Tanner smiled as he continued to the locker room because there was one thing he knew that no one else except possibly his mother and father knew: he had used his powers to influence, in a positive way, a whole gymnasium full of people. Tanner had used his powers not for a selfish reason, but to accomplish something good.
CHAPTER 31
When the game ended, Jack Harding exited quickly and headed for his office. Zander and the University of Michigan coach had both seen exactly what they had hoped to see when they showed up for the game. Dr. Frauss was seated right behind the Southwestern coach when Tanner spoke to him in the second quarter, and then he had witnessed Tanner change the personality of an entire gym full of people. He was certain that Tanner had used his mind-control. The Michigan coach had witnessed an exhibition of maturity, leadership, and talent rarely displayed by a high school player. He was certain that Tanner could be a leader in Michigan’s basketball program. Satisfied, they also immediately left the gym. The Flint City police officers were extremely pleased to watch a gymnasium full of fans from opposing schools peacefully emptying the stands to comments such as, “That was the best basketball game I’ve ever seen.” Smiles were exhibited and high fives and handshakes were shared.
Clay looked over at Jessie, who was crying once again, partly out of pride for her son and partly out of shame. Clay walked over to her and asked her if she was okay. “Yes. I think I’m going to be fine, eventually. There’s a lot of information and a lot of emotions swirling in my head right now, but I want you to come back home tonight, and maybe this time, the three of us can talk.”
“How about I give Tanner a set of my car keys? We can drop my car off at the school for Tanner and then go home together.”
“I have something I have to do first. You pick Tanner up at the school and go back home. I’ll be there soon, and we can all talk.” She wiped her eyes with a tissue and headed out of the gym.
***
Detectives Hutchinson and Janski found Clay and walked up to him. Hutch extended his hand and said, “Congratulations on a great game, Mr. Thomas. Can’t say if I’ve ever seen a better one, and can’t say if I’ve ever seen a better performance. He’s quite a player, and quite a mature young man, too.”
“That’s for sure,” Janski agreed. “What a game!”
“Thank you. I’m speechless, to be honest. I don’t know what to say. Thank you.”
Several other parents and fans patted Clay Thomas on the back and shook hands as if Clay had something to do with Tanner’s performance or deserved some sort of honor. It was Tanner’s night, but Clay certainly felt a great deal of pride.
“I believe I arrested that loud-mouthed coach of his ’bout 15 years ago for drunk and disorderly,” Hutch commented. “He hasn’t changed much, ’cept he’s fatter…. I don’t mean to interrupt the moment, Mr. Thomas,” he apologized, “but we need to talk. We have some information that I think you should know.”
They moved away from the pockets of people that were still lingering on the gym floor. “We’ve investigated some of the leads we have, thanks to Tanner, and it’s led us to the man we think is responsible for the kidnapping. We followed the paper trail for the house ownership, and we’ve discovered who received the phone call from the kidnapper. Both leads point to the same person.”
“You have a name?”
“Yes, sir. We believe the man behind the kidnapping of your son is a Mr. Jonathon ‘Jack’ Harding.”
Clay’s heart skipped a couple of beats and his knees almost buckled. “How can that be? Why? Why would he ever want to kidnap Tanner?”
“That’s what we want to know. Think about it, Clay. The kidnapper said it was for revenge more than 20 years overdue. It must not’ve been about Tanner. Is it about you?”
“I just don’t see how. I know he was pressuring Tanner’s coach to play his son more at the point, but I don’t see what else he could possibly have against me. I didn’t even know the man until his son and daughter moved into the school district less than two years ago. It doesn’t make sense.”
“Well, we figured he’d be at the game tonight. Now that it’s over, we’ll be heading over to his house with a warrant for his arrest. We wanted you to know…and we hoped you’d help with a motive. I guess we’ll have to figure that out next. Hey, Clay, we’re gonna nail this guy. He’s a career crook—one of the bad guys. There’s a lotta people gonna be happy to have him put away.” He shook hands again with Clay. “Your son played great. Tell him I said so.” Then he and his partner headed away on official police business.
***
As Clay watched him walk away, Carlee grabbed his arm. “Where’s Jessie?” she asked.
“Hi, Carlee. She’s already gone. Said she had something she had to do before coming home.” He saw the look of concern on her face. “Is something wrong?”
She hesitated as if trying to make up her mind, but finally, she replied. “I’m worried about her, Clay. Maybe I’ll lose her friendship by breaking her trust, but I’ve found out something about her that I think you need to know.” She hesitated again.
“What is it? You need to tell me.”
“Jessie told me that she’s been seeing someone. I tried to discourage her, but she wouldn’t listen. She told me some things that made me worry, so I had her followed. I have some pictures, Clay, taken yesterday afternoon. I was told this is a bad, bad guy she’s been seeing, and I’m worried.”
Clay impatiently pulled the envelope and pictures from her hand. He flipped through them in embarrassment. The first was of the Super 8 Motel, that cheap motel on Dort Highway; then of his wife talking on a black phone in her car—the prepaid phone he had discovered in her purse. The next picture was of her entering room number 12. The next picture, he discovered with a look of horror. It was just outside room twelve and it was of Jack Harding. Jonathon Jack Harding. In his head, he once again plainly heard the word, “John.” His wife was having an affair with the man who had kidnapped Tanner! He barely noticed the next picture of his wife exiting the motel room. He simply said, “Jessie’s in trouble.”
CHAPTER 32
Jessie got in her car and pulled out her prepaid TracFone, assuming it would be the last time she would need to use it. There was notification of a message, so she went to her voicemail. It was John—Jack Harding. He was apologizing and asking her to come to his office after the game. She was intending to call him to ask to meet, so she simply put her phone away and headed for Harding Metals. It was time for her to end the relationship.
Jessie parked her car in the small lot outside the scrap yard. One gate was unlocked, so she walked through and entered the office building. Jack was sitting in his office behind his desk, but he jumped up with a smile when he saw Jessie. He went to her and put his arms around her. “Thanks so much for coming. You got my message, so you know I want to apologize. I’m sorry for getting upset yesterday. Please, forgive me.”
Jessie pulled away. “I forgive you, John, but I have another reason for coming. I’ve made a mistake. Things went too fast and too far. I have to break it off. I just have to. I’m sorry.”
“No, Jessie. You can’t break it off. I love you. You love me too.”
“No, I don’t. I love Clay. I misunderstood some things and overreacted. Clay loves me too.”
The anger was flashing in Jack Harding’s eyes once again. “He doesn’t love you; he only loves himself. He’s been manipulating you his whole life. You couldn’t possibly love Clay Thomas. You love me.”
“No, I don’t.”
“You’ll love me if I tell you to love me!” he nearly screamed.
“You can’t make me love you!” Jessie shot back.
“Oh, yes I can.” He walked to his desk and returned with a stack of pictures and a videotape. He handed the pictures to her. “I said I had somethin’ special for you. Take a look at those.”
To her amazement, Jessie began looking at a series of photos of her and Harding at each of their various rendezvous. T
hey were walking in Dow Gardens, hand in hand. They were eating lunch together. She was receiving flowers, a purse, jewelry. They were kissing. She was entering a motel room. It was creepy and disgusting. “You’ve had someone following us? This whole relationship has been staged? And you say that you love me? You disgust me!”
He was actually smiling. “And this.” He held up the videocassette. “This is evidence of our time together yesterday.”
“You’re sick! We were videotaped? What are you doing? What do you want?”
“Either you love me like I want or I show them to your mind-controlling husband. Either decision you make is fine with me. Both options hurt your husband and nothing gives me greater pleasure than hurting your husband. Either I take something from him that he supposedly cares about,” he sarcastically said, “or I get to show him that his wife is a cheater—that she cheated on him with me.”
“I don’t have any idea what you have against Clay, but I know one thing for sure. I will never love you.” Jessie, with all the pictures and the video in hand, turned to head for the door.
She heard a click, and Jack Harding forcefully said, “Stop right there, or I’ll shoot you dead.”
Jessie turned and saw that he was aiming a gun directly at her. “What are you going to do, kidnap me?”
“Why not? I had Tanner kidnapped. Why not you?”
“You did what? You’re a sickening, disgusting man.”
“You didn’t think so yesterday. You have the video to prove it. Now bring those back to me and sit down. Hurting Clay gives me pleasure to no end, but with you here, maybe there’s still some pleasure I can get from you.”
Terrified, Jessie sat as far from Jack as she could get. She didn’t know what it was, ESP? Clairvoyance? Regardless of what it was, she began focusing on Clay and Tanner with all her might. Maybe if she could focus hard enough, someone would come for her.
***
As soon as Tanner stepped out of the locker room, Clay rushed to him. Keeping out of earshot of the other players, Clay said, “Your mother’s in trouble. The kidnapper was Jack Harding, and I think she went to see him. Tell me, Tanner, is there any way that you can find her? You found the house; maybe you can find your mother.”
Clay turned and found Coach Piggott. “Coach, I need Tanner to ride with me. It’s a family emergency. Jessie’s missing.”
“If it’s got anything at all to do with Jack Harding, then you got my blessing to do whatever you need to do.”
“What do you know about Jack, Pete?”
“I know I work for him, and he’s a piece o’ horse crap, if ya don’t mind my sayin’ so, and I’m sorry, Clay, but my cousin, Carlee Simpson, had me followin’ yer wife, and I saw ’em together yesterday.”
“You’re the one who followed her? Things are getting crazier and crazier. We have to go, Pete. Thanks.”
“And I think I love her,” Pete Piggott thought to himself. “First I can’t have Honey Suckle, and now I can’t have Jessie Thomas. At least I have good taste in women.”
***
Clay and Tanner ran to Clay’s car as fast as they could. Once in the car, Clay called Hutch. He figured the detective would probably be closing in on the Harding house, and he would be only a few minutes behind Jessie if that was where she was headed. When he arrived, he could let Clay know if Jessie was there. He asked Hutch to call him as soon as he knew anything. He then called Jessie’s cell phone, but it rang several times and then went to voicemail. Jessie had left her purse in the car as usual. She wouldn’t even know that he was trying to reach her. Clay pondered where she would go if she was going to see Harding. He wondered if maybe they would go back to that sleazy motel. He drove like a man possessed down I-69 and then turned off on Dort Highway. He zoomed down the road heading south at about 65 miles per hour. In just a few minutes, he spotted the building, but when he turned into it, Jessie’s car wasn’t there. He hoped Tanner wouldn’t ask questions. He hesitated. Again he strained to think of where she could be.
“At the scrap yard!” they both said at the same time. And just then, Clay had a sensation in his head that someone was talking to him. “Did you hear that?” he asked Tanner.
“I didn’t hear anything.” Tanner was looking all around outside for the source of some sound that his father heard.
“It was in my head. It’s like your mother is calling for help. And I don’t know how I know this, but I’m certain she’s at Harding Metals. Hang on!” Clay raced back onto Dort Highway, heading north this time at an even faster clip.
About two minutes later, Detective Hutchinson called. “She’s not here, Clay. I don’t think anyone’s here. We have a warrant, so I’m gonna look around a bit.”
“Hutch, I think she’s at Harding Metals. I think she’s with Jack. I need you to get over there as soon as you can.”
“Clay, I’ve got to check this place out first and make sure he’s not here. It should only take a minute and then we’ll head right over there, lights flashing.”
Just then, it started to rain. It was an icy December rain. Clay’s wipers still didn’t work well, and the roads immediately started to get slippery. He was forced to slow down, but his blood pressure was speeding up. Both Clay and Tanner said at the same time, “I hate rain.”
CHAPTER 33
After the longest ten minutes of his life, Clay pulled into the small front lot of Harding Metals. Jessie’s car was sitting in the lot, windows accumulating the sleety rain. He parked and hesitated. What if he caught his wife doing something he didn’t want to see? But then the voice in his head returned. “Help me, Clay! Help me, Tanner!” it said.
“What are we waiting for?” Tanner asked impatiently.
“To be honest, I wasn’t sure what to do, but I’m hearing the voice again. Your mother’s in trouble. We have to go.”
Clay and Tanner climbed out of the car and, shielding their faces from the rain, jogged through the open gate. Clay pulled open the office doors and they stepped inside.
“No! Get your hands off me!” they heard Jessie cry.
When they reached the office they could see that Jack was holding Jessie from behind, a hand on each breast. He appeared to be kissing her neck as Jessie was trying to fight out of his grasp.
“Get your hands off her!” Clay yelled.
Immediately, Jack released her and she ran to her husband.
“Well, well, well, if it isn’t Clay the psychic. What am I thinking, Clay?” Jack asked sarcastically. He pulled out his gun once again and aimed it at Clay.
“What’re you doing, Jack? What’s going on here, and why would you kidnap Tanner?’
“You came for answers. Of course—something selfish. And here I thought you were here to rescue your slutty wife.”
Clay’s eyes were on the gun. “Put the gun down, Jack. There’s no need for violence.”
“I’ll tell you what, Clay. I’ll answer your questions, and then I’ll shoot you. I’m doing all of this for revenge.”
“Revenge? I don’t get it. I’ve only known you for a couple of years. What did I do?”
“A couple years? Think again, Thomas. All the way back to high school.”
“You didn’t go to high school with me.”
“No, but I went to Okemos. Played football and basketball.”
Clay gave no indication of remembering him.
“For football,” Jack continued, “I was the kicker. Twice you humiliated me in the game our senior year. Remember how I missed the game winning field goal?” He was trying to jar Clay’s memory.
Some recollection finally came to Clay. “You got in my face and told me we were gonna lose. That was you?”
“Yep. You told me I was gonna miss, and I did. You ran the kick in for a touchdown and knocked me on my butt along the way. It was humiliating. My teammates and classmates never let me live that down. And now I find out you can control minds. You got into my head, didn’t you, Clay?”
“I wouldn’t have done a thing if
you weren’t such a cocky butthead. You came to me, remember? But yes, I prob’ly got in your head.”
“And if that wasn’t bad enough, you did it again in basketball.”
Again, Clay was drawing a blank.
“You made me miss the game winning free throws at the end.”
The memory dawned on Clay once again. “You’re the punk who pushed me into the wall?”
“Yeah, just trying to even things up.”
“And then later you shoved me and got T’d up.”
“But I had a chance to win the game anyway, until you got in my head.”
“What I remember is you getting in my grill again, telling me we were gonna lose. So I told you that you’d miss.”
“Well, I missed all right, and then you gave me this.” He pointed to his crooked nose. “You broke my nose, Thomas.” Again, Clay showed no signs of recollection. “I was the class laughing stock the rest of the year. You broke my nose. I lost my starting position. And it’s your fault! I hated you with a passion, and then how does fate treat me? We end up in the same city where your son takes all the attention from mine and is dating my daughter! So I decided to take some things from you.
“First, I tried to keep your son out of Kevin’s way on the basketball court,” Jack continued. “Nothin’ seemed to work. I assume you and Tanner here had something to do with that. Used your mind powers somehow. So I figured I’d put you through a little hell by nabbing Tanner; maybe make a few ransom dollars in the process. Guess Tanner here made sure that didn’t work out. Figured if I took your wife away, that’d make me pretty happy too. She’s not bad in the sack either, Clay. Wanta see some pictures?”
Loving the Rain Page 17
