No One to Hear You Scream

by K. J. Dahlen

  Cole nodded.

  Sam looked out at the river again and couldn't help but think about Wyatt. He wondered if he was all right or if he was scared. He hoped he was all right. If nothing else, Sam was sure that Wyatt knew he was on his way.

  "What do you think will happen once we get to Hannibal?" Cole asked. His intentions of getting his cousin the help he needed were looking more and more impossible, but he needed to hear Sam actually say the words.

  Sam took a sip of his beer. "What do you want me to say?" Sam asked after a long pause. "The man is a killer, cousin or not. I'll do everything I can to bring him in alive, but I hope you understand that I can't let him go"

  "I didn't expect you would let him go. I was just wondering whether you would shoot him on sight."

  Sam shook his head. "I'll bring him in and let the courts decide how to punish him. I'm a cop, and it's part of my job" Sam leaned toward Cole. "But know this, that as a husband and a father I'd like to see him pay, personally, for what he's done to my family."

  Cole nodded. "You aren't alone in that regard. The families of the seven other women he's murdered all want justice too." Cole said it in a way that reminded Sam that other people had been hurt by Tucker's actions as well.

  Sam looked at the river and didn't say anything as he got the boat under way again. He had forgotten for a moment about Tucker's other activities. All he had been able to think about was his own family. He could feel the sands of time running out. The longer Wyatt was alone with Tucker, the less Sam liked it. Sam looked over at Cole and saw that he'd taken up his position with the binoculars.

  The sun was getting low in the sky when they rounded yet another bend in the river. The marker claimed Helena was only a few more miles. Sam checked the gas tank and prayed they would make it that far. River traffic had picked up a bit, and they were seeing more small settlements along the riverbanks.

  Sam saw a gas and tackle shop ahead, and as he pulled up to the dock, Cole jumped out and tied off the boat. Cole had donned a fishing hat and a pair of sunglasses and tried not to make contact with anyone as he pumped the fuel.

  Earlier that day they had come upon another houseboat, and the owners greeted Cole like a long-lost friend. Again Cole had to pretend to be Tucker and fool the people his cousin knew as friends. It had been decided that, to keep that from happening too much, Cole had to stay belowdecks and avoid contact with people on the river.

  As Sam jumped off the boat and ventured inside the tackle shop, something caught Cole's attention. Off to the side of the boat a red baseball cap bobbed in the water. Cole snatched the cap and looked it over and found a name written in black marker: WYATT SEBASTIAN. Cole stood up and looked around. The cap hadn't been in the water long-the fabric wasn't soaked through.

  Sam came up behind him. "Did you see something?" he asked.

  Cole handed him the hat without taking his eyes off the river.

  Sam took an invisible punch to the chest when he saw the hat. For a moment he couldn't breathe as he stared at the red baseball cap he'd bought for his son's Little League practice. Wyatt had been so proud of that hat.

  "Do you see anything?" Sam growled as he looked around as well.

  "No, but the hat hasn't been in the water for too long. They must have come through here within the last hour or so," Cole told him.

  Sam looked up and down the river as far as he could see. "This is a big place. He could be just about anywhere."

  Cole untied the lines holding the boat to the jetty. "We could park somewhere and have a look around."

  Sam nodded. "But let's do it right. I don't want Tucker to find us before we find him. Right now he thinks he's safe, and I want him to go right on thinking that. We can't afford any mistakes."

  Cole nodded and got on the boat. Sam started the engine and pulled it off the main channel, to a spot where they could see just about every boat in the area.

  At that very moment, Tucker Briggs and Wyatt Sebastian were parked for the night just down the river. Tucker had half hidden the boat as a safety precaution, an old habit of his. He had left Wyatt in the soundproof room, also a safety measure. Evening on the river was his time to reflect.

  Tonight he was thinking about what he was going to do with the kid he had locked up.

  He had called his good buddy Jasper Wiley when he hit the area, and they were supposed to get together later tonight. Tucker had just come up on deck when he got a heads-up from Jasper. Tucker smiled as he watched his buddy climb aboard the boat.

  Jasper Wiley was a river rat. He lived and worked on the river. He knew every bend and curve within a hundred miles. He always said the river was like a woman, always changing and never very forgiving. His tall, lean body was tan year-round, and as he climbed aboard Tucker's boat, he let Tucker know he had a bit of gossip to tell. "Hey, good buddy, I hear you got woman trouble." Jasper smiled at Tucker.

  Tucker frowned. "I got what?"

  Jasper laughed out loud. "I ran into old Bert on the CB today. He said to tell you to take good care of your boy. He also said that your cousin was by his place yesterday. He said he looked so much like you it nearly gave the old man a heart attack."

  Tucker's frown turned into a scowl. "He said he ran into my cousin yesterday?"

  Jasper nodded. Setting a brown paper bag on the table, he opened it and pulled out a couple of beers. He threw one to Tucker and settled into a deck chair.

  Tucker caught the cold brew and began looking around the marina. If Cole was at Bert's place yesterday, he could very well be this far by now. He cursed as he finally caught sight of the boat that Sam and Cole were on. He watched as they continued to look over each and every boat in the area. It was only by luck that they hadn't seen him yet.

  Jasper looked at his friend in concern. "What's wrong?"

  Tucker stepped back from view. He was busy thinking about how he was going to escape. He wasn't ready for the showdown with Sam and Cole just yet.

  "Where's your boat?" Tucker asked Jasper.

  "Why? What's wrong with this boat?" Jasper asked in confusion.

  "There isn't anything wrong with this boat," Tucker told him. "But I need to get out of here right now, and if I take this boat out on the water, I'm going to be found, and that is something I don't want to happen-at least not yet"

  Jasper shook his head. "I don't understand"

  Tucker smiled. "My cousin and I are playing a game. I have something he wants to get back" Tucker leaned over the table and pointed to where Cole and Sam were parked. "That's my cousin's boat. If I hang around here, he's going to find me, and I don't want him tonot yet anyway"

  Jasper smiled slyly. "Do you need me to run a little interference, maybe get him to follow me for a day or so?"

  Tucker shook his head. "No, he'd find you and probably arrest you. Just loan me your boat and wait a day or so and meet me in Hannibal. We'll switch boats then"

  Jasper's smile faded. "What would he arrest me for? Is he a cop?"

  Tucker grinned. "No, but the guy with him is. My cousin Cole is FBI"

  Jasper paled. "FBI? Are you sure you're not in trouble? I don't want any part of that"

  Tucker laughed. "My granddad set the whole game thing up. He wanted the two of us boys to compete in a race. The rules were that we both had to leave New Orleans at the same time," Tucker lied. "Whichever of us beat the other to his farm in Hannibal first would get the lion's share of his estate. I thought I was ahead of Cole, but he caught up. Just once I'd like to beat him at something."

  Jasper nodded. "I know the feeling. My family thinks my older brother practically walks on water. I have the black boat moored over beyond those trees" Jasper pointed away from Cole and Sam.

  Tucker smiled. The game just got a little more interesting. "Do you think you could distract them while I make my getaway?"

  Jasper nodded and slipped over the side of the boat. Tucker went below and unlocked the door to the soundproof room. He gathered his things and grabbed Wyatt. Hustling him off th
e boat and over to Jasper's boat took little effort, and when he looked back to where Cole and Sam's boat was, he saw that Jasper had done what he'd asked. Cole and Sam were looking in the wrong direction.

  Tucker started the black boat's engine and carefully maneuvered it out onto the river. He pulled away from the area and moored it downstream about five miles. After checking the area carefully, he set the anchor. Peeking in on Wyatt, he noted the boy was still tied up. He knew the boy was too afraid of him to try anything, so Tucker felt safe in leaving him alone for a while. He wanted to go back and see what Cole and Sam were up to. They caught him off guard today, and Tucker didn't like being caught off guard.

  Using the dinghy, he made his way back to Helena and began looking around the marina. When he spotted their boat, he sat in the dinghy and watched them for a while. They seemed to be settling in for the night.

  Tucker knew he should be as far away from them as possible, but he also knew the harbor was full of his friends and they would protect him if the need arose. All the people on the river protected one another from outsiders. This was their way of life, and most of them wouldn't have it any other way. He was surprised that Cole and Sam had come on the river after him. He knew it had been Cole's idea. His plan had almost worked.

  Cole shifted in his chair on the deck of the houseboat. He had an uneasy feeling. Something was niggling the hairs on the back of his neck, and he knew he should be a little more alert. He looked out on the river, and at first he didn't notice the little dinghy parked not too far away from him. Then something splashed in the water and Cole looked a little harder.

  Out in the middle of the channel sat his cousin Tucker. Cole had to be sure, so he got up and reached for the binoculars sitting on the console. Raising them to his eyes, he focused on the dinghy. Catching his breath in a hiss, he watched as Tucker gave him a royal salute.

  Cole lowered the binoculars and handed them to Sam. "Look out toward the middle of the river and tell me that you see him too"

  Sam frowned and brought the binoculars to his eyes. "He's there. I don't believe it. The creep is just sitting there"

  "So much for the element of surprise," Cole said.

  "Why is he just sitting there?" Sam asked, not taking his eyes off the dinghy or the man inside it.

  "I think he's telling us that our being here isn't going to bother him too much. He knows we can't go after him in the dark. For now he has the advantage"

  "Where is my gun?" Sam muttered.

  "It wouldn't do you much good anyway," Cole said.

  Sam dropped the binoculars and glared at Cole. "Why not?" said.

  "Because even if you hit him, you'd lose the only chance you have of finding your son-in case you haven't noticed, the boy isn't with him," Cole pointed out.

  Sam grumbled and brought the binoculars back to his eyes and watched Tucker for a minute or two. "What I'd like to know is how he knew we were here"

  "That doesn't matter anymore. He knows, and now it's a race to see who will win," Cole stated.

  They both heard the dinghy's motor start up, and within minutes Tucker was gone. Sam was more than disappointed. He had been within reaching distance, and there was nothing he could do. Sam was getting more than tired of playing Tucker's game.

  Around midnight Sam was startled awake by the ring of his cell phone. He had been trying unsuccessfully to get some kind of rest for his weary body. He grabbed the phone and when he whispered hello, he heard Wyatt's voice.

  "Dad, are you there?" Wyatt's voice was trembling and unsure, but it was the sweetest thing Sam had heard in days.

  "Wyatt, thank God! Are you okay?" Sam spoke softly so as not to scare away the voice on the phone. He sat up on the edge of the bed. Tears of joy and relief burned his eyes.

  "Yeah, I'm okay. Where are you?" Wyatt asked.

  There was silence on the phone for a moment, and then another voice came on the line. "Yeah, Dad, where are you?"

  Sam's relief hardened into rage at the sound of the other voice. "I'm right behind you, jerk."

  Tucker Briggs laughed. "That's what you think." The call was abruptly cut off.

  Sam reached over and snapped on the light on the bedside table. Cole groaned from the bed next to his as the light came on. Propping himself up on one elbow, he looked at Sam. "What's going on?"

  "Your cousin just called."

  Cole sat up in bed. "How did he get your number?"

  "He had Wyatt dial it."

  Sam stood and pulled on his pants. Grabbing his phone, he left the room. Cole joined him a few minutes later.

  Cole sat down quietly in one of the deck chairs and waited for Sam to speak. "What is he up to now?" Sam asked.

  Cole reached inside his pocket and pulled out a cigarette. He usually didn't smoke, but the stress of the last few days had gotten to him. He waited until the cigarette was lit before he answered. "Tucker is playing mind games with you."

  "What?" Sam whirled around and stared at Cole. "How do you know that?"

  Cole nodded. "Because that's what Tucker does. He's very good at them too. As a kid he could manipulate people into doing anything he wanted. He knew just which buttons to push. He knows that Wyatt is your button."

  "Wyatt is my son, not a button," Sam growled.

  Cole nodded. "But to get to you, he'll give you just a taste of your son, and then he'll snatch him back. Tonight was that taste. Tucker will call you back, but he won't let you talk to Wyatt again, not until it suits his purpose"

  Sam was beginning to understand, and he didn't like it. "I wonder what he meant."

  "Meant by what?" Cole asked as he flicked the cigarette over the side of the boat.

  "When I told Wyatt that I was right behind him, Tucker said that's what I thought," Sam told Cole.

  Cole swore.

  Sam turned to look at him.

  Cole had a frown on his face. "That means he got ahead of us in the last few hours. After he left in the dinghy, he must have pulled out."

  Sam glanced at his watch. It was only two A.M. They had several hours until daylight. He looked north. At the moment the river looked serene, its gentle lapping hiding a host of secrets. Tucker knew those secrets, and Sam didn't. For the moment, Tucker had the advantage, but if he thought for a second that Sam was giving up, he didn't know Sam very well.

  "Do you want to try and follow him?" Cole asked.

  Sam shook his head. "He knows this river too well. We have to wait for daylight, and he knows it."

  Cole stood up. "I'm sorry. I wish there was something I could do"

  "Go get some rest. Tomorrow is going to be a long day. One of us needs to be alert," Sam told him.

  Cole looked at Sam. "You need to rest too"

  Sam nodded. "I know, but I just can't sleep right now. I'll stay up here for a while."

  Once he was alone, Sam had time to think. He sat down in the chair Cole had vacated and stared out at the river. The serenity surrounding him calmed his raging soul but did little to quiet his thoughts.

  About an hour later his phone rang again. By that time Sam had calmed down enough to regain his composure, and he knew what was coming. He answered the call.

  Tucker's voice came over the line. "Isn't the river peaceful tonight?"

  "You know, I think I know why you travel this way. It is peaceful. Not like being stuck in the middle of the city, with all the noise and constant interruptions," Sam told him.

  "Yeah, out on the river you can hear yourself think." He hesitated, and then said, "You surprised me"

  "How?" Sam asked.

  "You followed me on the river. I wasn't expecting that"

  "You took my son. Did you really think I wouldn't come after you to get him back?" Sam asked quietly.

  Tucker chuckled. "I underestimated you. Don't worry, I won't do that again."

  "Did you call just to tell me how quiet it is on the river, or did you have something else to say?" Sam asked.

  "Aren't you interested in how your boy is doing?"<
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  Sam's hand tightened around the phone, but that was the only outward sign of tension. "I know he's still alive, and you'd better keep him that way."

  "Why should I?" Tucker wanted to know.

  "Because if anything happens to him, I will hunt you down and take great pleasure in ending your miserable life."

  Sam spoke with such conviction that even Tucker was taken aback by his tone. After a moment of silence, Tucker told him, "You have to catch me first" Then the line went dead.

  Sam smiled to himself. He'd given Tucker something to think about. The other man had to wonder just how far Sam would go, and that might be enough to keep him off balance and even things up again.

  Dawn was just breaking when Cole woke up to the engine humming underneath him. Glancing at the window, he saw the early-morning light filtering through and knew that Sam couldn't wait any longer. He joined Sam up on deck a few minutes later.

  Sam looked disheveled. Cole doubted he'd gotten any sleep. He desperately needed a shave and hadn't combed his hair. Cole didn't say a word, but instead turned around and went below. He needed to make some coffee. A few minutes later, Sam killed the motor and yelled. Cole came running back on deck.

  Cole looked at Sam and then followed his line of sight. There, half hidden by trees, was the boat on which Tucker had left New Orleans.

  Sam restarted the boat and brought it in closer to Tucker's boat. Tucker's boat looked deserted, but it was early, so not that many people were up and about yet. Cole disappeared below, and when he reappeared he had Sam's gun in one hand and his own in the other. They both boarded Tucker's boat.

  Cole took one side, and Sam took the other, and together they searched the deck. As they made their way below, everything was quiet. When they reached the sleeping quarters, the door was closed. Sam reached out a hand and turned the knob. He nodded at Cole and shoved the door open. Both men rushed into the room with their guns ready.

  Looking around, they found only a strange man passed out on the big double bed. An empty bottle of liquor lay beside his unconscious body. Empty beer cans littered the cabin floor.