The Super Spies and the High School Bomber (33 page)

“Let go!” Sarah struggled.

“Yeah! Let go!” Jackie screamed as she squirmed.

Randy peered through the trees, and held the girls tightly. The sound of breaking branches and the groaning of the shocks on the cruisers filled the air as they approached. The sirens were deafening now and she could see the lights flash through the trees.
They're here! We're saved!

The bomber dropped the girls' arms and reached behind him. He pulled a gun from behind his back. “You girls, shut up and come with me.”

 

 

Sarah's blood ran cold when she stared down the wrong end of the gun. Holding her trembling hands out in front of her, she said, “Okay, okay. Just don't shoot us.”

Jackie moved a few steps and huddled next to her friend. Her eyes were as big as saucers and she clutched Sarah's arm.

The bomber waved the gun in the direction of the woods. “I want you girls to walk this way, ahead of me.”

Sarah didn't think her feet would move—they seemed heavy, as if she were cemented to the ground.

“Move!”

Sarah cringed at Randy's threatening tone and stumbled forward. Jackie clung to her and they exchanged a fearful look. The sound of the agents crashing through the woods filled the air and Sarah clenched her teeth to keep from screaming out. She knew if she shouted she was dead. It was agonizing, hearing the agents so close, but not being able to signal them.

They trudged deeper into the woods. Sarah walked slowly, searching the area for an escape route or anything she could use as a weapon. She crossed her arms over her chest trying to stay warm. The day was growing cooler and her jacket was at school.

“This way.” Randy Ferguson pushed Sarah to the left.

The girls floundered onto a trail.

The bomber pushed both girls again. “Faster.”

Thoughts flew wildly through Sarah's mind.
How am I going to let the police know where we are? Where is he taking us? What is he going to do with us when we get there?
A chill ran down her spine at this last thought and she shivered.

“Why'd you do it?” Sarah asked, hoping to distract him. She clenched her hands.

“Yeah, why'd you bomb the high school?” Jackie echoed.

“Keep moving!”

They walked a few more steps before Sarah tried again. “I just don't understand. Why a bomb? Who were you mad at?”

“I wouldn't expect you to understand,” Randy muttered. His voice dripped with anger. “Keep moving.”

A glimmer of hope shone in Sarah's mind. He was responding to her questions. “Who made you mad?”

“I don't want to talk about it. Keep moving.”

Sarah and Jackie exchanged a look, but kept quiet. Birds chattered in the trees and Sarah could no longer hear the voices of the police. Her eyes darted frantically looking for an escape route, and her stomach twisted into a painful knot.
How are we going to get out of this mess
?

To Sarah, it seemed like she had been walking for hours. Her throat was parched and her legs had turned to jelly. “Where are we going?”

“There's a cabin at the end of this trail. Keep moving,” Randy replied tersely.

Sarah stifled a groan and stared at the ground.
Think! Think! Think
!

She whirled around and faced the bomber. “Why did you hurt my Uncle Walt?” She clenched her fists and stared defiantly into the criminal's eyes.

The bomber stopped and raised the gun. “You're not in any position to ask questions. Now keep moving.” His voice was low and even, but his eyes blazed with anger.

He shoved Sarah's shoulder. She ground her teeth and resumed her journey.

Sarah exchanged another look with Jackie. Her friend had that wild-eyed look again. She kept pulling at her curls and biting her lip.

Just when Sarah was toying with the idea of making a run for it, a cabin came into view. The trail seemed to end at its door.

It was a ramshackle building no bigger than a large shed. No porch adorned the door, but there was a decaying awning hanging above it. Sarah stared—the windows were all intact. Warning bells went off in her head.

“Where are we?” she blurted out.

“You don't need to know that.” Randy pulled ahead of the girls. Fishing in his pocket, he pulled out a set of keys and unlocked the door. “Get inside.”

The girls stumbled into the cabin. It smelled musty. Sarah's heart pounded against her chest. She was hoping the police could hear it.

“What are we doing here?” she asked as she looked around the dwelling.

It was a single room with a fireplace. It had been used recently. Sarah could tell because there was a charred chunk of wood sitting inside of it. Perched in front of the fireplace were a couple of chairs. Against the far wall sat a cot underneath a curtainless window.

“We're going to sit tight.” The bomber peered out the window.

“Are you looking for someone?”

Turning his head toward Sarah, he said, “Yeah. I'm expecting someone. Sit down and shut up.”

Tucking the gun into his belt, Randy peered out the window again.

Sarah sat against the far wall, and studied the bomber. She tried to think of an escape plan, but nothing came to mind. Reaching behind her, she touched the nail file inside her back pocket.
But what do I do with it? I can't use it as a knife
—
it just isn't strong enough
. “Why'd you do it, bomb the high school?” Sarah asked.
Maybe if I get him talking…

“What do you care?” Randy sneered.

“I care a lot. You hurt my Uncle Walt!” Sarah felt her face flush and she averted her gaze, trying to keep her emotions under control.

The bomber stared at Sarah. Anger flickered in his eyes. “Who's your uncle?”

“Walt Bennett.”

“Did you know all the teachers were in on it?” Randy fingered the gun.

Sarah's heart skipped a beat. “In on what?”

Randy exhaled a long sigh and clenched his hands. “I played football for that school, you know?” He began pacing. “I loved playing the game, and I was good at it too.”

“What does that have to do with bombing the school?” Jackie blurted out.

Sarah shot her a warning look and put her finger to her lips.

Randy had turned his back on the girls and looked out the window again. “It has everything to do with the bombing.”

“Tell us about it,” Sarah said.

Randy faced the girls and started pacing again. “I loved football, until I started playing in high school.”

“What changed when you got to high school?” Sarah glared at him as she pictured Uncle Walt lying in a hospital bed.

Randy sighed and eyed Sarah. “Football was a big money maker for the school.”

“Yeah?” Sarah shot Jackie a look.

“It was all about winning. Bill Stevens could get away with anything because he had a winning team.”

Sarah furrowed her brow. “What did he get away with?”

“He was abusive to his players. We were like cattle to him.” Randy glared at the girls. “He got us hooked on steroids.”

“Why didn't you tell some teachers or go to the principal?”

“Yeah,” Jackie blurted out. “I mean a bomb? Don't you think that's a little extreme?”

“You don't get it. The teachers were in on it!” Randy's face turned a dangerous shade of red. He clenched his fists and his pacing grew agitated.

Sarah and Jackie exchanged a nervous look.

“I went to my math teacher. He told me not to rock the boat. So, you see no one was going to help me.”

“My Uncle Walt would've helped you.”

Randy shook his head. “No way. After I went to my math teacher, Coach Stevens had a little chat with me.” Randy's lips pressed into a tight angry line. “My math teacher told him about our conversation. Coach Stevens didn't trust me after that.”

“What happened?” Sarah glanced at Jackie and caught a glimpse of her shocked expression.

“He beat me up, then had players stalk me to make sure I didn't talk.”

“Talk? Talk about what?”

“The steroid use.”

“Isn't that against the rules?” Jackie asked.

“Yeah!” Randy raised his eyebrows and made a face at Jackie. “He could've lost his job and gone to jail if anyone found out.”

“You should've gone to my uncle.” Sarah frowned and shook her head.

“All the teachers were against me. You should've seen my grades after that little confrontation. I wasn't getting any help from no teacher.”

Randy grew silent, stopped his pacing, and stared out the window.

Sarah could tell he was still angry by the way that he kept clenching and unclenching his hands.

“Why now?” Sarah asked with a shrug. “I mean, you graduated seven years ago.”

Randy sighed again. “Yeah, but my little brother Chris is a freshman this year. He's not as tough as Mike or me.”

“So, Mike plays football, too?” Jackie asked.

“Yep.” Randy scowled. “I tried to tell him not to, but he didn't listen to me.”

Sarah chewed on her thumbnail. “So Mike hates the coach as much as you do?”

“Yep.” Randy started pacing again.

“Why didn't you go to the police?” Sarah stood and leaned against the wall.

“The police? What were they going to do? How would I prove it?” Randy let out a wry chuckle and shook his head. “Everyone loved the coach…the school, the parents, the other teachers. No one was going to believe me and the rest of the players would never have said anything against him.”

“You could have told the police about the steroids,” Sarah said.

Randy shook his head. “You're not listening. They weren't going to do anything to mess up the winning streak.”

A flare of anger sparked in Sarah's belly. She bit her lip to keep the spiteful words from leaving her mouth. Instead, she said, “Well, your brother could have decided to stay away from the football team, you know?” She clenched her hands behind her back.

“No.” Randy shook his head. “The coach has already started hounding him, just like he hounded Mike.”

The shrill ring of a phone interrupted the conversation. “I'll be right back.” Randy strode out of the cabin.

Sarah's heart leapt.
Maybe he won't come back
! She looked at Jackie and crossed her fingers. Her spirits sank when she heard the key in the lock.

She ran to the window and gazed out, looking for Randy. “He must be right in front of the door.” Sarah turned toward her friend.

“What are we going to do?” Jackie asked.

“I don't know.” Sarah looked around the cabin. “Look for anything that we can use as a weapon.”

They searched under the cot and under the cushions of the chairs.

“Nothing,” Jackie said.

The scraping sound of the key in the lock got Sarah's attention. She motioned for Jackie, and they hurried back to their previous places.

Randy stepped into the room, carrying a rope. “I have to leave for a while. I need to tie you girls up.” He motioned for them to move toward the chairs.

Sarah's stomach clenched and her heart raced.
What are we going to do now?
She gritted her teeth as she moved to one of the chairs.

As the bomber tied her hands behind her back, Sarah's mind ran wild. She tried to come up with an escape plan. Biting her lip, she was forced to do as she was told. Sitting down in the chair, she brooded as the man tied her feet together.

The cushions on the chair were suede and overstuffed. It was a comfortable seat and any other day Sarah would have loved to sit in it and read her true crime stories. Today was a different story.

After tying up Jackie in the same manner, Randy opened the door. “I'll be back,” he said before closing the door and locking it.

Sarah struggled with her bindings, but was unable to free herself. They cut into her skin and she winced. Sighing, she looked around the room. Now that the bomber was gone, her anxiety had dialed down a couple of notches.

“Jackie?”

“Yeah?”

“I've got your nail file in my back pocket. Let's try and stand up. Maybe you can get it out.”

“Okay.”

The girls stood, wobbled, and then hopped into position. With their backs to each other, they wiggled closer until Sarah touched Jackie's back pocket.

“Okay, now reach into my right pocket and see if you can get the file out.”

Jackie pressed against Sarah as she struggled with her bindings and reached for the file.

“Hunch down a little bit,” Jackie instructed.

Sarah bent at her knees and felt the file slide from her pocket.

“Now what do you want me to do?” Jackie asked.

“See if you can untie us with it.”

Jackie snorted. “It's not a saw, you know?”

“I know, but maybe you can pick at the knot and get it untied.”

Jackie didn't answer, but after a few minutes the cold metal made contact with Sarah's skin. Seconds later, she heard it hit the wood floor.

“Major bummer,” Jackie cried.

“I'll turn around and direct you to it.” Sarah hopped and turned around until she faced the nail file.

After several agonizing minutes, Jackie had the nail file in her hands.

Sarah hopped back around. “Okay, let's try again. Try to wedge it into the knot, then wiggle it and loosen the knot.”

“Okay.” Jackie grunted with effort. “Try wiggling your wrists at the same time.”

Sarah did as she was told. “Okay, I think it's getting looser. Keep wiggling the file.”

The two Super Spies worked together for several more minutes. Sarah's bindings loosened around her wrists. Seconds later, her hands were free and she bent down and went to work on her feet. Once her feet were free, Sarah untied Jackie.

“You know…if it wasn't for my fashion sense, we'd still be tied up, girlfriend.”