by Paul Watkins
“No, don’t look around anymore until we get more people there, stay with Mary and Shana. I’ll call the sheriff and the state police.”
I replace the receiver and look at A.J. and Sheri. From the half of the conversation they have heard, they know it isn’t good and their faces show they fear the worst. There’s no way to ease in to this.
“It looks like someone may have grabbed Jeff-Jeff… at least, that’s the way we’re going to treat it until we know different.”
“Who? Where?” A.J. asks.
Sheri’s hands go to her face. “My God!” she exclaims. She starts to cry.
I hold my hands up.
“We can talk in a minute. Right now time is critical. I have to make some calls.”
I want to stay with them, but I’m afraid of interference. Too many questions will cost us time we don’t have. We have to block the roads and get a search under way. It may be an overreaction, but I would rather look like a fool than be one. I run to the office and immediately hit a switch hooked to an automatic dialer. This activates a computer program that calls the pagers of each of the off-duty security men with a pre-programmed alert summoning them to the estate or to call in for further instructions. In themeantime, I signal the men on the grounds to report to the office immediately.
The shift leader, Hudson, is the first one in, followed by the remainder of the shift within the next two minutes. They all wait quietly until everyone is present.
“It looks like someone has bagged little Jeff,” I begin. “I’ve paged the staff. It happened at the drug store in the village. John Cosentino is waiting there for further instructions.” Turning to Hudson, “Assign two men to the store area to help John. Have someone else drive Mary and Shana back here. I want John to stay in town until we know more. close down the grounds in case this is a feint to get our attention elsewhere. Have everyone else report here. Put all house lines on tap and automatic trace.”
Hudson doesn’t bother to make any notes. We have been through this drill dozens of times and he knows what to do better than I. A major portion of our training has been designed for this very possibility. Equipment has been installed to monitor our telephone lines. Two of the security people are experts in electronic surveillance and they will take turns monitoring their domain.
Months ago we met with both the local sheriff and the state police in an effort to develop a plan should a critical situation occur. The law enforcement people already had standard plans for roadblocks in emergencies. All we had to do was code their maps and make minor modifications to tailor the plans to our needs.
However, we did one additional thing on our own. We surveyed the area and identified every vacant building within a twenty mile radius of the village. We figure a kidnapper would head for one of those buildings first in an attempt to evade a roadblock. We are a little more isolated out here and it isn’t as easy to get lost as it would be in the city. We will now begin a systematic check of each one of those buildings, starting at the village and working our way out. The initial vectors chosen will be in the direction of the city. All search teams will consist of two men. But none of this will happen until we perform a more thorough search of the area and that has to happen without further delay.
Only Hudson knows there is one other item on the agenda. John Cosentino will be kept in the field and out of the way until all plans are completed here in the house. Then he will be brought into the house and given an assignment here where we can keep an eye on him until all field activities are completed. We trust John, but he is the one who was there when this thing went down and until we are absolutely certain he is not a part of this, he will be kept under Hudson’swatchful eye. It’s nothing personal, just business.
***
Returning to the library I find A.J. and Sheri preparing to leave.
“Where are you going?” I ask, trying not to sound too demanding.
I can’t imagine what I would be doing at this moment. They look like wild animals about to bolt.
“We’re going into town,” A.J. replies, heading towards the door.
“Mary and Shana are going to be coming back here,” I tell them. “Our people will be in town to see if there is anything we can learn there. I want you to stay here. There’s nothing for you to do there… absolutely nothing.”
“There’s nothing for us to do here either,” A.J. retorts. “We might be able to help.”
“A.J., listen to me,” I plead. “We have to remain calm. Time is very important right now. If it’s a kidnapping, then it’s probable the kidnapper will try to contact us. We want you here with us in the event we have to consult with you and Sheri.
“Also, there’s a possibility this is only part of the plan… whatever it might be. Right now we are sealing off the estate. No one will be allowed in or out. Neither one of you will be out of the sight of our security staff until this is settled. If you leave, it will spread us too thin. I need every man available to be on a search team. Please work with us on this.”
A.J. looks at Sheri… she seems near hysteria. He puts his arms around her and pulls her to him. Tears cascade down her face through her closed eyelids.
“Okay, Phil, but you have to tell us what’s goingon.”
Sheri nods her agreement and holds A.J.’s shirtfront in her clenched fists.
“Fair enough,” I answer. “This is going to be a tough time for all of us. The state cops should be here in a little while. Right now they are busy setting up roadblocks. They will close the roads within a twenty to twenty-five mile radius of town. I’m heading into town to see the Sheriff.
“There’s no way they made it out by road… our reaction was too fast. That leaves the air. We are checking all flight plans for any general aviation that has flown to nearby airports within the last week and anything planning to leave now. No word so far.”
“So where does all this leave us?” A.J. asks.
I put my hand on A.J.’s arm.
“Please try to understand… we have done everything possible, or at least reasonable to prevent this from happening in the first place. However, we also made very elaborate plans in the event it ever did happen. I can’t take the time to go over everything with you right now, but please believe me, there is a lot going on.
“I feel very confident they are somewhere around here. Our people will soon be checking abandoned buildings in the area, starting with those closest to town. We figure they would want to get off the road as quickly as possible. If we’re right, we should know something soon. Remember. we’re assuming he has been taken. We still haven’t had a chance to make a thorough search of the area, but that’s the way we’re going to play it until we know different.”
Watching Sheri as I speak, she’s making a visible effort to compose herself. Staring straight ahead, herfists clenched at her sides, her body shudders with an involuntary reaction to her demands… she breathes deeply, searching for control. A.J. instinctively pulls her to his side and wraps his arm around her shoulders.
“What will happen if you find them?” she asks.
“Depends,” I answer.
A.J. looks up. “On what?”
“On too many things to discuss right now,” I respond. “Look, the only thing that counts is getting little Jeff back safely. After that I’m concerned with any number of things, including who planned this and why.”
“Isn’t that up to the police?” Sheri asks. “Once they are arrested what do we have to say about it?”
“Again, it depends. Everything… nothing… I don’t know. It depends on circumstances.”
Sheri is looking at me with obvious concern and bewilderment. It’s no time for philosophy. She needs help… not horseshit.
“I’ll keep you posted,” I say, before I say too much.
I turn and quickly leave the room.
CHAPTER 25
The Sheriff’s office is quiet with an air of complacency about it. I wait at the desk with growing impatience as the clerk ignores my presence.
“Excuse me,” I say, “but I have a bit of an emergency on my hands. Is the Sheriff in?”
“He’s in but he’s busy right now.” The clerk responds.
“Look, I have to see him right now. This is urgent.”
“Why don’t you take a seat over there, he will be along in a minute.”
“That’s not good enough,” I reply. “We have a missing child and I need to see him right away.”
The clerk pushes his chair back from the desk and turns to a file cabinet. He pulls out a drawer and slowly fingers through file folders until he finds the one he’s looking for.
“This is a missing persons form, fill it out and we will get back to you later today.”
“Are you always this incompetent,” I ask, “or is this one of your better days? I want to see the Sheriff and I want to see him now, so cut the bullshit and tell him I’m here.”
The clerk gives me a long look and then slowly reaches for his telephone. “Man out here says he has to see you,” he drawls into the phone. “Something about a missing person.”
The clerk sits motionless for a few moments, hangs up the receiver and turns to me. “Says he’ll be out in a few minutes.” The clerk turns back to more important matters and ignores me.
I decide to give it two minutes. If the Sheriff doesn’t make it out here by then I’ll have to leave. The state police have responded and that should be enough.
With fifteen seconds to go the door to the Sheriff’s office opens slowly and he emerges preoccupied with the papers he’s holding in his hand. He walks to the clerk’s desk, places the papers carefully on the surface and then turns to me.
“You the missing person problem?” He asks.
“Yes. I want your help. We think the Jackson boy has been taken and we would like to have your people be on the lookout.”
The sheriff smiles patiently. “Have you filled out a report,” he asks. “Not much is going to happen until we get the paperwork in place.”
“No, I haven’t filled out a report yet, and I don’t have time to do that right now. I thought I might talk to you or someone on your staff so we could get things started. I can come back later and fill out whatever paperwork is necessary. Time is very important right now.”
“Time is always important, Mr. … what did you say your name was?”
“My name is Philip Richards. I work for the Jackson family. Their son, Jeffrey is missing. We think he might have been taken. not more than thirty or forty minutes ago. Here’s a picture. if you’re going to help, we need you to move now.”
“Well Mr. Richards, let’s take things one at a time before we get all excited here. First we have to determine if the boy is actually missing. If that’s the case, I assure you we know what to do after that. Now why don’t you take a seat right over there and fill out the paperwork. Then we’ll see if we have a real problem here.”
“Thanks just the same, Sheriff,” I reply, “but I have to get going. Thanks for all your help and concern. You’ll hear from me again.”
The sheriff laughs. “I’m sure there’s nothing to this, Mr. Richards. Be sure to let us know if you need anything.”
Yeah. right.
***
I arrive at the pharmacy and find that our guys have found nothing more about what might have happened to Jeff. The state police have a team of men continuing to comb the area for clues, but we’re more interested in the boy than building a case. At least the police are treating this as an emergency.
Our security staff has been split up into three teams consisting of two men each. Predetermined search assignments, drawn up months ago, are followed methodically with the men calling in before and after checking each building. We built a file on every abandoned building in the immediate area as part of our training. Included in the file are thelocation, a picture of the building, a rough layout of the land and a scale drawing of the interior of the structure itself. These files took weeks to prepare, and frankly many of the men had thought it a waste of time… a huge make-work project. I wonder how many think that now.
The team knows in advance the best approach to each building, plus the logical places to hide vehicles. Team partners are linked by radio or telephone to each other and to the base at the estate with all specific locations discussed in code as listed in the files. Standard drill is to approach the building as quickly as possible with one partner covering. Safety is important, but so is time and we don’t want to use anymore of it than is necessary to determine a building is empty. From there it’s on to the next building in the sequence.
One team is made up of two men named Jerry and Ralph, both with the last name Smith, and commonly referred to as the Smith brothers. The fact that one is black and the other white has never been cause for question. They’re both named Smith, so they must be brothers.
The Smith brothers have just called in possible activity at coordinates identifying the old Jenson place. It’s an abandoned farm consisting of a house and barn, with the barn in better shape than the house. I vaguely remember the buildings. Weathered lumber, no glass left in any of the windows, but pretty good roofs on both buildings. The place is about eight miles from town and no more than five miles from here… that would seem about right. a good place to hole up until the heat dies down.
The Smith brothers noticed fresh tire tracks going down an old path leading from the road to the barn. They have requested an open line while they check it out.
Every security man carries two weapons on his person. The pistols are either .357’s or .44’s with magnum loads. These weapons are chosen for their stopping power. All have Uzis for volume fire. Sniper rifles are stored in the car trunks. While some of the guys are better shots than others, all are very good marksmen. No one expects a gunfight. Little Jeff’s safety is our primary concern, however, standing instructions are to stop the quarry at all costs. If we spot the boy we will never lose sight of him because of any concerns for the kidnappers. Negotiation is not an option.
All security men are wearing military-style utility clothing. Flak jackets are part of their standard uniform for this type of assignment. No one here is a reluctant participant. This is part of their duty… they signed on to protect this family. Further, little Jeff’s kidnapping is an insult to their professionalism. No effort will be spared to get him back. And no effort will be spared to get the people responsible for this.
Whispered updates are coming in over the line. Jerry is using a cellular phone. Right now they are advancing on the barn before going on to the house. If they are right and this is the place, the vehicle would be hidden in the barn.
Jerry reports that Ralph hears something, possibly voices, in the barn.
“Stay put. We’re on the way,” I instruct him as
Hudson, John Cosentino and I run for our car.
***
It takes about fifteen minutes to make it to the site, including running the last quarter mile to keep the noise down. We don’t want to alert anyone by coming to a screeching halt on the road right outside the property. If they are there, they are probably listening to car engines as they pass by. A car slowing down or stopping would certainly get their attention. The weeds make a light swishing sound around my legs as I run down the path towards Jerry. He’s about fifty feet from the barn. Trying to stay low and still make any kind of time is tough to do. I pull up next to Jerry and I’m sucking air like a Hoover.
It seems it’s always harder to catch your breath when you’re trying to be quiet about it.
We have six people in place or getting to their assigned positions. Hudson is using hand signals to direct them. He doesn’t need any help from me and I focus my full attention on J
erry.
“Any activity?”
“Nada,” he whispers. “There’s Ralph… see him?” I follow his gaze and see Ralph standing motionless at the side of the barn.
“Yeah. Okay, I’m going in there. It looks like the big door is open wide enough for me to slide through.”
I look back to Hudson and he gives me a thumbs up… all entrances are covered. I scan the area one more time to check the men in their positions. Hudson is looking directly at me and I signal him that I’m going in. He nods.
“Once I’m in,” I tell Jerry, “I want you to follow… then Ralph. The others will stay in position until we signal clear. Then they will check out the house. Any questions?”
“No questions.”
The look in Jerry’s eyes is all business… he’s like an attack dog straining at the leash.
I move quickly towards the door. Since I can’t tell anything from out here I immediately slip through the space and move directly to my left to get away from the light at my back. There’s a van to my front and as I step to the side I see two men sitting on old hay bales in the center of the barn. They both look up at the sound of my entrance. I don’t think I’m what they were expecting. Bear is to my right. The man on the left is unknown to me. He’s big with a heavy build and his right hand is reaching behind him. I lower myself into a two-handed shooter’s stance.
“If your hand goes anywhere but straight up in the air… you’re dead.”
Bear’s hands go straight up in the air. The big man to his right pauses and then follows suit.
“If you even flinch… same thing.”
Jerry and Ralph rush forward, staying to the side to keep out of my field of fire and maintaining their owncoverage at the same time. Jerry walks behind the stranger, picks up a gun and tosses it to the side.
“Cuff him,” I command.
