by Jana DeLeon
“We can’t just leave them out there with crazy people chasing them with rifles.”
Jackson ran his hand through his hair, looking up at the ceiling. “Let’s go back to the car and check GPS. We can’t conduct a search without some knowledge of the terrain. Rushing into the woods wouldn’t accomplish anything but leaving four people out there at the mercy of men who grew up in this swamp and can probably traverse it blindfolded.”
“Okay,” Shaye said, and they set out into the storm back to the car. She didn’t like the delay but knew he was right. They might be able to move around the swamp for a little while, but in the long run, they didn’t stand a chance against the Abshire brothers.
Neither did Jinx or her companion, especially if he was a scared young child.
By the time they got back to the car, they were completely soaked. Another squad car was pulling up behind them and Jackson motioned them into his vehicle. The two cops hopped inside the backseat and Jackson explained the situation. He pulled up the area on GPS and they all studied the small screen.
“The bayou,” Shaye said. “If they’d left using the road, we would have seen them on our way here.”
“Unless they were hiding, thinking you were the Abshire brothers,” one of the cops pointed out.
“I don’t think they left this way,” Jackson said. “I saw two bowls of dog food in the kitchen. If they’d gone past the house, the dogs would have seen them. My guess is they went straight around the back of the barn and into the swamp. That’s where the gunshot came from.”
Shaye nodded. “The brothers might have had a boat on the bayou. Even if there wasn’t a boat, if they got to the bayou, they would follow it until they found someone who could help.”
“Assuming they were smart enough,” one cop said.
“We’re assuming at least one is a street kid,” Shaye said. “One of them managed to pick two padlocks with something made from tiny strips of metal. That’s resourceful.”
The two cops looked at each other. They weren’t convinced, but Shaye didn’t care what they thought as long as it didn’t prevent them from taking action.
Jackson pointed to two roads on the map that encountered the bayou from opposite sides near a set of homes. “The shot I heard came from the south. I think we should each take one of these roads. The bayou runs right past this group of houses. If they’re following it downstream, then that’s where they’ll look for help.”
The other two cops nodded. “We’ll take the one on this side of the bayou. You guys take the other side.”
The cops hopped out and headed for their car. Jackson started up his car and turned around, spraying gravel as he went. “There’s some paper towels in the glove compartment,” he said.
Shaye pulled out the towels and handed a couple to Jackson, then wiped her own face and the top of her head, trying to stop the dripping. The storm was still raging, and Jackson was driving as fast as he could in the downpour.
“We’d have to be on top of them before we could see them,” Shaye said.
Jackson nodded. “It’s pretty bad.”
“What do you think their chances are?”
“Honestly? Slim at best, and if one of them is Peter Carlin, even worse. The storm will eliminate the brothers’ use of the dogs, but the kids are still at a huge disadvantage. No equipment, no knowledge of the terrain…”
“And most likely, no knowledge even of where they started.”
“Yeah.” Jackson looked over at her. “We’re going to do everything we can to find them alive, but no matter what happens, the Abshire brothers are going down. You can count on that.”
* * *
Jinx made the right turn and counted the steps until she reached the bayou, except the bayou wasn’t where it was supposed to be. She cursed silently and continued forward ten more steps until she saw a ripple of water through the trees. The bayou had turned right, moving away from her, which meant she’d wasted several minutes moving in the wrong direction.
She continued forward until she could make out a longer stretch of the bayou and saw that it continued in the direction it had shifted. She headed back into the swamp, but this time, changing her trajectory to match the turn in the bayou, checked her watch, and started walking again. She’d been at this for thirty minutes and still hadn’t seen a single light or structure…something that let her know people were nearby, and telephones.
The storm continued to rage, making visibility low and travel time slow. It didn’t help that she stopped every minute or so to listen for the dogs or the boat motor. It also didn’t help that her attention was divided between finding help and worrying about Spider, not to mention Peter. One more day and he would be turned over to a pervert. She had to get out of here, get help for Spider, and figure out a way to find Peter.
Hunched over and with her hand up over her head, she almost stepped out of the swamp before she realized she’d reached the edge of it. Immediately, she shuffled backward and crouched down, hoping no one had seen her. She waited several seconds, trying to make out the sound of dogs. When only the sounds of the storm reached her, she crept forward until she was at the edge of the tree line and peered out.
The moon slipped behind storm clouds, pitching the open field into darkness, but it illuminated a light in the distance. It wasn’t strong enough for Jinx to identify the source, but it was higher off the ground than a vehicle and didn’t look like a headlight or a spotlight. She ducked back a couple of steps and started skirting the tree line, bringing her closer to the light. When a burst of lightning flashed overhead, she hurried to the edge of the clearing and looked out as the flash lit up the house with a porch light on.
It was so tempting to run across the field straight toward the house, but the field grass was too short to hide her passage. All it would take is one flash of lightning while the men were looking the right direction, and they could pick her off like a sitting duck. She stepped back into the swamp again and moved forward. The end of the tree line brought her within twenty yards of the house. It was a safer bet.
And at least if the men killed her there on the front lawn, she might have some witnesses. Someone would know what happened.
She picked up her pace, trying to clamp down on her excitement. She wasn’t home free yet, and she wouldn’t be happy until Spider and Peter were both safe. It took her only a couple of minutes to make it to the end of the tree line, then she stood back in the brush, waiting for the next lightning strike. When it came, she scanned the area to make sure it was clear and took stock of the house, the porch, and the cement steps leading up to it, four of them in total.
When the light disappeared again, she burst from the swamp and ran straight for the one burning light. She leaped up three of the four steps and slid to a stop in front of the door. She banged on it, praying that someone was home, waited a couple of seconds, then banged again.
She backed up and looked up at the second story. No lights flashed on and she heard no movement inside. Maybe no one was home. She moved to one of the windows and tried to lift it, but it didn’t budge. She scanned the porch, looking for something to break the window with. Better to be carried out of here in handcuffs than a body bag.
She grabbed a small table sitting in between two rocking chairs and lifted it, but just as she started to smash it into the window, a shot rang out and buzzed right by her head, piercing the glass. She dropped the table and dived across the chair, knocking it over, then scrambled for the end of the porch and fell over the side. She sprang up and took off for the back of the house.
Lightning flashed across the sky as she ran, illuminating a small barn not too far behind the house. If she could make it inside, she might be able to hide there.
Then she heard the dogs and knew it was all over.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Shaye stared out the windshield, desperate to catch sight of Jinx.
You’re assuming too much.
The thought had lingered in the back of her
mind since she’d seen the cages. Based on what Clancy had told Hustle, she definitely believed they’d contained people, but they had no way of knowing exactly who had been housed inside. Jinx wasn’t the only street kid still missing and the Abshires weren’t the only number on the list that had been hidden in the box. Jinx could have been sold to whoever owned one of the burner numbers.
But despite all the facts, she refused to let go of the belief that it was Jinx they were trying to rescue. Stubborn and optimistic. Eleonore would have a field day with her when this was all over. For this and so many other reasons.
A faint boom carried through the raging storm and Shaye looked over at Jackson, who nodded. “I heard it, too. Same as earlier.”
She leaned forward, silently willing herself to see farther and more clearly, praying that whatever the shot had been fired at had been able to dodge a bullet, possibly for the second time that night.
“There!” Shaye grabbed Jackson’s arm and pointed to the right side of the road. “I saw a light.”
Jackson checked the GPS. “Looks like a house.”
Shaye looked at the screen. “The bayou runs by the property in the swamp about a hundred yards away. If they were following the bayou, that’s the first house they’d reach.”
Jackson nodded and increased his speed, then turned into the long driveway that led to the house. He slammed on the brakes in front of the house and shone his floodlight on the porch. Shaye took in the overturned chair and discarded table, and her back tightened.
“There’s a hole in the window,” Jackson said and shone the light directly on the window next to the overturned chair. “I hear dogs!”
Jackson cut off the spotlight and they jumped out of the car and ran for the back of the house. The sound of the dogs grew louder with every step and Shaye prayed they got to the Abshire brothers before they got to their prisoners. When they reached the rear of the house, clouds swept over the moon and they stopped and gazed around in the pitch black. The dogs had gone silent and no sound drifted past them except the storm.
Shaye held her arm over her eyes and squinted into the darkness. The kids were here somewhere, and standing here wasn’t going to find them. She felt Jackson tug on her sleeve and looked over at him. He handed her the spotlight and motioned in front of them, then held up three fingers.
She stuck her pistol in her waistband and took the light from Jackson. His intent was clear. On the count of three, she’d fire up the light, hopefully illuminating the Abshire brothers and allowing Jackson to get off a good shot. He pulled on her sleeve again and motioned for her to get lower.
She crouched and he dropped his left arm down where she could see his fingers. He stuck the first finger out and she lifted the spotlight, directing it toward the area they’d last heard the dogs. He stuck the second finger out and she tightened her grip and said a quick prayer.
Third finger.
She paused only long enough for him to get his left hand back up and on the pistol before she pulled the trigger on the spotlight, shooting a broad beam across the backyard. All five of them had been standing still, but the light sent everyone into motion.
A small figure bolted for a barn. The man holding the dogs turned them loose and they took off. The second man lifted a rifle and leveled it at the escaping child. Jackson fired and the man dropped the rifle and fell over. The second man turned to face them and fired back.
Shaye heard the bullet whiz past and strike the side of the house. She dropped the spotlight on the ground and rolled to the side. The next shot shattered the light and pieces of plastic hit her face as she scrambled up from the ground and pulled out her gun. She heard Jackson running away from her and lifted her gun in the direction of the second man. All she needed was a little bit of light.
A second shot rang out and she heard Jackson yell, but the words were lost in the storm.
Fear coursed through her and she moved forward, kicking the ground with her feet but never taking her eyes from the spot where she’d seen the second man. When her right foot connected with something hard, she glanced down. At that moment, lightning ripped across the sky and she saw the second man not twenty feet in front of her, his rifle leveled directly on her.
She dropped and squeezed off three rounds as she went. The other man screamed and got off another shot. She flattened herself on the ground and crawled over to where Jackson was lying inert. Panicked, she went to check his pulse, but he reached over and put a finger on her lips.
He lifted himself up onto all fours and crept forward, Shaye following suit. They reached the first man and Jackson checked his pulse, then shook his head. The second man had been about ten feet away when Shaye had shot him. They crept toward that spot and found it empty.
Suddenly, the entire field lit up with lights, blinding them.
“Lamotte!” a voice called out. “It’s Detective Forrester. We have your suspect in custody.”
Shaye jumped up from the ground and ran for the barn, where the hounds had been baying. The door was wide open and she ran inside, her hand searching the wall for a light switch. She found it and flipped it on, illuminating the space. The dogs stood at the bottom of the hayloft, looking up and barking. Jackson ran in behind her and grabbed the two dogs by the collars and closed them in an empty stall.
“Jinx?” Shaye called. “Is that you? I’m a friend of Hustle’s. The police are here. You’re safe.”
The boards above her creaked and Jinx peered over.
“Are there two of you?” Shaye asked, praying for a positive response.
Jinx shook her head. “I had to leave Spider behind. He got shot in the shoulder and was losing too much blood. He couldn’t make it any farther. We need to get to him fast. It’s been a long time since I left him.”
“He’s in the swamp?” Jackson asked.
Jinx started down the ladder from the loft. “I know where to find him. A boat would be the fastest way.”
“Looks like the storm is breaking up. I’ll find a boat,” Jackson said and ran out of the barn.
“Let’s get you out of here,” Shaye said.
“Wait!” Jinx said. “You have to tell the cops to find Peter.”
“You know where Peter Carlin is?”
“No,” Jinx said, clearly miserable. “We were held together in the basement of a building, but then they drugged me and I woke up caged in the barn. The guys who took us said they were giving Peter to some pervert tomorrow night. You can’t let that happen.”
“Come with me,” Shaye said, “and you can tell the officers everything you know.”
Jinx fell in step beside Shaye. “You said you’re a friend of Hustle’s.”
“Yes. My name is Shaye Archer. I’m a private investigator. Hustle hired me to find you.”
“I didn’t think anyone would notice I was gone.”
Shaye put her arm around the girl and squeezed. “He’s paying a lot more attention than you think.”
Jinx sniffed and Shaye could see the tears forming in her eyes. She was tough, but even the toughest of people had their breaking point. Now that she was safe, she could afford to let some of her emotions out.
“If he hadn’t hired you…”
“Don’t even think about that. Let’s focus on rescuing Spider and Peter.”
“How can we find Peter?” Jinx asked, her voice breaking. “I don’t even know where we were, and I never saw their faces. They wore these masks.”
Shaye stopped and looked at her. “Both those men are dead. The police are searching everything connected with them. We’ll find him.”
Jackson whistled. “We got a boat!”
“Let’s go get Spider,” Shaye said. “You can tell the officers everything you know about Peter on the way to the boat.”
Jackson waved them in his direction. “There’s a boat tied to the bank just beyond the tree line. We can use that.”
“It probably belongs to those monsters,” Jinx said. “They shot a hole in the one Spider and I
took, but they showed up later in another one.”
“Great,” Jackson replied. “Then no one will report it stolen.”
Jinx relayed what little she knew about where she and Peter had been held to Detective Forrester, then Jackson, Shaye, Jinx, and another officer headed up the bayou in the boat. Jinx sat up front, watching the bank for the twisted cypress roots where she’d stuffed the clump of moss. It didn’t take long to find it and Jackson drove the front of the boat onto a sloped part of the shore.
Jinx scrambled up the bank and took off into the woods, Shaye and the others running behind her.
“Spider!” Jinx yelled as she ran. “It’s safe! Come out!”
They came to a stop in front of several fallen trees and a pale teen stepped out from behind a clump of hanging moss. He had a piece of a life jacket pressed to his shoulder and from the amount of blood on his clothes, it looked like he’d lost a lot. He staggered as he walked toward them and fell. Jackson caught him and scooped him up.
The ride back to the house didn’t take long, but Shaye and Jinx anxiously watched over Spider, who seemed to drift right on the verge of unconsciousness. Shaye was relieved to see paramedics waiting for them when they arrived. The paramedics placed Spider on a gurney and immediately went to work stabilizing him.
“Lamotte!” one of the policemen yelled. “Got a Detective Grayson on the radio for you.”
Jackson hurried off and Shaye stood with Jinx at the back of the ambulance, watching as the paramedics secured Spider. The cop who’d been on the boat with them hopped in the back of the ambulance and they closed the doors and took off.
“Is he going to be all right?” Jinx asked.
“I think so,” Shaye said, hoping it was the truth. “He’s just weak from the blood loss.”
Jackson ran back over, a huge smile on his face. “They found Peter in an old house Clancy owned. He’s scared and hungry, but he’s going to be fine.”
Jinx choked back a cry but finally couldn’t hold it in any longer. Shaye wrapped her arms around the girl as she collapsed into tears. It was all over. And yet, it wasn’t.