Austin was thinking the same thing and didn’t have an answer for Samuel. Meanwhile the question made Devon and Eric think of Sandy again. She had been the one who had encouraged them into the building, always willing to go to great lengths to get the clip she wanted. They had worked as a team in the city for a couple of years now and in that time, Sandy had forced them into sewers, the Hudson and extreme heights. But none were quite as life-threatening as asking them to run into a soon to be burning building. Regardless, she hadn’t needed to ask twice. Devon and Eric had both nodded and run in behind her, their eagerness to get the story far surpassing their concerns for their lives.
It wasn’t easy for Devon to forget that now all of that had been for nothing. If the three of them had stopped to think, they would’ve realized that being the crew to break the scoop on Trident wasn’t such an achievement. Pretty soon their station wouldn’t have the money to keep functioning. People would stop watching television and no one would remember which channel had been the first to break the truth.
For once, the truth was irrelevant. It wasn’t the tiny details that mattered, it was the bigger picture. They had put their lives at risk – and in Sandy’s case, at an end – for nothing. Rage started to bubble up inside Devon as that became more and more apparent. Sandy had died for nothing and that was a fact he was really struggling to deal with. If it wasn’t for Samuel Westchester and his statement, she would probably still be alive.
The four of them walked in silence up the ramp to the ground floor level of the parking lot. The rage continued to stew inside Devon, while the others were mainly focused on whether they would be able to get out of the parking lot alive. Samuel and Austin both turned their heads simultaneously once at the top of the ramp, the pair of them looking to where they knew the exit to be and heaving heavy sighs of relief when they saw it was relatively empty. Some rioters wandered about, but none of them had blocked off the parking lot and it looked like they’d be able to make their escape unnoticed.
“Everyone stay quiet,” Austin prompted cautiously. There was tension in the air, and he knew the slightest mistake could put their lives in danger once again. Until he was safely in Poughkeepsie with his arms around his family, he wouldn’t be able to relax. “Single file. Let’s hope no one spots us.”
Samuel walked behind Austin, hugging the wall of the parking lot and using it to hopefully throw a shadow over his face. He was terrified of being recognized and blamed for everything, the broadcast labelling him as the face and voice of Trident. Once out of the parking lot, it was only a couple of blocks back to his apartment where he intended to stay for a number of days, keeping a low profile and waiting for the immediate and terrifying reaction to the crash to die down.
The closer they got to the exit, the louder the roar of the crowd and the flames became. The air was thick with smoke and stank of a bonfire, the Trident headquarters burning quickly and giving off a tremendous amount of heat. It was a blaze that had to have been aided by gasoline to some extent, catching quickly and spreading. The one positive was that the sound and the people’s awe of the burning building provided them with the perfect cover. No one was looking to the parking lot and so no one noticed when four figures appeared from within it. Until one of them gave the small group away.
“Over here!” Devon shouted, running several feet away from the others and waving his arms in the air in the direction of the mob. “It’s Samuel Westchester! He’s the one from the broadcast!”
“Devon, what are you doing?” Eric was shocked by his friend’s actions, rushing over to his side and grabbing his arms, pulling them down by his side. But it was too late. People had noticed and heard what he’d said, looking in their direction and starting to walk toward them.
“It’s all his fault,” Devon spat. “Sandy would still be alive if it wasn’t for him. He deserves to burn, not her.”
Samuel looked at Austin in terror as people started getting closer and closer, more of them recognizing him and shouting his name, beckoning others to come and join them. Austin locked eyes with him and looked equally frightened, the angry mob targeting them and coming towards them with a bloodthirsty vengeance. There was only one thing for it. Austin took a deep breath and uttered one word to Samuel, the pair of them united in their moment of fear.
“Run.”
They took off as fast as they could manage, Samuel’s legs and arms pumping to keep up with Austin who was considerably younger and fitter than he was. Through a sheer stroke of luck, Austin had started running in the direction that led to Samuel’s apartment. Samuel knew if they could make it there and get inside then they would be safe – just so long as no one saw them and tried the same trick they’d done with Trident. Escaping one burning building in a day was enough for Samuel to deal with. Getting there undetected
