by Apryl Baker
“Um…”
“Jesse, where is Pearse? Now.”
I hear my father’s voice. “Jesse, who was—Chet?”
“The man of the house. Just the person I was looking for, Mr. Pearse McCoy.”
“What’s this about, Chet?”
“Chantelle.”
“Do you know where she is?”
“She’s alive and well…unlike you’ll be in a bit.”
“Leave my family out of this, whatever it is. It’s between you and me,” he says as my brother and sister come in the room, and Dad uses his body to shield us.
“Now, I can’t do that, bro-in-law. Because Chantelle said, ‘Make sure they all die.’”
“Why? I’m not understanding any of this,” I croak.
“Well, since a missing person can’t sign divorce papers, if you die…your family dies…she will get everything when she reappears. So, let’s get the party started.”
“You won’t get away with whatever you’re planning. Aedan will be back any moment.”
“I’m sure I will, because I passed the guys on my way in, and I’ve been pretty good at not getting caught for over a year.”
“A year?”
“Yes, took me a while to get in past the watchdogs, but I did eventually. I’m sure you saw some of my handiwork in the emails I sent you.”
“That was you?”
“Who else would have those amazing pictures of you all tied up? Oh, don’t let me forget your house. Did you like that beautiful montage I left for you in the bathroom? That took me a while to do. I hope you were able to enjoy it before your boy-toy whisked you away.”
“You ruined my house…what happened to you?” I beg for an answer.
“You.”
“I didn’t do anything to you. I loved you.”
“And I loved your money.” He shrugs. “Let’s recreate some of the pictures, Jesse. I have plenty of rope. Anyone tries making a move, I’ll shoot them.”
All of us huddle together.
“Move the chairs in a row and sit in them with your hands behind you…except you, Jesse. You’re going to tie everyone up. Reese, Tierney, and Pearse…sit in that order. Jesse, tie their feet to the chair and run the rope underneath, then tie their hands to the chair. Tie them tight. If not, I will shoot you.”
“Okay.” Fear for my family’s safety consumes me, but I figure out a plan. I tie everyone up like he’s instructed, except for my dad.
“Done.”
“Sit down and tie your legs to the chair,” he commands.
I take my time, allowing my dad to remove the ropes from his hands without being seen.
A gust of warm air hits my left side as a loud crack rattles my bones, shaking everything around me as my father screams out in pain. I don’t want to look, but I have to see if my father is still alive.
“Now you get to watch your father slowly die, if the fire doesn’t kill you all first. Give me your hands, Jesse.”
I place my hands behind my back. Chet’s cold, dry hands grab them, and he roughly ties them one by one to the chair. He moves on to my father and ties his hands then his body to the chair.
He smirks as he leaves the room and the house, then returns carrying kerosene jugs that we keep out in the garage for the heaters.
“Aedan will hunt you down…”
“Oh, that’s where you’re wrong. He won’t know it’s me who did this.” He pours the fuel around the house. “Goodbye.” He laughs and flicks the match he lit with his front teeth, then shuts the door.
The fire starts in the entryway, giving us a small window of time to get out. I look over at my dad and see he’s still conscious, and my brother and sister are trying to get out of their ropes.
“Jesse, just worry about getting everyone else loose and get out of this house.”
“I’ll get Reese, if you get Dad, Jesse,” Tierney yells.
“Yes. I’m not leaving this house without you because we have a lot we need to talk about, Dad. Way too much.”
“Damn it, listen to me.”
“No. I have to get you untied to get out of this house alive so I can have the chance to be mad at you.”
Over the soft crackles of the fire, I hear a car speed away. I hope, anyway. We might have a chance to get out of this alive.
“Dad, I’m going to try to scoot over to you and try to untie your hands with my hands, okay?”
“Yes, I’ll try to move.”
The smoke starts to roll above us, and the lights flicker on and off through the smoke and I don’t know if it’s from the fire that’s starting to consume the house or the raging storm outside causing the problems with the lights. Pops and crackles echo around us as the flames engulf the furnishings. The house goes dark, except for the fire that’s making its way toward us, fast.
I try to scoot my chair-bound body to my father, but I don’t budge. Stupid chair. I try again, using what I can of my feet and my body’s momentum to move to my father.
When I make it to my dad, his hands are cold and clammy, even though it’s getting hot in the room. I can’t see the front of him, just the back where his hands are. Working with my one hand is getting me nowhere quickly.
“I fucking hate you, Chet! Why did you do this to my father, to my family, to me?” I scream at no one and start coughing from the smoke I inhaled.
“Jesse…leave me. Save…your brother and sister and your…self.” I barely hear him say over his coughs.
“I’m not leaving without everyone!” I scream. And I go back to trying to get the ropes again.
Glass shattering behind us scares me. What in the hell is going on now? I don’t know if the window broke because of the fire or if a tree is falling from the raging storm outside. I go back to trying to get the ropes untied, because I can’t give up.
“Jesse? Pearse?” the voice calls out.
“Teirney, Reese?” another voice shouts.
“Aedan! We’re in here—” I start coughing and can’t finish my sentence.
“I can see you, and I’ll be there in a few moments. Try not to breathe in the smoke.”
I hear him talking to someone outside.
“Aedan, my father has been shot. He needs a doctor.”
He doesn’t reply.
“Aedan?”
“Jesse, I’m right here. Hold still.” He puts something up to my face. “Breathe this. Sam is calling for help. Are you hurt anywhere?”
I take a deep breath of oxygen, then pull the mask away from my face. “No. It was Chet. Chet did this…all of this for Chantelle.”
He doesn’t say anything but I can feel his hands on me, pulling on the ropes. The ropes pull tight around my feet then go slack. I can move my arms, and now my legs.
“Jesse, you’re free. Give me a second and I’ll have your dad free.”
“Okay.” I cough.
“Pearse, Pearse, hang with me, man.”
“Get…my children…” he mumbles before he starts coughing and can’t get another word out.
“We got them. Let me get you out of here too. I’m going to lift you up. Do you think you can walk?”
There’s no response from my dad.
“Jesse, I’m going to get your dad over my shoulder and then you follow me out, okay? Don’t be afraid. I’ve got you. Sam has your brother and sister.”
“Okay. We need to hurry. The fire is almost to us.”
I hear my father groan and I barely can make out Aedan’s silhouette with my father over his shoulder. His hand grabs my arm and pulls me back in the direction of where he entered. The smoke rushes around us. The hand that is guiding me leaves my arm, along with all the hope I was holding on to. We aren’t going to make it.
I can only see the flames racing toward us. Everything around me becomes spotty, and the darkness creeps in. I no longer have control over my body and my legs give out as I feel Aedan’s arms wrap around me. He picks up, carrying me through the window.
I try to open my eyes, but they’r
e burning from the smoke. Rain pelts my face and it stings my hot flesh. Aedan is breathing heavily as he jogs as fast as he can with my exhausted body. I feel heat and he pushes us down to the ground as a loud boom shakes the earth followed by pieces of the house hitting us and the ground around us. The smell of Aedan encloses me as I let the darkness protect me.
Chapter Twelve
Aedan
“Jesse? Sam! What’s the ETA on help?” I yell as I pull myself off Jesse’s warm body and check for a pulse. I think she’s just fainted. I pick her up and carry her down the small ridge to the stable.
“The main entrance bridge is out, so they have to reroute to the service entrance. I think I have pressure on McCoy’s wound, but I’m not sure. There’s too much blood to be certain.”
“Pulse?”
“Weak, but he has one.”
“Fuck! We should have been back sooner.”
“Man, we got them all—”
“I know, but I want Chet. He can’t be too far away.”
“We’ll get him. Let’s make sure everyone is okay first, man.”
I finally hear big trucks in the distance.
“We need to be on guard. If that bridge is out, he might come back this way to get out if that’s where he went.”
“The bridge could have been there when he went through.”
“Let’s hope not. I want my chance at him,” I shout as the thunder drowns out my reply.
“Hey! Over here,” Sam yells. “I think that’s Doc Monroe’s associates.”
Several people carrying bags and backboards come running toward us and quickly take over the scene. I have to let go of Jesse’s body even though I don’t want to. I know the paramedics need to assess her. Even though I declined medical treatment, the smoke inhalation treatment is necessary, so I can avoid going to the clinic in their ambulance.
They’re rushing McCoy to a clinic in Twin Falls because he’s lost a lot of blood. Jesse still hasn’t come to and they are transporting her to the clinic for further breathing treatments and observation. Reese and Tierney are going to be with Pearse and Jesse. Sam and I will be following once we know for sure that Chet is gone.
The ranch hands try their best to put the flames out, but at this point, it’s a total loss. Being in the middle of nowhere with no fire hydrants and dealing with a dangerous storm, it’s hard to contain a fire that that was set on purpose. The McCoys are headed to the clinic and Dr. Monroe will attend to everyone once he arrives in Twin Falls in a few hours. Sam and I get in the SUV and head toward the defunct bridge.
Lightning dances as the rain pounds on the windows, forcing us to stop the SUV before we get to our destination. I turn on my phone’s GPS to see how far away we are, and we’re closer than I thought.
“We’re only an eighth of a mile away.”
“It’s raining too hard to risk getting closer.” He glances at his phone. “It looks like it might be letting up here in about ten or fifteen minutes. Let’s get our plan together in case he made it across.”
“All right.” I switch from the GPS on my phone to a map. Lightning hits a tree nearby and the bright white light blinds us both, but the sound of trees falling has Sam clumsily reaching for the gearshift, jerking the SUV in reverse. When he decides we’re a safe distance from the trees, he puts the engine in park.
“Damn. That was intense,” I tell him.
“Never a dull moment with you, man,” he says as he rubs his eyes.
My vision returns to normal and I look up at the trees that might have fallen. The rain is so heavy that nothing beyond the front bumper of the SUV can be seen. Hopefully the storm can cooperate enough for us to get our heads on straight. Planning, take two.
The rain slows and the moonlight peeks through the clouds. We can see in front of us and everything is surreal. What used to be a beautiful scenic countryside drive is a now a road full of downed trees, branches, and mud.
“Do you want to take a chance and drive through these trees?”
“I think we can make it without a problem. Pearse had the vehicle upgraded for off-roading and steep climbs. If we get to a tree that’s too big to go over, we’ll turn around.”
“Buckle up!” The dash lights reflecting off his face reveals a grin.
“Always when you’re driving,” I tell him.
The roar of the SUV’s engine is the only sound that is heard as we slowly make our way to where the bridge should be. The headlights reflect on water and splintered lumber where the bridge stood a short time ago. Sam stops a few hundred feet before the bridge, so we can get out. I unsnap my holster, just in case Chet is hiding in the trees. He’s armed and dangerous.
I haven’t been around water rushing like this before and it makes me a little nervous, but I look downstream and I gape.
“Hey, Sam, are those lights shining from out of the water?”
“It’s probably the moon reflecting off the…shit. I think you’re right. But how?”
“I’m not sure. Let’s call Craig to see if he can get someone out here. We need a diver to see for sure.”
“I’m sure no one will do anything until daylight. It’s too dangerous.”
“Probably. I’ll call him now.”
After giving the details to Craig, he makes a few calls and a couple of divers are on their way to see what we have discovered. And if it is a car, we need to find out whether someone is trapped inside or not. I really don’t want to be here much longer, but I want to find out if that’s Chet’s car.
Over an hour later, I hear a vehicle coming from behind us, and I turn and walk toward the lights. I see it’s an SUV once it turns sideways in the road behind our vehicle. Two men get out.
“Aedan Hughes?”
“Yes,” I answer.
“I’m Mike Force and this is my partner Will Goss. Adam Craig called and said you might have something for us to check out in the river.”
“Yes. Headlights of a car. I’ll show you where and hopefully they’re still illuminated.” I turn to walk back to the edge of the bridge. The lights are still there, dimly shining through the muddy water.
“Might be a car, but it could be something else from upstream. Will and I will try set a tow hook and have the car pulled out if that’s what it is. It might take a while because right now it’s too dangerous. I’ll call you when we find out, if that works for you, sir.”
“Yes. Thank you, Mike.” We exchange numbers.
“We’re going into town, so if you need us, call. We can be back here within thirty minutes.”
“Will do.”
Sam and I get back in the SUV and slowly make our way out, looking for the service entrance to get to the clinic.
Chapter Thirteen
Jesse
“Aedan,” I cry out.
“Ma’am, you’re okay. My name is Curt. You’re on your way to the clinic to be checked out.”
“My father? My brother and sister?”
“Ms. McCoy, your father is in front of us. Your siblings are with your father. The last I checked, your father’s stable, and your brother and sister are fine. And Mr. Hughes will meet us at the clinic. He was talking to the ranch hands when we left.”
I try to talk, but I cough instead.
“Ms. McCoy, you’re going to be okay. Leave the oxygen on and take deep breaths in, all right?”
I nod, hoping everything will be okay as I close my eyes.
My eyes are burning. I don’t know how much time passes. I open my eyes despite the pain, noticing I’m in a dim room. It’s quiet except for the rhythmic beep of the machine monitoring my heart. I look around and see Aedan tapping on his phone.
I clear my throat to get his attention. I can’t get a word out before he stops me.
“Jesse, my dear Jesse. I was so worried about you, my love. I’m so sorry I failed you. You know I promised you and your father I would always protect you, and I let you down.”
I clear my throat again. “You didn’t fail me or my father. Is
there any word on his condition?”
“He’s stable and should fully recover from the gunshot wound. The bullet went in his left shoulder and no organs or bones were damaged. He has bruising on his face and several cuts. He’ll be in here for a few days since he’s being treated for the wounds and smoke inhalation.”
“When can I see him?”
“Soon, I hope.”
“Good, because I have a lot of questions for him. Especially why he didn’t tell me that Chantelle was Chet’s half-sister. Did you know?”
He sighs, his body relaxing. “Yes.”
“And you didn’t tell me?” I yell, which makes me cough nonstop until I can catch my breath.
“Your father asked me not to. We only found out because Chet’s father added her to his will shortly before your father married her. He’s not listed on the birth certificate.”
“Didn’t Chet’s father remember meeting my dad at my wedding?”
“They didn’t know it was your father Chantelle married. After she started dating your father, she cut all ties from Indiana except for her mother and Chet.”
“This is a big cluster-fuck. Two people who hate my family and they’re dead set on killing us all…for what?”
“Money, probably.”
“But she’s married to my father! He has almost as much money as Buffet. So I don’t think he’ll run out anytime soon.”
“I know, but I think once she was married to your father, she got jealous of the relationship you and your father have.”
“I just don’t understand all the lies and deceit, though. If she’d just talked to me, things would be so much different.”
“Jealousy causes people do to crazy things, Jesse.”
“I guess.”
“This is the solid proof that shows us who’s been behind everything.”
“Yes, Chet said something about being at this for a year, including destroying my house and sending pictures. Is there anything else I don’t know about?”
He blows out a deep breath and rubs his forehead. “If he’s behind your house, then he’s behind the condo. There were similarities, too many to be random. There are several things you’ve been left out of knowing, most of it because you weren’t CEO yet, or Pearse asked us not to tell you. You know about a few of the pictures. There were hundreds of them. We were able to block most of them, except the few that got through. I’m sure Wade had a hand in that. You’re in a position now that you won’t be kept out of the loop, but if you’re ever afraid, you have to let me know. If something happens, and you don’t think I know, tell me. I am and always will be responsible for you.”
