Confronting the Fallen Read Online Free Page A

see. Okay
then. I'll leave you alone to prepare your surprise. I wouldn't want
to spoil it.” With that, the man patted Chris on the shoulder
and walked away.
    Chris took a deep breath. He looked around again
but still didn't see anyone suspicious looking. Was it possible
they'd overlooked the airport? Maybe they assumed that he wouldn't
dare to try to board a plane? It's possible, Chris thought.
    He was about to start out again for the ticket
counter and had taken half a step when he spotted something that set
off his internal alarms.
    There was a man leaning against the far end of the
counter. Chris hadn't spotted him until one of the people serving at
the counter had bent over to pick up something they had dropped.
    Chris backed up quickly against the wall and tried
to look casual as he lowered his head and stared through the hair
that had fallen over his face at the suspicious man. He squinted,
trying to see the man's cheek, willing him to move. Finally, the man
shifted and slowly turned his head as he glanced around the area. And
then Chris saw the mark on his face.
    Talon! I knew it, he thought. But why only one?
There must be more. Although he looked around for several minutes,
Chris couldn't spot another member of the gang. But he knew they were
there. He was sure these guys never worked alone. He retreated back
down the hall and went outside. After looking around carefully, he
slumped against the wall to think.
    Why two gangs of them at the train station and the
bus depot but, apparently, only one person here at the airport? It
took a few minutes but Chris finally thought he had the solution.
    He wasn't meant to be caught at either of the
other places. The gang had let themselves be seen on purpose to scare
him off, to herd him here to the airport. Once he arrived and saw
that the place was free of watchers, they expected him to rush over
and buy a ticket. And then they would have him.
    Chris shook his head ruefully. It had almost
worked, he thought. If he hadn't stopped for a minute to talk to that
old guard, it could have been all over. Taking a deep breath, Chris
thought about his remaining options.
    It was past eight o'clock now. He certainly
couldn't walk to Ottawa and even though he had money, no one was
going to rent a car to a thirteen year old kid. Chris left the
airport parking lot and walked to a bus stop several kilometers away.
Then he caught a bus heading back downtown. He found a small dingy
restaurant and grabbed a burger, all the while trying to decide what
to do.
    How do you get out of a city without
transportation? And was it even worth bothering trying to meet this
judge guy anyway? Maybe his best bet was to lay low for a few days,
wait for Talon to relax their guard and grab a train or bus heading
west. He'd never seen the Rockies before and had always wanted to.
Maybe Vancouver? He had heard it was a nice place, good weather,
maybe big enough to get lost in.
    As he finished a second cup of coffee, Chris
glanced at the clock over the door to the kitchen area. Eleven. He
sat back with a sigh. The time was passing rapidly and his head felt
like it was full of fuzz. He couldn't think of a solution. His sense
of urgency was fading as he began to feel that the whole thing was
hopeless. What am I going to do?
    He stared out of the window. A few people were
still passing by, probably on their way home to their families.
Living safe, uncomplicated lives. They didn't know about and probably
wouldn't care about some kid whose life was hanging by a thread.
    For a moment, Chris gave in to despair. What did I
do to deserve this? Help some street guy? Lose my parents? None of
this is my fault! He felt crushed by the unfairness of it all.
    But after a few minutes, he sat up and tried to
clear his head of doubts. His father had told him more that once that
life truly wasn't fair. But you made the best of it, come what may.
Chris grimaced. His dad was a man of faith, even if he had been
agnostic. Trust in God,