He listened for any sounds emanating from the residence other than the sounds of the fire itself. None. He’d disabled every smoke alarm he could find. If he’d missed one, he would have known by now.
The downstairs filled with heavy black smoke, flames barely visible as they spread across the ceiling. The rustic beams made perfect kindling, ignited quickly and burned hot for long periods of time. The all glass prow-shaped rear wall blew outward, glass crashed onto the back patio. Flames curled around the roofline, crawling laterally from room to room, feeding itself on the old home.
Time to go.
He stuffed his binoculars and the wireless device into his backpack, slung it across his shoulder and ran toward his car.
When he reached the edge of the woods he could hear the blazing roar of the fire behind him. The streets were empty. He ran to his car. In the distance he heard the faint sound of sirens.
He tossed his backpack on the seat, started his car, and drove to the edge of the parking lot. To his left he saw flashing lights rounding the curve a half a mile north of him on Shenandoah. He turned right just as a ball of fire ballooned over the tree line in front of him. The sound wave that followed rocked his vehicle. He turned right, west, on Lower Fayetteville Road and saw flashing lights ahead so he made another quick right on Stonebridge Boulevard and entered a residential subdivision.
An approaching fire truck had unexpectedly cut off his planned escape route on Shenandoah. His alternate route cut off by a police car. Meticulous planning is the key to success. Plotting several different escape routes had always been a requirement for Collins. Plan for the unexpected had been his axiom. It had kept him alive all of these years. And out of the hands of authorities.
Collins weaved through the Stonebridge subdivision until he reached Newnan Crossing Boulevard. He turned north. By the time he reached the traffic signal at Col. Joe M. Jackson Medal of Honor Highway, the night air was filled with sirens from all types of emergency vehicles responding to the blaze.
In his rear view mirror Collins could see the orange glow from the fire. He turned left when the light changed to green then made an immediate right onto Interstate 85 and drove toward Atlanta.
Collins hummed a John Prine song he heard on the radio, “Sweet revenge, sweet revenge, without fail.”
CHAPTER 38
Kyli placed her hand on her friend’s shoulder. “Kates. Kates, wake up. We need to get moving.”
“Come on, Kyli.” Kates whined. “It’s early and I have jet lag.”
“If you want to see Paris today, you need to get your ass in gear.” Kyli said.
“This is Europe, for crying out loud, how far can it be?”
“The drive is three hundred fifty kilometers.” Kyli ripped the sheets off Kates.
Kates was one of Kyli’s best friends from high school. She slept in gym shorts and a t-shirt. Her long brown hair tangled and matted. All Kyli could see were Kates’ long legs that seemed to stretch for eternity, a physical trait Kyli envied.
Kates opened her blue eyes as she grabbed for the covers. “Kyli. I don’t know what a kilometer is. Well, I know what it is, but I don’t know how far it is.”
“Fine.” Kyli ripped the covers off the bed again. “It’s like a hundred and eighty miles.”
“Three hours then.” Kates grabbed for the covers again. “And the way you drive, probably less.”
“Nope.” Kyli struggled with Kates over the covers. “Like you said, this is Europe. The drive is more like five hours. So let’s get moving. You can sleep in the car.”
Kates sat up in the bed. “Your grandfather’s Mercedes is a car.” She said. “A Mini Cooper is not a car, it’s a shoebox with wheels.”
“Maybe so. But it’s fun to drive.” Kyli opened the curtains. The sun highlighted the purple walls. “ So, what do you want to see first?”
“You know what’s on my list.” Kates grabbed a towel from the closet. “I want to see the Eiffel Tower, Champs Elysees, and the Louvre. Those are a must.”
“We’ll walk Champs Elysees tonight.” Kyli said. “It’s pretty at night with all the lights. The Louvre takes a lot longer than the Eiffel Tower so we can do the tower in the morning, it’s on the other side of the river, then we’ll head over to the Louvre and stay as long as you’d like.”
“Tell me about that guy your grandfather brought over with him.” Kates’ flipped the towel onto her shoulder. “Is he cute?”
“Jake?”
Kates nodded. “Is there somebody else?”
“No. Just the one. He’s cute and single.” Kyli said. “He has thick, wavy, dirty blond hair, and a good body. Sparkling blue eyes. He’s so serious. I had fun messing with him when he was here. He got blitzed when I took him to Oktoberfest so the next morning I told him he was a good kisser.”
“You kissed him?”
“No.” Kyli said. “Just told him that to mess with his head a little. I set him up. When he passed out on the bed, I stripped his clothes off, put my bra on the floor, left my nylons wadded on the couch, and looked unkempt like we’d slept together. When he woke up, he nearly freaked out. He couldn’t remember a thing. I almost felt sorry for him…but not enough to tell him it was a joke.”
“How old is this guy?” Kates asked.
“He’s older, maybe the age gap is too much.”
“How much older?” Kates asked.
“I don’t remember exactly.” Kyli said. “I think Grandpa said he was thirty-three or thirty-four. Something like that.”
“Kyli. You’re twenty-eight. That’s only six years.” Kates threw her dirty clothes at Kyli. “I’d say he’s a prime target. Hell, you’ve dated guys older than that.”
“Yeah, I know, but I didn’t really like them. Besides, I don’t think he’s mentally available.”
“What? Is he psycho?” Kates asked.
“No, not at all.” Kyli said. “Actually he’s very intelligent. I should have said I don’t think he’s emotionally available. His fiancée was killed in March and I don’t know that he’s ready to move on yet.”
“Kyli, you’re smart and like to have a good time. Maybe he needs some of that right now.” Kates said. “Where is he now?”
“He’s off with Grandpa on another one of those ‘top-secret’ missions.” Kyli made quotes with her fingers. “Somewhere in the Middle East. Grandpa’s probably already gotten him killed. That’d be my luck. But if he comes back—.”
“Watch out, Jake.” Kates laughed. “Here comes Kyli.”
Hashim Khan planned a busy day for the five men in the basement. He awakened them an hour before dawn. “Today will be a glorious day.” He said to them in their native tongue.
“Please accompany me to the men’s prayer room for morning prayer.” Khan said.
Khan and the five men spread their prayer mats in the Mihrab, a semi-circular niche in the mosque facing the direction of the Ka’ba in Mecca. Prayer was required five times a day. Their lives were centered on prayer. So important, prayer was designated the second Pillar. Islam has five obligatory acts or Pillars. The Qur’an presents these pillars as a framework for worship and a sign of commitment to the faith. Shahada, the reciting of the Islamic creed in Arabic. Salat, Islamic prayer. Sawm, fasting during Ramadan. Zakat, almsgiving. And Hajj, the pilgrimage to Mecca.