Almost Home

by Caroline Clemmons

  He darted from shrub to shrub until he reached the Bennett's house, approaching from the side opposite where the forces of evil parked. Jason slipped into the shadows of the front porch and rang the bell. No one answered. He rang again.

  Maybe Anna was too asleep to hear the bell. As near as he could figure, it was the middle of the night. Where could he wait until morning when Anna got up? He couldn't sit on the front porch like he did when he and Anna talked. Someone would see him.

  Like a shadow, Jason darted off the porch and around the side of the house. He scooted a planter over to the fence so he could reach the latch. In seconds he stretched up to open the gate and slipped through the six-foot redwood fence. Quietly, he closed the gate behind him.

  Not until he was inside the screened-in back porch did he relax. Maybe glassy-eyed monsters couldn't open the screen doors. Maybe the forces of evil wouldn’t think to look for him here.

  Big cushions covered several pieces of outdoor furniture inside the porch. He chose a glider swing. With a large woven throw, Jason covered himself so that only his head showed.

  He settled down to wait for Anna to make noise in her house. Now hunger rumbled through his stomach. He wished he hadn't bolted off without his backpack. He hoped Anna waked up soon.

  Chapter Forty Three

  Anna slumped with fatigue when Vince stopped the car in front of the Bennett's house. They had both searched hours for Jason. How could a seven-year-old boy disappear from his own home? Where could he hide?

  Anna could think of a million places he hadn't hidden. She, Vince, and others had poked into them tonight.

  She heard Vince exhale a weary sigh as he walked her into the house. He needed something warm in his stomach before he went to his apartment. She offered coffee and scrambled eggs.

  Vince collapsed into the nearest lounge chair. "Well, we know he must be all right. Tommy found his back pack with some cookies and a soft drink."

  "Vince, I'm still worried. He wouldn't have left the backpack there unless something frightened him. He wouldn't have left at all unless he was terribly scared."

  Anna went straight to the bathroom to clean up. Twigs stuck in her hair from combing the woods near the Dixon home and streaks of dirt decorated her clothes.

  This weekend had started so nice. Now it had turned into a nightmare. First that cop Link disappeared, then that Dallas detective Mick Dixon showed up. Worst of all, poor little Jason had run away. What catastrophe could happen next?

  Maybe Link had taken his son with him. She doubted that could have happened. She and Vince and the Dixon family had gone over a dozen possibilities, including the possibility that the slimy sheriff held the boy in exchange for his father.

  When she came back through, she said, “I almost fainted when Mick Dixon showed up. All the college chancellor needs is to hear about our past and my job will be history. Plus, who knows what Kathy and her family will think?”

  “Yeah, when he followed us to the car, I figured he would accuse us of being mixed up in his nephew’s disappearance.”

  “He scared me, asking us how we were connected to all this. I mean, Kathy’s father had already told him.”

  “He figured we had something else to do with it, though. I hope he’s satisfied we’re innocent bystanders here.”

  Anna hugged her arms. “Do you think he’ll tell the Dixons or the press?”

  Vince shrugged. “If he were going to say anything to them, I think he would have by now. Supposed to be a good detective, but I never came across him in court. Wouldn’t that have been odd if I had?”

  “Kathy said he’s been retired several years. Probably he retired while you were in law school. Either way, there’s nothing we can do about it and I’m too upset about Jason to even worry about anything else right now.”

  She headed for the kitchen. Something different on the porch caught her eye. The blanket--it was all bunched up and the pillows had been moved. She walked closer to the sliding glass door and looked in astonishment.

  "Vince, here he is!"

  Her loud cry and the opening of the door awakened Jason. She rushed to his side and bent over him. "Oh, Jason, honey. We've been so worried."

  He leaned into her open arms, bursting into tears. Poor kid must have been near exhaustion with fatigue and worry these past twenty-four hours.

  The relief she experienced when she saw Jason staggered her. He was safe. She carried him into the kitchen and closed the door.

  When his sobbing quelled, he gulped out, "I was real scared. I didn't know where to go."

  She asked, "Why didn't you tell someone--Maggie or your grandparents or aunts?"

  "I was afraid no one would believe me." He brushed the tears from his eyes and stood. "I have my dad's note, see? Maggie called the sheriff, but that wasn't right. Dad said to call another man."

  Vince held out his hand. "Let's see the note, son. We'll call the man your dad asked you to call."

  Anna knew Jason hadn’t met Vince. She smiled at Jason as she brushed the hair from his eyes and her fingers rubbed away his tears.

  "This is my brother, Vince. You remember me telling you about him. He's friends with your father."

  He searched her face as if for reassurance. She nodded.

  “Well...if you say it’s okay, Anna, I guess it is.” Hesitantly, Jason dug the crumpled note from his pocket. He unfolded it and smoothed it onto the kitchen table, then moved a tiny shred to a corner like a puzzle piece. "This tore off, but it has the phone number to call. See?"

  Vince patted his head. "You did a good job, Jason. Your dad will be real proud of you."

  Jason looked reassured, so Vince continued, "Remember Eddy Wells, the man who works with your father?”

  Jason nodded.

  “He and I tried to call the DEA last night. There was some sort of electronic failure with the phone system. We left a voice mail but we don't know if this man has our message or not. Now that we have his direct number, why don’t you help me call him?"

  Chapter Forty Four

  Coy sobbed softly behind Link. They had walked a long time. Light from the flashlight sliced a sliver from the inky cavern. The walls had closed in on each side and they had to duck in the narrow passageway from time to time.

  Link whispered, "We'll stop and rest again here where there's room to sit down. If someone were behind us, we'd have heard them."

  Link slumped to the ground and switched off the flashlight to save the battery. There were no sounds except Coy's muffled sobs.

  Link reached beside him and touched Coy’s arm. “Give me your hand so you won’t be so frightened.”

  Link felt sorry for Coy but there was nothing he could do to change the situation except offer his presence as comfort. Total darkness created an eerie feeling, even to Link, but he had to rest. Coy had been right, this total blackness was no comparison to night. He leaned back against the cold stone of the cave wall. The musty smell made him wonder if any other living things came this way?

  He closed his eyes and let his mind drift for several minutes. How he wished he could lie down and sleep for a while, even on the hard cave floor.

  No, he couldn't give in to his need for ease or this might be his final resting spot. He had to keep his wits about him for Coy’s sake as well as his own.

  What if Coy was wrong about where the cave opened on this end? What if the tunnel had collapsed and was blocked? The fading flashlight batteries wouldn't last long enough for him to search for another exit. Would they be trapped forever in total darkness?

  He went over other possibilities, trying to avoid his greatest fear. What if Gary Don waited for them when they emerged?

  What if you just get on with it?

  Rising with the help of the broom handle, Link switched on the waning flashlight. The batteries would soon give up.

  He tried to sound cheerful to console Coy. Link wished someone would comfort him.

  "Come on. We shouldn't have too much further. We'll be out i
n no time and be on our way."

  Link didn't say to where. He hadn't decided.

  Coy grabbed Link's back pocket. "I'm coming, Link. Don't leave me. Please don't leave me."

  Within another ten minutes, Link felt the rush of fresh air from the cave's mouth. “Feel that? We’re almost to the end.”

  “I sure will be glad, Link. I hate this place.”

  They crawled on their knees, keeping their heads down as the tunnel narrowed. At last they cleared the funnel-like opening and stood in a bushy thicket on a hill above Madison Street. Link picked at the briars clinging to his sweats.

  Thank heaven, no one else was around. Link mentally clocked their underground course. If there were a straight line, they were less than two miles from their starting point. He felt certain they had walked more than twice that during their subterranean route.

  From this position, Link saw his house perched on the next hill. All the downstairs lights shone. Were they on for him?

  His heart swelled. Damn, but he loved that place. How he wanted to go there now, hug Jason, and then sleep for at least a week. Only two blocks away, but it might as well have been two hundred miles.

  Coy pointed to the home below them. "See. There's Mama's house. It’s all dark like nobody lives there no more.”

  “Most of the houses are dark. It’s the middle of the night.”

  “Oh, I know that. But in the daylight, none of them houses on Mama’s street has anybody living in them.”

  Link figured he hadn’t heard correctly. “What do you mean, Coy? Are they all empty? Every house on the block?”

  “They sure are. Reckon all them people on that street forgot to pay their taxes?”

  “No, not possible. There has to be another reason, Coy. When we get this all sorted out, we’ll figure out why and get your house back.”

  “Oh, I wish it was still mine. I wish I could go in my room again and just go to sleep."

  "Maybe we'll both be able to go home soon.” Link saw the moon had almost set. “Right now, we have decisions to make. It's too near daylight to travel far. Let's go with Gwen's plan. We'll get to Miss Zimmermann's home. You remember where Professor Bennett lives?"

  Coy stared at Link but made no response.

  Link added, "The teacher lady's house?"

  "Okay, I know where it is. She’s friends with Miz Gwen and Miz Kathy, too. Did you know she bought a bunch of stuff from Miz Gwen’s store? She sure is pretty, isn't she?"

  “More important right now is that she’s our chance to get some rest in a safe place until Gwen rescues us.”

  Going downhill through the rough terrain was hard, but not as bad as the cave. Avoiding lighted areas, the two men walked silently toward the Bennett home. The sound of barking dogs traced their way, but they could not control that.

  They approached the Bennett house from the alley. Gently, Link opened the gate and motioned Coy to follow. They stood very still, listening for any unusual noises. Link noted a side gate, but it was closed. Lights were on in the house, so Ms Zimmerman was up. As they moved across the lawn, Link stopped in his tracks. He couldn't believe his eyes.

  There, eating at the table, sat his son.

  Link pushed down the pain and rushed to the screened in porch. Abruptly, he halted. Was this a trick?

  Why was his son seated at Anna Zimmermann's table in the middle of the night? Hell, it was past the middle of the night. Jason shouldn't be up now. No kid should be awake at this hour.

  He stepped beside the door to listen and motioned for Coy to stay behind him. No sounds came through the door so Link peeked into the kitchen window. He looked squarely into the face of Vince Bertolli. Vince did a double take, then hopped up. The door opened and Vince pulled Link into the room. Coy followed.

  "Dad!" Jason jumped off his chair and hugged him before Link could sit down. "Oh, Dad, I was afraid you went away like Mommy."

  He sank into the closest chair and pulled his son to him. "That worried me too, son. I wondered if I'd ever see you again."

  He broke his embrace to look at his son. "What on earth are you doing here? And at this hour?"

  Apparently Link’s appearance registered on Jason before his son could answer. "Dad? What happened to your face? Where have you been?"

  "A lot of places, and I met some mean men. Everything will be all right now, though." He hugged his son again.

  Vince and Anna tried asking questions at the same time until Anna hushed her brother with a hand to his shoulder.

  "You two must be starving. I'll fix you something to eat. Vince, you bring warm water and wash cloths. Clean those wounds that opened up on Link's face."

  Link had other priorities. "Oh, Lord, is that coffee I smell? Could a man get some hot coffee here?"

  Over their meal, they exchanged the details of the weekend.

  "Somehow we must let your family know Jason and you are all right." Anna tapped her fingers on the table. "They're worried sick about each of you."

  Link knew he’d drop in his tracks any minute. He slumped in the chair and feared he might fall over. Given the chance, he could sleep for days. But he didn't dare let himself quit pushing, not with all the suspicion focused on him.

  Who knew what people believed? With only Gary Don releasing information, the general public must think Link a major criminal. Now he’d added Coy's name to the list of suspects.

  Vince said, "None of us has had any sleep to speak of this weekend. What are we going to do now? Do we sleep, go for help, wait for help? It's your call."

  Link nodded to indicate the other three. "I think Jason, Coy, and your sister should go right off to sleep. Gwen plans to come here this morning to get me."

  Anna made no move to leave the table. "How? Surely she doesn’t plan to just escort you out the door."

  Coy spoke, "She's gonna use her truck to deliver you a table through your garage, Miz Anna. Then she's gonna put Link in her truck and drive him to Fort Worth."

  Coy's statement brought home to Link that without Coy's help, he would never have made his escape. "Coy, I'd be a dead man if it weren't for you. I'll make it up to you, I promise.” He looked at Anna. “But for now, maybe there's somewhere Coy and Jason can bed down."

  Anna glared at Link, but rose to show the two their beds. Jason wanted to stay with his father, but was almost asleep on his feet. It took little persuading to usher him off to bed.

  Link and Vince were deep in discussion when she returned a few minutes later. Out of the corner of his eye, Link saw her cross her arms against her chest and lean against a counter near the table. Vince outlined all the reasons they should wait until Travis showed up to assist them.

  Link refused to accept Vince's advice and wait for reinforcements. “What if help doesn’t arrive? He hired me to do a job, and I'm going to finish it whether I can contact him or not."

  Vince shook his head. "Don't take any more chances. Travis and the cavalry should be here any minute."

  Link leaned forward. "Or not. I’ve thought about it all night. Suddenly, it all fell into place. I'm sure I know who the leak is and who's behind the whole thing."

  "Can you prove it?"

  Link leaned back in his chair, a cup of coffee in his hand. He took a sip and let it seep through his system. Nectar from the gods was no better than this.

  He met Vince’s gaze. "Knowing and proving are two different things. You know that."

  Chapter Forty Five

  Link faced Vince. "The key to this whole mess is at the Morrison home. I'm sure of it and I think I know where it is. Have to go back there, get inside and see if I'm right."

  Both men were surprised when Anna stepped forward. "Then what are we waiting for? It'll be a lot easier now than after daylight."

  Link recognized the stern look Vince flashed Anna. It was the same "you're the little sister" look Link used with his own sisters, and probably just as ineffective. "We? There is no we,” Vince said. “There's only Link and me and Travis--and whoever he rounds up t
o help."

  Link nodded. "She's right, Vince. I'd better go now. It'll probably be mid-morning before Gwen gets here with her truck. Besides, how am I going to get into the truck without being seen? It won’t fit into the garage." He turned to Anna. "Your car in the garage?"

  Anna's clipped answer relayed anger. "Yes."

  Link turned back to Vince. "I could go to the Morrison’s and find the information. If it's where I believe, I’ll be out of there fast and back here before Gwen comes."

  Vince nodded. "Okay, I see what you mean. You go from the house into the garage and no one sees you."

  Link nodded, "I hunker down in the back seat and you drive."

  Anna broke in, "Wait, you two. No way am I being left out of this. Vince, you should know me well enough to know you're fighting a losing battle."

  She stepped closer, pointing a finger at her brother. "And you two have your nerve. Asking--no, planning--to use my car and telling me to butt out.” She sent a glare toward Link. “Hunker down, indeed."

  Vince pled, "Anna, I'm thinking of your safety. Plus you need some rest."

  "And you two don't? Besides, I have a vested interest in this whole thing. Wasn't I the one who spotted the men in the plum thicket? Didn't I sit up most of last night with the Dixon family? Didn't I help search for Jason, the rest of the night, most of the day, and into tonight?"

  "Okay, okay. I get the message." Vince held up a hand to stop her protests.

  "We can be at the Morrison house before daylight." Link reached into his pocket, then stopped. "Damn, I don't have the house key any more."

  Vince looked alarmed. "You mean you plan to break in while I drive the getaway car?"

  Anna said, "Vince, you could be disbarred for even talking to this man without turning him in. At this point, I think a little house breaking would be the least of your worries. But, in fact, you should stay here and let me take him to the other house."