by Judith Lucci
“Yeah, I know.” Stoner clicked through possible scenarios that could account for the missing agent. None of them were good. “Okay, John. I’ll go back to the surveillance center, talk with the guys, and check the audio and video feeds. Why don’t you scope out the party tent and the rest of the areas.”
John nodded. “Okay, but if we don’t find him, I’d like to use some thermal imaging to see if he’s in the woods … that is, if we can get a bird up in the air in this storm.”
Stoner agreed, “It’s a good idea, but I’m not sure we can get one up. There is virtually no visibility out there. I’ll meet you back in surveillance in a few minutes.”
As the two men parted, the spirit of the party and the promise of the New Year completely disappeared.
Chapter 21
Stark was despondent by the time he ditched the old truck, complete with Yassar’s body, in the woods behind the old, cracked, cement parking lot. Hunching his shoulders against the biting snow and ice, he hiked several miles up the highway until he reached the truck stop at I-95 in Carmel Church, Virginia. He entered the dining room and tried to blend in with the few dozen truckers sitting out the blizzard. He ordered black coffee and the meatloaf lunch special.
The music was deafening. On a good day, he’d have loved it. But today, he wanted to break the juke box to smithereens. I’ve got to get control of myself. My anger is out of control. He checked his watch. It was almost time. It was close to one o'clock. Show time was just before 1 pm. It was everything he could do to keep his cool. Regret and remorse tugged at his gut like a starved infant. For a moment he thought he might break down and made a quick trip to the men’s room to regain his composure. As he sat in the empty stall, his head in his hands, he was repentant beyond belief. A wave of guilt and shame overcame him, and he covered his face as the uncontrollable tears came streaming down.
What the hell have I done? What have I become? I have always known, when I was being honest with myself, that Helen would die no matter how many experimental drugs she had. I sold my soul and my country to the devil. His thoughts returned to reality when another man entered the rest room. Stark left the stall, washed his face, and returned to his table in the dining room.
Deep in thought, the words of the waitress startled him.
“Hi honey, you a want refill? Your lunch should be out shortly.”
Stark stared are her, unable to respond.
The waitress looked at him curiously. “Do you want some more coffee?” Stark still didn’t reply. She looked out the window and said, “My, my, would you look at that snow come down. I think I’m moving back to Florida before next winter.”
Stark shoved his mug toward the woman and grunted, “Me too. You guys are busy, considering the weather.”
The waitress moved her bleached blonde head up and down affirmatively. Her ponytail bobbed with the movement. “Yeah, we’re busy. Ain’t nobody driving in this stuff. I heard a tractor-trailer jackknifed on the ice outside of Ashland. They say traffic is tied up for 10 miles. It’ll be hours before the Interstate is open again.” She looked around and added, “Trust me, ain’t nobody leaving here ‘til the snow stops.” Her voice was authoritative, as she moved to the next table.
Stark nodded, once again caught up in his own misery. I’d do anything to undo just a part of what I’ve done. I don’t think I can live with killing several hundred of my fellow countrymen.
Blondie returned several minutes later, her lips bright pink with freshly applied lipstick, and gave him a big smile that showed her gold tooth. “Here you go, good looking. I even snuck you a second piece of meat loaf.” She winked at him, smiled coyly, and added, “I’ll be back in a couple of minutes with more coffee and then maybe we can go to that room in the back and have some fun. Ain’t nuthin like some good loving in the snow,” she smiled and winked again as she headed off, the smell of her cheap perfume burned his eyes.
Stark, in spite his misery, was mortified. Oh my God, just what I need… some waitress trying to hook up with me when I’m trying to be invisible. He stared at his meatloaf and lost his appetite as he watched gravy congeal around the canned corn. As he played with his fork, an idea exploded in his brain and he grabbed a $20 bill from his wallet, slipped it under his plate, and quickly left the truck stop.
He retraced his steps back to the pickup, and checked his watch every few seconds. His heart thudded with hope and anticipation. I hope I can make it, I hope I can make it, he prayed to himself. Please God, I just have to make it. Please.
Jacob Stark drove his black F250 extended-cab truck as fast as he could down the back country roads from Carmel Church, praying he would get there before it was too late. He kept checking his watch. The wipers in the heavy truck droned on, trying desperately to keep the thickening snow off the windshield. The snow was dense and blinding, forcing Stark to rely on his best guess as to where the road was. The snow was as thick and deep as he’d ever seen it and visibility was almost nonexistent. The trip had not been easy and he wasn’t sure he’d make it in time. He chastised himself for not having thought of something to do sooner.
His wheels whirled in the snow, but couldn’t get a bite. He was off the road. Stark threw his gear in reverse and frantically backed up. He was running out of time.
Chapter 22
Jack Francoise was on his fifth, or at least he thought it was his fifth, Bloody Mary as he passed Travis Stoner in the butler's pantry. Stoner looked worried, and his purposeful movement set off Jack’s street cop alarm.
“Stoner, yo man, what’s your rush? My wedding was last night!” Jack attempted a joke, but it fell flat. Stoner’s grim face alarmed him.
Jack persisted. “Seriously, what’s up?” Jack could feel his heart increase and his gut spasm. He could smell trouble and his body could feel it.
"Seth Barnes is missing. Cole heard something in the woods when he was in the Treehouse this morning and Seth left on foot surveillance to investigate. We haven’t heard back."
Jack's panic alarm fired on all cylinders. He listened intently, processing the information.
Stoner continued, shaking his head. “Not like Seth, he’s a good agent. I’m doing a surveillance check, and John is looking for Seth in the party crowd.”
Jack’s trouble meter was accelerating. “I’ll go with you. We'll check it out. We’ve got quite a few NOPD here, in addition to Secret Service. If necessary, we can notify Hanover County’s finest.”
“Hopefully that won’t be necessary but let’s do it, just to be safe. Perhaps he’s just enjoying the party,” Stoner opined as he shot Jack a dour look. “In the meantime, if we can’t find him in five minutes, we’ll go on alert and ask for additional help.”
“What can I do to help you? I guess this cancels our trip to the barn?" Jack gave Stoner a quizzical look.
“Maybe not. How far from the barn is the Treehouse. I may walk out there and take a look. If we don’t find Seth in the next few minutes, I’ll come with you. Do a visual. But first I need to check the monitors and review the feeds.”
“I’ll wait for you here. The others were putting on their cold weather gear and should be here momentarily,” Jack offered helpfully. Holy shit, I hope nothing is going to happen here today. But Jack’s intuition rarely failed him and he was seriously worried. Then, he remembered Joe’s description of the ‘hunter’ hanging around the decorated tractor. He turned to tell Stoner about it, but Stoner was already out of hearing distance. Jack set down his drink and decided to follow after him.
Chapter 23
Jack and Stoner reviewed the audio and video feeds from the morning. Stoner contacted the guard who was on perimeter patrol, as well as the canine unit. The perimeter check was negative, as was the report from the canine unit. The snow was so deep that it was unlikely the dogs could pick up a scent. Stoner ordered another perimeter check and anxiously tapped his fingers on the metal desk. Nothing out of the ordinary appeared anywhere.
Neither Jack nor Stoner’s anxi
ety was pacified by the reports. Seth was missing and something had happened. Stoner continued to flip through the surveillance video, zooming the frames in and out, looking for anything out of the ordinary. Jack had that gnaw in his gut that occurred every time something was wrong. He prayed that the first day of his marriage would end peacefully. Although he was a Catholic by birth and education, Jack wasn’t much of a religious man. However, he was a God-fearing man and crossed himself for good measure. Please Lord, keep us safe here today. We’ve all gone through so much.
Finally, Jack broached Stoner. “What do you think, Stoner? We’ve nothing to go on besides the fact that Seth is missing,” Jack observed.
The Secret Service agent shook his head. “Where I’m from, that’s enough. Seth Farmer is experienced and knows his job. He’s top notch, and for him not to report in assures me we’ve got a problem.” Out of the corner of his eye Stoner saw John Cole enter the surveillance room.
“Anything, John,” Stoner asked, but he already knew the answer. He could tell by the grim look on John’s face.
“I looked everywhere. I took Trevor with me and we combed the house and the tents and all of the outbuildings close by. Nada. I’m afraid something bad has happened to him,” John reported, his concern etched into his handsome features.
Stoner nodded in agreement. “Yeah, we’ll have to put the team on alert, and I’ll call Washington for some relief. I want every agent up and alert and mingling in this party with their eyes open, searching for trouble, for anything that appears out of the ordinary, any suspicious people or behavior, anything. Keep an agent at the main gate to check incoming traffic and keep a couple of agents outside, watching the crowd as they move toward the tent.”
Cole nodded and asked, “Where on the estate are we most vulnerable?” He turned to Jack and said, “You’ve been here before, where do you think, and from which direction would someone mostly likely attack us?”
Jack shrugged his shoulders. “Don’t know. We’re vulnerable everywhere. No security system is going to work so well in this weather.”
Stoner nodded. “Jack’s right. The cold is crippling the security we do have.”
Jack continued, “They could come from anywhere – the river, the woods. Hell, they could already be here. There’s over 200 people none of us know already. Besides, there’s thousands of fenced acreage where the perimeter could be breeched at any time.” He paused for a minute and added, “We’re looking for a needle in the proverbial haystack.”
Cole nodded, “Yeah, we’ve always known that. We’ve always thought the woods to be the most vulnerable, but we’ve taken more cautions, more cameras that is, at the river since it’s so much closer to the main house.”
Jack nodded. “Hard to tell, but if they’re out there, we’ll know soon enough. Your guess is as good as mine. Nevertheless, I think you need to call in the locals. Hanover has a pretty good SWAT team and they’re well trained.”
Stoner nodded and motioned to Cole to handle it. “I’m going to ask Kathryn and the Congressman if there is anyone here they don’t recognize. I would think this would be a pretty easy party to crash,” Stoner surmised.
Jack laughed, “Yeah, no question. I’ve heard that happens most years. People come from Caroline and King William County, but maybe not so much today because the weather is so bad.”
Cole nodded, “If we find someone suspicious, we’ll hold them in the bunk room. It’s the old servant’s quarters, and there are several locks on the door and bars on the windows. It’s easy to guard, too.”
“OK, I’m going to see Kathryn and Adam. Can we meet back here in a few minutes,” Stoner asked.
Stoner was roused from his speech when he heard the laughing voices of Alex and Robert. Both were bundled for the weather. Within seconds they joined him outside the pantry.
“Commander, I see you’re more warmly dressed this time,” Robert kidded. He glanced through the window and added, “It’s still coming down, hard and fast.” He turned to Alex, “Are you sure you don’t want to wait until the snow stops? I've barely thawed from our last trek to the barn.”
“Man up, Bonnet. You can do it! You lived in Virginia for six years. I know you can take one more hike in the snow. Just have another Bloody Mary, that’ll keep you warm.”
Robert smiled and nodded his head in agreement. “Will do.”
Jack interrupted the banter, his tone serious. “Stoner’s coming as well. I think he wants to meet your horse, Alex.”
Alex laughed again, “I’m sure he does. I talked about Dundee for about an hour last fall in New Orleans. By the way, Jack, I’m happy that Stoner is here. I think he likes your New Orleans buddies ... and he certainly parties well with your NOLA friends.”
Jack looked pleased, but shook his head and said, “Nah, it’s ‘cuz his office is right down the road. He's just a quick dash back to D.C.”
This time Robert laughed. “I think Stoner’s here because your grandfather has Secret Service protection and because he wanted to be at your wedding and visit the farm, right Stoner?”
“I heard that,” Stone hollered from the Command Center. “Can you give me five minutes to get my warm coat and boots? I also want to tell our hosts where I’m headed,” Stoner continued as he entered the pantry area. He smiled broadly and added, "Of course, most of all, I wanted to meet Alex's horse but Robert, you're right, I wanted to taste those famous Congressman Lee Bloody Marys.” Stoner smiled as he joined the lighthearted banter. “Been hearing about the Congressman’s Bloody Mary Brunch for years!”
Jack caught Stoner’s eye and the agent shook his head, a gesture imperceptible to Robert and Alex.
“We’ll wait for you,” Alex promised as she unzipped her coat.
“No, on second thought, let me do a couple of things and I’ll catch up and meet you at the barn,” Stoner suggested as he headed into the kitchen.
“Sure, let’s go, guys. Will see who can get to the barn first,” Alex challenged.
“You may beat me, but I’ve got the prize,” Robert announced as he picked up a thermos full of the Congressman’s poison. “Anyone need a refill before we blaze forward in this blizzard?”
Alex accepted a refill, but everyone else declined. She figured she’s had less than anybody else and needed a little fortitude to brave the icy snow again.
They were pelted with falling ice and snow. The wind made it impossible to talk, and they could barely see because the snow was so heavy. Jack quickly outdistanced Robert and Alex and was about 75 yards ahead. Alex estimated they were about halfway there when she looked up from the blinding snow and saw Belle right in front of her. She could hear Belle’s voice over the blustery, swirling, driving snow. Her voice was clear and persistent.
“Alex, Alex. Come with me, come with me, now. It is urgent,” Belle’s voice demanded, strong and forceful.
Alex was surprised by the intensity and pleading in Belle’s voice. Her eyes were enormous with fear. Alex couldn’t speak and watched, mesmerized, as a thin hand emerged from her worn and tattered cloak. She tugged on Alex’s gloved hand, beseeching her to follow. Belle’s eyes were full of dread as she pleaded for Alex's cooperation.
Alex stared at the ghost, momentarily speechless. “Belle, whatever are you frightened of?”
“Please, hurry, we have no time,” Belle begged, her eyes looking over Alex’s shoulder.
Alex moved toward the ghost to reassure her, and then it happened.
The sound was loud and shattered her ear drums. Alex was paralyzed with fear but felt herself being catapulted up and propelled through the air as she watched Jack fall in the distance, a large pool of blood spreading quickly in the pristine snow. Blood, blood, there was so much blood.
Then it was still. The biting snow and ice continued as though nothing had happened.
That was all she could remember about that day.
Chapter 24
Louis Destephano sat behind the massive walnut desk in his penthouse office, his bac
k to the door. It was New Year’s Day. He stared out his window at the panoramic view his wealth allowed, but he saw nothing. He was lonely and he was bored. He’d done all of the A-List parties the night before in the Big Apple, pressed flesh and exchanged toasts with established and up and coming New Yorkers of all ages. It had been a colossal bore.
A man like Louis Destephano commanded great power and even greater wealth. An attorney, real estate developer, and financier, Destephano had everything, all the trappings that wealth could bring. He had his New York loft apartment, his home on Long Island, and his Chateau in France. He had assistants, housekeepers, and caretakers to tend to him and his property. He could have more properties if he’d wanted them but, well, he didn’t. He had no one to enjoy them with. Three tries at marriage had left him irretrievably alone with enormous alimony payments. And he had a lot of enemies, most of whom he didn’t even know. He turned at the soft tap on his door and said, “Come in.”
“Mr. Destephano, is there anything I can get for you? Would you like for me to order you some lunch, sir?” The pretty brunette smiled at him, showing her beautiful white teeth.
Louis smiled at his young intern, Brittany Major. Brittany was a student at NYU in Manhattan, studying nursing. “Happy New Year, Brittany. I didn’t know you were coming in today. I thought I’d be alone.”
Brittany beamed with good health. “Yes, sir. I’m still on Christmas break and am trying to get in all the hours I can before I go back to school next week. It’ll be harder for me to work then.”
“Yes, of course,” Louis said absently. “I’d forgotten. Do you have anything to do out there?” he gestured toward his outer sanctum.