by Lisa Orchard
Terror pushed her forward and Jackie followed. Sarah turned into the police station parking lot. Looking back, she observed that the men had eased up. The bald one was still limping and the younger one was strolling past the lot. Almost sobbing, Sarah slowed. My plan worked.
She took a shuddering breath and stopped. Now that she was safe, anger replaced her fear. Placing her hands on her hips, she glared at the bombers. She made eye contact with the tall, bald one and stuck her tongue out at him.
The bomber stopped and his hands curled into fists. Next, he slowly raised his right hand in front of his throat and made a cutting motion. Numbing fear returned, turning Sarah’s legs into wobbly stalks of gelatin. With a loud gasp, she grabbed Jackie’s arm and stumbled toward the door.
The police station was a two-story, red brick building with large, white paned windows. The white panes reminded Sarah of bars on a jail cell and she usually shuddered when she looked at them. Today, she was comforted by their presence.
“Let’s see if Scott and Lacey are still here,” Sarah said in a trembling voice.
“Okay.”
The girls walked into the reception area and approached a heavyset officer sitting behind the desk.
“Officer?” Sarah asked.
“Yes?” He glanced up from the file he was working on.
“Is Scott Johnson still here?”
“Ahh…let me check. I’ll be right back.” He lifted his finger as if to say wait a minute, then walked back into the bowels of the station.
Sarah looked around the lobby—she took in the fake leather couch against the far wall. It was the color of puke and didn’t enhance the area at all. The imitation plants with their healthy, vibrant appeal seemed out of place with the dingy couch and putty-colored walls.
Sarah walked toward the door and gazed out the window in search of the bombers. She didn’t see them and sagged against the door. Her mad dash and her lack of sleep were taking their toll. Feeling drained, Sarah glanced at the couch. It didn’t look so bad after all. With one last look out the door, Sarah stumbled back and flopped down on the divan.
Jackie studied her. “Hey, that was a crazy, mad sprint.”
“I’m exhausted.” Sarah leaned her head against the back of the couch and closed her eyes.
“No doubt.” Jackie sat down next to Sarah and squeezed her arm.
Scott walked around the corner. “Hey guys.”
Sarah opened her eyes and gave him a nod. “Hey, did you find out anything?”
Lacey appeared behind Scott and greeted Sarah with a smile.
Scott looked over his shoulder. “Not yet.” He licked his lips and put his hand against the wall and leaned down and whispered, “The Fibbies are here.”
Sarah stared at him. “Right now, in the station?”
Scott nodded.
Sarah groaned. “We are in so much trouble.”
“Why?” Scott asked.
“Because we ran into the bombers and they chased us here.”
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Scott whispered hoarsely as his eyes widened.
“I’m not. They’re talking about setting off another bomb,” Sarah said in a low voice.
Scott sighed and paced the waiting area. His brow wrinkled in concentration. He stopped suddenly and stared at Sarah. “Why are they going to set off another bomb?”
Sarah groaned and sat up straight, then filled Scott and Lacey in on her adventure with the bombers. Scott’s nostrils flared when he heard the story and Lacey’s eyes widened.
“That means the target is at the hospital, right now,” Scott said.
Sarah nodded.
“Oh no,” Lacey whimpered. “Is the target Uncle Walt?”
“We need to tell the FBI.” Scott shoved his hands in his pockets and paced.
“What are we going to tell them? Two guys in a green truck might be the bombers?” Jackie stood and paced alongside Scott, gesturing theatrically with her hands.
Sarah stood. She moved as if she carried a heavy burden. “Yeah, but they can bring those guys in for questioning.”
“We don’t know their names,” Jackie said.
Scott pursed his lips. “True, but we have to stop them before they set off another bomb.”
“Yeah.” Sarah stretched. “Plus we’ve got the license plate number. The FBI can find out who they are from that.”
“About that.” Scott dug through his pants and pulled out the napkin. “Are you sure you copied the plate number right?”
Sarah stared. “Don’t tell me it didn’t work.”
Scott blew air through his pursed lips. “When I did the search, it came up ‘invalid plate’.”
Sarah walked over to Scott and grabbed the napkin. Invalid plate? How could it come up invalid plate? She groaned. This was a major setback. Pacing alongside Jackie, Sarah tried to recall the license number. She could only remember the first three letters, GLF.
“I’m sure I remembered it correctly.” Sarah clenched her fists.
“Was the plate dirty?” Scott asked.
As Sarah trudged, she remembered the truck had been covered with mud. “Yeah, it was.”
“Well, maybe one of these letters is wrong, like the F is really an E,” Scott suggested.
“Maybe.” Sarah sighed.
“We’ll give this to the FBI. Maybe they can figure it out.”
“Maybe,” Sarah agreed in a dejected voice.
“Let’s go find my dad.” Scott motioned for the girls to follow him. Sarah spun around, and with the rest of the Super Spies traveled behind Scott.
As she walked, Sarah thought about the last time she had been to the police station. It had been just the previous summer when she, along with Jackie and Lacey, had solved the Cat Lady mystery.
She remembered walking through the narrow hallway to the chief’s office. And the apprehension she had felt because she had to tell the chief that she had removed evidence from his crime scene. Sarah recalled his anger, and then she remembered her deep frustration when she realized that by removing evidence, she had inadvertently created a legal loophole for the killer to go free.
On the way to his office, they passed the interrogation rooms. A chill ran down her spine as the memory of the frigid room flooded her mind. She remembered waiting to be interrogated, turning into a human Popsicle with each passing minute.
“Sarah…” Jackie poked her in the back, startling her.
“What?” Sarah turned and looked over her shoulder.
“What are we going to tell the FBI?”
“Everything.” Sarah turned and continued down the hall.
She was tired—she didn’t want to carry this burden any longer. Sighing as she walked, her steps seemed lighter. Just knowing the FBI would handle the situation brightened her spirits. Now, all I have to do is worry about Uncle Walt.
Uncle Walt. Tears welled in her eyes. Could he be the target? And if so why? Why would anyone want to hurt him? No answers came to her. Her heart jumped in her chest. Were the bombers going to bomb the hospital? She shuddered and gulped the lump of fear that suddenly rose in her throat.
She tapped Scott on the shoulder. “Let’s hurry.”
He rounded the corner and led the Super Spies down another narrow hallway. Sarah glanced up and stared at the florescent lights. The brightness hurt her eyes. She winced and looked back down. The glare of the lights highlighted the dingy carpet and the blandness of the putty-colored walls.
Scott stopped in front of a large conference room. Sarah stood on her tiptoes to see inside. She discovered a hoard of men, all of them dressed in gray suits and white shirts. It seemed like the official FBI uniform. She smirked—Jackie’s going to have a fit.
“Boy, good thing they’re not the fashion police,” Jackie whispered in Sarah’s ear.
Sarah suppressed a bubble of laughter. “You got that right. They’d all be under arrest.”
Jackie snorted and turned away. Sarah bit her lip to keep from laughing out loud
.
She studied the FBI personnel and realized that each one had close-cropped hair. The haircuts and the suits were a dead giveaway. She could spot these guys from a mile away. Sarah shook her head. If I can tell these guys are FBI agents, I’m sure the bombers can too.
“Dad,” Scott whispered.
Sarah spotted Chief Johnson just inside the door. He was talking with an agent and seemed to be in a heated discussion.
“Dad,” Scott said, a little louder this time.
Chief Johnson glanced at the door. “Scott, what are you doing here?”
Sarah noticed the chief’s red face. “Your dad looks mad.”
Scott nodded to Sarah while still facing his father. “We have some information on the bombing.”
Scott’s dad sighed. “Okay…why don’t you go sit in interrogation room two and we’ll be right with you.”
“Okay.” Scott spun toward the rest of the Super Spies. “Let’s head to room two.”
Sarah followed Jackie and Lacey back down the hall. “At least this time we didn’t tamper with any evidence.”
“So-o true, girlfriend.”
Sarah giggled. “We won’t have to clean park bathrooms this time, either.”
“That is a very good thing,” Jackie nodded emphatically, sending her curls into a wild dance.
Sarah laughed—she loved Jackie’s dramatic flair.
Scott stopped and spun back toward the group. “Hey, guys, I’m going to get a soda. Anyone else want one?”
“I do,” Sarah said.
Jackie nodded. “Me too.”
“Lacey, I’ll get you one if you want,” Scott said.
“Sure.”
“Okay, you guys, cough up the money.” Scott held out his hand.
“Hey, no fair,” Jackie protested. “How come Lacey doesn’t have to pay?”
A look passed between Scott and Lacey, and it dawned on Sarah that the two of them had been spending a lot of time together. She nudged Jackie.
“What?” Jackie faced Sarah, a look of irritation passing over her features.
“They like each other,” Sarah giggled.
“What…what do you mean?”
“You know, they like each other…you know, they like ‘like’ each other.”
“Oh.” Jackie’s face lit up.
“Can’t get much by you.” Sarah rolled her eyes.
“No doubt,” Jackie snickered.
“Shut up, you guys and hand over your money.” Scott blushed violently and thrust his hand out at the girls.
Sarah and Jackie grudgingly handed Scott their cash.
“I know what everyone drinks.” He rotated away from the girls. “I’ll meet you guys in the interrogation room. I’m pretty sure you know the way.” He snickered.
“Ha! Ha! Ha!” Sarah faked a laugh. “You should do stand up, you’re so-o funny!”
“I know,” Scott smirked as he walked down the hall.
“Come on, guys.” Sarah led the girls to interrogation room two. Walking through the door, Sarah sighed and sat down in one of the metal folding chairs. Jackie and Lacey were right behind her.
Sarah slouched in her chair and leaned her elbow on the table. She rested her chin on her fist and thought back to the last time that she’d been in the police station. It had been just a few months before when she had listened to the David Fedewa interview. At the time, she was hoping she wouldn’t have to come back to the station for a very long time. She sighed again—I’m really spending a lot of my time in these interview rooms.
Scott walked in with the sodas. “Here you go guys.”
Placing the cans on the table, he kept one and popped the top. He took a long drink and finally came up for air. “That hits the spot.”
Sarah opened her soda and took a drink. Just as she was setting her can on the table, an FBI agent walked in the door. Chief Johnson trailed behind him. Sarah blew air through her lips—here we go.
Chapter Nine
Sarah stared at the agent. He stood taller than the Chief did and his broad shoulders seemed to stretch across the room. His eyes were expressionless, an icy blue. They were also bloodshot. He wore a rumpled gray suit and his white shirt had a coffee stain on the front of it.
“Hello, kids,” he said in a nasal voice.
“Hi.” Sarah squirmed.
Jackie and Lacey nodded.
“Scott tells me you know something about the high school bombing?”
Sarah nodded emphatically. “Yeah, we ran into the bombers.”
The agent spoke to the Chief. “Why don’t we get Jim in here?”
The Chief dipped his head toward the agent and left.
The agent pulled a small notebook out of his pocket and sat down in one of the chairs. “Okay, can I get your names?”
The Super Spies gave him their names and he wrote them down.
“What’s your name?” Sarah asked.
“I’m Agent Gray.”
Sarah glanced at Jackie, her eyes twinkled with unexpressed laughter. His name matches his suit. Sarah’s lip quivered—she was just punchy enough to burst out laughing. Averting her eyes from Jackie, Sarah got her giggles under control. She looked at Jackie again and saw that her eyes were still twinkling. We’re going to laugh about this later.
Another agent walked in with Chief Johnson trailing behind him. The new FBI man quickly introduced himself. “Hello, I’m Agent Black.”
Jackie bit her lip and whirled away from the group. Sarah couldn’t stop the grin that was bursting from her lips. She stared down at the floor as if she had dropped something.
“Hi,” Scott said, covering for the girls.
Once Sarah got her laughter under control, she studied Agent Black. He was older than Agent Gray and had intense brown eyes. When he peered at Sarah it seemed like he could see right through her. His suit was a darker gray than the first agent’s, but it was just as rumpled.
He pulled a small notebook out of his shirt pocket. “Okay, why don’t you tell us what you know?”
Sarah took a deep breath and told the agents the whole story. She told them about finding the cabin in the woods all the way through to the men chasing them to the police station.
Both agents wrote furiously, never interrupting once.
“So that’s how we ended up here,” Sarah finished.
“Do you remember the license plate number?” Agent Black asked.
Sarah shook her head. “Only the first three letters, GLF.”
“How about the make or model of the truck?”
Shrugging, Sarah said, “It was a dark green pickup. That’s all I know.”
“We can run a partial search.” Agent Gray stood and put his notebook back in his shirt pocket. “I’ll get that started.”
“I’ve already run a search for the plate number and didn’t get anything,” Scott said.
“Really?” Agent Gray asked.
“Yeah, Sarah may have written down the letters wrong or something like that.”
“They’re talking about setting off another bomb.” Sarah squirmed in her seat.
Agent Black stood and rubbed his forehead. “We’re going to locate them before they can do that. Can you describe the men for me?”
“They were big, but not fat…kind of like body builders.” Sarah frowned. “And the big one looked like that actor from the movie The Fighter. You know, the crooked boxer?”
“Have you seen them around town before?”
“No…but I haven’t lived here for very long.” Sarah turned to Jackie. “Jack…have you?”
Jackie shook her head. “I didn’t get a good look at either one of them.”
The agent sighed and scratched his cheek. “Would you girls be up for a drive around town? Maybe we can spot them?”
Sarah sat up straight in her chair. “We need to get someone up to the hospital. That’s where their target is.” She bit her lip and looked down at her hands to keep the tears at bay. “It might be our Uncle Walt.”
Agent Black scrutinized her. “How do you know?”
“When we heard them talking they said something about needing to finish the job. Plus, they were up there when we were there.” Sarah stood and paced.
“All right, we’ll get agents up to the hospital.” He looked toward Chief Johnson. “Chief, could you drive these kids around and see if you can locate these men?”
Chief Johnson crossed his arms over his chest. “Absolutely.”
“Good.” He swung toward Sarah and stared at her. “Why do you think the target is your uncle?”
“Because he’s one of the teachers that was in the school when the bomb went off.”
“Why would these men be after him?”
Tears welled in Sarah’s eyes. “I don’t know. I can’t imagine anyone having a beef with Uncle Walt.” Her tears spilled down her cheeks. She took a ragged breath before she continued. “But, our parents disappeared last year. I can’t help but think there’s a connection.”
The agent stared at her. “Anything is possible.”
Sarah wiped her eyes. She swore his voice had a tinge of compassion in it. This surprised her—she expected him to be emotionless.
Agent Black sat down. “Why don’t you tell me about your parents’ disappearance?”
Nodding, Sarah sat down at the table. She told him the whole story, even the part about the private detective her aunt and uncle had hired.
The agent wrote in his notebook then asked, “What do your parents do for a living?”
“My dad’s a chemist for Piper Drugs and my mom’s a teacher.” Sarah studied the agent, trying to read his mind. “Why?”
“I just wondered.” The agent shrugged. “This is all very good information. We’re going to consider all options.” He stood and put his notebook back in his pocket. “Can I get a picture of your parents?”
“Yeah, I’ve got one at home,” Sarah said.
Agent Black spoke to the chief. “Okay, why don’t you drive these kids around town and see if you can find that truck? I’ll get the hospital covered.”
Chief Johnson nodded. “Okay, kids, let’s go.”
The Super Spies stood and shuffled after the chief. Sarah stopped and spoke to the agent. “What do we do if we find them?”
“Chief Johnson will radio us and keep them under surveillance until we get there.”
