by Frank Perry
the driver who was blocking her exit. She hesitated, then turned and walked to the watertight door, leading inside the ship. None of the levers (dogs) was tightened, so she stepped through into the well-lit space. Again, she was alone until she heard footsteps coming down a stairway (ladder) from the bridge deck above. “Oh, hello, ma’am. I’m Pete Korb, captain of the Queen, and I think you know the man behind you.”
She whirled around just as Ramon locked her in his powerful arms, squeezing her so that she could hardly breathe and couldn’t scream. While she was suspended, Korb brought a coil of thick rope and began circling her legs, then upward, tying her arms tightly to her sides. So tight that breathing continued to be difficult.
Once she was completely immobile, Ramon laid her gently on the deck, face up. She fought the bindings but was tied so tightly that movement was impossible. “What are you doing!”
Korb spoke. “Sorry ma’am, but the boss’s orders. He told us to be gentle, so I hope you’re comfortable.”
“I’m not comfortable. I’m terrified. I want out of here. I want to go home!”
Korb said, “Ma’am, if you’ll just relax, this will be easier on all of us.”
Ramon towered, standing by her feet, bending his neck to fit inside the average space. He didn’t speak, but had the look of someone who lost a million dollars. He obviously wanted to take advantage of the beauty under his control, but Peña forbid it.
She yelled, “What are you doing? What’s happening?”
Korb had moved closer to the ladder. “Ma’am, we’re taking a little boat ride. I’m sorry that you can’t be more comfortable. Ramon will keep you company for the next three hours.”
Terror was overtaking her. “Three hours? What happens in three hours?” Tears streamed freely down her face.
Korb never answered, he was on the bridge and began sending commands below. The ship vibrated then began moving moments later.
She pleaded. “Ramon, Ramon! I’ll do anything for you. Let me go. We can be together. I know you want me.”
He just smiled and walked across the galley for a chair opposite her head where she couldn’t strain to see him.
The ship seemed to glide momentarily, then shuddered, and she could sense forward motion. After several minutes, the deck under her began rising and falling gently as the ship approached open sea.
She lay there, losing sensation in her arms and legs compressed by the bindings. She closed her eyes and tried not to think about what was coming. Luca had not come. She was alone and scared. Through the porthole, she could see glimpses of the full moon, which only worsened her fear.
A few hours later, it was hard to gauge time, the engines stopped, and the ship floated idly for several minutes before Korb came down from the bridge, saying something to Ramon that she couldn’t hear. Korb walked past and opened the door. Ramon appeared over her and lifted her from the deck as she tried helplessly to squirm. There wasn’t anything she could do against the tight nylon binding. Ramon carried her in the moonlight to the rear, near the nets. He set her down while both men tied another rope around her. It was tied to two concrete blocks. The reality hit her again, even if she knew it all along.
She screamed. “No! No! Please just shoot me. Kill me quickly...please! She pleaded, but neither man seemed to notice as they completed their work.
Korb was on his knees and bent over her, brushing her hair. “Mr. Peña wanted me to say thank you for him. He wished that you and him could’ve continued, but...well, you know.” He nodded to Ramon who picked her up while Korb carried the blocks.
Her bellowing was silenced a second later when she disappeared into the black sea nearly a thousand feet deep, according to the depth sounder. Their work was done, and they returned to port.
Some days later, Claire called Hunter worried about their cousin. “Hunter, she’s not around.”
“What do you mean, sis? Did you check everywhere?
“Hunter. Uncle Bob called me. They haven’t heard from her in a week. They called her school. She’s been gone all week. Uncle Bob went down to her apartment, and she isn’t there. He said some things on the counter were going bad.”
“Okay, sis. I’m calling the FBI.”
“Should I call John?”
“Yeah, but I want to get some answers from the Feds. They’re supposed to be working on the case, but I don’t see any activity. They never call me.”
“Okay, I’ll call John.”
He hung up and called the SF office of the FBI, asking for Special Agent Kasey McDougal. The call transferred immediately.
“This is Kasey McDougal.”
“Hi, Kasey. This is Hunter Kohl. We met during the summer when you were investigating José Rivera’s murder.”
“Sure, Hunter. I remember you. What can I do for you?”
“My cousin, Claire’s and mine, Sue Ann Flannigan, is missing.”
“I’m sorry to hear that, Hunter, but that sounds like a local matter.”
He was surprised. “Even after what she admitted about her fake kidnapping?”
“I’m sorry, Hunter. I don’t understand.”
He became suspicious. “You know the story. She faked a kidnapping so that I would be forced to help her boyfriend Luciano Peña.’
She said patiently, “I’m not following, Hunter. How did your cousin get mixed up with Luciano Peña?”
“Didn’t John Richards share the information with you?”
“I haven’t spoken to John since your sister met us at the forensics lab in Alameda.”
“You mean he didn’t tell you that Peña tricked Sue Ann into a romance and that he forced her to pretend being kidnapped to scare the rest of us?”
“No, Hunter. Do I need to call him?”
“No, don’t do that. I need to check some things out first.”
She was emphatic. “Alright, Hunter but it sounds like there’s some important evidence in the case that I need to have.”
“Kasey. You’ll get it all as soon as I know what’s going on.”
“Alright, Hunter.”
New Game
He called Claire immediately. “Sis. Don’t talk to John about anything.”
“What! Hunter, he’s our friend. How can I avoid him? He was Jose’s best friend at the state house, and he’s helped me all along since we lost him.”
“Claire, I can’t be specific. Hell, I don’t know enough yet, but something is rotten in Denmark!”
“Has this got something to do with Suzy?”
He paused. “I think so.”
She gasped. “Oh, Hunt. Do you think they hurt her? Do you think she could be...dead?”
“I’m gonna find out, sis.”
She knew him. She knew how he could react. “Hunter. You need to stay safe. Let the police handle this!”
“You have a lot more faith in the law than me, sis. I’m a pragmatic kind of guy. Money can do a lot of evil, so I don’t trust anyone right now. Maybe I’m just jumping at shadows. You’ve known John a long time, a lot longer than me. I don’t know why, but I’ve got to find out which side he’s on. Peña’s got a lot bigger fish in his pond, so don’t exclude John. It might save your life.”
“You’re freaking me out, Hunter. What are you going to do?”
“I don’t know yet, but is the guest room still open?”
“Sure, I’ll make sure the sheets are clean.”
“I’ll call you back, sis.”
The next call he made was to Laura. “Can you take a few days off and go stay with your parents?”
“Hunter. What’s going on?”
“Laurie, I need to go back to California and straighten a few things out. I don’t want to worry about you.”
“Hunter, I’m a big girl. I’ll be careful. I always have my pepper spray with me and I won’t travel alone.”
He couldn’t be in all places at once and he had to choose between protecting Lau
rie or leave Claire and the kids in danger. And he needed to do something to stop the maniac in San Francisco. He was going after Peña, even if the law couldn’t touch him. He wasn’t the law. “All right sweetheart, but be extra careful. I don’t know who could be the next victim.”
She was tense but composed. “I will. You call me a lot when you’re gone, okay, I mean a super lot, Hunter. Don’t let me get lonely.”
“I’ll call often, doll. I love you!”
He packed his travel bag quickly. He didn’t have a reservation, but lots of airlines flew west, and he’d get to California even if he had to hop from state to state.
It was just before noon when he left the apartment carrying his oversized travel bag. The streets were quiet as he walked up the hill toward the Metro station. Before he reached the first corner, a car screeched to a stop ahead, and a man jumped out without closing the door, blocking the middle of the wide sidewalk. “Where do you think you’re going, Kohl?”
Hunter quickly sized him up. Average height, skinhead, prison tattoos, extremely wiry, and probably had some scars hidden under his tight tee-shirt. He recognized the man, Number Three, taking pictures from the van at the service for José. He placed his travel bag on the ground beside him slowly, standing inches from the man, looking slightly downward at his face. “I don’t know you, so I’d suggest you get out of my way.” Actually, he didn’t want this creep in Washington with Laura.
The second man was bigger, almost Hunter’s size, with the same evil persona, but not as buff compared to the aggressive one. The big man moved from the driver’s side of the car to the front fender near the curb, about six feet from Hunter
