3

                                    

                                          
Hoffman stayed late that night. Later than usual. He cleaned up the mess from the homeless man and disposed of him in a dumpster outside. John was resting again and Amanda passed out on her bed.
                          
Hoffman peered into John's room. Seeing he was alright and still resting, he retreated to Amanda's room. She laid on her bed asleep. Still fully clothed, make-up and hair perfect. He took her thin blanket and covered her up. She breathed deeply. Her face was peaceful, and she was smiling. Hoffman walked out to the warehouse, grabbed a chair, and brought it back to her room. He sat and watched her sleep for a little while.
                          
"Mark," she mumbled his name. he smiled and rested his head against the dresser behind him. Soon he drifted off.
                          
When he woke up, Amanda was gone. Her blanket was on his lap and a note was left on her bed. He picked it up, and in Amanda's messy handwriting, it read:
                          
"Get out of my room and if I catch you watching me sleep again, you'll be breathing through a tube for the rest of your life, Fucker."
                          
he laughed to himself. He stood up and placed the blanket back on Amanda's bed. He rubbed his sore neck as he went to John's room.
                          
"Mark, I didn't expect you until later this afternoon." John said. He obviously didn't know Hoffman had spent the night, and he planned to keep it that way.
                          
"I had nothing else to do." Hoffman replied. "Where's Amanda?" John gave him a strange look.
                          
"She's running some errands for me." John said.
                          
No shit Hoffman thought. Then his cell phone rang. He left John's room, the caller ID read Detective Erikson.
                          
"Hello?"
                          
"Mark, great. I finally got a hold of you." Erikson said. "We think we have a lead on Jigsaw's accomplice, Amanda Young." Hoffman froze.
                          
"We have men on patrol of her now. We think she's at the hospital to get more drugs." Erikson explained.
                          
"I'm on my way." He hung up the phone and went back to John's room.
                          
"Amanda's at the hospital, isn't she?" Hoffman asked him frantically. John only stared at him confused. "Dammit John! Is that where she is or not?"
                          
"Mark, calm down." John said.
                          
"The fucking police are after her John! This isn't a game! If they try to take her in she's gonna fight, you know damn well that she will!"
                          
"Mark, please, calm down. Amanda is smart and won't take chances." John said.
                          
"Fuck you!" Hoffman yelled. He turned and ran out of the room, out of the building to his police car. He turned on his sirens and flew down the road. He drove to the hospital as fast as his car would go. He arrived at the hospital where he found three other police cars already there. He hurried inside, gun ready.
                          
"Mark!" Erikson called. "We evacuated the hospital and now we're searching. You arrived just in time." Suddenly a gunshot echoed from the back room. Hoffman took off as fast as he feet would carry him. He got there before the others. One officer held Amanda a gunpoint. She looked scared to death and her eyes begged him for help.
                          
Hoffman raised his gun and shot the officer in the back of the head. He grabbed Amanda's arm and pulled her out of a nearby emergency exit.
                          
"This is the second time I've saved your ass in the last twenty four hours, Amanda!" Hoffman joked as he ran.
                          
"Shut up and run, asshole!" she cried. They ran down an alley and stopped. They both breathed heavily.
                          
"Go," Hoffman said. "I'll meet you back at the building."
                          
"What are you gonna tell them?" Amanda asked.
                          
"I'll make something up." He said. He took her face in his hands. "Don't ever scare me like that again." he kissed her quickly, then went back to the hospital.