The Daily Novel

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

It was Friday night. Chloe grabbed her basket of dirty clothes and headed down to the laundry room. It was 11:00 in the evening, but she wasn’t tired. Harry was going to be spending the weekend with her, so why waste precious time doing laundry on Saturday morning? Might as well get it done now.

She knew she might be foolish doing this alone, but at this point she refused to be intimidated by the killer. Damn him! She should have taken it upon herself to go door to door and see who all lived here!

She and Monica should do that very thing next week. If anything, they’d at least get to meet everyone who lived here. They would be brave together. Yeah, the more she thought about it, the more she got excited. They would report anyone who looked the slightest bit suspicious. Have Harry check them out. After all, Harry hadn’t managed to talk to everyone in this building. Or had he? Harry didn’t tell her everything…

Chloe flipped on the light and clomped down the stairs in her brown suede low-heeled boots, carefully watching around the cumbersome basket to see where she placed her feet. There were two washers and two dryers down there.

It was a lonely place even during the day, and suddenly Chloe wondered just what the hell she was doing down here at this time of night. Was she nuts? That crazy man could be anywhere! She’d promised others and herself she wouldn’t put herself in this very position!

Oh my God, she thought, sensing a presence. I’m not alone! Sure enough, over in the corner, sitting as still as stone and watching her was the weird guy from down the hall… Timothy Zeff!

Startled beyond belief, Chloe let out a shriek, dropped her load, and raced back up the stairs. She ran as fast as she could, and that was an ordeal, being so heavy.

Timothy Zeff stood up slowly and looked at the pile of clothes dumped on the floor. Now what was she so scared of? He didn’t have a chance to tell her he’d been standing guard every night down here in case the killer showed up to surprise some innocent woman. He was doing his civic duty, protecting the women in his building. Shoot, he didn’t mean to startle that woman.

Chloe made it to the second floor, extremely out of breath and gasping like she was going to die. She’d thought she could run up to her apartment on the fourth floor, then realized that was stupid. She needed to run outside for help!

So now, being on the second floor, she was going to run across to the opposite stairwell when an apartment door opened and Walter, Wally, whatever the hell his name was, appeared in front of her.

“Oh God… you’ve got to help me,” she gasped, staggering toward him. “There’s a man, the killer, down in the laundry room. Call the police!” she panted.

“Come on in here and I’ll call them.” Wallace gripped her arm and half-dragged her into his apartment. How easy this was, he mused. It was only a matter of time! The fly came to the spider….

“Oh, I was so scared,” she gasped out, gripping the sleeve of his shirt. She was shaking uncontrollably. “Call the police right now before he gets away….”

“Well now, how do we know he hasn’t gotten away? Why don’t you relax and I’ll get you some water?” He led Chloe to the sofa and gently pushed her down. Then he went into the next room, not the kitchen. He appeared once again almost instantly with something in his hands.

Before Chloe’s mind could register, he had his hands about her wrists, trying to wrap a tie of some sort about them. Chloe’s strength returned tenfold. Her adrenaline pumped, and Harry’s crash course in self defense kicked in.

Screaming, she kicked out at him, connecting her heel to his kneecap painfully. Wallace yelped as he lost his grip on Chloe, enabling her to scramble to her feet. She staggered to the front door. Wallace regained his balance and followed suit. Just as Chloe grabbed the doorknob, trying to twist it, he had her once again in his grip of death.

Chloe faced him, her eyes wide in terror as she tried to fend him off. He tried to control her enough to get her into the bedroom. No sense killing her immediately. He’d had his eye on this one for quite some time. He wanted to get to know her first.

Chloe remembered Harry’s tactic. Aim for the nose with the heel of your hand. That will drive the bridge of the nose deep into their brain! Yeah right! Not a good angle for that. The old stomp on the instep! She tried it. Wallace howled like mad as pain shot through his left foot.

He lost his grip once again on Chloe and in that instant, found himself flat on the floor, his head banging painfully on the edge of the hearth.

Chloe stared at the large man for a few moments to see if she truly had managed to incapacitate him. He wasn’t moving! Crying uncontrollably under her breath, she managed to get the door open and once again raced down the second floor. She heard her keys jangling in her pocket and grabbed them in hand. She decided driving to Harry’s was a better idea.

She flew down the stairs to the underground garage.

* * *

Cha Cha DuBois had been tied to the chair for hours again. She was struggling with the ropes around her wrists and feeling them give a little. Unbelievable! she thought. He’d always tied her so tightly. Could luck be with her tonight? What in the world was going on in the other room?

She fidgeted with the ropes again as she heard the struggle in the living room. It sounded like Chloe’s voice! My God! Then she’d heard a thud like someone falling!

She wished she could get this tape off of her mouth! She tried rocking the chair but it was too heavy.

Wallace moaned and shook his head. He felt the back of his skull gently, then examined his fingers. Hmmm, no blood, that was a god sign. He’d survive. Now where had the fat bitch gone? What the hell had she done to him? He got up and staggered to the door and almost fell headfirst into the hallway. Being near the stairway, he could hear the faint clomping of the bitch’s shoes. Garage!

Chloe’s hands were trembling so badly, she nearly dropped her keys twice. Finally she managed to get inside her Corolla. The engine started immediately. Bless you, she prayed.

She threw the car in reverse and, as her lights swept over the doorway leading into the apartment building, she saw his silhouette! He started running toward her. She stepped on the gas.

Wallace made it to his car seconds after Chloe exited the garage. She flew down Mission Street, intending to go straight to Harry’s. Looking in her rearview mirror, she caught sight of Wallace’s lights as he maneuvered out onto the street in hot pursuit!

As Chloe sped through the intersection, luckily the light was green, Harry was stopped to make a right turn going to her place. Say, wasn’t that Chloe’s car? he thought as he watched her taillights, then saw the older white Toyota hot on her heels. Cressida?

Flipping his wheel immediately to the left, Harry gave chase. He didn’t know what was going on, but he thanked God he was in the right place at the right time.

Seeing his headlights in her mirror, Chloe decided going to Harry’s wasn’t such a good idea. She’d better just try to lose this guy. And he lived in her apartment building all along! They’d been right! My God! The killer! She sobbed out loud as she strove to keep her car on the road.

Wallace cursed as he followed that friggin’ woman. He still couldn’t figure out how she’d managed to escape. Must have used karate on him or something. Well, that only meant her death would have to be more painful. He laughed out loud as he thought of the things he was going to do to her. Then he’d kill the black bitch when he got back.

Harry picked up the radio in his car. He called in and made it known he was in hot pursuit of a potential problem but not too sure of what it was. The dispatcher at the other end told him to be more explicit.

“Never mind, I’ll call in again when I know I’ll need backup. But it looks like we’re headed for the Presidio.”

“Officer, you know you can’t do that. You’re not calling in the correct procedure,” the dispatcher tried to explain.

He hung up.

Chloe drove like a madwoman. It was hard to see the streets through her tears and fighting the growing fear. She was afraid she could drive forever and he’d follow her… she’d never lose him.

Maybe her only chance would be to abandon her car and hide till morning. Maybe hide and try to find a house where she could call 911 for help. She turned onto Lincoln Boulevard and sped toward the Presidio.

Harry Moretti once again called control. “Now I need back up. I’m on Lincoln Blvd. turning onto Long Avenue. A friend of mine is being chased. That’s all I know. But something is very wrong, and I need help. It’s possible this is the serial killer we’ve been after.”

“There’s a unit near the Presidio–”

“It looks like they’re headed to the Fort Point Historic site,” relayed Harry. “Send the unit over there and have them look for me. I’m driving my white Nissan 300. Like I said, I don’t know what’s going down, but odds are it’s real bad.”

“Ten-four.” she replied.

Harry saw the car he was following slow down and pull over to the right. Harry killed his lights and slowed to a stop.

Chloe parked her car and jumped out. She ran as fast as she could toward the Old Station Hospital. It had been built back in the 1860s and was the oldest standing building in the Presidio. She desperately tried a side door, but it was firmly locked. No way could she try the front… he’d see her. She had to hide!

She pushed away and started running, trying to find a place to conceal herself. She found a wide hedge with pointy leaves to fit behind. This would work for a few minutes, but then she must find people for help!

If she could keep out of sight for hours it would be to her advantage. Her hand still stung where she’d struck his face back at the apartment, and she shook it back and forth.

Wallace saw her taillights pull over, and he did the same. He thought he saw a pair of headlights following him, too. Then the lights disappeared, so maybe he’d imagined it. He was too concerned about the bitch he was going to get. How could she be so quick while being so fat?

He jumped out of his car and headed for the Old Station Hospital. He was very pissed off now. It was so dark in places, how would he ever find her?

The dumb broad was probably in the hospital, Wallace thought, as he rattled the locked side door. He knew he hadn’t seen her go in the front. Nope, she couldn’t have gotten inside. She must be around here. Maybe she was heading for the Fort Point Historic site? It was at the base of the south tower of the Golden Gate bridge.

Close to the site was a cliff leading dangerously down to the bay. In the distance, Wallace could hear the waves breaking over the rocks below. He looked around quickly, grinding his teeth together in boiling fury. He didn’t think she’d be heading that way.

Chloe heard heavy footsteps and labored breathing. She knew it was him. She scrunched down lower behind the hedge, wishing like crazy she weren’t wearing her light-colored sweater. Fear tasted like copper in her mouth as she licked her dry lips. Oh God, there he was!

She could make out his silhouette as he passed by a yellow street light, hazy with light fog. He was only a couple of yards from her hiding place. She hoped he couldn’t smell fear like an animal, or she was dead for sure!

She squeezed her eyes tightly shut and prayed she was only dreaming, and that she would wake up in her warm bed with Harry by her side. Why was all this happening?  Because the world is full of nuts! That’s why. Tears began to flow.

Wallace started humming tunelessly. Chloe thought he sounded like a madman, making her instincts to flee all the more powerful. He suddenly stood still, listening, and then started walking in her direction.

Harry pulled out his gun and headed toward the hospital. That’s where the man was headed. Chloe had to be here somewhere. He prayed she was safe and was using her head, if what Harry was finally figuring out was true. This guy was obviously chasing her and could very well be the killer!

Wallace spotted her light sweater through the bush. His handsome, grinning, lunatic face coming closer brought a sudden sharp scream from Chloe’s lips. She tried to scramble out from the bush, twigs snatched at her hair, scratching her face, but she fell out into the open. And Wallace fell on top of her.

Chloe kicked and struggled as hard as she could. Her knee connected with sheer luck and accuracy with Wallace’s targeted crotch and he once again found himself momentarily incapacitated. Paralyzed, he could not believe she’d done it again! Rage boiled out of control as he writhed in absolute agony.

Chloe used that precious moment to get away. Scrambling and sobbing, she flung herself away from his prone body and staggered to her feet. Then she ran as fast as she could into the dark in one direction.

Harry ran along in the moonlight, straining his ears for any sounds at all. He heard scuffling and a cry that could only be from his beloved Chloe. He felt the panic rise and ran faster in that direction.

Suddenly he stopped and peered into the dim darkness lit only by a lone street light and the moon. He could make out a form on the ground and a fleeting glimpse of a light color going off into the direction of the cliffs. But before he could take another step, the figure on the ground rose swiftly, staggered once, then took off after what had to be Chloe.

Chloe Banyon whimpered and sobbed as she ran, blind terror taking her over completely. She knew her killer now. Knew his face. How could this be happening? She had no sense of direction now and was following every fiber of instinct to flee. She heard the man’s pounding footsteps as he came closer. All of a sudden she felt strong arms wrap around her waist, and she was knocked flat on her face. His weight pressed her down into the soft, moist earth.

“Got you now, bitch. You’re going to die,” he panted hoarsely in her ear. His breath was stale and sour. She whined and closed her eyes tight, willing him away.

“But first, I’m gonna give you what you deserve. I gotta watch out for you because you’re a clever one,” he panted. She was a fighter, and he liked that. No sense killing her immediately.

He tried to flip her over onto her back. Chloe was exhausted. She had never had so much physical exertion in her life! But the strength came from somewhere, and she planted another lucky jab, this time into the man’s solar plexus with her knee. Was he stupid or what? She was a fighting machine! Strength flowed through her limbs as once again she scrambled to her feet while Wallace Carrick fell onto his side. But just as she made it to a standing position, he rose quickly and made a grab for her.

Chloe screamed and ran about three feet before she found herself treading air and began to fall.

* * *

Cha Cha finally got her wrists untied. Sobbing with the effort, the relief, and the fear he would return and catch her, she managed to stagger to her feet.

She was naked and grabbed the thin blanket off the bed. She half-wrapped herself in it and headed for the door. She listened before opening it, thinking he could be on the other side, teasing her, waiting to grab her. Then, feeling relatively safe, she opened the door into the living room.

* * *

Wallace stopped in his tracks as he saw the woman disappear over the edge of the cliff. He backed up and started to turn to run back to his car, coughing and sucking in air painfully from that vicious kick he’d been given.

Wallace took two steps when he was hit by a flying body. Harry punched him in the jaw and sent him sprawling. Then he jumped on Wallace’s chest and grabbed him about the throat. “Where is she?” Harry hollered into the stunned man’s face.

Wallace replied with a jab to Harry’s ribs. Gusting out a breath of air, Harry was knocked painfully over onto his side. The man was now on top of him and trying to get a grip around Harry’s throat. Briefly Harry wondered where the backup was. But his thoughts were turned to Chloe. He had to find her!

“The friggin’ bitch went over the side, man,” whispered Wallace horribly. “She hit the rocks below like a broken doll. And that’s where you’re going, too, you fuckhead.”

Harry fought like a man possessed. Chloe was not dead! He refused to believe it. He managed to get a solid punch into the madman’s eye and knocked him back, his fist burning in pain.

In a moment, the two were standing and punching wildly. Harry backed the man closer to the edge of the cliff. His punches grew stronger with his fueled desire to find his love. Two more solid punches sent Wallace back and spinning… careening, right over the edge of the cliff!

His surprised scream was heard all the way down. As he initially went over, his eyes were open in stunned disbelief. In the brilliant full light of the half moon, he found himself staring straight into the terrified, wide-open eyes of Chloe!

She was hanging precariously by a tree root and perched on a small ledge of rock. Her right foot bent painfully under her weight. She watched in frozen horror as Wallace Carrick spun out of control past her, flying to his death upon the water-covered rocks below.

She closed her eyes tightly shut and began to whimper.

Harry, staggering in one spot while wiping the blood from his cut lip with the back of his hand, watched incredulously as the man pinwheeled over the cliff. But then his attention instantly turned to Chloe.

“Chloe! Chloe!” he screamed into the night.

“Harry!” she called up weakly, hoping her voice would carry. She was so feeble.

Suddenly Harry’s strained face appeared over the side, dancing in an eerie yellow glow. A beam of light played over her body. “Harry!”

“Chloe! Hang on! Hang on, baby! Oh God! I’ll get you up!” She looked to be about fifteen feet down. “Hang on!”

Two uniformed officers came running up behind Harry. “What’s going on here?” they wanted to know. Harry filled them in quickly in while they raced to the unit to call for paramedics and a  rescue vehicle.

As he waited for the rescue team, Harry never left Chloe. He swore to himself that she’d be okay and they’d get her to safety. He soothed her nerves with talk of what they would do later that night. He’d fix her hot chocolate, they’d watch the late show… he just rambled to keep her mind off of the dangerous rocks below.

He glanced back at the road, and parked not far from Chloe’s car was the Cressida that had eluded Harry. He knew he’d checked the underground garage twice for this car. It was never there. Perhaps it was just his rotten luck the guy hadn’t been home every time he looked. But that was all in the past now.

* * *

As Chloe sat in the ambulance, she cried uncontrollably on Harry’s shoulder. “I could have died, Harry.” She looked at him miserably, breath hitching painfully. “I could have been down there—” she shuddered.

“Shhhh, shah, it’s okay, it’s okay,” he patted her head as he hugged her tightly while she sobbed. God, he was absolutely aghast at the thought of how close he’d come to losing her.

They’d have to fish out the killer’s body as soon as it was daylight. His identity would have to wait. As long as the son-of-a-bitch was dead, that’s all that mattered to Harry at this moment.

Only God could have placed him at that intersection tonight at the right moment for him to see Chloe racing off into the night.

“Moretti? Can we see you for a moment?” asked the young officer. Harry kissed Chloe and said he’d be right back.

One of the officers informed Harry that they had just heard a call over the radio that a woman was found half-alive in the Breakers apartment house, and she’d said that she’d been held captive since last Friday. “I think it might be the DuBois woman.”

“Cha Cha!” Harry said, unable to believe it! But he also knew it had to be her. Harry closed his eyes and made a vow. He and Chloe were flying to Reno next weekend and getting married. Nothing would stop them now. They’d make a grand weekend out of it.

“Thanks, guys,” he told the officers. “That’s the second best news I’ve heard tonight. The first is that the shithead is finally dead!” He climbed back into the ambulance.

“Chloe?” He wrapped the blanket tightly around her and looked into her face, now devoid of make-up and streaked with dirt and a couple of bloody scratches. Her hair was a damp tangle of weeds and darkly matted with mud.

Knowing her, if she’d looked into a mirror she would have screamed in fright to have him see her like that! But never had she looked more beautiful to Harry. She looked up him in utter exhaustion.

“What?” she said in a tiny voice. Her eyebrows knitted together under her tangled blonde bangs.

“Good news. Cha Cha was found alive. Right there in The Breakers.”

“No! Really?” she threw her arms about him and cried from relief. “Oh Harry….”

He let her cry for a moment, then lifted her chin to look into her eyes. “And one more thing, Chloe Banyon. Will you marry me? Now, this weekend? I can’t live without you honey, and I can’t bear to be apart. You can invite Monica and Ben, Cha Cha, whoever you want. But after the ceremony, I want you to myself. They can go their merry way. It’ll be our weekend. What do you say?”

“I say… you bet!” she grinned ear to ear. The nightmare was over at last!

“Sir? We’re leaving for the hospital.” The paramedic indicated Harry was to leave the ambulance now.

“I’ll be riding with her because I’m not leaving this woman’s side ever again.” The young man shrugged.

The double doors closed with a bang, and the two of them hugged tightly as they headed out for General Hospital… where unfortunately, Wallace Carrick would not be reporting for work tomorrow.

THE END