Chapter Ten
"The bus ran out of gas" he told them, shooting a murderous look at Mac, who just shrugged his shoulders. "So me and my fellas are going to meet and talk while you guys stay put. You hear me? Don't move from this room or else" he threatened as he shut the door.
Everyone was quiet to listen to where the gunman was going to go. To their great relief, the could distantly hear the front door slam as he left.
Howie, who was closest to the window, jumped up to peek out of the blinds and see what was going on outside.
"You let the bus run outta gas on purpose, didn't ya Mac?" Brian asked with a smile.
"Sure did. I'm right proud of myself for thinking of it too" he told them with a grin.
"I'm gonna go lock the door guys" Kevin said and opened the door. He quickly sneaked out and locked the front door. He stayed for a minute listening to the argument outside. Realizing that they were talking about leaving, he listened harder.
"Thank God we had Mickey following us the whole time in the car" one of them said.
"Shut up! No names!" the leader shouted. "Now everybody just get in the car. If we're quiet when we leave, maybe they'll think we're still here and not move for awhile."
Kevin peeked out the window and watched as they walked toward a car parked in front of the bus. Unfortunately, the license plate was smeared with mud. He watched the gunmen dump their weapons in the trunk, get in the car, and pull away. He then got up and walked to the back of the bus.
"Well?" Nick asked impatiently. "What happened?"
"They're gone. Apparently, they had a fifth guy following in a car the whole time. Let's go tell everyone else" Kevin yelled back. He was already on his way to the front of the bus.
Nick and Brian were whooping and hollering as they made their way to the front of the bus. AJ followed. Aaron looked at Stephanie, shrugged his shoulders and scrambled after them. Stephanie sat there in amazement at the outcome. Finally, shaking her head, she got up and began to make her way to the front of the bus.
In the front, on the couch, she spotted the Boys cell phones where the gunman had carelessly dumped them. She picked one up, turned it on, and dialed home.
"Hello?" asked a tired, strained and weary voice.
"Hi, Mom" Stephanie greeted her. Her mother promptly burst into tears.
"Stephanie, where are you? Are you okay?" her father asked as he got on the extension.
"I'm perfectly fine" she reassured them as she sat down. "And you're never going to believe what happened!"
"So why don't you tell us? Starting from the beginning" her father ordered.
"Well it all started not long after midnight. Maryanne and I were cleaning tables when we noticed 4 big, black tour buses pull into the lot. You're never going to guess who it was!" she exclaimed.
"Who?" her mother asked, humoring her, now that she knew her daughter was safe.
"The Backstreet Boys! Not long after they came in, these 4 gunmen came in....." she continued until Brian got back on the bus and sat down next to her, kissing her on the cheek that wasn't glued to the phone.
"Who's that?" he asked.
"Hold on, you guys" she told her parents. "It's my mum and dad. I called them when I saw the phones sitting here. You don't mind do you?"
"Not in the least" he reassured her. "But I need to talk to you when you're done." Brian gave her a quick kiss on the lips and went back outside.
Stephanie smiled and told her parents "All right, I'm back. Now where was I? Oh, yeah, ......" She continued to give her parents the abbreviated version, leaving out all the personal stuff. When she finished, she hung up, promising to call back as soon as she knew where she was.
Stephanie put the phone down, stood up and stretched, and walked down the steps out into the sunshine where Brian was leaning against the bus waiting for her.
