It's Gonna Be Okay

IT'S GONNA BE OKAY

“Ohmagod, ohmagod, ohmagod! We’re gonna die!”

“Stop it! We are not going to die!”

“If you don’t kill us, the cops will.”

“No they won’t. It’s all good. Everything’s fine! Now shut up and let me drive!”

The sirens whooped and flashed behind them.

Kendall stomped on the accelerator, sure they were going to get away. Josey was sure they were going to die.

“Hang on!” shouted Kendall as she made a last-second left-hand turn down an alley.

“AHHHHH” screamed Josey, as she hung on the the “oh shit” handle above her head, pressing herself against the car door so that she wouldn’t get tossed around in the speeding car.

"Don’t be a baby. You’ve got your seatbelt on! You’re fine!”

They careened down the alley, barely missing the dumpsters that lined both sides.

All of a sudden, a big orange cat sauntered out into their path.

“Don’t kill the cat!” screamed Josey.

Kendall feathered the brakes, slowing just enough to give the big old tom enough time to scoot to the other side of the alley.

“No worries,” said Kendall.

The police were just entering the alley. Kendall punched it, made a quick right onto a side street, then another immediate right, roaring down a new alley. She pushed a button on a device that looked for all the world, like a garage door opener. It was a garage door opener. About half way down the alley, a door started to rise. By the time they reached it, the door was open, and they drove in just like it was the Bat Cave. Before they were all the way in, Kendall pushed the button again, and the door started to close. She turned off the car.

“Shhh,” she whispered. “Just in case they’re outside.”

Kendall got out of the car, quietly closing her door with hardly a discernible click. Josey followed suit. The interior was dark — Kendall had unscrewed the light that usually went on when the garage door opener was used.

“Come on,” said Kendall, using her phone’s flashlight app to illuminate the way.

*****

One Hour Ago

Kendall’s phone buzzed in her pocket. As she pulled it out, she scanned the caller ID — “Aunt Sara.”

“Kingston.”

“We have another case for you.”

“Send the details.”

After reading the details, Kendall bought a pizza, hopped in her car, and drove to the address in the information she'd just received. She walked up to the door, rang the doorbell.

A woman opened the door.

“Pizza for Aunt Sara,” said Kendall.

The woman took one last look in her house, grabbed her purse and ran with Kendall to the car. Just as they were jumping in the car, a man came out of the house, swearing.

“Get the hell back here!”

When the woman didn’t respond, the man started running towards the car.

“Get out of the car, bitch, before I kill you!” he screamed.

“Ohmagod,” breathed Josey. “He’s going to kill me.”

Kendall took her eyes off the road for barely a second, looking at her passenger.

“Josey, right?” 

The woman beside her nodded.

“Nobody’s going to kill you, Josey. That’s why you’re in this car, with me. You’re safe.”

“But he’s a cop. He has friends. He’ll find me. And he’ll kill me.” She started to cry.

“Josey, you contacted us because you wanted to get away from your husband. We’re going to get you away from your husband. And we're going to get you out of the city. And we’re going to get you a new name, a new place to live, and a new job. It’s gonna be okay."

WHOOP! WHOOP!

Red and blue lights lit up behind them.

“I told you! I told you he would find me! He’s going to kill me!”

“Not while you’re with me, he’s not!”

Kendall smashed the accelerator to the mat. The car lurched forward gaining speed, leaving the cops behind them.

But not for long.  

As the patrol car started gaining, Kendall went faster, making unexpected turns, at one point doing a manoeuvre that swung the car one hundred and eighty degrees so that she passed the patrol car going the other way.  

It bought them a few precious seconds.

Kendall knew this part of the city well. She knew the short cuts, which alleys were dead ends, which were wide enough for the car.  And, she drove like a pro.  

*****

Kendall led Josey through the darkened garage towards, what looked like a back wall. But there was keypad and Kendall tapped in the numbers. The door swung open.

“A secret door?” whispered Josey.

Kendall nodded brusquely.

They walked through the opening, and Kendall shut the door behind them. They had disappeared from the garage. A couple of twists and turns and they were in the back of what Kendall guessed was a shop or a store.

“Give me your phone,” said Kendall.

“My phone? I turned it off and put it in the faraday bag you gave me. He can’t track me.”

Kendall wasn’t swayed. She just held out her hand.

“But my whole life is on it. My photos, my contacts — everything.”

Kendall lowered her hand. For the first time since they had met, there was a gentleness in her eyes.

“Josey, I know how hard this is for you. And I know that you’re scared. But you have to leave everything behind. Everything! Ted’s a cop, and he’ll track you. He has access to databases — local, national, and international. You don’t want him to find you, right?”

Josey shook her head, said nothing.

“Okay, so we’re going to get you lost. You’re going to disappear off the face of the earth. A new person will appear in your place. Ted will never find you, unless you contact him.” Kendall looked at Josey hard, all gentleness gone. “You’re not going to contact him, are you Josey?”

Again, she just shook her head.

“So,” Kendall said, holding out her hand, “Can I please have your phone?”

Josey handed her phone to Kendall.  

*****

THE NEXT DAY

“Okay,” said Kendall. “Bonita here will drive you to the west coast.”

Josey smiled weakly at Bonita.  

“When you get there, she’ll take you to a place we have, where they’ll hook you up with a job and a place to live.”

“My parents?” asked Josey.

“We can’t tell them where you are, but we can tell them that you’re safe. We suggest you wait at least six months to a year to contact them. But that depends on how Ted’s taking your disappearing act. If he’s still badgering your parents, we can’t take the chance telling them where you are. It’s for your safety as well as theirs.”

Josey just nodded.

“Oh and Josey …”

“Yes?”

“NO!” said Kendall, eyes flaring. “You’re not Josey anymore. Josey Campbell is gone. You’re Juanita Cassair. Don’t forget that. From now on, you only answer to Juanita. It could save your life.”

Kendall looked at Bonita, who nodded.

“Okay, time to leave.” She looked into Juanita’s eyes. “You can do this. You’re strong, intelligent, and you do not deserve to be terrorized by Ted. You’re better than that.”

Fear was written on Juanita face.

“But I’m scared.”

“We all were, at one time. But it gets better. Trust me. It's gonna be okay.”

*****

At roll call, the sergeant made a special appeal on the behalf of an officer from another precinct.

“There’s a BOLO out for a 2022 black Ford Bronco, licence plate SBT 954. Officer Ted Campbell’s wife, one Josey Campbell — whose picture is being distributed right now — was kidnapped yesterday by a woman pretending to be a pizza delivery person. If you see the car, call for backup. The unknown woman is considered armed and dangerous.”

“Hey, Kinston,” someone shouted from the back of the room. “You drive a black Bronco, don’t you.”

Kendall looked around at the heckler. 

“Yeah. So?”

“You’re not kidnapping other cops’ wives are you?”

“Sure!” she said. “That’s the only way I can get a date!”

There was laughter throughout the room.

Kendall knew it was gonna be okay.