The Chase by Amber Riel (story reading txt) 📖

Carmen looked at me with a look of sympathy.  “I’m sure they’re fine…. Wherever they are…. I’m sure they’re alright.”

          Louis walked into the room as he slid his arms through the holes of a grey tank top.  He wore matching grey pants.  His damp hair revealed that it was in the process of drying although water wasn’t dripping off of it.  His blue eyes locked with me and kind of smiled at me before Carmen could notice.

          “Thanks for not wanting to help with the groceries, bro,” Carmen replied as she glanced over at him.   

          “Sorry but after a couple of nights without showering it was about time…. You know I hate going so long without cleaning myself up…. My five o’clock shadow would have been growing soon and I wanted to stop that from happening.”

          “Of course…. Of course…. Or is there another reason for that?” she asked.  “More like another person actually?”

          Louis sighed and looked at Carmen.  “No assumptions…. There’s nothing going on.”  His beautiful blue eyes locked with mine and I could see that there was something in them letting me know that there was hope for him…. For me…. For us…. That maybe eventually we would be together.

          I kind of smiled at the thought.

          Riiing…. Riiing…. Riiing.  Louis had pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and pressed talk.  I watched as he placed the phone to his ear.  “Hello?  This is…. What? But---”

          I didn’t know who the other person was or what they were saying but the expression on Louis’s face told me that something bad had happened.  Carmen seemed to have noticed the exchange too.

          “I’ll be on my way.”  He pressed a button to end the call and placed the phone in his pocket.

          “What was that about?” Carmen asked with concern in her voice.

          “Are Ron and Annie okay?” I asked, whispering with panic in my voice.

          “They’re fire,” Louis reassured me.

          “Then what’s wrong?  Who were you just talking to?”

          “My boss…. Someone set the mansion on fire.”

          I dropped my mouth in shock.  I couldn’t believe what I had just heard.

          “That’s horrible,” Carmen replied.  “Ron worked so hard for that place…. Who would do such a terrible thing?”

          “I’m assuming the people who broke in…. Carmen, I have to go…. Keep an eye on Lainie and Sam---”

          “I want to go with you,” I replied.

          “It’s too dangerous and I don’t have time to argue.”

          “But I want to go…. I want to see if I can find out any new information….”

          “It’s information that doesn’t concern you,” he replied, I felt that he was worried about me getting into trouble or something and the concern in his voice wasn’t trying to be rude but to let me know that he was trying to protect.

          “Please let me with you?” I begged.

          Louis sighed.  “Fine but we need to leave as soon as possible.”

          I nodded.

 

 

 

Fire

          I was placing the seatbelt into the buckle while Louis started the car.  He sped off after he pulled out of the driveway.  “There’s no way that we’re going to make to the mansion before it’s completely burnt down,” I told him.

          “Yes we are,” Louis replied, keeping his eyes on the road.

          “How?  It took us a couple of days to get here there’s no possible---”

          “I know some shortcuts that’ll get us to the mansion about less than an hour…. Besides it’s a big house, there’s no way it’s going to be completely damaged by the flames before we arrive…. Believe me I know what I’m doing.”

          “Why didn’t we take the shortcuts to here then?”

          “Because I knew there was a good chance that we were being followed…. Remember your taxicab driver who followed us back to the hotel?”

          I didn’t reply, instead I just kept quiet.  Hoping that no one was in the mansion and wondering what happened for it to catch on fire anyways?  Wondering if Louis was right about the people who had broken in had planned on destroying the mansion or if it was an accident?  There was no telling what had really happened until we were there.

 

          Like Louis had said, we made it within less than an hour and the mansion was almost completely covered in flames.  I climbed out of the car as I stared at the mansion which was almost engulfed by the fire.  Louis grabbed my hand so that he wouldn’t lose me during the chaos as we walked over to a few firemen surrounding a long red fire truck.  “Any ideas what happened, Thomas?” Louis asked one of the firemen who was prepared to go marching into the house.

          “We’re assuming that it’s an arsonist…. We found foot prints of what appeared to be boots of some kind standing over by the tree,” the man responded, his voice was deep for a guy who I guessed was about in his late twenties, early thirties.  “Do you know if Annie and Ron might have been home or anyone else like a maid or one of the cooks?”

          “Annie and Ron are in witness protection right now…. As for the maids or cooks,” Louis shrugged as he shook his head in response, “I’m not sure….”

          “Annie and Ron are in witness protection?  Why?  What happened?”

          “Someone broke into their house about three or four days ago…. Annie and Ron were chased out of the house when it happened…. Lainie’s with Carmen right now and Annie’s sister,” he said as he gestured toward me, “wanted to come to see what any of us could find out?”

          “Hello.”  Thomas kind of nodded toward me then turned his attention back toward Louis.  “We’re in bit of a hurry and right now kind of shorthanded…. Do you think you can help?”

          “Yea.”

          “Okay then suit up as soon as possible…. And thanks, man.”  Thomas hurried over to the truck and picked up a hose.

          Louis went toward the truck but I grabbed his hand.  I felt fear grow inside of me at the thought of something bad happening to him when we were just starting to get to know each other and I didn’t want to lose him.  I had a feeling that the fear I felt was the same fear he had felt when he had to fight off that taxicab driver.  “Please don’t do this?” I begged, tears filled my eyes.

          “It’s okay, Sam.  I’ll be fine.”

          “But you could get hurt.”

          “Sam, I’ve done this before believe me…. I know what I’m doing….”

          “I don’t---”

          “Sam, I know how to handle this kind of situation.  I’ll be right back…. Just stay here and close to the fire truck…. I know these guys they’ll make sure that you’re safe and nothing will happen to me…. I’ll be back.”

          I went to reply but Louis hurried off into the cabin of the trunk and I figured that he was preparing for the fight with a fire when I noticed a fire fighter run up to the truck.  He ran past me as if he were in a hurry.  “THERE’S A PERSON ON THE SECOND FLOOR?!”

          Louis jumped out of the truck with a yellow baggy but fire proof coat on with black fire proof boots.  He placed a helmet with a clear plastic mask tightly on his head and pulled down the plastic mask over his face as he rushed past me.  I had no idea what to say or do as I watched him run into the burning building.  The fear grew as I had to watch in panic, wondering if he was going to make it out in time or not?  Hoping that I’d see him hurry out soon.  I felt heart drop at the sight when the building began to burst into flames.  I couldn’t take it, I buried my face in my hands to keep from watching anymore.

 

          I felt someone grabbed my shoulders and I just broke down into tears without looking to see who it was.  “Sam, it’s okay,” Louis’s voice reassured me.

          I slowly moved my hands from my face as I locked eyes with him.  I was angry but more hurt than anything.  “Why would you do that?  Why would you run into a building that was on fire?  Why would you put yourself into that kind of danger?” I cried with tears running down my cheeks, knowing that I could have lost the one man who was starting to mean something to me.  “Why would you do something that stupid?”

          He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into a hug as I hid my face in his shoulders.  “It’s okay…. I was wearing protective gear….”

          “That doesn’t matter…. I thought you were going to die because…. Because….” I couldn’t bring myself to finish the sentence.

          “Sam,” he replied as he lifted my chin with his pointer finger, “I’m here now…. I’m safe…. There’s nothing for you to worry about….”

          “But…. But…. You could have---”

          Louis kissed me before I could finish my sentence.  The kiss was amazing and was nothing that I had ever experienced before.  So people described the feeling like fireworks but what I was feeling at the moment was even better than fireworks.  The words to describe the kiss were hard to find.  But it was enjoyable.  When he pulled away from me, I was speechless and couldn’t think of what to say.  My mind went blank and I just stared at him in surprise.  I felt myself wanting more than just one little kiss.  “Better?”

          I nodded, still surprised by the moment.

          He took my hands in his.  He kind of smiled.  “Sorry about that…. I’ve kind of been waiting for the right moment….”

          I kind of blushed as I returned the smile.  “I’ve been wondering when you were going to actually go through with it.”

          “We need to go out on a date…. This isn’t exactly romantic.”

          I kind of laughed at his words.  “It might not be romantic but at the moment you have a job to do….”

          Louis’s face went blank as he realized what I said.  “Kathleen?  I have to find out if she’s okay.”

          Kathleen?  Oh no the maid who met the first night…. She was so kind and helpful…. I hope she’s okay.

          Louis grabbed my hand and we walked around to the other side of the fire truck where an ambulance sat with the back doors wide open.

          Kathleen was lying on a stretcher and kind of smiled at me and Louis.  Her facial expression revealed that she was in some kind of pain and she was covered with ash and burnt marks.  Her clothes had stains from the fire.  “Hello, there Samantha right?” she asked.

          I nodded staring at her wondering how bad the pain was she was going through.

          She kept her sweet smile though.  “Louis, thank you for saving me.”

          “No problem,” Louis replied, lightly.

          She noticed that our hands were locked together and her smile grew even wider.  “You two make a cute couple…. I’m sure that Annie will be proud to see that.”

          I kind of