by Tom Haase
“She has a good point,” Jonathan said.
“What do you suggest?”
They all looked at Bridget. Before she could answer, Grossman returned to the group.
“Okay, we have some information,” Grossman said. “It appears that the Jaguar belonging to Schultz left the apartment building about a half hour before the daughter called. I have the number plate. What do you want to do?”
“Do we have transportation?” Jonathan asked.
“It will be here in ten minutes. May I suggest you get your belongings off the plane and we go out front of this place to meet it,” the captain said.
On board, Jonathan received a Glock handgun from Grossman and Bridget noticed the captain possessed one tucked in his pants on the small of his back. She decided not to say anything. She remembered that Jake carried a gun, and she knew better than to bring a knife to a gunfight.
Scott's cell rang.
“It's Gerti.” He answered it. It took a minute of listening before he looked at the group. “She wants us to pick her up. She said her father hired us, paid us good money to get the Bible, and we haven't secured it. She says we work for her, and it's her desire to be with us since she knows we're going to go after the book.”
“Tell her to go to hell. She got us in this spot by collaborating with Jake in the first place.” Bridget roared loud enough to ensure Gerti heard it, even though Scott tried to cover the mouthpiece.
“No,” Jonathan said. “It's her father and she'll want to be there. We might be able to use her knowledge of her father's likely actions to help us locate him. Besides, I believe she has a crush on our friend here.” He patted Scott on the back.
“She'll be a pain in the butt,” Bridget concluded but gave in.
Chapter 55
On I-95 Southbound
Jake drove along the New Jersey turnpike toward Washington, D.C. He realized that going to his place involved extreme danger if they somehow found out what he had done before he could carry out his entire plan. He would get the money for the book and then let Schultz go. What could Schultz do? Go tell the world he’d been kidnapped for welching on a deal to buy a stolen treasure of incalculable value? Hardly.
He heard the thump of Schultz's body in the trunk as he hit a large bump in the road. A guttural noise followed from the man as he bounced around. Jake never planned well in taking Schultz hostage. He thought the gun would make Schultz give him the money. Taking him hostage happened as a spur of the moment bad decision. He used the gun to force the man to accompany him out of the penthouse and down to his Jaguar parked in the underground parking lot. Schultz handed over the keys on demand and in return got pushed into the trunk. Jake slammed the lid closed.
Jake felt like he’d joined the gang that couldn't shoot straight. He owned neither tape nor rope to secure Schultz. He would have to stop somewhere, at a Home Depot for example, and get some rope and duct tape for use when they arrived in Washington, a four-hour drive, but, at least, they would arrive shortly after dark.
As he drove, he plotted his next moves. He thumped on the steering wheel and thought. He kept glancing in the rear view mirror, not knowing why, but his nerves were starting to get the better of him. He had to settle down. He breathed deep breaths for a few minutes and felt better. He needed to be at his house at eight. He needed to be there the next three nights at exactly eight. Just for fifteen minutes for that is the time he arranged to meet her. His thinking progressed to what he would do with his hostage. He would stop at a motel on US 1 south of the beltway around the capitol and use it as a base to house Schultz. He knew exactly the one he wanted down near Lorton. Its motel doors opened to the parking area. He would get a room that would allow him to leave the car parked outside.
Not a great idea for a Jaguar as the neighborhood would not be one in which a person with a Jag would stay in a cheap motel. So he would get Schultz situated in the room. Force him to drink some sleeping pills and take the car to his place and park in on the street a mile away. There were some fancy cars on the street in that area and one more wouldn't cause a problem. He would use a taxi to go back and forth.
Now he started to feel better. The plan appeared coming together and he would get his money. The next step would be easier. He knew the daughter. He believed she would get the money to save her father. Now he planned how he would have her transfer the money. A wire transfer would be the best method he guessed. Schultz could watch the funds transfer on a computer, and he would talk to the daughter while it happened to ensure all went well. With the Bible in the room, once the money hit the account, Schultz would receive the book and he would leave him. This type of logic pleased him, but it also reminded him he needed to get airplane tickets beforehand. The plan would be to escape out of the U.S. before Schultz could retaliate. Jake would be gone, and Shultz would be mad, but there would be nothing he could do. On that kind of money Jake planned to be on the next plane to the Caribbean. The money would provide the interest he would live on. That, combined with his retirement would be a nice nest egg.
A shopping mall appeared at the next exit, and he pulled off to get the items he needed. He looked in every direction before parking the car. He realized now that he had committed a federal crime and people would soon be after him.
Chapter 56
New York City
The two FBI agents left in a hurry. Bridget grabbed Scott’s hand and led him aside on the tarmac while they waited for the car to arrive.
“Why the hell did she call you? You have something going with that little bitch?”
“Not really. I don’t know why. She said we were paid to get the Bible of Constantine and she expects us to honor the contract.”
“I don’t like this,” Bridget said. “We're in over our heads. The FBI should handle this. Kidnapping can get really dangerous. People get killed.”
“Like no one has tried to kill us for at least thirty hours. Right? Like what’s the difference? We need to get that Bible, or have you forgotten what’s at stake? Not just the money, but getting our academic positions back.”
“I know, but I just want to be alive to see it happen,” Bridget said.
She heard a shuffle noise behind her. A hand came to rest on her shoulder. She knew, Jonathan.
“Come on guys, we’ve got to go now. The car is here. If you want to pick up Ms. Schultz, I suggest you call her and get her to a place we can rendezvous in an hour. If the FBI gets to her first there will be no way for her to get away.”
Captain Grossman led the way to the Ford Expedition. The driver got out and opened the doors without introducing himself or saying a word.
“Head into Manhattan,” Jonathan ordered.
Scott took out his cell and returned the call to Gerti.
“Hi,” he said when she answered. “We want you to get out of the apartment and tell us where to pick you up in an hour.”
“Why?” she questioned.
“If you stay there, the FBI will keep you for hours, and we need you to help us in locating your father. We’re attempting to fulfill our agreement and we need you to help. It’s in your best interest—and your father's. Besides, I’d like to see you again. How’s your shoulder?”
Bridget rammed her elbow into his side. “You dog,” she said with a smile. “You’ve got the hots for her.”
Scott pushed her away and looked out the window.
“It's stiff and hurts some but I'll be okay,” Gerti said and gave him the location for them to pick her up.” It’ll be good to see you, too.”
Scott closed the cell. He gave the information to the driver on where she would meet them.
“Now we have some time to think of what to do next,” Grossman said. “What do you want me to do, Monsignor?”
“We’re all in on this or we don’t go. It could turn nasty, especially with this kidnapping thrown in. We know Jake has a gun, and he also has the Bible. It is logical that since Schultz didn’t agree to his demand that he will assume the daughter
will. So, I see two scenarios. The daughter agrees to the demand to get her father back and we take Jake at that point. That will give us a definite time and place. The other is we try to locate his hiding place. That could be difficult but maybe not impossible.”
“I think that would be impossible,” Scott chimed in.
“Wait,” Bridget said. “We know that Jake is not a criminal. He’s an amateur. He’ll make mistakes. We have a former MI-5 spy and a Captain of the Swiss Guards with us. We have the advantage. Plus, we’ll have the daughter with us. I think Jake is at a disadvantage. He’ll do something stupid like go to his house thinking he has a day or more before Gerti finds that her father is missing. Or maybe a day he’ll use to set up his arrangements before he calls her.”
“Good thinking,” Jonathan said. “The point about him going to his home has merit. I’ve heard of many cases where the perpetrator went to his house thinking the cops couldn’t be there yet.”
“So, do we head to his house in Washington? I can get the address,” Grossman said.
“Good Idea,” Jonathan said.
“Do you really think he has the Bible with him?” Grossman asked.
“If he does, then he won’t have to go to his house,” Bridget said. “If not, then there might be a reason to go there. That’s what I think.”
The car travelled a circuitous route to the pick up point. The sights of the downtown metropolitan city passed by on the way to Park Avenue and the front of the store where Gerti said she would meet them. Bridget and Scott remained silent while Jonathan and Grossman discussed the logistics needed for the operation in Washington.
Jonathan insisted that the local Catholic hierarchy be kept out of the picture. He didn’t want more people than absolutely necessary to even know about the Bible. Asking for help in Washington from the Cardinal there would give rise to many questions.
The Expedition approached the middle of the street near the store’s entrance and Scott yelled, “There she is.”
Gerti looked pale even from a distance. Her arm rested in a sling from the knife wound suffered in Jerusalem. She wore jeans and a white shirt with a gold necklace.
She waved as the car approached and stepped to the curb.
Scott opened the door and yelled, “Get in here.”
She moved to the rear door. Scott opened it. He looked at her in time to see a hand grab her from behind. She screamed.
Special Agent Matt Higgins glared at Scott.
Chapter 57
New York City
“Where do you think you're going young lady?” Higgins asked.
“To find my father,” Gerti answered defiantly as she turned and faced the agent.
The noise of the traffic passing by almost drowned out her words. Matt Higgins pulled her closer to him so that she would hear. His partner shut the car door in Scott's face.
“You reported a kidnapping of your father. That falls under the jurisdiction of the FBI. You are a material witness, and we need you to help us find your father. Your friends are not involved in this. They can depart.”
Gerti signaled Scott to go, seeing nothing more they could do with the FBI present.
She waved him away and put her hand to her ear as if on the phone. She would call him.
“Let's go to our car and discuss the options,” Higgins said. “You already know them, I believe, but I want to make clear our course of action. We need to see the tape of the kidnapping, and then we'll put out an APB on Jake.”
Gerti told them everything she knew and gave them the disc. After visiting the FBI office in New York, the three of them headed for Washington, D.C. in an FBI Crown Vic.
“Okay,” Gerti said, “we have established that Jake is most likely to go to the Washington area. Do you think he'll go to his house?”
“There is a good possibility he will, since what you told us is that he probably thinks he has a day or two before you get home. Did you divert your home phones to your cell before you left?” Liz asked.
Gerti nodded.
“We can assume from the conversation with your father on the video that Jake did not appear to have this Bible with him. So he is going to demand you pay him the five million to get your father back and the book. That's what I see. What about you?” Higgins asked.
The car traveled along the New Jersey Turnpike at the speed limit. Before answering the agent’s question, Gerti told them she wanted some food and needed a rest stop break. They pulled into a convenience stop on the turnpike. After a restroom stop and getting some burgers and drinks, they all returned to the car. Liz made a few calls to keep the FBI headquarters informed on their their estimated time of arrival in Washington.
“Agent Higgins, I see the options the same way. Jake will call me, maybe later tonight as a flight gets in from Tel Aviv this evening, but more likely tomorrow afternoon for the next arrival time. Those are the most likely times he will try to contact me for the ransom money.”
“I don't think he'll take your father to his house,” Liz said. “That could cause complications with the Bible and your father at the same location. He would most likely put your father somewhere before he goes to his house. If he even goes to his house with too many prying eyes on a city street. That's my guess.”
Higgins nodded agreement.
“Do you really think he'll go to his house because he'll assume no one knows about the kidnapping?” Gerti asked.
Her phone pinged. “We have his address,” she said.
“We should be there about eight tonight,” Higgins said.
“If he's there, will you kill the bastard?” Gerti asked.
* * * *
Jake completed his preparations in the motel. Schultz required a little persuasion to take the sleeping pills that Jake had from an old prescription. Now with Schultz fastened to the bed, the Jaguar next on Jake’s list. He drove it to the street about a mile from his house and parked it. Probably an unnecessary precaution, but in a day or two Schultz could use his car to go back to New York with the Bible. In case anyone decided to look for Schultz, he didn't want the evidence in front of his house.
He walked to his house. He congratulated himself on the ingenious plan he devised for getting the Bible. No matter what Schultz tried to do in New York when he’d landed, especially with that chauffeur meeting him at the airport, Cornelius made sure the book wasn’t in his possession. Even if the driver Schultz sent to the airport had captured him, there would have been no Bible to be taken without receiving his money. That young student on the airplane agreed to deliver it to him within the next three days at eight in the evening at his house. The price of five hundred dollars paled in comparison to the money he would get for the item.
Chapter 58
I-495
Washington, D.C.
Bridget watched as the world famous skyline of the District of Columbia came into view as they crossed the George Washington Bridge from Maryland into Virginia. The Washington monument appeared almost silver in the rays of the setting sun.
“Should we go to Jake's house? He won't be expecting anyone to be on his tail this fast,” Bridget asked Jonathan.
“I'm almost certain he won't expect anyone to be after him this quick. Not when Gerti wasn’t expected home until tomorrow. Her getting here a day early is something that Jake couldn't know. He probably assumes he’s free to do anything until Gerti discovers her father is missing or until he contacts her for whatever demand he intends to make.”
“So do I head for his house?” Grossman asked as he steered the car off the interstate onto Telegraph Road in Alexandria. They had left the original driver in New York as he didn’t know Washington. “I have the address in the GPS.”
“It's almost eight. Let's head there,” Scott said.
At fifteen minutes after eight they drove onto the street where Jake lived.
“Let's stop here,” Jonathan ordered Grossman. “We'll go on foot for the half a block to his house. Pedestrians might not be seen as a threat if he
does notice people walking in the street. It’s also hard to distinguish faces in this fading light.”
They exited the vehicle and started to approach the house about one hundred yards away. Grossman shut off the engine. Everyone was quiet.
“Hey, a light's on,” Bridget said.
“It might just be a security light that cycles every day,” Grossman said.
“No, I see movement inside,” Scott said.
“Do you think that old man is dangerous?” Scott asked.
“My opinion is that anyone who uses a gun to kidnap someone is extremely dangerous,” Jonathan said. “He’s capable of using the gun if he feels threatened and even more so if he thinks he'll not get his money.”
“May I suggest that I go around to the rear and cover that exit in case he tries to get out that way?” Grossman asked.
“Good idea. The rest of us can cover the front,” Jonathan said. “We'll wait a few minutes before going in to let you get in position.”
The single-family house presented a typical old red brick dwelling, similar to many in the older sections of the city. There were a few small trees in the front yard, and behind the house an alley passed beyond a four-foot high metal fence. A covered front porch with columns flanked the top of the stairs.
The three observed the entrance but didn't notice the taxi coming down the street until it stopped in front of Jake's place. He ran out and jumped into the cab and it moved off.
“He doesn't have the Bible. Nothing in his hand. He could have left it in the house,” Jonathan said. Then he added, “Maybe he stashed it before we arrived.”
“Could be, but I think we need to follow Jake,” Bridget said.
“I want to check out the house. You take the car and see if you can follow him. We'll wait here for you,” Jonathan said. He gave her the keys to the car. “Both of you hurry back.”
