by C. M. Sutter
“Thanks, man, I owe you one.”
“No, you owe me twenty thousand more to be exact.” Zack chuckled. “The scanner has been going nonstop. You must have created quite a commotion near Brookfield. Sounds like a handful of people are being transported to St. Mary’s, including Antonio. That idiot got himself winged.”
“Yeah, I know, but there’s a bigger problem than Antonio.”
“Really, what? You got away. That’s a positive thing. You mean because the brothers got nabbed?”
“No, because it was a setup. Every container in that armored transport was empty. They knew we were coming.”
“That’s just awesome, dude. How the hell am I supposed to get paid?” Zack pounded his fist against the steering wheel.
“You’ve gotten the advance. I’ll come up with the rest somehow. We’ve worked how many robberies together? Payment has never been an issue.”
“Yeah, until there isn’t one. What are you going to do now?”
“I need a day to think this over, but there’s one thing I know for sure.”
Zack jerked his head. “Yeah? What’s that, genius?”
“Agent Harper hasn’t paid for his crime against Sam yet. My brother’s death needs to be avenged, and I know exactly how to do it.”
Chapter 61
I stood in the ladies’ room of St. Mary’s Hospital and splashed water on my face. I stared at my reflection in the mirror, surprised at how rough I looked. Rutting around and belly crawling in the woods had left its mark on my skin and on my torn guard uniform.
I’d take only a few minutes to check on J.T. and Julie, peek in on Maria and Cam, then I’d head back to the downtown location, clean up a bit, and see what Spelling needed me to do next.
The woman at the reception counter tapped a few keys on her computer and told me J.T. and Julie were on the third floor. I thanked her and rode the elevator up while getting my fair share of stares from visitors and staff alike.
At the nurses’ station, I inquired about all of my injured colleagues and Julie and whether I was able to check on them. Libby Jacobsen wore a name tag showing she was the charge nurse. If anyone, she could tell me the most. I directed my questions at her.
“Agent Harper and Agent Jenkins are still in X-ray. Agent Jenkins probably has a few cracked ribs from that hard impact, and we’re hoping Agent Harper’s jaw is only dislocated. With some manipulation, we may get it back in its proper place. Having a broken jaw is quite an inconvenience. Of course, we’re waiting on X-ray confirmation of that.”
I nodded with relief. “And his ribs?”
“Same situation as with Agent Jenkins. The X-rays will tell us more. Give me one second, please. She rounded the counter and, with a few taps on the computer keyboard, looked up and smiled. “Julie Harper is resting comfortably in her room. Would you like to see her?”
“I sure would.”
“Okay, right this way.”
Libby led me down two hallways to room 317. She knocked then pushed the door open and peeked around the curtain. “Julie, you have a visitor. Agent Monroe is here to see you.”
I heard Julie cough and clear her throat. “Sure, she can come in.”
Libby gave me the go-ahead and walked out. She closed the door behind her. I stepped around the curtain and saw Julie’s haggard looking face. My heart instantly broke for her. I was sure the ordeal she had been through would scar her for years.
“Julie?”
“Jade, please come and sit by me.”
I didn’t know Julie well, barely at all, now that I thought about it. We had met just once at our Christmas party. J.T. had spilled his cocktail all over his dress shirt, and Julie was kind enough to bring him a clean shirt from home. She stayed for an hour at most, had a glass of wine with us, and left. Because her brother was an FBI agent, Julie had endured the wrath of those evil people who wanted to punish J.T. and take down an armored truck. She ended up tangled in the mess of revenge that we still didn’t know that much about.
Julie tapped the bed and pointed at the chair on her left. “Sit here. I’d like you close to me.”
I took a seat and let out a deep sigh.
She chuckled at my appearance. “It kind of sucks to live far from your job. There’s no time to clean up, right?”
I had already forgotten how badly I looked. I felt my face flush, but I smiled, anyway. “Yeah, sorry, I didn’t have time to dress up. In all honesty, I was worried about both of you.” I squeezed her hand when she seemed to have gone back to that dark place for a moment. “Julie, I’m not here to ask you questions today. You need time to calm down and regroup. I only came to see if you were all right.”
“I am physically, save a few cuts and bruises. How’s J.T.?”
“I haven’t seen him yet. The nurse said he was down in X-ray, and they’re hopeful that nothing is broken.”
Julie looked away. The blinds were open, and her focus went toward the window. “It looks like a nice day after all. There’s no time to appreciate the sun when you’re held prisoner. Jade—”
I knew where her question was going. “The Pirelli brothers are already in custody. They’ll never hurt anyone again.”
“What about Carden Vetcher? Did you get him?”
“Carden Vetcher? That’s his name?”
“Yes. I heard the brothers call his name many times. J.T. did too, but we never saw the man’s face. He was either in the shadows or had a hat and dark glasses on. Today it was the mask.”
“It’s urgent that I update Agent Spelling.” I pushed back the chair and stood. “I’m sorry I have to leave so abruptly, but we didn’t have his full name before, only a hint that the last name Vetcher was somehow involved.”
She looked worried. “So, you haven’t captured him?”
“No, not yet, but ask me again tomorrow.” I drew the curtain by the door and left the room.
At the nurses’ station, I spoke to Libby again. “Are Agents Harper and Jenkins still in X-ray?”
“Sorry, but yes.” She gave me a gentle smile. “You need to go home and take a hot bath, Agent Monroe.” She looked me up and down. “A clean set of clothes will make you feel better too.”
“Thanks, I will. How about Agent Delgado?”
“I’m afraid she’s in the surgical suite getting stitched up.”
“Okay, I’ll check on all of them tomorrow. Please tell Agent Harper I was here.”
“Will do.”
I hit the button for the down elevator and left the hospital. In the car, I called Spelling as I drove. “Boss, Julie told me the mystery man’s full name. It’s Carden Vetcher.”
“So Vetcher did come into play. Sam Dunlap and C.V. Loomis were related after all, and now the C.V. makes sense. It stands for Carden Vetcher. Good work, agent. I’ll get somebody in Tech on that name right away. Oh, and the APB came back on Janet’s car.”
I was surprised to hear that they found the car so quickly. “Go ahead and tell me. It was abandoned, right?”
“Of course it was. I imagine there were far too many law enforcement agencies looking for it. It was left along the street off Hampton in a less than desirable neighborhood. He must have had somebody pick him up.”
“Sure, that makes sense. At least with his name, we can pull up his last known address and check out his associates.”
“Okay, I’ll get that started. Go home, Jade, and get some rest. I’ve already called in the second shift weekend agents. I’ve sent everyone else home too.”
“Are you sure, sir?”
“Absolutely. All of you deserve it.”
Chapter 62
My cell phone rang on the bathroom counter as I stepped out of the tub and slipped on my robe. I looked at the screen. Spelling was calling. “Hey, boss, what’s up?”
“I hope you’re relaxing.”
“You mean by scrubbing the embedded dirt and twigs off my body? Yeah, that was done as soon as the tub was full of bath salts and hot water.”
Spelling chuckled. “Anyway
, I just got an update from Portage County on Sheriff Wells.”
“I hope he was found wandering aimlessly in a nearby county.”
“Unfortunately, he wasn’t that lucky. A couple of hikers found his body early today. He was shot point blank.”
“Those bastards. I hope none of them ever see the light of day again.”
“I doubt if they will, but we have to apprehend Carden Vetcher first.”
“I know, and we will. I’m sure of it.”
“Okay, that’s all I had. Go relax. Tomorrow I’ll keep you plenty busy.”
“Thank you, sir. Good night.”
“Night, Jade.”
I stepped from the bathroom into my bedroom and dressed. I couldn’t help thinking of J.T. I’d make sure to call him after dinner and see how he was doing.
Amber grabbed the remote and clicked off the TV. She lifted the sleepy, limp Spaz off her lap and set him on the couch. “How are you doing, Sis? I’ll admit, you look more human than you did forty minutes ago.”
“I feel more human too. How about a pizza for dinner? I’m too lazy to sit at the table and eat, and I’d rather relax and catch up with you than watch you cook.”
“Works for me. Pepperoni?”
I grinned. “Of course, and I’m buying.”
“Good, then I’ll order an extra-large.”
After our order arrived and Amber and I had stuffed ourselves with pizza, I made a call to Bill. “Hey, Bill, nice work today.”
“Back at you, agent. What’s up?”
“I was wondering if you’ve heard anything about the likelihood of the same employee working at Trident now and Branded Armor back in 2014.”
“Nobody has said anything to me. Let it go for the night, Jade. Turn that gerbil wheel off. The bad guys will still be around tomorrow.”
I let out a long breath. “You’re right. Have you spoken to J.T.?”
“Nah, but I thought you knew.”
My heart began to pound double-time. “Knew what?”
“His left jaw was broken, and he’s in surgery right now. He’s going to be out for the night.”
“Damn it. He’ll have to endure six weeks of pure hell with protein shakes and vitamin drinks.”
Bill sighed. “It could have been worse, Jade. We’ll catch up with him and Julie tomorrow. We need their statements.”
“Yeah, you’re right. Okay, good night.” I hung up and dropped down on the couch next to Amber. Spaz squeezed between us, curled up, and fell back asleep.
“Jade… Jade?”
“Huh?” I cracked open my eyes and saw Amber leaning over me with Spaz in her arms.
“It’s ten o’clock. We’re going to bed. I think you need a good night’s sleep and not on the couch. Come on. I’m shutting down the house.”
“Okay, I’m up.” I stumbled to my bedroom. “Night, Sis. I love you.”
Amber hugged me before she closed her bedroom door. “I love you too.”
I crawled into bed, fluffed my pillow, and drifted off.
What seemed like minutes later, the summer sun pierced through the slit in my blackout curtains and caught me square in the eyes. I rolled over and stared at my cell phone screen—6:27. My alarm was set for six thirty. I stretched and gave myself three more luxurious minutes to lie in bed.
I thought about the day—Sunday. A day normal people enjoyed their yard, had a barbecue, or went to brunch with their parents and grandparents. I was headed to work to do my best to track down a vicious killer and a potential armed robber. I needed to learn the connection between Sam Dunbar, named Orly James Vetcher at birth, and Carden Vetcher. I grabbed my phone while the thought was fresh in my mind. Using the memo app, I tapped out a message to myself to have the tech department try to access Carden’s birth records. I’d have them look up Chattanooga, Tennessee, first. That might tell us if he and Sam were actually brothers.
I showered, dressed, and followed the scent of freshly brewed coffee wafting down the hallway. Amber was still in bed, but thanks to the auto-start on the coffeemaker, I didn’t have to bother preparing it that morning. It was ready to go, and I poured myself a cup. Back in my bedroom, I fed Polly and Porky, promised I’d give them more attention that evening, and returned to the bathroom to dry my hair.
I quietly left the house at eight o’clock. Amber hadn’t awakened yet, and she deserved a good night’s sleep. The drive to our downtown headquarters would take thirty-five minutes, and Sunday mornings were traffic-free.
At 8:45 a.m., we met in the large conference room upstairs, and every chair had an occupant. Spelling and Hopkins were seated at the head of the table.
Spelling began. “What we thought would be a slam dunk in locating Carden Vetcher’s home and known accomplices has hit a snag.”
A group moan sounded throughout the room.
Spelling raised his hands as if to tell us to pump the brakes. He continued. “We did confirm his birth name is Carden Vetcher through hospital records in Tennessee.” He looked at me. “Good call on that one, Monroe. As far as anything else, there is nothing in the entire state showing home ownership, a rental, or even a bank account under his name. He has to be using a second identity, or a third.”
I cleared my throat and raised my brows at Spelling.
“Go ahead, Jade. I can see you’re chomping at the bit.”
“Well, sir, it’s only my personal theory. Carden Vetcher is his real name, and according to Julie when I spoke to her last night, he didn’t object to the Pirelli brothers using it. Julie overheard that name mentioned many times. Even though it’s his real name, he likely doesn’t attach it to anything important that can be tracked. He’s definitely using an alias for everything that is tied to a permanent record.”
“I agree, Jade,” Hopkins said. “And C.V. Loomis was probably one of his aliases.”
I caught movement through the glass conference room wall. Penny from the tech department was heading in our direction. There could be only one reason she would be entering our meeting—she’d found something about the insider.
Hopkins waved her in just as she raised her fist to knock. “What have you got, Penny?”
I crossed my fingers that it was something we could use.
“Good morning, everyone.” She scanned each face at the table. “I’ll get to the point since you look knee deep in this case. I believe I’ve found the insider.”
“Go ahead,” Spelling said.
“A man who goes by the name Zack Kenny used to work at Branded Armor from 2012 to 2014, when he abruptly quit his job without notice. Coincidentally, he disappeared shortly after that armored truck heist.” She grinned. “The best part is, he’s been working at Trident for seven months. I went ahead and took the liberty of entering his name in the system to see if he had any priors, but he doesn’t—he’s squeaky clean.”
My enthusiasm deflated, and my rigid shoulders dropped.
Penny noticed and continued. “But that’s exactly what would be expected from anyone who works at an armored transport company. Those types of places are very stringent and won’t hire somebody with a record. It’s typical, and a criminal who has enlisted his help would want him to stay under the radar and gather as much intel as possible. He could be your guy.”
“Did you pull up an address for him?” Hopkins asked.
“Sure did. He seems to move around often and only rents.”
“Good way to make a quick exit if he needs to,” Bill said.
Penny continued. “He currently lives in Wauwatosa. Google satellite images show the house is somewhat secluded and perfect for somebody who wants to stay under the radar. There’s a lot of tree cover around it in the summer.”
“The Pirelli brothers could tell us more,” I said.
Hopkins snickered. “They’re as tight-lipped as they come. We thought for sure they’d roll on Vetcher or, worst-case scenario, each other. So far, we’ve got nothing.”
I glanced up at the clock. “J.T. and Julie might know somet
hing. They had to be hidden somewhere after they left Portage. What better place than a secluded house not far from the route the armored truck was scheduled to take? And don’t forget, Carden abandoned Janet’s car and somebody picked him up.”
“True enough, Jade.” Spelling cocked his head toward the door. “Go talk to J.T. and Julie. I know you’re itching to see your partner, anyway. Find out what you can about Friday night into Saturday morning and where they were held. If Zack Kenny is the accomplice, and Carden is laying low there, there’s a chance that we can apprehend both of them today.”
Bill spoke up. “Has anyone actually seen this man other than a freaked-out older woman, for a half second, and the guy at the window-tinting place who saw a man wearing a fedora and dark sunglasses?”
Spelling shrugged. “Other than the Pirelli brothers and probably Zack Kenny, I’m sure there’s dozens of people. Problem is, they know him under a different identity.”
I pushed back my chair and stood. “Okay, I’m heading out.”
“Keep us posted,” Spelling said. “We’ll be here brainstorming our approach into Zack Kenny’s house, just in case.”
Chapter 63
I reached St. Mary’s Hospital on the east side of Milwaukee at nine thirty. I was told during a phone call to the nurses’ station that J.T. had just finished his breakfast of a vitamin shake. I was sure he had gone through four days of pure hell, and now he’d have that reminder for weeks to come. I rode the elevator to the third floor and walked the glistening white halls to room 302. I felt nervous for J.T. I didn’t know what he had gone through, only that it was bad, but we needed to start that conversation so we could capture Carden Vetcher.
I knocked on J.T.’s door. I heard the TV volume go down then a muffled “Come in.” I pushed the door open and slowly slid the privacy curtain to the side. With no idea what to expect, I hoped I’d be able to contain my emotions. J.T. was the toughest guy I knew, other than my old partner, Jack, and my dad, before his death. I was afraid of what I’d see on the other side of the curtain.
“Hey, partner, it’s me.” With a brave face, I slid the curtain completely open.