Hollow Point

by Mike Ryan

  “That’s a lot of if’s and maybe’s, don’t you think?” Recker asked. “I mean, you’re acting like all this is guaranteed to happen. This isn’t like a definite, you know.”

  “But what if it does?”

  “Why are you so hell-bent on coming along? You’ve never been like this before.”

  Mia shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe it’s because I’m off tomorrow and have nothing else to do. Maybe it’s because I just want to spend more time with you. I don’t know. Why are you so against it?”

  “Because I don’t want you to get hurt.”

  “You and Chris will be there. What’s the worst that could happen to me?”

  “Uhh, you want me to go down the list? How ‘bout if we get in their way and they come up shooting? Ever think of that?”

  Mia rolled her eyes, knowing he had a point, though she didn’t want to acknowledge it. “How about if I ask David?”

  “You’re gonna ask David?”

  “Why not? If he’s OK with it, would you agree?”

  “No!”

  “Why not?” Mia asked.

  “Because he’s not your boyfriend and he’s not the one who’d be out there with you.”

  “You are a stubborn man; do you know that?”

  “So I’ve been told.”

  Recker then walked into the kitchen and called Jones to see what he thought of Mia’s idea.

  “And I wanna talk to him before you hang up,” Mia said. “And don’t tell him to say no before you hand me the phone.”

  Recker rolled his eyes and sighed, but agreed anyway. As soon as Jones answered, Recker started to tell him Mia’s plan in detail, remembering everything she said without leaving a single thing out.

  “So, what do you think?” Recker asked.

  “I would say that it certainly seems plausible.”

  “What about a woman? Can you filter out who that might be?”

  “Well I’ve already compiled a list of known associates,” Jones said.

  “Are there any women on it?”

  “Yes, there are several.”

  “Any way to narrow it down?”

  “I guess I could work on it a little bit for the rest of the night. I can’t say I will definitely be able to pinpoint one woman, though. But I’ll see what I can do.”

  “So, you think it could go down that way?” Recker asked.

  “I definitely do. I could see that scenario happening. I can also say that I can envision just about any other scenario happening as well, considering we don’t have any leads on how it’s going to go down.”

  “All right, I guess we can talk about it more in the morning.”

  Mia cleared her throat, making sure Recker heard her before he hung up. He looked over at her, and though he didn’t really want to hand the phone over, did so anyway.

  “David?” Mia said.

  “Hello.”

  “Mike didn’t mention it to you, but what would you think about me going out with them tomorrow?”

  Jones was silent for a while, not sure how to respond. He was almost positive it was a trick question.

  “David?”

  “Oh, I’m…honestly not sure what to say.”

  “Well, would you have a problem with me going out with Mike and Chris to help out?”

  Jones hesitated again, though for not quite as long. “And what did Mike say?” he asked, finding it hard to believe that Recker would have approved it.

  “Well he said no. But I think I can help and I think I can be useful.”

  “I’m going to go along with him.”

  “But why?”

  “Because I’m not getting in the middle of any of your spats,” Jones said.

  “We’re not having a spat.”

  “Why are you getting me in the middle of this?”

  “Aren’t you technically in charge?” Mia asked.

  “Well . . .”

  “David, if there turns out to be a woman there, don’t you think I could help if Mike and Chris are busy?”

  “Umm, possibly. Didn’t you swear off doing this type of stuff a long time ago?”

  “Why does everyone keep saying that? I can handle it. Besides, it’s not like I’d be by myself. Mike and Chris will be there.”

  Jones didn’t want to get into an argument, or a long drawn out conversation about the subject, and just hoped to end the discussion as quickly as possible. “Well, let me think on it for the night and I’ll talk to Mike about it in the morning.”

  “You’re just trying to get rid of me.”

  “I would never.”

  “Yeah right. You have no intention of saying yes or going against Mike.”

  “I have gone against Mike many times,” Jones said.

  “Yeah, but not when it comes to me.”

  “Well there are boundaries.”

  Mia sighed, resigning herself to the fact that nobody was going to say yes to her proposal. “Fine. I know when I’m not wanted.”

  “Mia, it’s not that. We just want to keep you safe.”

  “I know, I know. I know the line. Well would you mind if I at least came into the office tomorrow? At least let me do something.”

  “Are you off tomorrow?”

  “Yes.”

  “I don’t see the harm in that if Mike is willing.”

  “I’ll probably have to beg, crawl, and pray for him to approve.”

  8

  The team was all set up in their respective positions. Recker was down the street from the Rocco house, waiting for the nanny to step outside with the baby. Haley was wandering through the park, looking for a sign of potential trouble. He was particularly keeping an eye out for a man and a woman with the same kind of stroller the Rocco baby had. He’d been walking around for a half hour without any luck. Jones was in the office, still typing away, hoping to find some last-minute solution that would let the secret out of the bag. As they were waiting for the action to begin, Jones couldn’t resist a last-minute shot across Recker’s bow.

  “Mike, how is the third wheel doing?” Jones asked.

  Recker gritted his teeth as he thought of a reply. “Just fine.”

  “Hey, I object to being called a third wheel!” Mia said.

  Jones chuckled. “Sorry, it wasn’t intended as an insult toward you.”

  “Uh huh.”

  “Hey, you’re the one that let her come along,” Recker said.

  “Don’t lay this at my feet. She’s your girlfriend,” Jones replied.

  “Are you guys seriously gonna do this?” Mia asked. “You’re gonna argue about me knowing full well I can hear you?”

  Recker let out a sigh that was clearly audible in everyone’s earpiece.

  “Something upsetting you, Mike?” Jones asked.

  “No. Nothing at all.”

  “Don’t get upset, Mike, you know I can be helpful here,” Mia said.

  Recker still wasn’t that pleased that she was there. “How’d I let you talk me into this?”

  “Because deep down you knew I was right.”

  “No, I don’t think that was it. I think you did some trickery on me or something.”

  “Don’t be ridiculous. I merely pointed out the facts, which were accurate, and you came around to my line of thinking, as you should have.”

  “I must’ve been out of my mind.”

  “Oh stop. I’ll be fine. This will work.”

  “It working isn’t what I’m worried about,” Recker said.

  “Mike, cool your jets.”

  Haley, who’d been carefully listening to the playful exchange, couldn’t hold back any longer and let out an audible laugh.

  “At least you’re amusing to somebody,” Jones said.

  “You planned this all along, didn’t you?” Recker asked.

  “Planned what?” Mia sweetly replied, acting like she didn’t know what he was talking about.

  “Don’t pretend like you’re oblivious. You know darn well what I’m talking about.”

&
nbsp; Though Mia really did know, she wasn’t going to give in. “I really don’t know.”

  “You played it off like you wanted to go to the office this morning and help out with logistics and stuff. But you were really planning this all along, weren’t you?”

  Mia replied, trying to talk and sound as sweet and innocent as possible. “Honestly, Mike, I just wanted to help in the office. That’s all.”

  Recker scoffed, letting out a laugh, knowing full well he was right. “That cute and innocent act isn’t gonna work with me. You know I know.”

  “Excuse me, but did we just stumble into an old Abbott and Costello routine or something?” Jones asked.

  “Maybe I should be glad I’m single,” Haley said.

  “Indeed.”

  “Really, Mike, if you didn’t want me here than you should’ve just said so,” Mia said.

  “I did. Several times.”

  “Well, obviously you weren’t persistent enough.”

  “Or some people are just hardheaded and stubborn,” Recker replied.

  “Mike, don’t self-deprecate yourself like that over the air in public.”

  Jones and Haley both laughed at the same time.

  “Mike, you seem to have met your match,” Jones said.

  Recker opened his mouth to reply, but honestly couldn’t come up with a reply and just waved his hand in the air a couple of times before letting it settle on his face. He shook his head and rubbed the sides of both temples and let his hand slide down his face and onto his neck as he looked up at the sky.

  “What, nothing else to add?” Mia asked.

  “Nope. Nothing.”

  As much as the team, maybe except Recker, seemed to be enjoying the playful banter amongst the couple, Jones looked at the time and knew they had to get down to business. It was only a few minutes before the nanny was due to leave the house.

  “OK. It looks like playtime is over,” Jones said. “We’ve only got five minutes to go on the countdown. Is everyone in place?”

  Recker, Haley, and Mia all confirmed they were. They stationed Mia on a bench inside the park, near the entrance the nanny usually came in at. They figured if something did go down there, like she thought it might, she’d be right on top of it. And if it didn’t, she could easily follow the nanny through the park without attracting anyone’s suspicions. Mia fought hard to get to that point. She spent the entire night before trying to wear down Recker to let her come along. She talked the entire morning, first to Recker, then to Jones and Haley, about letting her tag with the group. Her and Recker got to the office a little after eight, and almost immediately, Mia started working on the team in the effort to let her get in on the park detail. After over three hours of her constant badgering, she finally got the blessing of Haley first. Once the first domino fell, she got Jones to see the light. Her boyfriend was the toughest case, as she knew it would be, and with the other two giving her the green light, Recker finally got worn down to the point where he saw the benefit in her joining the plan in the field. At least until she was out there. Once she was in place, Recker doubted why he let himself get talked into it. But Mia always was a special case with him. She had the ability to change his mind or persuade him to do something he really didn’t want to like nobody else could.

  Within a few minutes, the nanny came out of the house right on time. Recker was at his spot at the end of the street waiting for her. Just as he had the day before, he walked around the block to see if he noticed anyone else waiting for her. But just like before, he noticed nothing unusual.

  “She’s on the move,” Recker said.

  “Let’s hope today’s the day and we nip this thing in the bud,” Jones replied.

  Recker walked away from the park and down the street as the nanny walked closer, just to avoid the possibility of being spotted. Once she got near the intersection of 19th and Rittenhouse, Recker made a sharp turned and quickly walked back toward her, in anticipation of something happening soon.

  “Hey, I just saw a man and a woman with the same type of stroller,” Haley reported.

  “Where at?” Recker replied.

  “Uhh, should be walking to you now.”

  “It’s going down like Mia said.”

  “I’m on them.”

  “Mia, get ready,” Jones said.

  “I don’t see anyone yet,” she replied.

  “You will. Just sit tight for now.”

  “We’re entering the park,” Recker said, walking briskly. “I’m only a few feet behind her.”

  “Mike, give her some space and just stand by the exit path for now,” Jones said.

  Recker complied with Jones’ wishes and stood by the small iron gate and tried to look inconspicuous. There were several benches up ahead and a couple of paths leading away from his direction, but nothing was blocking his way so he couldn’t catch up to them if they went in another direction. Plus, he figured Haley might get to them before he did anyway. Recker continued looking around, hoping to see the couple his partner described. After a few minutes, he did.

  “I see them,” Recker said. “The nanny just sat down on a bench across from Mia.”

  “What do I do?” Mia asked.

  “Nothing yet. Just relax. You only need to focus on the woman. Don’t worry about anything else.”

  After five more minutes elapsed, the couple Haley reported were now within view. They were walking toward the nanny’s position.

  “I think we’re about to get action,” Recker said, looking around for other members of the crew.

  “The guy is definitely one of them. Spot on image from his picture,” Haley replied.

  “I don’t see the other two anywhere.”

  “I’m sure they’re nearby,” Jones said. “Stay alert.”

  Recker and Haley watched intently as the couple approached the nanny. They seemed friendly enough, striking up a conversation with her. They watched the three of them laughing about something, and the two women seemed to be getting along very well, almost looking like old friends. Recker’s eyes then were diverted to another couple who were walking toward the same bench as the others.

  “I don’t believe it,” he said with a whisper.

  “What?” Jones asked.

  “There’s another couple with the same stroller.”

  “You’re kidding.”

  “I wish I was.”

  “I see it,” Haley said. “I recognize the guy. Same crew again.”

  The third couple arrived near the same bench as the others and also struck up a conversation with the group. After a minute, they were all talking, smiling, and laughing. Recker was as sure as ever they were going to pull a switch any minute, as soon as they found the right moment.

  “Be on your toes,” Recker said, getting ready to pounce.

  A few more minutes went by and Recker observed one of the men getting ready to leave. One of the women was distracting the nanny and the man switched strollers, taking the one with the Rocco baby in it. He bid the others goodbye and started walking away from the group as the rest of them continued chatting away. With the nanny being distracted by the women, and not looking at the strollers at that moment, she didn’t have any clue the baby she was in charge of was being taken away.

  “They just did it,” Recker said. “They just pulled the switch.”

  “I saw it,” Haley replied.

  “Mia, you go toward the stroller for the baby.”

  “What about the woman?” Mia asked.

  “Forget the woman. I’m going after that guy. If I take him out, I wanna make sure nobody else is around to snatch the kid while I’m busy.”

  “OK.”

  Mia did as Recker wanted and got up from her seat and started following the man who just left with the wrong stroller. Recker started running toward the man to cut him off from escaping. As he did, Haley moved into position between the group and the path the man just walked down. That way, if anyone saw Recker interfering, Haley would be ready to block them, giving his p
artner enough time to subdue the man and take control of the situation.

  The plan seemed to work perfectly. Mia was right behind the man, ready to take control of the stroller once he lost his grip of it. She looked at Recker coming out of the corner of her eye. Recker ran across a patch of grass and past a couple of trees as he ran full force at the unsuspecting man. Wanting to catch him off-guard, Recker jumped at him as soon as he was within range. Recker gave him a flying cross body tackle, knocking them both to the ground. As soon as they wrestled on the concrete, Mia grabbed the stroller to make sure it didn’t roll away, or fall into the wrong hands.

  Recker had quickly straddled the man on the ground and gave him several punches to the face. The man was so stunned at what happened he didn’t have much of a chance to fight back. As people started to look at the commotion, one of the other men ran toward them. Haley quickly put a stop to that though, spearing the man in the gut with his shoulder, knocking them onto the ground as well. Much like his partner, Haley also began delivering shots to the man’s face.

  The two women who had accompanied the crew members looked on in horror, realizing the plan was falling apart. Seeing the two men seemed to be subdued, the women quickly scurried out of the area. The nanny looked at them strangely and wasn’t sure what was going on, wondering why they just ran off and left their babies and strollers behind. She looked in what she thought was her stroller and was horrified to discover it wasn’t hers at all. Inside was only a child’s doll. Quickly being taken over by panic, she reached into the other stroller and discovered there was only a doll inside that one as well. She backed up, a look of pure fear taking over her face. She then looked over and saw Mia standing there with what she hoped was her stroller and ran over to her. Mia saw her running over to her and smiled. She put her hand out to try to get the woman to calm down.

  “It’s OK,” Mia said. “She’s fine. She’s fine.”

  “Oh my God, I can’t believe this,” the nanny said, picking the baby up out of the stroller. She held her tightly in her arms and hugged the child, thankful she was all right.

  Mia rubbed the woman’s back for a second and patted her on the shoulders to calm her down. “It’s all over.”