Hellhound On My Trail

by J. D. Rhoades

  Finally, Zaubermann stood up and nodded at Keller. Keller nodded back and moved toward the door. Zaubermann spoke a few quick words to Denise, handed her an envelope from a jacket pocket, and gave her a kiss on the cheek. She reached up, threw her arms around his neck, and gave him a hard squeeze before letting him go. The boy was too focused on vroom vrooming the motorcycle on the carpet to notice. Zaubermann met Keller at the door, with Denise at his side. Keller pulled out the van keys and handed them to her. “I guess you’ll need these.”

  She took them, not meeting his eyes. “Thanks.” She gave a small sigh and looked up. Her eyes were moist. “Sorry I was a bitch.”

  “You weren’t,” Keller said. “It’s okay.” He turned to Zaubermann. “Let’s go.”

  In Keller’s car, Zaubermann was subdued. “He’s going to look up and I’ll be gone,” he said in a choked voice. “And I won’t be back till he’s a teenager. It’s tough on a kid growing up without a dad, you know?”

  Keller didn’t answer.

  “I meant it,” Zaubermann said. “What I was talking about earlier. Anything you need, man. Any time. If I can swing it from inside, I will. Or when I get out.”

  “Okay,” Keller said. “I’ll keep it in mind.” But he hadn’t thought about it. Not until now.

  THE CRUNCH of boots on gravel pulled Keller out of his reverie. Zaubermann walked up to the window of Keller’s truck.

  “Keller,” he said. His face was expressionless. He’d cut his hair shorter, but he still had his long sideburns and some new ink on his neck. “Long time no see.”

  “Not as long as either of us thought,” Keller said.

  “Yeah. Well. I made some deals. Got ’em to back off on the bitch.” Zaubermann looked up. “It’s startin’ to rain again.”

  Keller motioned to the passenger side. “Get in.”

  Inside the truck, Keller could see that the years had worn new lines in Zaubermann’s face and speckled his hair with gray. “So to what do I owe this honor?” Zaubermann said. “I’m pretty sure you don’t have any paper on me. I’m a regular citizen now.”

  “Not what I heard,” Keller said. “But no, I don’t have any bonds on you. I’m out of the business, actually. I’m calling in that favor you promised.”

  Zaubermann frowned. “What favor?”

  “When I gave you time with your kid before I took you in. You said anything I needed. Any time.”

  “Yeah,” Zaubermann said ruefully, “I guess I did say that.”

  “Well,” Keller said, “I need a place to stay. Somewhere off the grid.”

  Zaubermann’s eyes narrowed. “Someone after you?”

  Keller decided not to try and bullshit his way through it. “Probably. Not sure, but probably.”

  Zaubermann looked at him for a moment, then chuckled. “That’s some karmic shit, right there.”

  “Yeah. Ha. Ha. The universe is laughing its ass off. Can you help me?”

  Zaubermann grew serious. “Maybe. But like I say, I ain’t the Magic Man no more. I’m just a guy who owns a bar.”

  Keller had heard differently while he’d been asking around for Zaubermann’s location. He’d heard that Zaubermann was still neck deep in drugs, guns, women, and any kind of illegal activity that could be run out of a bar. He’d just gotten more careful. Keller decided not to call him on it, though. If he tried to puncture the facade, the man might bolt, favor or no favor. “Well, maybe you know some people.”

  “Maybe.” Zaubermann was staring straight ahead at where the rain was running down the truck’s front window. “I can maybe work something out with some people I know.” He looked back at Keller. “It might cost. More or less, depending on who’s after you.”

  Keller nodded. “I can pay. If it’s reasonable.”

  Zaubermann tilted his head and looked at Keller, eyes narrowed appraisingly. “Can you work?”

  From the tension in Zaubermann’s voice, Keller could tell the “work” would most likely not be legitimate. Still, he didn’t really care at this point. “Yeah. As long as it’s not likely to draw attention.”

  The answer seemed to satisfy Zaubermann. He grinned, his teeth white in the dim light. It looked like he’d gotten his teeth fixed in prison. “Okay, then. Come on in the bar. First round’s on the house while I rustle you up a place to stay.”

  “Okay, then,” Keller echoed. He opened the door and stepped out into the night.

  LUCAS BERRY sat behind his desk and scowled at the paperwork piled on it. He’d had a long day, and the evening substance-abuse group had been more contentious than usual. He really didn’t feel like wading through a pile of insurance reimbursement and VA forms. But without them, he wasn’t going to get paid, and as much as he loved his job as a counselor, he wasn’t quite ready to do it for free. He could go broke at home with his feet up if that’s what he wanted to do. He steeled himself and picked up the first file. The phone buzzed, and his finger leaped to the button like that of a man waiting for a stay of execution. “Yes?”

  “Dr. Berry?” the voice of his receptionist said tentatively, as if she still wasn’t sure who might be sitting in the office.

  “Yes, Crystal?”

  “Someone here to see you.”

  Berry frowned. “I don’t have any more appointments, do I?”

  “No, sir.” The young woman hesitated. “He says it’s about Jack Keller.”

  “Does he now,” Berry said. He slid the top desk drawer open to make sure the loaded .357 revolver was there. Given what Keller had been up to recently, it made sense to be careful around anyone who claimed to be looking for him. “Well, send him in.” He slid the drawer partially shut.

  He didn’t know what he was expecting; he only knew that the mild-looking, balding man who his receptionist was letting into the office wasn’t it. He stood up and offered a hand. “I’m Lucas Berry,” he said.

  The man put his briefcase down and took the offered hand in a surprisingly strong grip. “John Maddox,” he said.

  Berry released the hand, his eyes narrowing. “Maddox,” he said in a voice cold enough to turn metal brittle.

  Maddox smiled apologetically. “Yes, sir. I suspect from your tone that you’ve heard the name.”

  “I have. State your business.”

  Maddox gestured to one of the client chairs in front of the desk. “May I sit down?”

  “No,” Berry said. Maddox’s only reaction was a disappointed look that made Berry feel as if what he’d done was petty and small. Grudgingly, he motioned to the chair. Maddox nodded his thanks and sat down. “I know you have no reason to trust me now. But I’m asking you to hear me out. For Keller’s sake.”

  “You represent the man claiming to be Jack’s father?” Berry demanded.

  Maddox nodded again. “Yes.”

  “Then no, I have no reason to trust you. Or him.”

  “Granted. But there are people looking for Jack Keller that pose a greater threat to him than his father or I could. He needs to know what he’s up against.”

  “Well, I can’t help you. I don’t know where he is.”

  Maddox nodded. “I know. But has anyone else tried to contact you regarding his whereabouts? Or maybe tried to contact some other friend of his?”

  Berry leaned back and regarded Maddox through narrowed eyes. He’d gotten a call from Marie Jones, Jack’s former lover, now living in Portland, Oregon. Someone had come around asking her about him, trying to find out if she’d heard from him. She’d wanted to know if Keller was in trouble. He’d told her that he didn’t know for sure. They’d had a long talk after that.

  Maddox read Berry’s silence and leaned forward. “Doctor Berry,” he said earnestly, “the people looking for Jack Keller are not above putting people he cares about at risk to try to draw him out. Including yourself.” He leaned back, his expression mild. “You know him better than anyone. Wouldn’t that motivate him more strongly than anything to come out of hiding? If you don’t help us find him, the people after him may
resort to extreme measures.” He nodded at the drawer at Berry’s right hand, which Berry realized was still partially open. “Whatever you have in that drawer may help protect you from them. It may not. It would be better if we could give Mr. Keller the means to protect himself better than any weapon ever could.”

  Berry shook his head. “You’re good, Maddox. I’ll give you that. You know what buttons to push. I’m thinking maybe you were Agency. A recruiter. A handler. I’ll bet you were a good one.”

  Maddox smiled. “I can neither confirm nor deny…” He smiled wryly. “You know the rest.”

  “I do,” Despite himself, Berry was actually beginning to warm to the man. “But I can’t help you. I don’t know where Jack Keller is. Yes, someone he was close to called me. Someone had been asking…” he hesitated, “her about Jack. She didn’t know anything either. And no one has contacted me.”

  Maddox leaned back. “Not directly, no. But may I ask a favor, Doctor?”

  Berry tensed. “You can ask.”

  “May I check your office for listening devices? It will take a few minutes.”

  Berry let out a disbelieving laugh. “Really? You think someone might have bugged my office?”

  Maddox shrugged. “It’s a possibility.” He smiled. “If I turn up nothing, you can make as much fun of me as you like.”

  Berry gave a negligent wave of his hand. “Knock yourself out.”

  “Thank you.” Maddox reached into the briefcase and pulled out a black box with two silver antennae poking out of the top.

  “Seriously,” Berry said. “I’m supposed to believe in that thing?”

  Maddox fiddled with the controls, looking intent. “This will only detect RF—radio frequency—devices,” he said. “Crude and obvious, but people do sometimes use them, if they’re in a hurry or if that’s all that’s available.” He stood up, device in hand, and walked around the room. “Do you often discuss important matters in any other room?”

  “We hold group sessions in what used to be the front parlor,” Berry said. “But that wouldn’t have anything to do with Keller. If he were to call, I’d take it in here.”

  “Ah.” Maddox lowered the black box. “How about the secretary’s office?”

  “Maybe.” Berry realized that he was beginning to get sucked into this craziness.

  “May I?” Without waiting for permission, Maddox walked out. A moment later, Berry heard Crystal’s voice. “Hey! What the hell are you…hey!” She appeared at the office door, a look of indignation on her pretty face. “Doctor Berry! That guy’s messing with my phone!”

  “Indulge him a little,” Berry said, trying to keep the amusement out of his voice. “He’ll be done in a minute.”

  At the end of that long minute, however, Maddox walked in, looking like a doctor delivering bad news. He was holding the black box in one hand and a small piece of metal in the other. As Berry watched in disbelief, Maddox dropped it on the desk.

  It was a tiny cylinder, slightly pointed on both ends, with a stubby wire projecting from one. “RF bug,” Maddox said. “In your secretary’s phone.”

  Berry frowned. “I’ll be damned.” He looked up at Maddox. “How did they—whoever they are—get that in here?”

  “Wait a minute,” Crystal interrupted. “How do we know you didn’t just bring that in with you?”

  Maddox nodded approvingly. “Cautious. Very good. You’re a smart young lady.”

  “Yeah,” she said. “Well, you might say I got trust issues. Has to do with my history. Right, doc?”

  Berry’s face was a carefully composed mask. “You know I can’t talk about that.”

  She smiled grimly. “Thanks, doc. But I can.” She turned to Maddox. “Before I met Doctor Berry, I was a junkie and a whore. So no, I don’t much trust anyone.” She looked at Berry. “Except him. And Jack Keller.” She turned back to Maddox. “Both of them helped save my life. So just let me say this, Mr. Maddox.” She advanced on him until they were face to face. “I may be just a hick from the sticks and you’re some big important guy. But if I think you’re tryin’ to hurt either of those men, I will find some way to fuck. You. Up.”

  “Crystal!” Berry snapped.

  Maddox pushed his glasses up on his nose where they’d slipped down. He didn’t break eye contact with Crystal. “I assure you, my principal and I aren’t trying to hurt Jack Keller. Just the opposite, in fact. We think that there might be people out there who are, though. And we’d like to stop that.”

  They stared at each other for a long moment. Finally, Crystal looked away. “Okay,” she muttered. “Sorry to get in your face like that.”

  “No apologies necessary,” Maddox said. “He’s lucky to have friends like the two of you.” He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a business card. “If Mr. Keller does call you, please get in touch with us immediately.”

  “If he calls or contacts either of us,” Berry said, “we’ll discuss with him whether or not to get in touch with you.”

  “Right,” Crystal said.

  Maddox inclined his head slightly in acknowledgment. “That’s fair. Just let him know about what I said. He may be in great danger.”

  Crystal laughed. “Have you actually met Jack Keller?”

  Maddox nodded. “Briefly.”

  “Then you should know that you ought to warn whoever’s after him,” Crystal said.

  “Yes,” Maddox said. “But I think they know. So if anyone else contacts you about finding him, please let us know as well. Thank you for your time. I’ll let myself out.”

  BACK IN his car, Maddox took a deep breath. He’d expected a confrontation with Lucas Berry, who lived up to his reputation as a formidable man. But the ferocity of the young woman’s reaction unsettled him. He started the vehicle, conscious of the eyes on him behind the curtains of the restored Victorian home where Berry had his offices. He drove through the tree-lined streets of the neighborhood, marveling at the contrast with the tacky commercial strip and struggling downtown that defined the rest of Fayetteville, North Carolina. When he saw a Wendy’s, he pulled into the parking lot, pulled out his phone, and punched in the numbers. The phone rang seven times, and Maddox felt a shiver of apprehension. Surely, the person he’d reluctantly brought in to look after Trammell in his absence would have followed his orders to notify him if the old man had taken a turn for the worse. Finally, Trammell picked up. “Sorry for the delay,” he said in his rasping voice. “When a man in my condition can actually take a decent shit…well, you know.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “So. How did it go?”

  “They either couldn’t, or wouldn’t, say much. Jack Keller seems to inspire a great deal of loyalty in people, sir.”

  Trammell’s chuckle devolved into a weak cough. “Apple didn’t fall far from the tree, did it?”

  “No, sir.” There was a pause. “Are you being looked after, sir?”

  “I’m fine,” Trammell said. “Did you find anything? Any bugs?”

  “No, sir,” Maddox replied. “I think I may have misdirected them from the devices I left. Dr. Berry’s secretary is a suspicious type, but I think I may have won her over.”

  “Good, good,” Trammell said. “You haven’t lost your touch, then.”

  “No, sir.”

  There was a long pause. “So, did you find any devices?”

  Maddox sat up straighter in the seat, tensing with alarm. “No, sir. We just discussed that.”

  “We did? Oh. And…” The voice trailed off.

  “Sir?” Maddox said. “Is Dr. Petrovitch there by any chance?”

  The voice grew stronger. “That bastard? Hell, yes. He won’t get out of my goddamn hair.”

  “May I speak with him, please?”

  “What the hell for? What’s he going to tell you? And when are you going to tell me if you managed to place anything in Berry’s offices?”

  “I did, sir. Please call Dr. Petrovitch.”

  “Oh, all right. Fine.”

 
There was a brief silence, then another voice came on the line. “Da?”

  “Petrovitch. What’s going on?”

  “Wait a moment.” There was a pause, then the Russian’s thickly accented voice came back on the line. “How can I help you, Maddox?”

  “Can you talk freely?”

  “I can now.”

  “Then tell me what Mr. Trammell’s condition is.”

  There was a brief pause. Then, “Condition is not good. Actually, am amazed he’s still alive.”

  Maddox felt his heart pounding in his chest. “That’s why you’re there, isn’t it?”

  Petrovitch had been a doctor working for the now defunct KGB, laboring in the bowels of the notorious Lubyanka prison. It had been his job to keep tortured prisoners alive, even though wounded and mutilated, until the time when all information had been wrung from them and they could be disposed of. Trammell and Maddox had found him in Moscow, used his own self-loathing to turn him, and eventually brought him to the US as a defector who knew, literally, where a lot of bodies were buried. Trammell, with his finely developed sense of irony and black humor, had directed Maddox to bring Petrovitch out of the exile Trammell himself had dragged him into.

  Petrovitch’s voice was sulky. “I am not God, Maddox. I cannot prolong life forever. He is staying alive for reasons.”

  Maddox closed his eyes and leaned forward to rest his head on the steering wheel. After a moment, he composed himself and sat back up. “He’s waiting for his son to return.”

  “Well, son should probably hurry.”

  “Just keep him as comfortable as you can,” Maddox snapped, then cut the connection. He needed to find Jack Keller, and soon. He reached over into the passenger seat and pulled out a slim laptop computer. After he’d placed it on his lap and booted it up, he accessed the program that monitored the surveillance devices he’d placed on the phones and computers in Lucas Berry’s office. There was no activity. He checked the program he’d used to hack Berry’s own cell phone. Nothing there either. He leaned back and looked at the headliner of the car as if it might give him some answers. It didn’t. Jack Keller had gone to ground, and the only people who might have some idea of his whereabouts had gone silent. There was nothing to do but wait. And Maddox was running out of time to wait.