Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Burial

Unknown area

Margaret shuddered as Lyle gave a soft smile.

“Very good. I’ll be in touch.”

She didn't like the glint in his eye when he closed the phone and turned to her. She fidgeted, and then looked away, staring at the road that stretched out before them.

“Take the next turnoff to the right. There should be a car parked next to the road. Stop behind it.”

The sweeper acknowledged the command and then the silence continued until the van slowed and came to a halt behind a maroon sedan.

“Let’s go, Margaret,” Lyle said as he held the door open for her. She followed him to the back of the van and waited by his side as the sweeper opened the doors. It looked like J hasn’t moved at all. She started towards his unresponsive body and stopped when she saw Lyle shook his head lightly.

“Please, I…I just…I need to see if my son is still alive,” she pleaded softly; her gaze never leaving J’s body. Lyle seemed to consider her request, his head tilted at a slight angle, his eyes cold. She didn’t dare breath and at last after what felt like an hour he nodded.

She rushed forward and entered the van. Jarod shifted into a seated position, his eyes slits when he met her eyes. She could see the pain and fear etched into his face. He swallowed visibly before he whispered, “Did he hurt you?”

“No, I’m ok.”

She turned away, hiding her face as she reached out trembling fingers to gently caress J’s face. She desperately wanted him to stir, to show that he was aware of her but there was nothing. He remained still and quiet, the only indication that he was alive was the barely perceived movement of his chest.

“I love you J,” she said as she leaned forward and kissed her son’s forehead. “I’ll be back soon, I promise. Just hold on, ok. Please, just don’t give in.”

She wiped a stray tear away quickly when she climbed out. Jarod was pulled out by the sweeper and the doors were closed behind him.

“What are you doing? Where are you taking J?”

“Nothing that concerns you for the moment, Margaret.”

“He’s my son! I have a right to know.”

Lyle gave only a half smirk. “Really?”

She looked at Jarod quickly. He was barely lucid enough to follow the conversation, his head down and his body hunched over his hand that he was cradling.

“You listen to me, Bobby. I will…”

The sound of a loud slap followed and Jarod growled, lifting his head.

“I warned you, Margaret. Do you want me to release Gemini from his misery?” Lyle spat, his face livid with fury. He grabbed her arm and pulled her close until their faces were inches apart. She could hear Jarod struggling weakly against the grip of the sweeper.

“Lyle, no. Don’t.”

His eyes drifted from her to Jarod before it settled back on hers. “Do that again and I will put a bullet in Gemini’s head,” he hissed harshly. “Do you understand me, Margaret?”

“Yes.”

He scrutinised her face for another minute before he finally released her arm. She rubbed the area where his fingers had left bruises subconsciously as Lyle disappeared around the van. The sweeper released Jarod and he stumbled towards her.

“Mom?”

Jarod reached out and gently touched the bruised side of her face. She flinched a little but held still. Small blood smears trailed from Jarod’s fingers onto her skin.

“I’m okay. It’s not that serious,” she replied as she turned her attention to his hand that was still held protectively close to his body.

“Oh God,” she choked out, tears flooding her eyes when she finally got a look at Jarod’s left hand. Jarod grimaced and then turned away when his mother reached for the wounded limb.

“You have to get out of here,” he whispered desperately, keeping his eyes averted. “I can distract Lyle. You have to…”

She pulled at his arm, turning him so that he was forced to face her. His voice trailed to silence as she pulled his head against her shoulder and murmured small words of comfort. Jarod allowed a small sob to escape and then took a deep shuddering breath as he tried to bring his emotions under control. Despite their situation, he felt safe in her arms and it was with reluctance that he pushed away from her embrace when he heard Lyle’s footsteps. They turned, facing him as he came around the van, a tog bag in his hand.

He took out a shirt and tossed it at Jarod, commanding him to put it on. Jarod did so slowly, wondering what Lyle had planned. The blood, sweat and grime against his body quickly rubbed off on the shirt, leaving dirt and blood smears across it.

Lyle pulled a water bottle and a cloth from the bag and walked over to where they stood.

“Drink.”

Margaret took a sip and then passed the bottle to Jarod. He tasted the water and then started to gulp it down as the cool liquid slit down his throat. He had no idea he had been that parched. His headache subsided somewhat after the bottle was finished. Lyle lifted his other hand, an evil smile on his face.

“Are you going to fight me on this, Jarod?”

Jarod stepped protectively in front of his mother. He couldn’t move his gaze away from the cloth in the psychopath’s hand. If he was blind, he couldn’t protect his mother. He wouldn’t be able to see the blows coming.

“You won’t need it,” he stated, feeling his pulse quicken with each passing second. “I promise I won’t try to escape.”

Lyle shook his head, the smile still fixed on his face as he calmly stepped closer. Jarod retreated with the same measured pace, pushing his mom back with him.

“Please.”

“Sorry Jarod. But I can’t trust you yet. You understand that, don’t you?”

Jarod didn’t answer, instead glanced at the bleak surroundings. Nothing but arid land greeted his sight. A few straggling bushes clung to the soil and a small hill rose out of the land just to the west of them. Red rock against the light blue sky.

His shoulders slumped and he stopped. There was nowhere to run, even if he could, and he would never leave J behind. Lyle grinned, his eyes glistening as he closed the distance and slid the cloth over Jarod’s head. He could feel the smooth material as it closed over his eyes, bringing his world back to darkness. A hand closed familiarly around his bicep.

“We’re going for a walk, Jarod.”

The hollow pit in his stomach increased and he resisted when Lyle pushed him forward. His hand reached upward to pull the blindfold off. His hand stopped halfway when he heard a small painful gasp from his mother.

“I’ll do what you want, Lyle, just…just don’t hurt her, please.”

“One more attempt of resistance from you, Jarod and your mother will die.” He could hear the open malice in Lyle’s voice and he nodded wordlessly. He followed Lyle’s directions, stumbling his way forward. A soft hand closed around his other arm and he felt grateful to know that his mother was next to his side.

They continued their trek and it was around twenty minutes later that they came to a halt. Jarod was pushed into a kneeling position and he resisted the urge to fight, his thoughts on Lyle’s last promise. The cold steel closed around his wrist of his good hand and then pulled back. The other bracelet closed around his left ankle, leaving him kneeling in an awkward position. He couldn’t stand up even if he had wanted to. Only after he was secured did Lyle remove the blindfold.

He blinked against the fading light of dusk until he could finally make out his nemesis in front of him.

Avoiding eye contact with Lyle, he searched for his mother. She stood slightly to Lyle’s left and when he saw the oblong shaped casket to her left, he started to struggle.

“Don’t. You can’t do this, Lyle. I’ll do anything you want, just don’t do this. Please, don’t.”

He continued his struggles, feeling the blood slick against his wrist and ankle when the cuffs broke through his barely healed skin.

“She will be your incentive to follow through on your earlier promise. I don’t want a chance for you to mess things up.”

Jarod closed his eyes briefly, trying to get the image of Red Rock and the sheriff’s wife out of his mind. It didn’t work. The woman’s face morphed into his own mother’s and he remembered clearly how close he and Kyle had come to not saving her in time. He tried to think of a way out of this, to save his mother from getting into the coffin. Twin tears were starting their trek down.

“Leave her with the boy and hide them. If I don’t follow through or he doesn’t receive a phone call from you within an allotted time, he can do to them whatever you want.” His voice was urgent, low and the words stumbled from his mouth. “You don’t have to do this. There are too many variables that can go wrong.”

“No, Jarod. This way I’ll ensure that nothing will go wrong. It will help to keep your focus on what you’re supposed to do and away from finding ways to escape.” Lyle told him, stepping towards Margaret.

“Mom, run!”

His voice had an edge to it that Margaret had never heard before and she gave a frightened gaze that alternated between her son and Lyle’s.

“Run!”

Her frozen limbs suddenly exploded and she turned and bolted for the small hill that was almost directly in front of her. Long shadows cast across the ground in front of her as the sun slowly slid behind the horizon. She didn’t get far when his harsh voice interrupted her flight.

“Continue to run, Margaret and your son gets a bullet in his head.”

Margaret turned back slowly and her breath froze in her throat. Lyle had Jarod by the hair, the barrel of his gun pressed hard against her son’s temple.

“Get back here or he dies right now.”

She looked at Jarod’s face and saw in his eyes that he wanted her to run, to get away if possible. But she couldn’t do that. She couldn’t live with the knowledge that she would be responsible for his death.

She took a deep breath, gathering her courage and walked back to where the two men waited.