Line of Fire (A Stitchers Fan Fiction- Book 1)

Chapter 17: Not Quite Close Enough

Cameron's hands were glued to the steering wheel so tightly that he felt his knuckles turn a creamy white shade.  His were fixed on the navy blue van speeding ahead of them. He just just barely make out a blonde mass that was staring out the van's back windows: Kirsten. The gears in his mind turned to figure out a way to rescue her. 

He noticed that there were no cars driving in the other direction and pounced on the chance.

"Someone call Fisher!" he said before hitting the gas and sharply swerved left. The van and Maserati were neck and neck now. Linus motioned to the driver, who Cameron recognized to be Eli. Cameron only had a split second to react before gunshots were fired in their direction, sending the Maserati to lose ground. The smell of burning rubber and gun powder filled the air as the sports car skidded back behind the van where it started. Cameron heard Camille screaming and Linus trying to steady her but it sounded muffled. His senses were focused on one thing and one thing only.

Another barrage of gunshots sounded, causing the trio to instinctively duck and the car to slalom down the street. One bullet same as close as to the rear-view mirror, which bursted off. 

"I hate car chases in movies, much less this!" Camille shouted. 

"Do you even have a clue how to catch gun-wielding maniacs dude?!" Linus shouted to Cameron. He never turned in their direction for fear of more shots to be fired.

"Not unless you have a gun up your sleeve!" he replied. Another round fired at them, causing the side of the windshield to crack, followed by more screams. 

The van ahead of them suddenly made a sharp turn onto a less congested road, causing Cameron's reaction time to be lightning quick. The Maserati clipped the street corner which made the glove box spill open on Linus's side. 

"Oh my gosh!" Camille pointed toward the floor where something glinted silver in the sunlight that poured through the windows. A charcoal-colored handgun stared up at them. Cameron and Linus glanced at each other before Camille reached over and picked it up. 

"Careful!" Linus said, trying to snatch it away from her, but she was too quick for him. 

"Relax, I know how to handle a gun, I'm not that stupid," she began, giving him a mischievous smirk. "Cameron, try and get up close to them. I have a plan."

He obediently got slightly closer to the van away from the backside, where two pairs of guns peeked out from the side windows, spraying bullets. 

"CAMILLE!!" Linus shouted suddenly, causing Cameron to jump but maintain his speed. Camille was leaning out the back window and began to pull her own trigger at them. The two side windows closed immediately. She climbed back into the backseat again, where Linus was scowling at her with a mixture of malice and fright. 

"What the heck was that Camille!" He shouted at her. She only stared at him with a smile.

"It's called taking initiative. You should try it sometime." Sirens blared from behind them. Camille and Linus looked out the back window to see a group of 12 cop cars on their tails. 

"Fisher's here, and he's brought company." Linus said. Cameron continued to follow closely behind the van but smiled.

"Let's go catch a spider." 

Linus looked over at Cameron and grinned. "Classic Marc Webb." 

Camille only rolled her eyes. "You people and your Amazing Spider-Man humor, I swear." 

***

Cop cars now surrounded the Maserati in pursuit. Multiple shots were fired, but none reached their target. The road was narrowing again, making everyone uneasy. Camille continued to fire shots out of the back window against Linus's wishes. Everything seemed to come to a stand still during the chase. Each that rang out meant nothing if it didn't bring some change to the situation. Camille's amo was dwindling fast. A voice jeered in Cameron's head that made him dizzy with trepidation. Your rescue mission is worthless, she's not coming back to you alive. 

Cameron tried to force the voice away from his mind but each time he did so, it drained him. He felt his face flush in desperation. What if the voice is right? What is Kirsten is not going to come back alive......

A single gunshot rang out once more, But this time, the bullet did its job. It punctured a hole in the van's back wheel, making the van skid off the road and slam into a lamppost. All cop cars surrounded the van and came to a stop including the Maserati. Cops now had all firearms aimed at the back window as the van dared not to move. Cameron grabbed Camille's gun from the back seat, causing her to protest but it all sounded like gibberish to him. Nothing mattered to him more than Kirsten's wellbeing right now. 

Camille, Linus and Cameron all were out of the car and stood behind the car doors awaiting the emergence of the criminals. Fisher's voice boomed over a loudspeaker, urging them to come out. The gun was still clenched in Cameron's hand just as the back doors of the van swung open, causing everyone to flinch with anticipation. 

There were no hands up, no surrender signs. The only sight to be seen were the two corpses of Eli and Liam, motionless on the van floor. Standing over them was Daniel Stinger supporting a tear-stained Kirsten with a short silver knife held so close to her throat that a small blood trickle could be seen running down her front.