The Secret Manuscript

  Chapter Six

  The onsite security guard stood tall, pointing his flashlight in Ben’s direction. Evidently he had woken up and discovered the intruder.

  “You can’t be in here,” the guard shouted from the other end of the hallway.

  The adrenaline in Ben’s body spiked and his heart was pounding violently in his chest. He swallowed hard and tried to suppress his nerves. He was ridden with guilt from the looting, but as far as he knew, the guard was unaware of what he had done. At this point, if Ben was caught, the security guard might just ask him to leave the premises and the police would not be involved. Unsure what to do, Ben stood frozen in his tracks, allowing the guard to come closer. Ben’s back was to the guard and there was still a good twenty-foot distance between them so if he decided to run, not only would he have a head start on the guard, but his identity would remain hidden.

  The guard approached cautiously and Ben remained still. By now, the guard was within an arm’s reach. So far, any attempts to communicate with Ben went unanswered.

  “You gotta leave now,” the guard demanded, this time grabbing Ben firmly by the arm.

  The contact determined the fate of the situation. Ben had experienced physical abuse in the past, and when the guard touched him, he completely freaked. He went into a blind rage, which was no doubt amplified by his already heightened state of adrenaline. Without saying a word, Ben turned around and swung his fists wildly at the guard with a combination of looping haymakers, any one of which could do serious damage if they connected cleanly. The guard must have anticipated the potential for a physical confrontation since he avoided many of the sudden blows. Ben kept pressing forward and eventually one of his punches found its home and landed squarely on the guard’s jaw. The guard stumbled backwards and dropped his flashlight on the floor. The impact caused it to turn off, making it even more difficult for the stunned guard to see.

  Ben generally avoided violence, so instead of staying to finish the fight, he decided to flee. He ran down the hallway and reviewed the possibility of choices that were before him.

  The first option was to continue running straight through the fire escape door, which was located at the end of the hallway. On the surface, this seemed like the soundest choice, but Ben thought otherwise. Even though it would be the easiest route of escape, it would also be the easiest exit for the security guard. Success with this strategy relied on a footrace to the perimeter fence and Ben did not have a lot of confidence in his athletic ability. Once at the fence, he still needed to squeeze through. In the time it would take him to do that, the guard could easily nab him. That would most certainly result in Ben receiving a beating before being hauled off by the police.

  The second option was to run back into the same apartment he had come in from. This strategy presented an advantage over the first by allowing Ben to get inside the apartment and lock the door behind him, thus creating a barrier between him and the pursuing guard. However, the guard would likely just leave through the fire exit and apprehend Ben as he crawled out the window. Alternatively, the guard could just kick the door down and follow Ben into the apartment. This would be the best case scenario, but then he would likely discover Ben’s secret stash by the window. Even if Ben managed to elude the chasing guard, he could not be sure another guard was not waiting for him outside.

  The third option, the one he went with, was to enter the stairwell and run up to the fourth floor.

  By the time the guard retrieved his flashlight and turned it back on, he only caught a glimpse of Ben entering the stairwell. The heavyset guard ran after Ben, but was not able to catch up to him. Once the guard reached the entrance, Ben was nowhere in sight. The guard continued to pursue up a few flights of stairs, but had no idea which floor Ben had run to. Tracking a man through the building would be incredibly time consuming. With so many apartments in the building, the likelihood of finding Ben was slim. Instead, the guard opted to retrace his steps downstairs and patrol the perimeter of the building until the police arrived.

  Out of breath and anxious, Ben made it to the fourth floor and entered his old apartment. He shone the flashlight around and was devastated at what he saw. The fire had ravaged his apartment, rendering it unrecognizable. There was nothing left. His furniture had been destroyed, his computer was burnt to a crisp, and his bedroom was no longer existent. The floor creaked beneath his feet as he walked. Remembering what had happened to his bed, Ben took each step with caution.

  Just then, red and blue flashing lights from a squad car below shone through his living room and lit up the blackened apartment. Living in a small town showed yet another disadvantage — the police could get anywhere within minutes. Ben contemplated running, but was too exhausted. The only sensible thing for him to do was surrender.