Sighing through her nose, Zelda changed out of her clothes and into a nightdress. She crawled onto the bed and didn't realize just how tired she was until her head finally hit the pillow. Though she could hear the party still going on in the other room, she still managed to fall into a quick doze. It wasn't until she heard Johnnie bid the three acquaintances farewell and crawl into bed next to her did Zelda finally fall asleep fully.
It felt as though she was awoken seconds later by knocking on the door. She paused, hoping that what she was hearing was just a dream. But the knocking persisted. Normally, Johnnie was a pretty light sleeper – he had to be – but the party must have exhausted him because as of yet, he wasn't moving. She stifled a groan and picked herself up, stretching as she did so.
Zelda wasn't stupid. She knew that she had to be wary of whoever was outside the door, especially since it was more likely to be a cop rather than someone she knew. As she padded over to the front door, she realized she probably should have put some effort into her appearance, but it had to be one, two, or even three o'clock in the morning. Surely her visitors would forgive her.
Making sure to leave the chain lock intact, Zelda unlocked the bottom portion of the door and opened it slightly. There were two men there, both in suits, but due to the dim lighting of the hallway, it was hard to make out one way or the other just who these men were and what they wanted. But she knew she didn't know them. And that did nothing to calm her flaring nerves.
"May I help you?" she asked, hoping her voice sounded as tired as she thought it did.
"Yes," one of the men said. "Ma'am, I'm sorry to disturb your sleep, but we're both agents with the Bureau of Investigation and it is imperative that we speak to your husband."
Zelda's heart froze at what the man said, but she knew she had to think quickly. "My husband is sleeping," she tried, maintaining a firm voice. "If you would come back later, at a more appropriate time" -
"Now is the best we can do," the second agent told her. "Please don't make us ask again, Mrs. Hellman."
She needed to buy time. Zelda knew she needed to buy time. But how? Her breathing was getting slightly out of control, and she needed to soothe it. After taking a few subtle but deep breaths, Zelda felt herself calm down to the extent where smiling was much easier to do. "As you can see, I am only in my nightgown," she told the agents. "I'm going to shut the door so I can change. Is that all right?" She hoped she didn't sound suspicious. She hoped that she would let her close the door and go fetch Johnnie. He would know exactly what to do given this type of circumstance.
"We'll wait," the first agent said, though he sounded as though he didn't quite believe her.
Zelda didn't care, though. It was common courtesy to allow a woman to be properly dressed, especially if they wanted to come into her apartment and question her husband. She smiled once more before slowly shutting the door. She decided not to lock it, only because she knew that the agents would hear the click and get suspicious, but double checked the chain lock. When she was satisfied, she turned and headed into the bedroom.
Johnnie was wide awake now, having been woken up because Zelda was no longer by his side.
"Who is it?" he asked in a tired voice, though his smoky grey eyes were as alert as ever.
"Federal agents," Zelda whispered, her eyes finally pooling with worry. "They want to talk to you, Johnnie. I bought as much time as I could, but they'll get suspicious if we don't make some sort of appearance." And if they did that, Johnnie would undoubtedly be recognized. His face was nationally known now.
"Don't you worry," he told her, grabbing her shoulders gently. "Here's what I want you to do. Pack as much stuff as you can in the suitcases as quickly as you can, okay? I'll take care of everything else."
Zelda wanted to know exactly how Johnnie was going to take care of everything, wanted to make sure that he wasn't going to put himself in unnecessary danger. But Zelda didn't have the time to focus on that. Instead, she headed to the closet and began to do as Johnnie bid her. It couldn't have been more than thirty seconds when the agents started to pound on the door again, incessantly this time, with the unspoken threat of breaking down the door if they needed to if no one would come out and speak to them. She threw her velvet green eyes at Johnnie, telling him that she wanted to know what to do next.
"You finished?" he asked her from the window. In his hands was one of the tommy guns, fully loaded. "I threw in as much as I could, but we don't have everything," Zelda replied in a low murmur.
"That's okay," he told her. "We can always buy more things." He took a step closer, the gun hanging by his side as he approached Zelda. "Darlin', I need you to listen to me and do exactly what I say no matter what happens, okay?" He had to raise his voice a little due to the pounding of the door, but it still sounded as serious and as intimate as if he had told her in a low voice.
"Of course," she told him, nodding her head. Two suitcases were in both hands, and her fingers tightened around the handles in order to prepare herself for what he would say next.
"Stay behind me," he said, before turning and heading towards the door.
Zelda nodded her assent and followed him over to the door. Without warning, Johnnie threw the door open and began to fire the tommy gun at the agents. Zelda let out a scream of surprise, ducking as Johnnie continued to shoot as he slowly managed to make a way outside the apartment. However, the agents began to fire back, and there appeared to be more agents on different exits, different places in the complex.
Somehow, both Johnnie and Zelda had yet to actually get hurt. They continued to make their way to the staircase, and that's when Johnnie told Zelda to get the car. Zelda didn't need to be told twice. She ran down the stairs and out in the cold night. The car was located just across the street, and to be honest, she was somewhat surprised that there were no agents guarding this exit.
Once she reached the car, she threw the suitcases in the backseat, slid in, and started the vehicle. She quickly turned it so when Johnnie did make his appearance, all he had to do was hop in without having to worry about anything else.
It wasn't long before Johnnie arrived, and when he did, he placed the gun in the back as well, closed his door, and Zelda immediately sped off, just as the agents burst through the door. The young woman shook her head, not fully believing that they actually got away again. The good Lord was looking out for them, and yet, she didn't know why.
"Where should we go?" she asked him, not bothering to mask her shaky voice.
"Just drive," Johnnie told her, his voice breathless.
Chapter 25
The couple stayed in Minneapolis for the next four days, probably due to Zelda's insistence. She did not want Johnnie robbing banks with the wound, nor did she want Lester 'Baby Face' Nelson making any of his snide comments regarding Johnnie's leg and how he was keeping the gang from robbing another bank. If Zelda was being honest, she was glad Johnnie couldn't risk his neck robbing banks with the quick-to-violence Baby Face and instead had to lay low for a few days. However, she knew Johnnie well enough to know that he was getting restless sitting around and doing nothing, so she suggested they go visit his family.
She knew that that probably wasn't the best idea. She knew that Johnnie was nationally known and one of the biggest hotspots the cops or the Bureau of Investigation would be watching was his family's place. She also knew Johnnie well enough to know that he missed his family, especially his sister and their children. And though she would never admit it aloud, she had the feeling that Johnnie wanted to see them one last time...
The notion that this would be Johnnie's last time seeing his family was ridiculous, at least to Zelda, but she kept her mouth shut. Who was she to tell him how he felt? If he wanted to see his family, he would see his family. It was less dangerous than robbing banks; that was certain.
It was decided. On April fourth, Zelda and Johnnie left the doctor and Minneapolis and headed out to Mooresville, Indiana. The drive was longer than one would expect only bec
ause Zelda was driving and she refused to go over the speed limit. John Dillinger would not be arrested because his girlfriend was going forty-one in a forty zone.
When they got nearer to the house, Johnnie's eyes were peeled while Zelda concentrated on driving as cautiously as possible. If John Dillinger was going to get arrested, it would be doing what he loved, in an apartment with Zelda, or visiting his family. And one could sure as hell bet that Zelda would be right there with him.
"Notice anything?" he asked her as they drove through the familiar town. Johnnie's smoky grey eyes were sharp, his head turning left and right without being too obvious about his intentions.
"To be honest," Zelda murmured, "I don't see any sort of officer, federal or local, watching us, waiting for us."
"Exactly," he replied, reaching over to place his hand on Zelda's thigh. He would never say it aloud, but such a thought disturbed him, and he hoped it wasn't a bad sign, that he was just worrying too much.
They reached Dillinger's old home without any incident. Before the couple got out of the car, Zelda offered to go to the door and check to make sure everything was all right herself, and while Johnnie appreciated the thought, politely declined it. If anything happened to her and he wasn't there to prevent it from happening, he wouldn't know what to do with himself. He would never forgive himself.
The two exited the vehicle, and Johnnie quickly wrapped his arm around Zelda's waist as though he was protecting her. His grip on her was somewhat tight and his body was tense, prepared to reach into his holster and use his pistol if he felt the need to. Surprisingly enough, nothing happened. Johnnie knocked on the door and his father answered. There was nothing to be worried about, at least for now. Everything was fine. They were safe.
Zelda, of course, was introduced to everyone there – and there was a lot more people present than Johnnie and Zelda had expected. As Johnnie had done before, he introduced Zelda as his wife (though it should be noted he had yet to formally propose to her), and would barely leave her side while reacquainting himself with his family. Zelda personally met Johnnie's father, his half-brother, Aubrey once more, Aubrey's husband, and Johnnie's favorite niece and Aubrey's daughter.
It wasn't long before someone had suggested they start taking pictures to remember the occasion, so they went outside and started goofing off with some of the guns Johnnie had brought. Zelda wasn't exactly sure that was a good idea, but she didn't want to ruin the fun everyone seemed to be having. There were a couple of shots of she and Johnnie, and she made sure to smile in them. She was incredibly happy with the bank robber, and if anything happened to her, to him, she wanted people to know that she loved him.
"Darling," Johnnie said a few hours later, his voice low. "I need to go and do somethin' with Herbert."
"Johnnie, it's practically dark," Zelda pointed out, pushing her brow up. "Are you sure that that's a good idea?"
"Yes ma'am," Johnnie said with one of his crooked smiles, knowing she hated it when he called her ma'am. "We haven't heard anything about Pierpont, and I brought a good amount of money to deliver to his parents in hopes that it will get him good representation."
Zelda knew she couldn't argue with him. But she sighed through her nose, silently telling Johnnie that she wasn't exactly happy with the prospect of letting him go. "Okay," she finally told him. "But please be careful and don't do anything stupid."
Johnnie's grin just deepened and he quickly kissed her on the mouth. "For luck," he told her before disappearing out the door with his half-brother.
It wasn't surprising to find Zelda pacing up and down the house, her hands behind her back, as the sun began to set. She had no idea where Pierpont's family lived so she couldn't gauge any sort of return time for Johnnie and Herbert. But she did know that whether or not they saw them, officers were most certainly watching this house, and due to Harry's ties with Johnnie, were most certainly watching Pierpont's parents' house as well.
Zelda attempted to take her mind off the fact that Johnnie was gone by talking to his father and his sister and even acquainting herself with Johnnie's favorite niece. They managed to distract her for a time, talking about how Johnnie was quite the charmer, even at a young age. His niece even showed Zelda some of the letters he had written to her while he was in prison for the first time. It was quite evident to Zelda that despite Johnnie's obvious ties to criminal activity, they still cared deeply about him. Family was everything.
That was the way it should be.
As night began to make its presence known, people started to head out. Even Johnnie's father turned in for bed, but only after fetching a blanket for Zelda to wear, somehow knowing that she would still be up.
She hoped the family liked her as much as she liked them. They seemed to be the most genuine people she had ever met, and to be honest, found it surprising that Johnnie ever got involved in crime with such a supporting family. But Johnnie had told her that things hadn't always been that way, and if the first judge he had ever had to deal with hadn't made an example out of him, he probably would be on the straight and narrow.
To be honest, Zelda couldn't imagine Johnnie on the straight and narrow for the life of her. He was too damn charming and he knew he was too damn charming. Why wouldn't he use that to his advantage?
Zelda stopped pacing, inhaling deeply before exhaling through her nose. Things seemed comfortable here. Things seemed... calm. And yet... And yet there was something else, something about this entire situation that she was wary of. Almost as though this was the calm before a storm.
At that moment, Johnnie and Herbert burst through the door. Johnnie immediately threw his arms around the waiting Zelda, surprised and touched that she had actually waited up for him. He and Herbert had gotten into a jam – the car they were driving had run out of gas – causing Johnnie to hide in a nearby haystack for a few hours while Herbert retrieved gasoline for the car. But everything he wanted to accomplish regarding the Pierponts’ was accomplished, and he was home safely.
"Well, my dear," Johnnie murmured into Zelda's ear once Herbert had left them to turn in. "We've had a long day, haven't we?" Zelda nodded her head that was currently resting on Johnnie's sturdy shoulder. "What do you say I show you to our room, where we can sleep as long as we want."
"I say," Zelda said, think for a moment. She wasn't exactly sure just what she should say that represented her feelings on the subject, so she leaned forward and captured Johnnie's lips with her own. Instead of telling him how she felt, showing him had the desired effect.
Johnnie smiled even through the kiss, knowing that he would never get tired of it, of her. She had been with him through thick and thin, and he trusted her with his life. He loved her more than anything. "That," Johnnie said once the two broke apart, his voice slightly breathless, "was exactly what I wanted to hear."
With another one of his charming grins, he offered her his arm, and after she slid her own through it, began to lead her up the stairs and into his old room where they would sleep until it was absolutely necessary for them to get up.
Chapter 26
It was April ninth when Johnnie and Zelda finally left Mooresville. While Johnnie wanted to stay there for a longer portion of time if he could, he knew they would have to leave or capture was a guarantee. Within the next couple of days, Johnnie got back in contact with Baby Face Nelson, who told the couple to meet up with Homer Van Meter, one of Johnnie's friends, back in Chicago and suggested they get some weapons, ammo, and protective vests before meeting the rest of Nelson's gang at an inn called Little Bohemia which was located in Manitowish, Wisconsin, where they would be staying for the next few days before moving on.
Though Helen Gillis would never admit it to anyone but her husband, he was furious that Dillinger was still getting credit from the press about the different sort of robberies that he initiated. It was never Lester Nelson's gang they referred to, but John Dillinger's gang. To be honest, Johnnie didn't care one way or the other who got credit, though he was quite amused w
ith Nelson's reaction to the entire thing. He just liked what he did, and if no one knew who he was, he was fine with that as well. But Gillis knew he needed Dillinger just like Dillinger needed Nelson, so they had to deal with each other if they wanted to successfully continue to rob various banks.
Once in Chicago, Dillinger quickly rented an apartment for a few days, leaving Zelda there while he met up with Van Meter. The two ended up robbing a police arsenal in Warsaw, Indiana. Their take was two pistols and four bullet proof vests. Maybe it wasn't exactly care. He grabbed what he could and what he thought was needed, nothing more, nothing less. After a few more days, he headed out to Wisconsin with Zelda in the passenger seat and Homer in the back.
Hours later, Homer was fast asleep in the back (as told by his deep and distracting snores), leaving Johnnie and Zelda alone for the most part. The drive had been mostly quiet; Johnnie was thinking about certain things that he didn't want to say aloud, some of them regarding Zelda and some of them that didn't. Plus, he really didn't want to verbalize his concerns when Homer was in the back. Though Johnnie wasn't as prideful as Baby Face was, he didn't want someone who had no problem following him blindly to realize that Johnnie wasn't as certain as Homer believed.
"I don't like this, Johnnie," Zelda said from beside him, speaking for the first time in a long time. Johnnie glanced at her from the corner of his eyes, but Zelda was looking out her window rather than at him, as though she might find her answers out in the scenery rather than in the car.
"Everything's gonna be okay," Johnnie told her in a murmur, doing his best to keep his voice down while trying to reassure her at the same time. He dropped his right hand from the steering wheel and placed it on Zelda's knee, which caused Zelda to finally look at him. "Nothing's gonna happen to you, not with me here."
"I'm not worried for myself," Zelda told him. Johnnie wanted to quip that she never was worried about herself, but decided against it, especially since Zelda looked like she had more to say. "Just this entire situation. Something bad is going to happen."
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