Silent Scream

by Maria Rachel Hooley

  He lunged into the kitchen to find the phone hanging from the wall. Sam kept saying, “Hello? Hello?”

  Gabriel picked up the receiver and punched 911, paused, 911 pause and then let the receiver dangle again.

  Please figure it out, Sam, he thought. Gun ready, he crept from the kitchen down the hall toward Maddie’s room. The door was open, and he could hear whispered voices. “Where is he?” a male voice hissed.

  “I don’t know,” Yolanda said in a panicked whisper.

  Oh, God, he thought and slid along the wall toward her room.

  “It doesn’t matter,” the male voice said. “My friend will take care of that soon enough while I finish things on this end. A promise is a promise, right?”

  Gabriel heard something thump, and he stepped toward the doorway to see a blond man in jeans and a black jacket reaching toward Maddie as she slept. Morrell. Gabriel fired one shot. As the man fell, he fired again, hitting his upper thigh near his groin.

  Screams. Maddie flew off the bed, hysterical, darting toward the doorway. With his left hand, Gabriel caught her and slammed the door closed. “Closet,” he said to Yolanda as he moved Maddie toward it and shoved her inside. “Stay there until you hear Sam’s voice.”

  Turning back to Morrell, he found the man trying to rise and fired a shot at his other leg, felling him. Although Morrell’s gun was nearby, Gabriel shoved it out of his reach and locked the bedroom door. “Stay down or the next shot will take your head off,” Gabriel snapped, ducking behind the bed as he spotted a shadow from outside falling across the drawn blinds. Hiding as best he could, he kept the gun trained on the perp and waited.

  A minute later, he heard sirens screaming, and the shadow fell away. As Gabriel stood, he saw Morrell lunging for the gun. The blond turned toward Gabriel and aimed at him. Gabriel fired. Blood blossomed on Morrell’s forehead, and he fell over, dropping the gun.

  Gabriel unlocked the door and trained the gun on it, waiting to see who would step inside. Sam appeared, also holding his gun toward Gabriel. “There’s another perp,” he said.

  “We already got him.” Sam leaned over Morrell and felt for a pulse. “Looks like you took care of this one. He’s dead.”

  Gabriel lowered his gun. “What took you so damned long?”

  “Traffic,” his brother replied.

  “Let me get them out of here.” Gabriel threw a sheet over the perp and opened the closet. Maddie and Yolanda huddled together in the corner. “It’s all right,” he said in a soothing tone. “He’s past causing anybody any harm.” Although Yolanda’s face had turned pale, she appeared reasonably calm. Maddie, however, shook violently as she clung to her friend.

  Gabriel offered his hand, and Yolanda grabbed it. Together, they rose slowly and emerged into the room where Sam stood next to the body, his feet between the dead perp and the gun.

  “Is that him?” Yolanda asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “Is he dead?” Maddie finally spoke in a broken whisper.

  “Yeah,” Sam said. “Looks like you won’t be having to attend a line-up after all, just give a statement about what happened.”

  Maddie’s gaze flashed from the corpse to Gabriel and then back to the corpse. “I want to see him.” She stepped up to the body and slowly bent to pull back the sheet. As her fingers caught the cotton fabric, she drew it back enough to see his face and staggered backward as she confirmed it was the same man who’d haunted her life for the last few weeks. She hurriedly stepped backward and ran into Gabriel.

  “Take it easy,” he replied, gesturing to the open door. “Perhaps you both would like some fresh air. Nodding, Maddie hobbled down the hall and into the living room.

  Gabriel watched until they’d disappeared from sight.

  “She’ll be all right eventually,” Sam said, patting his brother on the shoulder. “Better now that this scum won’t be hanging in the shadows of her life.”

  Gabriel turned to face him, folding his arms across his chest. “Define ‘eventually’ because you know it’s not a term I’ve ever understood.”

  “I can’t.” He looked down at the body. “We both know it means something different to everybody. What happened?”

  “One of the perps distracted me at the front door while Morrell stole in through the back, grabbed Yolanda, and then came back here to finish what he’d started. He moved toward Maddie, and I shot him in the back. I figured he had a vest on, and I was right. I shot him in each leg, and after I warned him to lay low, he grabbed for his gun and tried to kill me. That’s when I put a bullet in his head.”

  Looking down at the body, he said, “You did well, Gabriel. You would have made a good cop. Hell, the officers at the academy all said you’d rise to the top.”

  He shrugged. “I did rise, just not as a cop. We both know I can’t deal with the win-lose ratio. Fires I can fight. People,” he lightly kicked the body, “I can’t. And we both know I can’t handle the emotional baggage that comes with the aftermath.” He closed his eyes, and Jessie’s face came to him. Wincing, he opened them.

  “I know,” Sam said, lifting the hat from his head and scratching his scalp lightly before replacing it. “It sometimes reminds me of Jessie, too. The difference is that this time, we won. He’s not ever going to hurt Maddie again.”

  Gabriel stiffened. “Yeah, well, maybe you can gamble like that and still sleep at night, but I couldn’t. I’d have to win every time. That’s why I don’t play.”

  Three new officers walked into the room. One of them pointed at the corpse. “This the perp?”

  “Yeah,” Sam replied, shaking his head. “Were you expecting someone else to be dead?”

  “Just checking,” he replied. “You never know how these things are going to go down.”

  “Yeah, well, he’s the only one who went down.” He looked toward his brother as Gabriel inched toward the door.

  “I’ll leave the mess to you,” he said, crossing the threshold and stepping down the hall. As he entered the living room, he found Maddie and Yolanda sitting on the couch. Maddie stared vacantly ahead, ignoring the comforting feel of Yolanda’s arm draped around her. Even as she peered ahead, her eyelids drooped, and she started to fall over. Gabriel rested his hands upon her shoulders and with Yolanda’s help guided her into a prone position. Standing, Yolanda stepped away and gently lifted Maddie’s legs onto the couch before covering her with anfghan.

  “Is she all right?” he asked Yolanda, peering worriedly at Maddie.

  “Pretty worn out,” the nurse said, lightly rubbing Maddie’s back. “Maybe tonight she’ll finally sleep without nightmares.”

  Nodding, Gabriel replied, “Yeah. I’m sure it’s quite a relief to know the guy who caused all this is beyond hurting her again.”

  The front door opened, admitting two more cops, and Gabriel pointed toward the hallway. “It’s the last room on the left.”

  One of the officers nodded. “Thanks.” The two proceeded down the hall.

  “You may want to get her out of here, considering how many cops are likely to be wandering around.” Gabriel peered at his watch and back at Maddie. 5:30. “I know you probably don’t want to go to a hotel until this is over, so you’re welcome to stay at my place while they clean up the mess. The last thing you want to do is stay here. If you’d like, I can drive you over after you get your stuff together.”

  Yolanda looked at Maddie. Folding her arms across her chest, she frowned and looked at Gabriel. “You’re probably right. I don’t think either of us is going to feel very safe in this house tonight, even if we could sleep.” She looked back at Maddie. “If you’ll keep an eye out for her, I’ll go pack us both a bag to take, and we’ll go.”

  Nodding, Gabriel sat back on the couch and checked the contents of the duffle bag that lay beside the couch. He zipped it and peered at Maddie’s still form, watching as strands of her hair slipped over her eyes. The dark silk contrasted sharply with her pale skin, adding color to her cheeks. Her good arm rested ligh
tly upon her cast. Her eyelashes fluttered slightly, suggesting REM sleep.

  Sam walked into the room and peered around. “Where’s Yolanda?”

  “Getting stuff together. I figured this wouldn’t exactly be the place they wanted to stay tonight as cops trudge through the house and research the crime scene. Do you mind giving us a lift?”

  Nodding, Sam sat on the chair across from the couch. “Yeah, that’s probably best. They wouldn’t get much rest because of all the noise and commotion, not to mention wanting to sleep in a place where they don’t feel safe.” He tapped his boot against the coffee table.

  Yolanda emerged from the hallway, carrying two overnight bags, one in each arm. “I think I’ve got what we’ll need for tonight.”

  “I probably need to wake her up and take her statement and yours before you leave,” Sam said, meeting Yolanda’s gaze. “Do you mind giving me yours first?” He leaned against the chair and crossed one leg over the other.

  Yolanda reluctantly nodded and set the bags by the doorway before taking a seat on the couch by Maddie’s feet. As she leaned back against the couch, Maddie stirred slightly and drew her legs and feet ever closer to her body. She ducked her head slightly so her chin almost rested on her chest.

  Gabriel nodded toward the bags. “I’ll just take these out to Sam’s car while you take care of things.”

  “All right.” She folded her hands in her lap and peered ahead at the carpet as Sam started to question her.

  With one last look at Maddie, who lay contentedly sleeping, Gabriel then took the bags, along with his duffle, and headed outside, not really wanting to see his brother drag Maddie back through hell. She’d been there enough. Taking the steps two at a time, he sauntered to the cruiser and opened the back door, where he set the entire load on the floorboard.

  He closed the door and leaned against it, resting his palms on the roof of the car and ignoring the recent dusting of snow. As he stood there, he saw the corner’s van drive up. Two men stepped out and passed him on their way to the front door with a stretcher and a body bag. Maybe Maddie’s reason to fear had been destroyed, but he also knew it was all far from over for her.

  Snow speckled his sweater and his face, stippling his skin with cold. He tried not to think about that moment in the bedroom when he’d fired the gun. For just a moment, he’d thought of his sister and what he would have done to protect her. He’d thought he could put the past where it belonged, but even now he knew it would never stay there, at least not permanently. Even in saving Maddie, he hadn’t been able to save Jessie. He’d known that all along, but knowing it and feeling it were two different things. He waited beside the car, remembering his sister, the beautiful girl all his friends had wanted to date, the cheerleader who charmed everyone and had been brutally raped and murdered one winter day, then buried in a farmer’s field two miles from their home.

  Maybe because of the cold, maybe in spite of it, tears pricked his eyes. “God, I miss you, Jessie.”

  The front screen door softly squealed in protest as the two men opened it and pushed the loaded stretcher onto the porch, then lifted it as they descended the steps and continued back to the van. As they passed, Gabriel peered at the stretcher and found what he’d expected, a body bag. Good riddance, he thought, blinking away tears.

  A moment later, Sam opened the screen and stepped out onto the porch. He looked first at the men loading the gurney and then at his brother. After a moment, Sam met him at the car. “Everything all right?” He laid his palm on Gabriel’s shoulder.

  “Yeah, everything’s fine.” He nodded back toward the house. “Did you finish taking their statements?”

  “Yeah. Judging from them, it was over pretty quickly.”

  “It sure as hell didn’t feel quick.” Gabriel drummed his fingers on the roof of the car.

  “It never does.” Sam also leaned against the car, watching as the coroner and the other man finished loading the gurney and climbed into the van. “Looks like the coroner finished his job.”

  “Well, it was pretty much open and closed, wasn’t it?”

  Nodding, Sam replied, “Yeah.”

  “How did Maddie do?”

  Pulling off his hat, Sam scratched his head. “As well as can be expected.” He turned back toward the house. “I’ll go tell them you’re ready to get a move on things.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  The ride over to Gabriel’s place had been more than a little subdued; only the grating of the windshield wipers broke the quiet. As Sam pulled into the drive, Gabriel frowned at the snow, wondering if another storm was heading in and this fall was only the beginning. This winter had topped all he could remember in the snow and ice department.

  Gabriel stepped out into the whiteness and walked to the car door, expecting to open it for Maddie. Instead, he found she’d already climbed out of the car with Yolanda following closely. With stiff steps, she limped up the walkway. “Would you like some help?” he offered, yanking the keys from his pocket.

  “I can manage.” She latched onto the railing at the front steps and slowly hedged up them.

  “Yeah, I guess it doesn’t hurt to walk as much,” he agreed. Although he bent to grab their bags, he found Sam had already taken them and peered at him expectantly as he waited for Gabriel to trudge up the walk and unlock the door.

  Nodding, Gabriel scurried down the snowy path both Maddie and Yolanda had traversed, and they quickly parted from the front door to allow him to unlock it. He opened the door and held the screen wide. All of them entered, and as he followed his guests, he looked at the mail on the sofa and his sweatshirt on the chair by the hall—a sweatshirt his cat now conveniently dozed upon. A flashback to how he’d left the kitchen suggested he should have done more cleaning. “Please excuse the mess. I haven’t exactly been here.” With a couple of quick steps, he scooped the mail from the couch and resettled it on the entertainment center. “Have a seat while Sam and I get your rooms ready.”

  Gabriel shot his brother a meaningful glance, and Sam followed him into the hallway and down to the first guest bedroom. Once they were out of earshot, Sam asked, “Problem?”

  “Nothing that five minutes of our time won’t fix.” He waved his arm around the haphazard room that functioned not only as a spare bedroom but also, more often, as an office. Papers were strewn about. A dirty glass stood sentry on the desk, and a few books lay sprawled on the bed. “If you’ll take care of things in here, I’ll get to the other room and make it presentable.”

  “Five minutes, hell. I think we need to condemn this place,” Sam replied. Still, he began stacking papers and tucking them in a desk drawer as his brother slipped down the hall to tackle a much greater mess. Moments later, when he and Sam had convinced themselves neither Yolanda nor Maddie would condemn the house, they walked into the front room and spotted both women fast asleep on the couch.

  “Should we move them or just leave them?” Gabriel asked his brother as they stood together.

  “Leave them. I think they’re going to need all the sleep they can get.” Sam peered out the window at his car. “I should probably get back to the crime scene and make sure nobody’s screwing things up. Considering this is a cop, we want to do things right and not give them any reason to wonder what you were doing killing one of their own.”

  “The sonofabitch was after Maddie,” Gabriel snapped, glaring at his brother. “What was I supposed to do?”

  “I didn’t say you did anything wrong.” Sam yanked the hat from his head, brushed through his short hair, and set his hat back into place. “I just don’t want things to suddenly take a turn they weren’t meant to take, that’s all.”

  “You think they will?” Gabriel watched Maddie’s face as her body lay in a horizontal L-shape with her feet still on the ground. Her long, brown hair spilled across her face as her good arm lay propped behind her head.

  “It’s always smart to prepare for the worst and hope for the best. Cops get crazy suspicious when one of thei
r own ends up dead.”

  “Even if that one wasn’t such a great guy?” Gabriel watched Maddie’s chest rise and fall peacefully before he turned back to his brother. “That cop was a piece of shit, and we both know it.”

  “Be that as it may, he was still a cop, and I don’t want things to get screwed up. That’s all I’m saying.” Sam stepped toward the front door. “Call me if you need anything.” He pulled the door open and stepped onto the porch.

  “Don’t worry. I will.”

  Closing the door, Gabriel thought twice about waking Maddie and Yolanda, but a single glance at the two of them peacefully sleeping quickly changed his mind. They’d had more than enough today and deserved rest, so he passed the time at the kitchen table reading a Joan Hess novel while he propped his feet on a chair..

  Although he half-expected them to wake from their nap hungry–he’d already planned to order pizza–he wasn’t totally surprised when neither of them stirred around dinner time. Six hours later, they were still sleeping. He thumbed through the last few pages and calculated he had twenty more to go to finish the book. He kept reading, and time kept passing.

  Stretching, he set the novel on the table and got up. He rolled his head from side to side while pouring some coffee in the coffee maker then adding water and waiting for it to finish as he leaned against the counter.

  The shuffle of feet across the floor forced him to turn, and he spotted Maddie on her way across the room, still tending her hurt ankle quite a bit. “You look refreshed,” he said. She didn’t answer. Instead, she found the back door and reached for the knob. Frowning, Gabriel stepped toward her as he peered at her bare feet, her short-sleeved cotton shirt, and jeans. No coat. What in the hell was she thinking? “Whoa,” he said softly and placed one hand on the upper part of the door to keep her from opening it. “Where are you heading to?”

  “The store,” she replied, trying even harder to open the door.

  “It’s midnight, Maddie. All the stores are closed.” He studied her face, the low angle of her chin, and the unfocused glaze of her eyes. Then he realized she was sleepwalking. He frowned and wondered if she did that a lot and what he should do. “What do you need from the store?”