A Crying Shame: A Jesse Watson Mystery (23 page)

“See, I’m afraid I won’t know what’s natural and what isn’t.”

“You have love in your heart, and that’s all that matters.”

“Oh, don’t make me cry,” I said as tears welled up. “I won’t
be able to see how to drive.”

“Hey,” Claire said as she pointed to a gas station coming up
on the right. “Pull over.”

I gave a signal, pulled into the gas station and watched as
the green Explorer passed us by.

“See,” Claire said with relief in her voice. “It wasn’t her
after all. I think we’re getting a little paranoid, and rightfully so.”

“I’m glad it wasn’t that killing machine! Why, I’d have to
put a bullet in her butt if she messed with us! And you know I would. I’d
pistol whip her in a heartbeat. I’d kick her butt from here to
New York
. She’d be so sorry that she even
considered messing with me. I’m tough and I don’t let anybody mess with my
family… that stupid scab!”

The two of us laughed—more out of fear and nervousness than
anything else. We laughed until we cried, and then we finally calmed down.

“We’ve been letting our imagination run away with us,” Claire
said as we both got out of the car. I hit the lock key and the doors
automatically locked and the horn beeped. “Hey, that was cool. I wouldn’t mind
having a car like this. How much do they cost?”

Claire smiled and said, “More than you’d care to spend, I’m
sure.”

“You’re such a highbrow, Claire. You think I can’t afford a
car like this, don’t you?”

“No, as a matter-of-fact, I’m sure Billy would buy you one of
these if you really wanted it. I’m certain you can get a decent one for around
fifty-five. Tell Billy and see what he has to say.”

“Is that like in dollars?” I asked, stunned. “You’ve got to
be kidding! You’re out of your mind, there’s not a car on the face of the earth
worth that much money.”

Claire just smiled as we entered the Miller Mart gas station.
She fled to the bathroom as I looked around and saw several other stores in the
area. It was a small town and I doubted if it was even listed on a map, but I
sure was glad to have come upon it when we did. It was just in the nick of
time! Claire was about to wet her pants. I scanned the parking lot. It was full
and all the gas pumps were in use. I went to the drink case and got each of us
a Pepsi and then walked over to the potato chip rack and grabbed a couple of
bags. I put the merchandise on the counter and then remembered that I had left
my purse in the car. I didn’t have a cent on me.

“I’ll have to run to my car. I forgot my wallet,” I said to
the clerk. For a split second, I thought about going to the bathroom and
telling Claire what I was going to do, but I figured it wouldn’t take me but a
second. I’d be back by the time she finished. When I returned with my wallet,
the guy behind the counter said to me, “It’s none of my business, but the lady
you came in with, just left by the other door and got into a green Ford
Explorer with another woman, and I don’t think she wanted to go with her. She
appeared to be resisting. Should I call the police?”

“Yes, call the police!” I screamed and then ran to the door,
leaving everything still sitting on the counter. “Did you see which way they
went?”

“They were headed south, I think.”

I ran outside and jumped in the car. I stuck the key in the
ignition, turned it, and the engine came to life. I looked at the dash and
immediately saw a problem. The gas gauge registered a quarter of a tank. At
that moment, I prayed that Claire had a large gas tank, because if she didn’t I
might not be going very far, but I didn’t have time to get gas. I had to get
moving. I pulled out onto the highway and floored the accelerator. The snow was
coming down harder than before, making my visibility extremely poor.

“Oh, no!” I cried out loud. “I have to catch up with them. I
just have to! At least they’re headed toward
Charlottesville
. Maybe I should call Billy.” I cried as I reached over and
grabbed Claire’s cell phone. I flipped it opened and dialed 911instead.

“State your emergency, please,” the dispatcher said.

“Please help me,” I screamed. “My sister’s been abducted! We
stopped at a gas station and the guy at the counter saw someone forcing her
into a car.”

“What’s your location?”

“I just left the Miller Mart on Rt. 29, heading south. I’m
probably an hour from
Charlottesville
. I don’t know the name of the town.”

“I’ll see if I can pinpoint your location,” the dispatcher
said. “Try to remain calm. What’s your name?”

“I’m Jesse Watson… I mean, Blackhawk… Jesse Blackhawk. I
haven’t been married long and…”

“Please hold on a minute, Miss Blackhawk.”

I heard static and people talking in the background. I kept
my eyes on the road as I sped down the snow-covered pavement. My rear tires
started to spin. I grabbed the 4-wheel drive lever and pulled back hard on it.
The back tires grabbed the road and I regained control. My heart was beating so
fast, I felt like I was going to choke, but I was determined to catch up with
that crazy woman before she had a chance to harm Claire. I was hoping that she
hadn’t turned off Rt. 29. If that was the case, I was in a pickle.

“Mrs. Blackhawk, are you still with me?”

“Yes, ma’am, I am.”

“Do you know the make and model of the car, or the color?”

“It was a green, Ford Explorer. It’s a fairly new model, I think.”

“Is your sister’s name, Claire Benson?”

“Yes, it is,” I responded, surprised. “How did you know?”

“That’s not important, ma’am. Just remain calm.”

The snow was coming down so hard that I could barely see the
lines in the road. The windshield fogged up as I fumbled to find the defroster
switch while still trying to keep my eyes on the road. I was scared. My sister
was going to die at the hands of a murderous psycho if I didn’t do something
fast.

“I see them!” I screamed. “I see the car!”

“We have units on the way, Mrs. Blackhawk. Please don’t…”

I slammed the phone shut and threw it on the seat.

“Sure!” I yelled out loud. “I’m going to just sit right back
and have myself a cigarette while I wait for your people to save my sister. I
don’t think so, lady! Not this time!”

The minute the words were out of my mouth, I was right up on
the bumper of the Explorer. I stomped the gas pedal and rammed the back of the
SUV. It was all I could do to keep from running off the road. I had no idea it
would be so jolting to bump the rear end of a car. My body lurched forward and
my neck snapped backwards. I felt a shooting pain in my neck run down my spine.
The next time I rammed the Explorer, I was prepared. I tensed up a little and
it kept me from flopping around like a rag doll. I prayed that Claire had on
her seatbelt. She was such a stickler for stuff like that. Even when she was
being abducted and forced into that car, I bet the first thing she did was
buckle up. I prayed that she had, because the next time I rammed the car, it
slid off the road, down an embankment, and flipped over.

The tires on the Explorer were still spinning even though it
had come to rest in the ditch. I slammed on my brakes and fishtailed to a stop,
just inches away from the drop off. I reached into the back seat, grabbed my
purse and removed my gun. With gun in hand, I got out of the car and walked
over to the edge of the embankment. Snow pelted me in the face as I looked
down. The first thing I saw was a shattered windshield covered with blood and a
puddle of blood outside the car in the snow. I fell to my knees and screamed
out Claire’s name. My voice echoed through the trees.

I stood up and hollered Claire’s name. I took off and slid
down the hill and into the ditch until I reached the car. I bent down, looked
into the window and saw a woman slumped, balled up and trapped underneath the
steering wheel. She had a gash on her forehead and it was bleeding profusely.
She wasn’t moving. I ran around to the other side and looked in. Claire, still
strapped in her seatbelt, raised her head and smiled at me. Her face was
bloody, but she was all right! I cried as I tried to figure out how to get her
out of the car. I looked around for a rock or something I could break the glass
with, and then realized that maybe I should call the police and rescue and let
them do their job. I didn’t want to do anything to make Claire’s injuries any
worse than they already were. As I stood and tried to figure out what to do, I
heard sirens in the distance.

“Claire, the police are here. Everything’s going to be okay.
Don’t move. I’m going to go flag them down. Hold on little sister.”

I climbed the hill, slipping and sliding until I finally made
it back up to the top. It was all I could do to hold back the tears as I ran
out close to the road and waved my arms. Within seconds, I was surrounded by
police cars and emergency vehicles.

One of the police cars stopped right in front of me and both
officers got out with their guns drawn. I looked at the gun in my hand and
freaked out. I immediately dropped it in the snow and raised both arms.

“It’s not me!” I yelled. “I’m the one who called you. My
sister was abducted. The car ran off the road and down the embankment. The car
flipped over and my sister, Claire, is still in it. I think the woman who
abducted her is hurt really bad, or either she’s dead. She’s bleeding…”

A state trooper walked over, picked up my gun and then told
me to put it in my car. “I assume you have a permit to carry this weapon.”

“Yes, I most certainly do,” I said as I took the gun and
walked over to the car. I opened the passenger side door, laid the gun on the
seat and then picked up Claire’s cell phone. I stuffed it in the side pocket of
my jacket. “I hope you don’t expect me to fish it out right now.”

“No, ma’am,” he said as he took me by the arm and led me over
to his cruiser. “But I’m going to have to ask you to wait in the car until
we’ve had a chance to examine the scene.”

“But what about my sister? I have to make sure that she’s all
right. There’s blood all in the car. It’s terrible. I have to help her.”

“We’ll take care of her and as soon as we get her out of the
car, someone will come get you.” He opened the car door so that I could get
in. Once I was in, he said, “Please don’t get out of the car. It’s a mess out
here and you could get hurt.” He shut the door and walked away.

I looked around. Through the falling snow, I could see cops
everywhere. One officer was directing the emergency vehicle while others kept
what little traffic that was on the road, at bay.

That was odd, I thought to myself. The trooper didn’t even
question me; he handed me back a loaded gun, and then he put me in his car. Why
didn’t he take the gun and keep it until he was sure of my identity? I could’ve
been the bad person posing as the good guy. And… how did they all get here so
quickly? I heard the whirl of a helicopter and when it set down in the middle
of the road, my questions were answered. A trooper ran over and opened the
door, and Detective Frank Trainum stepped out. The detective walked over to the
car and got in on the opposite side.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

I looked straight ahead. I was really, really angry. I was so
mad at this man, I was afraid to speak. I was afraid I would say something so
bad that he would arrest me for insulting him—if it could be done, I was sure
he would do it. I couldn’t hold back any longer. Finally, I turned to him and
said, “I should’ve known. You used us as guinea pigs to catch
Sherry Lane
. Don’t you have anything better to
do than put our lives in danger? You’re always doing something to rile me.
What’s your problem? My sister could’ve been killed. I could’ve been killed. Do
you have a desire to see me dead? What did I ever do to you? Just because my
dog made you look like an idiot in front of your men, you don’t have to spend
the rest of your career making my life miserable. Get over it. It’s in the
past. Get a life! Go aggravate somebody else.”

“Are you finished?” he asked.

“Yes, I guess I am.”

“Because if you aren’t finished, I can wait for you to say
what you have to say. I want you to get it all out. Don’t hold anything back.
Let me really have it.”

“No, I think I’m quite finished.”

“Your dog did make me look like a fool, didn’t he? I guess I
deserved it.” The detective smiled. “I was a little overzealous to make an
arrest at first, but after an extensive chat with Sheriff Hudson, I decided
that I was getting ahead of myself. The sheriff told me that Billy Blackhawk
wasn’t the kind of man to hurt anyone and if I stepped back and examined all the
facts I’d see that for myself. He assured me that Billy Blackhawk and his
brothers weren’t going anywhere. When I found out that the blood on Jonathan
Blackhawk’s clothes was animal blood, I knew right then I had made a mistake.
So I took a step back and just let everything play out.”

“We tried to tell you.”

“I could’ve arrested you for disposing of evidence. What
possessed you to do something so crazy?”