by Robin Mahle
“You about ready, Mel?” he asked through the bathroom door.
“Almost.”
Danny returned to her bed and zipped up the bag. He walked to the door and peered into the hall. Clear so far. A back exit onto the small grounds of the facility was at the end of the hall on the first floor. Mel’s room was two floors up. He’d been here enough times to know where every camera was, including the elevator and he was prepared to jam the signal as he’d done before.
Mel emerged from the bathroom. “I’m ready. Where are we going?”
“Just follow me. It’s a surprise.” Danny slung her duffle bag over his shoulder and led her to the door. “Grab your walker.”
“Okay.”
The risk of pushing her too hard weighed on his mind. Each step was hard enough for her to take and forcing her to continue when she felt tired meant she could succumb to a fall and injure herself. But he’d already timed this out. He hadn’t gone there every day just to see his sister. Five minutes with Mel in tow and he could be at the back exit where a locked gate would lead them to the front parking lot. He’d parked near that gate. Danny learned that it had been on a timer and opened for landscapers between the hours of 11am and 1pm. It was 11:45 now.
He followed Mel while she used her walker and he led her to the elevator. When the doors opened, Danny jammed the signal to the camera and stepped inside. It also happened to jam everything in the hall, but it wouldn’t last long. Just long enough to see them reach the first floor. “We’re on our way, Mel.”
She peered at him. “Thank you, Danny.”
“For what?”
“For never leaving me.”
22
All the signs pointed to the man they now knew to be Danny King. The train station car bomb utilized the same materials as the other attacks and ATF Agent Chris Stallard was about to present the evidence to the BAU team.
He laid out the proof inside the ops room while Surrey examined it. “Reid figures this was a trial run because it’s different from his other attacks. What do you think?”
Stallard pressed his hands against his thick waist and nodded. “It’s the only damn thing that makes any sense to me. Why else change up your M.O. so much unless you had something else in mind? That said, we’re about to learn that for ourselves just as soon as Tillis and his people bring in Mr. King.” He paused a moment to gauge the others. “By the look on your face, Agent Reid, you don’t think that’s going to happen. You know something the rest of us don’t?”
“It was a mistake to reach out to Danny King. My mistake. I got lucky it didn’t cost any lives. He’s smarter than I gave him credit for, and he knew the authorities were behind the messages. The train station attack was retribution.” Kate sighed. “The thing is, the woman at the facility grew suspicious when I told her that I wanted to talk to Danny. Afraid, even. I have a feeling when Danny walked in there, he probably saw that same fear. Given all that’s happened, we have to consider the idea he had a plan to get his sister back, and we might’ve bumped up his timeline to make that happen. We should prepare in the event Tillis walks away empty-handed. If the train station was in fact a test run, then I think he’ll go after the people who took his sister from him.”
“Then tell me, Agent Reid,” Stallard began. “How the hell do we go about figuring out who they are?”
“We go to the state. Social Services, most likely. Find out who’s on the pending guardianship case,” Kate replied. “We know where he lives too, so we can search his house. No chance he’ll be going back there anytime soon, but that could also shed some light. If Tillis loses Danny, he’ll be on the run with his sister. His options will be few, but I have no doubt he’ll look to the state for revenge.”
“Based on the train station attack, he’s learned just enough to be really dangerous now,” Surrey cut in.
“Okay, so we get the names of the people on King’s guardianship case, round them up and get them someplace safe. I can have a team sweep the Social Services building as a precaution. Surrounding buildings too. I have no idea how King would’ve had time to plot this out, but like you said, we don’t want to underestimate him again,” Stallard replied.
“Tillis needs leverage right now in the event he doesn’t bring in the bomber. This has to steer clear of media attention. No easy task when ATF decides to sweep a government building,” Duncan added.
“I’ll do my best to ensure a media blackout for as long as I can,” Stallard replied. “If I don’t hear from anyone, I’ll assume King slipped by us and will keep pushing forward.”
Agent Tillis walked through the doors of ManorCare Assisted Living alongside two other agents. With his suit jacket open to reveal his weapon, he approached the front desk. Subtlety was beyond his comprehension. “I need to see the manager of this facility. We need to ensure your patients are locked down while we run a search.”
“I’m sorry, who are you?” The woman peered at his credentials.
“We received a call that had been placed here regarding a man we’re looking for. He’s visiting one of your patients, Melanie King. Ma’am, it’s critical that everyone remain calm. We don’t think the man will harm anyone here, but we need to find him.”
Sue appeared from the breakroom holding a cup of coffee. “Oh. You’re here about Danny?” Her eyes revealed alarm, though she held the mug with a steady hand.
“Are you the one who called?” Tillis asked.
“Yes, sir. Danny’s upstairs visiting his sister. Second floor, room 237. Should I…” she reached for the phone.
“No.” Tillis held up his hand. “Just stay here, keep everyone calm. Your manager needs to be made aware of the situation and you’ll need to keep your patients in their rooms. Can you do that for us?”
“Yes, of course. She’s just out back. “I’ll go get her.”
“This has to happen now. Make the call to your security and let them know to remain calm and keep the patients safe.”
Sue nodded quickly. “I will.”
Tillis glanced at his agents and waved them on. “We do this quietly. I don’t want any dust ups.” He led them to the elevator and pressed the second-floor button. “Garcia’s waiting at the exit to the road in case our boy decides to sprint out of here.”
The elevator doors opened, and the three agents stepped out. Tillis looked at the sign. “Room 237 is this way. I don’t want King to panic, okay? Just keep him calm. If he’s with his sister, I don’t want to risk her becoming his hostage.” Tillis arrived at the door and pulled his gun. “Be ready.” He turned the handle quietly and opened the door. “Danny King. FBI.”
The room was empty. Tillis continued inside with his gun ready. “Check the bathroom. “Danny King? FBI. You can’t get out of here, so how about we make sure your sister stays safe?”
The agent pushed open the bathroom door and aimed his gun inside. “Clear.”
“Shit.” Tillis lowered his weapon. “Spread out and check the common areas, the back, everywhere. If that little shit is gone…” He picked up his phone. “It’s Tillis. We’re about to search the place. Keep up your guard and look out for the white Ford Focus.” He looked back to his agents. “Garcia’s on alert. Let’s move. Go check the common room downstairs.”
“Got it.” The agent headed down the staircase at the back.
“You go up and clear the floor,” Tillis added.
“You want me to go into the rooms?” the agent asked.
“No, he won’t go into a room. He’d be trapped. “Just make sure there isn’t a fire escape or another exit to take him down to the bottom. I’ll search the grounds at the back. Go. Now!” Tillis ran to the stairs that served as the fire exit and hustled down to the main floor. He jogged to the desk. “What’s out back?”
Sue peered at him. “Picnic tables and a garden. What’s going on? Where’s Danny?”
“That’s what we’re trying to find out. Keep everyone in their rooms.” Tillis hurried to the glass door at the back and shoved his
way through. The bright midday sunlight hit his eyes as he used his hand to shield them. Outside, a few patients were on a stroll, some rested on the chairs. He walked out onto the greens and surveyed the area. “Shit.” Danny was a young blonde-haired man and would’ve easily stood out among the people out here.
Tillis moved through the grounds and reached the fence along the back of the property. A truck was parked outside the open gate. “No. God damn it! He’s gone. Son of a bitch is gone!”
Mel turned to her brother. “Why did we go out the back, Danny? Where are we going now? Home?”
“Not yet, Mel. Look, I promised I’d get you out of there, right? That’s what I did. You don’t ever have to go back to that place ever again. I won’t let them take you from me.”
“Are you going to get in trouble for this?”
He glanced at her and saw the look of uncertainty in her eyes. “No. No, of course not. We’re family, Mel. It’s those guys who will get in trouble. Not us. Just because you fell that one time doesn’t mean they could just say I wasn’t taking care of you.”
“I’m sorry, Danny.”
“What for?”
“I was stupid, and I fell. My stupid feet tripped me up and if that hadn’t happened. If I hadn’t got hurt, nothing would’ve changed, and you wouldn’t be in trouble.”
“This isn’t your fault. Please don’t say that.” Danny peered at the road ahead. It wouldn’t be long before they realized he had taken Mel. Once they did, it would be too risky to stay on the road. But Danny had planned for this. “You remember that place Mom used to take us to?”
“The place where Grandma and Grandpa used to go for the summer?”
“That’s right. We can be there in about an hour. What do you say?”
“I don’t understand why we can’t just go home.”
“Because we can’t, Mel,” he snapped. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to yell. We can’t go home. Not yet. But I can get you settled in and you’ll get to see Grandma, then I can go and take care of a few things. It’ll be just a little too much work for you if I take you along. You think you can hang out there for a while?”
“Is there a TV?” she asked.
Danny smiled. “Of course there is. So, does that sound like a plan?”
She nodded. “Yeah.”
“Good.”
Tillis paced his office. “That damn car is registered to his sister. Once we got the last name, it was pretty easy to pinpoint the information. I’ve asked PBP to keep eyes out for it. Son of a bitch slipped right out from under us.” He turned to Kate. “What about the threat to the case workers?”
“It’s just a hunch that’s the route Danny will go, but I don’t want to risk ignoring the threat. We’re still waiting on the all-clear from Stallard for the building. The three workers were located and Stallard will get them out of there in the event Danny put a target on their backs.”
“I don’t know how this doesn’t become the lead story on the 5 o’clock news tonight,” Tillis replied.
“The train station attack is our diversion,” Surrey began. “It’s our best cover right now. The police, ATF, your people. They’re all tied up with that attack.”
“Where can he go and how do we find him?” Tillis paced the floor. “Let’s look into any connections this kid has to distant relatives. Friends. Anyone he thinks he can trust enough to turn to. He has his sister to consider, so I think he’ll be mindful of her limitations. Danny King is in a bind and he can’t do this alone. It’s time we capitalize on that.”
“We’d discussed getting into his house in the event he slipped away. It’s time to make that happen,” Kate said.
Tillis swiped his keys. “No time like the present.”
Surrey pushed up from the table. “Hang on. One of us needs to stay on top of Stallard so we can get those people out of that building.”
“Let me handle that,” Duncan replied. “It’s best you and Reid stick together. You’re on the same wavelength, so I’m not getting in the middle of that right now. Not when we need everything at our disposal. I’ll get a car and keep in touch when I have them. You guys just figure out where he went.” She disappeared into the hall.
“You people ready or what?” Tillis stood in the doorway.
Kate grabbed her things. “How far to his house?”
“Twenty minutes, tops,” Tillis replied.
The agents followed Tillis into the lobby. It seemed Kate and Surrey had shared the same concern as they regarded one another before Kate began, “Hey, should we consider getting ATF out there? Can you arrange that with Stallard?”
Tillis stopped at the doors and turned back to her. “Considering what we know about Danny King, we’d better be ready for a homemade welcome mat.”
Duncan made the drive to the Social Services office, which was about thirty minutes away. She reached for her phone and placed a call to Fisher. His line rang. “Come on, I need you to answer.” A moment later, she heard his voice.
“Eva. ‘Bout time I heard from one of you. What the hell’s going on?” Fisher asked. “Do we have King in custody?”
“No. He fled the assisted living facility just before Agent Tillis arrived.”
“Shit. What’s the plan now?” he pressed on.
“Reid and Surrey are with Tillis and are heading to Danny King’s home. They’re hoping to find a clue as to where he might go. Local police have a BOLO out on the car. I’m heading to the government building where ATF is sweeping to be sure King hadn’t planned on blowing that up too.”
“Christ, what isn’t happening there?”
She scoffed. “No shit. This whole thing blew up on us today. Literally.”
“I thought we had the situation under control, Eva? Last night, you established contact with him. Kept him occupied in hopes he’d reveal something.”
“Yeah, well, that didn’t work out the way we planned. Reid blames herself. Says King got scared and planned his escape because he saw through the stunt.”
“Is that what you think? Did she screw up on that call?” Fisher asked.
Eva closed her eyes for a brief moment and took in a breath. With her hands tightening around the wheel, she managed her reply. “It was my call, Cam. I thought it was a good idea to make contact. Everyone was concerned he would track down another victim. We had no leads, and this was my answer. Reid took the hit for me. What’s happening today is on me.”
Fisher was quiet for a moment. “You took a shot and it missed. It happens, Eva. You can’t put that on your shoulders. Reid made the call and it fell flat. Whether it really caused him to go and blow up a car at a train station, I have my doubts. He was going to do that regardless. You have to take the hit and move on.”
She pulled into the parking lot. “Listen, I’m here. I’m going to find Agent Stallard. I just wanted to give you a head’s up on the status. I’ll be in touch.” Duncan ended the call and stepped out of the car.
If Stallard was trying to keep this quiet, he’d failed. Duncan spotted two ATF vehicles parked alongside the building. The parking lot was empty. And no doubt that whoever had been evacuated posted it on social media. It had been more than an hour and it was only a matter of time before the first news van showed up.
Duncan walked toward the entrance and noticed Stallard. “Are we clear?”
He turned back to her, slightly startled. “Well, aren’t you as quiet as a church mouse?”
“You have to be in my line of work.” She smiled.
“Same here.” Stallard held her gaze.
She noticed his stare linger and cleared her throat to break the awkward glance. “So, can we get the three staffers? We need to get them back to the field office just as soon as possible.”
“Uh, right, yeah. We’re clear here. Nothing found. I’m sending my guys out before the press shows up. I haven’t spoken to those people directly yet, so I’m glad you’re here to back me up. Let’s take care of that now.” He opened the door. “Ladies first.”
Duncan walked inside. She was a beautiful woman and was used to men treating her differently. It was hard enough to be treated as an equal in this line of work, but she rarely took offense. It was in men’s nature to be chivalrous. Well, most men’s nature. She played it down. Sometimes it worked. Sometimes, she would get the look that Stallard gave her.
He followed her inside. “Everyone’s around back of the building several feet away. We can cut through. I’ll let everyone know it’s safe to go back inside. You can wrangle the three caseworkers and try to avoid questions from anyone else.”
“You got it.” Duncan had the names of the employees and a picture of them. Their government photo IDs were available in the database. She spotted a woman who appeared to be the one she needed. “Excuse me, are you Liz Farley?”
She turned to Duncan. “I am. And you are?”
“Can I speak to you for just a moment? Duncan pulled her aside. “I’m sure you’ve been concerned by what’s happened this morning.”
“Yes, it’s frightening.”
“I know. Ms. Farley, we have reason to believe you could be in danger and until we get to the bottom of this, we’d really appreciate it if you’d come back to the FBI’s office with me.”
The woman cast around her gaze with uncertainty. “Me?”
“Yes, ma’am. I can elaborate once we get you out of here. It’s not just you. I’m actually looking for Greg Hughes and Kimberly Hightower as well.”
“I work with them.” Liz pointed toward the crowd. “That’s Greg there. And over there is Kim.” She turned back to Duncan. “We’re all in danger?”
“We’re doing everything in our power to keep you safe. That’s why I’ll need the three of you to come with me.”
“I see. I can bring them over here.”
“Thank you.” Duncan watched as the woman hurried to her colleagues. The look on their faces meant they were about to panic. She was going to have to do damage control and fast. Duncan wore a reassuring smile as they approached.
