by J. C. Fields
“Good, let’s find out where he’s staying.”
***
Sandy Knoll pulled into a parking space at the twenty-four-hour diner next to Adam Weber’s hotel. The Ford Focus with the tracking device was parked on the side of the hotel, several spaces from its north entrance. It was a little after four in the morning as Knoll stepped out of his rental car and looked back at the diner. There was a table next to a window with a perfect view of Weber’s car. He smiled and entered the diner.
Two hours, seven cups of coffee, and an early-morning breakfast special later, Knoll observed Weber exit the hotel. He watched as the man threw a suitcase into the trunk of his rental car and got into the driver’s seat. Knoll looked at his bill, placed a twenty on the table, and headed for his car.
Weber drove toward the interstate, a quarter of a mile north of the hotel. He took the westbound exit and headed toward the airport. Knoll followed five cars behind. Twenty minutes later, he was parked in the airport’s short-term parking area with a clear view of the rental car lot. Weber had returned the car to the rental agency and was now walking into the terminal. As Knoll entered the airport building, he caught a glimpse of Weber walking toward the security area. He paused next to a coffee shop, watched as the man went through security and proceed toward his gate.
After showing his military ID and a brief discussion with the head of the local TSA contingency, Knoll gained access to the gate area. He spotted Weber talking on his cell phone at an American Airlines gate, from which a 7:45 a.m. flight to Dallas was scheduled to depart. The flight appeared to be full as the waiting area was crowded. Knoll found an empty chair several rows away, with a clear view of Weber. He watched and waited until the flight to Dallas was announced. When the second boarding group was called, Weber ended the call, stood, walked to the gate, and handed his boarding pass to the attendant. Once he was through the gate entrance, he disappeared from Knoll’s sight. Twenty minutes later, the jet bridge rolled away from the plane.
Once the commuter jet was pushed away from the gate and rolling toward the runway, he quickly walked toward the security area exit. It took several minutes to leave the terminal and locate the rental car Weber had been driving.
Knoll glanced around, bent down, and retrieved the small device he had placed inside the driver side rear fender the previous evening. As he slowly walked back to his own rental, he watched the commuter jet lift off, gain altitude, and disappear into low-lying clouds headed southwest.
After paying the parking fee and exiting the airport grounds, Knoll dialed a number on his cell phone. It was answered on the second ring. “He just took off on a flight headed for Dallas.”
Joseph was silent for a few moments. “That was too easy. Do you think he found the device?”
“I can’t say. It didn’t appear to have been disturbed.”
“Okay. We won’t assume he’s finished here. We’ll keep the watch going on JR’s condo. In the meantime, go on back to your hotel and get some sleep.”
“Sounds good, I’ll be back midafternoon.”
***
Alton Crigler listened as two senior vice presidents heatedly argued the true value and profitability of a company P&G Global was preparing to buy. His cell phone vibrated. He glanced at the caller ID and answered the call. “Just a moment.” He cleared his throat. “Gentlemen, I believe we have debated this topic to death. Put your arguments on paper, and we’ll reconvene this afternoon. I need to take this phone call.” He stood and walked out of the conference room and returned to his desk. “Good morning, Adam. Where are you?”
“Dallas.”
“Do you have any news for me?”
“Yes—I found him.”
“In Dallas?”
“No, Springfield, Missouri.”
“Never heard of it. Is it close to St. Louis?”
“No, it’s in the southwestern corner of the state, close to Arkansas and Kansas.”
“Still haven’t heard of it. Does he know you’ve found him?”
“No.” Weber paused, trying to decide how much to reveal at this point. “There could be a few complications.”
“How so?”
“He has help.”
“What do you mean help?”
“At this point I haven’t actually seen him, but all indications point toward this being the correct location.”
Crigler didn’t say anything for several moments. “Then why are you in Dallas?”
“While I was examining the company’s personnel records, someone planted a tracking device on my car. I let them follow me to the airport and watch as I left for Dallas. I’m switching to another ID and flying back in a couple of hours.”
“I’m not going to ask how you examined their records; I can only imagine. Confirm the fugitive is there and get back to me.”
***
The call ended abruptly. Without comment, Weber stood, placed the phone in his pocket, and headed toward an exit and the ticketing counters. He would be back in Springfield by early afternoon.
At 4:00 p.m., Weber was parked on a residential street across from the office complex containing Ozark Computer Security. A busy street separated his location from the complex, and the elevation was higher. Through high-powered binoculars bought at a nearby Bass Pro Shop, he watched the entrance to the office. Now it was a simple matter of watching and waiting for someone to leave.
At fifteen minutes after five, a woman exited the office door and walked quickly to a five-year-old Honda Accord parked fifty feet from the entrance. Weber recognized her from several pictures in the office where he had found the personnel records. This was Helen Meyers. He watched as she backed her car out of the parking slot and drove to an exit leading to a busy east–west artery of the city. Weber started his car and was about to follow her when a large man, whom he recognized from the airport earlier in the day, stepped out of the building followed by a tall black man. The black man held the door open as the two conversed. They shook hands and the larger man walked to a parked GMC Denali. The black man closed the door and remained in the building.
Weber’s first instinct was to follow the woman, but at the last second he decided to follow the SUV. If it was a dead end, he’d wait until tomorrow and follow the woman. The Denali turned out of the parking lot and headed east. Weber stayed several cars behind and was almost stopped by a traffic light, but blew through it just as it turned red. The GMC turned off the busy thoroughfare and headed toward the center of the city. Fifteen minutes later, the SUV pulled into the parking lot of a three-story building near downtown. The big man exited the vehicle and entered the building.
Weber waited patiently and finally after an hour, a gray Toyota Camry pulled into a parking spot near the front entrance to the building. The passenger side was facing Weber, and a petite oriental woman stepped out, stood, and stretched. A man emerged from the driver’s side. Weber trained his binoculars on the man as he turned his face toward the woman. Weber smiled. As he watched, the big man came out of the building and shook hands with the fugitive. The two of them walked back to the trunk of the car, where the fugitive said something to the girl, who shook the hand of the big man. Luggage was taken from the trunk and they all entered the building.
Weber pressed the send icon on his cell phone; it was answered on the first ring.
“Where are you?”
“Back in Springfield.”
“And…”
“Found him. I just watched him enter a building.”
Crigler was silent for a few moments. “How many people are helping him?”
“I’m not sure, at this point. I know of at least two. One looks military. There’s also a girl. What do you want me to do?”
More silence. Finally Crigler said, “Find out the name he’s using, plus everything you can about him. Then we’ll talk again.” The call ended again without another word.
Weber got out of his rental car, which was across the street from the three-story building in a larger parkin
g lot. Several restaurants and small shops were located north of where he was parked. It was approaching dusk as he entered one of the restaurants and found a seat by the front window. The location gave him a view of the fugitive’s building. He ordered a beer, sat back, and waited for it to get dark. An hour after sunset, he paid for his beer and left the restaurant. Casually crossing the street to the parking lot containing the Camry, he used his cell phone to take a picture of the license plate. After returning to his car and writing down the building’s address, he backed the car out of the parking slot and left the area.
***
Sandy Knoll stood looking out one of JR’s apartment windows, drinking a beer while the couple unpacked from their trip. He watched a man cross the street at the north edge of the building’s parking lot. The man stopped, looked around, and stared up at the building. After a few moments, he calmly walked up to JR’s gray Camry, took a cell phone out of his pocket, and pointed it at the back of the car. Knoll quickly said, “JR, do you have security cameras watching the parking lot?”
JR walked into the living room from the back part of the apartment. “Yeah, several, why?”
“I can’t be sure. It’s too dark out there, but I think the guy who broke into Joseph’s office last night is back. He just took a picture of your car’s license plate.”
JR disappeared into the computer room as Knoll stayed at the window watching the man cross the street to a car in the parking lot across from the condo. JR returned and handed Sandy a sheet of paper with a picture on it. The shot was from above, but it caught the man’s face as he surveyed the building. Sandy nodded. “Yeah, that’s him. It appears we screwed up and lead him right to you JR. Sorry.”
“Who is he?”
“His name is Adam Weber. We believe he was hired to find you.”
JR was silent as he stared at the parking lot.
After a few moments, Knoll said, “We need to get you two out of here and set up surveillance.”
JR shook his head. “No, I’m done running. It’s time to make a stand.”
Sandy looked at JR and smiled. “Good, let’s call Joseph.”
Later that night, as JR lay on his back in bed staring at the ceiling, he felt Mia stir. She was sleeping restlessly, but at least she was sleeping. Joseph had arranged for a security company he had worked with in the past to do surveillance on his building and the surrounding area. Knoll had told him it was temporary. He would have his own team in place by morning.
The lights from the parking lot normally didn’t bother him. But tonight, they did. The shadows cast on the walls of his bedroom morphed into images of his last day in New York City. For the first time since escaping, he was scared—not for himself, but for Mia. The digital clock on the nightstand displayed three minutes after one when he finally slipped out of bed and headed to his computer room. Once seated at his desk, he stared at the hard drive from Plymel’s laptop. He picked it up, smiled and turned it over in his hand. “Let’s see what secrets you hold.”
After attaching it to a cable connected to a custom-made laptop computer, he typed in several commands. Using a program he had designed several years earlier, he accessed the data on the hard drive. Like a surgeon, he discovered and reconstructed deleted segments one after the other. A little over an hour later, he found what he was looking for. He saved all of the discoveries to a flash drive and transferred them to a powerful desktop computer. It took two hours, but when he was done, he found the last of Plymel’s funds.
Once found, he transferred the money through various offshore accounts until they were untraceable. He smiled as a thought occurred to him. Hacking into the American Express website, he located and canceled Plymel’s Black Card account. When he had completed his night’s work, it was fifteen minutes after six in the morning. Abel Plymel was now essentially broke. The man’s last remaining funds were beyond his grasp, and his credit cards were useless. All it would take to finalize the long night’s work was to press a key on the computer. Weary from the lack of sleep over the last forty-eight hours, JR sat back in the desk chair and swept his hair back with his left hand. His fingers hovered over the keyboard. As he pressed the enter key, a faint smile came to his lips and he whispered, “Showtime.”
Chapter 27
Kansas City, MO
The Mustang was parked in the same long-term parking lot he always used when flying out of Kansas City International Airport. Kruger walked back to the car’s trunk, opened it, and stared at his travel and computer bags for several seconds. Here we go again, he thought as he lifted them out of the trunk. After setting them on the pavement, he was about to use his key fob to lock the Mustang when his cell phone rang.
The caller ID displayed only a number, but it was a New York area code. Frowning, he accepted the call and said, “Kruger.”
An excited female voice on the other end said, “How did you know the hairs we found would be from an ex-US Marshal?”
“Who is this?” he said.
“It’s Beverly Castro from the crime lab. We got a hit on that DNA we submitted.”
He stood in silence watching a shuttle bus leave the waiting area closest to his parking space. Finally he caught up with the conversation. “Do you have a name?”
“Yes, his name is Adam Weber, left the US Marshal’s office several years ago. The individual I spoke to wouldn’t go into detail, but apparently his departure was not voluntary. He started his own private security company right after he left. Someone said he was named head of security at P&G Global a few days ago. Do you know him?”
Kruger was silent again. Finally he said, “I’ve heard of him. Are you sure?”
“Yes, the thirteen-loci DNA profiles match exactly. It doesn’t get much better, Sean.”
“I need a picture. Do you have one?”
“Yes, we have a copy of his personnel file from the US Marshal’s office.”
“Scan the file and send it to my email address. Thanks, Beverly. You did good work on this.”
“Thanks, Sean.”
He ended the call and stood silently. The sun was starting to break through the thinning clouds, and a gentle breeze stirred the crisp fall air. Was this the guy Joseph had called him about last night. The one that broke into Joseph’s office two nights ago and then was seen taking a picture of JR’s car?
He glanced at his watch. It was twenty minutes to eight, and his plane left at eight-thirty. The importance of being on the flight quickly faded. Returning his luggage to the trunk of the Mustang, he took out his cell phone after sitting down in the driver’s seat. As he backed out of the parking slot, he made a call.
Joseph answered on the third ring. “Good morning. Thought you were flying to DC?”
“New plan. I’ll be there in three hours. We got a hit on the DNA found in Sharon’s room.”
“Anyone we know?”
“Yeah, how sure are you about your nocturnal visitor?”
“Depends on how much you trust JR’s facial recognition software.”
“Do you trust it?”
“Yes.”
“A hair sample found on Sharon was matched to Adam Weber, ex-US Marshal.”
Joseph was silent for several moments. “Then we have a bigger problem than we originally thought.”
“Yeah, I’d say so. Do you know where he is?”
“No, we didn’t have any assets available to follow him after he showed up in JR’s parking lot last night.” He paused briefly. “We screwed up. Our Mr. Weber knew we were watching him. Damn.”
“It happens.”
“It won’t happen again.”
“Good, I should be there before eleven.” He ended the call as he pulled up to the exit gates for the parking lots.
***
Mary Lawson’s cell phone vibrated as she was walking back to her office from a meeting. She glanced at the caller ID, smiled, and accepted the call. “I’ve spoken more to you in this past week than I have for a year. How are you this morning, my love?”
“How sweet. I hope this isn’t a business call and you’re going to talk dirty to me.”
“Regrettably, it is a business call,” Joseph said, with a note of sadness.
She chuckled. “Is it time for me to pay for the wonderful evening we had earlier this week?”
“No, you already settled that account. Remember our conversation about Adam Weber?”
She was silent for several moments. “Yes, why do you ask?”
“Kruger just called; he’s the prime suspect in Sharon Crawford’s murder. Plus he was photographed by a security camera last night here in Springfield.”
“Oh, dear.”
“Yeah, oh dear.”
“Joseph, what’s going on? Weber was named head of security at P&G Global by Alton Crigler the same day Abel Plymel was arrested.”
Now it was Joseph’s turn to be silent.
“Joseph, are you there?”
“Yes, just thinking.”
“Joseph, the man left the US Marshal under suspicious circumstances. During his time there, he had numerous complaints filed against him for unnecessary force. He also had several prisoners die while in his custody. However, no charges were ever filed.”
“How do you know so much about him?”
“After you returned to Springfield, I called a friend at the Justice Department. Charges of sexual harassment and assault were being prepared. After he left the service, the charges were dropped. I’m sure it was an arranged departure.”
