Helen nodded. She reached out and gripped Shelby’s arm. Her face was calm, yet concerned. “Be careful, Bear.”
Shelby nodded and then waved to Mack. “You ready?”
Mack nodded and slid from the backseat. He hefted his shotgun. “Never been more ready. Let’s go kick some ass.”
Shelby reached into the back of the Jeep and grabbed two pistols. He checked the load and then stuck one under his belt and the other in a side jacket pocket. He motioned to the shotgun.
“We’ll head around back first. That thing’s a dead giveaway.”
“You want me to bring something a little less conspicuous?”
“Hell, no. I just don’t want someone calling the cops before we even get started. With a little luck, we can be in and out before the fuzz even knows there’s something happening. Have that badge ready. We might need it.”
They moved across the street toward the back of the motel, keeping an eye on the two men at the side and the single guard at the rear. They moved as casually as they could, a difficult task for Mack, who was attempting to conceal the shotgun behind his leg.
“I think they’ve spotted us,” Mack said.
Shelby looked up and saw the two men watching them intently. “Keep walking. We’ll get as close as we can. Try to stay behind these parked cars so they can’t see we’re armed. Maybe they won’t pay any attention to us.”
“I think it’s a little late for that. They’re on the move.”
As Shelby watched, the two men left their post by the corner and began walking to intercept the new arrivals. They both held their weapons with little concern for secrecy. Shelby reached into his pocket and withdrew his first pistol, making sure to keep it out of sight.
“Don’t take any chances,” he muttered. “I don’t think they’ve seen our weapons, or they’d already be shooting. Once we come around this line of cars, we’ll give them one opportunity to drop the hardware. If they don’t, cut them down and make a direct line for 115. Get the kid, then back to the Jeep. Don’t worry about the guy around back; I’ll keep an eye out for him.”
Mack’s answer was a mute nod.
One of the gunmen held up a hand like a traffic cop telling a car to yield and called out, “What do you two think you’re doing?”
Shelby didn’t answer and neither he nor Mack broke their stride. They came around the corner of the last car. Mack had the shotgun leveled waist high and Shelby brought his own weapon up as he pivoted. The gunmen began to raise their pistols.
“Don’t try it!” Shelby said.
They tried it.
Mack’s shotgun boomed once, twice, and Shelby’s pistol cracked three times. Both gunmen went down like autumn stalks before a scythe.
“Come on,” Shelby said. “Let’s get the kid.”
Dropping all attempts at discretion, they tore headlong around the corner. As they passed the motel office, Shelby glanced through the pane glass windows and saw another suited man making for the front door, a pistol in his hand. The man saw Shelby at the same time and raised the gun. It fired, and the large window turned white with a million tiny cracks, centered by a neat bullet hole. Shelby dropped to one knee behind a concrete parking bollard and returned fire. In his peripheral vision, he saw Mack hesitate.
“Keep going!”
The man in the office was still coming, his weapon pointed, trying to establish a line of fire.
Shelby dropped him.
“Shel!” Mack had found the room.
Shelby heaved to his feet, vaguely cursing the pain in his knee, and ran toward Mack, who was trying the door at room 115. Locked. Mack stepped back, aimed the shotgun, and blew the lock mechanism to hell.
“Stop! Don’t shoot!”
The kid lurched into view, his hands raised, his pale face slick with sweat.
Shelby grabbed him by the shirt front. “Where is she, dammit, where’s my daughter?”
“Shit, man, I didn’t—”
“Save it!”
“She’s with Darkmore. He’s got her.”
“Did you have anything to do with that?”
“No, I swear. He did it on his own. Listen, he’s worse than I ever thought. We’ve got to hurry.”
“You’re not telling us anything we don’t already know.”
“No, man, you don’t understand—”
“The only thing you need to understand is if you don’t get us to Darkmore quick, your life won’t be worth a shit on a summer day.” Shelby waved at Mack. “Come on, let’s get back to Helen.”
They began retracing their steps, moving double time, pushing the kid ahead of them.
Shelby felt the burn of the bullet before he heard the shot. He hit the cement on instinct, rolled, and came up with his weapon.
Another bullet caromed off the parking lot. Shelby found his target by instinct before his brain registered where his gun was pointing. The man from the back of the motel leaned from behind a parked car, his weapon aimed for another shot. Shelby fired too quickly and missed, his bullet lodging harmlessly in the car’s bumper a few inches from the target. The gunman took aim in turn, his finger tightened—then his face went blank and a small hole appeared over his left eye. He dropped to the ground, eyes open wide and staring at the sun. Shelby turned and saw Helen standing behind him, legs apart, a pistol gripped in both hands.
Shelby stood up. “Well, shit. You not only own a gun, but can shoot the damn thing. You have changed.”
“You shouldn’t own a gun if you can’t use it,” she said, her voice flat. Her face, though pale, was controlled and held deep contempt as she regarded the fallen man.
“Well, it was a fine shot.”
Shelby reached out and squeezed her shoulder, and she finally looked at him.
“Bear?”
“Yes, Helen?”
“Let’s go get our daughter.”
15
As they drove toward Darkmore’s mansion, with the kid sitting in the back seat and giving directions to Helen, Shelby tried to formulate a plan of attack. Even given what little he knew about Darkmore and his operation, a frontal assault was likely not the best approach. He looked over his shoulder at the kid. “Tell me, Jimmy—it is Jimmy, right?”
Jimmy nodded.
“Good. Tell me, Jimmy. What’s a good approach to the house?”
Jimmy emitted a short laugh. “There is no good approach.”
“You got out, didn’t you?”
“That’s different. I got out, but I couldn’t have walked back in, even if I’d wanted to. The doors have automatic locks. Besides, there was only one of me. Taking a group inside without being seen would be nearly impossible.”
“Terrific,” Mack snorted. “Sounds like we’re screwed before we even begin.”
Jimmy sat quietly for a moment, his face tense. “Not if we give them something first.”
“What are you getting at?”
“Getting into the house from the outside would be difficult. There are guards, cameras, dogs, not to mention an arsenal the ATF would love to know about.”
“You’re not helping,” Shelby said.
“It would be quite a bit easier to have someone from the inside let you in.”
“And you know someone on the inside who’s willing to turn on Darkmore?”
Jimmy nodded. “You’re looking at him. If I walk up and tell some story about wanting to regain Darkmore’s trust, I might make it inside.”
“And you think he’d buy that story?”
“He’d at least listen to it.” Jimmy swallowed hard, remembering what he’d seen at the house earlier that morning. “I think he was testing me before I left, trying to see what kind of person I was. Trying to decide if I was worth the effort to keep around, whether I could be molded into something useful.”
“What kind of test?”
Jimmy hesitated, then told them what he’d seen. Helen began crying before he was finished speaking.
“Oh, Shelby,” she said. “Leslie’s in t
hat house!”
Shelby’s lips were white and thin. “And you think the sick bastard was trying to see if you could take it?”
“Yes,” Jimmy said. “And I couldn’t. I ran. But Darkmore doesn’t know why. I remember him saying something about how a person had to be willing to do anything necessary to finish a job, and how I’d been playing it soft before. If I can make him believe I took his words to heart, he might be inclined to believe me.”
“I think it’s more likely he’ll have you shot.”
“That’s possible. But what choice do we have?”
“You could take me,” Helen said.
Shelby looked at her, his expression incredulous. “Helen, have you lost your mind? Once Darkmore finds out it’s a hoax, that you didn’t bring the money, he’ll kill both of you!”
“Then I suppose you’ll have to rescue us first.”
“Helen—”
“Look, if Jimmy goes up there alone, he’ll be killed before he has a chance to do anything. If he takes me along as his prisoner, Darkmore might let down his guard.”
Shelby shook his head. “This is a horrible idea. I don’t like any of it.”
“You don’t have to. My daughter’s in there, Shelby, and I’m going after her. This is our best chance to get inside.”
Shelby looked at Mack. “Are you hearing this insanity?”
Mack looked back, his face impassive.
Shelby’s eyes narrowed. “Please tell me you’re not on board with this.”
“If we storm the castle, we’re likely to get cut down before we even reach the front door. We aren’t fighting the Ellis family in northern Michigan, Shel.”
Shelby had to concede the point. As narrow as that escape had been, this promised to be even more dangerous. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to think of another way through. As much as he disliked law enforcement interference in his business, Shelby wondered if this might be an instance where they could prove useful. He said as much to Jimmy, who met the suggestion with a short laugh.
“Good luck with that. Darkmore has contacts there too. They might not even respond to the call. And if they did, you can bet someone would have tipped Darkmore off. He’d have everything looking nice and neat by the time anyone gained entry to check.”
“I know it’s dangerous,” Helen said. “But you’re forgetting one thing: we don’t have time to play it safe. I know what I’m doing; I understand the risks. You don’t have to protect me, Shelby. I’m doing this.”
Shelby sat back in his seat, defeated.
“Get off at the next exit,” Jimmy said. “Turn right and drive a couple of miles. That will take you to the construction site where I called for a taxi. I say we drop you two off there and then Mrs. Tucker and I will drive back to the house entrance. I’ll have to take the wheel, of course.”
Shelby huffed but nodded. The entire plan was bullshit and he resented not having a handle on it. Everything was spinning out of control. When things went to hell, as they almost certainly would, they would move fast. He only hoped he’d be in proper position when that happened.
At the construction site, Mack and Shelby piled out of the Jeep. Each took stock of their arsenal. Mack kept the shotgun, while Shelby chose a rifle. They carried two pistols each and loaded their pockets with rounds.
Jimmy traded seats with Helen. He leaned out the driver’s window and said, “Cut southeast through the woods and you’ll find the house.”
Shelby nodded and said to Helen, “You have your cellphone?”
“Yes.”
“Give it to Jimmy. If they search you, they’ll take it and we’ll have no way to communicate.”
She handed it over. Jimmy took it and shoved it into his pocket. He looked at Shelby.
“We can do this. Trust me.”
“I don’t. But I have little choice. Now go. If we’re going to take leave of our senses, we might as well get on with it.”
Jimmy gunned the engine and threw gravel leaving the construction site. Shelby and Mack watched them go.
“You think we can trust him?” Mack said finally.
Shelby shrugged. “If we can’t, I’ve lost the best Jeep I ever had.”
16
Jimmy drove up to the gatehouse and stopped the Jeep. He sat, waiting, his heart pounding. The Tucker woman, Helen, sat next to him. She looked calm enough, but he knew she had to be all nerves inside.
A guard appeared and approached the Jeep. Jimmy recognized him and, from the expression on the guard’s face, he recognized Jimmy as well. The guard held his hand up near his mouth and muttered something. He waited, listened, then nodded. He returned to the gatehouse and a few seconds later, the gate began opening. Jimmy held his breath. He’d known that getting through the gate would be the easy part; the hard part would be staying alive and providing Shelby and Mack an opportunity to join him inside. Although he hadn’t said so back at the construction site, he had to admit to himself that he had no concrete plan. There was no way to be certain how Darkmore would react to seeing Jimmy. In fact, Jimmy wasn’t sure how much they knew. He assumed they’d either noticed the guard was missing from the side of the house and found his unconscious body, or the guard had awakened and staggered inside to spread the alarm. Either way, there could be no doubt Jimmy was to blame. The real question, in Jimmy’s mind, was whether Darkmore would buy his story. He felt a twinge of guilt as he looked over at Helen. There was a part of his mind that prodded him to adopt the farce as reality and turn her over to Darkmore as a way of fulfilling his own debt. He could even tell Darkmore about the two men who even now would be creeping through the woods, armed to the teeth, intent on taking him down. The odds of survival were certainly much better if he pulled a triple-cross…but there were definite factors against such action. First, he would have to accept the fact that he played a key role in the deaths of four adults and an unborn child. Secondly, by siding with Darkmore now, he would be condoning the killing of his own father. Could he do those things? Live with those things? Even if it meant saving his own life?
The gate stood completely open, and Jimmy drove through. As they passed the gatehouse, the guard held out his middle finger, the gesture definitively answering the question about how much they knew about Jimmy’s escape. They began the long drive up toward the house. Helen looked around, her eyebrows raised.
“And I thought Robert was well-off.”
“Darkmore has nice digs, that’s for sure.”
“I suppose even sadistic killers can enjoy beauty.”
“Oh, Darkmore has a great appreciation for aesthetics. Art, the finer things. That’s something that makes him so dangerous. He comes off as sophisticated, refined even. And he is…but he also has a decided dark streak.”
“And you knew nothing about this dark streak until today?”
Jimmy didn’t miss the sardonic tone in her voice. “I wish I could say I didn’t. But I knew there was something there, although I had no idea how far it went. Most of what I’d seen until today was within the context of business. Someone doesn’t pay, you rough them up.”
“And that was okay with you?”
Jimmy shrugged. “I don’t know exactly what life you’re used to, but things are different on the street. Sure, Darkmore’s methods could be a little more brutal than some, but I excused it by assuming that was how he stayed on top. Honestly, and I’m ashamed now to admit this, I chose not to think much about it. And now that I am, there were other warning signs. But I had it good until lately. I had a lot to thank Darkmore for. Whatever his glaring faults, he gave me a home.”
“And now you’re okay with turning on him?”
Jimmy hesitated.
“I only asked because I would hate to think you were playing us all for fools, luring us into Darkmore’s grips with this song and dance about wanting to go straight.”
Jimmy swallowed hard. Had she read his mind? “Look, I never said I wanted to go straight. Only I can’t be a party to what I saw in the house today and
continue to live with myself. I’ve done some bad things, sure. And, to be honest, I don’t have remorse for most of them; I was doing my job. But that,” he said, gesturing toward the house. “Not that. Not that.”
Shelby pushed his way through the thick woods with Mack close behind. And one point, a branch snapped back, catching his friend on the side of the face.
“Shit!”
“Sorry,” Shelby said. “You shouldn’t follow so close behind me.”
Mack unleashed a string of breathless epithets. “Why does it seem like every time we get together, I end up traipsing through the woods? You know I hate hiking.”
“You hate any kind of physical exertion.”
“I like boating.”
“You like fishing from a boat.”
“Well, I enjoy golf.”
“Only if there’s a golf cart and an open bar.”
Mack thought for a moment. “Okay, fine. I’m a big fan of volleyball.”
Shelby snorted. “Right. Beach volleyball is your thing, as long as you have a pair of dark sunglasses and a margarita.”
“Just tell me how far it is to this fortress. I’m getting pissed off and I need to shoot a couple of bad guys.”
“It shouldn’t be much farther. In fact, I think—yeah, that’s it. Hold up.” Shelby held out one hand to stop his friend’s progress. “It’s quite the place, all right. I’d like to get closer.”
“Let’s go, then.”
“Wait up. With all the noise you were making on our way over here, I’m surprised the guards or their dogs haven’t heard us already.”
Mack dismissed the criticism with a wave of his hand. “Please. That was only a warm-up. I can channel my inner Daniel Boone anytime I need to. Why, when I was younger, I used to hunt deer with nothing but a jackknife.”
“Okay, so you hunted them. But did you catch them?”
“Never went home empty-handed.”
Shelby chuckled. “I’d say your tall tales are more on par with Davey Crockett. But I’ll let you off the hook if you keep the noise down.”
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