Blood Reckoning

by C. M. Sutter

“South of Atwater Park. There’s a large pond on the west side of the road, but it’s deep enough to completely submerge a vehicle.”

  “Is there any notation of what happened to that van?”

  “Those kind of records would be archived at the police department.”

  I knew that to be true but wondered why I’d never heard that tragic story. I assumed I was on an out-of-state case at the time. “And the family name?”

  “The parents are Jacob and Evelyn Ashton, and they live on the east side.”

  “Okay, thanks, Dave.”

  “Yep, and I’ve sent the reports to your email address.”

  I glanced up when I heard a vehicle slow to a stop. Our forensic team had just arrived. I shielded my eyes and looked up and down the street for Renz and Tommy. I didn’t see either of them, so I called Renz’s cell phone.

  “Hey, partner, why don’t you guys come back to Julie’s house? I think I’ve figured out the case.”

  “You did what? Okay, we’re on our way.”

  Chapter 52

  While Dave addressed Julie’s body and the forensic team processed the house, I sat on the stoop with Tommy and Renz and explained my theory. Dave had already sent the autopsy reports to my email, and everything began to make sense, except now we didn’t have Julie or Doug to pit against each other about the events from the night of May fifth.

  Renz rubbed his forehead. “So you think the mayor somehow caused that van to go off the road into the lake, and now the parents are on a killing rampage? It seems like a lot for people pushing fifty to accomplish.”

  “They obviously had young people working with them. There was Brandon and Erik as well as Cole and Lucas.”

  “Why wouldn’t they just go public with it, and how would they have known the mayor was involved to begin with?” Tommy asked.

  “That’s where I’m stuck. Dave said the bodies weren’t discovered until May seventh, but don’t forget, the mayor’s car was repaired on May sixth. The parents must have reported the kids missing, yet that still doesn’t implicate the mayor. Without proof of wrongdoing, it’s just coincidental timing. We need to talk to Michael Kent directly, and I’d say we ought to do that immediately. If he was involved in a cover-up and now he’s in danger, we need to know that. Somebody, and most likely the parents of those five dead kids, are probably going after him next. Julie and Doug, his possible co-conspirators, are dead, and now he’s the final person to eliminate—the coup de grâce.”

  Renz fished his phone from his pocket. “I need to call Taft right away. Carl and Mike can question the mayor if they’re at the mansion and he’s coherent, or they can bring him to the police station for safekeeping, sober him up, and question him there while we pay Mr. and Mrs. Ashton a visit.”

  Renz made the call to Taft while we waited. I saw from the expression on his face and the fact that he instantly went white that something was terribly wrong. My eyes were locked with his, then he passed his phone to me. “Taft needs to speak with you.”

  “What? Why?”

  “Just take the phone, Jade.”

  I put the phone up to my ear and said hello. What Taft told me nearly caused me to faint. I couldn’t think, I couldn’t speak, and I didn’t know what to do.

  I remembered Renz taking me by the arm and running with me to the cruiser.

  “Come on, Jade! Snap out of it. You’re an FBI agent, so get your head in the game. We’ve got to go! Tommy, you’re driving. Head to the mayor’s mansion as fast as you can.”

  Renz sat in the back seat with me and tried to calm me down. I was nearing hysteria, and my thoughts were scattered in a million directions.

  “Why, Renz? Why do they have Amber? What on earth would they want her for? I can’t lose another family member to violence. She doesn’t know them—I don’t even know them! What do they want with us?”

  “I don’t know, Jade, but they said they want you and only you, or they’ll kill her. SWAT is on the way. You were right, it’s Jacob and Evelyn Ashton. They’ve got the mayor, his wife, and Amber held hostage. Taft said they’re blaming the FBI for interfering in their mission, and they mentioned you specifically.”

  “Because I was doing my job?”

  “I don’t know, but I can’t let you go in alone. Right now, everyone is being held at the gate. They were told that Jacob and Evelyn will kill Amber, Michael, and Marie if anyone other than you comes in.”

  “I was reckless. It’s my fault they have Amber. I taunted them with that jacket and had you take a picture of me and Cole with it. I followed the bus to Barclay Street and ended up getting punched in the face that night. They obviously knew everything about me and followed me home.”

  “Shh. We need to focus on right now, on this moment. Amber is counting on you.”

  The SWAT team arrived within minutes and tried to take over the situation.

  “There’s no way I’m going to let you jeopardize my sister’s life. They want to talk to me, they’re watching us from the house, and I’m going to comply. I need to know what really happened, so don’t try to stop me. If you can think of a back way to get in, then go ahead, but don’t you dare do anything that’s going to risk my sister’s life!”

  I walked to the gate’s call box, pressed the button, and waited. Seconds later, a woman’s voice answered.

  “Who’s there?”

  “This is Agent Jade Monroe. Who am I speaking to? I know Marie’s voice, and you aren’t her.”

  “Hold your ID badge toward the camera so I can see it.”

  I did as ordered and was pretty certain I was speaking with Evelyn Ashton. “Is this Evelyn?”

  Renz gave me a thumbs-up. He knew I had regained my composure, and I needed to do what an FBI agent would logically do to save my sister. I also knew that SWAT’s agenda was to save the mayor, but if I was lucky, I could talk the couple down and save all three of them.

  “This is Evelyn. Sounds like you’ve done your homework, Jade Monroe. Too bad you weren’t smart enough to know we’d go after one of your loved ones too. We have to make the guilty parties feel the pain we felt when the mayor killed our children.”

  “Mrs. Ashton, how do you know the mayor caused their deaths?” That was the burning question we needed answers to, and I hoped she would give me a reason while the police and my teammates were there to hear her.

  “I confronted him myself. I’m the one who came upon the accident on my way home from work that night. He was as drunk as a skunk and barely conscious while he sat there in his damaged BMW. I asked if he was okay, and he said he had people coming to help him. I thought I recognized the man and took a picture of his license plate before I left.” I heard Evelyn’s sobs through the intercom. “I couldn’t wait to get home to my kids, who had been at church camp for two weeks. I pass that spot every day on my way to and from work, but after I realized our children were missing, I didn’t give that man another thought. It wasn’t until two days later that I stopped at that very place where he sat drunk in his car on the night of May fifth. That’s when I saw it.”

  I looked at my teammates, and they shook their heads. All I wanted to do was get to Amber, but the SWAT team insisted I keep Evelyn talking so they could find another way in.

  “What did you see, Evelyn?”

  “I saw the ruts in the ground from the tires. I walked to the water’s edge, and three feet beneath the surface was the van’s roof.”

  She suddenly stopped talking, and a man’s voice came over the speaker. “Come inside now or your sister dies. You’re stalling, and we know it. I’m opening the gate, but if anyone else enters, all three of them will die, and their blood will be on your hands. Leave your weapon outside the gate and no funny stuff. You know what we’re capable of.”

  The iron gates creaked ominously as they opened. I needed to suck up my fears and anxiety and get Amber out safely. I would do what I could for the mayor and his wife, but I was only one person, and Amber was my main concern. My sister’s life depended on me
having a clear head and my wits about me. If SWAT could rescue the mayor, then they should but not by risking Amber’s life. I walked through the open gate and looked back at Renz. “I won’t let them kill Amber, no matter what it takes.”

  “Jade, I’m going with SWAT. If I can find a way in, I’ll come to you. I’m not leaving you in there alone.”

  I placed my gun on the ground, pulled in a deep breath, and continued toward the mansion.

  Chapter 53

  When I finally reached the massive front door, I pressed the brass lever and pushed the door inward. Since I had been there before, I knew where several of the first-floor rooms were located. I crossed the tiled foyer, looked left and right, and saw them in the library. My heart was in my throat, but I needed to remain calm. I finally put eyes on the people responsible for nearly fifteen murders.

  The number five filled my mind again. It all stemmed from having five children who’d died on May fifth, and although my heart broke for them, nobody was above the law. They’d crossed into a place even more dangerous—they had hostages—and that told me their lives didn’t mean much to them anymore.

  “Come toward us with your fingers locked above your head, Agent Monroe.”

  I was looking into the eyes of a broken and desperate man who had nothing to lose, and there was no telling what he or Evelyn might do.

  I jerked my chin toward another man who I wasn’t expecting to see. “Who’s he?”

  “He’s our helper for the day, Micah.”

  Amber squirmed in the chair she was bound to. I shook my head. “Stay calm, Sis. Please, stay calm.”

  “Good advice, Jade. You do know why we have your sister, don’t you?” Evelyn asked.

  “Yes. You needed to right the wrongs, and I disrupted your plans. Why didn’t you go to the authorities and tell them what you saw?”

  Evelyn spewed her contempt for the law at me. “I looked up the license plate I took a picture of and saw who it belonged to. I called the mayor’s office and confronted him on the phone. That was the only time he spoke to me. His ‘people’ handled us, denied everything, and said the mayor was never there, I was mistaken, and that the mayor’s car was in perfect condition. I had the wrong man. They also said if I tried to blame him publicly for anything, they’d ruin our lives, sue us for slandering the mayor, and destroy our credibility. They broke into our home, stole my phone with the picture of his license plate on it, and took our computer. My husband is an online minister to people who are shut-ins. They threatened to make up lies about him and ruin his reputation.” Evelyn jabbed the bound mayor with her finger. “He murdered my family because he’s nothing but a rich drunken son of a bitch. He needs to pay with his life. An eye for an eye!”

  “Let my sister go. She has nothing to do with the pain you’re feeling,” I said. “I’ll stay. I’ll do whatever I can to help you. If the mayor is responsible for your family’s tragic death, I’ll make sure a full investigation begins immediately. We have records of his comings and goings that night. We know where he was, and witnesses have said he was drunk when he left the event he was at. It doesn’t matter that he’s the mayor—he isn’t above the law either.”

  “We’re nobody, and we won’t be believed. People will think we made up everything and want an enormous settlement because the Kent’s are wealthy.” Jacob nodded to Micah, who slammed his fist into the mayor’s face.

  “No, stop!” I pleaded with them. “We can work this out. I promise you I’ll do everything I can to help.”

  “It’s too late. We’ll never get a fair trial in this city. I want to be with my children.” Evelyn lifted the gun that sat next to her on Michael Kent’s desk. It took but a split second for her to raise it to her head and pull the trigger.

  I screamed when Jacob shot the mayor with his own gun and pulled back Amber’s head. Everything was spiraling out of control.

  “You’ve interfered in our lives, Agent Monroe. We could have completed our mission and moved on, but now, not only are my children dead, but my wife is dead too!”

  He exposed a large knife and brought it to Amber’s throat just as an explosion of gunfire erupted with echoes bouncing off the coffered ceiling. Jacob fell to the floor, blood streaming from his head wounds.

  Renz rushed into the room with his gun pointed at Micah. He ordered him to the ground as the SWAT team entered and took him into custody. I ran to Amber’s side, and as I untied her, Renz reached us. “Are you okay?”

  Amber nodded as I pulled the tape from her mouth, and then I hugged her with everything I had. Renz pulled the bindings off Marie and helped her to her feet.

  “How did you get in, Renz? You saved Amber’s life.”

  “We’ll talk later. Let’s get them outside.”

  Chapter 54

  A week had passed since that horrific day, and I counted every blessing I had. Amber was safe, I was safe, and so were my teammates. I’d thanked Renz dozens of times until he finally told me to knock it off—in his words, he was only doing his job. I knew better.

  We’d made a deal with Marie—Michael would be buried with dignity and the attention any city official deserved, and the story would be that burglars had broken into their mansion and shot him. At a later date and under the guise of spending time in Europe, Marie would serve time in a woman’s prison for covering up five deaths caused by her husband. How much time she would serve, I didn’t know, and I had no say in that. Nobody was a winner in that case, and as much as it bothered me that the mayor was buried with pomp and circumstance as an upstanding city official, I wasn’t the one making the deals. Life would go on, we’d continue to do our job to the best of our ability, and I could only hope that honest, hard-working people got a fair shake during their years on earth. It was the best I or anybody else in my profession could do.

  I’d warned Renz that if he thought I was bad about thanking him, Amber was far worse. She wouldn’t leave him alone until she gave him a proper thank-you for saving her life. He was responsible for her now, according to the ancient proverb, whether he liked it or not. I teased him about that.

  The day after the shooting at the mayor’s mansion, Renz explained to me how he’d ended up being the one who got to us first. It was only because he had been in the home before and knew how the rooms were laid out on the first floor. He and the SWAT team had gotten in through the cellar window after scaling the side wall with the team’s climbing equipment. Renz cut away from the group and found his way up the stairs through the wine cellar. He knew the library was straight ahead, and when he heard my voice, he followed it—and with the grace of God, got to us just in time.

  “So what will make Amber happy?” he asked after watching part of the mayor’s funeral on TV during our lunch hour. I had no desire to attend the service.

  I smiled. “Well, since you don’t really know much about Amber’s cooking skills other than the doughnuts she made to rival the delicious ones at Gold Nugget Café in Central City, she wants you over for dinner.”

  “That’s it? That’s an easy task.”

  “Not really since there will be plenty of them you’ll have to attend. For the first one, you have to create the menu yourself, a four-course meal, and it has to be whatever your heart desires.”

  Renz frowned. “But I’m a simple guy and don’t even know what’s included in a four-course meal.”

  “An hors d’oeuvre, appetizer, the main course, and dessert. Easy peasy, but it has to be your favorite food.”

  “I’m Spanish. I like burritos and tamales.”

  “Okay, no problem. Amber can make any kind of food on earth, and I promise it’ll be delicious. Grab that napkin, and I’ll help you with the rest.” I squeezed Renz’s arm with forever gratitude. “Oh, and just so you know, for dessert, I’m a big fan of sweet cream-cheese-filled sopaipilla bars.”

  He smiled. “Duly noted.”

  THE END

  Thank you!

  Thanks for reading Blood Reckoning, the third book in the FBI Agen
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