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In the folder was a single sheet of paper with a list
of seventy-five numbers and codes associated with them. The numbers started at 100 and went to 174. 103 had a six-digit
code next to it, which Lester promptly memorized. With fifteen minutes to spare, he decided to have a quick look
around. The door was locked, but of course that was no barrier for the likes of Lester. Still, there might be someone
in the office already, and a naked man walking around would have caused a fair bit of alarm. There was, however,
something else in the room that caught his eye.
He walked across the floor to a phone hanging on the wall. Marked across the paper beneath the plastic cover imbedded
in the phone was the number 106. Clearly it was an extension. Lester picked up the phone. There was a dial tone,
and so he punched in 103. Someone picked up. Within a minute, Lester knew what the kidnappers plans were, and he
told the man on the other end what he needed to do. Then he hung up and walked back to the wall.
"Well," he whispered to himself, "Let's hope this works." Then he walked back through the wall
and reemerged on the other side. The room was dark. He was quickly blindfolded again, and then the kidnappers flicked
the lights back on.
"Did you find the folder?" asked the voice.
"Yep," Lester responded, knowing what would happen next.
"And you memorized the numbers?"
"Yep," he said again, and then reeled them off. "Now let me and my mother go, like you promised."
"Wait," said the voice. "I need to test it." Lester could hear the man open his cell phone
and punch the numbers in. A minute later the voice said, "Okay, those are the numbers. You did good, boy."
"So now let us go," Lester said.
"Can't do that. You both know too much."
"But we don't know what you look like," Lester tried to reason.
"Doesn't matter. You can still go to the police and tell them what you know. Eventually, they'll figure out
what happened, and that's no good. Sorry, but you both gotta die." In an instant, Lester heard the gun fire,
but an instant was all Lester needed. The bullet sped across the room and went right through him, hitting the wall
on the other side.
"Sorry," Lester said, but that's no good either. "What's plan B?"
"Plan B?" the voice asked. "Plan B is we shoot your mother and then figure out a way to kill you
later. Say goodbye to your momma, boy."
And again Lester heard a shot ring out in the small room they were in. But at that same moment, a door was violently
kicked in and Lester heard the voices of several officers yelling, "Freeze! Drop your weapons!"
Lester ripped the blindfold off and watched as the three kidnappers were surrounded and handcuffed. He quickly
got dressed and then he ran to his mother, who was seated in a chair. She too was blindfolded. The second bullet
fired didn't go through its target like the first one did.
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