Did he risk bringing in the Bureau on this? Callie’s tear-filled eyes haunted him, reminding him of a few words from Virgil – lacrimis oculus suffusa nitentos, her sparkling eyes suffused with tears. Steve’s judgment on the people at the San Francisco office could be trusted. Mathew tapped the reply button.
Secure Email from Mathew Heylen, August 21st, 2014
Call the Chief. Make sure the locals will be deep background. They cannot show up at Callie’s house or at Berkeley or even be in the vicinity. I want them positioned incognito when I get Susannah, only to pursue the thugs for the arrest after she is securely away from the target location. Lenny will crouch down on the floor of the rental car. I will not pressure John Henry or Rick on possible debts until Susannah is out of harm’s way. I want a Bubird to take her and Callie up to Spook Hills with Lenny to guard them. Rick and I will stay here for the transition to the FBI.
I think you should nose around backgrounds on Rick’s son and daughter, their families and his first wife. John Henry is upset about Susannah. While he is the obvious candidate for your theory, we should explore other possibilities. As much as I want you here as my wingman (there’s a change!), stay at home with Ivy and Sassy. I know I can rely on you 24/7.
Mathew
The second afternoon, Mathew joined the others at Callie’s where they gathered around the dining table waiting for the phone to ring. Mathew sat next to John Henry and noticed times when he became fidgety, left the room for a few minutes and came back calmer. While Mathew suspected John Henry went out to sneak shots of vodka, this was not the time to mention his suspicions to Rick or Callie, much less to confront John Henry.
"The assigned senior agent out of the FBI’s San Francisco office met us at the bank this morning with two and a half million,” Mathew said. “We discussed our plans in a small conference room. Steve and I are putting in a million and Rick put up the balance. Steve said the FBI should have a substantial stake in the ransom."
Callie spread her fingers open. “How can we ever pay you and the FBI back?”
Rick regarded her steadily. “What is all the wealth I accumulated good for if I can’t use it an emergency to save the people dearest to me? Right now, we must only focus on Susannah, getting her back and helping her through the trauma and the after-shock.”
“How can we sure the FBI will not act precipitately and endanger Susannah?” John Henry asked in the arrogant tone that characterized his communications.
"I repeated Steve's instructions for the FBI to follow in a covert manner. These agents are skilled in handling kidnapping situations where the protection of the child takes precedence. I believe we can trust them. Both the former FBI Chief Mueller and the current head of the FBI, James Comey, were advised on this issue. Given their closeness to the case, even a renegade agent will not risk putting her in jeopardy."
"You might be shot," Callie said, her voice sounding tinny with nerves.
John Henry glowered at her.
"I’m trained in handling confrontations,” Mathew said. “Lenny will be protecting me clandestinely. Once we have Susannah safeguarded in the car, if the perps make any aggressive moves, the FBI will take over. I will wear a wireless microphone on a scrambled circuit to the CARD leader, as well as to Lenny and Steve."
"And the call tonight?" John Henry asked.
"Like before, let your wife answer. Her voice is familiar to them. Callie, insist on speaking to Susannah. That request might extend the call for tracing purposes."
Callie nodded, trying to appear calm even though she again clutched one hand with the other to hold herself together. Mathew wanted to wrap her in an embrace and ease her worries with soft words.
"Once Susannah is with us, we’ll hurry back here where you can reunite with her. Do not ask her too many questions, but do ask if her captors hurt her in any way. Assuming she is not physically injured, take her up for a shower and put her in whatever is most comfortable,” Mathew said, pausing to take a drink of water and to let his instructions sink in.
“Pack luggage for each of you," he said pointedly to Callie. "We will run the two of you down to Oakland and put you on a Bubird with Lenny. You will be flown up to Hillsboro where FBI agents, Steve, Ivy and Sassy will meet you at the airport. You will stay at Spook Hills until we are back."
"What if Susannah talks some more?"
"Write down what she says. Don't press her for details until she is ready to talk. Her healing comes before solving the case."
"What about me?" John Henry asked with an edge in his voice. "What am I allowed to do in your scheme?"
"Welcome your daughter home. Make sure she knows your love surrounds her. You, Rick and I will stay here to deal with the follow-up from the CARD team. We need to shelter Susannah for as long as we can. This type of harrowing experience shatters a child’s subconscious sense of living in a big bubble of well-being."
"I want to fly out with them," John Henry said.
While Rick had listened in silence, now he spoke up, "John Henry, our job is to be strong and steadfast here for Susannah. Callie will act in the same way on her trip north. When things are settled down, we can plan the next steps."
John Henry glared at him and pushed back from the table. Callie squared her shoulders, drawing on inner reserves Mathew guessed she never realized she possessed.
"Each of us will do our best," she said with surprising resolve in her voice. "Now if the kidnappers will call and give us time. This waiting is dreadful."
“Go up and get your suitcases packed,” Mathew said knowing that activity, particularly of a positive nature like packing in hopes of Susannah’s return, would help Callie hold herself together.
Callie ran upstairs to fill suitcases for herself and her daughter. Mathew went into the living room to get ready. He did some stretches to limber up his tense muscles. Feeling looser, he checked his roscoe and replaced it in his shoulder holster, then he strapped a knife to his leg and hid smoky explosives in his pocket. Before he left the house, he would don a loose jacket over his bulletproof vest.
Lenny drove out to pick up a dinner none of them wanted, but they half-heartedly ate part of it out of duty. Then they waited. The jangle of the phone startled them when it finally rang.
"Hello?" Callie said in a trembling voice when she clicked the phone on speaker. "I want to talk with my daughter."
"Bring the five million to 965 87th Avenue in Oakland in one hour. That’s 965 87th Avenue." The line went dead.
Callie's eyes went wide with terror. "Is Susannah no longer alive?"
"He didn't want the call traced. Don't read anything into the shortness of the call. Same voice as yesterday morning?"
"Same cold, clipped voice.”
“Like he read from a short script. The FBI will attempt to obtain Caller ID, but he probably made the call from a stolen cell phone."
Mathew searched for the address the man gave on Google maps, noting it was in a commercial area not far from the airport, which should be empty at the specified 11 o’clock at night. He spoke into his headpiece.
"You guys got that? Ready to roll?"
"Moving as we speak. We'll come in some blocks away and move in stealth mode on foot to find sheltered positions. We will not be visible. You all set?"
"Ready. The money is in two bags as you suggested." Mathew stood, taking two duffels from Rick, one much heavier than the other. The money was split as one and four million.
His abs stiffened. Steve said his tightened right before every operation. Mathew found the sensation gave him an impression of power and quelled his inevitable edginess right before a sting.
John Henry glowered at him. Rick gave him a thumbs-up sign, even though his expression beseeched him to be successful. Mathew let his eyes linger on Callie’s worried face as he began to turn to the door.
Plugged into the conversation through Mathew’s microphone, Steve growled into his earpiece, "Get moving, Heylen."
"Going out the door with the ranso
m." He grasped the doorknob, taking one last glance at Callie before closing the door behind him.
The day of waiting had been a form of purgatory. Susannah had been missing for over 36 hours. Moving ahead solidified Mathew’s resolve to ensure Susannah’s return to Callie. If anything happened to her daughter, her sensitive heart might not survive. He hustled down the sidewalk to the car where Lenny had slipped into the backseat in the darkness. Mathew shut the door.
“Ready?” he asked Lenny, more to say something than anything else.
“Yeah. No shooting unless any action starts. Minimize the impact on that sweet kid. I pray Susannah is alright,” Lenny said.
“Here we go.”
Mathew drove in silence, wishing Steve hid nearby in case the operation went awry. At least with Steve on a wireless setup, his voice would keep his nerves steady. He sucked in his gut and straightened in his seat. Even with a damaged leg, Mathew kept himself fit and active. He had learned from and served with the best in the FBI. He could handle this situation. Most importantly, he wanted Susannah back even if he had to take a bullet.
Using the GPS he kept to the speed limit, arriving near the indicated locale about twenty minutes early. He parked down the street and waited, eager to discover if Susannah remained alive. He bowed his head and folded his hands, praying for her safe return to Callie and for his role in this unconscionable business to contribute to that success. Mathew crossed himself and swallowed, mentally prepping himself for the task looming in front of him.
At two minutes before eleven, he started the car, made the last turn, rolled towards the address and parked about a half block away. He saw no one, which meant the FBI agents kept deep in the shadows as instructed. He turned the car off, leaving the keys for Lenny in case a hasty exit became necessary. Mathew stepped out of the vehicle and walked about ten paces to stop standing on the curb with a duffel of money in each hand.
A lumbering SUV with its lights off approached from the other direction and trundled to a stop. The window on the rear passenger side slid down.
“Bring the money here,” said a clipped voice from the car.
“No way,” Mathew said, keeping his voice low and firm. “You bring the girl out where I can see her.”
“You a cop?”
“Nah, a tough friend. Show me the girl.”
In his ear, Steve muttered, "Good. Stand firm."
The man got out of the car with his gun poked out first. He pulled Susannah behind him. A blindfold encircled her head. Tape gagged her mouth. Rope bound her hands. While she seemed physically unscathed, even with the blindfold and gag, Mathew could she was terrified. Even though Mathew wanted to grab her and run, he could not chance having her harmed. In her rumpled school outfit, she looked as scared as a fawn deserted in an open meadow. Mathew skidded the lighter duffle over to the man and moved back two paces. “Down payment. Release the girl.”
The man seized the bag, tested the weight, opened the zipper with one hand, poked around inside and zipped it shut again. “The rest of the dough. Now.”
He shoved Susannah closer to Mathew while keeping a grip on her arm. Mathew swung the second bag towards the man in a slow motion with his right arm. He considered knocking the man down with it. If he did, the driver and perhaps others in the vehicle might shoot, endangering Susannah. With his left arm, he reached out to grasp her around the waist. The man snatched the money and let go of her arm.
Mathew could feel Susannah shaking in his arms. “You’re safe now. You’re with me.” He whispered into her ear.
He felt her press her little body closer. He gripped her tighter as he began running backward, holding her in his left arm tight against him, leaving his right ready to reach for his gun.
“We have to get to the car,” he said into Susannah’s ear. “Unca Lenny is with me. He will protect us both.”
The thug unzipped the second bag, flipped through the stacks of money, nodded and crammed himself and the loot back in the car.
Mathew turned to finish the run to the town car. He jerked open the driver’s door and put Susannah inside, whipping off her blindfold and gently lifting the gag covering her mouth. She clung to his arm, shivering and sobbing. He whipped off his jacket and wrapped her in it, then he untied her hands and whispered to her to crawl over and hide on the floor of the passenger side. Cautiously she unpried her hands from his arm and slid over, scrunching down in the well, safely hidden, but she reached out a hand to him.
Matthew hopped in the car, closed and locked the door, muttering, "Got her." into his microphone. He started the car then reached over to take Susannah’s outstretched hand. She peered up at him, still shaking.
Lenny popped up in the backseat, careful to keep his gun tucked on the floor.
“Hiya, kid,” Lenny said. His gruff voice almost lilted with relief at having her back safely.
“Unca Lenny,” Susannah murmured and popped her head up by the seat. She wiped the tears from her cheeks, then craned her neck to face Mathew. “I knew you would come for me – both of you.”
Tears of relief replaced her tears of terror and started running down her cheeks while happiness coursed through Mathew at her words. Somewhere over the last weeks, Susannah had wormed her way into his heart. He reached over to caress her head. “It’s over now. You’re safe with us. Let’s get you home. Stay down until we’re on the road.”
Lenny reached forward to take her hand. “Drive Mathew. Get us the heck out of here.”
Mathew jammed the car in gear and sped in reverse, swerving around the corner, then rushing off the way they came in. The other car did a fast U-turn in the street and rocketed off in the other direction. A chopper droned in the distance. The chase was on.
To their surprise, from down on the floor, Susannah began singing somewhat loudly through her sniffles. “Can’t see. Can’t scream. Better make a tune that’s mean. Back out the drive. Do a Hi-Five. Turn left. Stop quick. Turn right and speed up a lick.”
“What the heck? Record this,” Mathew said into the microphone.
In his ear, Steve said “Typing.”
“Two stops. Make a right hop. Up a curve to the left. Gun the car with lots of heft. Hey kids, merge in line. Swerve and duck, lots of luck. Count to sixty, ten times not too lickety. Shoot to the right and down a curve. Don’t think, don’t swerve.
“Count to fifty, three times. Stop four times. Turn left, turn right. Grit my teeth with all my might. Stop the clock. Wait. Mind the smoke. Wait. Moving again like a big fat hen. Stop. Listen! Mathew! Mathew! Man out! Now me out! Wait. Talking. Me Safe! Me Safe with Mathew!”
Mathew pulled over. Even though he chuckled, tears slipped down his face. Susannah had memorized the way to her release site by making up lyrics. He motioned to her to edge up on the seat.
“You are one smart and courageous girl. Lenny, move up front and hold Susannah.
Mathew reached over and gave Susannah a hug. She clung to him for a long minute then she scooted over to let Lenny scrunch into the front seat. He wrapped Mathew’s jacket around her before burying her in his arms. Mathew noticed that tears seeped down Lenny’s grizzled face. He put the car back in drive and crept off the shoulder.
“Susannah, will you sing that again? Steve is on a transmitter. He will type it up. ”
“Hi Steve,” Susannah said in a loud voice and forced out her hip-hop melody again, while she snuggled next to Lenny
As he drove, Mathew hit speed dial to call Callie. “She’s with us. She’s okay. They took the money. The important thing is your Susannah is safe. We will be at your house as soon as we can. Put Rick on and then you can talk with Susannah.
“What a clever girl your Susannah is! Even though she was terrified, she had the smarts to memorize the directions from where they held her to the drop spot by turning them into a little song. Gives us a big jump on locating those clowns, even if the agents tailing them should lose them. They got the dough. Now the CARD team owns the case. They are following the
scumbag who took the money. We should be with you in about 30 minutes. Stay in the house until you hear our horn.”
They had Susannah back with them, and she seemed materially unharmed, although traumatic aftershock would haunt her for some time. Her smarts and her resourcefulness impressed Mathew. Even if they lost the five million, having her back was worth every penny and he was sure Rick would share his perspective.
Steve came on. “I transmitted the directions to the lead agent. They can use it to figure out alternative hold sites. Mathew, you were terrific. Well done! Tell Susannah I owe her a big ice cream sundae for making up the tune.”
“Cherry sundae,” Susannah said in a soft little voice when Mathew told her. “I like cherry vanilla ice cream too.”
Once at the house after the initial hugs and tears of joy, Mathew asked Callie to take Susannah away to see if she had been hurt and to set her clothes aside in a plastic bag for the FBI to check if any evidence might be gleaned from them. Once up at the house, Steve would shield Susannah from any further distress of probing FBI inquiries.
When Susannah came back out, Mathew did ask her one question. “Did you make a jingle or poem for the car ride from the school to the place they took you?”
She shook her head, going pale at the memory. “Two women. Smelly rag on my face. Sleepy. Woke up in a basement. Tied up. Stayed there.”
“Chloroform or ether,” Mathew muttered.
To Callie, he said, “Nothing more. Remember to jot down anything relevant Susannah does say. Avoid upsetting her. If the FBI needs more info, Steve will serve as the go-between. You will need to remain close to her the next few days, but I am sure you know that. The CARD leader will send us some counseling resources for you up in the Portland area to help her through this. They will also be in touch with her school to see if anyone might have seen anything suspicious. Don’t worry about anything down here. Rick and I will handle it.”
New Growth (Spook Hills Trilogy Book 2) Page 7