Chapter 27 Chapter Twenty-Five

Dana managed to hail a cab in front of Abby Rathman's apartment building, but the road to Hudson's seemed never-ending.The traffic on the slippery road was horrific, and Dana feared she'd be too late. "Hurry up." She begged the driver. He looked at her in the rearview mirror: "Ma'am, I'm not an airplane." Dana sat back, thinking anxiously about her situation.By now Matt should have received her message and notified the police.When I get there, the police will be there.If they haven't arrived, I can wait until they arrive.Dana opened her handbag.She still had the bottle of pepper spray.it is good.She was going to give Roger or Pamela a good time.

As the taxi approached the Hudson home, Dana looked out the window for signs of activity.Not at all.When they pulled up the driveway, it was empty. She felt almost suffocated with fear. Dana recalls her first visit here.How lovely Roger and Pamela looked.Yet they were all Judas, cruel demons.They had Kenmore, and Dana was filled with an unbearable hatred. "Want me to wait for you?" the taxi driver asked. "No." Dana paid him, walked down the few steps to the gate, and rang the bell, her heart pounding. Caesar opened the door.When he saw Dana, his face lit up: "Miss Evans."

In a fit of excitement, Dana suddenly realized she had an ally.She held out a hand: "Caesar." He holds her in his huge palm. "Nice to meet you, Miss Evans," Caesar said. "Nice to meet you." Dana said the truth, she firmly believed that Caesar would help her, the only question was when she should consult with him.She looked around: "Caesar—" "Mr. Hudson is waiting for you in the study, Miss Evans." "Okay." Now is not the time. Dana followed Caesar down the long hallway, recalling the incredible things that had happened since she first walked it.They came to the study.Roger is loading some papers on his desk.

"Miss Evans," Caesar said. Roger looked up, and Dana watched Caesar leave.She wants to call him back. "Oh, Dana, come in." Dana walked into the room.She stared at Roger with uncontrollable anger. "Where's Kenmore?" Roger Hudson said, "Ah, that sweet boy." "The police are on their way, Roger, and if you do anything to either of us—" "Oh, I guess we don't have to worry about the police, Dana." He walked toward her.Before Dana could figure out what he was up to, he had grabbed her handbag and searched inside: "Pamela told me you had pepper spray, you've been busy, haven't you, Dana." He took out the bottle of pepper spray, held it up, and sprayed the contents in Dana's face.She was stung and screamed loudly.

"Oh, you don't know pain yet, my dear, but I assure you, you will soon." Tears rolled down Dana's face as she tried to wipe the fluid away.Roger waited suavely until she was done before spraying her face again. Dana whimpered, "I want to see Kenmore." "Of course you do, and Kenmore wants to see you too. The boy is terrified, Dana. I've never seen anyone so frightened. He knows he's going to die, and I told him you were going to die too. You Thought it was smart, didn't you, Dana? Actually you've been naive and we've been using you. We learned that someone in the Russian government knew what we were doing and was going to expose us, but we couldn't find that person Who. But you figured it out for us, didn't you?"

Memories of the bloodied corpses of Sasha Shadanov and his friend flashed through Dana's mind. "Sasha Shadanov and his brother Boris are very smart. We haven't found Boris yet, but we will." "Roger, Kenmore has nothing to do with any of this. Let him—" "I don't think so, Dana. The first time I got worried about you was when you went to see poor hapless Joan Sinisi, and she overheard Tyler talking about the Russian program. He didn't dare kill her, He fired her because of her association with him. When she sued for unfair dismissal, he offered a settlement on the condition that she never talk about it.” Roger Hudson sighed: “So I'm afraid you are really responsible for Joan Sinisi's 'accident'."

"Roger, Jack Stone knows—" Roger Hudson shook his head. "Jack Stone and his men have been watching your every move. We could have killed you at any time, but we waited until you got us the information we needed. We really have no more use for you. " "I want to see Kenmore." "Too late. I'm afraid poor Kenmore has had an accident." Dana stared at him in surprise, "You did—" "Pamela and I decided a lovely fire would be the best way to end a tragic little life at Kenmore. So we sent him back to school too. Mischievous he broke into school at an early six. His size Just enough to slip through the basement window."

Her heart was filled with uncontrollable anger, "You cold-blooded devil. You will never escape your guilt." "You're disappointing me, Dana. To say such a cliché. What you don't understand is that we've gotten away with it." He walked back to his desk and pressed a button.After a while Caesar appeared. "Yes, Mr. Hudson." "I want you to take care of Miss Evans. Make sure she's alive when the accident happens." "Yes, Mr. Hudson. I'll take care of it." He is one of them.Dana couldn't believe it: "Roger, listen to me—"

Caesar grabbed Dana by the arm and began to drag her out the door. "Roger—" "Goodbye, Dana." Caesar took Dana's arm tightly and dragged her briskly down the hall, through the kitchen, and out to the side of the house where a limousine was parked. The Washington Tribune helicopter was approaching Hudson's mansion. Jeff said to Norman Bronson, "You can park it on the grass and—" He froze because he looked down and saw Caesar pushing Dana into a limousine. "No! Wait." The limousine started pulling out of the driveway and onto the street. "What do you want me to do?" Bronson asked.

"Follow them." In the limousine, Dana said, "You don't want to do this, Caesar. I—" "Shut up, Miss Evans." "Caesar, listen to me, you don't know these people. They're murderers, you're a decent man, don't let Hudson force you to do things—" "Mr. Hudson didn't force me to do anything. I did things for Mrs. Hudson." He looked at Dana in the rearview mirror and grinned. "Mrs. Hudson took great care of me." Dana stared at him in surprise.I can't let it happen. "Where are you taking me?" "To Rock Creek Park," he didn't have to add, "where I'll kill you."

Roger Hudson, Pamela Hudson, Jack Stone, and Mrs. Daley were in a van heading for Washington National Airport. "The plane is ready, your pilot has a flight plan to Moscow," said Jack Stone. Pamela Hudson said: "God, I hate the cold weather. I hope that bitch burns in hell for putting me through this." "How's Kenmore?" asked Roger Hudson. "The fire at the school is scheduled to start in twenty minutes, and the kid is in the basement, and he's been heavily sedated." Dana grew desperate.They approached Yanxi Gongtong, and the traffic gradually became thinner. Kenmore is terrified, Dana, I've never seen anyone so terrified.He knew he was going to die, and I told him you were going to die too. In the helicopter following the limo, Norman Bronson said: "He's turning, Jeff. Looks like he's headed for Rock Creek Park." "Don't lose him." At the FRA, General Booth barged into his office: "What the hell is going on here?" he asked an aide. "I told you, General. In your absence, Major Stone assembled some of our best men, and they're making a big deal with Roger Hudson. They're targeting Dana Evans. Look at this." The assistant moved his computer screen closer, and a moment later there was a picture of Dana bathing naked at the Soyuz Hotel. General Booth tensed his face, "Where is it?" He turned to his assistant, "Where is Major Stone?" "He's gone, he's leaving the country with the Hudsons." General Booth said angrily, "Get me to the national airport." In the helicopter, Norman Bronson looked down and said, "They're heading for the park, Jeff. Once they get there, we won't be able to land because of the woods." Jeff said hastily, "We have to stop them. Can you land on the road ahead of them?" "certainly." "landing." Bronson pushed the stick forward, and the helicopter began to descend, passing the helicopter over the limo, and began to gently steer the helicopter down.It was parked on the road, twenty yards ahead of the limo.They watched the car come to a screeching halt. "Turn off the engine," Jeff said. "We can't do that. We'd be at the mercy of that guy." "Turn off." Bronson looked at him. "Do you understand what you're doing?" "No." Bronson sighed, then turned off the ignition.The helicopter's huge propeller blades began to slow down until it came to a complete stop.Jeff looked out the window. Caesar had already opened the back door of the limousine."Your friend is trying to make trouble for us," he said to Dana, and he swung his fist, hitting Dana on the jaw.She fell back in her seat, unconscious.Then Caesar stood up and started walking towards the helicopter. "Here he comes," Bronson said nervously. "My God, he's a giant!" Caesar was approaching the helicopter with a preemptive look on his face. "Jeff, he must have a gun. He's going to kill us." Jeff yelled out the window, "You and your boss are going to go to jail, you bastard." Caesar started to pick up the pace. "You're all screwed, you'd better surrender." Caesar was fifteen yards away from the helicopter. "You'll be the boy's curse." ten yards. "You like that, don't you, Caesar?" Caesar started running, five yards. Jeff pressed the start button hard with his thumb, and the helicopter's giant propeller blades began to slowly turn.Caesar didn't pay attention, his eyes fixed on Jeff, his face full of hatred.The propeller blades turned faster and faster.When Caesar ran to the helicopter door, he suddenly woke up, but it was too late.There was a loud splash and Jeff closed his eyes.The inside and outside of the helicopter were immediately splattered with blood. Norman Bronson said, "I'm going to throw up." He extinguished the ignition. Jeff glanced at the headless body on the ground, jumped out of the helicopter, and ran to the limo.He opened the car door, and Dana was unconscious. "Dana... honey..." Dana slowly opened her eyes.She looked at Jeff and muttered, "Kenmore..." As the limo was nearly a mile from Lincoln Private High, Jeff yelled, "Look." In the distance ahead of them, smoke could be seen blackening the sky. "They're burning down the school," Dana screamed, "Kenmore's in it, he's in the basement." "Oh my God!" A minute later, the limousine arrived at the school.A plume of smoke was billowing from the building, and a dozen firefighters were scrambling to put out the blaze. Jeff jumped out of the car and ran toward the school.A firefighter stopped him. "You can't come any closer, sir." "Is anyone in there?" Jeff asked. "No, we just forced the door open." "There's a boy in the basement." Jeff ran through the split door before anyone could stop him.There was thick smoke billowing inside.Jeff tried to call out Kenmore's name, but all that came out was a cough.He put a handkerchief to his nose and ran down the corridor to the stairs leading to the basement.The smoke was pungent and thick. Jeff held on to the railing and stumbled down the stairs. "Kenmore!" Jeff yelled.no answer. "Kenmore." There was a deathly silence.Jeff made out a vague figure at the other end of the basement.He moved toward it, trying to hold his breath, his lungs burning, and he almost fell on top of Kenmore.He shook him: "Kenmore." The boy lost consciousness.With great effort Jeff picked him up and headed for the stairs.He was choked, the smoke blinding his eyes.He staggered back and forth through the thick black smoke, Kenmore in his arms.When he came to the stairs, Jeff half-carried Kenmore up the steps.He heard voices in the distance, after which he passed out. General Booth and Nathan Novero, the director of Washington National Airport, were on the phone. "Did Roger Hudson park his plane there?" "Yes, General, in fact, he's here right now. I believe they've just been cleared to take off." "Abort." "what?" "Notify tower to abort." "Yes, sir." Nathan Novero called the tower: "Tower, abort the takeoff of Gulfstream R3487." "They're already taxiing on the runway," the air traffic controller said. "Cancel their clearance to take off." "Yes, sir," said the air traffic controller, picking up his microphone. "The tower called Gulfstream R3487. The takeoff clearance has been cancelled. You will return to the airport. Abort takeoff. Repeat, abort takeoff." Roger Hudson stepped into the pilot's cockpit: "What the hell is going on here?" "Something must be delayed," said the pilot. "We have to get back to—" "No!" said Pamela Hudson, "keep flying." "With all the respect I have for you, Mrs. Hudson, I would lose my pilot's license." Jack Stone walked up to the pilot and put a pistol to his head. "Take off, we're heading to Russia." The pilot took a deep breath: "Okay, sir." The plane accelerated down the runway, and twenty seconds later, it was airborne.Airport officials watched in dismay as the Gulfstream rose higher and higher into the sky. "My God! He disobeyed—" On the phone, Buster was asking, "What happened? Did you stop them?" "No, sir, they—they just took off, there's nothing we can do to make them—" At this moment, the sky exploded.Those on the ground watched in horror as the Gulf Stream's burning wreckage cascaded through the clouds in what seemed to be no end. On the far side of the airport, Boris Shadanov watched for a long time, and finally he turned and left.