeezed into the army truck. “My, oh my,” said Luke with a bloody grin as Dalton threw it in reverse and sped out of the muddy courtyard. “This is starting to feel like a real gang again.”
Annie elbowed Luke hard in the side but said nothing. Luke would have liked to rebuke her but he was pretty sure she nailed him a rib that Bryce had cracked during his interrogation earlier that night and it was all he could do not to cry out in pain.
“So where to, boss?” asked Dalton as they left the prison behind.
“Just give me a second,” moaned Luke through his teeth.
Choice
Cast your vote at the top of this page for how you’d like to see the plot unfold.
Option A: Luke and his growing crew of fugitives should head to the McMurchy’s mountain hide-out where they can lay low and figure out what to do next.
Option B: Luke and the others should head back to Port Murkish and track down Jack Holley and his outfit of Gravehounds.
Thanks for your votes! Stay tuned next week to find out what happens!
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