by David Boiani
10:52:03, 10:52:02, 10:52:01…
The captain looked up to see Julie Corbin walk into the station. He hurried over to her and gave her a hug.
“Julie, I’m so sorry. We’re doing everything we can and are confident we will find them.”
“Thank you, Michael. Where is John?”
“He is in my office with Detective Barnes. Julie, wait…” Captain Johnson said as Julie made a hasty charge for the office. He followed her as she entered the room.
“Mrs. Corbin, John left about an hour ago,” Ricky said.
“Detective Barnes, his truck is still here,” she replied.
Ricky gave her a puzzled look as Captain Johnson walked in to join them.
“Is he in the kitchen or waiting room?”
“I’ll check. Follow me, Julie,” the captain said as he walked out.
They searched the station, but to no avail. Julie then saw the door to the men’s bathroom. She knocked before pushing it open.
10:38:03, 10:38:02, 10:38:01…
Julie saw her husband unconscious on the floor and panic overtook her.
“John!” she yelled as she dropped down beside him and took his face in her hands. He was cold to the touch and his skin had a clammy feel to it. Rosalie rushed in and quickly soaked a towel in cold water and applied it to John’s neck, head, and face. After a few swabs, John slowly opened his eyes.
“What? Where…?”
“Shhh, just lay back,” Julie said. She held him and continued running the cold towel over him. Slowly, his color returned, and he tried to stand.
“Our children!”
“Hold on, John. Go slow. You’re dehydrated and close to exhaustion.” Rosalie returned with a glass of cold water. She proceeded to take John’s blood pressure and temperature.
“Are you a nurse?” Julie asked.
“Well, no, but I could be. I studied nursing for three years. After my mother died, I didn’t have the energy nor drive to continue, so I got a job here through my cousin, Officer Conti. He’s retired now, but I stayed. I always bring my medical supplies with me and keep them in my car or here at the station. You never know when something is needed. John, you’ve a slight fever and your blood pressure is elevated. You need to rest, eat, and drink something.”
“I can’t eat,” he said simply.
“Then drink something with some calories and nutrients. You’re going to get seriously ill if you continue down this road. Promise me you will try.”
“Okay, I promise.”
“Good boy, I’ll get you some juice, just stay here for a bit until you regain some strength.” She stood and walked out of the bathroom.
“John, are you okay? Feeling any better?” Julie asked.
‘I’m fine, help me up.”
“Not until you drink some juice like she said.” Julie got up and met Rosalie at the door and took the tall glass of juice offered. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. I need to go back to work. Take care of him.”
“Will do,” Julie said as she took the glass to her husband.
9:53:03, 9:53:02, 9:53:01…
John rallied and regained his strength. As he and Julie sat together in the waiting room, Ricky and Captain Johnson were working hard to decipher the text. There were hundreds of possible words that could be interpreted from the given letters. As they ran them through the database, nothing seemed to click as a possible hint to the site where the children were being held. The feds interpreter had just arrived and was deciphering the foreign letters.
“This is nearly impossible,” Ricky said to the captain with a shake of his head. “There may be extra letters here just to throw us off… how would we know?” As he studied the text, something that now seemed fairly obvious occurred to him. “The lowercase letters, they may be reversed. I bet they’re uppercase and the first letters of words in the hidden text.”
“You may be right. Let’s run all of the possible words starting with those letters against the database throughout Washington.”
“I’m on it.” Ricky rushed back to his computer to run the data. Captain Johnson stood in front of his desk, gazing at the row of letters.
“We’ll figure this out, you son of a bitch. Then we’re coming for you.”
9:01:03, 9:01:02, 9:01:01…
Gianna was able to loosen one loop in the knot around her wrists. She pulled the rope through and continued to work on the rest. She hadn’t heard her younger brother move or talk in quite a while, so she assumed he’d fallen back asleep. She was exhausted, hungry, thirsty, and weakening by the minute. She yanked another loop through and for the first time felt like she may be able to break free of the binds. She fought and struggled with the rope until she felt her hands slip free and the rope drop. She immediately went to work on the noose around her neck. She loosened it enough to slip it over her head. She took a step toward her brother when her feet suddenly gave way and she landed on the ground. She screamed as she saw Ryann’s body jerk as the noose around his neck tightened and his feet dangled three feet off the ground, kicking wildly. She quickly got up and tried to lift his body to alleviate the pressure from his neck. She heard his neck snap as she dropped to the ground in tears. The last thing she heard was her little brother calling her name for help: “Gianna! Gianna! Gianna!”
She opened her eyes and turned to Ryann who had been screaming her name.
“Gianna, are you awake?”
“Yes, Ryann, I am now. What’s wrong?”
“I was scared and alone. Don’t fall asleep again.”
“I’ll try to stay awake,” she replied.
“I’m thirsty.”
“Me too, but we have to fight. Daddy is coming, I know it.”
A steady breeze kicked up from the dark far corner of the tunnel, sending a chill through her body. The whole scene was dark now except for the glowing light of the camera pointed at them.
8:02:03, 8:02:02, 8:02:01…
The dark figure watched the children on the screen as he sat back and opened a drawer on the desk. He reached in and picked up an old photograph, which was frayed and worn. It was a young couple, sitting on the steps of a church. The man was glancing down at the beautiful woman with a look of intensity. Was it love that he saw in the man’s eyes, or simple lust? The woman had a radiant smile on her lips as the sun shone down, illuminating the landscape into a scene that would look at home on a postcard or the cover of a book. He stared at her, memorizing every detail and every curve on the woman’s face. The dark figure placed the picture next to the computer screen and smiled as he watched his two innocent captives struggle for their lives. Suffering, failure, loneliness, sorrow, and death will be part of your journey, but the kingdom of God will never conquer all these horrors. The nefarious will resist grace forever until finally the divine fall to the shadow of evil.
7:32:03, 7:32:02, 7:32:01…
The captain sat at his desk as Ricky walked in with a slew of pages in his hand.
“These are all of the possible words starting with the nine lower-case letters. I’m cross-referencing those words with all tunnels, passages, underpasses, burrows, mines or pits in Washington. Did the interpreters decipher the foreign letters?”
“Just finished, most are from the Middle East and Africa. Bengali, Dari, Urdu…”
“What the fuck is Urdu?” Ricky asked.
“It’s a form of Hindustani, spoken in Pakistan.”
“Okay, so what is the final sequence?”
“I will have it right about… now,” Captain Johnson said as he pushed the enter button revealing the deciphered letters.
t I A s N E A Q O g M L O S R t R A O n U T A O I E i R L f L I n O N a T
“Well, that’s much better. Send that to me and I’ll go run a new cross-reference,” Ricky said.
“On its way,” the captain replied. “Ricky?”
Ricky stopped at the doorway and looked back at his boss.
“The answer is here, let’s find it.”
6:48:03, 6:48:02, 6:48:01…
John and Julie sat and waited, their faith dwindling by the minute. Ricky had come to update them on the investigation moments ago. “We’re zeroing in on some sites, while excluding many others,” he said. “Don’t lose hope, I’m confident we’ll solve it.”
“Easy to keep hope when it’s not your children,” Julie said.
“I know, but he’s right,” John said softly. “We aren’t defeated yet. I trust my people and what they do.”
Julie put her hands together and placed them under her chin. She closed her eyes and bowed her head forward. John had only seen Julie pray a few times through their life together; once was when her father was rushed to the emergency room with acute abdominal pains. It turned out the distress was caused by an infected appendix that was removed and he was back home two days later. The other time was when their friend and John’s partner, Todd McGrath, was shot during a shoot-out at the Northgate Mall. Julie was brought up Catholic, but her faith wasn’t strong enough to bring her to church on Sundays. John always wondered about that contradiction and how many Catholics shared this part-time faith. Being a detective, John knew first-hand the thin, frail line between life and death was ruled by percentages, luck, and cause and effect. God, angels, or divine spirits couldn’t save his children. They could only be saved by the blood, sweat, hard work, and intelligence of the people looking for them. He leaned back, shut his eyes and waited.
5:44:03, 5:44:02, 5:44:01…
Ricky had produced a list of Forty-two sites throughout Washington. As he was about to leave for the captain’s office he noticed Alexis walk into the station. He went to her and they embraced before heading to his desk.
“I’ll only take a moment of your time,” she said. “I came to check on you, John, and Julie and see how the investigation was going. Can I help in any way?”
“Thank you. If you would like to visit with John and Julie, they’re in the back room. I’m sure they’ll be happy to see you.”
“I would love to see them. I’ll stop in to say goodbye before I leave,” Alexis said. She gave him a hug and walked away. Ricky entered the office and handed Captain Johnson the list.
“This it?”
“Yes, we need to narrow it down, eliminate some sites. I’m sure many of these mines and tunnels are still in use or older ones have been destroyed recently, but this is where we will start.”
“Sounds good. How’s John?”
“He looks like hell. I’m worried what this will do to him in the long run. He has never looked so old.”
“We’re all eight-year-old souls walking around in decaying bodies. Nothing deteriorates our mental and physical well-being and puts us in the grave quicker than stress. John’s a tough son-of-a-bitch, but everyone has their limits. He’ll bounce back, but only if we find them.”
“Well then, let’s do just that.”
3:32:03, 3:32:02, 3:32:01…
John left Alexis and Julie and headed for the captain’s office. He noticed the two women had formed a small bond in the short time they had known each other. He walked in and sat next to Captain Johnson.
“How much time?
“Three and a half hours. We’ve made immense progress. Actually, here comes Ricky with the final printout.”
“Guys, I’ve narrowed it down to two possible sites that fit the letters: The Great Northern Tunnel or The Iron Goat Trail. The Northern Tunnel has been temporarily closed for construction, but that has ceased for the last two months. The Iron Goat Trail has been closed and condemned for years. No other sites that fit the landscape of the video have letters that fit the text puzzle.”
John sat up. “I know of the Iron Goat Trail. It contains two tunnels that the Great Northern Railroad ran through.”
“Exactly, that’s the one.”
John then looked at the text, all in red.
Son of a bitch.
“There is a red caboose that marks the start of that trail, it’s a famous landmark. I’ve never been there, but I’ve seen pictures of it. It has to be The Iron Goat Trail Tunnels.”
“I’m sending a team to The Great Northern Tunnel, I’ll put a second team together for the Iron Goat Trail Tunnels,” the captain said.
John noticed the glance in his direction when he mentioned putting a team together.
“Ricky, you take John with you. On the way, study maps to educate yourself on the trail. It will be very dark, so getting a head start on the landscape will only help.”
“Will do, captain. John, let’s go.”
John looked at the captain as he rose to leave the office. “Thank you, sir.” The captain nodded his head and walked out. As the partners headed out, they noticed the girls waiting for them by Ricky’s desk.
“John? Did you find out where they are?” Julie asked.
“We have a pretty good idea. We’re leaving now. I’ll call if we find them.”
“No John,” Julie said, looking steadily in his eyes. “Not if, when.”
For the first time in almost a full day, a small hint of a smile flashed across his lips. “You’re right… when we find them.”
2:50:03, 2:50:02, 2:50:01…
As Ricky drove east on Route 90, John studied a map of the trails on his tablet.
“The trail contained two main tunnels: The Old Cascade Tunnel and the new, longer Second Cascade Tunnel. There are also a couple of smaller, shorter tunnels on the western side.”
Ricky glanced over as he turned north onto I-405.
“Listen to this; ‘This trail is the site of one of the worst railroad disasters in U.S. history. In 1910, an enormous avalanche on Windy Mountain swept two trains off the tracks into Tye Creek. The wreckage was horrific. Debris was strewn all over the mountain and into the creek. Ninety-six people lost their lives that night, only twenty-six survived. It took twelve days to dig the snow away from the tracks and the bodies were taken away by sled. The new Cascade Tunnel was completed in 1929, but the decaying tunnel remained, barely intact. There has been reported paranormal activity on the Iron Goat Trail. People have claimed to be touched by invisible hands, had their hair stand on end for no reason and even spotted apparitions. Some claim to have heard voices echoing through the tunnels, thought to be the screams and sobs of the people who gave their lives for the railroad.’”
Ricky glanced over at John. “Fucking wonderful. Now we have to deal with ghosts on top of a psychotic lunatic.”
Moments later, Captain Johnson called over the radio. “Men, The Northern Tunnel is a negative. You will have forty men at your disposal. The feds have the lead on this. It’s all you, boys.”
Ricky thumbed the mic’s call button. “We got it, over,” Ricky said as he turned east onto WA-522 E. John glanced out the window into the night sky, noticing the bright twinkle in the stars. Please, if you are out there, I need you to lead me to them. I need you, just this once.
2:00:03, 2:00:02, 2:00:01…
Ricky turned left onto Old Cascade Highway and half a mile later, they were out of the vehicle and joining the squad at the meeting point. Agent Daniels immediately took control.
“I want four groups of ten men. Two groups take The First Cascade Tunnel, one starting on the east and the other from the west. The other two groups take The New Cascade Tunnel doing the same. It’ll take a bit of time to hike to those points; we have spotlights that will help with the terrain. We have two hours, so let’s get to it, men.”
Ricky and John were in the group responsible for the west end of the old tunnel. They followed the Tye River north, through the mountains surrounded by a sea of evergreen and maple trees. At the end of the four-mile hike, they came to the clearing of The Wellington Trailhead. They set up a spotlight, which illuminated the west opening of the tunnel. John looked down and watched as a Pika nervously glanced at the group of men and scurried into a boxwood shrub. John glimpsed at Ricky and followed the team i
nto the tunnel.
1:45:03, 1:45:02, 1:45:01…
At three miles long, the tunnel seemed narrow, dark, and endless. At places the deterioration was so bad it was almost impassable. At these disintegrating points, the men would work at removing debris to open an alley wide enough for the men to pass through. About a mile in, Ricky turned to John. “This isn’t it, John.”
“What makes you think so?” John asked as he glanced back at the dark outline of Ricky’s face.
“Just a gut feeling. Someone taught me to follow that,” Ricky said as he smirked at his mentor. “Stop a moment.” The two men lagged behind the group. As the last of the team left their sight around a slight bend up ahead, Ricky said, “Quiet, listen. What do you hear?”
John closed his eyes and concentrated on listening. A few moments later he opened his eyes. “Nothing.”
“Correct, what do you feel?”
“Tired, angry, hopeless.”
“I mean physically.”
“Nothing.”
“Right, this isn’t the tunnel,” Ricky said.
John looked at Ricky as he shone his flashlight in his partners face.
“In the video, I could hear a faint wind. I remember your daughter’s hair fluttering in the breeze every time I watched.”
John turned towards the western end of the tunnel. “Let’s go back. There are two smaller tunnels to the west.”
Ricky nodded and glanced ahead to where their team had disappeared.
John followed his gaze and said, “No, let them go. We don’t have time to discuss this with the feds. Every second matters.”
Ricky nodded, turned back towards the west, and they re-tracked their steps and headed for the opening.