Little Drummer Boy

Chapter 14: Crashing Down

“It looks like we’re getting closer to him,” Tristen said.

That brought some relief to me, but not enough, not nearly enough. As long as that crazy woman had Jace, he wouldn’t be safe. All those things that he told me, the memories, and the night when that strange song got to him, he couldn’t go back to a world like that; I wouldn’t allow it.

“How much longer until the highway entrance?” I asked.

“Looks like another mile if you keep taking this road.”

I thought about the streets, if there’d be a quicker way to cut through this neighborhood. But no, that would be too many turns, and the cars parked along the street would make it hard to go as fast as I needed.

We soon made it to the freeway, and while there were a couple more cars driving through than our small town, there wasn’t enough to keep me from pushing my car as fast it would go. We were heading in the direction of Brookings, a route I had taken many times before. I knew every curve in the road and every bump caused by poor construction. Normally I didn’t drive too fast, only speeding a little bit when I got the chance. Although this night, nothing could have been fast enough. The car started shaking, vibrating in ways that were sure to be a bad sign.

“They’re 2 miles straight ahead,” Tristen said.

“Hold on Jace, I’ll be there soon.”

“Just be careful, Caleb,” Tristen said. “I know how you feel, but Jace wouldn’t want you to hurt yourself over this.”

Looking back, Tristen was probably saying this for his own safety as well. I mean, any other time if I was with a 16 year old trying to do 100 miles an hour down the highway with a car that’s older than I was, I’d be worried too.

“I know what I’m doing,” I said, far surer of the plan I didn’t have than I should have been. All I cared about what finding them, catching up to Jace. What I’d do after that, well, I’d figure that out when I got to them.

The miles flew by us, the car’s shaking getting worse as I tried pushing as much speed out of it as I possibly could. But then I saw it, a large black van that would look like an ordinary vehicle any other time.

“That’s it,” Tristen said as I slowed my car so I would just blow past it.

“He’s in there then?”

“Yep, I’m sure of it.”

“Good.”

“What are you going to do?” he asked.

It was at this point the pure focus I’d put into finding Jace faded away.

Here I was, driving down the highway at breakneck speeds dressed in my pajamas going after some heavily armed and dangerous criminals, all because of the love of my brother.

It would be stupid to do anything, but would the point of this be if I just ended up tailgating some kidnappers? What good would that do?

“We have to get them to stop,” I said.

“How?”

The simplest answer would have to be to force them off the road, use once of those fancy police spikes to give them four flat tires, but it wasn’t like there were any random police blockades nearby. And it wasn’t like I could do much to their large van when my car could barely fit two people. I ended up pulling up on the right side of the van, acting like I was going to pass it hoping to get a look into the van, hoping to at least see Jace.

However, there Ren was, and she gave me a look while as she rolled down her window, obviously recognizing me. She grinned at me, and this smirk told me how crazy this idea really was. “Caleb, that’s a gun.”