by A M Jenner
“All right.” She ticked each idea off on her fingers. “First, I could walk out there and let Mr. Ski Mask take me to the mountains and kill me. Second, I could call Tony and ask him to call off his goons, go home and let him kill me himself, although being cooked in a house fire doesn’t appeal much, I’m afraid.” A small, sickly smile accompanied her attempt at humor before it petered out and a frown replaced it.
“Third, I could run again, and hope he doesn’t find me this time. I’d need help getting away and reaching the airport.” The frown deepened.
“Those aren’t even options, in my book.” Richard stated flatly. “You can’t run forever, and you’re too nice to end up dead.”
“Well, I can’t think of anything else. Can you?” Marilee looked at him, hope filling her eyes, making them almost luminous in her face.
“You could go to the police.” He watched her carefully.
“And spend the rest of my life in jail for something I didn’t do? Tony said...”
“Tony lied a lot. I believe you didn’t know about the diamonds. I’m sure the authorities would, too. Besides, even people who are guilty get off all the time by testifying against their partners. You haven’t done anything. Maybe they’ll hide you until they get Tony behind bars. He’s guilty of more than stealing diamonds, you know. There’s your attempted murder. They’ll protect you, not jail you.” He hoped so, anyway.
“I’d like to believe that, but I’m just not sure of it. Are you positive they’d hide me?” Her voice quivered, her eyes pleading.
Richard looked at her for a long moment and knew he couldn’t lie. “Not totally. What I am positive about is that going to the police is your best chance for staying alive. And I don’t think they’re going to put you in jail over the diamonds.”
Marilee sat silently for several minutes and then she giggled.
Richard’s face must have shown his concern for her mental state.
“No, I haven’t snapped under the strain. I was just thinking,” she clarified, “if I did spend the rest of my life in prison, at least I’d have lots of time to read.”
Richard now chuckled too, sharing the absurdity of the thought.
Marilee took a deep breath, and let it out in a noisy rush. “Will you go with me?”
“Absolutely; every step of the way.” He hoped his smile was encouraging.
“All right. I’ll go to the police. How do we get me past Mr. Ski Mask and his buddy?”
“That part’s easy,” Richard grinned. “First, I drive out of here like I’m going to the store, and see if the car’s still here. Then I go to the police station and give them a brief sketch of what’s been happening. They come and arrest the men in the car. We can deal with Tony and the diamonds end of it later.”
Marilee waved her hands in a simple gesture. “You make it sound so easy, but will it actually work?” He saw her shiver; the fear was evident in her voice.
“I certainly hope so. We’re betting your life on it!” Richard was vehement.
Marilee searched his face and then nodded. Richard looked at her solemnly and reached over and patted her hand for reassurance and then went to his bedroom to retrieve his shoes and coat.
Chapter Twenty-four
Turning out the lights, Richard stepped through the front door, locked it behind him and strolled to his truck. He opened the door and climbed inside, noting the black car hadn’t moved since he’d come home from work. The men in the car hadn’t moved, either, and only gave him a casual look as he drove past them.
He traveled down the street, relieved that step one had succeeded so far. He hoped the men didn’t know Marilee was in his half of the duplex and go after her while he was gone. That would put both Derrek and Marilee in danger. He prayed they’d be safe.
As quickly and legally as he could, he drove to the police station, parked, and then went inside.
“Can I help you, Sir?” The petite blonde officer behind the desk perked up as he approached.
“I’d like to report an attempted murder.” Richard’s voice was quiet, businesslike.
The officer’s eyes widened and she made a phone call. She turned Richard over to the detective who appeared.
Detective Samuel Briant was a stocky man in his mid-thirties. His ash blonde hair was thick; he gave the overall impression of competence and dependability. Richard followed the man to his desk.
“Attempted murder, hmm; who’s almost dead?” His brown eyes impaled Richard with a directness that engendered confidence and trust. Richard, glad he was on this side of the law, felt it would be nearly impossible to keep anything from this man.
“My neighbor.” Richard sketched the bare bones of Marilee’s story and the last 24 hours for the detective, adding that as far as he knew, the car was still there. The detective arranged for a patrol car to meet them near the duplex and they decided on a plan of events.
Richard stopped at a grocery store for a bag of items, according to their plan. Hopefully the men wouldn’t think he had anything to do with the arrests. He didn’t want his son in danger.
The detective followed a bit behind. A patrol car was waiting for them a block away from Richard’s street when they met together for the last instructions. Moments later, Richard drove into the alley and parked in his accustomed place. The car was still there. He exited the truck, carried his groceries into his home and closed the door behind him.
Marilee was still sitting on the sofa where he’d left her, the faint moonlight seeping in from the windows casting a soft glow over her. The cocoa cup in her hand was evidence she hadn’t been sitting still the entire time he’d been gone. She looked up as he entered, fear and questions evident on her face.
He walked into the kitchen and put the bag on the table. Marilee followed him into the kitchen.
“Your friends in the car are still there, and the police are about to arrest them.” He smiled his reassurance.
“What did you tell the police?” Her voice revealed her tightly strung nerves.
“The Reader’s Digest version of your story. I figured you could fill in the details later, when you have time to sit down and chat with them.” Richard hoped his voice was soft, calming.
Marilee nodded, taking a sip of cocoa.
Richard put the bag of groceries on the table, and unloaded it, putting everything away with swift competence. Together they moved in the darkness closer to the front door so they could listen to sounds coming from the street.
Marilee moved to draw the curtains aside to peek out, but Richard stepped between her and the window.
“Don’t risk it, Sweetheart,” he said, “I don’t want to take the chance of them seeing you here looking out the window. It isn’t safe for you or for Derrek if they see us watching them. We can’t let them know we’re aware of who they are.”
She seemed stunned as she looked at him, and then sat quickly, as though if she didn’t sit she’d fall down. He smiled his thanks for her obedience and turned off the lights in the living room.
Richard looked out of the window towards the alley without moving the curtains. With the lights off in the house and the streetlight bright at the end of the driveway, he could see enough through the cotton fabric to tell what was going on.
Both police cars pulled up, blocking the black car in the driveway. Two men got out of the squad car, Detective Briant exited the other. They walked swiftly towards the black car. The doors of the black car sprang open, both men running as they cleared the car. One jumped over the wall and down onto the stairs to the street below. The other charged up the street, behind houses along the block, and disappeared virtually before the startled officers could follow.
Richard saw the men run, the police giving chase, and turned from the window to face Marilee. She looked up at him, guessing the outcome.
“What do I do now, Richard? I can’t stay here. It puts you and Derrek at risk, and I can’t do that.” The worry was evident in her voice.
“Wrong. You can’t
go to your place, and I won’t have you hiding in the basement again. We need to find out what the police want you to do. Let me slip outside and see…”
“No!” Marilee’s voice exploded into the quietness of the apartment. “No,” she repeated, more in control of her voice. “You can’t go out there and talk with anyone. If those men are within sight of this house, they’ll know you were involved in getting the police to come, and they’ll guess I’m here. You and Derrek won’t be any safer than I will. In fact, it would simply give them two more hostages. I won’t allow you to go outside, Richard. I can’t!” Her voice was strong, adamant.
Concern for his son warred with the concern for this courageous woman he had come to care for.
“You’re right.” He stepped to the couch and sat next to her. He picked up her hand, gently drawing circles on the inner wrist with his thumb, and quietly said, “The police have my phone number. They know you’re here and will want a statement soon. They’ll figure a safe way to get you to their headquarters.”
Marilee looked at him, searching his face, and then turned away. “I’m really sorry I’ve involved you, Richard. I didn’t intend to put you and Derrek at risk this way. I guess I decided to run again, and just thought you’d help get me to the airport.”
Richard saw the tears streaking her cheeks in the moonlight. “Don’t worry about it, Marilee. The police will find those thugs and we’ll all be okay.” His voice was gentle. At the moment, he didn’t dare succumb to the feelings raging within him to hold her and kiss the tears from her face, so he simply gave comfort by holding her hand.
* * * * *
A brief hour later, the telephone rang; the police were sending a car for Marilee, even though they’d not yet found the men.
After Detective Briant left with Marilee, Richard went in and lay on his bed. He didn’t get much sleep, but was unwilling to admit which reason had kept him awake…his strong feelings for Marilee, or his concern for her safety.
Chapter Twenty-five
Detective Briant drove Marilee to the station. She learned they’d called for back-up, but though they combed the neighborhood, they didn’t find the men. Police dogs were brought in and followed one scent down the hill, into the shallow stream at the bottom of the gully.
The one who had gone up the street had eventually circled around and was also lost into the stream’s flow, disappearing as completely as his partner.
The police were unable to find where they exited the stream; no further scent was discovered. A patrol was assigned to watch the black car and the home; the others finally left the area, frustrated with their failure.
The rest of the ride to the station with Detective Briant was mostly silent, once she’d heard the results of the manhunt. Marilee was grateful for the quiet.
Collecting her thoughts, she was trying to keep them off Richard but wasn’t having much success. Had he meant it when he’d called her Sweetheart as she’d reached for the curtains? Did he care for her like she cared for him? Dared she hope for a future with him? A little flame of faith, borne of love flared within her heart as the car continued to drive closer to the police station.
When they reached the station, the detective parked the car and Marilee followed him inside, feeling a little strength from the knowledge there may be a chance for her where Richard was concerned. If she could just get out of this awful situation with Tony…she swallowed hard. Right now, that was a mighty big if.
They walked without speaking to his desk. He seated himself and gestured Marilee to the chair next to it. Pushing several folders aside, he retrieved a notepad from one drawer and a pen from another. Marilee felt it was more for show and to set her off-kilter than that he was unorganized, but she said nothing.
“All right,” he said to her, “I’ve got a few questions for you.”
Marilee nodded. Telling the story to a police officer terrified her. In a few moments, events would be totally out of her control. She grimaced. She wasn’t exactly in control of things now, so it really didn’t matter who was in charge. Actually, Tony was more in control than anyone. As usual.
Could she change that? Maybe Richard was right. Perhaps this was the best way to put Tony where he belonged and to end the fearful threat. Once everything was finished, maybe she could get her life back. Maybe Richard and Derrek…. Marilee stopped the wishful thought before it was completed. She needed to concentrate right now, and thinking of them wouldn’t help her do that.
Gathering her courage, she swallowed hard and wet her lips nervously with the tip of her tongue. “What do you need to know?”
“Let’s start with your name.” Briant’s pen was poised above his notepad.
“Marilee Curtice…Ferguson,” she added, correcting herself.
For the next two hours, Detective Briant went over and over every detail of her story. He made lots of notes. She ended with, “I was afraid to go into the house, because I knew they were watching it, so I hid all day in the basement. When I heard Richard come home, I asked him to help me. And now I’m here.”
Briant finished scribbling on his legal pad. Looking at his cramped handwriting, Marilee wondered how he could know what it said. He laid down the pen and began thumbing through the Rolodex on his desk, looking for a number.
“This has got to be one of the strangest stories I’ve heard in a long time, and in homicide, you hear a lot of strange ones. It’s too crazy to be made up. If it was your husband who sent the thugs, then things can get a little sticky.
“We only have your word on a possible crime that crosses state lines; an attempted murder in Utah that was ordered in Illinois because of diamonds stolen from who-knows-where. I’m just a little out of my depth here, if you know what I mean.” He slanted a look at Marilee, and she nodded.
“So,” he continued, “I’m gonna call the Captain, and ask him how he wants to handle it. In the meantime, we’re gonna go into one of the interrogating rooms, and get a full statement from you; all the details, on a cassette tape.”
His look apologized for making her go through it all again, but a casual shrug of his big shoulders said it was all part of the job.
Marilee nodded, and then the full realization hit her. “You mean you believe me?” she asked, her amazement evident in her voice enough that she could hear it.
“Yeah. For a story this convoluted, either it’s true or else you’re one heck of a fiction writer. ‘Scuse me while I make the call.” His fingers had located the Rolodex card he was seeking and he quickly dialed the number on it.
“Captain?” Detective Briant spoke quietly, yet clearly into the phone. “I’m sorry to bug ya on your night off, but I got a sticky one, maybe multi-jurisdictional. The victim’s still alive to help us, if we can keep her that way.” He listened for a few moments. “Okay. See ya in a few. Yessir, I will. ‘Bye.”
He gently set the phone down and scooped a tape recorder and cassette tape out of the bottom drawer of his desk, grabbed his pad of notes and a pen to take with him before rising from his seat and motioning for Marilee to come with him.
She hastily followed in his wake. Though her heart was filled with trepidation, and her safety was yet not assured, she felt better knowing both Richard and Detective Briant had believed her, and both men had been willing to help her out of this horrible, deadly situation. She silently thanked the Lord as she walked down the hall.
Chapter Twenty-six
The room Detective Briant led her to was an interrogation room which looked exactly like the ones on television. Plain white walls, unbroken save for the two-way mirror on one wall. An unpretentious table sat in the center of the lackluster room. Metal folding chairs haphazardly pushed under the edge of the table suggested a callous attitude, and a shiver slid down Marilee’s spine.
Detective Briant set the cassette recorder down on its side on the table, pulling a cord from the compartment in the bottom. He grinned at Marilee.
“I can use the cord, right? You’re not gonna use it as
a weapon on either me or yourself?” His twinkling eyes eased her tension and she was relieved to discover he had a sense of humor.
She smiled back as she took the seat he indicated, but Marilee considered thoughtfully before replying. This was not some frolicsome romp in the woods, a performance on television where bad guys were caught within the hour. Elements within these walls concerned serious life and death business. Her life and her death.
“Now, Detective, if I wanted to die, do you think I’d have wasted all night and day running away from the men in the black car and then hiding in a basement?”
Briant chuckled out loud. “‘Spose not,” he said as he plugged the machine into a nearby socket, and checked to make sure the tape was ready. “Well, here you go. First thing on the tape, please identify yourself. Name, current address, that sort of thing. Then we need you to record every detail you can think of, starting with why you were unpacking the suitcase, how you found the diamonds, and everything that’s happened since.”
Her smile broadened. “I get it,” she said, swallowing a lump in her throat. “You think Tony’s goons will hide until it’s safe to come out and finish the job Tony ordered. If they’re successful and I die before we can arrest Tony and I can testify, this will be strong evidence against him. Well, I hope we get him and I can testify in court so you won’t need this tape. But, I’ll be relieved you have it for that just-in-case moment.”
Detective Briant had the grace to blush, and that tickled Marilee and gave her a moment to breathe before launching into the tale once more. Hopefully this would be the last time she’d have to repeat it…at least for tonight.
The detective put his pad on the table in front of him and set the pen next to it. He settled, waiting for her to begin.
Marilee sat quietly for a few moments, arranging her thoughts in the best order she could. Making this recording was very important. She wasn’t stupid and she hadn’t been simply teasing Detective Briant. The men would be back. If they succeeded in killing her, then her testimony against Tony would still be available.