The Depth of Darkness

by L. T. Ryan

  “They don’t match,” Sam said. “The house is newer. That brick is old, faded.”

  I nodded. They weren’t even close.

  “Where do you think they’re from?” Sam asked.

  I thought for a moment. It turned out that was all it took for me to realize where they’d come from.

  “Let’s go,” I said. “Bring those with you.”

  Sam scooped them up and raced toward me. I stood at the rear of the Boss with the trunk open. He dropped the bricks inside. I closed the trunk and we both got in the car. I created as much noise as I had when I picked him up. He didn’t complain this time.

  Five minutes into the ride, Sam asked, “You going to tell me where we’re going?”

  I glanced at him and shook my head.

  “Mitch,” he said.

  I still said nothing. I knew if I did, he’d try to talk me out of it.

  “Dammit, Mitch!”

  I responded by taking a turn at forty miles per hour. I leaned to my right. Sam slapped against the door. He cursed. I yelled. Two minutes later I turned into Lana’s neighborhood. I pulled up to the curb in front of her house and cut the engine. The sound of our breathing filled the car. The windows started to fog. I reached for my door handle.

  “What’s going on, Mitch?” Sam asked.

  “Come with me,” I replied.

  Sam grunted his disapproval at having to enter a situation without any idea why we were there. But he followed along. This wasn’t the first time, and I knew it wouldn’t be the last. So long as we both survived the night, that is.

  Accessing Lana’s backyard proved to be easier than McCree’s. We walked around back without any fence or gate to block us. I stopped in front of the still-in-progress chimney. The new brick stood stacked off to the side with the old brick next to it, half as high as its newer counterpart.

  “Let’s see how that matches up,” I said, circling the pile with my flashlight.

  Sam walked over and set one of the bricks from McCree’s onto the pile of the old stuff. We turned them over, stood them on end, even compared the leftover mortar.

  “We can get forensics to verify,” Sam said, “but I’m pretty sure this is a match.”

  I nodded, said nothing, and looked toward the far end of the house where Lana’s bedroom was located.

  “You think this implicates her?” Sam asked.

  “I don’t know. I think you ought to call it in and have a couple of guys come out and babysit her until we find out what McCree’s up to.”

  “We can go in now.”

  I shook my head. “If we go in there, the whole thing will fall apart. I can’t be anywhere near this case. Legally, at least.”

  Sam pulled out his cell. “I’ll make a call.”

  I heard the sound of water rushing through pipes, then saw Lana’s bedroom window light up momentarily. The water trickled to a stop. So did my mind. One single thought spun out of control and I realized how stupid I’d been.

  “Hang up, Sam,” I said.

  “What?”

  “I know where she is.” I pulled out my cell, found Bridget’s number in my recently called list, highlighted it and hit send. A moment later she answered breathlessly. I could tell I’d roused her from a deep sleep. “Bridget, it’s Mitch. Before you say anything, you need to hear me out. We’ve got a lead and I think I know where Debby Walker is.”

  Chapter 53

  The thudding sound repeated itself at regular intervals. At first, Debby figured it was part of her dream. Only, she realized she was no longer sleeping. The sound came from the front of the room. She counted the beats in between. When she reached ten seconds, it hit again. She dug into her pocket and pulled out the small flashlight and switched it on. She saw the wall shake a little on the following occurrence. Someone was breaking down the wall that imprisoned her.

  She grabbed the last unopened bottle of water and headed toward the back of the room, cutting her light for the duration of the trip. By this point she had the layout of the room memorized, including knowing how many steps she had to take both walking and running. This time she sprinted. Her body crashed into the wall a half-step too soon, sending her falling back and hitting her head on the hard floor.

  Any air in Debby’s lungs escaped with the sound of a whimper. It felt like an elephant sat down right on her chest. Her head ached and her fingers ran along the back of her skull feeling for blood. The flashlight had become dislodged from her grasp. She looked to her left, then her right. She’d managed to switch it on before dropping it. The light rolled along the floor and settled against the side wall. She tried to get up so she could grab it. The pain in her chest and stomach kept her from doing so.

  Another thud crashed against the front wall. Bits of the interior fell to the floor and bounced and scattered like someone had tossed gravel across the room.

  Debby stretched her arms out as far as she could. Finally, when she thought she could last no longer, air rushed through her mouth and into her lungs. It hurt more than when they were deprived, but it allowed her to get up off the floor. She raced toward the light, grabbed it and aimed it toward the front of the room. She saw the little hole in the wall.

  Who was out there? Could it be the cops or her mom and brother or anyone who wanted to save her?

  “I’m coming for you,” the man said. “Just sit tight you little bitch.”

  She realized that this was no rescue attempt. Debby fought off her tears. She swung the light toward the back wall. The hole she’d created looked wide enough to accommodate her slender frame. Surely, the man on the other side would not be able to get through. Although, he did have something, a sledge hammer perhaps. If he could get into the room, he could get through the wall. That didn’t matter. Debby had to go through the hole and take her chances on whatever was on the other side. She’d yet to climb through, only managing to finish earlier that day.

  She took a sip from the water bottle then tossed it through the opening. Her hands followed, bracing against the other side. It felt like needles jabbed against her palm at the spots where splinters remained. A cool breeze met her face as she stuck her head inside the hole. Did that mean that it led to a way out? There wasn’t time to wonder about that. She jumped up and patted her hands further along the other side of the wall until she teetered against the opening at her waist. With her hands out in front of her and the flashlight in her mouth, Debby gave one last swing of her body and toppled through the opening. She tucked her chin to her chest and rolled through as her body dropped to the floor. Her feet came to rest against the far wall. She grabbed the flashlight and swung it to her right. There stood a wall. She looked to the left. The space extended out five feet or so, then curved around.

  “Where are you?” the man yelled from the other side of the opening.

  A beam of light penetrated the hidden chamber from the hole above her head. Debby gasped, rose to her feet and started to her left. She followed the curve of the room. The breeze hit her in the face. Freedom lay around that corner. She was sure of it. Her light hit the end of the passage, revealing not a wall, but a door. Freedom ahead, yes! Debbie picked up her pace. She hit the door going full speed, slamming into the handle.

  It didn’t move.

  She bounced off the door and took a step back. She traced the outer edge of the frame with her light. There were no locks inside. She pushed against the handle again. It depressed fully, but the door didn’t budge more than a few centimeters. “No,” she whispered. She kicked at the door, slammed into it a few times, but nothing helped.

  “There’s no way out,” the guy yelled.

  Debbie turned and leaned back against the door. She cut the light. Her body slid down, coming to rest on the floor with her knees to her chest and her arms around her knees. This was where it would end.

  Chapter 54

  Roy Miller took his time inspecting the room. It was obvious where the girl had gone. Through the hole in the wall. He’d seen the plans of the water tow
er, though, and he knew that the space behind the room had only one exit. An exit that he’d locked himself. There was no way a child would break through that door.

  He saw several full water bottles placed in a straight line in front of the wall to his left . He went over, grabbed one and opened it. As he lifted the bottle to his mouth, he realized it did not contain water. The girl had urinated into the bottle. He tossed it across the room. It hit the wall and fell to the floor, the first few splashes of urine against the floor were audible. The girl had been more resourceful than he’d realized. Perhaps he should speed this up.

  “Come on, girl,” he said. “I’m not going to hurt you. You and I are going to leave this place. Someone owes me something, and if they pay up, you’ll be free.”

  Not to go, though, he thought. He only wanted his share of the ransom money. Brad McCree had stiffed him and fled. By taking the girl, Roy could threaten to implicate the man and state that he had been forced to take part. And look at the goodwill he’d show by returning the girl unharmed.

  Thus worked the mind of a killer.

  “This will be much easier on you if I don’t have to break that wall down,” he said. “So why don’t you come on over and I’ll pull you through.”

  The girl’s soft cries echoed through the chamber. He smiled at the sound, waiting a few moments before proceeding.

  “Okay,” he said. “Have it your way.”

  He reached down and grabbed the handle of his sledgehammer. He used the heavy end against the floor like a cane, setting it out in front of him. It clapped against the concrete with an ominous warning. He stopped at the far end of the room and shone his light through the hole the girl had made. It was wide enough for him to stick his head through, but nothing else, and he couldn’t see anything.

  “Last chance,” he said.

  The girl screamed a curse word back at him. He smiled.

  “Have it your way.” Miller took a step back, lifted the sledgehammer and slammed it into the wall. He would not stop until the opening was large enough for him to slip through.

  Chapter 55

  Judging by the cloud of dust, we reached the water tower parking lot only moments after Bridget Dinapoli. Her government sedan was parked diagonally in front of the entrance. Its headlights lit up the front door, which stood wide open with Bridget heading toward it. She had on jeans and a blue FBI windbreaker. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail that rose and fell with her steps.

  I pulled to a stop in the middle of the parking lot. Beyond the water tower, the sky was dark except for a thin band of light blue close to the horizon. Sam and I stepped outside and rushed toward the entrance. The lot was empty aside from Bridget’s car and mine. I presumed that she had not called this in either.

  I yelled for her to wait for us, but she ducked inside the building anyway. I broke into a run and entered the tower a few seconds later. The room was dark, still and quiet. I flicked on my flashlight and slowly panned around.

  “The other day,” I said, “I thought this place looked different, ‘cause of the light.” I glanced in Bridget’s direction. She stared at me. “But it wasn’t the light.”

  “What was it?” she asked.

  I directed my light at her, then to a spot on the floor. “There was a pile of bricks there the first time I was in here.”

  “Where are they now?”

  I spun around, hitting the wall with my light and stopping at the gaping hole in the wall. Strewn about the floor were bricks, both whole and shattered. “There.” We reached the hole at the same time. “Call this in, Sam.”

  He didn’t, though. Instead, he was on my heels as we squeezed through the opening. I panned my light across the floor. So did Sam. There were bread crusts near a bunch of water bottles, some of which appeared to be filled with urine. The room smelled of feces and sweat. Our flashlights shone on the far wall at the same time, revealing another rugged opening. A shovel handle was propped against the wall. A muffled scream slipped through the hole.

  I pulled my gun and sprinted across the room, reaching the opening first. Whoever had gone through had been much smaller than me. I stuck my right leg through, twisted and managed to get my torso through. The moment my head slipped past the wall, I had both arms out, aiming with the flashlight and my pistol. To my right, the small corridor dead ended. I headed left, following the curve of the wall. I saw Roy Miller-Michael Lipsky, his back against a door and his arms around Debby Walker’s neck. It appeared that his only option for escape was to go through me or bust down that door. I wasn’t going to let either happen.

  “Not another step,” he said. “I’ll snap her neck, ass—”

  I pulled the trigger. The bullet slammed into his forehead, knocking him back against the door, then forward. Debby wriggled out of his grasp and ran toward me. Sam pushed me aside and scooped up the little girl. His eyes were wide and he looked between me and the dead man on the floor.

  “Okay,” Sam said. “We found him like this. Someone had—”

  “Sam,” I said. “Don’t.”

  Bridget said, “Get her out of here, Sam.” Then she forced her way in front of me and turned around. “Mitch?”

  I blinked a few times and then met her gaze.

  “He threatened the girl, Mitch. You thought he had a weapon in his hand, and he was threatening her life. He said he’d kill her, and you swear that you saw the glint of a knife blade or the dull reflection off the barrel of a pistol. He moved to hurt her. You got that? You had no choice, so you fired your weapon to save the girl.”

  I reached back and grabbed a handful of my hair. I hadn’t thought at all, I simply reacted. The thought that troubled me was that perhaps I had shot him willingly. I would have done so even if he’d stuck his hands in the air in surrender.

  Bridget reached up and placed her hand on the side of my face. “You did what you had to do.”

  Sirens echoed through the small corridor. The flashlight illuminated the space. I looked directly at Bridget. “Did I?”

  She nodded and wrapped her other arm around my shoulder, lightly gripping the back of my neck. She lifted herself up and into me, pulling me toward her. Her damp forehead met my sweat-soaked cheek. Her breath felt hot on my neck.

  I grabbed her hands and pulled free from her grasp, taking a step back. “Bridget…” I didn’t know what to say.

  “I’m sorry,” she said as she pushed past me.

  I followed her out of the corridor and through the room where Debby Walker had been kept. Inside the main area of the water tower, a few members of Bridget’s team gathered. Red lights bounced around the room. I glanced outside and saw an ambulance and fire truck in the parking lot on either side of the Boss. Maybe I shouldn’t have left it sitting in the middle of the lot. Hopefully they hadn’t scratched it. Two paramedics checked out Debby Walker while she rested on a gurney. I nodded at Bridget as I walked past her and through the door.

  “You okay?” Sam asked.

  I’d just taken a life. Never an easy thing to do, even when the life was already owed. “I’ll be all right. I had no choice. He threatened the girl and I thought he had a weapon.”

  “I heard him say it, Mitch. He said he’d cut her neck.”

  “He said he’d snap—”

  “He said cut, Mitch. I heard it.” Sam dipped his head and locked his gaze on me.

  I nodded. “Yeah, that’s what he said.” I turned my attention toward the girl. “How is she?”

  “Hungry. Tired. No obvious injuries except to her hands. They’re all cut up and blistered and full of splinters. She made that hole in the wall. At least initially she did. Apparently, Miller showed up a bit before us. She climbed through for the first time and found the door, but it wouldn’t open. He busted through the hole she made and came after her. We arrived a couple moments later. Had we not, he’d have busted down that door and taken off with her.”

  I stared past Sam, past the water tower. My head shook involuntarily. “This whole time, sh
e’s been right here.”

  Sam walked past me. I followed him to where Debby Walker sat. “Mind if we talk to her?” Sam asked.

  The medics nodded, rose and walked away.

  “Do you know how long you’ve been in there?” Sam asked.

  The little girl shook her head. Her eyes welled with tears and her bottom lip quivered.

  “Think for me, Debby. How many times did you—”

  I reached out and grabbed Sam’s shoulder. He stopped mid-question and looked at me. “Not now,” I said. Then I turned toward Debby. “What is it?”

  “Did you find Beans?” she asked. She bit her lip, then added, “Did they kill him?”

  I leaned over so that I was eye level with the child. “He’s at home with his parents, Debby. And I saw your mom there, too. She was sad, worried, crying, and praying for you to come home to her.”

  She burst into tears, sobbing heavily. I imagined that the entire time she’d been staying strong for Bernard, and now that she knew he was safe, she could let go.

  I straightened up and turned back to Sam. “There’s plenty of time to question her. For now, why don’t you compare those bricks in there to the ones we brought with us?”

  Sam nodded and headed toward the Boss to collect the samples. Around that same time, squad cars started to arrive and I did my best to get out of the way. Soon enough they’d descend upon me. Technically, I had no business being out here. I should have never been in a position to discharge my weapon. I had a bad feeling this wouldn’t shake out in my favor.

  Bridget stood off in the distance, alone. I headed in her direction, organizing my thoughts along the way. What was there to say? Things had happened so quickly between us. There was no denying a connection existed, but how strong was it? Could it withstand any of this?

  She turned when I got within five feet of her. “You doing okay?”

  I nodded and leaned against the split rail fencing.

  “I guess I owe you an apology,” she said.

  “For what?”