“You know, you could have stopped for some coffee,” Eliza said anxiously.
Jake noticed that she was trembling.
“I can’t believe that you’re still cold, it has to be seventy degrees in here, probably even higher than that.”
Eliza didn’t reply. She wasn’t cold at all. It was just her nerves. She exited the car and walked around the back to where she had left her bag. She unzipped it and pulled out her gun, trying hard to conceal it from Jake. She quickly tucked it within the waistband of her jeans. She closed the door and walked around the car to where Jake was standing. He had a smug look on his face that said, “You can’t fool me, I know what you just did.”
“So what’s the plan?” Eliza asked nervously.
“We’ll go inside and ask the people at the front desk if they could tell us what room they’re in.”
“How would they know? What name are you going to give them?”
“I was just going to give them a description.”
“Are you nuts? They’re not going to give you information based on just a description.”
“Well what do you propose then?”
“We just wait them out. They’ve got to leave at some point,” Eliza said.
Jake was shaking his head.
“No. That leaves too much to chance. Just flash your badge, tell them that—”
“I don’t have my badge,” Eliza said loudly. “I don’t have jurisdiction here even if I did.”
“God, Eliza...why didn’t you bring your badge?”
“I’m on leave,” she replied without revealing that it had been an involuntary decision.
“Great,” Jake said exasperatedly. “Just great. I was counting on you, Eliza...I was counting on that lovely badge of yours to get us in.”
“Well next time you make plans, how about including me in on them?”
“This is just great!” He said again as he slapped his thigh.
“Relax. Let’s just get back in the car and wait for them.”
“No,” he said angrily. “She’s in there somewhere and I’m gonna find her.”
Jake began walking toward the hotel.
“Jake, wait,” Eliza called to him as she tried to keep up.
The hotel lobby was deserted except for the female hotel clerk behind the desk. She was a middle-aged woman who looked terribly bored and happy to finally see another human face.
“Good morning, folks,” she said with a smile.
Jake noticed that she wasn’t wearing a wedding ring.
“Good morning,” Jake answered glumly as he fixed his piercing blue eyes directly on the woman’s almond-shaped brown ones.
I can do this, he thought. I can charm this woman into helping me....
He had learned throughout the years to use his good looks to his advantage. Women of all ages were naturally drawn to him—especially unmarried middle-aged women who emanated all of the classic signs of loneliness.
“You folks have a room here?”
“Well you see, I was hoping you might be able to help us. I’m looking for my daughter. She’s a troubled girl, a fifteen-year-old with platinum blonde hair and deep blue eyes. She fell into the wrong crowd, you know? It’s not easy being a single father,” he said, shielding his eyes as if he were about to cry.
Jake had the woman’s full attention. She looked concerned as she waited for him to continue. Eliza was likewise curious to hear what else her clever ally had to say.
“She ran off with her drug dealer, an older black woman. We got an anonymous tip that they were staying here.”
“Have you called the cops?” The woman said worriedly.
“I did, but you know how it is. They have to wait for a certain amount of time to pass before they get involved. By then....”
Jake purposefully paused, pretending to get choked up.
“By then she could be dead....”
Jake covered his face, lowered his head and pretended to cry.
“Oh my goodness...your boyfriend’s really upset,” the woman said to Eliza.
“Oh, he’s not my boyfriend, I’m...I’m just helping him out. As you can see, he’s totally torn up over this.”
“I’m really sorry that you’re going through such a rough time with your daughter,” she said sympathetically.
Jake lifted his head and stared longingly at the woman.
“Have you by any chance seen them? I was told they arrived here last night.”
“I wasn’t here last night,” she said solemnly, wishing there was a way she could help the poor, brokenhearted man. “Do you know the woman’s name?”
Jake shook his head.
“Hey, I have an idea,” the woman said as she started typing into her computer. “Hmmm,” she said as she thought.
Jake had no idea what the woman was thinking or planning to do but he appreciated any help that she could offer.
After a few minutes she said, “Okay, so we have sixty rooms here and twenty-six of those rooms were reserved by a wedding party. Eighteen rooms are currently vacant. That leaves....”
The clerk paused as she did the math in her head. Jake already had the answer but didn’t want to interrupt the woman.
“That leaves sixteen rooms that she may be in. From those rooms....”
The clerk paused again as her fingers rapidly tapped the keyboard. She grabbed a pen and a sheet of paper and began writing something down. Several seconds later, she handed the paper to Jake.
“These are the only rooms she could possibly be in,” she said with a smile.
Jake looked at the paper. There were only six room numbers listed.
“Just these?”
“Those are the only rooms with two occupants that were paid for yesterday. Now I can’t tell you what to do, but if it was me, I’d go from room to room and find my daughter.”
Jake took the woman’s hands in his and squeezed them gently.
“Thank you so much. You don’t know how much this means to me.”
“Good luck to you,” the clerk called as Jake took off with Eliza following behind him.
“How many rooms do we have to check?” Eliza asked, nervous butterflies fluttering sickeningly in her stomach.
“Just six,” he replied as he turned down a corridor then stopped in front of the last door on the right. “Here’s the first one,” he said quietly.
“So what do we do? Just knock?”
“Well we don’t have the key,” he said sarcastically.
“But—”
Before Eliza could finish her thought, Jake knocked on the door. Eliza placed her hand on her gun. After several seconds, he knocked again, louder. Jake turned to Eliza. She could read his thoughts questioning what they should do next. The door abruptly opened. A young man in his early twenties stared angrily at them.
“What do you want?” He snapped.
“I’m looking for my daughter,” Jake replied.
“Well she’s not here,” the man said and slammed the door in their faces.
“Lovely,” Eliza said as they moved on.
“The other fives room are all upstairs,” Jake said. “Three on the second floor two on the third.”
Eliza nodded as she followed Jake down the hall and to the stairs. They walked upstairs and located the second room. Once again, they knocked on the door and waited to see if Hillary would appear. An Asian man in a suit opened the door a moment later.
“Yes?” He asked, wondering what the couple was doing outside of his room.
“We’re looking for my daughter. She’s a fifteen-year-old blonde girl. She may be with an old black woman. Have you seen anyone around here that might be her?”
“No, I got in late and I’ve been here all night, sorry,” the man said and closed the door.
The other rooms were likewise disappointing. Hillary was not in any of them. Nor did anyone recall seeing someone who fit her description.
“Where the hell is she?” Jake asked angrily.
“Bea
ts me, but clearly not here.”
“She’s covering her tracks. Maybe she’s at one of the other hotels in the area.”
“We’re not going from hotel to hotel and room to room, Jake. You said that cab driver told you that she left her bag behind. Think rationally. Don’t you think that would freak her out enough not to stay where the driver dropped her off?”
It made sense. Hillary was a lot of things but she wasn’t stupid.
“In fact, if I were Hillary, I probably would be tracking the cab driver.”
Jake nodded.
“You may be right, Eliza. Let’s give him a call.”
Jake reached into his pocket and pulled out the paper that he had written Ken’s phone number onto. He handed it to Eliza who placed the call. The call rang and rang until it went to his voicemail.
“No answer,” Eliza said.
“Try it again,” Jake ordered.
Eliza huffed then tried to call Ken again. Still, the call rang until his voicemail message played.
“C’mon,” Jake said as he began walking toward the hotel lobby.
Eliza followed behind him, practically sprinting to keep up.
“Where are you going?” She asked, but he ignored her as he headed for the exit.
“No luck?” The hotel clerk called out as she saw him pass.
Jake ignored her as well as he shoved the door open and walked to Eliza’s car. Eliza was less impolite. She stopped and faced the woman.
“Sorry, he’s really upset,” she explained. “We didn’t find her. But thanks for your help.”
“Aww, well good luck to you guys. I hope you find her soon.”
Eliza nodded. She wasn’t quite sure what to hope for anymore. She joined Jake, who was waiting by the car. She pulled the keys out of her purse and unlocked the door. Without saying anything, Jake climbed into the driver’s seat. Eliza returned her gun to her bag then entered the vehicle. She handed the car keys to Jake.
“Now what’s your plan?”
“Can you get the address for the Silver Spring bus terminal?” He asked her.
“Why? We didn’t have much luck at the Richmond bus station.”
“I want to try to find Ken, the cab driver. He says that’s his spot, right outside the bus terminal.”
“We should just keep trying to call him. He’s bound to answer at some point.”
“Eliza, I can’t just sit around and wait...please, just get that address.”
She didn’t have the strength to argue. She pulled out her cell phone and searched for the address.
As they neared the bus terminal, Jake said, “Keep your eyes peeled for a blue Lincoln Town Car, that’s what he drives.”
“Okay, Jake, but if we don’t find him, we’re going to stop somewhere for some breakfast and coffee.”
Jake didn’t reply. He didn’t even want to think of what they would do if they didn’t find him. Maybe there was something in the duffel bag that would provide a clue as to Hillary’s whereabouts.
Jake’s heart sank as they pulled up to the bus terminal and he didn’t see a blue Lincoln Town Car amongst the row of taxis parked at the curb.
“Pull over,” Eliza demanded.
Jake pulled into a “no standing” area.
Eliza opened the door.
“Where are you going?” Jake asked.
“To find something to eat like I told you I would if the cabbie wasn’t here.”
“Fine, you go get something to eat, I’m waiting here for him.”
Eliza walked into the bus terminal while Jake waited impatiently for a blue Lincoln Town Car to appear. Ten minutes later, a black Town Car arrived and for a quick moment Jake thought it might have been Ken, but aside from the car being the wrong color, the driver was a young African-American man.
Several minutes after that, Eliza returned to the car holding a bag and two cups.
“I don’t know how you drink your coffee,” she said.
“I can’t drink coffee now,” he said irritably.
Eliza shrugged as she set the cup down within one of the cup holders.
“You eat muffins?” She said as she shoved the bag toward him.
“Eliza, don’t you care whether we find her? I mean, isn’t that the whole point? How can you just sit there think about food at a time like this?”
“Starving ourselves is not going to help us find her,” she retorted as she drew the bag back and pulled out a blueberry muffin. She closed the bag and placed it on the center console as she bit into the muffin.
“I can’t just sit here,” Jake complained and he left the car.
Eliza watched him walk toward the row of cabs. Did he think Ken was in a different car? She continued to enjoy her blueberry muffin and cup of coffee as she waited for him to return.
Jake was never one to sit idly by whenever he had a problem. He had to keep moving, keep doing something to feel like he might be making some progress. He figured that he might as well question some cab drivers while he waited for Ken. He had nothing to do anyway and one of them might be able to shed some light on where Ken was.
Before he had the opportunity to approach the first cab, someone entered the car and the driver drove off moments later. The remaining drivers started their vehicles and all advanced forward. Jake peered at the driver who was now first in line. It was an old gentleman who was reading a book. He walked up to his car and got his attention. The man lowered his window. Jake felt a blast of frigid air escape and chill his face. It felt refreshing against his feverish skin.
“Need a lift? The old man asked.
“No, no. Actually, I was looking for a driver...uh, Ken...Ken Dobbs.”
“This about the duffel bag?”
“You know about the duffel bag? Did he look inside?”
“What is so special about that bag? Is there, like, a million dollars in it or something?” Tony Ramirez joked.
“Do you know where Ken is? Or the bag?”
“Well Ken should have been here already, he’s usually here by five or six at the latest. I guess he’s running late. You know, I told that young girl that I would deliver the bag to her at her hotel.”
“At the Holiday Inn?”
“No, the Econo Inn, right here in Silver Spring.”
Jake’s heart skipped a beat and his eyes widened in excitement.
“Econo Inn?”
“Yeah, it’s not far from here, not even ten minutes away.”
Tony began giving Jake directions, but he was only half-listening. He already had all of the information that he needed.
“Thanks so much, I appreciate your help,” Jake said quickly, then turned and sprinted back to Eliza.
“This is just getting weird,” Tony said as he shook his head then picked up his book.
Eliza could tell by the smile on Jake’s face that he had obtained some useful information. He quickly opened the door and jumped in.
“You won’t believe this!” He said excitedly. “Hillary’s right here in Silver Spring! She’s at a place called the Econo Inn.”
Correctly anticipating Jake’s next directive, Eliza pulled out her cell phone and searched for the address to the Econo Inn.
“It’s just a couple miles from here,” she said when the GPS was done planning the route.
Jake fastened his seatbelt and started the ignition. With his hands on the steering wheel, he turned his head to face Eliza and looked her squarely in the eyes.
“I know I’ve been a bit...difficult to be around. I apologize, really...I just...I just need to take care of this so that I can figure out how to get my life back on track.”
Eliza nodded. She understood.
“She’s got to be there,” he said firmly, as if by making such a declaration he would will it to be so.
Jake drove off to the Econo Inn.
Stopping him from carrying out his mission wasn’t going to be easy. She hadn’t fully thought about what she was getting into. What would she do when they found Hillary? What if
she attempted to stop Jake from hurting the girl, but the girl herself attacks them? And who exactly was this woman she had traveled to Maryland with? Was she likewise a threat? The coffee and muffin in Eliza’s stomach became her bitter enemies as the cramping began.
“You all right?” Jake asked, noticing her wincing.
“Fine, I just have a stomachache.”
“It’s just nerves,” he said. “I admit, I have them too. But there’s no stopping now.”
They were in front of the Econo Inn in just six minutes.
Eliza’s stomach made a noise that sounded much like someone moaning. Embarrassed, she turned her face. Jake thought about Monica Morrison and way Hillary had made her moan...and scream...and suffer. His face turned pale as he exited the car.
Eliza walked around the back of the car to retrieve her handgun. Once again she shoved it within the waist band of her jeans. Only this time, she caught Jake staring at her while she did so.
“So what’s the plan?” Eliza asked. “Are you going to charm the clerk again?”
“Unless it’s a man,” Jake said. “Then you’ll have to do the honors.”
The two of them entered the inn. Eliza couldn’t stop herself from trembling.
Pull yourself together, she scolded herself. You’re a cop for God’s sake…you’ve been in worse situations.
But had she?
A blonde man in his late thirties stood behind the desk. Jake turned to tease Eliza, but the woman’s bleak face was transfixed on something at the other side of the room. Jake turned his head to see what had captured her attention so intently. His jaw dropped. Hillary and Miss Billie were headed toward the exit.
~19~
The first thing Lt. Col. Rigsby noticed when he entered the room was the terrified look on the old black woman’s face. Who was she? And why was she so frightened? Beside her on the bed was a girl who was curled up in a ball and crying hysterically. Lt. Col. Rigsby had to make sure that it was Hillary Greyson before he put her out of her misery.
With his hand on his gun, he entered the room slowly and closed the door.
“Get outta here!” Miss Billie shouted, trying to warn the soldier who had just trespassed into their room.
“Ma’am, I’m going to have to ask you to move over to the other side of the room for now.”
Hillary_Retribution Page 24