by L. Wilder
“Do you have addresses for Clement and Cummings?”
“Yeah. I’ll text them to you now.”
“Thanks, Devin. I appreciate your help with this.”
“No problem.” He paused for a moment, then asked, “You gonna be coming home any time soon?”
“Can’t say for sure.”
“Well, if you do, give me a call. We can grab a beer and catch up.”
“Will do.”
When I hung up the phone, I glanced back over at the cabin and found Madison watching me through the front window. The sight of her standing there and looking so irresistibly beautiful made my chest literally ache. This woman had me so tangled up I couldn’t even think straight. Fearing I couldn’t take another heartbreak, I’d done everything in my power to keep this very thing from happening. Hell, I’d moved to the top of a goddamn mountain, miles away from anyone, as I tried to hold on to what was left of my sanity, and yet, here I was, sitting on the brink of pure madness. To make matters worse, I’d done it to myself by bringing her here. I’d let myself feel again, and after the night we’d shared, I suddenly found myself wishing I hadn’t burned those bridges behind me. If I’d just done things differently, then maybe I could be the kind of man she deserved. I had no idea if I had it in me to make her happy, but I was damn well going to try.
I called out to Nanook, and he followed me down to the creek. I let him roam around a little longer before we headed back to the cabin. When we walked in, Madison was in the kitchen cooking what I thought would be lunch, but then she called out to me and said, “I’m making pancakes. You want some?”
“Yeah. I’ll take a couple.” It had been days since I’d made a run into town for supplies, so I had no idea how she’d managed to make them. Curious, I walked over to the stove and said, “I didn’t even know I had the stuff to make pancakes.”
“I had to get a little creative, but I think they’ll be okay.”
“I’m sure they’ll be great.” I gave her a kiss on the temple, then walked over to the cabinet and took out the maple syrup. I carried it, along with a couple of plates and forks over to the table, then asked, “You want something other than coffee to drink?”
“Water would be perfect.” Once everything was ready, we both sat down and made ourselves a plate. I watched as Madison took her first bite, and a soft smile crossed her face as she said, “How about that? They’re actually pretty good.”
“You sound surprised.”
“Maybe a little. It’s been a while since I’ve made them from scratch. I was worried I might’ve forgotten something.”
I took a bite, then told her, “You’re right. They are good.”
“And to think … you doubted my cooking abilities.”
“Never again.” Before I took another bite, I told her, “I talked to Devin. He was able to track down the original owner of the painting to a guy named Bill Clement.”
“Any idea who he is?”
“Not a clue, but I’ll see what I can find out.”
“Okay.” She studied me for a moment, then said, “You know, I’ve never actually thanked you for everything you’ve done to help me.”
“That’s not necessary.”
“Of course, it is. You saved my life, Jasper, and you put a lot at risk to do so. I still don’t understand why you did it, but I really do appreciate it.”
“I haven’t saved your life yet. I’m trying, but we’re still not out of the woods.”
“But we’re getting closer, right?”
“I hope so.”
“So, what happens now?”
“As soon as we get these dishes put away, I’ll do some digging and see what I can find out about Clement. Once we know who he is, maybe that will give us some insight into this code and who it was actually meant for.”
“And if we can’t make a connection?”
“I know you want answers and I do, too, but we’ve gotta take this thing one step at a time. That’s the only way we’re going to get through this without losing our minds.”
As soon as we finished eating, Madison took Nanook out for a walk while I got busy searching for anything I could find on Bill Clement. I was surprised to find that the guy was one of the front runners for producing the first portable cassette player, which ended up making him one of the richest men around in the late ’70s. During that time, he bought a house in Liberty, New York, where he and his wife lived and raised three children. I’d been so focused on researching Clement that I hadn’t realized the time. It wasn’t until I’d gotten up to grab a drink of water that I saw that it was after six, and the sun was starting to set. It had been hours since Madison had gone off on her walk, and while I knew she had Nanook for protection, I was worried they might’ve gotten lost. I rushed into the kitchen, grabbed a flashlight, and raced out the front door. As soon as my feet hit the front porch, I frantically called out her name, “Madison!”
Just as I was about to take off towards the main road, I heard her say, “Hey, is everything okay?”
I turned and found Madison sprawled out on the front porch swing with Nanook lying down on the ground next to her. I let out a deep breath and shook my head. “I didn’t know you were out here.”
“You were still working when we got back, so I decided to just sit out here and enjoy the view for a while.”
“I was worried you might’ve gotten lost.”
“I almost did,” she admitted. “But I just let Nanook take the lead, and he led me back here.”
She got up and winced when she put weight on her ankle. Afraid she’d hurt her ankle again, I asked, “You okay?”
“I’m good. I just overdid it a little.” As she continued towards me, she asked, “Did you find out anything about that Clement guy?”
“Yeah, a little. Let’s get back inside and I’ll show what I found.”
Madison followed me into the cabin and over to my desk where I showed her the information I’d gathered on Clement. I’d hoped that it might help us in some way, but unfortunately, we still had no idea who’d put the hit on Madison or why. It was impossible not to feel frustrated, but I had to hold on to the fact that she wasn’t in any present danger. No one knew she was alive and here with me, so I had time to find the answers I needed. I prayed that it wouldn’t be long before I heard back from Charlie, so I could finally end this thing once and for all.
By the time we’d gone over everything, Madison and I both were feeling a little on edge, so we decided to have a bite to eat and watch a movie, hoping that it might distract us for a little while. After we ate a couple of sandwiches, we made our way back into the living room. Before I sat down, I asked, “You want to look for a movie while I make us a fire?”
“Sure.” She plopped down on the sofa, grabbed the remote, and started flipping through the channels. I heard her gasp with excitement before saying, “I’ve been wanting to see this.”
When I turned and saw the excited look on her face, I didn’t bother asking what the movie was. I didn’t care. I’d watch midnight senior bowling if it meant making her happy. Once I had the fire going, I sat down next to her on the sofa. Before curling up in the crook of my arm, Madison threw a blanket over her legs and gave me a brief kiss. “This is going to be great.”
As soon as the movie started, I could tell it was going to be your typical chick-flick comedy with a goofy guy who falls for some babe who was way out of his league, and I was right. But to my surprise, it was actually pretty good, and by the middle of the movie, we were both laughing out loud at the craziness that ensued. Just as the lead guy was about to make his big move, Nanook got up and started pacing back and forth, sniffing and huffing like a wild animal.
“What’s up with you, bud?” I asked.
When he kept pacing, I patted the side of the sofa, trying to get him to come over to me, but he wasn’t having it. Madison sat up and asked, “Is everything okay?”
“Yeah. He’s just spooked about something.” As I stood up, I told her,
“I’ll put him in my room until the movie is over, and then I’ll let him outside for a bit.”
I went over and took a hold of Nanook’s collar, tugging him towards the hall. I hadn’t gotten far when my attention was drawn over to one of the side windows. It was dark outside, so I couldn’t be sure of what I’d seen but it gave me an uneasy feeling. I immediately killed the lights, leaving only the glow of the fire and the flicker of the TV to illuminate the entire cabin. When I saw movement for the second time, the hair on the back of my neck stood tall, and I knew someone was out there. Madison turned towards me as she asked, “What’s going on?”
My heart was racing as I told her, “I need you to get down, nice and slow.”
“What?”
I didn’t want to freak her out, but at the same time I had to get her to safety. I couldn’t let anything happen to her, so I repeated firmly, “On the floor, Madison. Now.”
Doing as she was told, she inched her way down off the sofa and onto the floor. “What’s happening?”
“I need you to get over to the bookcase. Stay low to the ground.” I kept my eyes on the front windows as I made my way over to the bookcase. As soon as I had it open, I pressed the pad of my finger on the keypad, unlocking the safe room’s door. Once it was opened, I motioned over to Madison and demanded, “Get in.”
While she and Nanook slipped inside, I reached for my 9mm. I was about to close the door when Madison whispered, “Jasper, what is going on?”
“I’m not sure yet. Just hold tight, and I’ll find out.”
She nodded and watched as I closed the door to the safe room, securing them inside. I turned off the TV and pulled the fire screen in front of the blaze, hoping to reduce the amount of visibility inside the cabin. With my finger on the trigger, I made my way over to the front door, but stopped when I felt someone watching me. While I’d always been on the other side of the fence, I’d been a hitman long enough to know when one was about to be made—but I’d be damned if it was going to be me. I brought my hand up to the doorknob, preparing to slip outside, and just as I started to open the door, a gunshot rang out, followed by the sound of glass shattering from one of the side windows. I felt a slight gust of air brush against my hair as the bullet sailed by my ear and into the door frame. I ducked down as I darted through the crack in front door. Once I was outside, I kept my back against the house until I reached the edge of the porch, then I ran with all the speed I could muster into the woods.
My attacker got off one decent shot, but if I had anything to do about it, there wouldn’t be another. Once I’d put some distance between myself and the cabin, I wedged myself between the crook of two trees. Even though it was dark and there were a few branches in my way, I still had a decent view of the cabin, so I stayed put and waited for my guest to make his next move. I hadn’t been standing there long when I saw a dark figure moving around the east side of the cabin just a few yards away from me. When he got closer, I leaned in to get a better look, and from what I could tell was a man in his early thirties, who looked to be not quite six-feet-tall with a slender build. I aimed the barrel at his head and had a clear shot, but I didn’t want to kill the guy—at least, not yet. I lowered my aim to his hip and pulled the trigger, instantly knocking the guy to the ground. A sense of satisfaction washed over me when I heard him bellow out in pain. Once I was certain he was alone, I slipped out of my hiding spot and started walking towards the cabin.
When he heard me coming in his direction, he lifted his weapon and started shooting, missing me completely with every pull of the trigger. I aimed at his boot and shot, sending a bullet searing through the bones and nerves in his foot, and he wailed out in agony as he writhed on the ground. Amongst all the whining and whimpering, I heard the guy shout, “Motherfucker!”
When I got over to him, I kicked the gun from his hand, then knelt down beside him. I ground the barrel of my 9mm into his temple as I snarled, “Who are you?”
“You know I’m not gonna answer that,” he whimpered.
“You might want to reconsider that.” I moved the barrel of my gun to his hand and pulled the trigger, blowing a hole in the center of his palm. When he reached for his wrist, clinging to it for dear life, I started patting him down. Just as I’d hoped, I found his wallet in his back pocket. As I opened it, I told him, “Rookie mistake, James Murdock. Almost insulting that someone would send a fucking schmuck like you to take me out.”
“I guess I underestimated your capabilities,” he admitted.
“Just one mistake of many,” I barked. “Who the fuck sent you?”
“You know I don’t have the answer to that.”
“You gotta know something, Murdock.” I leaned towards him, pressing the barrel of my gun to his knee. “I hear there’s nothing more painful than having your kneecap blown off. You want to find out if I’m right?”
When he shook his head no, I asked, “Who’s your contact?”
“Never met the guy.”
I pulled the trigger, shooting him directly in the kneecap, and he screamed out in pain like I’d never heard before. “I’d say I was right about the knee.”
He closed his eyes as his ragged breaths grew more and more strained. “I t-told you … I don’t know. The flash drives were d-delivered by a courier.”
“Gonna need more than that.”
“You know they don’t tell us anything but the name and location.” He was losing a lot of blood and barely hanging on. “Dammit, man. Give me a fucking break.”
“You haven’t given me any reason to give you a fucking break. That comes when you give me something I can actually fucking use! What were your orders?”
“To t-take you out and burn your place to the ground.”
“Fuck.”
“You know how this shit works, man. If they find out that I didn’t complete the assignment, they’ll just send s-someone else,” he warned. “They’ll keep trying until the job is done or until you find out who enlisted the contract.”
As much as I didn’t want to admit it, I knew he was right. It was only a matter of time before the next guy would come to hunt me down. As I started to squeeze the trigger, I asked, “You have no idea who sent you or why?”
“Not a f-fucking clue.” His voice was filled with agony as he said, “We both know how this shit is gonna end. Just do us both a favor and end it, man.”
I saw no reason to prolong the inevitable, so I brought the barrel of my gun to his temple and pulled the trigger. When his body went completely limp, I walked over to my shed and grabbed an old tarp. Once I had him wrapped in the plastic, I tossed his body in the back of my UTV and started driving up the mountain. My mind was racing as I headed towards the old abandoned mineshaft that was located just three miles east of my cabin. I figured it would be the best place to stash the body until I could deal with it effectively.
I cursed under my breath as I pulled up to the mine and turned off the engine. Finding out I had a target on my back wasn’t exactly welcome news. Hell, it damn well pissed me the fuck off. While I had no idea who’d put out the hit, there was one thing I did know: they’d made a mistake thinking they could take me out. The tables had now been turned, and I was out for blood of my own.
10
Madison
I’d been sitting in the hidden room for over an hour. The walls were insulated, so I couldn’t hear or see anything—just the sounds of my ragged breathing. I knew Jasper wouldn’t have put me in his safe room unless I was in immediate danger. Not knowing what that danger was terrified me, especially knowing that Jasper was out there facing it all alone. All of this was making my imagination run wild. I kept thinking of him getting hurt or even killed, and it was making me crazy. Relief washed over me when he finally opened the door and I saw that he was okay. Without a moment’s hesitation, I rushed over to him and wrapped my arms around his neck, hugging him with all my might. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, baby. I’m fine.”
I stepped back and looked
him in the eye. “Are you sure?”
“I’m fine. I promise.”
“What happened?”
“We had a visitor.” He eased past me and grabbed a duffle bag from the corner of the room. I watched in horror as he started filling it with random weapons and ammunition. Before I had a chance to ask what he was doing, he looked over his shoulder and said, “We’ve got to get out of here.”
“What do you mean?” I gasped.
“It’s not safe here anymore. We have to leave.”
“Where will we go?”
“I’m not sure yet.” He zipped up the bag, threw it on his shoulder, and as he started for the door, he told me, “I just know we can’t stay here.”
“Because of the visitor?”
“Yes.” I followed him into the living room and watched as he tossed the bag on the sofa. “You need to go pack your stuff.”
While there were many things that I truly liked about Jasper, his short, irritatingly allusive, non-answers were not one of them. He didn’t have to tell me that we were in danger. I could tell by the way he was acting, which only made me even more anxious about who had shown up at the cabin. “So, this visitor … They’re the reason it’s not safe here anymore?”
He was sorting through the files on his desk and didn’t look at me as he answered, “You could say that.”
“Did they come here because of me?” I asked with my voice trembling.
Finally seeing that I was freaking out, he looked up at me and calmly said, “You need to go get packed, Madison. I’ll explain everything when we get on the road.”
“Okay.” Feeling completely unnerved, I went into the bedroom and started throwing my things into the bags. After changing into a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt, I grabbed both duffle-bags and rushed back out to the living room where Jasper and Nanook were both waiting for me. “What are we going to do about him?”
