“Let’s go Timmons we need to get back to the Conduit?”
“Now…Sir?”
“Yes, now.”
Timmons looked down. Dever knew he had been crying. His eyes were red. He and Harris had been close. They came through the ranks together. “Okay, give me about ten minutes to get ready. I’ll meet you out-front.” Dever quickly walked back to his room and gathered a few of his things and headed down to the lobby. He walked by the bar and saw Mitchell seated at a table by himself. When he saw Dever, he waved him over.
“Care for a drink Warden?”
Dever shook his head and sat down opposite Mitchell. Mitchell had changed out of his suit and was wearing a white t-shirt and faded jeans. No one would ever take him for a Federal Agent. “I’ve got to get back to the prison for an emergency that has come up.” Mitchell looked at him curiously. “Remember Thomas, Stewart’s cell mate? Carlos the Thomas.” Mitchell nodded. “He flipped out and killed one of my sergeants and two inmates. The guy had just put in his retirement papers this morning.”
Mitchell took a long sip. “I’m sorry Warden. That was a nasty guy. We took a hard look at him to see if there was any connection between him and Stewart, but we couldn’t find anything except for them being cell mates. He said they never talked just went about their business.”
Dever nodded. “Stewart was a model prisoner, never talked to anyone or caused any problems. In fact my officers had to prod him to get him to answer basic questions.”
“It’s always the quiet ones you got to watch out for. As far as I’m concerned, your staff did nothing wrong. We thoroughly investigated the whole escape. It was genius if you don’t mind my saying.”
“And so has the rest of it been as well.”
“Where do you suspect he’s going now?”
“If it was me, I would be heading for the border, but I don’t think Stewart is that kind of guy. I think he’s hiding right here right under our noses.”
Mitchell took another long drink. His eyes focused on Dever. “I agree with you. I have four more teams meeting me in here in about an hour. I’m going to deploy them in the area. We’ll check every friend, relative or anyone ever associated with the Stewarts. This guy is as slick as an oil spill.”
Dever looked behind him for Timmons. He didn’t see him yet. “I should be back sometime tomorrow or the next day at the latest, so please keep me informed if you get anything.” Dever handed him a business card.
Mitchell placed the card in his jeans pocket, “will do Warden. You give your best to the guys down there, and we’ll handle things up here. Take your time getting back.” Dever nodded and started to get up when he saw Timmons peak in. “Oh, one more thing, Warden that you may not know, before Stewart got into the computer business he was classified in the Army.”
Dever stopped about halfway up and then sat back down. “What’s that mean?”
“It means for the four years he served in the Army, his duty was classified. We are trying to open the files, but we are running into many roadblocks. That may explain a few things.” Dever quickly stood up and walked back towards Timmons shaking his head. Timmons gave him a puzzling look but Dever just waved him off. He couldn’t understand why he didn’t know that and why it wasn’t in the prison file, and more importantly why someone else found out about it before his staff. He could feel his temper competing with the sadness over Harris as they begin their long journey back towards The Conduit.
Michelle pulled Stephanie close to her under the covers. The room was dark and cozy. Everything was quiet since Braymond left early this morning. He had left them in the back bedroom on a quiet cul-de-sac in the tree-lined suburbs of Fairfax County. She figured they were no more than fifteen minutes away from their house. She knew Stephanie was scared. She had been shaking in her arms up until a few minutes ago when she finally fell asleep. All she wanted to do was go back home. Michelle had been able to tune the old CRT TV to the Disney channel all day so she had been pre-occupied for most of the day, but as soon as darkness came in she began to shake again but luckily now she was breathing heavily and rhythmically in her arms. She pulled the covers up to her own chin and tried not to think about what had happened today and what was about to happen in the future. It was out of her control.
Chapter 41
Jackson looked at the door when he heard the knocking. It wasn’t the soft knocking of Jessie. It was harder and faster causing his senses to fully awaken. He wished he had a weapon. He looked towards the back of the room at the small window opening to the parking lot. It was the kind you couldn’t open. He looked for something to smash it with. The closest object was a wooden chair. He slowly started towards the door and carefully looked through the peephole. He had seen all the movies where people get shot through the peephole, so he glanced through it quickly and jumped when he saw the young man outside. He was tall muscular and had a short crew cut. He could be law enforcement, probably a Marshall. He knew they were on the scene now. He wondered how they had found him. He immediately thought of Jessie. She probably watched the news. It was the lead story on every local news station and a major one on the three national ones as well. He knew it was just a matter of time till they found him. They always did. He knew when he first escaped that even though he had planned thoroughly he would still eventually be caught or killed in the process, but it would all be worthwhile for just some time with Stephanie. He couldn’t miss her precious childhood. It only happened once, and he wasn’t about to miss it anymore. He had already missed way too much. He thought about them now and hoped they were safe and sound, but he knew they weren’t thanks to him. Maybe he should have just left them alone and stayed in prison where he belongs, he thought. Then they would be home right now living their normal life and not having to be taken by some madman in the middle of the night doing God only knows to them. He looked down at his bandaged ankle and remembered the excruciating pain. He couldn’t bear to think if that was being done to Michelle or Stephanie. How had he gotten them into this mess? Maybe he was just selfish. He felt tears began running down his cheeks. What if a knife was being run through Stephanie’s flesh right now, he thought. He buckled at the thought and immediately began walking towards the door. He was going to surrender and put them all back to where they belong. He quickly opened the door and waited to get pounced on, but nothing happened. He stepped out into the parking lot and looked all around and then he saw it. There was a laptop in a case leaning against the wall with a note attached. He picked up the bag and read the note. “I hope this makes your stay a little more pleasant, Jess.” He jumped when he heard a door slam next door. It was the same guy that had just been knocking on his door. He was coming right for him.
“Glad you got it. Ms. Scola wanted me to make sure you got it. Sorry, I had to check the room next door. She said you had a bum leg and it might take you a while to get to the door.”
“Thanks…you work here?”
“Yep…been here for three years last week. Name is Ben. Let me know if you need anything. I usually work around here at night. Help out the Scolas.”
“Great to meet you and thanks for this.” Jackson tapped the bag.
“Ms. Scola said you were going to check out the Wi-Fi. Let me know what you think. I set most of it up. I’m taking classes in IT during the day. She said you were a technology expert. I want to be a geek too.”
“I’ll check it out and let you know. Good to hear you’re taking classes. Let me know if you need any help.”
“You got it mister. Have a nice night.” Jackson watched him walk towards the office then he stopped and turned around. “Oh…I almost forgot Ms. Scola said to tell you she’ll be by later to fix your bandage.” Jackson looked down at his leg. “She used to be a nurse.”
“So I’ve heard. Good night.” Jackson quickly went back inside and fired up the laptop. He immediately connected to the internet and checked out the Wi-Fi. In about five minutes he was into the router and was changing settings to optimize the
speed and security. Then he clicked on the CNN website and couldn’t believe his eyes when he read about the murders at The Conduit. The details were sketchy, but three inmates had been killed and one officer. He continued to read headline after headline describing the chaos taking place at The Conduit. It all started with him escaping and kidnapping his family. Yes, they were calling it kidnapping. He read even the FBI was involved now. They said he was still considered armed and dangerous, and his family was in grave danger. He quickly closed the site. A few minutes later, he was into the SITA website and was crawling through parts that weren’t open to the public. He downloaded and installed several apps that routed and rerouted his identity and IP address hundreds of times. He read all about them during his last five years behind bars. He couldn’t believe how easy it was to access anything nowadays. He figured things would have tightened up after a few years, but with the tools available things had only gotten easier. He couldn’t imagine the damage that could be done by someone with a little knowledge and a mischievous mind. Five minutes later, he had a username and password that allowed him access the company server. He was breaking numerous crimes, but he would stop at nothing to get his family back even if it meant he were to go back to prison for extended time. He didn’t care anymore he just wanted them safe and back home. He tried not to dwell on that as he entered into the human resource server. He looked at thousands of records and couldn’t find anyone that resembled the man he had met with five years ago and had come back and sliced his ankle. He finally gave up when he got to about five thousand and all the pictures began to resemble one another. He would take another look later. He had no doubt SITA had upgraded their security system after what had happened five years ago, but he was surprised at how easily he was able to move around. His tracking app even showed him no one was aware to his access on the system. He loved technology. He felt the blood flying through his brains as he accessed a security camera system and was able to see the interior lobby of SITA, the same place he had entered. It brought back so many fresh memories of pain and sorrow. He went back to the human resources server again and began looking through records. He had to find their captor. Just as he was less than a thousand away, he heard the familiar soft knock on the door. He went over and took a quick peek through the peephole and saw Jessie.
“How’s my favorite patient doing?” She had a big bright smile on her face.
“Great! Thanks so much for the computer.”
She sat down on the edge of the bed. He noticed it was almost midnight. He didn’t realize he had been working that long. “Sorry I couldn’t deliver it myself. I had fifty high school kids from Georgia I needed to check in and it was a mess. I hope the noise didn’t bother you.”
Jackson quickly clicked closing the windows he had open and shut the computer lid. “Not at all, I didn’t hear anything. I was working pretty hard on the computer. I looked at the Wi-Fi and made some changes.”
“Oh…thanks. I guess we’ll get a good test for the next two nights with all these kids and their iPhones.” Jackson quietly laughed. “So did Ben tell you I would be coming by?”
“He did. Nice kid.”
“If you only knew,” She shook her head. “He’s been in and out of prison and juvenile hall since he was probably thirteen. His parents left him at about six. Poor kid came home from school one day, and they were gone. Packed up everything in the house and just left. He was shuffled around from home to home then I got to meet him in the hospital one night after he had been stabbed. My sister and I kind of took over from there.” He watched her eyes look towards the computer. “He wants to be an IT guy like you too.”
“He mentioned that. I told him I would love to help him.”
“That would mean the world to him. I told him all about you, even if it’s just for an hour or something.” She paused. “I knew there was a great kid in there despite all the bad things he has done. He has done a great job here for us. We gave him a room to live in, and he keeps an eye on the place all the time even when he’s not working. He’s had no problems since he has been here.”
“That’s great! You guys are special people.”
“Nah…we just like giving people second chances. My dad always said don’t judge a person by their shell, and it’s true you never know what you’re going to find inside someone…I mean look at you.” Jackson watched her laugh. He quietly laughed as well. “I mean you seem like a successful guy, but yet you’re holed up here in a motel with a bad wound to your ankle. I think most people would be a little fearful, but here I am in your room at midnight.” Jackson gave her a warm smile.
“I can’t tell you how much I owe you.”
“I’m here to help. Now lift up that leg. Let’s change that bandage. Did you take your pain meds and antibiotic?” Jackson looked down at the floor. “I guess that means no. Put that leg up mister.” Jackson watched her walk to the dresser and grab the two pill bottles and look at them closely. “Braymond Reynolds…huh? And here I thought your name was Charles…see what I mean?”
“That’s my real name…everyone just calls me Charles.”
“I understand, and I won’t ask any more questions.” Jackson slowly propped his leg up on the bed unsure of what to say. Maybe it was time for him to leave the motel. He was drawing too much attention from Jessie. What if she looked in to him? His appearance had changed some, but with a close look she could probably tell who he was. He watched her gently remove the bandage and clean it up. She was so good. A few minutes later, she said she had to go and would be back with breakfast. For some reason Jackson trusted her, so he continued looking through the server till he finally fell asleep.
Chapter 42
Dever and Timmons pulled into the parking lot of the Conduit. There were reporters everywhere with their spiraling antennae’s reaching high into the sky. He wasn’t looking forward to getting out of the car, but he slowly exited and stood on the top step and faced the reporters as they quickly swarmed him. He ignored most of the questions or gave the usual no comment till an older balding man asked him if he was going to resign. He quickly waved him off and scurried inside leaving Timmons behind to fend off the reporters. He couldn’t believe they were asking for his resignation. He blew through the reception area ignoring the usual faces eyeing him for his reaction. He quickly made it into his office nodding at his secretary who was eagerly trying to get his attention. As soon as he entered, he knew why she had done that. In his chair sat the Governor and two of his aides. He was calmly seated in a dark-blue suit; his hair slicked tightly to his head showing off his chiseled political face.
“Hello Warden. I hope you’re drive down went well.” Dever watched the two aides quickly scramble outside his office leaving him alone with the Governor. They had both worked closely together on a few other publicized prisoners residing at The Conduit, but nothing like the last little while had brought, and Dever could see the toll on the Governors face. He wondered what his own looked like. He calmly took a seat opposite his desk. He hated authority and the Governor knew it which was why he didn’t speak for several long awkward seconds leaving Dever scrambling uncomfortably in his seat. “We got a real problem here Warden. Making us look bad. They are getting nervous in Raleigh, and as you know, I have an election coming up soon. What can you tell me?”
“We’ve got the whole place locked down, and I’m going to meet with Harris’s wife shortly.”
“I’m sorry about your officer, but things are getting out of hand and there’s the whole Stewart thing. Now he has kidnapped his family.”
Dever tried to hide his frown, but he didn’t care anymore so instead he looked away. He hated politicians and their stupid concerns, always their own needs before everyone else’s. “We’ve got a whole team of law enforcement in search of Stewart. We’ll get him soon. The net is closing in.”
Evasion Page 17