Mary Clark hadn’t been paying much attention to her friends. She touched Antonia’s sleeve. “There’s that queer looking man that almost knocked you over in the passage.” She looked back at him. “There is something odd about him.”
Antonia said, “The only thing I noticed about him was that he was extremely rude. And that coat--” She rolled her eyes. “If it were any brighter, you could use it for a fluorescent lamp.”
Mary was still staring at him. “He sure has some rough looking friends.”
“Quit worrying about him.” Allison added. “He was just a rude bore and we don’t need to have anything to do with him.”
They walked on. Once more Mary turned to look at the man who had been so rude. She gave a little scream. The three men were advancing on the girls at nearly a run.
“Run,” She gasped as she bent low and ran away from the other girls
One of the men pulled a pistol from his belt. “Stop or I’ll shoot,” He shouted.
Desperately Allison ran toward the Visitor’s Center, but before she could get to the next row of parked cars, a tall man with a scar on his chin leaped toward her. He slammed her against the side of a van. Her head hit the heavy steel around the window and she instantly lost consciousness. He flung her over his shoulder and strode to an old grey van. Opening the side door, he shoved her inside.
He turned to see one of his accomplices bringing Antonia who was flushed from running. She fought the man, but his grip tightened and she yelled in pain and stopped struggling.
The other man had grabbed Mary, but she panicked, twisting, turning, screaming and kicking, trying to break away from the cruel grip that held her so tightly.
As she passed by a battered, rusty SUV, she yelled to a woman who was standing motionless, watching the fight.
“Help me. Please help me,” She cried desperately.
The woman started forward, but a man standing by her held her back.
“Don’t be a fool,” He snarled. “Your husband is in enough trouble from trying to help someone. Now you want to get involved in this. Haven’t you learned your lesson?”
Mary’s captor had nearly reached the van when she slammed her hiking boot down on his instep with all the power she had in her leg. Before he could do more than groan, she twisted and slammed her knee into his groin. As he doubled over, she jerked away and started to run.
His partner pushed the injured man aside and pulled his gun, running after her. He took a flying leap and grabbed her sheep-skin vest pulling her backward. As she swung around, he grabbed her arm and began pulling her toward the car.
Suddenly, something inside the watching woman seemed to explode. “The hell with not getting involved,” She said to the man who was holding her back. She shoved him away. Putting her two fingers into her mouth, she let out a loud, long whistler that was almost as loud as a police whistle. When nothing happened, she grabbed the nearest thing she could find and threw it at the man who was dragging Mary. Her aim was true and the tote bag hit him in the face, then exploded, the contents flying everywhere. He staggered backwards, stepped on her lipstick and went down flat on his back.
Mary instantly tore free and ran zigzagging between the cars.
“Leave her, you fool,” the driver snapped. “We’ll have the cops on us before we can get to the bottom of the hill. If they get a roadblock up before we get there, we’re toast.”
The man nodded and scrambled into the van, pulling the door shut as the driver accelerated toward the exit.
He aimed his gun at the woman who had thrown her purse, but she had already disappeared behind a row of cars. As he pulled his head back in the car, he saw Mary hiding behind a red pickup. He aimed and fired twice. He began to grin when he saw her jerk and start to slump toward the ground. Then the car sped around the first curve, leaving the parking lot behind.
“I got her,” He said with satisfaction. “I’ll bet she won’t be able to tell the cops anything for days.”
“Yeah, and if she dies, we’ll be facing a murder rap.”
“So what. The Feds will be after us for kidnaping, but the boss has a lot of political pull. We get caught, we walk, and she’ll see to it. She can’t afford to let us go to prison. We know too much.”
The car careened down the steep and curving road, passing more than a dozen cars at a time and nearly forcing oncoming cars off the road.
A few minutes later, they turned left toward Whites City. They slowed down to the speed limit as they entered the town. Turning right on a side road, they pulled up behind a dark blue SUV. Quickly the driver got out and unlocked the van. Making sure that they weren’t being watched, they pushed the two girls into the back of the van. Then they climbed in. They drove quietly until they were through the city, then they turned on to a dirt road and disappeared into the distance.
-----------
The young man quietly stopped the recording he had been making on his smart phone. “This could be my ticket to a new job. I just have to find an internet café.” He said to himself. “What a break!”
Chapter 9
Downtown El Paso
They all turned to look at the screen. “This station just received this footage taken at the Carlsbad Cavern’s Visitor’s Center. A crisp, clear video filled the huge television screen. It showed a girl being thrown into the side door of a red car. It also showed a man with a scar on his cheek taking aim at a girl huddled behind the car. A large purse came flying. It struck the man on the side of his face as the contents exploded around him. They saw him stumble, fall, then recover. Before he could grab for the girl who couldn’t be seen, the grey van pulled up, the door swung open. The man jumped for the door, leaving the girl. The van accelerated. The door swung shut as the car screeched around the parked cars and exited the parking lot.
Mrs. A grabbed Martin’s arm. “That was Antonia in the back seat.”
“You can’t be sure. You couldn’t see her face that clearly.”
She dropped to her chair, her face in her hand. “I could see it clearly. She’s been kidnapped.” She groaned. “What have I done?”
“Ruth,” he said softly. “You don’t know if the kidnapping, if it was Antonia, was a result of the Weldon audit.”
She straightened her spine and stood up. “You’re right. Call Tom Cramer. He knows Antonia. See if he can find out who was taken. Then call Inspector Lepley. “Since he’s already working at murder at Carlsbad, he’ll probably be given this case, too.”
She looked up at Beale. “John, I assume by now you know that some very bad things have going on here at Weldon.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Andrew Paradise will be stepping down as CEO since he is under arrest, but that is strictly confidential and mustn’t leave this room.”
“I don’t talk, ma’am.”
In a no nonsense voice, she said, “Good. I’m appointing you are interim CEO pending the results of the government’s investigation. You’ll work with Mr. Price on which employees will stay on payroll. I’m sure you’ll have to hire replacements. Since we have government contracts that, hopefully, will be reinstated, you will have to vet everyone who is hired.”
She looked over at Mr. Moore. “I assume that you have someone who can help us with this process?”
“Yes ma’am. I can have a couple of men here tomorrow.”
“John that will give you the rest of today to work with Mr. Price. You should know who can come back tomorrow by the end of the day.”
Price looked up from his phone. “Mrs. Arbuthnot, you have fifteen companies under the Arbuthnot Management banner, do you not?”
“Yes.”
“I don’t have enough teams to cover that many businesses at the same time without compromising previous contracts. As each team finishes a contract I can put them on to one of your businesses or if that won’t work, I can give you the names of some good accounting firms.”
She looked at him. “Until I know what is going on with my granddaughte
rs, I can’t deal with this. I want all my companies to be audited at once. You know who you trust. I’ll pay you to organize the audits using those companies. I’d like them to begin tomorrow, if you can put together enough teams. If not, we can wait to announce Andrew’s resignation until the day after tomorrow.”
“Call Martin. He pretends to be my butler, but he is my aide-de-camp. He can handle it.”
She turned to look at the three men. “Gentlemen, I hope that these decisions are okay with you. I need to turn my attention to my granddaughter.”
There was a knock on the door. Martin pulled it open.
“Mr. Beale,” his administrative assistant said, “I’m sorry to bother you, but there is a police officer here to see Mrs. Arbuthnot. He says it’s an emergency.
“Show him in, Catherine.”
The young officer stepped around her. “Mrs. Arbuthnot, I’m Deputy Rogers. Do you know a Mary Clark?”
“She is staying with me. She was at Carlsbad Caverns with my granddaughter.”
“I need you to come with me. Ms. Clark has been injured and she is at El Paso General. I’m supposed to take you there.”
Ruth looked at Martin. “You’d better come too, because whatever is happening, I’m going to I need moral support and you have the most moral support I know.”
His lips curved up. She still has her sense of humor. That’s a good sign.
She turned to the men in the room. “Gentlemen, I need to leave. Mr. Beale will give you all the cooperation he can. He has Martin’s cell number. You can contact him if you need me. Thank you again for all your help.”
It didn’t take long for them to get to El Paso Memorial since Rogers liked to use the siren. He also seemed to like driving fast.
When they arrived, Mrs. Arbuthnot looked at Martin as he helped her from the police car. “That was breath taking.”
Martin nodded. “I got the impression that you couldn’t get here fast enough. I could see your foot pressing on an imaginary accelerator in the back seat.”
She took a deep breath. “You got that right. I hate unanswered questions. They make me feel out of control and when I feel out of control, I get cranky.”
Martin smiled, “I would think downright obnoxious would be closer to the truth.”
Rogers opened the door. “If you’ll come this way, I’ll take you to Chief Wilson.”
Mrs. Arbuthnot looked at Officer Rogers. “I want to see Mary Clark or her doctor.” Mrs. Arbuthnot said, bluntly.
“They’ll all be with Chief Wilson,” he said, as he led the way through the foyer to the elevators. As soon as they were all in, he pressed the button for level 7.
Mrs. Arbuthnot looked at Martin who nodded. Level 7 was for critical trauma patients.
When they exited the elevator and turned toward the nurses’ station, a doctor rushed forward. “Mrs. A., it’s good to see you again. Are you here for Mary Clark?”
She nodded, “How is she?”
“We got the bullets out, but without insurance, I don’t--”
The words, shots and bullets, were the only things that registered in her brain.
Before he could finish the sentence, Mrs. Arbuthnot took two steps toward him, her ashen face just inches from his.
Grabbing his white lab coat, she said, “I don’t care about insurance. I’ll be responsible for her medical bills and she had better,” she raised her finger, “And I mean better get the best care this hospital can give or the hospital board will get an earful and they won’t like what they hear.”
Dr. Menzies swallowed, “Of course, she’ll get the best care. It’s just that--”
Mrs. A. interrupted him again. “I thought we on the hospital board, agreed that all patients whether they could pay or not, would get the best of care.”
“Well, but--”
“The federal government lent us the money for this hospital with that understanding,”
Martin tapped her shoulder and said, “Mary Clark.”
She glared at Menzies, “I’ll save the rest of my diatribe for later. I want to see Mary.”
“Ma’am,” Rogers said, “Chief Wilson would like to talk to you first.”
“What he likes and what he gets could be two different things. I want to see Mary and I want to see her now.” The look on Ruth’s face caused him to take a step back.
Menzies said, “Come with me. I’ll take you to her. She is still pretty out of it, but I think she might know who you are. We got your name from her purse.”
“What’s the prognosis?”
“One shot hit her in the leg and one in the shoulder. Because she was dropping to her knees, the bullet made a gash along her thigh and lodged just below the hip bone. The bullet in her shoulder missed the tendons and bone. All she’ll have from that bullet is a scar. We had to take 45 stitches in her thigh. It’s a good thing that the woman who called the ambulance had some first aid training. She stopped the flow of blood in both wounds and kept both the leg and shoulder immobile until the paramedics could stabilize Mary.”
He stopped in front of a curtain guarded by a police officer. “We will take her to her room as soon as she is stabilized.”
The officer stood in front of them. “Officer Smith, this is Mrs. Ruth Arbuthnot. She is a friend of Miss Clark.”
Before the officer could say anything, Ruth said, “Mary has been staying with me for the last few days. I need to see her before I call her mother who is in a sanatorium for nervous breakdowns somewhere in England.”
“Chief Wilson wants to talk to you first.” Smith said firmly.
“Then get him here, now. I need to see Mary so I can authorize her treatment.”
Smith looked from her to Doctor Menzies, who said, “I think she should see Mary before she sees Chief Wilson. The correct treatment is vital at this stage.”
Smith stepped aside and spoke into his radio as Dr. Menzies pulled the curtain back and motioned Mrs. A. into the cubicle. Mary lay on the bed, hooked to an IV and several monitors beeped in the background.
Dr. Menzies said quietly, “Mary, are you awake?”
Slowly, her eyes opened, but they looked vague and unfocused. “Where am I?”
Ruth stepped forward and took her hand, “Mary, it’s Grandma Ruth. How are you feeling?”
She managed a wan smile, but didn’t say anything.”
“Dumb question, right?” Ruth said with a smile.
Mary tried to smile again. “Mary, is there anything I can do for you?”
She formed the words, “Don’t ca--,” but no sound came out of her mouth.
Ruth patted her hand. “I’ll be right outside.”
Dr. Menzies checked her vital signs and asked if she was feeling any pain.” When she shook her head, he followed Mrs. Arbuthnot out the door.
She was facing a very tall, very thin man with a gray mustache and thick gray hair.
“Chief Wilson,” she said coolly.
“I believe I left orders for you to talk to me before you talked to Miss Clark.”
Ruth glared at him, but reminded herself that bulldozer tactics wouldn’t work here. “Mary Clark is my responsibility. Her mother is in a special facility for a breakdown because of her father’s death. In my mind, authorizing her treatment had to be my first priority.” She looked up at the blood rushing to his face. “I’m sorry that you don’t agree.”
He took a deep breath. “Mary Clark will live. I’m not sure the other two girls will. Most kidnapped persons are not found alive.”
Even though she had seen the video, she took a step backward and her face went pale. A cruel, satisfied smile twisted his lips.
“Yes, I thought that would change your tune. I want to know who the other two girls are and why they have been kidnaped. I am assuming that it was because you have so much money. What I don’t understand is why they shot at Clark. According to a witness, they were wearing masks so this was planned.”
Ignoring him, Martin guided her to a bench against the wall. Inst
antly, Menzies picked up her hand and put his fingers on her pulse.
“Breathe, ma’am.” Martin said. She took a gasping breath.
“Again, ma’am.” When she complied, he said, gently, “Ma’am, pull yourself together. Falling apart won’t help your granddaughter or her friends.”
“She is in a mild state of shock,” Menzies said, looking at her eyes.
Martin nodded, then reached in his pocket and pulled out a small vial. He broke it open with his thumb and held it under her nose. “She’s had a very rough couple of days.”
She gasped, gripped his hand and then coughed. Reflexively, she pushed his hand away. “I told you the last time you used that stuff on me, that I didn’t want you to use it again. I hate smelling salts or whatever the technical term is for that stuff. I’m not some weak-kneed heroine from the 1800’s.”
“Ma’am, you don’t have time to come out of this shock naturally. You need to be your ‘tougher-than-boiled-owl-pucky’ self to help Antonia and Allison. I was just helping you get yourself together.”
He sat next to her and put his arm around her. “Ma’am, don’t believe a word that Wilson says. We will find Allison and Antonia and we’ll find them before anything else happens to them. Be brave, Mrs. A. Be brave and hard and intelligent.”
She sat up and looked Martin straight in the eye. “You’re right. No one kidnaps my granddaughter or her friends and gets away with it.”
She took a deep breath, then got to her feet and looked up at the Sheriff. “Sheriff Wilson, I hope you enjoyed your cruel little triumph, because it will be your last. We may have fought at city council, but I will not allow you to put my granddaughter and her friends in jeopardy just to get back at me.
“However, I’ll answer your questions so you can’t blame me for anything. The other two girls are Antonia Nelson and Allison Lathrop. Mary, Antonia, and Allison are from England where they attend a private school in Kent. They are here on a visit for the month of December. Mary and Allison will fly back to England on December 20th. Antonia will spend Christmas with me since her parents are in India. She will fly back on January 2nd.”
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