by Mike Sherer
ability.!Now!I’ve!got!a!death!on! my!conscience,!detective.!You!
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kill!anyone!yet!today?”!My!hands!trembled.!I!slid!them!off!the!
table!into!my!lap!before!anyone!noticed.!
!
“Simmer!down,”!an!older!cop!said,!his!voice!friendly.!“We!
can! imagine! what! you’ve! been! through.! It! can’t! have! been!
easy.”!
!
“Then! what’s! all! this?”! I! drew! a! circle! in! the! air! with! a!
finger.!
!
“Like!Deputy!Roberts!said,!we’re!taking!this!seriously,”!the!
older!cop!said.!“We!want!to!find!these!guys,!whoever!they!are.!
The! more! departments! we! have! looking,! the! faster! we! get!
results.!What!you’ve!got!here,”!he!circled!his!finger!around!the!
table,! imitating! me,! “is! the! core! investigative! team.! Lead!
detective! Roberts! and! his! partner! Hartson! both! report! to! me,!
Lieutenant! White.! Officer! Boyer! there,! with! Port! Orchard!
police,!will!help!us!locally.!And!Detective!Lewandowski!is!our!
liaison!with!Seattle!on!this,!since!your!friend!Jones!is!an!officer!
with!SPD.”!!
!
My!gaze!lingered!on!Lewandowski.!“You!got!here!fast.”!!
!
“Badged! my! way! to! the! front! of! the! ferry! line,”! he! said.!
“Lights!and!sirens!from!Bremerton.”!He!gritted!his!teeth.!“He’s!
one!of! ours.!Chief,!assistant!chief,!maybe!a!dozen!guys!or!more!
have!been!waiting!for!him!at!Harborview!since!we!got!the!call.!
You!gettin’!the!drift!yet?”!
!
I!regarded!the!faces!again.!Clenched!jaws,!furrowed!brows!
and!flushed!skin!mirrored!my!own.!I!nodded.!
!
Roberts!took!control!again.!“Take!us!through!it!one!more!
time.”!
!
I!recounted!what!I!remembered.!No,!I!didn’t!know!who!the!
men!were!or!where!they’d!come!from.!I!had!no!idea!how!many!
there’d! been,! but! in! addition! to! the! two! I’d! seen,! I’d! heard! at!
least!two!more!voices.!No,!I!didn’t!know!what!they!wanted!or!
why! they! opened! fire,! but! they! seemed! to! have! been! looking!
for! someone.! When! they! hadn’t! found! whoever! it! was! they!
wanted,!they!left.!No,!I!didn’t!see!their!vehicle!or!get!a!license!
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plate! number.! I’d! been! too! busy! shooting! at! a! man! who’d!
seemed!intent!on!killing!me.!
!
“Attempted!kidnapping?”!Hartson!said!to!his!partner.!
!
Roberts! turned! to! me.! “What,! exactly,! did! these! people!
say?”!
!
“The! two! out! back! here?! Nothing.! I! heard! shouting! from!
inside! the! house.! Didn’t! understand! most! of! it.! Someone! said,!
‘They’re!not!here.’”!!
!
Roberts! squinted.! “‘They’re! not! here?’! You’re! sure?! Not,!
‘They’re!gone?’”!
!
My!fingers!curled!into!my!palm.!“I’m!sure.!Right!after!that!
someone! else! yelled! an! order! to! fall! back.! The! guy! who! came!
from! over! there—”! I! pointed! toward! the! far! corner! of! the!
garage.! “—he! fired! a! couple! more! rounds! and! split.! A! few!
moments!later!I!heard!a!vehicle!take!off.”!
!
“Could! be! someone! has! a! vendetta! against! Jones,”!
Lewandowski!said.!“He’s!got!a!wife!and!two!kids.!Someone!may!
have!come!looking!for!them.”!
!
I!leaned!forward,!the!sudden!movement!causing!a!couple!
of! them! to! recoil.! “Charlie’s! parents! are! gone!! That! doesn’t!
seem! like! ‘attempted’! anything.! Seems! like! the! real! thing! to!
me.”!
!
Before!I’d!pulled!out!my!cell!phone!to!dial!96161,!Charlie’s!
second! thought! had! been! Clayt! and! Connie.! Charlie! was!
bleeding!out,!but!he’d!made!me!run!into!the!house!to!check!on!
his! parents! before! calling! for! help.! I’d! searched,! yelling! their!
names,! yanking! open! doors! and! upending! furniture,! but! after!
wasted!minutes!scouring!every!inch!of!the!house!and!garage,!I!
came! to! the! same! conclusion! that! still! echoed! in! my! ears—
they’re*not*here.!!
!
“They!didn’t!just!vanish,”!I!said.!“How!would!anyone!know!
Charlie! was! going! to! be! here?! And! why! would! they! think! his!
wife!and!kids!would!be!here,!too?!If!they!followed!Charlie,!then!
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they’d! know! Babs! and! the! boys! weren’t! with! him.! It! doesn’t!
make!any!sense.”!
!
The!cops!exchanged!glances.!No!one!ventured!a!guess.!Or!
maybe! none! of! them! considered! my! questions! worth!
answering.! Hartson! looked! at! me! and! rolled! his! eyes,! but!
Lewandowski!frowned,!eyebrows!knitting!as!if!he!doubted!his!
own!suggestion.!!
!
“Who!was!he!anyway?”!I!jerked!my!head!in!the!direction!of!
the!body.!!
!
“We!don’t!know!yet,”!Roberts!said!quietly.!“No!ID.”!
!
A! patrol! deputy! hurried! across! the! patio! from! the! house.!
“Lieutenant,!Detectives,!we!found!something.!You!need!to!come!
see!this.”!
!
The! three! county! cops! rose! and! headed! for! the! house.!
Lewandowski! and! the! uniform! from! Port! Orchard! followed.! I!
didn’t!wait!for!an!invitation,!and!no!one!told!me!to!stay!put.!I!
brought!up!the!rear!as!they!trooped!into!the!house.!The!young!
deputy!led!us!to!a!small!security!panel!on!a!wall!in!the!kitchen.!
!
“There’re!a!few!more!of!these!panels!in!the!house—one!by!
the! front! door,! one! by! the! door! to! the! garage,! another! in! the!
master!bedroom,”!he!said.!He!pointed!to!a!small!screen!on!the!
panel.! “We! found! cameras! around! the! property,! tripped! by!
motion! detectors.! There’s! one! out! by! the! road.! Like! an! early6
warning!system!when!visitors!show!up.”!
!
Wordlessly,!he!turned!and!led!the!way!down!a!hallway.!We!
fell! into! single! file! to! avoid! more! deputies! and! another! crime!
scene!detective,!moving!from!room!to!room!dusting!for!prints!
and! collecting! evidence.! The! group! fanned! out! inside! the!
master!bedroom!and!clustered!around!a!small!linen!closet!next!
to!the!bathroom!door.!I!stood!up!on!the!balls!of!my!feet!behind!
them!to!get!a!good!look!over!their!shoulders!at!a!gaping!black!
hole!in!the!bottom!of!the!closet.!Propped!against!a!wall!inside!
the!closet,!a!section!of!flooring!held!back!a!flap!of!carpeting.!
!
“What!the!hell?”!someone!said.!
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!
“It’s!a!tunnel,”!the!deputy!said.!“Tedesco’s!down!there!now!
checking!it!out.”!
!
“How!long’s!he!been!gone?”!Roberts!said.!
!
The!deputy!glanced!at!his!watch.!“Close!to!ten!minutes.”!
/> !
“How’d!you!find!it?”!Roberts!asked.!
!
“A! corner! of! the! carpet! was! loose,! sir.! Looks! like! it’s!
designed!to!flop!back!in!place!when!the!trap!door’s!closed,!but!
it!wasn’t!quite!flush.”!
!
“Good!eye,!deputy,”!Lieutenant!White!said.!!
!
Silence! fell! over! the! assemblage! as! if! the! men! had! been!
called!to!prayer.!The!seconds!ticked!by!glacially.!Minutes!later!
the! hole! lightened! almost! imperceptibly,! slowly! turning! from!
black!to!brown.!The!yellow!beam!from!a!flashlight!flickered!on!
the!dirt!walls!below.!A!moment!later!a!man’s!head!popped!into!
view.!He!blinked!a!few!times,!breathing!heavily!as!he!gazed!up!
at! the! faces! sardined! into! the! space.! An! arm! reached! for! him!
and! helped! him! out,! and! the! cops! made! room.! I! backed! up!
quickly,! toes! barely! avoiding! the! tread! of! a! steel6toed! black!
brogue.!!
!
“What’ve!you!got?”!White!said!as!Tedesco!stepped!into!the!
circled!space!they’d!cleared!for!him.!
!
“Tunnel! leads! south,! sir.”! Tedesco! brushed! dirt! from! his!
uniform.!“About!three!hundred!yards.!Comes!up!in!a!shed!big!
enough! for! a! large! vehicle.! Dirt! track! leads! south! into! the!
woods! from! there! then! turns! east.! I’m! guessing! it! probably!
dumps!out!on!Banner!Road.”!
!
The! men! glanced! at! each! other,! as! if! waiting! for! a! cue.!
White!looked!pointedly!at!Roberts.!
!
Roberts! didn’t! hesitate.! “Check! in! with! crime! scene,”! he!
told! Tedesco.! “See! if! they! can! spare! someone.! Burke,! maybe.!
Then!go!around!and!see!if!you!can!come!in!at!the!shed!from!the!
east,! and! tape! off! the! scene.! We! may! be! able! to! get! tire! track!
impressions! or! something! else! that! can! help! tell! us! what!
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happened.! Could! be! the! Jones! couple! managed! to! get! out! this!
way.”!
!
“It’s! like! they! were! expecting! it,”! Lewandowski! muttered.!
“What!the!hell!were!these!people!into?”!
!
I!wondered!the!same!thing.!
!
!
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!
!
Chapter&11&
!
!
After!another!hour!of!questioning,!they!let!me!go!without!
charging! me.! They! kept! Charlie’s! back6up! gun,! of! course,! and!
admonished!me!not!to!stray!too!far!from!home.!
!
My!paper!route!took!more!than!an!hour!longer!than!usual!
that!night.!I!couldn’t!get!the!shooting!out!of!my!head!and!ended!
up!missing!several!stops.!I!retraced!large!portions!of!the!route!
to! make! sure! the! right! people! got! the! right! papers,! the! scene!
playing! like! an! endless! film! loop! in! my! imagination.! Several!
times,! involuntary! tremors! left! me! quaking! so! badly! I! had! to!
wrench!the!wheel!and!pull!over!until!they!subsided,!leaving!me!
drained!and!short!of!breath.!!
!
Not! even! the! magnificent! sunrise! that! bloomed! on! the!
horizon! like! a! peach! blossom! opening! against! a! pale! blue! sky!
seemed!to!hold!much!promise.!I!knew!I!wouldn’t!even!be!able!
to!get!close!to!Charlie’s!room!for!all!the!cops,!so!I!drove!home!
and!fell!asleep!in!my!clothes.!
*!*!*!*!*!
!
Craig!Downing!was!just!leaving!when!I!went!to!see!Charlie!
later! that! morning.! He! stopped! me! in! the! hall! with! a! somber!
wave.!!
!
“Hey,!how’s!he!doing?”!I!said.!
!
Downing! shoved! his! hands! in! his! pockets.! “Good.! You!
know,!under!the!circumstances.!He!got!lucky,!man.!Docs!pulled!
a!bullet!out!of!his!scapula.!The!word!is!that!forensics!says!the!
shooter! made! a! mistake.! Round! was! a! mil6spec! M6one6nine6
three,!but!an!FMJ.”!!
!
I!held!up!a!hand.!“English,!Craig.”!
!
His!face!pinked.!“Sorry.!It!was!a!full!metal!jacket!bullet,!so!
it! stayed! intact.! Did! much! less! damage! than! if! it! had! been! a!
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round! like! the! hollow! point! boat! tail! SWAT! uses.! That! bullet!
fragments!in!a!zillion!pieces.!Would!have!killed!him!for!sure.”!
!
“They! looked! like! pros! to! me.! How! could! they! screw! up!
that!bad?!Not!that!I!wish!they!hadn’t.”!
!
He!shrugged.!“Guys!use!FMJs!for!target!practice.!Maybe!the!
shooter!just!mixed!up!his!magazines.!Grabbed!the!wrong!one.!
Like!I!said,!lucky.”!
!
I!nodded.!
!
He!shifted!awkwardly!in!the!silence.!“Thanks,!by!the!way.!
You!know,!for!being!there.!Most!folks!would!have!ducked!and!
covered.!I!heard!you!took!one!of!them!down.”!
!
“Sure.”!!
!
“Well,!I’ll!see!you!around,!then.”!
!
“Yeah,!see!you.”!
!
I! watched! him! walk! down! to! the! elevators,! then! entered!
Charlie’s!room,!knocking!on!the!door!as!I!went.!Charlie’s!chalky!
face! barely! stood! out! against! the! white! hospital! pillow,! his!
expression!vacant,!eyes!dull!and!slow!to!pick!up!on!movement.!
A! corner! of! his! mouth! turned! up! in! recognition,! not! a! smile!
exactly,!but!an!indication!he!was!lucid.!!
!
“You!look!like!shit,”!I!said.!
!
He!licked!his!lips.!“Feel!like!it,”!he!said!in!a!scratchy!voice.!
“Told!you!I’d!live.”!
!
“If!you!call!this!living.”!I!looked!around.!“I!can’t!tell!if!this!
looks!more!like!a!florist!shop!or!a!mortuary.”!
!
He!managed!a!full6fledged!grin!this!time.!It!didn’t!last.!“You!
did!good.”!
!
I! hesitated.! He! stared! at! me,! brows! knitting! in!
concentration.!His!eyes!went!out!of!focus!and!despite!his!effort!
to!hold!it!steady!his!head!bobbed!from!the!drugs!dripping!into!
his! IV! tube.! When! I! finally! nodded! his! eyes! shuttered! and! he!
relaxed,!head!lolling!back!on!the!pillow.!
!
“What! happened! out! there,! Charlie?”! I! wasn’t! sure! he!
heard!me.!
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!
He!struggled!to!raise!his!eyelids.!“Been!trying!to!figure!it!
out.”!He!winced,!and!pressed!a!hand!against!his!side.!“Hurts!to!
breathe.”!
!
I!squeezed!his!forearm.!“Don’t!talk.”!
!
Gratitude! washed! though! his! eyes.! We’d! have! to! play!
Twenty!Questions.!!
!
“Any!idea!who!those!men!were?”!
!
He!shook!his!head.!
!
“You!never!saw!them!before?”!
!
His!mouth!was!a!grim!line,!lips!white!at!the
!corners.!
!
“Did!they!tell!you!about!the!tunnel?”!!
!
He!nodded.!
!
“Did!you!know!about!it?”!!
!
A!headshake.!!
!
I!sighed.!“I!don’t!imagine!there’s!any!possibility!Clayt!and!
Connie! decided! to! augment! their! retirement! account?! Open! a!
meth!lab?!Grow!sinsemilla!out!in!the!woods?”!
!
The!headshake!was!vehement!this!time.!
!
“Fine.!I’ll!take!your!word!for!it.”!I!stared!at!him.!He!blinked!
first.! “They! expected! trouble,! Charlie.! People! who! expect!
trouble!are!usually!the!ones!stirring!the!pot.”!!
!
That!elicited!a!grunt—acknowledgement,!I!guessed.!
!
“You!knew!about!the!security!system?”!
!
“Helped!them!put!it!in.”!
!
“Seems!like!overkill!to!me.”!
!
“They’re! city! people.! Out! in! the! country.! They! worried! a!
lot.”!
!
“Or! they! expected! it,! like! I! said.”! I! paused.! “You! have! no!
clue?”!
!
“No,”!he!said.!“Couple!of!middle6aged!hippies.!Harmless.”!
!
“And!no!idea!where!they!might!have!gone?!Who!was!after!
them?!Nothing?”!
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!
“They’re! my! parents.”! He! winced! and! raised! a! hand! in!
helplessness,! the! effort! draining! him.! He! didn’t! have! to! say!
more.!
!
“Where’s! Babs?”! My! head! swiveled! reflexively! as! if! she!
might!have!snuck!in!without!me!noticing.!
!
Charlie!grimaced!at!the!mention!of!her!name.!He!squeezed!
his!eyes!shut,!a!tear!leaking!from!one!corner.!His!face!reflected!
pain!greater!than!any!he’d!shown!so!far.!!
!
“She’s!not!here?!This!is!serious.”!!
!
He!opened!his!eyes!and!peered!at!me.!“You!think?”!
!
I!rubbed!my!shoulder!as!if!kneading!out!the!sting.!“Sorry.!
Man,!that’s!cold.”!
!
“She’s!scared.!I!don’t!blame!her.”!
!
His! head! turned! at! the! sound! of! the! door! opening.! A!
willowy! brunette! walked! through,! pushed! by! a! sense! of!
purpose,!her!ponytail!a!standard!streaming!behind!her.!!
!
“Damn!doctors!are!worse!than!auto!mechanics,”!she!said.!
!
“Sarah.”!I!stared,!but!remembered!to!close!my!mouth.!
!
!The! scowl! on! her! face! softened! when! her! gaze! swung!
toward! my! voice.! Age! had! carved! more! angularity! into! her!