Stories Published in My Book "Para Vivir Seguros, 2.005" If you missed the third story, you can find it here: #562984

Economist Orlando Suárez was driving his Chevrolet Cavalier at a moderate speed on the highway, heading into the city from the north. It had gotten a bit late, and he didn't like using that route at night, but it cut a considerable amount of time from his journey, despite being somewhat deserted. He was focused on the road, hungry and hot, when he saw some lights rapidly approaching in his rearview mirror. He stayed in the center lane, and beside him, with a roaring engine, a Cherokee SUV sped past. Suárez estimated they were going over 120 kilometers per hour. But before the SUV disappeared around the next curve, it started to swerve, hit the central concrete barrier, rebounded on two wheels back onto the road, and flipped over.

Suárez immediately slowed down and began to brake. The SUV flipped twice, went off the highway, and finally came to a stop, raising a cloud of dust. It ended up on its roof, the hood hanging open towards the ground, with the wheels still spinning. The economist slowly passed by the overturned SUV. At that moment, he saw no other vehicles around.

Without hesitation, Suárez stopped about twenty meters ahead. He unbuckled his seatbelt and walked towards the SUV. A man was struggling to get out of the driver's side door. Suárez approached him.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

The man, young, wearing a white shirt and tie, looked at him with confusion.

"Are you okay?"

"My gun... Where's my gun?"

Orlando Suárez was surprised but thought the man must be in shock from the crash. He leaned in and saw another person, a young woman, in the cab. His eyes also landed on a black pistol. He grabbed it by the barrel and handed it to the man.

"Here's your gun... Calm down. We need to help your companion..."

"Yes... Give me your car keys... I need to take her to a hospital..."

To Suárez, this "request" for the keys also seemed out of place, but he attributed it to the effects of the shock and the crash.

"Don't worry, I'll take you... But let's get her out first."

With difficulty, the two of them managed to get the woman out. She had a head wound, was unconscious but alive. As they were carrying her, Suárez noticed that the woman had a bullet wound in her leg. Despite the dim light, the small entry wound, with a trickle of blood coming out, was unmistakable. As they placed her in the back seat of his car, he remarked:

"Look, friend, it seems your companion has a bullet wound in her leg... Could it have gone off during the crash?"

"Maybe... I don't know... She was handling my gun... Let's hurry to a hospital or clinic..."

They got into the car, with Suárez driving, and took off. A few minutes later, as they approached the city lights, the man pulled out the gun and pointed it at the economist's head.

"Stop... Pull over immediately, or I'll shoot..."

"But hey, what's going on? I'm helping you... I'll take you to the hospital..."

"Stop the car now, or I shoot!"

Suárez pulled the Cavalier over to the side. The man had the gun against his head, finger on the trigger...

The woman was still unconscious...

"Get out slowly and stand there, next to the car."

Suárez opened the door and got out. The man, still pointing the gun at him, slid over into the driver's seat. At that precise moment, Orlando Suárez felt a terrible fear and was absolutely certain that the man was going to shoot him, to kill him... Almost unconsciously, he said:

"Don't forget to take your companion to the hospital... But you'll need to get gas, or you won't make it..."

Reflexively, the man glanced at the fuel gauge on the dashboard... But he also realized it was a trick. When he turned back, all he saw was Suárez's back, running, rounding the car. He fired two shots and sped off.

Orlando Suárez took advantage of that split second of distraction to duck and dive into the thick vegetation. The two bullets whizzed past above him... He crawled through the weed-filled ditch and from there watched the red taillights of his car disappear into the distance...