Chapter 91

After entering the mall, I hurried through the thickening crowds. A pair of mimes with white-painted faces performed in one of the intersections. As people stopped to watch the juggling, which involved bowling pins, bowling balls, and shiny machetes, I veered toward the Macy’s department store. I hoped that the store would be crowded enough with shoppers to help me hide from Gamble’s hot pursuit.

“Hey! Watch it, why don’t cha!” an older woman told me as I bumped into her. She carried Hecht’s and Macy’s shopping bags and gave me a funny look.

“Sorry, Miss, my bad. I’m kinda in a rush.” I gave her a half smile and a nod as I rushed past her.

I glanced back and saw Gamble and his partner keeping their pace, not worrying about Swol’s location.

I hope Swol got ghost, I told myself as I speed-walked, creating more distance between me and Gamble.

I went into Macy’s, past a young Chinese woman handing out lipstick samples and past several glass display cases filled with the latest electronic gadgets, cell phones, and digital cameras. I dodged mothers pushing strollers, couples walking hand-in-hand, and a trio of homosexual men searching for the female underwear section.

Good move. I should be about to duck these ma’fuckas in here with all these people in here, I thought before jumping on the escalator.

I jogged past the standing riders. I turned and saw Gamble and his partner in casual pursuit like they’d find me wherever I chose to go. I jumped off the escalator and ran around, taking the next escalator to the third floor. Once I got up there, I took a hard right through housewares and furniture, which provided the perfect cover.

The merchandise hung on walls and stood close together like created bedrooms, living rooms, and dens. I figured the area provided enough cover to hide from Gamble and his partner Newsome. The only thing was that fewer customers hung in this section.

I lay down and began crawling behind a minimalist Asian sofa with red silk pillows and Chinese characters and temples sewn all over the couch in black and gold thread. Flowers sat in large jade vases on each end of the sofa. I lay behind the sofa motionless and waited.

When I saw Gamble and his partner run past, trying to locate me, I jumped up and rushed away from them in the opposite direction in a cab run, bent low behind the furniture and walls. I pulled out my compact suppressor .45 and prepared my great escape.I knew shooting off the gun in there would startle many people. I’d just to take my chances and fire two shots in the air and try to escape from the soon-to-be panicked room. As I rushed towards the escalator, I glanced back and saw Gamble turning suddenly.

“Hey!” he shouted as I aimed the gun at the ceiling and squeezed the trigger twice.

I took off bolting down the escalator as screaming and chaos ensued all around me. As soon as I made it out of the department store, I saw mall security running towards the store. I slipped off into the crowd, keeping my head low until I reached a door marked “Employees Only”. I checked it, and surprisingly, it wasn’t locked. As I went through, I heard a woman yelling behind me. I bolted down a long corridor leading off to an empty break room and a much larger back stock area. I found a freight elevator and hit the button.

The wait for the elevator seemed to take forever but it arrived in a matter of minutes. I got on the elevator and pressed myself against the wall. As the noisy elevator sluggishly made its distancet, a million thoughts ran through my mind, but the main thought was finding an exit and getting away.

The elevator chimed its arrival. The cargo-wide doors slid open like a slowly drawn curtain. I hurried out the cargo bay exit and jumped down to the parking lot. I looked around and saw nobody following me. I ran fast; remaining free drove me like an engine. I reached a stretch of parking lot that had arrows directing me to the nearest Metro subway station.

I followed the arrows, keeping my head low. Hope filled me as I reached the coolness of the underground subway station. Seeing the train pulling into the dock gave me energy and fueled my desire to escape like long, dry tinder exploding into flame. When I hopped the electrical turnstile, I heard someone yelling for me to stop. I didn’t stop at all out of nervousness and fear of getting caught. I took the downward escalator three steps at a time.

Thoughts of being caught up in Virginia for shooting up a man made me hurdle a little blond kid at the bottom of the escalator and tumble roll inside the subway a second before the doors close. Twenty seconds later, the subway pulled off, plunging the outside windows in darkness. After another minute or so, I breathed a sigh of relief. Escape was escape. As I road in silence, I imagined Gamble’s face gaping in hot and fierce anger and disappointment.

The triumphant smile tattooed on my face felt good and made me really appreciate my great escape from the long arms of the crooked law, but now I was officially on the run.