Amber Alert (Amber Alert Series Book 1)

by Sara Schoen

  "Good, because it's not safe for them to be here," Officer Rivers stated as he came toward my bedside.

  "Why not?" James asked with a worried tone.

  "We got a phone call from the man who claimed responsibility for the kidnap of Miss Cowles last night. He said that if she was kept here, then he would blow up the building. She needs to leave immediately, we can't risk several lives for one individual."

  "She can't be moved yet!" James practically yelled in anger. "There is no way he would blow up the building, she stays or she gets transferred to a different hospital. She can't just leave!" James stated with authority in his voice.

  "Then we put that hospital at risk, James!"

  "It would take a lot to blow up a hospital, he would have had to know where she would be taken days in advance. If we move her to a different hospital, we follow the demands and she is still safe. We can’t let her go for him to find her again," James pointed out.

  "That's not possible to do James! She can't just be moved to a different location!"

  "Why not?"

  Rivers stuttered through an answer, clearly running out of things to say. "Because it's just not! Steve wouldn't agree!"

  "Who is Steve?" James questioned Officer Rivers as he glanced at me. Rivers had just given up the fact that he knew the man that had done this to me. Also, by saying Steve wouldn't agree with that plan Rivers confessed to working with him to keep my location a secret instead of helping me.

  "It's the man that took Jessi and me," I stated as pure anger swept across James' expression, but I had a different reaction. I felt a smirk tug onto the edge of my lips as James walked toward Officer Rivers. Justice was about to be served, and I couldn't wait to see everyone that worked with Steve crumble under interrogation. James threw a punch, and hit Rivers square in the jaw. Rivers staggered backwards into a cop that had come into the room.

  "Officer Rivers, I place you under arrest for harboring and assisting a criminal," James declared, causing the team of four officers to take hold of Officer Rivers and handcuff him.

  "You'll never catch him! I'm not the only one that works for him to keep our families safe. That girl will be dead before any one of you can take the stand. Lock me up! I don't care! I'll get out eventually. That boy will be dead long before her, and with any luck you'll only get me for maybe five years."

  "As an officer of the law, they will make an example out of you. Now get him out of my face and let no one else collect the evidence. I will be collecting it, and this department will be purged," James stated as the officers forced Officer Rivers out of the room.

  "He only gave me twelve hours to live. He said Garrett was as good as dead, and that if I tried running, we made it too easy for those cops that work with him to find me. I don't know what to do, but we're in trouble! We can't trust anyone because they'll turn me over to him and then I'll be dead like the other girls!" I blurted out, sounding hysterical. The nurse called for sedation to calm me down so I could sleep, and that meant I only had a limited amount of time to tell James what Steve said.

  The words flew from my mouth as fast as they could to get the urgent message out. James attempted to listen intently over the yelling and screaming for someone to sedate me. His eyes flashed worry, then anger, and finally he nodded just before I was forced to sleep.

  Chapter 27

  There were faint voices, they were soft, barely audible to me, but they grew clearer with each passing moment. Soon the voices were accompanied by a shadowy figure on the edge of the darkness. The voice was soft at first, like the others, but that was to gain my trust. Once I was within arm’s reach the shadow grabbed me and started to choke me.

  "I told you, Anna. You only had a few hours to live," Steve's voice trickled into my ears.

  The breath left my lungs painfully slow. My lungs attempted to pull what little air they could grab, but there was nothing more for them to take in. I felt my body go limp before I stopped fighting.

  I woke up from the dream taking in a large fear driven breath as I shot up from my sleep. I glanced quickly around the room trying to get my bearings again. James was by Garrett's empty bed and gave me a worried glance, while Jessi was curled up in a chair fast asleep, completely unaffected by my outburst.

  "Are you okay, Anna?" James asked, moving from Garrett's empty bedside to meet me. He was careful not to disturb Jessi's sleep as he moved.

  "Just a bad dream I guess..." I huffed out through tears.

  "Well, if it's what I think it was about, that's all about to come to an end," James stated, taking a seat next to me.

  "How so?" I asked, taking in deep slow breaths to calm myself down.

  "The police department is being purged of anyone under suspicion of working with Steve Bennett or Officer Rivers and tipping Steve off to your location. With any hope this will force Steve to come out of hiding and we can catch him."

  "How's that going?" I asked curiously.

  James' face fell slightly as he let out a long, annoyed breath. "Technically it's going well. Although, it has now become quite clear that a majority of the department was in on this scheme with Bennett, more than we originally thought."

  "How many?"

  "Too many to count. It would be easier to tell you which ones aren’t parts of it and which ones actually care about upholding the law anymore. They are all being put in holding cells while we root through the main conspirators."

  I nodded slightly to show that I heard him speak, but all of the information was now spinning in my mind, giving me a headache. If we held Steve's co-conspirators, then he would have a harder time getting information about where I am, but Steve was still out there, and he wouldn't give up the hunt because his accomplices were in jail.

  "Where's Garrett?" I questioned glancing at his empty bed. I didn't want to think about Steve anymore. For now I was safe, and that’s what mattered.

  "He was taken into surgery early this morning. They had to stop the internal bleeding again. He overreacted when he woke up, ripped out his stitches and had to be put under again. They said that they will wake him up slowly next time so they can explain everything to him."

  "Will he be okay?"

  "It's risky to go under the knife multiple times, but I'm sure he will do just fine," James stated with a soft smile.

  "Chief Sparks?" A new voice asked from outside the door.

  "Yes, Officer Webber."

  "You're needed back at the station. They say that Rivers is ready to talk about his part in the kidnapping of Anna. He will even point out his conspirators, if you trust his word, I mean," Officer Webber said with an eye roll and a soft groan. He clearly didn't trust Officer Rivers anymore.

  "Thank you," James said before turning his attention back to me. "Rest up, I'll let you know if anything happens. You'll be safe here; he's going to guard your door. Only he and the nurses are allowed in, but I will be taking Jessi with me. She needs to get sleep, and she can sleep in my office at the station," he stated as he lifted himself from the chair and turned on a heel to walk out of the room.

  "Wait, who is he?"

  "He's Officer Webber. Don't worry. As the new acting police chief, I took care of you," James offered a small wink and flashed a big smile at how pleased he was at becoming the new police chief, even under the circumstances.

  "But do you trust him?"

  "Officer Webber has been vetted, so he's clear. We will be able to get you and Garrett home after you're both cleared to leave. This will be over soon, Anna."

  "How can you be sure?" After this experience, I would trust very few people outside of those I truly knew. I needed to be sure that I was safe with Webber outside, and that James knew him to trust him.

  "He passed the lie detector test. To be honest, we had no other way to know if they were telling the truth or not. Officer Rivers wouldn't call them out and they weren't going to speak up, so we took the only way we knew how. Now just rest, we'll take care of everything."

  I watched James lift Jes
si from her makeshift bed and walk out of the room. Loneliness and fear started to creep in as I waited for someone to come back in. I wanted to see Garrett, but I was so nervous. What would he say to me after what we've been through? I fell into an uneasy sleep again soon after James left. It didn't feel long because I was soon shaken awake by a rough hand. I glanced up at the face of an older gentleman who had black hair speckled with grey and soft green eyes filled with sorrow.

  "We need to go, Anna," he said, pulling me from the bed and throwing my clothes at me.

  "What's going on?" I asked, as I put my jeans on under the cover of the hospital robe. I cringed with every little movement as I pulled the pants up to my hips. Then carefully untied the robe before turning around to put my shirt on.

  "I received communication that Steve is on his way here. We need to move you to another hospital in the next town, just to keep everyone here and yourself safe."

  "What about Garrett?" I questioned, glancing at his empty bed as I was pulled out of the room.

  "He's still in surgery, we have guards protecting him and they will give their lives to protect his so don't worry. Just worry about yourself for now."

  Steve wouldn't give up the chase anytime soon, but I could delay my recapture as long as I could run. People stared at us as we ran to the front door and straight into the waiting police car.

  The older officer opened the passenger's side door for me and pushed me in. I turned around to see the older officer have people surround him to ask what was happening, but soon he was out of sight. The doors slammed shut just as Officer Webber roared the car to life.

  We soared down the roads with the sirens blasting in my ears. Of course, the sirens made cars pulling over to let us get out even faster and soon we were out of town limits. Trees whizzed by as we hit the road out of town. There was nothing, but trees, yet I still had a bad feeling.

  "Where are we going?" I asked Officer Webber.

  "To the next town. Hopefully he won't risk coming to you there."

  "What if he does?" I asked.

  "The officers in Chesterfield are working on precautions to keep you safe. I promise you, Anna, there are still good cops out there. Please don't let this taint how you see all of us," he pleaded as a loud screeching sound came from behind us.

  I glanced back in the rear view mirror to see a speeding black hummer coming from behind us. The words 'objects in mirror may be closer than they appear' have never held more meaning than in that moment. The hummer crashed into the back of our police cruiser, sending the front end into the asphalt and pole-vaulting us forward.

  There was nothing but air for a while and then a loud crash as the car slammed onto the pavement on its roof. There was a sickening crack as its frame crushed from rolling down the road. An unbearable sound of metal screeching on the asphalt reached my ears as I saw sparks start to fly and flame for a period of time inside the car.

  The car finally stopped in the middle of the long abandoned road, with my head still spinning. The windows had shattered around us, the seat belts locked us in place and there was blood dripping on my face. When I regained my senses, I could see two feet walking toward the car as my head slowly stopped spinning.

  "You have two hours left, Anna," a voice said as the two feet got closer to the car.

  I glanced at Officer Webber to get his attention, but his head was bleeding profusely. It had been forced open by the collision. I knew he was dead—he didn't move, make a sound, or attempt to speak. That was the last thing I saw as the world went black around me.

  Chapter 28

  When I woke up I was laying in the middle of the woods. Once the pain in my head diminished, I glanced around quickly before getting up fully.

  I didn't see Officer Webber and I couldn't see the car or road at all. How far was I in the woods? How did I get here anyway?

  There were rocks only on one side of me. I could hear movement in the surrounding area, but I couldn't tell if it was animal or human. I could only hope that it was animal. I'd rather be mauled by a bear than find out how Steve was planning to get rid of me.

  I got up to see that the rocks had been arranged to spell out, 'two hours left Anna.' then written in the dirt was 'see you soon.' That's when I was able to connect the dots of what happened, Steve had caused the car crash and brought me out here for him to chase. I needed to start moving, but I couldn't decide where to go. I wasn't even sure how I got here, but I knew I would die if I stayed here. Where would I go? Could I risk going back to Charleston, or do I continue toward the next town where I was supposed to go? My choice was made for me as footsteps approached from the direction of Charleston. I took off running when the footsteps got closer to me. That's when I heard laughter, maniacal and crazed, coming from behind me.

  I could feel the brush cutting into my legs. I was driven by fear.

  Even when I hit pavement and saw buildings of the new town, I couldn't stop. I sprinted through the streets, ran into people and one time into a parked car. I was sent crashing to the ground, the pain seeping into my body as I caught my breath.

  "Excuse me, young lady," I heard a voice, causing my eyes to fly open from their moment of rest. "You have a lot of people worried. Are you okay?"

  I glanced up at the police officer with fear surging through my body. Forcing myself from the ground, I shot up and pressed myself against the car. While trying to think of an escape plan I couldn't help but wonder which side he was on. Would he call Steve, or would he take me to my parents? What would happen to me if I trusted him?

  "You're Anna Cowles! We've been looking for you since we had the crash reported! Everyone's on their ear looking for you," he exclaimed with a thick southern accent.

  "What?" I asked through a wheezy voice.

  "Your parents are on their way here from Charleston. They'll be here tomorrow! Come on, let's get you cleaned up and back home. I can't imagine my little girl being as strong as you, you've become popular around the country," he said as he led me to his police cruiser.

  I glanced at the car and swallowed hard. I didn't know whether to trust this man, or not. He seemed nice, unlike those in the department with James who made it obvious they weren't pleased to see me, but that didn't mean I could trust him. Either this man hid his deception well, or he truly was a good man. I didn't have the urge to run from the car, but I wasn't going to walk willingly into a trap, only to wake up with Steve hovering over me a few hours later.

  "What's wrong?" the officer asked.

  "I don't trust you. I only trust James Sparks," I said truthfully as I stood five steps away from the vehicle.

  "I see. How can I ease your tension?"

  "I don't know," I stated honestly. I hadn't thought of that, how was there a way to truly know if they were good or just a good actor?

  "How about we get in the car with the doors unlocked and head straight to the police office. It's the best I can do, Anna. We do need seat belts, though," he said, adding the technicality on to his proposition.

  "Sure, but then I want all the police a fair distance away from me."

  "Deal. Get in, and we will be there before you know it," he said, as he opened the back door for me so that we would be as far apart as the car would allow us to be. Once he shut the door he walked around to the driver's side door and slid into the front seat.

  We drove in complete silence to the police station. He stayed on his side of the glass and I stayed on my side, but my guard wasn't going to fall. Even as we walked into the station, I glanced at each of the policemen and women to look at their expressions. The officers in James' department showed that they weren't pleased to see me, but everyone here started cheering when we walked in. They all seemed genuinely excited to have me be here, but could that really be the truth? I looked at all of their smiling and relieved facial expressions with intense analysis, but they didn't falter at my obvious scrutiny.

  "It's good to see you're okay, Miss Cowles." I turned at the sound of my name and looked up at a ta
ll, muscular young man, easily in his early twenties fresh from the academy. He reminded me of Garrett—I hope he made it through surgery, and that he was safe.

  "Is that so?" I asked, feeling as if the man was waiting for me to say something.

  "We've heard plenty about what has happened to you. I actually just got off the phone with James Sparks, who is the acting police chief over there. We have everything planned out to finally end this for you," the officer said with a small smile.

  "What do you mean?" I asked suddenly nervous of what they had planned for me.

  "Come into my office, and I will explain everything there," he said as he gestured toward the open door behind him. I nodded slightly and followed him glancing back at the officers behind me. None of them had moved, and their expressions hadn't changed.

  "My name is Officer Wright. Please don't make any puns from that, I'm aware of many of them," Officer Wright said passively as he shut the door behind me. I instantly tensed as I was sealed into the room with only him.

  "Please don't shut the door," I pleaded with a shaky voice.

  "I'm sorry if this makes you nervous, Anna, but it's for your own good. We are limiting the number of people you come into contact with. You will be moved to a safe house, in an undisclosed location except to those taking and guarding you there. You will stay there all night, and this will be over in the morning. One of my men has been following Steve, and he will be in custody by tomorrow morning," he explained sitting down in his seat.

  "What's to stop Steve from finding me? He has allies in the police department," I stated in a quiet voice to keep the confidentiality of the topic.

  "I'm well aware, I was briefed by Chief Sparks. That is another reason the number of people who have knowledge about this plan is being kept minimal. We hope to avoid Steve finding you, or find the mole in our own department. There's just no way of knowing, but I promise you I've done everything I can and by the book. This should go over well," Officer Wright stated as a knock rasped on his door.