Forget to Remember

individually. Since she hadn’t locked the door on the passenger side, she could have gotten in that way, even if Beard had locked his door. She hoped she would have thought of that and not panicked if Beard’s door had been locked.
    She got to her feet and headed toward the fence, keeping her body bent over and the car between herself and the house. Of course, the farther she got from the car, the less protection it gave her. The next problem was getting through the fence. Iron spikes lined the top, waiting to impale her. A good athlete could still climb over it, but it would be dangerous, especially in the dark.
    A light illuminated the double gate. It didn’t have spikes sticking up from the top. Instead, there were fancy iron curlicues. They offered good hand and foot holds, and wouldn’t stab her if she slipped. Video cameras were undoubtedly trained on the gate. If Kyle or somebody happened to be watching the security monitors a mansion like this would certainly have he would see her. Would they come after her?
    She wasn’t a burglar. Anyway, it was too late to back out. Carol tossed the plastic bag containing her purse and her good shoes through the space between two of the vertical iron bars and climbed up the gate, using the crossbars and the curlicues. She threw one leg over the top and then scissored her other leg over. She lowered herself down the other side. This was easier than going through the bathroom window.
    She picked up her shoe bag and started trotting downhill on the narrow street toward the city lights. There were enough streetlights and outdoor lights from the houses she was passing for her to navigate her way between the rows of parked cars.
    She heard a car coming down the hill behind her. Was Beard chasing after her, already? The car was still around a curve, but the engine didn’t have the hesitant, unmufflered rumble the Caddy had. She ducked behind a parked car, just to be safe. The car rolled past, loud music blaring from an open window. Must be young people.
    She continued downhill, panting, slowing to a fast walk. She wasn’t used to running. She figured by going downhill she would hit civilization. Had the men missed her yet? The locked bathroom door would stall them for a few minutes. Beard would be really pissed off and come after her. She had to be on the alert.
    The minutes went by, and Carol didn’t hear the distinctive sound of Beard’s car. She was making good progress. A few cars passed her, going in both directions. Since there was no sidewalk, she got off the road when they went by. The area was quiet except for car noises. In the distance she heard the hum of substantial traffic.
    The hum grew louder as she approached a busier street. She made several turns, still heading downhill. Traffic grew heavier, but there were sidewalks here. She walked on the left so she would be on the other side of the street from Beard if he appeared. She constantly looked over her shoulder, nervously watching for him, now that the noise was too loud for her to pick out his car from the others.
    She came to Sunset Boulevard. Of course, she had heard of the famous Sunset. Beard had driven on it briefly on the way to Ault’s house. In spite of it being a Tuesday evening, the sidewalks were crowded with all sorts of people, many of them dressed in strange outfits. The congestion was good for her. She blended in and disappeared.
    She turned right, toward the ocean. She had a vague idea of following the coast home. Maybe she should call Rigo. A digital clock in front of a building said it was 10:14 p.m. Rigo would still be working. She didn’t want to bother him. Even so, she unzipped her purse and looked for her cell phone. It wasn’t there. Kyle had taken it. She didn’t see any phone booths. Had they completely disappeared because of the digital revolution?
    Carol knew she could borrow a phone from someone if necessary, but she wasn’t going to call Tina and Ernie. If they had to come and rescue her, they’d probably kick her out of their house. She could call Rigo after he got off work, but he had done too much for her already. She needed to get herself home.
    Her purse contained the forty dollars Rigo and Adam had given her plus a couple of ones. She doubted that it was enough money to get her to Palos Verdes by taxi. It was probably too late to ride a bus all the way. Besides, that would take hours, even after she figured out how to do it. She crossed the tricky intersection