Innocent Shadows

by Warren Ray

  Gibbs turned to face her. “Glad to hear it.”

  He turned back to Green. “Your car is out back. We’ll handle it from here.”

  “You sure?”

  Gibbs nodded. “Just get those cameras disconnected and be ready when the shooting starts.”

  “I’ll be ready.”

  Green turned to Kyle and shook his hand. Stormy came around the van and put her arms around Green.

  “You were great,” said Green.

  “Thanks and thanks for trusting me.”

  “We’ll talk soon.”

  “I hope so.”

  Green liked hearing that and wondered if she would date him. She seemed to like him, but he wasn’t too sure if it was him or the excitement of what they had just done. Their experience was completely out of the ordinary and he couldn’t assume her high level of excitement was a valid gauge of her intent. He shook his head wondering if they would ever be together during normal circumstances. He let out a laugh thinking that wasn’t going to happen anytime soon.

  He got in his car, thankful the first part of their mission was over but knew the second part was going to be the toughest. Staging a shootout with real bodyguards was going to be dangerous, and if it didn’t work as planned, they could be killed. It wasn’t going to be easy but it was worth the risk. Success would ensure Reed would be at war with Perozzi.

  Chapter 46

  Jackson Michigan

  Having left Port Huron and while making his way back to Jackson, Hadley was half way across the road on his stomach when he heard the roar of a car engine approaching. A small car with a loud muffler was coming down Spring Arbor Road. It could only mean a Jiji was coming his way. He hurried to the grass, rolled into the culvert and swung the M-4 off his back before clicking the safety off. He then froze waiting for the car to pass. A bead of sweat ran down the side of his head and dropped onto the grass as the loud car screamed by him.

  Keeping an eye on the enemy Hadley crawled into the safety of the trees and then got up to begin the long hike. He crossed a golf course and filled his water bottle from a pond before hitting the streets. The pavement was easier to walk on, and now that he was across the border, he was able to relax his tense muscles. He hoped to run into some of the guys guarding the border and get a ride.

  He stopped on the corner of Denton and Kirby to take a drink of water. The sun was out in full force on this cloudless day. The water began cooling him down as he splashed it on his face. He put the cap back on and was putting it back into his pack when he heard another engine up Kirby Road. He pulled out the binoculars and zeroed in on the approaching vehicle. It was a pickup truck traveling at high speed. He let go of the binoculars and stepped to the side knowing this thing would fly by him in mere seconds.

  Hadley made eye contact with the driver as it sped by him in excess of seventy miles per hour. The driver recognized him and jammed on the brakes. Smoke rose from the tires as the back of the truck swerved and bounced making the brakes squeal in the quiet neighborhood.

  Hadley waited as the driver shoved it in reverse and smoked the tires. It came to a dead stop in front of him. He smiled at Reese, who wore a wild expression.

  She ran her hand through her tousled hair, pulling it away from her big brown eyes, before asking, “Don, what are you doing here?”

  Hadley opened the door and hopped up on the bench seat. “I think the guys got busted by the cops.”

  Reese shot him a concerned look.

  “I was waiting for them across the river when I saw a Canadian cop pull out a pistol and shoot holes in the canoe.”

  Reese didn’t wait for him to finish before backing the truck onto Denton Road and fishtailing it back onto Kirby. Hadley buckled his seatbelt as she floored the pedal. After a turn on Greenwood Avenue, the speedometer climbed to eighty miles per hour.

  Reese laughed at Hadley’s frightful appearance. “Don’t worry, Don, I won’t kill you.”

  “You do this often?”

  “Whenever I need to let off some steam. You should try it; it does wonders for the soul.”

  Reese wore a serious expression as she took a tight turn. The expression changed to a wicked one after the turn and she floored the gas pedal. The faster she drove the more steam she blew off.

  Gripping the door handle tight Hadley said, “I’m sorry about what happened with Cole.”

  Reese looked at him through flying strands of blonde hair and gave him a small smile as she took a left on Jackson Street.

  Back a few months ago, when Captain Cox arrested Hadley for suspicion of helping Corporal Bassett escape, he had tossed him in a jail cell right next to Reese and Sadie. Both looked like they were out of hope. Hadley took great satisfaction telling them that help was on the way. It was then that Reese reached through the bars of the cell, pulled his face toward hers, and gave him a big wet kiss. The memory of that kiss still made him weak in the knees. He hadn’t kissed a girl in a long time and never someone so beautiful. He looked over at her and liked the way the strands of hair flew about her face. He couldn’t soak in enough of her beauty and wished he could have a girl like her in his life. He had been making friends with some of the girls around town and flirted with a couple of them who’d showed interest, but it was difficult because everyone wanted to leave.

  Reese made quick work getting them back to the hospital, and she pulled right into the emergency room entrance. The quick stop pressed Hadley up against his seatbelt.

  “See, you’re safe,” she said, hopping out of the truck and grabbing her red crutch out of the bed of the truck.

  Hadley followed her inside and down to the cafeteria where Meeks was getting something to eat.

  Meeks put his cup down when they approached. “What the hell happened?”

  Hadley told him all he knew.

  “Damn. This isn’t good,” said Meeks.

  “What are we gonna do?” asked Hadley.

  “Need to get everyone together first,” said Meeks, as he looked at Reese, “you been out driving?”

  Reese gave him a puzzled look.

  “Your hair’s a bit messy. Think you can scoot over to city hall. Badger’s there with the mayor.”

  “Done.”

  “As a matter of fact, get up to Lansing Road and grab Eddie. Meet us in Elliott’s room; he’ll want to be in on this. Hadley, let’s get upstairs and round up whoever we can.”

  Chapter 47

  As she climbed the hospital stairs, Reese felt the surge of adrenaline she had gotten from receiving her orders. She was feeding off the rush it offered and would top it off with another crazy drive. It helped stave off the depression that threatened to creep back in and overwhelm her. She didn’t want it and did whatever she could to fight it. Nate had helped her recognize the symptoms and made her realize what would happen if she didn’t fight it. No way did she want to mope around all day feeling sorry for herself. That wasn’t why she was rescued from hell and it certainly wasn’t the way to act around these incredible people she now called family. She took a deep breath at the thought. Scar had told her everyone here was family, and her heart had melted hearing those words as she had no one else.

  She hopped into the old truck, started it up, and stomped on the gas pedal causing the engine to roar. The covered entrance to the emergency wing ensured the right acoustics to shout out her departure. She jerked the steering wheel back and forth out of the parking lot and onto Michigan Avenue. A tingling charge shot through her reminding her of making-out with Cole. That day burned into her memory as it was the most meaningful relationship she’d had in a long time. It was the day she finally got what she had desired for so long, but never had the courage to go after. She let out a laugh at the silliness of that thought, but it was a real thing.

  Over the past couple of days, with the help of her new family, she had decided to remain optimistic and believe Cole would come back to her. It gave her the motivation to fight off the depression that camped out on the outer edges of her mind
. It also made her aware of the ever-present Mister Hyde. The one thing Cole stressed was to always be cognizant of him. She saw how it had overpowered him with the death of his daughter being the final straw. Mister Hyde swallowed him whole and took him to the deep end of despair. Her stomach turned into knots witnessing that kind of power. To leave the Shadow Patriots, the group he had started, in the middle of the night, without saying a word to anyone wasn’t something done by a sane person. She let out a sigh and prayed he would somehow find his way back to her. Even if it didn’t work out between them, she still hoped he’d come back.

  Needing to get her head out of the clouds, she took a hard left on Frances Street and slid the back end around as she over steered the turn. The squealing tires on the short S curve of the street induced another shot of adrenaline and got her heart racing again. It took only a few more seconds to reach City Hall where she parked out front. Reaching inside herself, she let out a scoff at the tall staircase before gimping up the steps.

  Gasping for air, she reached the mayor’s office where he was talking to Bill Taylor, who turned in his chair when she walked inside.

  “What’s happened?”

  “Meeks needs ya. Something’s happened to Scar.”

  Taylor stood up. “Mayor, we’ll finish this up later.”

  Reese put up a finger to hold on a second to catch her breath.

  “Yeah, these stairs will kill anyone. C’mon, jump on my back.”

  Taylor leaned down as Reese jumped up. She handed him the red crutch and wrapped her arms around his neck.

  “You sure you can handle this?” she asked, in a humorous tone.

  “Are you poking fun at me?” asked Taylor, as he started down the stairs bouncing them on each step.

  “Well, ya never know,” quipped Reese.

  “Girl, I swear, I’m gonna tan your hide one of these days.”

  “Oh Badger, you know you love me.”

  “Ahhggg…and that’s the problem. I never could punish my own daughters either.”

  “Daughters? How many kids do you have?”

  “I got three daughters, thank you, and five granddaughters. All of them, the apples of my eye.”

  Reese started laughing. “Eight girls! Oh my God! And you pretend to be such a grouch, but really, you’re just a big squishy marshmallow.”

  “Only with the girls, honey, I can’t seem to help myself.”

  “You poor man. It’s because you never had any boys.”

  “Just don’t tell anyone my little secret.”

  “I swear I won’t say a word. Besides, I think it’s cute when you’re grouchy.”

  Taylor shook his head in disgust as he reached the last step. “Cute huh?”

  Reese slid off and grabbed her crutch. “Yep.”

  He opened the front door for her. “What the hell kind of father did you have?”

  She stopped and looked at him. “He was a drunk and walked out on us.”

  Taylor frowned. “I’m sorry, sweetie, I didn’t know.”

  “Don’t worry about it.”

  They hopped in the truck and Reese backed up, peeling the tires again before throwing it in drive.

  “How old were ya?”

  “I was nine and glad he left.”

  “Oh?”

  Reese turned onto Jackson and headed north. “Yeah, he was beating the hell out of my mom, so when he left that all ended. So, in a way, he did us a big favor.”

  “Too bad for him, because he missed out on a raising a great kid.”

  Reese flashed him a smile.

  “I thought we were headed to the hospital?”

  “Meeks wants me to grab Eddie, too.”

  “Yeah, good thinking, something tells me we’re gonna be taking a trip.”

  “Probably so.”

  Reese noticed Badger was at ease with her aggressive driving and seemed to enjoy how fast she was going. He would have been a great dad and she was thankful to have him in her life as well. Each of these guys played a big role in her life now. She could see how he would be naturally good at raising daughters. She was always at ease around him, even when he was being grouchy with everyone else.

  They reached Lansing Road in good time and Taylor climbed out to find Eddie at the overpass. Fifteen minutes later, the three of them entered Elliott’s room where the meeting was ready to begin.

  Chapter 48

  Sabine Iowa

  Winters woke up in a sweat and opened his eyes. The air in the bedroom was hot and stagnate making it difficult to breathe. He rolled over on his side and looked at the other bed. Collette had lain down next to Laney and he was surprised he had not heard her come in, but then realized just how tired he was. He had only slept sporadically over the past few days and was exhausted. He put his feet on the carpet and looked at his watch to see it was three in the afternoon, which meant he’d gotten a solid seven hours of sleep. He glanced over at the sleeping girls and noticed how innocent they looked. He let out a scoff because these girls had been dealt a bad hand. No longer were they innocent kids. They had been forced to grow up and leave behind whatever remaining childhood they should have had.

  Winters nodded his head thinking about their willingness to help and how they handled themselves. They were quick thinkers and acted fast, which was a good combination.

  Their explanation of the butterfly tattoos spoke volumes about who they were and how they viewed their situation. They never gave up the hope that it would eventually pass and they could be reborn and hold their heads high. They had done what was necessary to survive and save their families, and now these trials were over.

  The big question was how they would handle what happened last night? Laney already had some doubts and was confused over the matter. Winters hoped he had told her the right things. He thought maybe he had by the way she reacted when he mentioned she no longer had to work. That reality would help get them over any lingering doubts that might creep up on them over the coming days. Taking a life is never an easy thing, but perhaps experiencing what they had gone through would make it easier.

  He continued to stare at the girls and found himself drumming his hands on his knees as his favorite song popped into his head. He hadn’t done that in a long time and then it dawned on him why. Last night’s operation had a different meaning than his previous killings. These had nothing to do with revenge, but with helping a bunch of girls in need. A damsel in distress was always a worthy cause. Looking back on it, after meeting Finley, he realized he never thought about Mister Hyde or noticed his presence again. Her talkative spirit penetrated deep into his core and gave him a renewed purpose, which began to flush away all his anger. He helped a young girl out of a bad situation and there was a pureness to it. He took a deep breath and held it for a second before slowly releasing it.

  He then assumed a one-sided smile, wondering, if in some strange way Cara had led him here. Had she not died, last night never would have happened. These girls would still be living in their own hell. A warm sensation shot through him because not only had he done a good thing here, but it also gave Cara’s death a meaningful purpose. He decided to take this notion and hold onto to it for everything it was worth.

  He grabbed his boots and laced them up. He tiptoed out of the room leaving the door open for fresh air. He entered the living room where Ashley played cards with her daughter Kaitlyn. The scene reminded him of playing cards with Cara when she was younger. She learned to play Go Fish before moving to Crazy Eights and then Gin Rummy. Those were the good years before she became a teenager and for the most part, they were a happy family. Winters brushed the thoughts away, scared they would lead him back into melancholy.

  “Hey,” said Winters.

  “Well, hey yourself, how’d ya sleep?”

  Winters sat down in a kitchen chair. “Soundly.” Winters turned to Kaitlyn, “you letting your mom win?”

  “Just a little,” replied Kaitlyn, “she isn’t very good.”

  “Hey, now, I’m just unluc
ky,” said Ashley.

  Winters winked at Ashley before turning back to Kaitlyn, “sounds like you’re pretty darn good.”

  “I am. Do you want to play?”

  “Geez, I don’t know, I’m not sure I want to get shown up by a kid.”

  “I’ll go easy on ya,” giggled Kaitlyn.

  Winters laughed. “Maybe later, I’ve got lots to do.” He turned back to Ashley and asked where everybody was.

  “Finley’s mom and sister are resting with her, and Stacy left a little while ago with Laney’s mom. That passed out girl, Blair, woke up and took off.”

  “How’s Finley doing?”

  “Stacy says she needs to see a doctor, she’s running a fever.”

  “Is there one around here?”

  “No.”

  Winters leaned back in the chair. If Finley needed a doctor, then he had little choice but to get her up to Winnipeg. It was an eleven-hour drive if all went well. He would need to take along as much gas as possible. He remembered the girls telling him Billy Gamble had fuel stashed somewhere.

  Ashley got up and prepared Winters something to eat. While she did that, he peeked in on Finley. Her mom and sister were on the bed with her sound asleep. He closed the door deciding to wait to discuss the trip to Canada.

  Chapter 49

  Jackson Michigan

  Meeks had never been in charge of a Shadow Patriots meeting before, but here he was with eight of them waiting for him to begin. As a high school football coach, he had a lot of experience holding meetings with his players and other coaches. It could be as many as a hundred people, so he had no problem speaking in front of large numbers of people. He decided to treat this as he would any other meeting. The only difference was, these people would talk back and offer him suggestions. This was a good thing because he needed suggestions as to what they might do. Everyone in this room would offer sound advice because they cared about Scar and the others.

  He looked into the faces of his friends and was about to begin when it dawned on him that if it was the reward the cops were after, then Americans would have to be involved for the payout. Since cops sank the canoe, this meant they wanted to deal with Americans on the sly and nothing official. At first, Meeks thought this was bad until he realized it was too good to be true. It was a good thing because that meant the cops from Detroit would be involved and Meeks had no problem shooting any cop from Detroit.