A New Journey (Second Chance #3)

by Christina Escue

  “Maddie!” Mallie yelled when she saw her twin being carried out into the open.

  “I’m fine Mallie. I think my leg is broken, but I’m fine.” She reassured her sister. “Can you call dad? He’s at work, but I think I can get them to take me to his hospital.”

  “They’re waiting for all of you.” Leslie said from beside Malinda. “I called Andrew and he talked to your dad. I’m going to call him back now that they’ve found you. Your dad is worried sick.”

  “Thank you, Mrs. Peterson.” Maddie said as tears started running down her face. “I think the lady that was in the restroom with me is dead. I tried to pull her into a stall when the ceiling started falling, but I wasn’t quick enough and I fell.”

  “Madison,” Trent said from behind her. “She’s alive. She’s unconscious, but alive.”

  Maddie buried her face in her hands and starting crying at his words and she continued to cry all the way to the hospital.

  Chapter Six

  When the ambulances arrived at the hospital Andrew and Ron met them at the bays. “Who’s worse?” Andrew asked the paramedics.

  “Her name is Helen Martin, according to her ID, and she’s unconscious with head trauma. She’s twenty–three years old and lives in Hermitage.”

  “Okay, I got her. Ron, you can take Maddie and Elliot and Mallie can go with Karen and Brenda. They’ll keep us updated.” Andrew said as he led the paramedics down the hall and into a curtained off room. Once they had her on the bed he started examining her.

  Ron led them to the room next to that one and got Maddie situated on the bed. “Madison, care to tell me what happened?” He asked his daughter as he started examining her.

  “We were waiting in line at the snack counter; Jason, Dana and Nathan had already went into the theater to save our seats, but I had to go to the bathroom. Mallie and Elliot said they’d order everything and when I came out I could help them carry it all in so I went to the bathroom. I was just coming out of the stall when I heard the explosion and everything started falling around me. I saw the lady walking toward the exit and I tried to grab her, but I wasn’t fast enough so I crawled under the sinks to protect myself from the falling ceiling.”

  “How did you hurt your leg?”

  “I thought it was over so I crawled out to check on the lady. Another part of the ceiling fell so I tried to dive out of the way, but again, I wasn’t fast enough and it hit my leg. Daddy, I think it’s broken.”

  “I think it is too, but I’m going to get an x-ray of it to see how badly.”

  “Dr. Carpenter?” They heard a voice say from the other side of the curtain.

  “Yes?” He answered.

  “We have six more busses headed our way. One of them is a young girl with severe trauma to her lower extremities and we’re going to need you. Dr. Peterson said to let you know they’re two minutes out.”

  “I’ll be fine, Daddy, go. They need you and anyone can read an x-ray film.” Maddie told him when she noticed the look on his face. He was torn between helping her and his duty as a doctor.

  “I love you, Madison. I’ll be back as soon as I can.” He said and kissed her forehead before he walked out of the room.

  Five minutes later Elliot and Mallie walked in the room. “You’re okay.” Mallie beamed at her twin. “I was so worried.”

  “I’m okay. Are you two okay?” She asked when she noticed Elliot’s arm was in a sling and Mallie had a thick bandage on her head.

  “We’re good.” Elliot said with a grin. “I have a dislocated elbow and Mallie has stitches in her head, but no permanent damage.”

  “I’m waiting on x-ray, but I’m pretty sure my leg is broken.” Maddie told them then looked at her hands. “I was so scared. I thought I was going to die in that bathroom.”

  They were all quiet for a minute before Elliot spoke. “Maddie, I thought we were all going to die. The explosion happened in the theater at the end of the hall next to the men’s restroom so you were closer than we were to it, but things started falling out there. Mallie was hit in the head by something and my arm was caught under a popcorn machine. Then we couldn’t find you, Jason, Dana or Nathan and we freaked out a little. When Jason, Dana and Nathan came out of the theater covered in dust, but not hurt, we started panicking.”

  “Then Karla showed up.” Mallie told her. “She had her friends with her and they made them look for you. Apparently she knows a couple of the cops that were there.”

  “Captain McGraw and Detective Greeves are the ones who helped Karla almost two years ago.” Elliot explained and the girls nodded. They knew part of the story, but never asked about the rest.

  “Karla really came through for us.” Mallie said with a grin. She really liked Elliot’s older sister.

  “Karla is the best.” Elliot said with a smile.

  “Aww, thanks, little brother.” Karla said from the edge of the curtain. “I looked in your room and you weren’t there so I came looking for you. I wanted to let you know we’re here and Dad said you and Mallie are fixing to be released.”

  “Karla, thank you for helping us today.” Maddie said from the bed. “Without you I don’t know how long I would have been trapped in that bathroom.”

  “Trent and John would have found you. They’re two of the best.” Karla told her with a grin. “They found me after all and I didn’t even know I needed to be found.”

  “Still, if you hadn’t been there they wouldn’t have known to look for me. They would have searched the areas, but not specifically for me and that makes a difference. When Detective Greeves called my name outside that door I was relieved. I knew I’d be alright.”

  “I’m glad I was there to help.” Karla told her then grinned. “I thought John was going to punch that mall security officer when he wouldn’t let us through.”

  “I would have loved to see that.” Elliot said with a grin.

  “Okay, kids, party’s over.” Nathan Parks said as he walked through the door with the x-ray machine. “Anyone who doesn’t need an x-ray needs to step outside for a minute.”

  “We’ll be back when he leaves.” Mallie told her sister and gave her hand a squeeze before they all walked out into the hall.

  “She’s going to be alright.” Karla reassured Mallie as she stood there and looked at the closed curtain.

  “I know. I was just so worried about her and now I don’t want to be separated from her at all.”

  “I know how you feel.” Karla said and rubbed Elliot’s hair and for once he didn’t duck out of her reach.

  Chapter Seven

  Later that afternoon, after they all got home, Trent stopped by the house. When Karla answered the door she immediately stepped aside and let him in. “Hey, Trent.” She said once the door was closed behind him. “Mom and Dad are in the kitchen.”

  “Okay. Wanna come?” Trent asked.

  “You know I do.” She answered and led the way into the other room.

  “Andrew, Leslie, how’s Elliot?” Trent asked as soon as he walked into the kitchen.

  “He’s doing pretty well. Aside from a dislocated elbow and a few bruises he’s fine.” Andrew answered. “Now I’m assuming you’re here about the explosion.”

  “You assume correctly. I need to ask Elliot a few questions and then I’ll tell y’all what happened.”

  “I’ll run up and get him.” Karla volunteered and was gone before anyone could say anything.

  “Can I get you a cup of coffee or something else to drink while we wait?” Leslie asked Trent.

  “Sure. I’ll take a cup of coffee, black please.” Trent answered and Leslie hopped off the bar stool and poured him a cup, She was handing it to him when Karla and Elliot walked into the kitchen.

  “Detective Greeves, Karla said you wanted to see me.” Elliot said as he sat down at the table. Karla walked to the refrigerator, grabbed two cans of Coke and sat beside Elliot before Trent started talking.

  “I just need to ask you a few questions about what happened today.
” Trent said as he sat on the chair opposite Elliot.

  “Sure, but I don’t remember seeing anything.” Elliot told him with a look of confusion on his face.

  “You may not remember seeing anything, but you may have seen more than you think you did.” Trent said and Elliot shrugged his shoulders. “I just want to ask you a couple of questions. If you didn’t see anything that’s okay. When you went into the theater did you see anyone acting nervous?”

  “No, but I really wasn’t paying attention to anyone except my friends.”

  “Madison said she saw a man that kept looking around, but she thought he was looking for someone.” Karla told Trent.

  “Yeah, I saw him too. He was wearing blue jeans and a black t-shirt.” Elliot told him. “I saw him again while we were in line for snacks. He was with a woman and they were walking back toward the restrooms. Now that you mention it, I never saw them come out.”

  “Okay, do you remember anything else about those two?”

  “She was wearing blue jeans and a black tank top. She had long, dark hair but that’s all I remember.”

  “Wait a second.” Karla interrupted them. “I saw her too. Before you went into the theater Callie, Rylee, Kiara and I were in the food court and we saw you waiting in line at the ticket counter with your friends, but I wasn’t going to bother you so we decided to head to the dress shop. She had a really big bag with her, like a beach bag type bag and she was walking toward the theater. We passed pretty close to her. Close enough that I noticed she had brown eyes and a nasty looking scar on her left cheek.”

  “Her name is Helen Martin, according to her ID, and she’s the lady who was trapped in the restroom with Madison.”

  “Oh my gosh.” Karla said in shock.

  “What do she have to do with the explosion?” Leslie asked Trent.

  “We think the man she was with is Mitchell Torretto. He’s wanted in several states for theater bombings that have killed hundreds of people. We were very lucky today, no one was killed, but a lot of other theaters haven’t been so lucky.”

  “Oh my gosh.” Karla said again and shook her head. “I have been following that story for weeks. The police have labeled him The Theater Bomber, but he’s concentrated mostly up north. Places like New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. I never thought he would come this far south.”

  “None of us did either, but the profile fits. He always gets a local girl to help him smuggle the bomb in and he always leaves her behind right before the bomb explodes. This time the scapegoat was Miss Helen Martin, a twenty-three year old who was recently kicked out of her parents’ house. That’s his MO, he preys on a young woman who is down on her luck and takes advantage of her. He messed up this time though. Miss Martin didn’t die in the explosion like the others have.”

  Chapter Eight

  The next couple of days passed quickly. Madison was released from the hospital after undergoing surgery to realign the bones in her leg. She’d be in a cast and on crutches for weeks to come, but she was alive and she would heal. Elliot, Mallie and Maddie all three identified the same guy from a picture line-up and it was confirmed that he was Mitchell Torretto, The Theater Bomber.

  “We’re pretty sure he’s left town.” John told Andrew when he stopped in to see what was going on. “He doesn’t know Miss Martin survived so he has no reason to stick around. Apparently he leads the women helping him to believe that they are transporting drugs and the deal is going to take place in the darkened theater so no one will see. After the previews start he tells them he’s going to the restroom to meet the man buying the drugs, but they are supposed to stay with the bag so no one steals it. Miss Martin started getting nervous after he was gone for a few minutes and decided to just leave the bag on the floor and go to the restroom herself. She was in there for a few minutes before the explosion happened so she didn’t know that the film broke and everyone was shifted to the other theater that was showing the same movie because neither was full. That technical malfunction saved several lives. If anyone had been in the theater at the time of the explosion they wouldn’t have made it out.”

  “So it was pure luck his bomb didn’t kill anyone.” Andrew said in awe as he shook his head. “What about Miss Martin? Is she going to be charged?”

  “She is, but not yet. She is terrified he’s going to find out she’s alive and come back to finish the job so for the moment she’s in witness protection. Until we find him we have to keep her alive. We may know where he’s heading next though. Apparently he tells them where they`re going with the money from the drugs and we have already contacted the authorities there and told them to keep a close eye on their theaters.”

  “Are Elliot and the girls in danger from him?” Andrew asked in concern.

  “We don’t think so. Other people have seen him in passing or waiting to meet the young woman he’s meeting, that’s how we know what he looks like, but nothing has ever happened to them.”

  “That’s good. Now I have to get to the hospital. My shift starts in thirty minutes and I’ll never make it if I don’t leave now.”

  “We’ll watch out for your family, Andrew.” John promised as he shook Andrew’s hand.

  “I know you will, John. Thank you for meeting with me.”

  “Any time, my friend, any time.”

  Once Andrew was gone John leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. He was still sitting there thinking five minutes later when there was a knock on his door. “Come in.” He said gruffly.

  “Sir, we just got word from Memphis PD that they picked up someone matching Torretto’s description.” The uniformed officer said when he walked in.

  “Can you get them back on the line for me please? I would like to talk to the officer who picked him up.”

  “He’s still on line four, sir. I thought you’d wanna talk to him so I put him on hold.”

  “Thank you.” John said and the officer knew he was dismissed. When the door clicked closed behind him John picked up his desk phone. “Captain John McGraw, who am I speaking with?”

  “Captain McGraw, I’m Officer Oliver Henderson.”

  “Officer Henderson, what can you tell me about the man you picked up earlier today?”

  “Well, Sir, I was running routine traffic early this morning when I spotted a black sedan with Davidson County tags run a red light. I blue lighted him and he immediately pulled over, but before I got out of my cruiser I ran the tags. It came back registered to a Helen Martin, but I knew that a man was driving because I had seen his face. Anyway, when I got out and asked for his license, registration and insurance he had it all ready for me, but something felt off so I went back to my cruiser and ran the name on his driver’s license and popped as one of the victims of one of the New Jersey theater bombings. That’s when the name on the registration clicked with me and I was pretty sure I was dealing with The Theater Bomber. I immediately called in backup and within two minutes the car was completely surrounded.”

  “Did he cooperate with y’all?”

  “He did not. He punched one of the other officers and tried to run, but one of the K9’s stopped him and after we had him cuffed the bomb sniffing K9 alerted us to a horde of explosive making equipment in the trunk of the car. We knew we had him.”

  “Very good work. I’ll start the paperwork to have him extradited here and I’ll contact New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. I’m sure they want him worse than I do.”

  “I’ll let my Captain know to be watching for the paperwork, sir. I’m glad I was where I was this morning.”

  “I am too, Officer Henderson, and I’m sure a lot of other people will be too. If you can fax me the info I’d really appreciate it. Thank you again. I’ll be in touch.” John said and hung up the phone. He sat there for a minute before he heard the fax machine start ringing. Once everything was printed he took a deep breath, grabbed the papers and walked out of his office and into his Detective’s Bull Pen.

  “Listen up everyone.” He said in his best commandin
g voice and the room fell silent. “Earlier this morning one Mitchell Torretto was picked up for running a red light just inside the Memphis city limits. He was driving Helen Martin’s car and through the use of bomb sniffing K9’s the components for building an explosive device were found in the trunk of said car. I spoke with the arresting officer and will be sending the extradition papers today. Hopefully within the next couple of days he will be back in Nashville to face charges here, then I am sure he’ll be off to face even harsher charges in the other states. Good work ladies and gentlemen. Greeves, good call on the guess that he’d go the opposite direction of what he told Miss Martin.”

  The Bull Pen erupted in cheers and some words John didn’t care for, but he let them slide because today was a victory for all the victims of this scumbag. “Captain?” Trent said from beside him. “Can I be the one to tell the Peterson’s and Carpenter’s?”

  “Sure thing.” John answered him with a rare smile. “They’ll appreciate it coming from you.”

  “Thank you, sir.” Trent said before he walked back to his desk and grabbed his keys. “I’ll be back as soon as possible.” He shouted over the noise and walked out.

  Chapter Nine

  Over the next few weeks things calmed down a little and they all started to get back into their normal routine. The day after Karla’s birthday Leslie took her to the DMV to test for her driver’s license. When they walked into the house later that afternoon Elliot and Kiara were sitting at the kitchen table. “How’d it go?” Kiara asked.

  Karla didn’t say anything, but she reached into her pocket and tossed her license on the table in front of her siblings. “Congratulations.” Elliot said with a grin.

  “Not only did she pass, but she passed with a top score.” Leslie told them with pride. “I’m a very good teacher.”

  “Yes you are. Now I have to find a way to get a car.” Karla said and sat at the table. “I could start babysitting. There are a lot of families in the neighborhood with small children.”