“Are you ready to talk ma’am?” She nodded as the Warden sat down across from her. He looked so frustrated and worn out at the same time. She knew he was just doing his job, but she was very uncomfortable having him here. She closed her eyes and wished everything would just go away. “So tell me about this guy again? Who is he and what did he say?”
“Like I told you before, he just mumbled something. I couldn’t even hear him. It was so weird.”
“He had to say more than that. There’s something you’re not telling us here. No one else knew about that meeting except for you, me, Timmons and your husband.” The Warden shook his head. ‘You expect me just to believe that some guy just showed up out of the blue and sat down next to you and mumbled something.”
Michelle nodded her head. “That’s all he said. I don’t know who he was.”
The Warden looked down and slowly pulled out his phone. “I’m telling you ma’am you need me on your side. I promised you I’ll bring him back safely, but you have to help me out here. You can’t keep things from me thinking you’re helping him.”
“I’m telling you everything I know.”
“Any ideas why your husband didn’t show up then?”
Michelle looked back at the family picture. “No…I don’t know why he didn’t show.”
The Warden slowly stood up. “I don’t know what you’re hiding but your only hurting your husband, so when you’re ready to talk call me. You have my card. Let’s go Timmons.” Michelle watched him leave the family room and head back into the kitchen. A minute later, she heard the door slam and a car engine start up. She quickly ran back upstairs and sat in front of the filing cabinet staring at the picture.
Chapter 32
Jackson watched the man carefully out of the corner of his eye. He had a dark hood pulled down low covering the top half of his face and dark glasses covering his eyes making it difficult to really get a good look at him, but he could see the dark red splotches on his cheeks from the hot water at the hotel. Neither of them had their seatbelts on, but Jackson could see the gun in the man’s right hand. He was clutching it tightly and watching Jackson out of the corner of his eye.
“Don’t try anything stupid Stewart or I’ll pull the trigger…I promise.” Jackson turned back towards the window. He wasn’t sure where they were headed, but they were traveling very slowly and he wasn’t sure why. If he wanted to blend in he wasn’t doing a very good job. The man appeared much bigger than he had before, but Jackson had been a little woozy then with the head bashing, He could definitely tell he worked out in a gym and probably took some kind of supplements. He had read all about them on the prison library computers. In fact, he had read about almost everything. He loved the Internet and how far it had come since he was a free man. You could find anything, and he did. His whole escape plan came from the Internet and even though some things had gone off script a little, and he was being held hostage in a car with a crazy man, instead of behind bars, he still liked these circumstances better. There wasn’t much traffic tonight, despite being a Friday and nice weather. Jackson turned back towards the window and watched the houses slowly pass by. He thought of Stephanie and Michelle probably back home safe and sound in their house. He was so close. He had to do something. It was bad enough to have the Warden trying to bring him back, but there was no way he was going to let this guy take him down. He closed his eyes and tried to think of something. There had to be something he could do. A minute later, he felt the vehicle slow down even more. They were turning off onto an exit. Jackson watched as he steered the SUV to the right and then surprisingly sped up. They were in some kind of residential neighborhood. He didn’t recognize it. The houses looked to be mostly typical ramblers from the early sixties and seventies. Northern Virginia was full of them. A minute later, the car jolted and stopped in front of a small one-floor home set far back from the road. They pulled into the driveway and Jackson watched as the man pushed a button on a garage door opener above him that he hadn’t noticed before. The door slowly opened and the car made its way into the dark garage. Neither of them moved as the man pushed the button and door slowly made its way back down. The car was still turned on.
“You ready…Stewart?” Jackson nodded his head. ‘Let’s go. I’m going to turn the engine off then come get you. Try anything and I swear I’ll pop you and then go do the same to your little family.” Jackson sat still as he watched the man turn the ignition and remove the key. He slowly exited the car and made his way around to Jackson’s side. A few seconds later, he pulled the door open. “Get out nice and slowly then walk towards that door.” Jackson looked toward the far wall of the single car garage and could barely see a small door through the dim light. He slowly walked towards it aware of the steel barrel a few inches from his head. He hated guns. Just the sight of them usually made him nervous. There were just so many ways they could hurt you. He knew all it took was one slight movement of the man’s finger and his life would be over. Jackson felt the sweat making its way down his forehead. He grabbed the knob and slowly twisted it open and stepped into a dark tangy smelling room. He needed a plan. He hated not knowing what to do. He felt the muzzle jam into the back of his neck as he kept walking forward and was pushed onto a couch covered in knit blankets.
“Now stay there. Don’t get up.” Jackson pushed down onto the flimsy couch and watched the man walk to the other side of the room and flick a light switch. A second later, the room was full of light and Jackson could see a dingy furnished home full of what looked like heavily used thrift store furniture. He was seated in the small living room and off to the far side was a dining room with a circular glass table with a large crack running through it leading to a tiny kitchen. “Now you see where I have been living the last five years. I really need you to tell me where that money is.”
“I told you I don’t know anything about any money. All I did was what you asked. I disabled the security system and left.”
“Stewart, I saw you enter the building. I was there. I was also at your trial.”
Jackson looked across from him at two closed doors. He assumed they were bedrooms. “Who are you really?”
“You know who I am. Remember our meeting at the Sheraton before you did the job.”
“I thought you were a legitimate employer. I did what you asked.”
“That you did. You also did more. You shot the security guard and stole twenty million dollars that I want, and I’m going to get.” He looked towards one of the closed doors. “And I will get. Today is Friday, and I guarantee I will have my money by Sunday.” Jackson looked down and shook his head. A few minutes later, he was tied to the couch with thick rope. He watched as the man turned off the light switch and disappeared behind one of the doors. Jackson lay there on his back unable to move. The binds were tight on his arms and legs, but at least he could still stretch out. He tried to maneuver his arms to see if he could get out but he gave up after about ten minutes and closed his eyes. He knew he was going to need every ounce of energy he had to survive this weekend. What seemed like five minutes later, Jackson woke up suddenly to a sharp pain on his leg near his ankle.
“What are you doing?” He yelled.
“Getting my money.” Jackson could see him holding a small knife. He was jamming it repeatedly into the small hollow space right above his ankle. Jackson screamed out on pain. “You ready to talk now?” Jackson turned his head away and grimaced as he felt another jab and feeling of warm blood oozing down his leg. He had to do something. The man repeated this procedure two more times then quickly left. “I’ll be back in two hours. Call me if you’re ready to talk. Next we’ll work on the other leg.” Jackson closed his eyes as hard as he could to try and diminish the pain, but it wasn’t helping any. He couldn’t imagine going through that again. He looked at the digital clock on the VCR under the large CRT TV, it read 2:00 AM. He had until 4:00. He tried to press his ankle against the fabric of the couch to slow the blood flow, but he couldn’t tell if it was working
or not because he couldn’t raise his head high enough. He finally fell back to sleep or passed out because of the pain. He wasn’t sure.
Chapter 33
Dever woke up feeling rejuvenated and ready for action. He immediately dressed and completed a forty-five-minute workout in the exercise room and then showered and dressed and banged on Timmons door. Timmons groggily opened the door and immediately headed for the bathroom. A minute later, Dever could hear the shower running. He never understood how people could sleep late in the morning. The start of the day was when a person should be up and ready. He lived by the expression that the military got more done by 9:00 AM than most people did all day, and he was living proof of that. He was known for getting his men up at 3:00 or 4:00 AM on any given day and demand they go for a ten mile run. He missed his time in the Marines. He would have stayed longer, but they forced him out, something about too much time in rank. He didn’t buy it but he finally gave in and immediately joined the Bureau of Prisons and decided to take the job in North Carolina, the home state of his favorite base, Camp Lejeune. He watched as Timmons finally opened the bathroom door and exited towards him. His hair was still wet, and he smelled of powerful soap and shampoo. Dever always believed soap and shampoo would give away their position in the field, so he always made sure his Marines only used small amounts of it. He loved to tell his men if the enemy can’t see you, they can either hear you or smell you.
“Let’s go Timmons. Today is the day we bring Stewart back home. This has gone on long enough.” He knew the Governor was going to call again real soon. It was just how he was. He had to bring back his prisoner soon. It was killing him. Timmons nodded his head and pulled the hotel door shut behind them while trying to keep up with Dever who was walking quickly toward the elevator bank. “I don’t believe anything his wife said. She is hiding something about her husband. I think that whole thing last night was a setup to make us look stupid. They are playing with us Timmons.”
“What about the guy who showed up?”
“I think he’s part of the plan too, probably in on the whole thing. We need to find out who he is and what his role is in helping the Stewarts.” Dever forcibly pushed the down button. “I know Stewart was there last night. Probably standing right outside laughing at us the whole time, then they sent that idiot in there to distract us.”
“He had some skills Warden.”
“He caught us off-guard. We didn’t expect that. He could pick up martial arts skills at any local studio for a couple hundred bucks. I guarantee when we see him again, he won’t get away this time. I intend on taking him down too.” Timmons nodded as they walked past the lobby towards the parking lot. “Let’s go to the Stewart’s first. I want to talk to Mrs. Stewart again and see if she has come to her senses yet. We need to apply some pressure.”
“Like what Sir?”
“Like threaten her with aiding and abetting. This has got to stop. I want you to send up Baker and Jenkins too.”
“Can they spare them down there? We’re running low on staff already. The Marshalls should be arriving here soon.”
“You let me worry about the Marshalls and the low staff numbers. We need all the resources we can get to bring Stewart back. He’s making us look like buffoons, and I don’t like buffoons Timmons.” Dever quickly sat down in the passenger seat and slammed his seatbelt into the clip. “Here’s what we’re going to do. First, we’re going to get her to admit she played us last night, and then she will tell us where Stewart is; otherwise we’re bringing her in.”
“We can’t just bring her in. We need proof.” Dever kept his eyes out the window as everything blurred by. A minute later, his cell phone began to ring. He didn’t recognize the number but he answered anyway.
“Warden Dever. This is Special Agent Mitchell from the U.S. Marshalls. We need to get together and talk.” Dever slammed his foot against the floor causing Timmons to snap his head quickly in his direction. “I’m right down the road from you. How about we meet at the IHOP across the street from the Sheraton that we’re both staying in?”
“We’re kind of busy right now. Can we meet later?”
“Unfortunately, we can’t. I have some information I need to share with you.” Dever didn’t like his voice. It was New England, not Boston, but close. “We’ll see you there in about a half hour….sound good?” Dever hated being talked to this way, but he reluctantly agreed. “I’ll be there with Agent Reilly. We’ll be in the back by ourselves. You won’t miss us.”
“I’m sure we won’t,” He mumbled.
“What was that Warden?”
“Nothing.” He hung up the phone and directed Timmons back towards the hotel. A half hour later they entered the IHOP and pointed the hostess towards the two men in suits seated near the back. Dever immediately recognized Mitchell right away. He was thirty something and well-built. His hand felt like a giant claw when he shook it. Reilly was slimmer and at least ten years older. He had a much softer personality and demeanor. Dever knew immediately who he was going to try and exploit. They quickly shook hands and were seated. Everyone ordered food except for Dever. He just drank coffee with Sweet and Low.
Mitchell spoke first. “Thank you for meeting with us. I know you want to bring back your man and so do we, so let’s work together on this.” Dever grunted. It wasn’t that he didn’t like Mitchell, He seemed like an adapt Agent. He just wanted to bring Stewart back himself. He watched Timmons and Reilly speak to each other. He couldn’t hear what they were saying, and he didn’t really care.
“So what do you have to tell us?” Dever took another sip.
“I’ll get to that. I just want to say we have done as I presume you have and traced him back here. We have followed all his tracks and know he’s in the vicinity. We’re ready to get him. I have two teams standing by ten minutes from here ready to spring as soon as I tell them.” Dever watched him brush his shortly cropped hair with his hand. He was a handsome guy with light brown hair. He looked like he was probably a quarterback in college or at least high school. Definitely the jock type, though he didn’t think he had served any time in the military, and he wasn’t going to ask. “Where do you suspect he is right now?”
Dever looked at Timmons and Reilly. They both stopped talking and were looking at him. “I think he is hiding out with a friend or staying in some rat-hole motel around here just waiting for his opportunity.”
“We’ve checked all the motels and as far as we can tell he has no acquaintances in the area which is why I have asked you to come here. We think we may have something.” Dever watched Mitchell reach under the table and pull out an iPad. He turned it toward Dever and Timmons. When Dever saw the screen he almost choked on his coffee.
Chapter 34
Jackson woke up at 3:56 AM. He had four minutes until the torture started again. His ankle was still in excruciating pain and he couldn’t imagine having the same thing happen to the other one. It was still hurting from the metro track accident. He wasn’t sure he could handle more pain to it. He closed his eyes and tried to slow the clock down with his mind, but with each passing moment the tension was growing. He thought about Stephanie and Michelle and how much he wanted to be with them. He had already been through so much these last few days, so much more than he ever imagined and there was nothing that was going to stop him now. He felt his ankle began to throb. It ached so much. He pressed it against the couch to try and ease the pain. He couldn’t tell if it was still bleeding or not because of the lack of light, but it did still feel damp. He couldn’t imagine what it looked like, 3:58, two minutes to go. He tried to move his arms and legs again to free himself, but the binds weren’t budging. After much pain and distress to his ankle, he finally gave up and waited for the torture. Sure enough, as soon as the clock turned to 4:00 AM, he heard movement in one of the rooms and a light cast its shadow from underneath the door. A moment later, he cringed when the door opened and he saw the man stumble out towards him. He flicked on the light switch temporarily blinding J
ackson for a moment. When he finally opened his eyes and was able to focus, he could see the man standing next to him. He was wearing an old t-shirt tightly forming over his muscled chest as well as pair of old sweat-pants covering his legs. Jackson could already feel the pain when he saw the knife in the man’s hand.
“Okay…are you going to tell me or do I have to cut up the other one too?” Jackson watched him lean over his legs. “Wow…the other one looks pretty bad. I didn’t realize I went in that deep.” Jackson closed his eyes as the man touched the area near the wound. “It looks like it might heal though…probably should have gotten stitches. Maybe I can do that next time if you decide not to tell me where my money is.” He flipped the knife back in forth in his hands. “Please tell me. I don’t like the sight of blood this early in the morning, it may cause me not to go right back to sleep at least till six, that’s the next time…remember I’ve got all day.” He walked back towards Jackson’s face.
Evasion Page 14