Chapter 9 — The phone rings from behind the corner of the house — Then the contractor tries to flee down the driveway
A sharp electronic trill cut through the quiet afternoon air.
The sound came from behind the side corner of the house.
Vincent held his phone up, watching the active call screen.
The dial tone hummed steadily through the speaker.
Then the ringing stopped abruptly.
A muffled mechanical buzzing replaced the distant ringtone near the side wall of the garage.
Caleb snapped his head toward the brick corner.
“He’s right there,” Caleb hissed.
Without waiting, Caleb sprinted past the wooden porch deck toward the side yard.
Vincent followed closely behind, keeping his stride fast and low.
They rounded the corner of the brick foundation.
A heavy-set man in a gray work shirt stood frozen by the air conditioning unit.
He held a burner phone tightly against his ear.
When he saw Caleb and Vincent charging toward him, his eyes widened in panic.
He dropped the burner phone onto the gravel.
Two heavy canvas duffel bags sat resting against the exterior wall beside him.
“Stop right there!” Caleb shouted.
The man turned sharply and bolted toward the open gravel driveway.
“He’s running for the truck!” Vincent yelled, pointing toward an idling pickup parked near the curb.
The fleeing intruder scrambled frantically toward the driver’s side door.
Caleb lunged forward with explosive speed.
He caught the back of the man’s gray work shirt.
The fabric ripped violently in Caleb’s grip.
The intruder stumbled hard onto the driveway pavement, scraping his hands against the rough stones.
He scrambled back to his feet with a curse, abandoning one of the heavy canvas duffel bags right where he fell.
The zipper of the dropped bag split open upon impact.
Spillover items scattered across the concrete.
A heavy plastic ID badge slid out from the mouth of the open bag and came to a rest near Caleb’s shoe.
Caleb looked down at the badge while the intruder threw himself into the truck cab and slammed the door.
Vincent sprinted to the end of the driveway, standing directly in the path of the vehicle’s exit to block the route.
The truck engine revved aggressively, tires spinning against the asphalt and kicking up a thick cloud of white smoke.
Vincent stood his ground, staring down the driver through the windshield while pulling his own phone from his pocket.