by Nolan Thomas
“What do you mean by you think you’re positive?” Casey asked.
“The driver had brown hair. The Monster has blond hair. But the face was the same.”
“It was a white Taurus with a female driver,” Billy reminded Vince.
Seeing his phone had no bars, Vince said, “There’s no cell service here.” He tried dialing anyway.
“Better to error on the side of safety,” Billy said. “We have to assume the driver was Dixon.” Vince nodded in agreement, and readied his Glock.
The Taurus continued to pull away from them, and had quite a lead now. They eventually lost sight of the car. It appeared Riley had been mistaken. After all, if Dixon knew who they were she’d want to follow them—or attack them—not drive away from them. Vince holstered his Glock.
As they rounded a curve in the highway, Billy was stunned to see an accident occurring right in front of them. He slammed on the brakes, causing the Explorer to fishtail to the driver’s side. Billy did his best to correct while continuing to brake, but the rear of the vehicle swerved to the passenger side. Even as he managed to get the Explorer fairly straight, Billy realized, given the length of remaining roadway, it was mathematically impossible to stop the Explorer. They were out of time—an overturned blue sedan completely blocked the highway.
Billy yelled, “Brace yourselves!” He yanked the steering wheel sharply to his right, forcing a sliding U-turn onto the shoulder of the highway.
Riley screamed. Casey pushed her feet against the footwell while reaching her arm across Riley to keep her from being thrown forward. Vince put his hands on the dashboard to brace himself.
As the SUV skidded sideways into the tall grass on the side of the road, Billy continued to apply maximum pressure on the brakes. The Explorer finally came to a stop perpendicular to the highway.
Billy turned to look in the backseat. “You two okay?”
“I’m good,” Riley said, holding her hand to her chest in an effort to slow her heart and catch her breath.
“What in God’s name happened?” Casey asked.
“It looks nasty,” Vince said. “Multiple-car accident. I see at least four—no, make that five— vehicles involved, plus two cars on the opposite side of the highway are off on that side of the road as well.”
Billy and Vince quickly surveyed the scene. No white Taurus.
“It doesn’t look like she’s involved,” Vince said.
“Yeah,” Billy said. “But it’s still too much of a coincidence for my liking.”
“Judging by the condition of the grass in the median, I’d guess one of those vehicles crossed over into the oncoming traffic in this lane. Those two vehicles hit each other nearly head-on. Another few seconds and we would have been part of it,” Vince said. “Nice job bringing the Explorer to a stop, Billy.”
Casey started to open her car door.
“Stop,” Billy commanded. “Where do you think you’re going?”
“Those people need our help.”
“You’re not going anywhere,” Vince said. “You stay here in the car with Riley. Billy, you stay with them. I’ll check out the accident scene.”
Vince walked over to a badly damaged green SUV. A man sat behind the wheel, dazed but conscious. The deployed air bag lay limp.
“Are you hurt?”
“I don’t know. I’m having some trouble breathing. I have asthma.”
“Do you have an inhaler with you?”
“Yes, in the glove compartment, but I can’t reach it from here.”
Vince went to the other side of the SUV and retrieved the inhaler for the man.
“Here,” Vince said, handing it to him. “Hang on to it, but it might be a good idea not to use it unless you absolutely have to. Let the medics have a chance to look at you first.”
The man nodded. “Thanks.”
Vince talked with other victims, checking for injuries, and asking what they saw.
A man holding his jacket to his head to stop the bleeding called out, “Over here. I think the woman in this blue car is hurt pretty bad. I think she may be trapped.”
Vince ran over to the car. It was on its side, and the woman lay there moaning. She was trying to move away, but her foot was pinned under the car. Vince turned towards the Explorer and waived his arms over his head, calling and motioning for Billy to come help.
Billy told Casey to keep the shotgun handy and lock the doors. She nodded and watched as Billy ran to help Vince.
“Billy, help me lift this car enough so we can free this woman’s foot. I’ve got the jack. We only need to get this side up a fraction of an inch.”
Vince struggled with the jack, as Billy put his hand under the car and carefully pulled the woman’s foot out as soon as the weight of the vehicle lessened.
“Clear,” Billy shouted.
Vince grunted and let go of the jack.
“Any luck contacting the police?” Billy asked the crowd.
“I tried to,” a woman waving a cell phone said. “But I’m not sure if it got through. The service out here can be kind of patchy.”
More cars stopped on both sides of the road, Good Samaritans coming over to help.
“I got through. They’re on their way,” a young woman called out, holding up her cell phone. “I’m a nurse.”
Vince pointed to the blue car on its side. “There’s a badly injured woman next to that car. I didn’t see anyone inside.” He moved his raised arm about forty-five degrees to his left. “There’s also a man in that green SUV. He’s asthmatic and most likely hurt, but it looks like the car took the brunt of the impact.”
The young nurse nodded and hurried to the injured woman.
“Vince, what did you find out?” Billy asked.
“I talked with a few people. Apparently, this blue car just veered off the eastbound lanes into the median then swerved back in turning, and slammed into the front corner of the green SUV. Apparently, the angle of impact caused the blue car to flip. The other three cars weren’t able to stop in time, but at least their injuries appear minor.”
“Anyone know why she veered across the median?” Billy asked.
“Some say she lost control. Others claim there was a car in the eastbound lane that sideswiped her first, causing her to lose control. Others claim that a westbound car crossed the median into the eastbound traffic. One guy claimed an unidentified flying object took control of her car and used it like a remote-control toy.”
Billy shook his head. “So much for eye witnesses. Any reason to think Dixon was behind this?”
“I don’t think so. No white or light-colored car came up in their accident descriptions. No Taurus anywhere. We don’t really know if Dixon was driving the car that passed us,” Vince said. “All we have is Riley’s say-so.”
“I don’t think Riley would make something like that up,” Billy said.
“No, no. That’s not what I meant. I’m sure she believes Dixon was driving that car. But she’s been through a lot. She’s scared. It’s possible the driver resembled Dixon. Kids have active imaginations. Riley probably just thought it was her because she’s so afraid. It’s that eyewitness testimony thing again.”
Emergency vehicles started to arrive. Vince and Billy waited long enough to give their accounts of what had happened. Vince explained they were on a case and needed to leave. They turned and started to walk to the Explorer.
Both men stopped dead in their tracks.
The Explorer was gone.
71
RILEY FELT RESTLESS. SHE PEERED between the seats to see what Billy and Vince were up to. In that moment, the rear door on the driver’s side quietly opened. Riley never saw Casey turn and catch a glimpse of the syringe. Nor did she see Dixon plunge the needle into Casey’s neck and empty the contents.
Riley did see Casey slump forward in her seat.
“Casey! Casey! What’s the matter?” Riley cried as she tried to pull Casey’s head up, but it slipped back down. “Casey! Wake up, Casey! Please, plea
se, please. Wake up!”
Riley unbuckled her seat belt to go get help. Just as she reached for the door handle, she heard the click of the locks, and felt the car start to move. She looked over at the driver’s seat.
“Hello, Riley. Did you miss your Aunt Dixie?”
Riley grabbed at the handle and pounded on the window. There was so much chaos outside her window, no one noticed the frantic girl in a vehicle not involved in the accident.
“Help us!” Riley screamed, pounding with all her might on the window. “Help us!”
Riley saw everyone disappear like a picture being pulled sideways as the Explorer pulled away. Dixon made a wide U-turn and sped away in the opposite direction. Riley gave up trying to get help and instead turned her attention to Casey.
Placing her small hand on Casey’s back she asked, “What did you do to her? Did you kill her? Why? Why do you hurt everyone who loves me?”
“Calm down, Riley. Casey’s not dead. I just gave her something to knock her out for a while.”
“Why did you do that?” Riley demanded, too angry to be frightened. “Why did you hurt her?” Leaping from the back seat, Riley easily slipped through the area between the bucket seats. She pummeled the Monster’s right shoulder and arm, blinded by rage. This Monster stole her, tricked her, made her trust her, and then left her with the Judge. This Monster killed that sweet Sister who tried to help them. This Monster hurt Rocky. Through her tears and rage Riley felt a warm sensation in her neck—then nothingness.
Riley fell backwards onto the front passenger seat, her left leg still partially in the back seat.
ROLINSKA PULLED THE car over to the side of the road. She positioned Riley to look like a sleeping child. Rolinska got out of the Explorer and started waving frantically. A Toyota RAV4 pulled over and stopped behind the Explorer. A young man in his early twenties got out of the car.
“Is everything okay? Do you need help?”
“Thank God you stopped. My daughter is very sick and I need to get her to the hospital. The doctor is waiting for us,” Rolinska said in a rapid, almost frantic tone. “Then I got a flat. Can you change it for us?”
“Sure,” the young man said. “Which one?”
“The front passenger side,” Rolinska said pointing in that direction. “I already have the jack out. I thought maybe I could change it myself, but I just can’t.”
“No problem ma’am. I’ll have that tire changed for you lickety-split.”
The young man walked to the far side of the car. Rolinska followed. There was a small ravine on the side of the road. He had to step down in it to look at the tire. Confused, he saw the tire was fine. As he turned, he saw a raised pistol as the bullet hit him between the eyes. Rolinska pulled his driver’s license from his wallet. She didn’t want the young man or his vehicle identified too quickly. She needed time to reach her destination. Rolinska kicked his body into the ravine.
Rolinska put Riley in the front passenger seat of the Toyota. She got in and started the car. She eased the Toyota up to the Explorer, got out and lifted Casey from the Explorer to the back seat of the Toyota.
Getting back in the Toyota, Rolinska pulled onto the highway and quickly made a U-turn. In ten minutes she drove past the accident without being noticed. One lane had been cleared enough to allow traffic to flow. She quickly took in the scene as she drove by, and caught sight of Jackson talking with Detective Amato and Billy Daniels.
She never spotted Jeremiah walking along the tree line.
72
BILLY SHIELDED HIS EYES FROM the sun with the palm of his hand, as he and Vince scanned the area looking for the Explorer. He spotted Jackson walking quickly towards them, shouting, “Kathryn Dixon never made it to Jeremiah’s place.”
“What about Jeremiah?” Billy asked.
“We lost contact with him. In our last conversation he indicated Dixon got a phone call. He thought they must be close to his place, but she accelerated rather than slowed down. We’re assuming she got warned off. We lost contact with Jeremiah shortly after that call came in.”
Billy didn’t like these turns of events. Queasiness gnawed away at him.
“Her travel trajectory put her on the same course as you guys,” Jackson said. “But I couldn’t reach you. No signal. So I headed out to find you. I left a few agents at the house just in case she did an about-face and showed up.”
Billy went pale. He started pacing back and forth in a short line, rubbing his temples. “The Explorer is missing. We left Riley and Casey in it when we got out to help with this accident.”
“How long ago?” Jackson asked, pulling out his phone.
Neither man answered.
“How long?” the agent snapped.
“I’m not sure,” Vince responded, looking at his watch. “We’ve been at the scene for about ten, maybe fifteen minutes. Right before you got here we noticed the Explorer was gone. We never saw it leave.”
Jackson barked orders into his FBI issued phone—no dead zone issue.
The three men heard a yell, and turned. A man ran towards them, frantically waving his arms to get their attention.
Pointing, a relieved Billy said, “It’s Jeremiah!”
They all sprinted towards him. Jeremiah met up with them, then stooped over, putting his hands on his knees to help catch his breath.
“Are you okay?” Billy asked, placing his hand on Jeremiah’s back.
Jeremiah nodded his head, but he wasn’t quite able to talk yet. Jackson dialed his phone again, ready to give orders as soon as he got briefed from Jeremiah.
In halting speech, Jeremiah began his account. “She kept driving like a bat out of hell. I don’t know how fast, but it felt like she was easily doing eighty or ninety. Of course I’ve never been a passenger in a trunk before, so my perception of the speed could be clouded.”
His breath came more evenly now, yet he spoke with urgency. “The next thing I know she makes a sharp left at full speed. I got thrown all around that damned trunk. I’m sure we crossed the median. Tires squealed, horns blasted, and steel collided with steel, or whatever they’re made of these days. I thought for sure we were goners, but next thing I know she’s going full speed ahead again. I can’t say for sure, but it seemed like we were headed back in the direction we came from. We go three or four minutes, at most, and then she turns around again. Only this time not so fast, and she drives at normal speed once she makes the turn. The next thing I know, she slows down, pulls over, and kills the engine. The car door opens. I hear her get out of the car and walk away.”
“I don’t have a phone connection with you guys anymore,” Jeremiah says, pointing at Jackson. “So I wait a few minutes to see if I can hear anything. I’m not sure if she’s walked away, or come back. Next thing I know I hear sirens coming in this direction. I figure we must be close to where the accident happened. It took me forever, or at least what felt like forever, to find the emergency trunk-release latch. When I got out I couldn’t see her anywhere, so I just started heading for the accident site. I stayed in the tree line as much as I could in case she came back. As I got closer, I saw you guys.”
“Vince, you remember that car that passed us, right?” Billy asked. “She must have been going at least eighty or ninety.”
“Sure. It was shortly after that we stopped for the accident. Billy and I got out to see if we could help. Riley and Casey stayed in the--.” Vince abruptly stopped talking.
Billy said, “The Explorer’s gone, Jeremiah.”
Jeremiah saw the pain in Billy’s eyes and understood immediately.
“We’ll find them,” Jeremiah said. “She’s made some mistakes. She may be good, but she’s not perfect. Casey and Riley are as smart as they come. We’ve got that working for us too.”
“If they’re still alive,” Vince said, fighting a wave of nausea.
“They’re still alive,” Billy shot back. “Don’t think otherwise.”
“Get real. She’s a goddamned assassin. Dixon won’t ris
k letting them live,” Vince said.
Saying it out loud made it all too real. He was a cop. He was supposed to protect them.
“I should’ve never called Billy out of the car to help with the accident scene. I should’ve known better.”
“Snap out of it!” Jeremiah demanded. “This isn’t about you. It happened. What we have to do now is find them.”
Vince took in a deep breath. “You’re right, Jeremiah.”
“Why in the hell are we just standing here?” Billy challenged. “Let’s grab one of the officers’ cars and find them.”
Jeremiah grabbed Billy’s arm, concerned he might bolt. “Do you know where in the hell Dixon is taking them? Do you even know what direction she took off in?”
Billy shook off Jeremiah’s grip. “I can’t just stand here and do nothing.”
“What you can do is help with a plan. Any successful mission starts with a plan. Now the way I figure it, Dixon wants me dead because I’m the person who poses the biggest threat to her. I’ve seen her up close and personal. I’ve talked with her.”
“Jeremiah’s right,” Jackson said.
“She knows by now she screwed up with me, and it has to be eating away at her. I’m guessing Dixon isn’t used to making mistakes. She probably thinks I found a rescue worker back at the explosion site, and went to the cops. She wants me more than anyone right now. Riley and Casey are negotiating chips to get to me. That only works if she proves they’re still alive.”
“Jeremiah’s seen Dixon up close. Can we get him on the phone with a sketch artist, and get a preliminary drawing right away?” Billy asked. “We could get it out to all the newspapers and TV stations.”
Jackson took a call. As he talked he snapped his fingers and waved his hands for the other FBI agents onsite to come over. He ended the call.
“They’ve found my Explorer. It was empty. There’s a body of a young Caucasian male in a ravine by the side of the road. Gunshot to the head. No identification on the body. Our operating assumption is that Dixon flagged down a motorist and is now driving his vehicle. The Bureau has forensic teams on the way to both sites—Dixon’s abandoned car and the Explorer.”