BackTrek (17 page)

“Wait! Where do you think you’re going?” The
other Jack asked as he began to approach him. Suddenly Jack could
see his other self on the edge of recognition, when it dawned on
him that the shadow that had hidden his face was about to
disappear.

“I know you!” His other self bellowed.

"Better than you can ever realize.” Jack said
as he continued to walk away. He knew that his other self would be
approached, even as he walked, by a uniformed officer that would
take his mind off of the stranger and focus it back on the killer
that got away. Jack hurried over to the alcove to assist Ted. As he
rounded the corner, Ted still had Smith’s tall frame pinned against
the wall, as he waited for Jack to come before he continued any
farther.

“It’s about damn time, Jack, what took you so
long?” Ted said as he turned towards him.

“I ran into someone I know.” Jack said, a
slight smile on his face. “So this is the scum bag that caused all
my problems?” He asked. He wanted nothing more than to draw his
weapon and blow the man’s head completely off of his shoulders.

“The one and only. We’ll get him back to the
lab, and get some DNA samples. We’ll find out who this creep really
is, and then...erase him.” Suddenly a shrill beeping sound began.
It startled Ted, and Smith took advantage of the distraction and
whirled around. Suddenly a gunshot echoed down the alley followed
by the unmistakable sound of a silenced weapon being discharged as
shot after shot was fired. Jack stood frozen in shock, until Ted’s
body crumpled to the ground and Smith began to towards him. He dove
for the corner of the alcove, as a bullet ricocheted off of the
brick wall, just inches above his head. He heard Smith laugh behind
him as he rolled over and around the corner. Again, a bullet
ricocheted off of the brick wall beside him. He retreated back to
the alleyway, as bullet after bullet impacted the wall beside him.
He reached the relative safety of the alley, and rounded the corner
at full trot. He threw his back against the wall and raised his
gun, not sure if Smith had followed him or not. Seconds passed as
his heart pounded in his chest, and then he gradually eased back up
to the corner of the intersecting alleyways. He counted to three,
and then lunged from behind the corner. He aimed into the now empty
alley that led back to the main street. Cautiously he approached
the alcove, ready to fire if Smith was still there. Only Ted lay on
the ground. Smith was gone. Jack ran to Ted’s side. His broken body
lay there haphazardly on the ground. Blood still oozed out of his
wounds. No pulse. Ted was dead. Jack inspected Ted’s abdomen, and
was thankful for a quick death as he realized that he had been
repeatedly gut shot. He probably had not made it the ground
alive.

Jack looked up the alley, and then down the
alley towards the street. His mind raced over all that had
happened. Smith was still on the loose, which meant that Tracey and
the kids were still at risk. But would Ted having died change any
of that, or did Ted die before, and Jack just didn’t know that it
happened. This intersection of time lines was almost more than he
could handle. Paradox begot paradox, with different strings of
thought, and all circular in form. To Jack, the logic still
collided at every turn. Finally he decided, as he still knelt
beside his friend’s body, that he had to try and warn Tracey. If he
could get her and the kids away, then everything would be all
right. At least, for now.

Jack left the alley and entered the main
street. He headed for the car that Ted had driven to the
restaurant. Quickly he realized that there were several uniformed
officers that were near the car. They paid it too much attention to
make Jack comfortable. He turned and began to walk up the street in
the opposite direction. As he reached the next intersection, he
turned around the corner and began to run. After a couple of blocks
he came to a parking garage. Jack slowed down and walked in the
side door, glad he was able to bypass the guard at the exit gate.
Jack walked into the garage, and began to pass car after car. He
looked into the driver’s window of each. Finally he saw what he
wanted. A careless driver had locked their keys in the ignition. He
drew his gun from its holster, grabbed it by the barrel, and used
it to smash the driver’s side window. As he opened the door, he
used his foot to rake the shattered glass out of the seat, and then
sat down in the car. He glanced at his watch, and was briefly
puzzled by the early hour. Though it was dark outside, he realized
that his watch was still set to his time. His real time. Not the
time line that he was in. He started the car, and backed out of the
parking space. As he came to a stop, he didn’t realize that his
back tire ran over a blackened melted square of plastic that lay on
the ground. He shifted gears and drove towards the exit, and
crumbled the blackened mess behind him.

As Jack pulled up to the exit gate, he
glanced on the dashboard in front of him and saw the parking stub.
He grabbed it as he pulled even with the guard booth. As
nonchalantly as he could, he offered the stub out of the window.
The guard slid open the window of his small air conditioned booth,
took the ticket, and inserted it into a small electronic reader on
the counter in front of him. He hesitated a moment and then turned
back to Jack.

“Two dollars.” The guard said. Jack pulled
his wallet from his back pocket awkwardly, as he was firmly belted
into the seat. He opened it, and thankfully saw two one dollar
bills. He pulled them out, and offered them to the guard. He took
them, and shoved them into his drawer. The guard nodded at him and
activated the barricade. It swung up. Jack eased out onto the main
street, as he let out his breath. He headed for Tracey’s house. He
had to warn them.

As much as he could, he kept his mind focused
on his mission as he drove to the home that he had lived in for so
long. He knew that his actions in the next few hours would mean
life or death for his family. His whole family. He was careful not
to think too hard on this aspect, because he knew he would become
too emotional. It would overwhelm his ability to do what he needed
to do. He was still upset at the death of Ted, but regardless of
that, this was his chance. His only chance, to save his family. He
drove cautiously as he ticked off the miles. The last thing he
wanted, was to be detained by a fellow member of the police force.
That would put him in the worst situation possible. If they wished
to detain him, he could not harm them. But he also could not let
his family die. Not again. He entered his neighborhood, and came to
a full stop at the stop sign. He carefully counted to three,
turned, and slowly accelerated.

A few more turns, and Jack drove up into the
driveway at the house that he had lived in for the last ten years.
All except for the last few days, he thought. He came to a stop
behind Tracey’s car, and tried to formulate what he would say to
her. He had to fight the urge to grab her and hold her. Just the
chance that he might see her alive was going to be a hard emotion
to control. How many times had he thought that he had to see her
one last time, and now here was the opportunity, but she probably
wouldn’t even speak to him. In her time line, he knew that she was
mad at him, and the last thing that she probably wanted from him
was to be bothered by him. How he wanted to hold her in his arms
and tell her how sorry he was for all that had happened and all
that he had done. That he loved her more than life itself, and
would do anything to make her happy. But in her current frame of
mind, he knew that she would not listen. It was his fault, and he
knew it, but it didn’t change the way that he felt, or what he
longed for. He got out of the stolen car, and walked slowly to the
door, apprehensive yet determined to get her to listen and
understand how serious this was. He knew that if he mentioned the
time travel concept at all, that she would shut him out as a
lunatic.

He instinctively reached for the door knob,
but hesitated and thought better of it. He chose to ring the
doorbell instead. Seconds passed with no sounds from within, and
subconsciously he began to become nervous, as he wondered if he was
already too late. He reached to ring the bell again, and heard the
dead-bolt as it turned from inside. The door opened slightly, and
Tracey peered through the crack. He watched in amazement as her
expression changed from simple aggravation to anger.

“What do you want, Jack? To ruin the rest of
our evening?” She asked sarcastically.

“Trace, I’m sorry about what happened.
Something came up-”

“I don’t care, Jack. I’ve had it. That’s why
you’re outside, and I’m inside. It doesn’t matter anymore.”

“Who is it mommy?” Bella called from inside
the house.

“Trace, it doesn’t matter how much you hate
me right now. I’m here for a different reason. You’re in danger,
you’re all in danger. You’ve got to leave, and you’ve got to do it
now.”

“Leave? Why? And go where? Your place, I
presume.”

“Trace, you can go wherever you want, but
you’ve got to leave.”

“Mommy! Who is it?” Bella called again. Trace
looked back inside the house, but was reluctant to tell her
daughter that her father was at the door. She was too angry at Jack
to let the emotions of their children drown it out. Not yet
anyway.

“We’re not going anywhere, Jack. Not today,
not tomorrow, never. And, especially not with you. Someday,
hopefully, you’ll get it. Until then, I would appreciate it if you
just left us alone.” Tracey began to close the door, and quickly
Jack shot out his hand to stop her.

“Trace, this isn’t about me. You’ve got to
listen to me. You have to leave. Pack the kids and get out. And
you’ve got to do it now!” He said, as he raised his voice with her
for the first time that he could ever remember. He realized that it
was a mistake as he saw the reaction on her face.

“If you step foot on this property again,
Jack King, I’ll have your ass incarcerated so fast that your own
boss won’t even be able to stop it. Now get your damn hand off of
my door and get the hell out of here!”

“Daddy? Is it Daddy?” Bella said as she
approached her mother’s side.

“Go back in the living room, Bella. It’s
nobody.” Tracey said, as she tried to calm her daughter.

"Bella! It’s Daddy! You’re in danger, sweety!
You’ve got to talk Mommy into all of you leaving the house
tonight!”

“Damn you, Jack!” Tracey blurted out.

“What’s he saying, mommy?” Bella asked
timidly, as the fear suddenly bubbled to the surface of her
voice.

“There’s a bad man coming, honey! And he’s
coming tonight! Mommy needs to get you all out of the house!” Jack
said. His hand now grasped the edge of the door and held it open
even as Tracey tried to close it.

“You bastard!” She said as she kicked the
door. The door slammed his hand against the door jamb, and sent
sharp stabs of pain up his arm. He fought the agony for a few
seconds and tried not to yell. He finally managed to get his hand
out of the door. The door closed completely. He heard the dead-bolt
turn. The door was locked tightly. He had failed. She didn’t
believe him, and was angrier than ever. He stood there in shock, as
his mind raced to his next course of action. Smith had gotten away,
so that meant that he would show up there. Here. At the house.
Tracey would not leave, which meant that they would still die. She
wouldn’t listen to him, so there was no way to persuade her to
leave. His only option was to stake out the house, and be there
when Smith showed up. And this time, he thought, the option to take
him into custody was not even an option. Jack would shoot on sight,
regardless of the consequences.

Jack climbed back into his stolen car, and
headed for the apartment. He planned to make a few calls, and call
in some old favors to get the equipment that he would need tonight.
That and maybe grab a quick bite to eat. In his excitement earlier
in the day, he had failed to eat anything at all, and now, though
everything was on the line, he was famished. Traffic was light as
he headed to his new home, but the few cars still slowed him
slightly as he made his way there. Finally, he pulled into the
parking area beneath the apartment complex, and parked the stolen
car at the rear. As he walked to the elevator, his mind began to
run through what he would need to stake out the house tonight, and
how much time he had to get there.

When he reached his apartment door, he
quickly found the right key and managed to open the lock and the
door almost simultaneously. As he entered, he walked straight to
the kitchen. He opened the refrigerator and began to rummage
through it when he heard a faint noise. A slight hiss, almost like
static. It was soothing, yet irritating at the same time. He
thought that the TV must have been on and he had not noticed it, or
maybe even his clock radio had gone off. He walked into the living
room and listened for the sound and its source. As he rounded the
table near his chair, he bumped it, and it crashed to the floor.
Even as he bent down to pick it up, he realized where the sound
came from. In shock he looked towards the bathroom. He now
recognized the sound of the shower. Instinctively he reached for
his weapon when suddenly he heard a voice.

“Hello?” He heard a muffled voice call from
the bathroom. “I’m armed!” It said in response to his silence.
Jack’s mind whirled as he realized that the voice was unmistakably
his own. Then his mind began to remember this exact instance, only
hours ago, when he had been in the shower and heard a noise. Jack
knew that his other self was on the opposite side of the bathroom
door, gun in hand and was ready to shoot. Jack ran to the front
door, opened it and ran out. He heard the voice from the bathroom
call out again. He didn’t bother to lock the door. He shut it
quickly and ran down the hallway towards the elevator, and
repeatedly punched the button until the door opened and he was
safely inside. As he rode the elevator to the garage parking area,
he couldn’t help but wonder what Ted would have thought about what
had just happened. He had been concerned about what would happen if
you ran into oneself while being time looped. What would happen if
you were killed by one’s other self while in a time loop. What
would Einstein have thought about that, he wondered.