by Alton Gansky
“What are you, a truant officer? They don’t want me in that place anyway. I’m too bad for their sensitive eyes.”
“Are you going to let me use your phone or do I go to the cop car I saw down by the McDonald’s and tell them you’ve been causing trouble? I’m betting they’ve met you before.”
“Maybe once or twice, but I ain’t done nothing but buy a double latte. And yes, I paid for it.”
“Who do you think they’re going to believe: you or me? Twenty bucks, one phone call, and I stay right here at the table.”
“Twenty ain’t much money these days, lady.”
“Forty then, and that’s it.”
“I don’t know. I mean forty is pretty good — ”
“We’re back to twenty.”
“Okay, okay.” He pulled a small phone from his pocket. It looked as dirty as his jeans. The thought of pressing it to her ear made Judith sick. “Let’s see the cash.”
Judith opened her billfold and extracted two twenties and exchanged them for the phone.
She dialed. Terri picked up on the third ring. “Terri?”
“Judith! I didn’t recognize the caller ID. Oh, I’ve been so worried. Marlin just called. Everything is falling apart. I don’t know what to do.”
“He called you on this number?”
“Yes. I don’t know how he got it.”
“Maybe through my computer. Maybe he got my call list from the cell phone provider. Who knows? There’s probably a dozen ways.”
“They’re saying … I mean the news … Marlin …”
“Terri, listen. I don’t have much time. I’m using a borrowed phone. First know that what you’re hearing is wrong. Second, I want you to return to work. I may need you there.”
“Marlin’s planning a takeover. I’m sure of it. Can he do it? Can he really do it?”
“Maybe. It’s happened to others. I’m certainly not immune.”
“But if I go to the office, the police will certainly come and question me.”
“That’s all right, Terri. Tell them what you know. Tell them the truth. Also tell them that I will be in touch with them as soon as I can. I want you to do several things. First of all, you need to get the phones in our two offices replaced — ”
“Marlin has already done that.”
“Well, score one for him. I want you to go see Jim Gaines and tell him everything you know. Tell him I want him to be present if the — ” She looked at the Goth kid. “If they come by to ask questions. If he needs to bring in … help, tell him to do so.”
“Why do I need the company lawyer?”
“It’s a precaution, Terri. I also want you to do something else. You have to promise you will listen and not interrupt.”
There was a pause. “Okay, I promise.”
“When you talk to Jim, tell him that I’m installing you on the board. He is to draw up the necessary papers right away. Also, I want him to draw up docs that will transfer all my stock to you. Understood?”
“Judith, this is crazy.”
“Yeah, it is, but it’s all I can do.”
“Won’t you have to sign something?”
Judith sighed. “Probably. See what he says. Find a way around it. I can’t come in and sign right now. I’ll figure something out.”
“Um, Judith. What if he doesn’t believe me? I mean, transferring stock; he’s going to think I’m trying to rip you off.”
Judith hadn’t thought of that.
“Come on, lady. You’re wasting my battery.” The kid reached for the phone. Judith pulled away.
“One more minute.” Judith’s mind sprinted between possibilities, then settled. “If he does, say to him, ‘Judith asked me to bring up Everwood.’ Got that?”
“What’s Everwood?”
“You don’t need to know and if he asks, assure him I told you nothing other than the name. I gotta go. I’m sorry to put all this on you. Whatever you hear, Terri, remember, I didn’t do it.”
She hung up and set the phone on the table, then walked away.
thirty-three
Pennington, normally a man of cultivated discipline, felt a strange disquiet deep inside. The children, each one with shocking lavender eyes, stared at him as if they could not only see through his clothing but count every bone, trace every vein, and outline each nerve. Worse, he felt they could read his soul like a comic book.
His years of experience, honed first as a field agent for the CIA and then, after the bureaucrats summarily fired him, as security expert for the largest firms and business interests in the world, had prepared him for anything. He learned to work for any company that could afford him. Their politics mattered nothing to him as long as they paid his exorbitant fees and didn’t ask too many questions. He had a mental closet full of skeletons he never allowed to haunt him. Such a haunting required a conscience and that had been burned from his mind long ago.
Still … their eyes … their quiet nature … their unblinking focus on him.
“What’s wrong with them?” Pennington looked to Ernie. The children ranged in age from six to eight. Their hair color varied but was similar enough to indicate common stock.
“Beats me. We’ve been here a week waiting for each kid to arrive and this is as excited as they get. Sometimes they wander in the field, but most of the time they just sit in groups and stare. Sometimes they whisper to each other. To be honest, Mr. Pennington, it freaks me out.”
“Abel was the same way. We gave him video games to play and he never touched them.”
“Abel? Is that the last kid? The one you were supposed to bring?”
“Yeah. We encountered a little problem.”
Ernie let his eyes drift to the blue knot on Pennington’s head.
“Don’t ask. Who else knows they’re here?”
“No one. Just Jose, me, and you. I followed your instructions to the letter. Your operatives would bring their target, er, child to a park at the foot of the mountain. I’d check to make certain the kid was unharmed, pay the agent, and bring the child here.”
“What about your drunken brother?”
“No, sir. Absolutely not. He was supposed to pick you up and drive you here, turn around, and leave. Then and only then would he get paid, and he sure ain’t getting paid now.”
“Jose was supposed to drive the bus.”
“No problem, sir. I’m checked out on big rigs. Driving that bus won’t be much of a problem.”
Pennington gazed back at the lavender-eyed gazers. They hadn’t moved other than to turn their heads to face him. The creep factor climbed a notch. He looked at his watch. “We leave in an hour.”
“Yes, sir. What about the missing boy?”
“Not your concern. Be ready to go when I say.”
“Understood.”
Pennington began to turn when a motion caught his eye. A girl, hair the color of licorice, slipped from her spot on one of the benches. Her frame was frail, her eyes large, her lips full, and her skin pale. She walked with the tiny strides of a child two years younger. For some reason, Pennington’s feet were welded to the floor.
Pennington didn’t like children and had been uncertain around them all his life. He fought the urge to step back as if recoiled by her presence.
She stopped a foot away and looked up to his face that was three feet above her. “Mister?”
“Yes?” Pennington’s word came out softer than he intended.
“You got evil on you. Lots of evil.”
If Judith’s heart had been made of steel instead of flesh, it would have melted under the heat of fear that came upon her when her cell phone rang. The familiar chiming alarmed her so much that she screamed.
“I thought that thing was out of commission!” Anger born of the unexpected sound fueled Luke’s words.
“It was. Just like yours.” Judith’s heart stuttered.
It chimed again. She pulled it from her purse and looked at the caller ID. Unknown Call.
As the phone sounded the
third time, Judith snapped it open. She heard a voice and everything within her began to dissolve.
“You have the boy.” It was the same automated voice she had heard in her office. “He is not safe. You must do as I say. If you understand say, ‘Yes.’ ”
“Yes.” Judith said.
Luke snapped his head around so fast Judith thought she heard vertebrae snap. He pulled the car to the side of the road. “It’s him, isn’t it?”
Judith nodded and leaned toward Luke. He placed his ear by the phone as Judith pressed a button on the side to increase the volume. She could feel his hair touch hers.
“Ontario Mills Mall. Jake and Jill’s Toy Store. Bring the boy. Just the two of you. Lead him to the toy train display. If you understand say, ‘Yes.’ ”
“Yes.” Judith had to force the word out. It slipped from her lips with a tremble.
“A woman will take him. He will be safe and well cared for. Do not follow. Do not speak to the woman. If you understand say, ‘Yes.’ ”
“Yes.”
“February 27. You know the date. You know what you did. If you understand say, ‘Yes.’ ”
“Yes.”
“Arrive no later than one-thirty. This is for the boy’s own good. “If you understand say, ‘Yes.’ ”
“Yes.”
The line went dead.
“What?” Ida asked. “What’s wrong?”
“The Puppeteer.” Judith set the phone down and drew in a lungful of air. “He wants Abel.”
“He can’t have him.” Ida’s voice grew in volume and rose in pitch. “Do you hear me? I am not turning my son over to some stranger. I lost him once, I’m not losing him again.”
“Ida — ” Luke began.
“It’s not your right.” Ida was close to screaming. “Just because you found him doesn’t mean you own him.”
“Ida — ”
“We’re leaving. I’m not going to let you do this.”
Luke hit the automatic door lock. Ida began to fumble with the handle then the lock.
“Ida, stop.”
“No. I’ll scream. I’ll draw attention to you.”
“SHUT UP!” Luke’s voice echoed so loudly in the car that it hurt Judith’s ear. “Just shut up for a minute.” He worked his hands on the steering wheel, squeezing until his knuckles whitened. A moment later, he leaned forward and placed his head on the wheel. “I can’t do this, Judith. I can’t turn Abel over to the Puppeteer. I thought I could. Every hour I tell myself I can, I must. I can’t.”
Judith put a hand on Luke’s shoulder. “I know. I gave up believing I could follow this thing through to the end awhile ago. I figured you did too since you’re here looking for the others.”
“It means our secrets will get out.” Luke leaned back in his seat. “I don’t know what your secret is but I assume it could cost you everything.”
“Maybe. I suppose there are more important things.” She looked back at Ida and Abel. Abel seemed untroubled. To have a child’s peace.
“It’s only been a day and a half but I feel like I’ve been reacting to one threat after another for a month.” He paused and gazed out the window. “Okay, let me think. Nothing has changed. We still have to find the others and do what we can to help them.”
“Maybe we should go to the police now,” Ida said.
“Maybe, but I fear for the others.” Luke started the car. “The same deal may apply for them.”
“Besides, I’m kinda wanted for murder.” Judith thought for a moment. “The Puppeteer didn’t mention the others. He only mentioned Abel. Why?”
“There’s no way to know. Maybe he doesn’t know about the others.”
“Maybe he does and doesn’t want us to know.” Luke let the car idle. “He said we should turn Abel over to a woman in a toy store in Ontario. Even if we left right now, we couldn’t make it on time. That means — ”
“He doesn’t know we’re up here in the mountains.”
“But he knows we’re not in San Diego,” Luke added.
“He could guess that we would have left from the news reports.” Judith’s mind grasped for more clues, more details to help her understand, but she ran dry.
“Give me your phone.” Judith handed it over and Luke deftly removed the battery. He did the same with his phone. “I don’t know how well connected or sophisticated this guy is, but so far he seems to be head and shoulders above anyone I’ve met. No sense in letting the GPS tracking in the phones broadcast our whereabouts.”
Luke dropped the car in gear and pulled onto the road.
A few minutes later, he pulled up to a Dumpster, exited the car, and tossed the phones in.
thirty-four
The sound of tires changed from a dull hum to a crunching as Luke slowed and pulled from the narrow serpentine lane that led from the main road through dense forest and to the Christian campground. The map listed the site as Manna Creek Christian Camp.
“Why are you pulling over?” Judith asked. “We have at least two miles to go.”
“I can’t take Abel and Ida into danger. We don’t know if Pennington and his pals are there, but it makes sense, and if he is, he’s not going to be happy with unexpected company.”
“So you’re giving up?”
“No. I plan to walk the rest of the way using the forest for cover. With any luck, I’ll be able to scope out the situation.”
“Then what?” Judith folded the map.
“I have no idea. I’ll figure that out when I get there.”
“When we get there. I’m going with you.” She unsnapped her seat belt. Her stomach twisted with apprehension that told her she didn’t feel as brave as she sounded.
“No, you’re not. I want Ida and Abel to stay here. I don’t know why, but this feels real bad.”
“The Truth is talking to you,” Abel said from the back.
“That’s nice, kid. I don’t know what it means, but it sounds real nice.”
Judith opened her door. “Say what you want. I’m going with you, and aside from knocking me unconscious, there’s nothing you can do about it.”
Luke took her arm in his hand. “There’s no reason for you to go.”
“Of course there is. Children respond better to women than men.”
“Oh yeah, you haven’t met my mother.”
“Luke, you know that I’m right about this. Best we can tell, it was men who took them and it is men who are holding them.”
“We don’t know that.” The protest was weak.
“We know Pennington is a man. He worked with Dr. Zarefsky. That’s at least two men. All I’m saying is that having a woman along might be helpful.” She turned to the backseat. “You like me, don’t you, Abel?”
“I like you a lot.”
“See?” Judith smiled. “I’m irresistible. Now, if we’re going to do this, you need to let go of my arm.”
Luke did and Judith slipped from the car. A moment later, Luke stood by her side. She watched him study the road and the tree line. “This way.”
“I’m right behind you.” Judith wondered if Luke could hear the thunder in her heart.
After just five minutes, Judith felt she had left the civilized world behind and was trekking through unmapped areas like Lewis and Clark. Trees, mostly ponderosa pine, towered around her like pillars. She pushed through the brush, doing her best to walk on loose pine needles in her pumps. Every step made her feet hurt. She had not dressed for this and imagined how ridiculous she looked hiking in business attire.
Having had no opportunity to change, Luke wore the same casual jeans and sneakers which were much better suited for the work, yet even he struggled at times. She marveled at his willingness to go this alone, with no knowledge of what lay ahead. Over the last two days she had come to admire the man, his keen mind, quick wit, and commitment. Of course, he was weird, paranoid, and a loner. In many ways, he was the opposite of her, his north to her south. She worked in a major business, a leader in her industry. She piloted a cor
poration that measured success in the billions of dollars; he apparently sat alone in his home typing on a keyboard, reading stock reports and placing money here and there. He had done well for himself, but the thought of spending hours alone working like he did would drive her crazy. Perhaps what she did would be equally insanity inducing for him.
They had not spoken once they entered the forest. Only the sounds of distant birds, the occasional tree squirrel added to the noise of their footsteps. They made no attempt to disguise their movements for the first twenty minutes. At first it concerned Judith but she said nothing, instead trusting Luke’s instincts. She hoped he had instincts.
If they had walked along the road, then it would have been a fairly easy two miles of twisting path. Plowing through the forest made the distance impossible to determine. Would it be shorter because it was more direct? Maybe. It might also be longer.
Some of the difficulty in walking came from the sloping ground. Luke had pulled to the side after descending three miles along the winding road and therefore had not reached the bottom of the sheltered valley. So the distance they had to cover had to be made over inclined ground. At least it is downhill, Judith thought, then wondered what the trip back up might be like.
Minutes chugged by, measured in carefully made steps and the occasional slip. Perspiration dotted her forehead, the scalp beneath her hair, and behind her ears. For a moment she felt disappointment that Luke would see her sweaty and dirty, with pine needles in her hair. She quickly chastised herself for the thought. She had read novels where women were portrayed being more concerned about their feelings and appearance than the danger that loomed before them. She abhorred such shallow representations and determined not to prove the authors right.
Luke slowed and Judith caught up to him. His breath came in deep draws and she could hear a slight wheeze with each inhalation. “How you doing? Am I going too fast?”
“I’m okay. Want to trade shoes?”
He looked puzzled then gazed at her feet. “No, thanks, I only wear slingbacks.”
The unexpected image of Luke in women’s shoes made her smile. “Tell me we’re not lost.”
“Not at all. I just wanted to give you a moment to rest.” He took several more deep breaths.