The Cure

Chapter 14

     Xavier walked over and took a newspaper from the machine after tossing in a few quarters and marveled at the sight of his own face on the front page. It was the very picture that Xavier had grown to hate, as it was his security clearance picture that he used to get access to the building he used to work in. He had a rugged beard back then, and long Jim Morrison curly hair. With short cut hair and a clean shave, Xavier looked nothing like his photo but that wasn't the part that caught his attention. The article underneath his photo was the real eye catcher, as it detailed his elevation to the top ten most wanted list of the FBI. That and the fact that his reward had elevated to a ungodly five million dollar reward for any tip that leads to his capture. Xavier took a deep breath and tucked the newspaper underneath his arm and continued to walk across the bridge. He kept the ball cap and sunglasses on and kept to one side of the bridge for minimal exposure. The closer he walked towards the downtown area, the more nervous he slowly became. Every time someone was talking behind his back, Xavier became suspicious and assumed it was about him and he picked up his pace and moved ahead. Eventually he thought it would be a good idea to take the subway for a few blocks and then sneak back out before wasting a lot of money on a cab. He took the tunnel underneath the road and quickly paid cash for his ticket. He barely made the sub that was there and slipped in at the last moment. Despite a lot of empty seats, Xavier preferred to hold onto the pole and remain standing to avoid eye contact with the others who were sitting. Three stops later, he got off the train because the station seemed close to empty, and that would make for a good getaway. He strutted up the stairwell to the exit and took a deep breath. It was a rough part of town, but it didn't matter as he had the cash to go to any part of the state by cab of necessary. He hailed a cab and even though the first two ignored his whistles, finally the last one stopped for him. He slipped into the back of the cab.

     "Hey there, mate." Xavier said with the best accent he could muster, sounding as Australian as he could. "I need you to go off the meter for me and I'll make it worth your time."

     "Is that so?" the cabbie replied with a condescending tone. "I'll need the cash upfront if you want that kind of service, mate."

     "Not a problem, my good man." Xavier said as he passed the man two hundred through the small hole in the glass, "Take me to the west side first and once we're there I'll tell you where to go from there."

     "You the boss, man." The Cabbie said as he pulled the cab into the road and started to move towards their destination. While they were driving over, Xavier took that newspaper out from under his arm and started to read the articles in there about himself, soaking in all the details, and reading the same lies all over again. The driver could tell what he was looking at,

     "He's been all over the news the last day or so." The driver said.

     "Who has?" Xavier asked, trying to play dumb.

     "That Carter fellow," The cabbie replied, "They say he's one dangerous bastard. The authorities claims that he's killed a lot of people, and now they suspect him of torturing them as well. That dude is one sick bastard."

     "He sure sounds like it," Xavier said, "Where do they think he is?"

     "No one's really sure," The cabbie answered, "And I think that's exactly why he was elevated to the top. The feds need all the help they can get and exposure like that along with that hefty reward usually shakes plenty tips out of the tree if you know what I mean."

     "I get it," Xavier replied, "But where do you think he is?"

     "I think he's a smart man," The cabbie said, "If he's not out of the country by now, I'd say he's on the west coast chillin' in some small town that shelters themselves from the world. That's the only way a man like that is going to hide from the world."

     "That's very smart," Xavier said, appreciating the suggestion.

     "We're in the west side," the driver called out, "Where to now, mister?"

     Xavier paused for a moment, "Take me to the subs, George and Pine."

     "Hey, it's your dime." The cabbie said he turned to go back in the other direction.

     As they were driving there was a lot of activity and police cars driving around. Xavier looked over his shoulder to see where they were going.

     "Don't mind that," The driver said rather casually, "That kind of stuff happens all the time in this neighborhood."

     "I see," Xavier said as he slouched back and just relaxed and waited as the cab kept driving to the other part of the city.

     The conversation was kept pretty much to a minimum for the second half of it. He didn't want to push his luck with the accent and gave the driver the impression that he was a tired bloke that had been through a lot of jet lag and what not. It took them another fifteen to twenty minutes, but they finally arrived at the corner he asked for. Xavier tossed the man a few twenties as a tip and thanked him for the ride and got out. It would take him about a half hour to walk the rest of the way to Sammy's house, but Xavier wasn't going to take any chances. He needed to cover his tracks to make sure the lab was still safe. He had the feeling the park wasn't safe and didn't want to risk leaving with Sammy and exposing her and her car to someone writing down her plate numbers. Going separate was the best way to go, and he hoped it didn't freak her out as badly as it could have. He may have been acting overly cautious but being on the run as long as he's been had taught him to be. Xavier started to make the long walk and hoped that Sammy would be there first so he could talk to her when he got back and inform her about this latest development.