Stolen Omnibus – Small Town Abduction (27 page)

“Yeah,” Longwood answered, panting heavily. “I saw him. Hey, do you have your phone on you?”

Lena was just about done with the ropes on Gwen’s wrist. “Yeah, why do you—”

“
Mom!
” Gwen screamed, and Lena spun around.

Longwood had Kaley close to his body, and the end of his pistol was pressed against her head. “I need you to call the DA, Lena. Tell him that everything is good and that he needs to send the original paperwork, and any copies made, over to New Energy so they can make a deal.”

Lena shuffled forward on her knees, her head swirling in confusion. “Chris, what—”

“Do it now, Lena!” Longwood pressed the end of the barrel harder into Kaley’s head. “I don’t want to, but I will spray your daughter’s brains all over this kitchen if you don’t. And then I’ll move on to Gwen. Then you. Make the call.”

Lena looked down at her hands, covered in blood. They shook, then she slowly commanded them to reach into her pocket and retrieve her phone to make the call. It took her three tries to unlock it, and Longwood’s harsh barking didn’t help.

The phone rang, and Danny finally picked up. “Cutting it close, don’t you think?”

“It’s done,” Lena said. “Send the paperwork over to New Energy.”

“You’re sure?”

“Do it.” Lena hung up the phone and dropped it by her side.

“Very good, Lena. Now, up.” She complied and then backed up against the wall next to Gwen, who was still tied up. Longwood kept the pistol glued to the side of Kaley’s head and then released her with his free arm. “Now, don’t move, sweetheart.” He removed his own phone from his pocket and smiled. “This would have gone a lot easier if you’d just made the announcement, Lena.” He shook his head, pressing the phone to his ear. “Would have saved a lot of lives, and you a lot of trouble.”

“How long have you been in their pocket, Chris?” Lena asked, disgust and hate muddling her tongue.

“Long time. They paid a lot better than my deputy salary, and most of it was just having me on retainer. It wasn’t until you started poking around that they began to use me. Odd jobs here and there, have me tamper with evidence, make sure enough things landed on their side.” Longwood smiled. “And when they offered to get rid of Jake for me so I could move into the sheriff’s office, I couldn’t resist. Your brother only won the election because he looks like a Wild West movie poster. I’ll do a better job than him.”

“By working with a company that is doing everything in its power to hurt the community you serve?” Lena asked. “Is that how?”

“Get off your high horse, Lena. We all do what we need to in order to survive.” Longwood waited for someone to pick up on the other end, and when they did he nodded in approval. “Excellent. I’ll wrap up here.” He hung up the phone and placed it back in his pocket. “Looks like everything went through just fine and dandy. I appreciate the cooperation.”

Lena looked at Kaley, who was still sobbing, exhaustion finally overtaking hysteria. “It’s going to be all right, baby. Mommy’s going to keep you safe.” She smiled, and Longwood laughed.

“You’ve really started believing what you were selling, haven’t you?” Longwood shook his head. “Well, even I have to admit I voted for you in the election. But now that this is all said and done I can’t just let you walk out of here, so this is what we’re going to do.” He picked Kaley up and backtracked toward the kitchen exit. “I’m going to take Kaley in the living room, where those dead men are, and you’re going to follow me.” He waited near the hall. “C’mon, now.”

Lena stepped forward slowly, looking back behind her to Gwen. She passed Longwood slowly and then took a right into the living room, taking her place among the dead.

Longwood motioned for her to go a little farther into the room with the flick of his pistol. “Stand in the middle. There you go.” He set Kaley down and pointed the gun at Lena from his position in the hallway. “You’ll make the news, Lena. You’ll go down valiantly as a mother who sacrificed everything to save her children. But fell short.” He looked around at the scene and nodded. “If only Sheriff Longwood had gotten there sooner, then the Hayes family might have survived.” He smiled. “Goodbye, Lena.”

The gunshot was loud, and the sharp pain in Lena’s gut dropped her to her knees, but what she saw in front of her couldn’t have been right. Longwood was on the floor, half of his brain on the old floorboards. Kaley was standing there, screaming. She looked down to her stomach, and when she removed her hands she saw the blood welling up from her abdomen. It hurt, but it was warm, and then it was cold.

Kaley rushed over and wrapped her arms around Lena’s neck. “Mommy! Mommy! What’s wrong? Mommy!” It was all her daughter could manage to say, but just hearing Kaley’s voice helped ease the pain from the gunshot.

“It’s okay, baby. Everything’s okay.” And just before Lena fell to her side she saw Ken stagger into the living room. He limped forward with only one good leg, his hand over his right hip and blood staining his pants. His face looked how she must have felt. “My phone,” Lena said, her voice drifting. “Call for… help.”

Chapter 13 – Six Weeks Later

The cell was exactly six feet wide and eight feet long. The walls were a gloomy grey, and the commode that sat in one corner made the cot that rested right next it smell like shit. No mirror. No pictures. No window. Only three walls and a reinforced-steel door with a tiny window with clouded glass.

Jake sat on the edge of the cot, staring at the floor. His sheriff’s uniform had been exchanged for county blues, which he filled out with the extra twenty pounds he’d put on. His short hair had lengthened as well, and his clean-shaven face had grown a thick scruff.

If there was one thing he couldn’t stand about prison, it was the inactivity. Never in his life had he been forced to stay in one location for so long. It was maddening. And with the number of people he’d arrested and jailed in the county, he was never allowed to be alone with the rest of the inmates. For the past six weeks it’d been nothing but sitting, shitting, and sleeping. All of it in the same goddamn room.

Three knocks on the door, and Jake stood and marched to the rear of his cell with his hands on top of his head. The metal hinges of the cell door squealed as the correctional officers stepped inside. The steel restraints dangled in their hands, and one of them held a baton. “Time for your judgment, Sheriff.” The officer cracked a smile that was slightly masked under a bushy mustache.

Restraints were placed on Jake’s wrists and ankles then connected together with a steel bar, rendering him nearly immobile except for the few inches he could shuffle forward with his feet. He was escorted to an armored truck and then chained to the long metal bench in the back. An officer, completely decked out in tactical gear, rode with him in the back, while two more sat in the front.

The only banter was between the three correctional officers. Jake closed his eyes and rested his head against the truck’s interior, letting the vibrations of the road give his mind the first piece of stimulation in weeks.

It was a long ride, and by the time they arrived at the courthouse Jake was so stiff that the SWAT officer that rode with him in the back had to lift him up off the seat. The lack of exercise and added weight had left his body a mushy skeleton of his former self.

On their approach to the courthouse a swarm of reporters shouted questions from behind the police tape that had been set up to provide Jake safe passage inside. He didn’t answer, and when he passed through the doors of the building the noise ended.

Inside, Jake struggled to keep pace with the officers’ hurried steps. He was taken down the long hallways then led through a door that revealed the courtroom. The room was nearly full, but he still managed to find Lena’s face in the crowd. It was pale and frightened, but she was alive. He offered a smile to try and boost her spirits, but her complexion didn’t improve. She sat stiff and rigid, her arm clutched protectively over the still-healing wound of her stomach.

Once Jake stood next to his attorney, the officers removed the connecting feet and ankle shackles and allowed him to sit down unencumbered. Jake stretched, but with the angry, armed guards still behind him he was careful not to move too quickly.

“How are you feeling?” The attorney that Lena had managed to provide was a former colleague of hers at law school and now owned his own practice. He was the only peer in her graduating class that had a higher GPA than she did. He was the valedictorian.

“I’ll be better once this is over.” The court proceedings weren’t even the longest part of the process. It was the investigation that had taken up the most time. And with the amount of evidence that Longwood had tampered with, it created a nightmare for the prosecution.

“All rise for the honorable Judge Baynor.”

The courtroom stood, and the lawyer leaned in to Jake’s ear once again. “You did great on the stand. We painted the best picture that we could. It won’t be as bad as you think it will.”

“Be seated.” Judge Baynor smacked the gavel, calling the court to order. He adjusted his robes and then shuffled a few pieces of paper on his desk. “I have lingered on this case for over a week now. Jake Cooley, you were found guilty by a group of peers of second-degree manslaughter. While I have no doubt that when you shot Pete Wurstshed there was no intention of murder, you were there under violent pretenses.” He paused, looking back down to his notes. “However, your previous employment with the Dunn County Sheriff’s Department and your exemplary record with them reveal a man who has done nothing but uphold the law and do his best to keep order even under extraordinary circumstances.” He removed his glasses and looked Jake in the eyes. “But a man who uses the badge at all costs to prevent a crime can be just as dangerous as a man who ignores the laws completely.” He shifted his gaze toward the attorney. “Counsel, are you ready for sentencing?”

“We are, your honor.”

“Rise.”

Jake stood, and the steel cuffs around his wrists suddenly felt abnormally tight. His stomach churned from the bundle of nerves that nestled itself firmly in the pit of his gut.

“Jake Cooley, North Dakota classifies second-degree manslaughter as a Class B felony with up to ten years in prison and up to ten thousand dollars in fines. Taking into consideration the elements of the case as well as the defendant’s lack of a criminal record, I hereby sentence you to three years in prison and seven years of probation.” The gavel smacked, and the courtroom burst into chatter.

The attorney grabbed Jake’s arm and gave a solemn nod. “Well, we knew that would most likely be the minimum. You might be able to get out early for good behavior, but we can cross that road when we come to it.” He extended his hand and shook Jake’s. “Best of luck to you, Jake.”

The attorney left, and the probation officers escorted Jake back to the door from which he entered. Before he passed through, Jake turned around and found Lena still seated on the bench, tears streaming down her face. He smiled but never got a chance to see her reaction as the door slammed shut.

***

Ken bounced his knee nervously and had to continually brush the hair out of his face. The pain in his hip didn’t make the sitting and waiting any easier, but it felt good to be out of the hospital. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the pain meds the doctor had given him. He popped one in his mouth and then downed it with the rest of the coffee in his tiny Styrofoam cup. He’d already reached his limit for how many he could take in a day. And it was only one in the afternoon.

The door opened, and a man with a crew cut and dressed in a suit sat down with a folder. “All right, Mr. Lang, I think we have everything set.” He shuffled the papers out of the folder methodically, three portions neatly packed and paper-clipped. “You have everything you need in regard to documentation once you arrive. New passports, medical information, identifications, as well as a brief personal history for each member of your family that should be memorized prior to your arrival in Finland.”

Ken played with the corner of the plastic covering of the papers. “And when do we leave?”

“The sentencing of John Alwitz will happen in the next few hours, and you’ll be on the plane soon after.” The agent leaned forward, his hands clasped together. “We appreciate everything that you were able to provide for us in regard to your previous employer along with the rest of your history in DC politics. It was very… helpful.”

And easy. Ken spilled on everyone. Throughout his career he’d worked with some of the vilest individuals on the planet. They were the types of villains you’d see in a movie or television show, almost as if they were caricatures of their former selves. But out of all of them New Energy had taken the cake. They’d done anything to cut costs and expand. Every charge that Lena Hayes failed to stick them with for making all of those kids sick was returned to them one hundred fold when the FBI discovered all of their off shore accounts and shady deals with cartels and dictators down in South America. Their planned expansion as a global exporter in oil was dashed the day after Kaley Hayes was found and their dirty laundry was sprayed all over the internet. “I’d like to see my family now.”

The agent nodded. “They’re in the next room. My partner should be done with them soon.”

When Ken stepped into the anteroom, it wasn’t much different from the small box that he’d been stuffed inside. But when he saw Sasha’s and Tommy’s smiles, he couldn’t have cared less where he was.

“Dad!” Tommy bounced in his seat, and his face lit up.

“Hey, buddy!” Ken rushed over to him and scooped him up gently. All of the treatments had left his son’s body in shambles, but you’d never guess it with the amount of energy he had. The only physical signs of his symptoms were the pallid color of his cheeks and the braces around his limbs. “Did they let you change your name to what you wanted?”

Sasha laughed. “Unfortunately Captain Super Awesome Fantastic doesn’t translate well into Finnish.”

“It doesn’t have to be in Finnish, though.” Tommy shrugged then whispered into Ken’s ear. “I don’t really want to live in Finland.”