Vibrations

by Wood, Lorena

  “Got his name and address. He works nights so he should be home this morning.”

  “Great. Let’s go check on the mom first. Her name is Marissa Wick. She took back her maiden name. She lives a few blocks away on Lake Shore Drive.”

  They spent about a half an hour with her and ended up at the same dead end. She hadn’t seen anything out of the ordinary lately, and she was scared out of her mind. They checked his room but came up empty. It was about noon by the time they headed over to visit the coach. Of course Teddy decided it was time for lunch and they stopped to eat first. Nick noticed Whitney didn’t eat very much. She was pretty quiet this morning. He was hoping the kiss the night before or his stupid thoughts weren’t upsetting her. He planned to find time later to apologize and offer to keep his distance.

  Whitney didn’t have time to think about Nick, and that was fine with her. She had to try to process all the feelings and events of the morning. Both parents were devastated, and sure their son was dead already. They were both blaming themselves for not keeping him safe. She couldn’t pick up anything from the area like she had with the Dolan boy. Too many people had been through the area since last night. Maybe he had wandered away before he was abducted. She was beginning to feel like she was no use in this case. Maybe a FBI trained profiler would be able to find something.

  They arrived at the coach’s door as he was taking out his garbage. He eyed them warily and turned around to go back inside.

  “Mr. Hughes?” Teddy’s long strides brought him up to the man in two seconds. “We’d like to talk to you Mr. Hughes. We’re Phoenix police and we’re working on the recent abductions.”

  “I know who you are,” grumbled the coach. “Guess you gotta come in. I’m not standing in this damn heat to talk to nobody.”

  They stepped into the house. It was a cluttered mess everywhere you looked. It was obvious he lived alone. His white T-shirt was stained and sweaty and he needed a shave. The dished were piled in the kitchen and there were newspapers and clothes scattered about the furniture in the living room. He didn’t offer them a seat.

  “My name is Chuck so you can stop calling me Mr. Hughes. The kids just call me Coach, or Coach Chuck. So what do you need from me?”

  Whitney could sense that he was extremely nervous having them in his house. He was afraid of something. He hadn’t had a spotless past, and he didn’t want anyone looking into it. He didn’t like Whitney being there. He had seen her on TV. He kept himself as far away from her as possible. She couldn’t read anything in him to point to him as the killer, but that wasn’t always possible. Most psychopaths had plenty of blocks available to them including having no guilt or regrets about their sordid acts.

  “Most of the coaches with the SVWC have kids on the teams or on pro teams. Do you have children Mr., I mean Chuck?” Nick watched him as his eyes darted back and forth over the three of them.

  “Nope.”

  “So how did you get involved with the Winner’s Circle?”

  “They found me. I used to play pro ball.” He pointed toward the glass cabinet in the corner filled with baseball paraphernalia. Amid the trophies and equipment was a picture of a younger version of Mr. Hughes accepting a Rookie of the year award.

  They discussed the recent abductions and asked if he had seen anything that could help.

  “Well, I noticed that every time someone disappears it’s right before a big game. It’s usually the star player on a winning team so it kinda changes the odds, ya know. Seems like someone might be favoring some teams or betting on them or something. I dunno. Just a guess.”

  “We’ll look into that. That could be very helpful.” Teddy started to draw him into conversation about his ball playing and the coach seemed to relax a bit. He kept looking at Whitney out of the corner of his eye. She stayed near the door so he wouldn’t get any more nervous. When he walked them outside he promised to give Teddy a call if he came up with anything else. At least Teddy had found some common ground.

  They spent the next two hours looking for the older boys they had seen at the game. Nick and Teddy had come up with names and addresses of a dozen boys that liked to go and heckle the kids. The one with the nose ring was the last stop. He wasn’t very helpful. He knew Kevin, but he hadn’t seen him in a while. He promised to call if he thought of anything else, and they said goodbye.

  Whitney wasn’t feeling so well, so she asked them to drop her back at her room. She was starting to get a really bad headache and needed some time alone. The thought of encouraging something with Nick made her feel sick. Maybe it was just the day, but she couldn’t picture herself in the arms of the sexy macho cop. Good thing she hadn’t embarrassed herself and thrown herself at him.

  That night Nick sat at his table eating a hot dog and drinking a beer and kicking himself for being such a jerk. She couldn’t stand being near him. That was obvious. He had blown it. Here she was dedicated to helping these boys, putting herself through hell, and he was thinking with his dick.

  “Typical man,” Nick thought as he gulped down his beer. “She can see right through you jerk! What makes you think she would want you anyway?” He had warned her he didn’t do relationships, and then he had kissed her. “Stupid!” But he couldn’t stop thinking about her. Her lips were so soft and inviting and she had melted into him when it happened. Maybe he had imagined it, but he had thought for a moment she might be willing to pursue it farther.

  Whitney sat in her room nursing her headache and trying not to think. She had the TV on and was flipping through the channels. She didn’t need to watch the news. It was too depressing. Every movie seemed to be a love story or a murder mystery and that was out of the question. She finally found a station playing the Sound of Music and tried to get interested. Her phone rang and her heart started beating faster. What if it was Nick? She just wasn’t in the mood to try to deal with that now.

  “Hello?”

  “Hey cutie. It’s me, Tara.”

  “Oh, hi.”

  “You sound so happy to hear me. NOT. What’s up?”

  “Just tired and busy with the case. How you doing?”

  “You know why I called. So, how’d it go today with the sexy cop?”

  “I chickened out. I don’t think it will work anyway. I don’t know what I was thinking.”

  “Oh, no! Don’t do that. You haven’t even given it a chance. What happened?”

  “I knew I should have kept my mouth shut. I’m just not good at this stuff. It’s too complicated and I’m too tired.”

  “Tough case huh?”

  “The worst. And I’m coming up with zero. I’m useless here and out of my league.”

  “Man, you are tired. Well, just wait for a bit with the guy and get yourself back on your feet. You’re the best Whitney. Something will break. Don’t take it all on yourself. When it’s over you need to come out here and take a vacation. It’s getting really beautiful here in New York. The sun is finally coming out and all the flowers are in bloom. You need to get away from the desert and visit us this summer.”

  “Yeah, I haven’t been back home in a while. I’ll think about it. I’d better go. I got a killer headache and I’m going hit the sack.”

  “Okay. Keep in touch girl.”

  Whitney tossed and turned that night. She kept seeing the face of a young boy crying out to her and she couldn’t get to him. She finally fell sound asleep just before two in the morning.

  Whitney’s phone rang two hours later. She sat up and tried to figure out where she was. She fumbled for the phone and picked it up.

  “Whitney, it’s Hollerman. We need you down at Desert Samaritan Hospital. We found Kevin Hunter. He’s still alive, but he’s unconscious. I sent Nick to get you. He’ll be there in about twenty minutes.”

  “I’ll be ready.” She was so beat she could hardly see. Maybe this was their break. She took a quick shower to wake up and threw her things together.

  Whitney was ready and waiting when Nick drove in. He looked as bad a
s she felt.

  “Did you get much sleep?”

  “Not a lot,” he said. “How ‘bout you?”

  “Not much.”

  “You sure look better than I do. How many cups of coffee have you had?”

  “None!” She whined. They both laughed. Well at least things were a little easier between them for now she thought. They talked about the boy that had been found and what they hoped to learn. They met up with Hollerman, Teddy, and the family in the waiting room. Nick Hunter was holding his ex-wife and crying with her.

  “Looks like he escaped,” the agent explained. “He was drugged with Xanax, but he’s bigger than the other boys. He had a stab wound on his hand, probably from self-defense. His arms and face are pretty cut up, and he was stabbed in the chest. It missed everything vital. The worst part is the loss of blood and blow to the head. Don’t know how he could possibly fight enough to get away, except that he probably bled out more during the escape. Probably caught the guy off guard before his body went into shock. The doctors aren’t sure when and if he will regain consciousness.” The last sentence was almost a whisper as he glanced toward the parents.

  “He crawled out of the desert onto the road and a passing car found him.”

  “Can I go see him yet?” Whitney was anxious to see what would happen. She knew that he had seen the abductor and could identify him. The agent was aware of that too, and had armed guards posted at his doors.

  “You can have five minutes right now, and then they want him left alone for a while. That’s why I called you down now. Just in case he doesn’t pull through. We’ll wait for you out here.”

  Whitney walked into the private room and saw all the tubes and wires hooked to the boy. He looked so small. She had seen his pictures, and he was a good size twelve year old. But here, in the middle of the machines, he looked like a baby.

  “Kevin? Kevin, my name is Whitney and I’m here to help you.” She sat by the bed and put her hand on his.

  “You don’t need to worry about anything. We have guards at the door and you’re safe now. Your parents are here. You did good. Just work on getting better, okay.”

  She sat quietly to see what would happen. She started to see something in her mind, and she closed her eyes. It was dark. She was floating, or drowning. She could feel the boy’s fear.

  “It’s okay Kevin. You’re safe now. You’re in the hospital.”

  She couldn’t catch any real thoughts, but she could feel him. He was struggling to come out of it, but he was far away. He was still trying to get to safety, and he was scared. Someone was after him. He was fighting for his life.

  “Kevin, who did this to you?” She felt guilty for asking since it might scare him more, but she had to try.

  She heard a thought. “Run! Gotta run…I can beat him. Stupid wimp.” She saw an image. A small man lying on the ground with a ski mask on. Kevin had knocked him down. His head had hit a rock. “My legs…can’t stand…move!” She could see images at ground level as he crawled away from the masked man. His heart monitor was beating faster now.

  “Kevin, you made it. You did it. You’re safe now. Just rest. You did it.”

  The doctor rushed in with a nurse as she was trying to calm him.

  “His heart rate is up. What’s going on?” The doctor demanded.

  “I think he is remembering.”

  “Did he open his eyes or move?”

  “Not yet. But I think he can hear us a little.”

  “Good. Good. That’s a good sign. Now let’s leave him alone. The parents will be sitting with him as long as he remains stable.”

  Whitney followed him out of the room. She told the two detectives and agent Hollerman what she had seen and heard. Nick offered to drive her back to his place again. Whitney protested but the agent agreed it was a good idea.

  “I’m fine. I just need to sleep.”

  “Well, you can rest at his house and he’ll make sure you are safe. I don’t like the idea that the killer now knows you’re working on this case. Nick, I want you with her at all times, and if not, make sure someone else is. He can’t get to this boy right now, but he may go looking for Whitney. For all he knows she read his mind and can identify him.”

  “I won’t let her out of my sight.” Nick saluted the Agent. Whitney knew he was trying to lighten the situation, but she wasn’t in the mood to laugh.

  “Fine, but call me if he regains consciousness.”

  They were both quiet on the ride to Nick’s place. This was so stupid. Couldn’t the agent guess she was uncomfortable spending so much time at Nick’s house? But who else knew what she needed. She couldn’t believe in such a short time she had become dependent on Nick. Served her right for keeping herself so distant from everyone. She had no one else to call. She tried to tune out his mental gymnastics. He was trying so hard not to think about anything he didn’t want her to know, he was thinking about silly things.

  His thoughts were just rambling as he tried to keep his mind off of Whitney. “When did it rain last? I wonder how many inches we have had all year. Why does the desert get so stinking hot? It’s almost June and I’m ready for winter. Weather, think about the weather.”

  Whitney’s own thoughts were becoming clearer. How could she have imagined a relationship with him, or anyone for that matter? No one wanted to have their mind read by someone close to them. It was unnatural. She was unnatural. For a short time she had forgotten about being such a freak of nature, but it was clear once again. She would concentrate on the case, and then get herself out of Nick’s life and mind.

  Nick puttered in the garage while Whitney napped. He knew she hadn’t slept much and worried what would happen if they called her to work in that condition. He thought of calling the station and getting someone to watch her while he went out in the field, but he couldn’t do it. What if she had another episode? What if her heart stopped again? No doubt Hollerman would say no hospital but Nick wanted be the one to make that decision next time.

  Whitney spent the next day following Nick around on interviews with possible witnesses. Some of them had called with false information just to get a chance to see the psychic. Late in the afternoon Teddy called to let them know that Kevin was stable, but still unconscious. They seemed to think he would pull out of it but they wouldn’t allow her to visit yet. By the time they went home for dinner her feet were aching and she was starving.

  Just as she was finishing her third slice of pizza her phone rang. It was agent Hollerman. “Hello,” she said trying to sound cheerful and rested.

  “Hi Whitney. How are you?”

  “Fine. What is this about? Just checking up on me?”

  “No. I’m worried about sending you into so many situations in a row. I want you rested in case we have to face another crime scene. Right now we’re doing legwork and don’t need you here. I want you to take tomorrow off, as long as nothing new comes up. Can you do that?

  “I don’t need a day off. I need to keep looking for something that will give us a lead. You’re being ridiculous. I rested most of the day yesterday anyway.”

  “But you were up all night. Listen, I know I’ve been pushing you, and as soon as I need you I won’t hesitate to do it again. We don’t know the long term effects of all of this, and I’m taking precautions. You will take the day off tomorrow, understand?”

  Whitney could hear that he’d made up his mind about it. “Call me if you find anything.”

  “I will. Now I need Nick to stay with you as protection or maybe we can find someone else. Work it out with him. I don’t like the way the media concentrating on you right now. Keep away from reporters and try to keep your mind off work for one day.”

  “Yeah, right. I’ll try my best.”

  Whitney said good-bye and hung up. She had never heard of taking time off in the middle of an operation like this. Maybe she was becoming a problem for the team. They were probably afraid she’d lose it on the next call. Although a day of rest sounded great, she was doubtful
she could keep her mind off the case.

  A minute later Nick’s phone rang and he took it outside. She knew Hollerman wouldn’t trust her to work it out, and he was probably right. She couldn’t imagine Nick taking another day off to watch her sit in his house. It was time to rent her own car and tell them all to shove their over protective demands up their asses.

  When Nick came back in he looked miserable, but he had agreed to the day off. Whitney became furious.

  “You cannot keep sitting around here waiting for something to happen when you should be out there.” She stalked to the guest room and began throwing the few things she had in her bag.

  “Calm down,” Nick said following behind her but clueless as to what to do next. “I want to do it,” he said thinking he half meant it.

  She rolled her eyes and laughed. “You can’t lie to me, remember?”

  Seeing no other choice but total honesty he backed her to the dresser and placed his hands on either side of her, blocking her escape. “Okay, I’m not thrilled about another day away from the job, but I do want to do this myself.” He waited for her to look up and then continued. “I don’t trust anyone else to look after you, okay?” His eyes gentled and the side of his mouth crooked up in a grin. “You’re too stubborn to pass off on some poor rookie.”

  She looked up at Nick and took a deep breath. He was thinking loud and clear that he wanted to be the only one protecting her. That he needed to make sure she was safe even if it meant another day off from work. She couldn’t even think with him that close so she just gave up the fight for the moment.

  “Fine. I guess you’re stuck with me. I hope you’ll be able to relax enough with me around.” She knew he didn’t expect to feel relaxed. He thought the idea of a day off was ridiculous, but had agreed for her sake. “We should do something besides sit around here so we can get our mind off of the case…and…other things.”

  Nick laughed. “Good idea! Where do you want to go?”