Blood Stained

by CJ Lyons

  The briefing over, the school parking lot quickly filled with civilians milling around, sipping coffee from thermoses, checking maps, adding layers, and preparing to go out into the field. With a large swath of the mountain prime hunting grounds, the police distributed blaze orange vests—although most of the folks around here had their own. They also told the locals to leave their weapons behind. Last thing they needed was a bunch of over-excited civilians with loaded weapons pretending they were on the prowl of some TV serial killer instead of looking for two boys who were probably already scared to death.

  The media played up New Hope's past history of "harboring a monster, a man only known as the New Hope Killer who used the local cave system as his killing ground." Not wanting to feed the flames, Lucy made sure her and Jenna's affiliations as federal law enforcement officers stayed quiet. This was a simple search and rescue for two lost boys. That's all.

  So why did she keep unzipping her parka and resting her hand on her weapon?

  Chapter 23

  Jenna used the girls' locker room to wash up after the long night and add a few layers against the cold. Gail lent her a left over sweatshirt from a recent school fundraiser. It was lime green with rainbow tie-dye splatters, but beggars couldn't be choosers. Besides, Jenna was basically an overpaid volunteer here, not even carrying a weapon.

  She emerged from the bathroom feeling a little less stale, but not by much. Inside the gymnasium the latest group of searchers finished their briefing and headed out. Walking against the tide, she aimed for the tables at the far side where volunteers had brought food. Doughnuts and coffee, hot cocoa, bottles of water, bagels, homemade muffins, cookies, even apple pie.

  The pie looked so tantalizing with its layers of apple and caramel and cinnamon topping toasted to the perfect level of crispness, Jenna couldn't resist. She cut herself a big piece, earning a beaming nod from a woman dressed in a plain gray dress with a little bonnet holding her hair back.

  "Milk?"

  Jenna nodded as she scooped the pie into her mouth. Okay, maybe this place was cold and gray and lacking in any semblance of civilization, but damn, they knew how to bake a good pie. She gulped her milk, wiped her face and wondered if she could sneak another piece without looking greedy.

  The rear doors opened out onto a blacktop court and then the playing fields. Jenna threw her plate and cup into the trash and leaned against the corner staring at the unbroken field of snow. White on white on white. The monotony only relieved by the brown and green of the tree line in the distance that quickly blurred into the gray haze that covered the mountain.

  Give her city smog any day.

  Motion caught her eye. A man, hunched over, edging along the side of the building away from the parking lot where the searchers assembled. Trying to keep his feet dry and out of the snow? Then why not come in the front door where the walk was shoveled?

  Jenna repositioned herself at the other side of the door to get a better look at him. Black leather jacket, jeans, black boots. Not the hiking boots most of the searchers wore, these looked like cowboy boots. He swiveled his head and she caught a glimpse of his face.

  Holy shit. Adam Caine.

  Her hand went to her Sig Sauer. It wasn't there. Shit, shit, shit. She glanced around the room and spotted Bob just coming in, head bent low with defeat.

  "Bob, Bob!" She restrained the urge to shout, not sure if it would carry through the door and outside. Instead she ran over and grabbed the deputy's arm, jerking him across the gym floor with her.

  "What's going on?" he asked, sounding ten miles past exhaustion.

  "My fugitive. Adam Caine. He's just outside."

  Bob straightened at that. "Show me."

  Jenna led him to the door. Caine was hunched down, back to the wall, facing out from the corner, watching and listening to the searchers. He seemed focused on the blonde reporter set up on the other side of the fence.

  "Stay here," Bob said, pulling the door open quietly.

  Hell she would. She was a federal agent, not some Nancy Drew he needed to protect. She held the door for him so he would have both hands free, and watched his back.

  Not that it needed watching. The whole thing was over in ten seconds and was rather anticlimactic. Bob simply tapped Caine's arm, hauled him to his feet, cuffed him, then patted him down, removing a knife, a wad of cash, and some keys, which he handed to Jenna to secure.

  "You're Adam Caine?" Jenna asked. Last thing she needed to do was arrest the wrong man. But he looked just like his photo from Cleveland, except his hair was longer and stragglier.

  He hung his head. "Yes'm."

  "It's him," Bob said, sounding more sad than satisfied. "Adam, do you have any idea the world of trouble you're in?"

  Lucy came around the corner with Colleen Brady. "Adam." She pulled up short. "Jenna, you're not seriously—"

  Jenna took her prisoner's arm. "Adam Caine, I'm Inspector Galloway of the United States Postal Service and I'm taking you into custody for violation of United States Code 18, Section 876." She recited the Miranda rights to him, stumbling only a few times. "Deputy Bob, please escort the prisoner to the sheriff's station and we'll meet you there."

  Lucy's scowl could melt ice. She ushered Mrs. Brady inside and pulled Jenna farther away from the reporters. "You're making a mistake. Jenna, let him go."

  "I'm making a mistake? I'm doing my job. If you'd done yours yesterday, I might not have killed a man." Anger sliced through Jenna and for the first time in a day she felt warm.

  "You were the one who wanted to play girl detective and interview Rachel Strohmeyer."

  "And you're the one who ended up under a car with me covering your ass."

  Bob stepped between them, one hand on Caine's arm. "Um, ladies—"

  "What?" They turned to him in unison.

  "Let’s take this down to the station where there aren't so many—" He jerked his chin at the people and reporters in the parking area.

  "Good idea. Walk him around the far side of the school. Less people." Jenna regretted her decision as soon as they took two steps through the snow. Jeans and sneakers—even if they were Coach sneakers made in Italy, or maybe especially if they were Coach sneakers made in Italy—offered no protection. By the time they made it to Bob's cruiser parked at the front of the school, her feet burned with cold and snow sloshed between her toes.

  Lucy irritated her even more than the cold, reassuring Adam that she'd find Clinton Caine and have him released. No way. Adam Caine was her prisoner, not Lucy's. About time Lucy realized that.

  They watched Bob pull away in the squad car, Adam hunched down in the back seat. Jenna glared at Lucy, then marched towards the school entrance, hugging herself against the cold. "Let me get my coat."

  Lucy nodded, staring after the car vanishing into the snow. Jenna shook her head; she'd heard rumors about Lucy. Good and bad. That she was brilliant; had some kind of spidey-sense that led to her having one of the highest clearance rates of anyone in the Bureau. That she was a maverick, taking crazy risks that were totally against policy.

  That she was burned out and unstable after killing a man two months ago.

  Jenna was starting to think they were all true. Which made for a dangerous combination.

  She swung the heavy glass door to the school open and almost ran into another woman rushing out.

  "Why are they arresting Adam Caine?" the woman asked, stepping back so Jenna could get inside out of the cold.

  "I can't discuss an open investigation, ma'am." Jenna held to protocol.

  "He couldn't—I mean, I saw him with the boys, but—"

  Wait a minute. Jenna straightened and led the woman inside an empty classroom. "What's your name, ma'am?"

  "Mrs. Chesshir, Amanda Chesshir. I teach fourth grade. Adam was my student. Four years ago, before—you know about his mother, right?"

  Jenna nodded and forced a smile to encourage the teacher. "You saw Adam with Marty and Darrin?"

  Chesshir hesitated. Strugg
le appeared on her face, then resolved itself. "Yes. Yesterday morning. A couple of bullies were picking on the boys and he stopped them before things could escalate."

  "Who were these bullies?" They were working their way through the school, interviewing students and parents, but these kids would go to the top of the list if they had reason to harm the boys.

  "Craig Mathis is their leader." Chesshir hesitated again, touching her chin with one finger. "Adam said he was leaving town. That was yesterday morning." Then she brightened. "Of course. He came back to help with the search. That explains it. See? He had nothing to do with this."

  Right. She'd just see about that. Jenna smiled. "Thanks so much, Mrs. Chesshir. We'll be in touch if we need anything else from you."

  Jenna left the teacher, grabbed her coat, and stopped by the school office to get contact info on their friendly neighborhood bullies. From the expression on the vice-principal's face when she asked about the boys, they were no strangers.

  "Bunch of hooligans, the lot of them," she muttered as she printed out their home addresses. "But Craig Mathis, he's the worst. Forget budding sociopath, he's a full-blown psychopath. Had him in for detention once and he told me how much he loved hunting. Not for the sport or being out in the woods. No, he liked to bring a deer down without using a kill shot so he could watch it die. Said he likes to gut it while it's still alive so he can reach in and squeeze its heart and make it stop beating himself." She shuddered. "Just so you know who you're dealing with. Not sure his dad is any better. Never met his mom."

  "Thanks for the warning." Jenna grabbed the addresses and left. Lucy would be pissed, kept waiting in the cold, but the hell with it. Not if Jenna just broke the case wide open. A flush of anticipation made her cheeks burn. She ran out the door, still climbing into her coat, when she saw Sheriff Zeller stomping towards her, phone in hand.

  "What the hell do you think you're playing at?" he stormed. "Sending one of my men to take care of your prisoner? A kid you arrested for mailing a letter?"

  "It's a federal offense. Plus—"

  "I don't give a shit!" He cut her off. "In case you haven't noticed, we need every man we have here if we're going to find those boys before they freeze to death. Just because you're federal, you've no right to order my people around. Do you understand me?"

  Jenna leaned forward, her adrenalin surging, ready for a fight. Then she spotted the reporters to one side and the crowd of volunteers to the other. Lucy pulled up in their car and stared as well.

  Professional pride conquered her anger. She rocked back on her heels and cast her eyes down. "Yes sir. I'm sorry, Sheriff Zeller. It won't happen again."

  "See that it doesn't. Now get your butt over there and relieve my deputy so he can return to duty."

  Jenna nodded and fled for the safety of the car.

  "What was that all about?" Lucy asked.

  "He didn't like me using Deputy Bob as my boy toy."

  "That makes two of us. You didn't have to go all Elliot Ness on Adam. He's no threat to anyone."

  "Excuse me? Isn't that the whole reason we came here?"

  "That was before I spoke to him. He's just a lost kid. He needs help, not jail time."

  "He was seen with Marty and Darrin."

  Lucy straightened at that. "When?"

  Jenna told her about the bullying episode. They were at the stoplight on Main Street. "You know, Craig Mathis' family lives not far. We could go there first. Check him out."

  "Did you tell the sheriff about this?" Lucy's voice had a definite edge to it.

  "No. He said himself, he doesn't have manpower to spare. And high-risk missing minors fall under our jurisdiction."

  "If we're invited to assist local law enforcement."

  "Which we were." They were still stopped, despite there being no other traffic on the road. She was wearing Lucy down. "C'mon, Lucy. Isn't that why we're here? To help out, maybe save those kids?"

  Lucy sighed. "I remember when I was young. All I wanted to be was a hero. Like you."

  "Hey, it's why we're paid the big bucks."

  Lucy flipped the turn signal on and Jenna knew she had won. A thrill of anticipation surged through her, erasing her fatigue and dampening the anger and self-doubt that dueled inside her ever since the shooting. She wasn't a bad guy, a killer. No, she was one of the good guys.

  Especially if she helped to break this case and find those boys.

  Damn, being a hero felt good. Almost better than sex.

  Chapter 24

  The heat in the squad car and the hypnotic swish-swosh of the wipers put Adam to sleep as he slumped against the molded plastic of the rear seat. He jerked awake when they pulled into the parking lot at the old Dairy Treat, the patrol car lurching through the pile of snow deposited by snowplows at the entrance.

  "They're supposed to plow the lot," Bob said, but he didn't sound annoyed. "They always forget." They slid into what may or may not have been a space beside the sign marked for handicapped parking. "Wait here one sec."

  Bob left the car, jumped through the snow like Neil Armstrong landing on the moon, then stood at the front door, shaking snow from his pant legs. He unlocked the door, moved inside and lights began to shine through the windows. Finally he returned and opened Adam's door.

  "Careful, it's slippery." Bob guided Adam's head so he didn't hit it on the door frame. They tramped through the snow into the old Dairy Treat. "Sorry the heat's not up yet, but when it does, you'll be roasting. It's all or none around here."

  Adam looked around. He spotted one camera above the security door aimed out over the reception space. Bob used his keycard to unlock the inner door, then took him into the rear work area.

  "You need anything, kid?" he asked, not unkindly, as he sat Adam in a plain metal chair at one of the battered desks. He removed one of his handcuffs and attached it to the chair arm. "Coffee or water? Maybe a pop?"

  Adam shook his head, slouching in the chair so his legs were hidden under the desk. He'd blown it. Dad would never come get him from jail. He always said anyone who couldn't outsmart a cop deserved to be locked up.

  This was Adam's second time being stupid enough to get arrested. True, the first time in Cleveland, he took the fall so Morgan could escape. But still, he'd gotten caught. Just like a fish. In Dad's reckoning, that was all that counted.

  Once Adam was secure, Bob set Adam's personal items out on a shelf against the front wall. "We'll inventory them for you, don't worry." Then the deputy shed his parka, hung his hat, and slid into his chair all without turning his back on Adam. "I know you've been through the system and you know I can't question you without a parent or guardian. So I'm not asking anything for the record, you understand. But you had Jenna—Inspector Galloway—pretty riled up. About a letter you sent?"

  "Yes sir. I'm sorry I did it. Told that to Lucy. Agent Guardino."

  "You sent the letter to Agent Guardino?"

  "Yes sir. It was a big mistake. I just," Adam shrugged and swallowed back a sudden lump in his throat, "didn't know who else to go to." His arms and legs felt leaden as he realized the enormity of his mistake. Stupid, stupid, stupid. He'd lost Dad. Lost everything.

  The kids would be okay. They had plenty of food and water. He wasn't sure how long the heater's fuel would last, but it never got too cold in the caves. They'd be fine. Except he wasn't sure what the hell to do about them. If he told, he'd be in big trouble. Kidnapping? That was heavy-duty time.

  Worse, they'd send them all back to their no-good families. He blinked against the memories of Marty crying, Darrin suffering alone in the dark, Sally trying so hard to take care of a mother who was so out of it, she didn't even know Sally existed.

  They deserved better. They deserved to be with someone who loved them like Adam did. Like Dad did.

  How the hell could he make that happen if he was locked up?

  Bob interrupted Adam's whirlwind thoughts. "I know what happened. To your mom. What you saw." The deputy flicked one finger across his brow
as if pushing back his hat. "You probably don't remember me. We only met for a minute or two."

  "I remember. You went to look for my mom."

  "I left you with Lucy—Agent Guardino. If I hadn't, if I'd stayed. Well, all I can say is sorry. About your mom. About everything." He leaned back, away from Adam.

  If Bob had come with them, he'd be dead.

  Adam squirmed, miserable, his butt falling asleep in the hard chair. Said nothing. Finally nodded.

  That seemed to be enough for Bob. He straightened his shoulders and tapped at the edge of his computer keyboard.

  "Why were you at the school this morning? You know they're getting ready to search Echo Cavern, right?"

  "Figured. I just wanted to talk to Lucy. Apologize again. And see if I could help. I guess that's all." He kept his face down, talking into the top button of his jacket. It was freezing cold, but the deputy didn't seem to notice. Maybe fear kept Adam shivering. Fear he'd never get another chance to find his dad.

  His eyes burned and he blinked furiously and sniffed. The deputy pretended not to notice, but slid a box of tissue close to Adam's free hand as he reached for a coffee mug and stood. "Sure you don't want anything? I'm brewing a fresh pot."

  Adam rubbed his face against his collar, refusing to admit defeat and take a tissue. "I'm fine."

  Before Bob could reach the counter with the coffeemaker, a loud buzz jangled through the air. Adam jolted in surprise, his handcuff chain rattling against the chair arm.

  "That will be Jenna." The deputy put his cup down and moved to the glass partition between the reception area and the office space. "What the hell?"

  <><><>

  Morgan loved this part. The getting ready part. The part when blood pounded like rain and tasted like copper pennies. Anticipation.

  Almost as fun as the actual doing.

  This time was different. This time Clint trusted Morgan to fly solo.