The Boy Who Appeared from the Rain
Page 125
Officer Garrenton left her patrol car parked at the end of the street, lights off, and kept to the shadows lining narrow Spindler Avenue, using the neighbors' old trees and tall shrubs as cover. She stayed where she could see the Flemings' front yard, just in case—which meant exposing herself to the rain, of course—and flexed her right hand, ready to draw her weapon the instant it became necessary. It likely would.
She contacted the SPD dispatcher to call for immediate backup, then switched her radio back to Agent Nyler's frequency. Officers on patrol nearby would arrive in moments; FBI agents would arrive soon, as well. Few were resting tonight; even after Zach's recovery, most continued to search for the kidnappers. She kept her radio volume low to avoid being heard.
A sedan, its headlights off, approached from the other direction. It pulled into the Flemings' driveway, and the driver stepped out to wait at the front of the vehicle. He was male, Asian. Either there were three Asians involved, or he had slipped out to bring the getaway car as soon as she and Agent Nyler had driven out of sight. Officer Garrenton considered arresting him on the spot, but the safety of the family was her first concern; she needed to keep watch until reinforcements arrived, lest her impatience alert the other bad guys inside.
She ducked behind a broad-leafed bush in the yard next to the Flemings' and kept an eye on the Asian man. A moment later, the Flemings' front door opened and light streamed out, rain streaking the brightness until it shut again. A second man—the other Asian—emerged and strode down the sidewalk to the driveway, where he spoke with the first Asian. The front door opened and shut once more, but no one else stepped outside.
A firearm discharged inside the house. Officer Garrenton reflexively drew her weapon and secured it in both hands.
She heard Agent Nyler's urgent voice over the radio. "Shot fired in the house! I'm going in! Get me that backup!"
The two Asian men ran toward the house. Sane folks would have fled from the sound of a gunshot in the city at night, but Officer Garrenton ran toward it, too. "POLICE!" she cried, racing at the two men. "Down on the ground! Now!"
Both men, one taller than the other, spun and stared at her in surprise for a full second. Then they bolted apart like magnets repelling each other. She couldn't chase both, so she reversed direction and ran after the closer, shorter man.
He was faster than she was, and outpaced her by a full front yard within seconds. But he was alone, and she suddenly was not. A police cruiser sped around the corner ahead of them, its siren silent but its lights flashing. The Asian man changed course, angling to Officer Garrenton's left and crossing the street. An officer leapt from the passenger side of the vehicle and joined the pursuit.
The Asian man ran as if toward one of the homes, then shifted direction again and sprinted across the yard, back in the direction of the Flemings' house. Officer Garrenton moved to intercept him at a hedge four feet high that divided that yard from the next, but the Asian man saw her and determined to hurdle it.
"FREEZE!" Officer Garrenton shouted, but the man leapt. His foot caught the top of the hedge, and he fell roughly to the ground. He struggled upright and took off again, but too late—she threw herself on top of him and knocked him face-down into the mud. He tried to turn over, but with her gun still in her hand and her weight pinning him down, she wrenched his right arm around his back and cuffed it, then forced his left arm back and cuffed it, too.
The other officer reached her, and she climbed back to her feet, sucking in great gasps of air. The second officer rolled the Asian man over onto his back; the man panted, his mouth hanging open.
"What do you know?" Officer Garrenton regarded him. "You're missing a tooth."
*****