Buried Alive
1740 Words
Cole's ears rang. Dust filled his lungs. He couldn't see. Couldn't breathe.
He coughed. Reached out. His hand hit rock. Then metal. The truck door.
“Frankie!” he shouted.
No answer.
“Kane! Juliet!”
Silence.
Cole pushed against the door. It didn't move. He pushed harder. Rocks shifted. The door opened an inch. Light filtered through. Dim. Flickering.
He squeezed through the gap. The tunnel was destroyed. Concrete chunks. Twisted rebar. Dust hung in the air like fog.
The truck was crushed. The front end was buried under tons of rubble. The back was partially visible.
Cole climbed onto the hood. Pulled at the back door. It opened.
Frankie was inside. Unconscious. Blood on his face.
Cole grabbed his collar. Pulled him out. Laid him on the tunnel floor.
“Frankie. Wake up.”
Frankie groaned. Opened his eyes. “What happened?”
“Explosion. The tunnel collapsed.”
Kane crawled out of the back. His leg was bleeding. But he was alive.
“Juliet?” Cole asked.
“I'm here.” Her voice came from inside the truck. She climbed out. Shaken. But unhurt.
Cole looked around. The tunnel was blocked in both directions. Rocks. Concrete. Steel beams.
“We're trapped,” he said.
Kane pulled out his phone. No signal.
“We need to find another way out. Emergency exits. Maintenance tunnels.”
They searched. The tunnel was a tomb. Cold. Dark. Quiet.
Then Cole saw it. A door. Steel. Rusted. In the wall.
He walked to it. Pulled the handle. Locked.
He stepped back. Kicked it. The door groaned. Didn't open.
He kicked again. The frame cracked.
Third kick. The door burst open.
A hallway. Dark. Narrow. Emergency lights flickered on the ceiling.
“This way,” Cole said.
They helped Frankie walk. His leg was hurt. But he could move.
The hallway led to stairs. Up. They climbed. One flight. Two. Three.
A door at the top. Cole pushed it open.
Street level. A parking garage. Empty. Silent.
They walked to the street. The rain had stopped. The city was waking up.
Kane pulled out his phone. Signal now. He made a call.
“I need a car. Now. Near the Holland Tunnel.” He paused. Listened. “Five minutes.”
They waited. The street was empty. No cars. No people.
A black sedan pulled around the corner. Kane walked to it. Spoke to the driver.
The driver got out. Handed Kane the keys. Walked away.
“Get in,” Kane said.
They climbed into the sedan. Cole drove. Kane navigated.
“Where to?” Cole asked.
“The courthouse. Your mother's hearing is in three hours.”
“We can't go there. Cross will have men waiting.”
“We don't have a choice. If we don't show up, the judge signs the order. Your mother goes back to The Pines. Forever.”
Cole drove. The streets were crowded now. Commuters. Taxis. Buses.
He checked the rearview mirror. A black SUV followed. Same one from the tunnel.
“We have a tail.”
Kane turned. “Zane. He survived.”
“Then we lose him.”
Cole turned down a side street. The SUV followed. He turned again. The SUV followed.
He drove toward the waterfront. Empty warehouses. Abandoned piers.
The SUV stayed close.
Cole stopped the car. Got out. Pulled his pistol.
The SUV stopped. Zane got out. His hands were empty.
“Cole. I'm not here to fight.”
“Then why are you here?”
“To warn you. Cross is going to kill your mother. Not send her to The Pines. Kill her. He's done with games.”
Cole's blood ran cold. “Why should I believe you?”
“Because I'm done with him. He used me. Just like he used your father. Just like he used everyone.” Zane walked closer. “I have evidence. Files. Recordings. Everything. I'll give it to you. But you have to get me out. Protect me.”
Cole looked at Kane. Kane nodded.
“Get in the car,” Cole said.
Zane walked to the sedan. Got in the back.
Cole drove. Away from the waterfront. Toward the courthouse.
“Where's the evidence?” Cole asked.
“In a safe house. In Brooklyn. I'll take you there after the hearing.”
“After the hearing might be too late.”
“Then we go now.”
Cole looked at the time. 7:30 AM. The hearing was at 9:00.
“We go now. But if you're lying, I'll kill you myself.”
“I'm not lying.”
Cole drove to Brooklyn. The safe house was a brownstone. Quiet street. Zane led them inside.
The basement was filled with files. Boxes. Computers.
“This is everything,” Zane said. “Every crime. Every bribe. Every murder. Cross's entire operation.”
Cole opened a box. Photographs. Documents. Recordings.
“Why now?” Cole asked. “Why betray him?”
“Because he killed my sister. She worked for him. She found out too much. He had her killed. Made it look like an accident.”
“I'm sorry.”
“Don't be sorry. Be smart. Use this evidence to destroy him.”
Cole looked at Kane. “We need to copy everything. Send it to Mira Vance. To Dean. To every journalist we know.”
Kane nodded. He started photographing documents. Uploading files.
Cole called Dean.
“Cole. Where are you?”
“Brooklyn. Safe house. We have the evidence. Cross's entire operation.”
“Get it to me. Now.”
“I will. But first, I need you to get my mother out of the courthouse. Before the hearing.”
“I can't. She's in custody. The marshals won't release her.”
“Then we go to the hearing. We present the evidence. We end this.”
“That's suicide.”
“It's the only play.”
Cole hung up. He looked at Zane. “You're coming with us.”
“I know.”
They loaded the evidence into the sedan. Boxes. Hard drives. Files.
Cole drove toward the courthouse.
The streets were packed now. 8:45 AM.
He parked in a garage across the street. They carried the evidence inside.
The courthouse lobby was crowded. Lawyers. Defendants. Families.
Cole pulled his hood up. Walked to the security checkpoint. Kane showed a badge. Federal agent. They were waved through.
The courtroom was on the third floor. Judge Prescott's courtroom. Same as before.
Cole walked to the door. A guard stopped him.
“Name?”
“Cole Mathers.”
The guard's eyes widened. He reached for his radio.
Kane stepped forward. “He's with me. Federal witness protection.”
The guard hesitated. Kane showed his badge again.
“Let them through.”
The guard stepped aside.
Cole walked into the courtroom.
The gallery was full. Journalists. Spectators. Police.
At the front, Evelyn Mathers sat at the defense table. Her hands were cuffed. Her face was pale.
Next to her, Dean Cross. Her lawyer.
At the prosecutor's table, Monica Velez. Smiling.
On the bench, Judge Prescott.
Cole walked down the aisle. Everyone turned. Murmurs.
“Mr. Mathers,” Judge Prescott said. “You're under arrest.”
“I know, Your Honor. But before you call the marshals, I need to present evidence. Evidence that will clear my name and expose the crimes of Victor Cross and Aegis Solutions.”
Velez stood. “This is a stunt, Your Honor. The defendant is trying to delay the inevitable.”
Judge Prescott held up her hand. “Let him speak.”
Cole opened a box. Pulled out a stack of documents.
“These are records of bribes paid to judges. Including some in this courthouse.”
The crowd gasped.
“These are photographs of Victor Cross with known criminals. Including my father, Charles Mathers.”
He held up a photograph. Cross and Charles. Shaking hands.
“And this is a recording of Victor Cross ordering the murder of my wife, Lauren Mathers.”
The courtroom went silent.
Cole pressed play on a recorder.
Cross's voice filled the room. “The Mathers woman is a problem. Eliminate her. Make it look like the husband did it.”
The recording ended.
Judge Prescott's face was pale. “Mr. Mathers, where did you get this evidence?”
“From a former Aegis operative. Victor Cross's own assassin. He's outside. Ready to testify.”
Velez stood. “This is outrageous. The evidence is clearly fabricated.”
“It's not fabricated,” a voice said.
Everyone turned.
Juliet Cross stood in the doorway.
“My name is Juliet Cross. Victor Cross is my father. And everything Cole Mathers has said is true.”
The courtroom erupted.
Judge Prescott banged her gavel. “Order! Order!”
The room quieted.
Juliet walked down the aisle. She stood next to Cole.
“I have my mother's diary. She documented every crime my father committed. Every bribe. Every murder. I'm giving it to the court.”
She handed the diary to the judge.
Judge Prescott opened it. Read a few pages. Her hands were shaking.
“This is... this is extensive.”
“It's the truth,” Juliet said.
Velez sat down. Her face was white.
Judge Prescott looked at Cole. “Mr. Mathers, you're still under arrest. But I'm granting a continuance. One week. To verify this evidence.”
“And my mother?”
“Your mother is released. Into your custody.”
Evelyn's cuffs were removed. She stood. Walked to Cole. Hugged him.
“I'm proud of you,” she whispered.
“I learned from you.”
The courtroom cleared. Journalists ran to file their stories. Police officers looked at Cole. Unsure what to do.
Kane walked over. “We need to leave. Cross will retaliate.”
“Where can we go?”
“My safe house. In Virginia. It's secure.”
They walked out of the courthouse. The sun was bright. The sky was blue.
For the first time in weeks, Cole felt hope.
Then the gunshot rang out.
Cole turned. Juliet was on the ground. Blood on her chest.
He ran to her. Pressed his hands against the wound.
“Stay with me. Stay with me.”
Her eyes were open. Fading.
“Tell my father... I finally... won.”
She closed her eyes.
Cole looked up. Across the street. A black SUV. Driving away.
Zane was gone.
And the war had just begun.
- Writer
