The Way Back to You

by Sharon Sala

  “Yes!” he said as he grabbed the keys and started the car. He guessed they would have security cameras outside, but he’d be long gone before the theft was discovered.

  He was a couple of miles outside Savannah when he thought to look at the gas gauge. It had less than a quarter of a tank, which wasn’t enough to get to where he needed to go.

  “Son of a bitch!”

  He dug through the console as he drove, looking for cash, and found a couple of quarters and a dime. Not close enough for a single gallon of gas, and now the fuel light was on, and had been for some time.

  “Oh well, what the hell,” Hoover muttered. “I’ll figure something else out when the need arises.” He kept heading to Blessings, taking care to stay under the speed limit at all times so he wouldn’t be stopped.

  He was already congratulating himself about reaching the Blessings city limit when the car began to sputter and jerk.

  “Shit,” Hoover said. He guided the car to the shoulder of the road and got out.

  He put the key back under the mat, then crossed the road and went up into the trees, still moving toward Blessings. He was going to have to steal another car to get where he needed to go, and he had to do it quickly. If he could just get to Aunt Sugar’s place, he could get some food and blankets. And the woods were nearly impenetrable. A stranger could get lost up in there and never be found. But he’d grown up there and knew where he could lie low until the hunt for him ended. Then he could go down on the other side and disappear. With one last glance toward the highway, he started to run.

  * * *

  Deputies were just beginning to arrive at the police station as Lon got back to his office. He stuck his head in the break room and saw two of his deputies making fresh coffee.

  “Give me a couple of minutes, and I’ll fill you in on what’s happening,” he said, then went up front. “Travis, did we have any kind of paperwork come in on Hoover Slade?” he asked.

  “Yes, sir, just a few minutes ago. It’s a rap sheet with his mug shot. I ran off some copies for you,” Travis said, and got up to get them.

  “Thanks,” Lon said. “As soon as Avery arrives and clocks in, fill him in on what’s happening, okay?”

  “Yes, sir,” Travis said.

  Lon paused in the hall to scan the fax. He noticed Hoover had been identified on security footage stealing a car, and the info for the stolen vehicle had been added to the rap sheet, then glanced in the break room. The other deputies had arrived.

  “Guys, come on into my office,” he said. As soon as they walked in, he gave each of them a hard copy of the escapee’s mug shot and rap sheet.

  “We have an escapee from Coastal State reported to be headed this way, possibly in a stolen gray Ford Focus. The model and tag number are on your handout. Some of you are too new to know who this is, but the ones who’ve been on the job here for years will recognize him. Hoover Slade grew up in the hills above Blessings, and he still has family up there. I want a man on the highway coming in from the north to keep an eye out for that car. Deputy Ralph, you take that position.”

  “Yes, sir,” Ralph said.

  Lon continued. “I’ll notify the schools to be on alert, and if he’s spotted in the area, they’ll go on lockdown. I want another deputy patrolling the area around the schools nonstop. If you see anything suspicious, don’t try to be a hero on your own. Call for backup. The rest of you patrol the town. Is that understood?”

  “Yes, sir,” they said.

  “Okay, then get out there, and let’s keep it safe in Blessings.”

  Lon sat back down at his desk and buzzed his dispatcher.

  “This is Avery. Travis caught me up on what’s happening. What do you need, Chief?”

  “See if you can find a phone number for Sugar Slade. I need to notify her that Hoover is on the run.”

  “Yes, sir,” Avery said.

  Lon hung up, then called the county sheriff and notified him of the call he’d received. He started to get some coffee, then realized he hadn’t made any for himself this morning and went to the break room to get some water. He had just poured it into his coffee maker and turned it on when Avery walked in.

  “Chief, this is the only number I could find. It was in one of our old phone books from back in the day when everybody still used landlines. It may not be any good anymore.”

  “Thanks, Avery. If it’s no good, I’ll have to get an officer from county to go up and notify her.”

  “Yes, sir,” Avery said, and went back to the front desk.

  Lon sat down again, then used his landline to make the call. It rang once, then three more times before someone picked up.

  “Hello. Who is this?”

  Lon grinned. Sugar Slade’s attitude had not mellowed with age.

  “Mrs. Slade, this is Chief Pittman from the Blessings Police Department. I’m sorry to bother you, but we felt it imperative to let you know that your nephew Hoover has escaped from Coastal State Prison, and reports have him possibly heading this way.”

  He heard her gasp, and then what sounded like a snort of disgust.

  “Oh good grief! I don’t want anything to do with him. He was mean as a kid, and he turned into a downright nasty man when he grew up,” Sugar said.

  “Yes, ma’am. That’s why I wanted to let you know. Just be aware. Lock up your car, and hide the keys somewhere in your house to be on the safe side. And if you even get a glimpse of him, lock yourself in the house and call me or the county sheriff’s office immediately.”

  “Yes, I will, and thank you, Chief. Maybe we’ll get lucky and the state police will catch him before he gets this far.”

  Before he could comment, she hung up in his ear. He shook his head, but at least the call was finished.

  The next call he made was to the school superintendent. This was Richard Powers’ first year here in Blessings. They hadn’t been in school quite three months, so Powers had yet to prove himself to the parents. Lon was about to give him his first test.

  He looked up the number to the superintendent’s office and made the call.

  “Superintendent’s office. This is Merle.”

  “Good morning, Merle. This is Chief Pittman. Is Mr. Powers in?”

  “Yes, sir, he is. One moment, please.”

  Lon heard two little beeps, and then Richard Powers picked up.

  “This is Richard. How can I help you, Chief?”

  “I need to give you a heads-up on an alert we received from the state police. A prison escapee is reported to be heading this way. I have patrols out, but as of yet he has not been spotted in the area. However, if he’s spotted anywhere, you’ll need to put everyone on lockdown until he’s apprehended. And just for your reassurance, I have a car patrolling the schools as we speak.”

  “Oh! This is not good news. I’ll notify staff both here and at the elementary school to be aware of the possibility. We appreciate the police presence, for sure. Thank you for the warning.”

  “Certainly,” Lon said, and disconnected. Now that everyone had been notified, he called Avery again.

  “Yes, sir?” Avery said.

  “The number for Sugar Slade was good. Everyone has been notified. I will be in the cruiser.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Lon hung up the phone, grabbed his hat and keys, and went out the back way to his car.

  * * *

  Laurel Lorde was on her way into Blessings. Her cleaning business had grown to the point that she had hired three women to help. She had two women to a crew, and her first crew was already on the job. Laurel was on her way in to meet the third employee, who worked with her. They were meeting at Peanut and Ruby Butterman’s house, and she was already planning her day as she drove.

  She was nearing the city limit when she saw a gray Ford Focus parked on the side of the road. She slowed down to see if someone was
inside and needing help, but when she saw it was abandoned, she kept driving.

  As she took the last curve into town, she saw one of the police cruisers parked at the city limit sign and frowned. They never did this unless they were on the lookout for someone.

  When she saw it was Deputy Ralph, she waved. He waved back, and she kept driving until she reached the gas station at the edge of town and stopped to fill up.

  She got out with her credit card, swiped it, removed the gas cap, and started to fill the tank. While she was standing there, another patrol car drove past.

  Johnny Pine was on the other side of the pumps filling up his work truck.

  “Hey, Johnny, what’s with all the police cars today?”

  Johnny turned around. “Oh, good morning, Mrs. Lorde. There’s supposed to be an escapee from Coastal State headed this way. The police are all over the place. Keep everything locked up today, okay?”

  “Who escaped?”

  “Hoover Slade.”

  “Oh no!” Laurel said, and immediately thought of that abandoned car.

  Hoover’s brother, Truman, had once caused a lot of trouble for her family. As soon as she finished fueling up, she got in the car and called her husband, Jake.

  Jake answered. “Hey, babe.”

  “Hi. I got to town and see police cars patrolling all over town. An escapee from Coastal State is reportedly heading to this area. Make sure your truck is locked, and keep the doors locked at home. You know how you get when you’re working. You zone out to everything else.”

  “Yes, I will. You do the same. You only clean the one house today, right?”

  “Yes, Peanut and Ruby’s house, but there’s something else. The escapee is Hoover Slade. Truman’s brother.”

  “Okay, I know where you’re going with this, and I’ll be careful. But after all this time, I seriously doubt that his escape has anything to do with us.”

  “Yes, maybe you’re right. I just remember how much Truman wanted to get back at you.”

  “And I put the fear of God in him when I followed him all the way to the Georgia–Florida line. This has nothing to do with us, I promise. But thanks for the heads-up anyway, and call me when you’re about to leave town.”

  “I will. I love you, Jake.”

  “I love you more,” he said. “Now go make dust fly and stop worrying.”

  Laurel grinned. He always made her laugh. “Yes, I will.”

  She left the station and was on her way to the Butterman house when she saw Chief Pittman. He was out of his cruiser and talking to an older woman in her yard. Laurel thought of that abandoned car again and, on impulse, stopped.

  Lon heard the car brake and turned around. Laurel had her window down.

  “Did you want to talk to me?” Lon called out.

  She nodded.

  “Be right there,” Lon said, then ended his conversation with the woman. “Just go about your business today, but keep your car doors locked and your house locked, whether you’re there or not.”

  The woman nodded and hurried back inside as Lon walked out across the street to talk to Laurel.

  “What’s up?” he asked.

  “I passed an abandoned car out on the highway. It was just before the city limit sign. I didn’t think anything of it until I got into town and saw all the police and heard what it was about. That’s when I wondered if the car might have anything to do with him.”

  “What kind of car was it?” Lon asked.

  “It was a gray Ford Focus. I’m no good at guessing the year, but it was in really good shape.”

  Lon’s heart skipped a beat. They’d just gotten their first break.

  “Thank you, Laurel. We’ll check it out right now. Are you heading to work?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then keep your car locked and the doors locked to the house you’re working in, okay?”

  “Yes, I will,” she said, and drove off.

  Lon got in his cruiser and picked up the mic. “Chief to Deputy Ralph, come in.”

  “This is Ralph, over.”

  “Check abandoned car just north of your ten-twenty and advise.”

  “Ten-four, Chief. Over and out.”

  Lon started the car and was on his way back to Main when Ralph radioed back.

  “Ralph to Chief, over.”

  “This is Pittman, go ahead.”

  “Positive ID on vehicle in question. Over.”

  “Call a tow. Log it in, then resume patrol within city limits. Over.”

  “Ten-four, Chief. Over and out.”

  Lon keyed up the mic again, knowing they would all have heard the conversation between him and Ralph.

  “All units. Suspect likely on foot. Be aware. Over and out.”

  Finding the car so close to town upped the danger level. Slade would be looking for wheels, and there was a town full for the taking. But the word was already spreading in Blessings to lock the doors and stay inside.

  When Lon made the call to Superintendent Powers that a lockdown was necessary, it set off a whole other level of tension. Then he notified the state police that Slade was in the area.

  * * *

  Hoover had snuck into Blessings from the park side of town and was working his way through the alleys, looking for a new ride, when he saw the first patrol car. He thought nothing of it until a couple of blocks down he saw another, then another. He was starting to panic. The need to get out of town was immediate. There was no more time for caution. He couldn’t go back to prison.

  * * *

  Neither Sully nor Melissa was aware of the issue until Sully went down to Bloomer’s Hardware to pick up some caulking for a loose windowpane. He and Melissa had been in last week to get some washers to fix a leaky faucet, so he’d already met the man who’d fired Melissa from a twenty-year job. But with only one hardware store in town, holding grudges made no sense.

  Sully noticed the police presence on the way there, and after he was in the store, he asked, “Hey, Fred. What’s going on with all the police?”

  “Oh, you haven’t heard? There’s an escapee from a state prison in the area. I just heard on the scanner that they found the stolen car he was in on the outskirts of town, so everyone is supposed to keep their cars and doors locked and stay inside.”

  Sully frowned. “I need to call Melissa and let her know,” he said. “This tube of caulking is all I need.”

  “Then let’s get you checked out,” Fred said, and headed to the register at the front of the store.

  * * *

  Trash day was tomorrow, and Melissa was going through the house emptying wastebaskets into the garbage bag she was carrying. She emptied the last one into the bag and then tied it shut and carried it to the utility room, where the garbage bag from the kitchen was sitting, and opened the back door. The kitchen bag was heaviest, and the trash cans were all the way at the other end of the house. She pulled both bags out onto the patio and then picked up the kitchen garbage and started walking. She reached the trash can, lifted the lid, and was about to put the bag inside when she saw a man trying to break into her car. He was pulling on every door in a frantic way.

  Then he looked up, realized he’d been caught, and started running toward her to silence her before she could alert the authorities.

  Melissa dropped the sack and ran screaming for the house. Her heart was pounding, her focus on the open door. All she had to do was get inside and lock him out.

  She didn’t know he was gaining on her until she leaped up on the porch and heard the thump of his footsteps right behind her. She crossed the threshold and was turning to lock the door when he hit it with both hands and knocked her flat on her back on the kitchen floor.

  She hit with a thud, but was scrambling back to her feet when he caught her again. She grabbed the carafe of leftover coffee and swung it toward
his head, but he put up an arm to block the blow, and it hit his elbow and shattered instead.

  “You bitch!” he screamed, looking at the blood running down his arm. When he looked up, she was already running through the house toward the front door.

  She made it into the foyer before he caught her again, and this time they were both on the floor. He wrestled her down until he was straddling her body, with her hands pinned above her head.

  “Stop it! Stop fighting!” Hoover said. “All I want is your car.”

  Melissa was gasping for breath and praying Sully would get here in time to keep her from dying.

  “Then take it!” she cried.

  “Where are the keys? I need the keys!” he said.

  “In that dish on the table behind you. Just take them and go.”

  He rose up just enough to see a ring of keys in the dish, and when he did, she got one hand loose and clawed the side of his face with her nails, trying to kick free.

  “You’re dead!” he screamed, and drew back his fist and knocked her out.

  He staggered to his feet, dripping blood from his elbow and his face, and grabbed the keys. The dish they were in shattered as it fell to the floor. “Oops,” he said, and started out the door, then looked back at her again. A hostage might come in handy. So he ran back to the kitchen and got some dish towels, then came back and tied her hands together, and then her feet. He hauled her limp body up off the floor, threw her over his shoulder, and carried her through the house to the door that opened onto the portico, then outside to the car.

  He unlocked the car doors and pressed another button to open the trunk. When the trunk lid popped up, he dumped her inside, slammed it shut, and jumped in the car. Within minutes, he was out of the neighborhood, taking back roads to get out of town.

  * * *

  The moment Sully got in the car, he called Melissa to warn her, but she didn’t answer. He started the car and headed home, calling her over and over while telling himself everything was fine. He believed that until he neared the house and saw that her car was gone. As he pulled up in the drive, he noticed the garbage on the ground near the trash can and then looked toward the house.