INSIDE THE HALLWAY ON THE SECOND FLOOR OF THE HIGH SCHOOL

 

"I'll take you down the back way," Thomas tells Kimble when the coast looks clear enough. He slings his heavy book bag over his shoulder.

 

Kimble shakes his head. "If Charnquist is in the building, I've got to find him first."

 

Thomas says, "All right Dr. Kimble, but I'm not leaving you until I know that you're safely out of the building."

 

The two proceed cautiously down the hall, checking each classroom. There is a sound from the rear stairs and they freeze, listening to someone climbing. Charnquist's grizzled head appears on the second floor landing. Thomas's eyes bug out in recognition.

 

"Get behind me," Kimble commands, his hand over his pocket. Thomas complies.

 

Charnquist grins expectantly and walks slowly towards them. "You've been keeping me waiting," he taunts Kimble in a raspy voice, "...for too long!"

 

Calculating the distance for the stun-gun, Kimble sees that Charnquist has come into range. He draws the Taser. At the same moment, the girl's restroom door opens in the corridor between them. Alex walks out, her back to Charnquist, and her attention is on closing her purse.  She sees Kimble and gasps. Charnquist darts forward--in one motion seizing and pinning Alex in a vise-like grip, his good hand closing over her mouth.

 

"Drop the girl!" Kimble barks.

 

Alex squirms, trying to scream, bite her captor and get free all at once. Charnquist begins dragging her backwards with him to the rear stairs.

 

"Call the police," Kimble orders Thomas under his breath. "Tell them who the hostage is."

 

"But...they'll catch you, Dr. Kimble," Thomas stammers.

 

Alex's eyes widen as she comprehends the entire situation.

 

"Just do it! Now!!!" Kimble urges. Thomas runs off up the hall.

 

"Let the girl go, Charnquist!" Kimble repeats, approaching, stun-gun leveled.

 

"What do you care?  She’s just another victim," Charnquist grits between his teeth.

 

"You want me--not her."

 

"And I've got you, haven't I?" Charnquist jeers, continuing to drag Alex along. "Unless you'd prefer me to move my hand to her windpipe." He ruthlessly stifles Alex's shrieks by squeezing harder.

 

"Give it up, Ben. The police are coming...and you don't want that anymore than I do."

 

Charnquist snorts. He and Alex have reached the stairs. "But I do," he says shortly, heaving Alex down the steps with him. "I plan to leave them a present." Alex's eyes plead with Kimble to do something.

 

Kimble perspires. He doesn't have a clear shot at Charnquist.

 

At the landing Charnquist stops momentarily to negotiate the next flight. As they start down, Alex lets her feet twist and she stumbles forward in his grasp. Charnquist takes her full weight, cursing. He tries to jerk Alex upright, but with his one arm holding her hostage, he can't catch the rail to steady himself.

 

Kimble seizes the chance and lunges down the stairs towards them. Distracted, Charnquist miscalculates and tumbles forward, with Alex in tow. Alex's legs flail wildly as they fall. Kimble follows close behind, still unable to take aim. When they hit bottom Alex kicks herself free. Her lip is cut and bruised where her mouth has been pressed shut against her teeth. Charnquist is sprawled at the foot of the stairs, temporarily winded.

 

"Tell your father I've got Charnquist!" Kimble cries to her hoarsely from the stairs. "Hurry!" Alex runs for her life out the rear exit as the wail of sirens is heard. Kimble aims at Charnquist, who rolls away. Clearing the stairs in haste, Kimble fires at Charnquist before he can pull himself to his feet. There is an audible 'thunk' as the darts make contact. The two men lock eyes, Kimble waiting for the electric shock to take effect takes out the handcuffs in anticipation. Charnquist's lips curl in a wicked grin. He twists to show Kimble the darts embedded in the sleeve of his prosthetic arm. Then he raises his own gun.

 

"Dr. Kimble!" Entering from behind, Thomas and Jude immediately size up the situation. Moving as one, they shove Kimble to the floor. Charnquist's bullet goes wild. The boys rush him.

 

"GET HIM!!!" Thomas exhorts Jude.

 

"Careful!" shouts Kimble, dropping the now useless Taser and scrambling upright. "The gun!"

 

There is a tangle of limbs as the boys wrestle Charnquist for the weapon. Thomas swings his book bag with all his might into the One-Armed Man's face. Charnquist grunts and sways. Jude clasps his hands together and uses them like a baseball bat to strike at Charnquist's lower back.

 

"Hold it!" A man appears, silhouetted briefly in the doorway. "You boys run along, now. This doesn't concern you." He waves an automatic with a silencer menacingly.

 

"Do as he says," Kimble says softly.

 

Stiff with fear, Thomas and Jude back away, their hands raised in surrender. Police cars are heard, screeching to a halt outside. "They already knew before I called them.  They're here, Dr. Kimble," Thomas calls in warning. "Don't let them find you!"

 

"It doesn't matter if they arrest me...as long as he's arrested, too," Kimble says grimly, nodding at Charnquist.  The boys turn and run pell-mell toward the front entrance.

 

OUTSIDE THE HIGH SCHOOL IN THE FRONT 11:15 AM

 

Kari has arrived on the scene before the rest of the task force.  Only one other police car is there at this point.  All of the kids are out of the building.

 

Kari finds Principal Owen and says, "Mr. Owen, I'm Agent Holmes with the FBI.  I'm part of the Fugitive Task Force, what's the situation?"

 

Before, he can answer Alex runs up to her and says, "Agent Holmes, that animal is in there!"

 

Kari looking confused says, "Who, Alex?"

 

Alex replies, "Charnquist, the one armed man, he grabbed me!"

 

Thomas and Jude run up to her and Thomas says, "It's true, we saw him.  After Alex ran away, an accomplice of his came in and they were holding Dr. Kimble at gun point."

 

Kari's eyes get wide and she says, "Where were they?"

 

Jude says, "By the exit on the south side of the school."

 

Kari turns to Principal Owen and says, "Mr. Owen, keep the students outside until we've got the building secure.  Back up is on its way."

 

Owen nods and says, "Understood Agent Holmes."

 

Kari runs to her car and grabs her bullet proof vest out of the back seat.  She also grabs the photocopies she made of her notes and stuffs them into her jeans pocket.  She puts the vest on and motions to the other two officers there to come over to her.

 

"Officers, since it's just the three of us at this point.  I need one of you to take the north exit and the other one to take the front entrance.  I'll go around to the south exit.  Let's go!"  The three run off in their perspective directions with their guns drawn.

 

INSIDE THE SCHOOL BY THE SOUTH EXIT

 

Charnquist dusts himself off and laughs hideously. "You've never really understood what you're up against, Kimble. You've been thrown to the wolves. Don't you get it? No one wants you proved innocent! I'll be released and on a beach somewhere being served margaritas while you're being served a lethal injection."

 

No longer smiling, Charnquist holds out his hand. "Give me the handcuffs." Kimble doesn't move. Charnquist snatches the silencer from his surprised accomplice and points it at Kimble's head. "I said give me the handcuffs!"

 

"I don't have them." Kimble stalls. He nods his head. "They fell there, under the stairs." Charnquist follows Kimble's gaze, but sees nothing.

 

"Search him," Charnquist snaps. Charnquist goes to the rear door and peers out as his accomplice searches Kimble. "Where's the car?"

 

"At the entrance."

 

"Imbecile! The cops are all over there by now." Charnquist turns back to Kimble. His expression falters as he sees his cohort handcuffed to a locker.

 

"Congratulations. It's YOU Gerard is after now, Ben," Kimble says calmly, playing his trump card. "That was his daughter you took hostage.  I have a feeling he's going to take that very personally too.  Feel free to shoot me Ben, after what Gerard's daughter tells him and with my dead body, he'll have no choice but to believe you exist."

 

Charnquist's normally blotchy skin pales. Automatic in hand, he fumbles to open the exit door.

 

OUTSIDE IN THE PARKING LOT

 

Bursting into the bright sunshine, he runs haphazardly toward some parked cars.  He crouches down looking for a car that would be easy to enter and hot-wire.  He enters a white Pontiac that is unlocked.  As he is crouching down attempting to hot-wire the car with one hand, he looks up momentarily and sees a woman wearing a bullet proof vest rounding the corner.  He stops what he's doing.  She's quickly checking the parking lot as she's making her way to the south exit of the school.

 

Suddenly she stops, takes her cell phone out and is talking into it.  He focuses in on her face.  It's as though he recognizes her.  Kari runs around the other corner of the building and is now out of site.  He sees FBI on the back of her bullet proof vest.  He wonders aloud, "Why did that agent look familiar to me?"  He does not have time to ponder the question and goes back to his hot-wire job.  He is successful and puts the car in gear.

 

INSIDE THE SCHOOL

 

Kimble slumps against the row of lockers, trembling lightly.

 

"You're not going to leave me here, are you?" the accomplice begs.

 

"Oh, I think so," Kimble says callously.

 

Police are heard entering the building from the front. Kimble turns and runs out the same exit as Charnquist.  He opens the door and is met by the barrel of a gun.

NEXT