He finally took off his gun belt along with his shirt and placed his gun under the pillow. He emptied the whiskey down his throat then lay down.
Jessie didn’t like the sound of his plan. “You’re leaving me here tomorrow?”
He pulled back the blanket on his cot and replied, “You’ll be fine. I can’t take you with me, you know that. Why you’d only act up and try to get away from me. You’ll be better off here. Besides I won’t be that long. After I get you a good meal, I’m looking forward to a sweet reward, and I’m not talking about dessert in a can.”
Jessie shuddered and watched him climb in bed. She wondered what time it was. Her mind wandered back to the motel room. A clock there had put the time around 10 p.m. A lot had happened since then. She didn’t have her watch and there was no clock in the cabin. Ricardo wore a watch but he looked to be asleep already. Lost to the whiskey.
She figured it must be at least two or three in the morning. It had been so moonlight when they’d arrived at the cabin that she’d been able to see the front yard, which was full of weeds and wild grass. A low fence of broken and tilted posts ran across the front and sides of the yard. The floor had felt gritty under her feet when they’d entered. She imagined the poverty in that little house when Ricardo would be a small child. No wonder he was warped.
Her mind grew fuzzy. If only she could take this time to form a plan, an escape. But her mind wouldn’t cooperate. She was just too exhausted. And even though her hands hurt and the skin on her wrists was scraped and raw from the close contact of the handcuffs, she felt herself falling into a stupor of sleep. And it felt good, so comforting to just let go. Her eyes drooped and in the quiet of the cabin she heard only snoring.
****
Liz stood in the moonlight listening to Kent’s conversation with the Wakefield police.
“This is Kent Morgan. I want to report a kidnapping...That’s right...I don’t know exactly where. I’ve been standing on a hilltop looking down at a cabin, and that’s where she is...Jessica Albright...No, I don’t know where I am exactly. But the character that’s kidnapped her is a cop from Harbourside name of Ricardo Alvarez...You do?...He is?...So this place was his home?”
There was a long pause and Liz watch Kent. She had turned the flashlight on him when he grew quiet, and he now wore a look of astoundment on his face.
“I’ll wait for you. There’s nothing else for me to do...No, I won’t go down there, do you think I’m nuts? He’s a cop, he has a gun…Yes, I’ll wait, and yes, I’ll stay out of your way. You guys can handle everything; I’m not looking to be a hero.”
When Kent got off the phone she questioned him. “What was that all about? Do they know Ricardo Alvarez?”
“Oh, yeah,” Kent said. “The police chief in Wakefield remembers him. Apparently he grew up around here, lived in that old house. Chief Davis said Alvarez was a bad little boy, always getting into trouble...until he reached his teens. He then did an about-face and knuckled down to get through high school and went on to the Police Academy. He can’t understand Alvarez’s motives. He knows where this cabin is and he’s bringing his two men out here with him as soon as they return from the motel.”
“Uh-oh. They were alerted by the gun shot there I guess.”
“Yes. He said I couldn’t even have reached him in the office this time of night if not for the motel commotion.”
“Don’t suppose there’s much action around here usually,” Liz said. “So, what do we do now?”
“The only thing we can do is go back and wait. Watch the cabin and wait for the police to show up. They’ll take over from there. If Alvarez leaves with Jessie before they come, we’ll follow him and keep in touch with the police by phone.”
“Okay,” Liz said turning towards the path. She still carried the flashlight, but this time she didn’t use it. As they walked through the woods she spoke to Kent who was trailing behind her. “What do you think the police will do first, Kent?”
“I imagine they’ll go up to the door and knock. What else would they do?”
“And what if he lies and says he’s alone?”
“I don’t know, Liz. They’ll decide to enter, maybe. I’m no cop. I can’t strategize for them.”
“Then what about Jessie? What if Alvarez gets violent?”
“Stop speculating will you? I don’t like this whole creepy mess anymore than you. And yes, I’m just as worried about Jessie, but I don’t know how else we could have helped her except to get the police involved.”
The trek through the wooded path seemed shorter somehow to the two walkers, who were getting used to the rutty terrain, and the walk across the field and up to the hilltop was turning into a well-worn path. No clothing was needed now to mark the way. Kent had brought a jacket from his car and he passed it over to Liz.
“It’ll be chilly on the ground. “You’d better use this.”
Liz took the jacket and spread it on the grass. She lay down with the upper portion of her body on the jacket. With her arm doubled under her head, she stared across the valley as Kent settled down close beside her.
She thought of how she used to feel about Kent. A few weeks ago she would have given anything just to have made something like this happen. She and Kent alone, spending the night together — but not like this. Not under the present circumstances with Jessie’s life, and maybe their own, in danger. Besides, she was over Kent now.
From the moment she’d met Alan, her crush on Kent had evaporated. She shuddered to think of what Alan would think of her if anything terrible happened to Jessie. The whole thing would come out and Liz would be held responsible. Even if Jessie was rescued, Kent now knew about the e mails. Jessie would never forgive her, and any chance she ever had of building a relationship with Alan was gone forever. This trek through the woods with Kent was for Liz a genuine effort to save her friend. A friend who would be no more once the whole thing was resolved, however it ended. Liz stared at the darkened sky with the full moon perching just above the hills. Something howled mournfully. It almost sounded like the cry of a baby.
“What’s that?” she shrieked.
“It’s coyotes.” Kent replied. “Go to sleep, they’ll not bother us.”
Liz pulled the jacket around her shoulders and closed her eyes. She hadn’t realized how tired she really was. But the coyotes’ voices rose in spooky celebration from opposite sides of Liz’s ears. She opened her eyes again and stared into the huge moon as the animals answered one another. The eerie sounds shivered across the valley ringing like an instrument. The moonlight howling expressed Liz’s inner need and longing. And as the haloed moon climbed higher, and the coyotes sang in adoration, it was a yearning sound Liz knew and felt only too well. She thought of lost love, first Kent’s, now Alan’s. It wouldn’t be long until daylight, and she dreaded the day to come in so many ways.
****
Chief Alton Davis hunched over his huge desk and rubbed his eyes. Granted he was rubbing the tiredness away, but a tear of frustration had also leaked through his hard persona. It had been a while since he’d heard news of Ricardo Alvarez. What the hell was he up to now? Davis grabbed the phone and punched in a number.
“Harbourside Police Department, officer MacNeil speaking.”
“This is Chief Alton Davis from Wakefield. I need to speak to someone concerning Ricardo Alvarez.”
“You got your man, Chief. What’s up?”
“What is he up to is what’s up. I just had a call that he might be holding someone against her will. You know anything about his whereabouts?”
“He talked to me earlier...about five or so. Said he was taking some time off. That it was an emergency. I don’t know much more.”
“He been in any trouble lately?”
There was a pause, then MacNeil replied, “Don’t know. I don’t keep tabs on him.”
Davis stood and wandered around to the front of his desk. The phone cord was wound around his pinkie. He paced. He was losing patience with this guy. “
Hell, he must have given you more than that.”
“It’s confidential, Chief. Unless you’re a relative or someone near to him.”
“Confidential! Just who do you think you’re talking to? This is police business. And hell, yeah, I’ve known him all my life. Got him out of trouble more times than I want to remember. But I’d thought he’d straightened out. You know, grew up.”
“Alvarez is okay.” MacNeil sighed. “Okay, Chief, here’s how it goes. He said it was a friend. A female. He was helping her out, getting her out of town for a while, something about a stalker bothering her. I don’t know anymore. I took his word and passed on the info — that’s all I can tell you.”
“All right. Thanks.” Davis hung up and grabbed his jacket off the rack. He would meet his men at the motel. When that was cleared away, they’d go have a look at the cabin. If Ricardo was there he’d have some explaining to do. Next would be his own explanation to Kent Morgan, who for some crazy reason had kidnapping on the brain and was spending the night hovering on the hilltop above Ricardo’s shack.
Memories of that little shanty played about in Davis’s head as he drove to the motel. It took him back in time, back to Christine Alvarez or Christine Gomez as he had known her earlier. A beautiful, dark-haired vision whom he had loved from the first day she’d let him carry her books home from school. They’d dated all through high school then Christine up and left town. When she returned she was a married woman. It wasn’t long until she was a mother.
Then the calls had started. Christine was in trouble, deathly afraid of her husband. The bastard couldn’t leave her alone, but in the end Christine would never press charges. Then there was the little girl to worry about too. For Davis knew, as well as he knew his own name, that the baby Christine held in her arms, little Julia, was his own flesh and blood.
Ricardo wasn’t his though. Christine had been faithful to the son of a bitch and gave him a son. The life they lived was pure hell, and Davis took the little boy under his protective wing. He had been proud of Ricardo when he made the police force. It made up in some small way for the loss of Christine and his daughter. He had never gotten to know Julia like he had Ricardo. She was wild and wary of the law, but he didn’t blame her. He knew that bastard had abused her too. It broke his heart to think of her now, lost to him, maybe lost to the world for all he knew.
Davis pulled up to Room 10 and entered. “What happened here?” he quizzed his men.
Officer Mark Brady was writing a report and he glanced up at the chief. “There was a shooting. The manager says a police officer and a young woman took the room. Later the manager heard a gun shot. When he got to the room he saw a couple run across the yard, man and woman, but not the cop. There’s no blood, Chief. But there’s a rope on the bed. Looks like someone got tied.”
Davis thought it strange that Ricardo might tie up the lady he was helping. And this scene tied in with Kent Morgan’s story. But why? How did it all fit? Maybe Morgan wasn’t too far off track. He didn’t want to believe Ricardo was in trouble, but he had a job to do.
“We’re going to the old Alvarez cabin. I got a tip he was the cop involved. Don’t know the details, but there could be some more trouble. Are you just about finished up here?”
“We’re done, Chief,” the second officer confirmed.
Davis took a last look around the motel room. “Then let’s go,” he said.
****
Busy bees flitting amongst the wild flowers, and crows squawking at the sun rays were the first sights and sounds to awaken Kent. His body felt stiff and sore, and his jeans were damp from the morning dew. He stood and looked below. The cabin was separated from the darkness as a sunray, like the beam from a flashlight, landed on it. Then the surrounding trees came into detail as the sunlight spread across the land. He gauged the sun’s position. A half hour or less and the whole valley would be bathed in the morning sun. He combed the valley for some sort of life, some movement to indicate Jessie was down there. But there was nothing moving except the crows. Liz had been curled beside him and now that he’d risen she rolled in a ball, hugging her knees. He stretched to loosen the kinks then bent to awaken her.
“Come on, Liz. Wake up.”
Liz groaned and opened her eyes, squinting in the rising sun. She looked disoriented for a minute then shook her long hair around, combing it with her fingers. It was peaceful on the hillside, and just dark enough below that the valley was a blur. The deep colour in the sky reminded her that day would soon prevail, blocking out the soft shading of reds and golds now prevalent at the horizon below the snarl of uneven hills. She yawned and hugged herself. “I’m cold,” she said through chattering teeth.
Kent reached for her hands and pulled her to a standing position. “Put the jacket on,” he said. “We have to move around a little. The grass is damp but the sun will warm you soon.”
Liz looked down at the cabin. “Anything happening below?”
“I just woke up,” he said. “It’s still gloomy down there. The sun has barely reached the valley.”
Liz pressed her aching back then rubbed her hands together in an effort to promote circulation. She stepped in place in an aerobic exercise. “Where the hell are those cops?” she said in an exasperated tone.
“I’ve been wondering the same thing,” Kent said. He stood looking down on the valley, his hands on his hips. “I hope we weren’t sleeping when they came. It could be all over down there.”
“Well, what do we do now? You should call them, shouldn’t you?”
Kent punched in the numbers and held the phone to his ear. Liz watched impatiently. “No service,” he said folding up the phone and placing it in his pocket. “They’re probably still on the way. The investigation at the motel probably took some time. The chief would have to fill them in on the connection between things there and what’s happening here.”
“Couldn’t he do that on the way?”
“Stop questioning me, Liz.” Kent’s irritated voice rose. “I told you, I don’t know what’s happening. We just have to wait, at least a little while longer. If they don’t show up soon, maybe we’ll sneak down there and have another look. But it won’t be as easy as last night. We couldn’t be seen then.”
“All the more reason to go now, before the sun fills the valley.”
Kent hesitated. “I don’t know, Liz. We might be targets if we do that.”
“Shit. We’ll be targets if we wait. I say go now.”
“I say wait.”
“Then you wait.” She turned and started down the hill.
Kent thought of following her then figured if she got in trouble there was no sense of them both being discovered. Alvarez already had one hostage, he didn’t need them too. The cops would have enough trouble freeing Jessie. He and Liz shouldn’t get in the way. But she was stubborn and determined. He figured she’d get halfway, get scared and return to the hill. He let her go.
****
Jessie slept fitfully, pain shot up her arms as she dangled unmercifully from a swinging rope tied to an overhead beam. It resembled all the staging she’d ever seen in western movies of hangings, except the rope was tied around her wrists and not her neck. But she swung there none the less in mid air. Below her was the bare ground — far below. And a crowd of people surrounded her, all looking up — all dressed in pioneer clothing. All except two people, Kent and Liz. They stood in front of the gathering. Liz was crying and Kent looked horrified. The palms of his hands were pressed tightly against his cheeks, and he was pale, ghostly.
In the centre of the gathering a huge bonfire blazed, shooting out sparks that crackled loudly and rushed into the night air. Some landed on her, burning her skin. Then a man appeared. He stood on the landing just above her. He was dressed all in black and wore a mask. He carried a sword and flashed it across the night sky, then brought it closer and closer to the rope. Each swish through the air made Jessie flinch, for she knew when the sword struck the rope she would crash down into the raging fi
re, sending hundreds of burning sparks and cinders out into the night sky.
Suddenly the rope was severed and she was falling — but drifting peacefully — taking an eternity to hit the flames below. Two arms surrounded her and she opened her clinched eyes expecting to see the devil in black. But the arms filled her with such love and warmth she had no fear. And instead of the masked man holding her, it was Kent. They floated together above the crowd, above the flames. He held her gently to him and kissed her bruised wrists until they healed instantly before her eyes. His face was serene now with natural colour, not ghostly anymore. Then the excruciating pain returned and Kent disappeared. She fell...screaming...then sprang upward.
“What the hell...” Ricardo mumbled, jumping from his bed.
Jessie sat upright as much as she could in the handcuffs. One of her wrists was bleeding and she trembled, crying softly.
Ricardo, realizing she had been in a nightmare got to his knees before her. His thick black hair was tousled around his face. “It’s okay, Princess,” he soothed. “You were just dreaming. Oh, look at your wrists.”
“Please,” she moaned. “Take the handcuffs off. I can’t go anywhere. Can’t you see?”
“Yes, yes. I see,” he said hurriedly. “I’ll unlock them.”
After Ricardo had put a damp cloth on her wrists, Jessie calmed down. “Please, Rick, stop all this now. Drive me home and I’ll forget we ever met.”
He had been looking for food and turned from the cupboard when she spoke. “You’d like that, wouldn’t you? To forget we ever met. Well we’ve met and we’re sticking together. You’re mine now. Get it through your head, Jessica.”
Jessie turned her tear-filled eyes towards the window by the cot. She could see the sun tipping the mountains and sending rays shooting across the valley. It would be full daylight soon. It was probably four or five a.m. She ached from head to toe especially her wrists. They were raw under the cloth he’d given her, but she was thankful he’d finally removed the cuffs. Now she was free. Thinking frantically she wondered how she might plan an escape.
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