Saving Justice

by Peter O'Mahoney

“Michael.” Stacey stepped out of the shadow. “I’m over here.”

  “Stacey.” Vandenberg faked concern. “How happy I am to see you alive.”

  “Cut the crap, Michael. You wanted me dead a long time ago. I know that car. I know you’ve been following me.”

  “Well, what can I say?” He looked back at the car. “I like to drive. And sometimes, I get into little accidents.”

  “I need the truth from you.”

  “I had to follow you, Stacey. And Tex Hunter. Add a bit of pressure here and there. But just because we were rivals, didn’t mean I wanted you dead.” Vandenberg was cautious. “Why don’t we go inside your room to talk?”

  “Answer me something first.” Stacey had her arms folded across her chest, hair hanging over her face. She kept her distance. “What did you tell Carl when he came to see you?”

  “Ah.” Vandenberg shrugged. “You have to know that I can’t talk about it due to privacy concerns.”

  “I’m officially a dead person, Michael. Everyone thinks I died jumping off the bridge. The whole world thinks I’m already gone. And I saw photos of you at my memorial.”

  “Sure. You’re a dead woman.” He scoffed and shook his head. “You want to know what we talked about? Ok. We talked about your divorce and how much I could take you for. We talked about custody, and how Carl wanted more than fifty percent. And we talked about what a nasty piece of work you are. That’s what we talked about.”

  “You enjoyed that, didn’t you?”

  “Of course I did. I loved it.” Vandenberg’s jaw clenched as his demeanor changed. “The chance to kick you where it hurts? I thrived on it. I absolutely loved it.”

  “So you took out Joe Fielding instead.”

  “Ha.” He scoffed again. “Is that what this is about? Let’s step inside the hotel room and talk about it. It’s cold out here. Come on. Let’s go inside.”

  Vandenberg pointed towards Room 5, and as he did, his jacket lifted. Stacey saw the handgun in a holster on his belt. He’d come prepared.

  Vandenberg noticed Stacey’s eyes on his holster. “Stacey.” Vandenberg stepped closer, moving his jacket to expose his gun to her. “Go inside. I’m not going to ask you again.”

  “Is that your plan? Shoot me? How would you explain that?”

  “Easily.”

  “Humor me.”

  “I came up here to talk you into returning to Chicago to face your murder charge. If you’re not dead, then you’ve skipped bail. You, of course, resisted my plan to take you back to face the courts. That’s when you drew your gun,” He nodded to his holster. “This is an unregistered gun, Stacey. I’m sure you picked it up on your way here to protect yourself while on the run. In a struggle between us, gun shots were fired, and you were hit. Accidently, of course. Now, if you step inside, we don’t have to go through all of that. We can sort something out. We can talk about your options.”

  “Is that what happened to Fielding? He wanted to sort something out? He wanted to talk about his options?”

  “Joe.” Vandenberg scoffed and then smiled. “That dumb fool was trying to blackmail me. What an idiot. He had evidence that he was threatening to take to you. He said he could sell it to you. That’s why he was waiting for you in the parking lot. He was going to sell you my secrets.”

  “And that’s why you kept me on the phone that night.”

  “I had to make sure you didn’t have an alibi. For the right price, Fielding wanted to give you all the evidence of my set ups over the years. He wanted to show you all the things I’ve been involved in. I couldn’t let him do that. Do you know how many people I’ve set up?” He raised his eyebrows and stepped closer. “I’ll give you a hint—it’s a lot.”

  “Including Dr. Mackie.”

  “Dr. Mackie? Sure. He was one of them. That one was an easy set up, but I didn’t bank on him fighting it all the way. Most guys deal out before the case makes it to court. That’s what the lawyers recommend, anyway. Don’t take it to court, we tell them, even if the witnesses are lying. The cost to their reputation isn’t worth it. How stupid.”

  “But Dr. Mackie took it to court, and King crumbled on the stand.”

  “You’ve been keeping up with the cases? I guess once it’s in your blood, it’s hard to let the courtroom go. We’ll get away with it, but it was close. If we forced Mackie to settle, his divorce could’ve been very profitable for us.” Vandenberg grunted. “And King has been on the stand before; he should’ve known better. We even used this ruse with one of his ex-wives. That ruse saved him millions of dollars.”

  “Classy.” Stacey said. “How’d you get your hands on my letter opener?”

  “I was in your office that day, Stacey. We were talking about a divorce case, remember? It was easy to swipe it from your desk. I’m just an opportunist.” He smiled. “Now, Stacey, you can either step into the room and we can discuss this like adults, or I’m just going to have to shoot you here. That’s your choice. Go out with dignity, or disgrace.” Vandenberg turned around. “There are no witnesses here, and there’s no cameras up there. Everyone is going to believe my story.”

  A black BMW sedan screeched into the parking lot.

  Stacey smiled. “I wouldn’t be so sure of that, Michael.”

  Vandenberg turned to her. “Are you…” He looked around. “Have you set me up? You’re wearing a microphone…”

  Tex Hunter stepped out of the driver’s seat, followed by Detective Regina Heart from the other side.

  “You set me up!” Vandenberg took one step towards Stacey, before turning back to his SUV.

  “Michael Vandenberg!” Heart shouted. “Don’t run!” She positioned herself at the front of the car, with her hand on her gun. “Vandenberg!”

  In one swift movement, Vandenberg turned and ran towards his car. He leaped into the driver’s seat, and roared the engine.

  Before Heart could fire a shot, before she could even call his name again, Michael Vandenberg was roaring out of the parking lot in his black SUV. Within seconds, Hunter was back in the driver’s seat of his BMW sedan, Detective Heart in the passenger seat.

  Fueled by aggression, Hunter screeched the tires of his sedan as he raced onto the street.

  Chapter 44

  “We don’t have to chase him!” Heart gripped the safety bar as Hunter roared around a corner. “I’ll call it in. Let the professionals deal with this. This is a local police job!”

  “I won’t let him get away.” Hunter gripped the steering wheel as he yanked the BMW sedan onto the four-lane highway. “If he gets away now, we’ll never see him again.”

  Vandenberg was four cars in front. Hunter floored his car to make up the distance. The speedometer moved past 125 miles an hour. The SUV in front took the next ramp, screeching in front of another vehicle. Hunter followed.

  “Stop the car!” Heart gripped the edge of her seat. “You’re not a cop, Hunter! Stop the car!”

  “But you’re a cop.” Hunter gritted his teeth as he yanked the steering wheel. “And you should hold on tight.”

  Hunter roared his car past the slow-moving traffic at the off-ramp, flying across the intersection. The traffic from the left and right broke hard, horns wailing through the night air. One car slammed into the back of another. A scooter slid on the wet road. A van pulled to the side.

  But they were across.

  Vandenberg was barely a few hundred yards away from them. His SUV weaved through the traffic on the main road. Hunter followed, determined to catch him.

  “That car has been following me for weeks.” Hunter grunted. “And now the tables have turned.”

  Hunter dropped the car back a gear, roaring through the gears with an unabated aggression, fueled by his need to deliver justice.

  The SUV turned sharply onto a side street. Hunter gripped the handbrake, yanked the steering wheel and followed. His BMW slid across the road, almost out of control, until the tires gripped and raced them forward.

  The speed bump in front of him did
little to slow him down.

  Lights flashed past. Cars pulled out of the way. Vandenberg was closer now.

  Hunter floored his sedan, thundering past cars on both sides of the road. He got close, and clipped the back corner of the SUV. Vandenberg’s vehicle slid and weaved, until he regained control. Vandenberg wasn’t stopping, and nor was Hunter.

  “Tex!” Heart yelled as they narrowly missed a pole. “Stop the car!”

  He ignored her. Vandenberg was his target. They raced through the streets, block after block disappearing behind them. Hunter overtook cars around blind corners, full of adrenalin. He hit the accelerator with hostility. Floored it. Pushed everything out of it. Heart continued yelling, but Hunter could no longer hear her.

  With his foot on the floor, with no margin for error and no chance to make a mistake, the harmony began. Hunter was testing destiny, pushing past the limits of sanity. Past the edge. Past what was considered reasonable. The SUV was slowing around the corners. Hunter closed the gap again. His car was faster, lighter, more efficient. He pushed the car harder. Dropped it back another gear. Forced the engine to roar.

  There was a pool of water on the road. The SUV hit it at speed. It lost control.

  The back end of the car was beginning to fishtail down the road.

  “Hunter!” Heart screamed. “Watch out!”

  The tires of the SUV slipped.

  The weight of Vandenberg’s car began to move sideways.

  He had lost it. The SUV hit the side of another car.

  The front corner of the SUV caught the edge of a pole, launching him into a spin.

  Then came the impact.

  It was deafening. The SUV flipped. Crunched onto its roof. Bounced back into the air. Rolled sideways. The sound of crunching metal was thunderous. The SUV bounced again. Rolled once more.

  Hunter slammed on his brakes. His car slid to a halt.

  The SUV was upside down on a sidewalk, not in the same shape it was only moments before. It barely resembled the same car. The car was broken. No windshield. The roof smashed downward. Tires turned inwards. A missing door.

  Hunter leaped out of his car, searching the smashed wreck. He could see blood. A lot of it.

  Heart stood next to Hunter. She pulled out her phone and dialed 911, but they were already coming. She could hear the sirens in the distance.

  When he saw the car was safe, Hunter scrambled under the wreck. He tried to help Vandenberg. The roof had collapsed. Vandenberg was squashed by the impact with the ground.

  Heart was soon next to him, assisting him. Other cars stopped to help. The local police arrived. So did the ambulance.

  The place was soon buzzing with lights, people, and activity.

  Michael Vandenberg was alive. But only just.

  Chapter 45

  After the Minneapolis Police Department officers took their statements, Hunter drove Detective Heart back to the motel. It was early morning, and Stacey was waiting for them. She barely reacted to the news that Michael Vandenberg was in the hospital after a car accident. She was still in shock.

  Every word of the conversation between Stacey and Vandenberg had been recorded by Heart, and it was the admission of guilt the police needed to charge him with the murder of Joe Fielding. The Minneapolis police were keeping Vandenberg guarded until Detective Heart returned. He’d be processed and taken back to Chicago once he recovered in the hospital.

  “The crash left Vandenberg with suspected broken ribs, a broken arm, a broken ankle, and a possible skull fracture. His recovery will take time, but he’ll serve that time in a prison hospital.” Heart told Stacey. “The important thing is that he’s under arrest and he’s admitted everything and it’s all recorded. It’s what we needed. He’s going to prison for a long time after this.”

  Stacey nodded. There was little joy in her face as she tried to work out her next steps.

  “But you’re still officially on bail. You skipped it,” Heart continued. “I have to take you in until all this has been sorted out. I’m sorry but that’s the process. Vandenberg has admitted on tape that he killed Fielding, but we still have to get you cleared. You’re currently a fugitive, and you’ll face penalties for skipping bail.”

  The look on Stacey’s face was of pure disappointment.

  “Or Tex can drive you back.” Heart said. “It’s early morning. If you drive back now, you’ll be there before midday. Go and see your kids. I’ll call my partner in an hour, and then we can take you back into the station to clear this up tomorrow.”

  “Thank you,” Stacey whispered. “Thank you.”

  Hunter thanked Detective Heart, and she left in a Minneapolis Police Department squad car to check on Vandenberg at the hospital. Formal charges would be forthcoming, but Vandenberg wasn’t going anywhere quickly.

  Hunter consoled Stacey and then began the drive back to Chicago.

  At 5am, as they were driving the dark roads, Stacey Fulbright called her husband. She could barely speak when he answered the phone. She didn’t know what to say, but she couldn’t have said much through the tears anyway. There were tears coming from the other end of the phone as well. Hardly a coherent word was spoken between them, but the communication of love was clear.

  Stacey Fulbright barely said another word on the drive back to Chicago.

  Hunter asked her a number of questions and Stacey answered them as best she could, but her mind was elsewhere. It was with her children, and her husband. Her family. Her friends. Her past life. She longed to hold and hug her children again.

  It was after ten o’clock in the morning when they arrived in Naperville. The air was cold and damp, but Carl didn’t care. He was sitting on the edge of the front porch, looking like he’d barely had a moment of sleep. When the BMW pulled into the driveway, all that had gone before had been forgotten. All Carl wanted to do was hold his wife in his arms.

  When Stacey stepped out of the car, Carl embraced her and held her tight. The tears flowed freely.

  Hunter waited next to the car, and after many tears, Carl offered his hand to Hunter.

  Hunter nodded and shook it firmly. Stacey walked closer and hugged Hunter, before walking into her house, Carl’s arm wrapped around her.

  Hunter looked at his watch. 10:50am. It was time to catch up on sleep.

  Chapter 46

  In the days since the accident, it had emerged Vandenberg had a fondness for driving his large SUV around Chicago. He was already known to police. He was known to follow rival lawyers and intimidate them, in the hope they could cave on any potential deals between clients. Vandenberg was transported back to Chicago under guard, and would serve his time in the prison hospital until his trial. His injuries would take years to heal, and that healing would have to take place behind bars.

  Hunter stood outside the 18th District Police Station on North Larrabee St. Next to him was Esther Wright, and behind her, Dr. David Mackie.

  “They’re going to ask you questions about your interactions with Christoph King. That’s who they’re going after today.” Hunter said as he held open the door into the police station. “They’ve gotten information from Stacey Fulbright, and Vandenberg has talked to the detectives already. Vandenberg turned on King the moment he realized he was done; in the hope they would offer him a better deal for Fielding’s murder.”

  “It feels good to be on this side of the fence, giving evidence and statements about the truth to the police.” Dr. Mackie said. “On the phone, they said the evidence was strong against King?”

  “Vandenberg has made statements about their joint fraud activities, and those statements are enough to see King spend a considerable amount of time behind bars.” Hunter responded. “Your testimony is going to add to the weight of evidence against King and ensure that he doesn’t see the streets for a long, long time.”

  Esther smiled as she followed them into the building. They spent hours by Dr. Mackie’s side, guiding him as he was questioned by police. They were his security blanket. Dr. Mackie�
�s trust of the force had diminished after his latest case. He detailed everything he knew, speaking to the police for two hours while giving evidence against Christoph King and Michael Vandenberg.

  Once his statement was taken, Dr. Mackie couldn’t wipe the smile from his face.

  “So this is it? All done?” Dr. Mackie questioned after they stepped out of the police building and into the bright sunshine. “We’re all done?”

  “All done.” Hunter responded.

  Dr. Mackie offered his hand. Hunter shook it firmly. They held the handshake longer than usual, a subtle sign of thanks and respect.

  “Thank you.” Dr. Mackie said. Hunter nodded, before Dr. Mackie stepped into the waiting cab.

  Esther smiled as she and Hunter walked back to their cars, both parked further up the street.

  “What about Joanne Wolfe?” She asked. “Was she involved?”

  “It appears not. It seems she just wanted to see her rival Stacey Fulbright suffer. Vandenberg has admitted he asked Wolfe to follow Stacey for a while, just to scare her, but she claims that she didn’t know the extent of Vandenberg’s crimes.”

  “Surely, she must’ve known what he was doing?”

  “I’m not sure.” Hunter said as they stopped outside Esther’s car. “But her firm will take a massive hit over this. Perhaps it’s even the end of her career.”

  “And the other doctor?”

  “Which doctor?” Hunter asked.

  “No, the normal doctor.”

  “What?” Hunter squinted with confusion on his face.

  “Which doctor? Witch doctor? Get it? As in, ‘No, I don’t need the normal doctor, I need the Witch Doctor. Like voodoo. Oh, never mind. It was a terrible joke.”

  “We can agree on that.” Hunter laughed. “It’s never good when you have to explain a joke.”

  “It’s not my fault if your comedic understanding is a little slow.” Esther smirked. “A smarter person would’ve understood it.”

  “But to answer your question—Dr. Lighten was guilty. He got away with his crimes by signing a non-disclosure agreement, even if Heather Munroe was encouraged by Joe Fielding.”