Jailbird

by Heather Huffman

“Ross said he got a kick out of feeding girls to the gators. They’ll be around here somewhere.”

  At that statement, Elena gasped. I rolled my eyes and swore under my breath, even as the spotlight swung upwards.

  “Well lookey there. I don’t think that’s a couple of coons in that tree.”

  “Sorry,” Elena whispered up at me. I resisted the temptation to swear back at her.

  “Come on down, ladies. You’re safe now.”

  I couldn’t see well enough from my vantage point to determine who was standing below me. It didn’t sound like the police chief, but I wasn’t willing to stake my life on it. I found it highly encouraging that none of them had shot us out of the tree yet.

  Neither Elena nor I spoke and neither of us moved. The man grumbled something under his breath as another tried to coax us down. “Come on girls. Please don’t make us come up that tree after you. Are you stuck? Do you need help?”

  “I’ve never been stuck in a tree in my life,” I spat before I thought. It goaded me to be patronized after the night I’d had. I began to inch my way along the branch. Maybe I could get close enough to the next tree to swing over to it. I’d come this far, I wasn’t going down quietly now.

  “Neena, where are you going?” Elena whispered harshly.

  “For the love of… don’t you ever shut up?”

  “Neena, listen to the girl. You don’t want to do something crazy in your condition…” the calm man rationalized.

  “What do you know about my condition or its limitations?” I snapped.

  “Will someone get the chief and his buddies over here to talk some sense into these girls?” the first man spoke. I had gone as far as I could on the branch I was on and monkeyed my way from branch to branch until I found myself in the next tree over.

  “Neena… I don’t think I can do that,” Elena seemed to panic a little at the thought of being left alone.

  “Have faith in yourself,” I shot back, already working my way towards the next tree. I wasn’t about to stay still and wait to meet the chief’s buddies. I’d seen who he liked to hang out with.

  “Come on now, Ms. Russell. Please come down. We’re really trying to help.”

  “I don’t believe you.”

  “If you’ll come out of the tree, I’ll show you my badge…”

  “Men with badges in this town are as corrupt as your mayor. I don’t think so,” I was panting now with the effort, but I’d crossed the trunk and was making my way towards the other end of the tree. The patient man followed below, his searchlight still fixed on me.

  “We’re different. We’re FBI… from the Alexandria office. Your husband contacted us to report you missing. He’s here, we’ve sent for him.”

  “I don’t believe you,” I stopped moving. Tears sprang to my eyes. Could Charlie really be nearby? “If you’re FBI, why didn’t you identify yourselves from the beginning?”

  “To be honest, we were all a little surprised to find you ladies in a tree,” he chuckled before growing serious. “We were all looking for bodies.”

  “If my husband is here, I’ll just wait where I am until he arrives.”

  “I’ll one better ya, ma’am. I’m going to call him on my walkie-talkie. If you hear his voice, will you believe me?”

  “Maybe,” I was trying to figure out what trick the man had up his sleeve. Was he luring me down so he could snatch me? Wouldn’t he have just killed me already if that was his plan?

  “Team 3, this is Special Agent Pratt… can someone put Mr. Russell on the box?”

  “No can do, Mr. Russell took off when he heard you found his wife. He should be there anytime now.”

  “Convenient,” I began my monkey-walk to the next tree.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  So many things happened in that next moment, it was hard to process it all. The patient man got a radio that Winslow had been found just as I heard the thundering of hooves approaching.

  “Neena,” Charlie was calling my name. I could hear him over the horses, but I still couldn’t see him. Stunned, I slowly began to lower myself branch by branch. I dropped to the ground beside the patient man.

  “Good evening, Mrs. Russell,” he tipped his hat and smiled at me. I regarded him warily, but then my attention was taken by the large, dark horse that came through the thicket, pulling to a quick stop in front of us. Lights seemed to be bouncing everywhere as more men appeared. From the flurry of voices around us, I knew that Conrad, Manny and Sheriff Taylor were the men on the other horses.

  And then I was in Charlie’s arms, swept into an embrace and peppered with kisses. We were both talking at once and laughing and crying. He held me so tightly I could barely breathe and the baby kicked in protest. But I didn’t care; I clung to him just as tight.

  We resurfaced to realize that we had a small group standing around us smiling. I hugged my brother and Manny and rather sheepishly shook Special Agent Pratt’s hand. Then like a magnet to metal, I was back at Charlie’s side. Arm in arm, we watched the men trying to figure out the logistics of getting Elena out of the tree. I buried my head in Charlie’s arm when I couldn’t stop the giggle that bubbled up.

  “It’s not nice to laugh,” Charlie admonished, unable to keep a straight face himself. Eventually she was in her father’s arms and we seemed ready to leave the woods.

  I didn’t ask Charlie what had happened and he didn’t ask me. We rode together on his rented horse, content to bask in the knowledge that we were safe and together. The rest could be shared later.

  I felt so incredibly secure with his arms around me. His scent and his warmth curled around my senses, filling me with peace. The movement of the horse nearly rocked me to sleep.

  From the horse I was loaded into Conrad’s truck. I followed along as if in a dream. Charlie never left my side. I assumed Elena was in one of the other cars in the entourage. And it was an entourage. The quiet park had been turned into a zoo of cars and lights. Camera crews had shown up and reporters jostled for a position in front of Special Agent Pratt.

  I closed my eyes to all of it, resting my head against Charlie’s shoulder. They thought I was asleep, but inside I was a mess. Adrenaline and fear had kept me calm. Now that they were dissipating, I could feel myself coming apart at the seams a little. I let the sound of his and Conrad’s gentle voices soothe my rattled spirit.

  Images chased each other round my mind, the events of the afternoon replaying themselves in my head. Could the news from Pratt’s radio be trusted? Was Winslow in custody? Had I really just been in the presence of federal agents and not been hauled back to Dixon Correctional?

  Conrad pulled to a stop and I peeked through my eyelids. We were back at the hotel I’d been taken from. I wasn’t entirely sure I could sleep here tonight but told myself that was ridiculous. The place was abuzz with activity.

  “I’ll carry her,” Charlie was telling Conrad. I sat up and shook my head.

  “No need. I can walk.”

  They both watched me as if I might break into a thousand shards at any moment. Truth be told, I felt like I could easily enough. I focused on putting one foot in front of the other, allowing myself to be led to a room.

  It wasn’t the room I’d been in before. That made me feel a little better. Charlie said something to Conrad, who nodded and disappeared. I sat rather numbly on the bed, watching as Charlie laid out towels and got the shower ready.

  Like a robot, I went through the motions of washing my hair and body. I hadn’t realized how filthy I was until I saw the brown water racing for the drain. As I scrubbed my skin, I began to tremble. Tears worked their way free. Trembling turned into full-blown shaking and once it started, I just couldn’t seem to get it stopped.

  Tears turned into sobs and I gulped in air, trying to ease the crushing feeling in my chest. I felt completely helpless and immobile—unable to turn off the shower, let alone stop crying and trembling.

  Charlie must have heard me. Knowing him, he’d been standing outside the door t
he entire time anyway. He shut off the water, wrapped me in a towel and helped me step out of the tub. He grabbed another towel from the rack and began drying me, crooning nonsensical words of love all the while. I felt ridiculous and completely powerless. And really happy Charlie was there.

  “Did I hear someone say they caught Winslow?” my mind finally resurfaced. I took the pajamas Charlie was offering me and began to get dressed.

  “Yes. They caught him not far from where they found you,” Charlie’s voice was full of implication. I nodded. “Elena says there was another man with him. The FBI is still looking for him, but I don’t want you to worry….”

  “I’m not. He won’t come after me,” it was my turn to reassure Charlie. “He didn’t like his job. With Winslow gone, we’ll never hear from him again.”

  “How can you be so sure?”

  “He fed me.”

  Charlie arched an eyebrow in question and I tried to explain.

  “He snuck me bread, when I was hungry. He didn’t want Winslow to kill me. I could just tell.”

  “I’ll still feel better when he’s caught,” Charlie seemed skeptical.

  “Is Elena okay?”

  “Fine. I think they gave up trying to get a statement from her and gave her something to help her sleep.”

  “She’s had a hard day,” I nodded, glad she was resting now.

  “Oh she has, has she?” there seemed to be a hint of humor in his voice. “Come on. Conrad should be back with your pizza any time now.”

  “Is that where he went?” It was a stupid question, but I was entitled to a few of those in my present state of mind.

  “Well, first he went to get your clothes from the other room. Then he went to get a pizza.”

  “That was sweet… I don’t want him to go to any trouble.”

  “You have no idea how happy he is to be buying you a pizza right now. We didn’t think we’d get there in time,” Charlie’s voice cracked. “I’ve never been so scared in my entire life.”

  “You silly man,” I wrapped my arms around him. “Don’t you know I’ll always find my way back to you?”

  And then it was his turn to cry.

  There was a knock at the door. I brushed his cheek with my thumb and kissed the corner of his mouth. “You go splash some water on your face. I’ll get the door.”

  This time I did check the peephole before letting Manny in. I was immediately swept into another hug before being set back on my feet again.

  “You scared me, la hermana pequeña.”

  “I was fairly terrified myself,” I admitted a little wryly.

  “Manuel, my friend. How was Anjelita holding up?” Charlie appeared and shook Manny’s hand.

  “She’s ready to see Neena again. Otherwise, she’s okay. Grateful all turned out well. I called Mary, too. She and Gabrielle are fine. I think they’re planning on bringing Gabrielle here in the morning.”

  “Good. I’m ready to have my family back together in one place.”

  “Can I go home? Just like that?”

  “Well, not exactly just like that. The past few days have been a flurry of activity—especially this afternoon once we knew you were missing.”

  “When you didn’t answer, I broke into your room. It was pretty obvious someone had nabbed you, so I called Charlie,” Manny explained.

  “And Conrad, who called Rachel… he and I headed straight here,” Charlie took over. “She started working the phones. Apparently, Winslow and Ross had been under suspicion for a while now. What happened today, combined with the information Rachel had already dug up, was enough to spur the feds into action.”

  “How did you know where to find us?”

  “By the time we got to Winslow’s house, you were gone,” Charlie’s eyes seemed haunted by the memory of that moment.

  “But Marty Ross wasn’t,” a grin ticked the corner of Manuel’s mouth. “After a little persuasion, he told us where to find Winslow.”

  “Persuasion, huh?” I gave him a look that said Anjelita would not approve.

  Conrad showed up and I was pulled into another fierce hug. I didn’t think I’d be able to even think about food, but being surrounded by the men I loved most calmed my nerves. The smell of pizza might have also possibly helped me change my mind.

  We didn’t talk much. Each ate their pizza lost in thought until there was a knock at the door.

  “I got it,” Conrad stood and motioned for Charlie to sit back down.

  “Gentleman… Ms. Russell,” Special Agent Pratt nodded briefly at each of us as he and his partner walked in. “I’m real sorry to interrupt, but we need to take Ms. Russell’s statement.”

  “I don’t suppose this could wait until morning?” Charlie placed his hand over mine.

  “No, it’s okay. I want to get this over with,” I squeezed his hand reassuringly. “Where do you want me to start?”

  “Do you have any idea why Daniel Winslow kidnapped you today?” he went straight for the question I’d hoped to avoid.

  I looked at Charlie, who nodded. “Daniel Winslow has hated me for a long time now.”

  “Why is that?”

  I took a deep breath, “Because I killed his son.”

  “So, you’re telling me that your true identity is Kali Langston?”

  “At one time it was.”

  “Good.”

  “What do you mean?” I furrowed my brow.

  “We knew. I’m glad you were honest. Now we can get down to what’s really going on.”

  “Ah. Good to know. So, where am I really supposed to start?”

  “How about this afternoon.”

  “Sure. Conrad left for work and I waited around the hotel for Manny to show up…”

  “Manny… ?”

  “Manuel Torres,” I motioned to Manny. “He was on his way down to babysit me.”

  “Babysit you?” Pratt’s eyebrows shot up.

  “I think the guys here were worried I’d try to spring Elena by myself,” I explained. “So anyway, there was a knock at the door and I opened it….”

  I walked Pratt through the evening, trying to remember every detail, no matter how insignificant. I didn’t look at Charlie. I knew the expression on his face would be too much for me. When it came to the details of the escape, though, I decided those weren’t terribly necessary. “… and then Elena and I ran. That’s pretty much when you found us.”

  “You ran? Elena said that you ‘kicked Winslow in the shin,’ would you say that’s accurate?”

  “Sure,” I shrugged. “Maybe it was the knee.”

  “And Ms. Taylor also says that you saved her from an alligator?”

  “Lucky break.”

  “And knocked her out of the way of Winslow’s car?”

  “I guess you could say that.”

  “And you led her through the woods, evading Winslow until you were found by Federal Agents?”

  “It was no big deal.”

  “And when you’d been found by agents, you pulled Ms. Taylor into a tree to hide her until you could ascertain our identities?”

  “You know, she’s heavier than she looks.”

  “A tree?” Charlie interrupted for the first time.

  “You hadn’t heard?” Pratt’s partner jumped in for the first time. “When we found the girls, they were high up in the tree—hiding like a couple of coons. Then your wife here walked from tree to tree to get away from us.”

  “Our options were rather limited,” I shrugged. I couldn’t tell from the look on Charlie’s face if he was amused or irritated. I was telling myself amused.

  “Based on some previous information received, we’re investigating Daniel Winslow on several felony counts. We’ll be asking you to testify in court at some point.”

  “Sure,” I nodded a little weakly. I didn’t relish the thought of meeting Daniel Winslow’s eyes across a courtroom again. It didn’t matter if we were sitting in different seats this time.

  “I’m sorry, but I have to ask you not to lea
ve the state of Louisiana until we are able to get in front of a judge regarding your conviction.”

  My heart froze. “Do I have to go back there?”

  “No,” Charlie answered in a harsh voice. I had a feeling that was his personal opinion, not a statement of fact.

  “I don’t think that’s necessary. You’ll remain in our custody here until we can get this straightened out. Given your status as a federal witness, I think we can work something out.”

  “Thank you,” I began to breathe again.

  “Before you agree, I have to tell you that we have reason to believe that Winslow was an accessory to multiple crimes against women while his son was attending LSU. You’ll be asked to testify about… everything.”

  I nodded again. I didn’t trust my voice just yet. I really wasn’t looking forward to this, but it looked like my chance at a real life. One that didn’t require fake IDs and escape plans.

  Special Agent Pratt and his partner stayed a while longer, outlining what the next several days would look like. I eventually kicked everyone out, saying the pregnancy and the night had me ready to drop from exhaustion. Truth was—I worried about the circles under Charlie’s eyes. He seemed so weary and I knew he had to drive back to Hampton tomorrow if he was going to make it home in time for the custody hearing.

  It was a testament to how tired we were; we barely made it under the covers before we passed out. Charlie was up and out the door long before either of us was ready. I knew he was worried, even if he’d never voice it.

  “Hey… remember to have faith,” I reminded him. It felt hollow. Any words felt hollow, but they were all I had to give.

  For the next twenty-four hours, Conrad had to remind me to do simple things like eat and shower. The only thing I seemed truly capable of was sitting and worrying. So much of Charlie’s time had been occupied by my troubles, he hadn’t prepared for this battle as well as he would have liked. If he lost Cara I’d never forgive myself.

  “Do you mind if I watch T.V.?” Conrad flipped the channel even as he asked.

  “Go for it,” I flopped down on the bed, prepared to ignore whatever he was watching.

  “Child advocate or child broker? Champion for the little guy or pawn of Saudi oil baron…? Take a walk with our own Rachel Cooper as we follow a story that sounds on the surface like the American dream, only to be a nightmare in disguise. Is the up-and-coming young politician from Springfield God’s gift to the GOP, or will Nathan Smith be yet another stone around the party’s neck?”