All Tangled Up

Chapter 5

The tracker pulsed against my arm. The police officers had embedded it into the left shoulder of my suit. I knew they were tracking me the instant I left the police station.

I finally reached a part of the city with tall enough buildings to properly swing from. I shot a web at an apartment building. Gwen's apartment building.

My heart ached as I flew by her room. Why did it have to be this way? She probably hated me. I should have told her. I should have been more careful on the day I was arrested. I should have...

I stopped myself. I couldn't go back. That was impossible. I couldn't change the past.

I sighed, shooting another web. I was nearing the crime scene.

A couple of police cars sped through the streets, sirens blaring. That's when I saw who they were chasing. There was a black van driving recklessly through the traffic.

I landed on top of the van with ease. I slid down to the driver's side, peering through the window.

The driver was a middle-aged man with greying brown hair, a scrawny beard, and bulging biceps. His large hands clutched the steering wheel as he swerved violently. He had a look of rage on his face.

Also, I noticed something in his brown eyes. They seemed...blank. Off. Dead almost. He was under the influence of some kind of drug. He probably had more of it inside the car.

I smashed my fist through the window. Glass shattered, falling into the man's lap. His head jerked to the side, his mouth agape. He growled, swerving the car to the left.

My back was slammed into a passing trash truck. The trash truck driver gasped and swerved, but he quickly steadied the truck and drove on. Pain surged through my body, and I grew lightheaded. I shook my head, then focused back on the criminal.

He was laughing.  Then, my spider senses alerted me of a small car ahead.  We were going to hit it in less than five seconds.  I hastily shot a web at the criminal's left hand, pinning it to the car door.  He waved his right hand frantically, no longer trying to steer the van.

It sped up.  The criminal had pushed the gas harder.  Finally, I had run out of options, with only a second left until impact.

I leaped into the criminal's lap, yanking the steering wheel sharply to the right, barely missing the other car.  He smacked me with his free hand, shouting.  His foot slipped from the gas, and we were slowing down.  I turned the steering wheel again, and the van halted, perfectly parked in front of a grocery store.

I sighed, closed my eyes, then let out a deep breath.  That was close.  Too close.  I was lucky.

I pushed in the parking break, and the criminal squirmed under me.  His free hand, the right one, grasped my arm firmly.  His large, meaty fingers wrapped around my skinny wrist.  Then his grip tightened, causing me pain.  I simply jerked my arm away; his hand fell limply into his lap.  Before he could protest any further, I had his right arm webbed to door as well.  He moaned, trying desperately to pry his hands away.

"Oh, my bad," I said jokingly. "Did I intrude?" I climbed out of the criminal's lap and back through the broken window, carefully avoiding pieces of broken glass. I had already been cut by a few shards during the action.

Just as my feet hit the ground, the first police cruiser pulled up, sirens blaring. I gave a small salute and began to walk away. Two officers climbed out. One removed a pair of handcuffs from his belt, heading to the van. The other chased after me.

"Hey! Hold on!" He said. I stopped, then turned to him.

"Parker, right?" I nodded. "I'm Marcus Dwyer."  I removed my mask.  His eyes widened at the sight of my face.  "You're just a kid."

The criminal cursed as he was being dragged from the van.  He was shocked when he saw my face as well.  "A little boy did this to me!"  He was shouting.  I couldn't help but smile.

"Um...sure," I said. 

"A boy like you should not go through this kind of thing...you put yourself in danger, you were arrested..."  His voice trailed off.

"Hey, hey..." I said.  "I'm eighteen.  And I'm actually not 'just a boy'."

"Yeah, I know.  It's just hard to believe."

"Yeah."

"Well, uh, good luck."  Marcus turned and walked away, assisting the other officer.  Another couple of police cars drove up, and officers began rummaging through the van.  I just stood there for a minute, watching.

They began pulling bags of all sorts of drugs out of the seats.  I was surprised; he must have been the kind of guy who sells them.  Eventually, I grew tired of watching.

I put my mask back on, then left with a running jump, shooting webs in all directions.

---

I arrived back at the police station, coming in through the exit door.  It had been left unlocked.  The alarm sounded again.  I returned to my cell, once again trying the bed.

The springs dug into my back, and I tossed and turned desperately to get comfortable.  I gave up and climbed the wall, once again curling up in my roof corner.

The exit door alarm clicked off, and then there was silence.