by Brian Gore
"I have cash. So no paper trail. I'll pick up another throw away phone to communicate with, so no trail there. I have a car they can't trace to me, and looking at the registration, it's not titled to you either. I'm awake and paying attention. Risky? Yes. Crazy? Maybe. Options? I don't see one." he answered her question as honestly as he could.
Amanda lowered her chin to her chest, eyes closed and stood quiet in front of Ben. He sat just watching her.
After a minute she opened her eyes to look at him. She leaned over and put her hands on his shoulders, and lowered herself onto the couch, straddling him. Her eyes were locked on Ben's. It was as if he was held captive by her eyes.
"Amanda... I thought..." he began.
"Shhhhh" she whispered, putting a finger to his lips.
She leaned forward, her chest pressing against his. He could feel the heat of her through his clothes, like a fire.
Her lips near his ear she whispered; "You know what Ben. I just realized. You made me realize... that I've never made love with a man."
"Huh?" he replied, startled. "You told me you... you were a ..." his voice trailed off, unable to say that word to her.
"I was. I didn't want to be. I don't, want to be, ever again... but that wasn't love making, it was sex. Rape even. I've never been with a man I wanted to be with. Only, those I had to be, only the ones I was, forced to be... with... do you understand Ben?" her voice was almost pleading with him, begging him to comprehend what she was saying.
"I... do... Amanda... it's ok... you don't need to... you don't have to..." his voice trailed away again.
"For the first time in my life Ben, I know that." She whispered. She kissed his ear, his neck, and whispered to him; "For the first time in my life Ben... I ... get to choose."
Amanda pushed back from him, her eyes half lidded. She sat there for a moment just looking at him... the first man in her life, who hadn't just bought her, pawed her, and taken her like some animal. Then she pulled her sweater over her head, took his face in her hands, leaned in close, and touched off a fire in him with her kiss.
She leaned back slightly, still cradling his face in her hands; "And tonight, Ben Jensen, I choose you."
Chapter 28
When she opened her eyes and rolled over Amanda found herself lying in her bed alone. She sat up rubbing the sleep from here eyes, and wondering. She wouldn't believe he'd just leave.
Ben was standing at the kitchen table, sipping coffee from a cup, a road map lying on the table, his gear bag on the floor, when she walked in.
"Not very gentlemanly to leave a lady all alone, without even a good bye Cowboy!" she quipped as she walked up to wrap her arms around him and kiss him gently.
"I'm not gone yet lady." Ben replied; and you should know by now I'd not go without at least waving." he teased back.
Amanda poured herself a cup and took a sip before she asked; "When are you going to leave?"
Ben looked up from where he'd returned to studying the map; "This morning. The sooner I leave, the sooner this will all be settled, and I can get back to horses and cows."
"There's no other way? I don't like this Ben. Not even a little. Maybe, if Timmy and I just went where no one knows us, and hide. Change our names. Just disappear..." her voice trailed off.
"You really want to spend the rest of your life hiding girl? Looking over your shoulder? You want that for your boy? No. This has to have an ending. I only know one way to keep a rabid dog from biting people. You get rid of the dog. This is the only way I know."
"I'll take that red car, and leave the truck here. Be best if you don't use it much, and just stay out of sight as much as you can. The groceries I brought back with me should last you a couple weeks at least. There's that lil' grocery on the edge of Choteau if you do need something. Here's the number to the throw down phone I picked up for myself." He handed her a slip of paper.
"I'll leave the phone registered to me here..." Ben pointed to the phone laying on the counter; "just so there's no fool mistakes. If the cops checked it now it'd only show pings from Columbus to Choteau. I had the battery pulled the whole time I was off that track going to and coming from Ennis. There might be a hole in the record, but there's nothing they can fill that hole with."
"What say we have a nice breakfast, maybe take another walk with Timmy, before I pull out?"
"Hmmm... sounds good. But, it's still early. Not even six yet." Amanda walked over to him and pressed against him, hands on his hips. "Timmy won't be up for another hour, probably two. How about we... go back to bed till then old timer?"
"I suppose I could endure it, if I have to..." Ben teased.
"Really? It's that awful is it?" Amanda asked, her eyebrows raised.
"Yeah... It's a tough thing for a man like me to endure, but I'll do my best." he said smiling at her, as she held his hand, pulling him back toward the bedroom.
An hour and a half later, when Timmy woke and joined them, they were back in the kitchen, fixing breakfast and sipping more coffee.
The three laughed and talked through breakfast and were just heading out for their walk when Ben's phone, lying on the counter started ringing.
Ben looked at it quizzically for a few seconds. The truth was he wasn't expecting any calls, and he seldom got any. It always seemed to startle him a bit when the thing rang. Now, with events unfolding as fast as they were, the damn thing ringing made his stomach churn.
He looked at Amanda as he picked it up, lifting his eyebrows in an; "I don't have a clue" gesture... until his eyes settled on the phone and he saw the photo of his daughter Karen on the caller ID screen. Something in his stomach turned over. Some invisible signal wrenched his gut.
"Hey Karen, What's up?" he tried to sound relaxed and casual, even though his guts, without explanation were in a knot.
"Daddy!" The sound in her voice sent ice running through his veins.
He heard some sort of scuffle; "No! Please...", Her words were cut off by the hard sound of a slap, as the phone was wrenched from her hand.
"Karen! What's going on?" Ben exclaimed.
"I'll tell you Mahn. Exactly what's going on. You just shut up and listen!" A man's voice, shrunk by the phone hissed through the speaker.
"Who the hell is this? Put Karen on!" Ben shouted back into the phone.
"I told you Mahn, to shut up! You want nothing to happen to your lil' girl, you do as you are told. You understand me?"
Ben was silent for too long, until the voice demanded again; "I said, Do you understand me fool?" He heard a scream from Karen come over the phone.
"Yes! I understand. What do you want?" Ben spit out.
"I want my bwoy! I want my money! and, I want that bitch! She belong to me! I get what I want, you can have your lil' girl back. I don't get what I want... We have some fun with this pretty white skettle...and then you don' get her back, ever! You understand?"
"Yeah, I understand what you're sayin'." Ben's hand shook in rage as he spit the words into the phone; "But you need to understand something too. I got your boy. I got your money... and... I ... have your woman. Anything bad happens to Karen, anything at all, YOU lose it all... Do YOU understand... Mahn?!"
Tyrone was silent for a moment. He was made a little unsure by the lack of fear in the man's voice. He was unused to people not being afraid of him. It was that fear that he used to get his way. He wasn't quite confident of his next step.
"I want what's mine Mahn. We trade. You give me mine. I give you yours, and we all go home happy."
"Really? How do you propose to make that Trade Tyrone?" Ben asked.
"How do you know who I am?" Tyrone asked, mildly surprised.
"Jesus" Ben exclaimed. I've got your woman and your boy. How the hell you think boy? Quit playing stupid and tell me how you plan to make the trade" Ben asked.
As he said the words he looked at the wide and terrified eyes of Amanda, who could only hear half the call. Realizing what she must be thinking, he looked at her and simply shook his head
back and forth, and mouthed the word; "No." as he held up his hand asking her to wait.
Tyrone choked down his anger at the insulting tone, still confused by this man's seeming lack of fear, and simply issued his commands. "Outside of Helena to the west, ten miles on Hwy 12 is a small cafe on the north side. A mile west of there is a dirt road that leads back in to some buildings at an abandoned mine site. If you want your daughter, you have what's mine there at 8, tomorrow morning. You come alone, with only what's mine, and all of what is mine. You got it Mahn?"
"Yeah, I got it. and Tyrone? You be careful. If a hair on her head is scratched, you get nothing! You got that, Bwoy? Nothing!" Ben spit out in rage.
Choking on his rage, Tyrone only replied; "Be there Mahn!" and ended the call.
Ben stood staring at the phone. So enraged, and so scared all at the same time, he almost forgot to breathe. Slowly his eyes rose from the phone to Amanda.
"You're going to... you're going to, give us to him?" she choked on the words, her eyes wide and scared.
Ben looked at her, silently for a long time. "You haven't known me long enough to know better Amanda. You're not to blame for thinking, or asking such a thing. So I'll say this to you one more time. But, it's the last time. You are not going back to him. Not you, not Timmy there... Not, Ever!" He spoke the words in a hard, quiet monotone that echoed in the room as if he was shouting.
"That son of a bitch has upped the ante and somehow brought my daughter into this. I was heading for Chicago, but he's saved me that trouble and come here. I sure couldn't tell him no deal. He's got my daughter. I'll play along until he makes a mistake. When he does, I'll hang him with it."
"I'll have to take a rain check on that walk. I've got work to do, and not much time to get it done."
"What's happening Ben? What's going on?" Amanda cried out in a panic.
"Your Tyrone has kidnapped Karen, my daughter. He's holding her to trade in exchange for, as he calls it, "what's his". He's gonna get what's his, but that's not quite what he's thinkin' it is. There seems to be a big misconception about what he has coming to him."
Ben looked at the phone in his hand, thinking. "They're gonna tie me to the bastard with this thing." He turned it back on, retrieved Karen's number and recorded that on the throw down he'd bought on the way back from Columbus. Then he pulled the battery out of his registered phone and tossed it and it's battery on the counter. "Leave that out. Damn thing is the only connection. That call was on Karen's phone. They still can't tie me to him. Now they'll get no more chances." he told Amanda.
"They?" Amanda asked.
"Yeah, the law" Ben replied.
"I'm going to leave now. I've got a lot to do. You stay here. You stay quiet and keep your phone handy. If it goes wrong I'll call you and warn you to bug out... and Amanda, if you have to run, don't ever run in a straight line. Twist and turn. Keep 'em guessing."
Ben wrapped the girl up in a hug while Timmy not knowing what was happening, but knowing it wasn't good, wrapped his little arms as far around their legs as he could.
Ben squatted down and took the boy by his shoulders; "Listen Tim. We've got some trouble I got to go take care of. Your Momma needs all the help you can give her, so you be as good as you can be, and do as she asks 'till I get back, Ok?"
"Yes Ben. I will." the little boy solemnly promised.
Standing up Ben picked up his gear bag and with his left arm around her, walked with Amanda to the door.
Tears were welling up in her eyes. "I'm scared Ben. I'm so scared. What do I do? Timmy? How?... where?... I... "
He could hear the panic rising in her voice. Ben dropped his bag on the floor and grabbed her shoulders in both hands; "Stop!" he commanded.
"Listen! Tougher than him have tried to take me down. I've been outnumbered far worse to boot, so lighten up!" He laughed, but there was no humor in the sound.
"Seriously Amanda. I'm coming back. It looks black I know. But, like the man said in a movie one time, 'I have a very specific skill set'. I haven't used it in a while, but it's still there. Tyrone ain't got a clue what's about to land on him! I'm coming back. It's gonna be messy. It's gonna get ugly. You're gonna be scared. None of this is gonna be easy and no way around it that I can see. But I'm coming back; and when I do, you and that boy will be free. I promise. Wait here."
Ben walked over to the truck, opened the door and shoved the back of the seat forward. From the floor of the cab, behind the seat he retrieved a black, nylon, rifle case and an OD 'three day' patrol ruck, from their place behind the seat. He carried them to the Saturn, and dropped them into the trunk of the car, before turning back to Amanda and Timmy now standing on the porch.
"What was that?" Amanda asked?
"Just tools of the trade." Ben replied glancing back at the little red car.
He kissed her good bye, rubbed his hand over Timmy's head, and then picked up his gear bag and with a final shrug of his shoulders, ran for the car. When he'd tossed his gear bag into the back seat he climbed in, and with one hand sticking out the window, fishtailed the car down the driveway with his foot on the floor.
Amanda, with both hands held to her face, could only watch him go, in silence. Timmy, with the hollow look of fear in his eyes stood gripping her leg tightly. The boy didn't know what was going on. He only knew it was bad. He knew it scared his momma, and that scared him. Amanda watched the man go. The first decent man in her life, knowing that even though he'd promised, he wouldn't be coming back.
Chapter 29
The car raced south, pushing the limit. Ben kept off the Interstate, keeping to the secondary on Hwy 200 through Lincoln, to approach Helena from the west. He found the cafe easily and the road to the abandoned buildings.
Running up that road even a little ways, which from the topo map he had seemed to be the only access to the old mine site, was just too great a risk. If they had a spotter, which if they were competent at all was likely, the game would be over before it even started. Only one of that crew had ever put eyes on him, or that red car. He knew he'd put a bullet in, or through that fool. Though he didn't think that wound would have healed enough yet to allow him to be back in the field, it wouldn't pay to take any chances. Surprise was the only thing he had working on his side. Ben figured he'd better protect that surprise at damn near, any cost.
The problem was, he had to get eyes on the place; and, he had only a small window of time to get himself in place, so he looked farther west. Only a couple miles further west, Ben found another, narrower, disused, apparently abandoned track.
He turned in there and ran the car up it for only a few hundred yards before backing it in behind the concealment of a thick growth of willows along a creek.
The old cowboy pulled his ruck out of the trunk, and from it pulled a pair of lightweight, dark, high top, trail shoes. Leaning against the tail of the car he pulled off his boots, tossed them into the trunk and replaced them on his feet with the light weight hikers.
With his footgear changed he drug the scoped AR-10 rifle out of its case. It was a lot heavier rifle than most used for hunting coyotes. But, he'd had little interest in saving pelts. His only concern had been protecting his calves. At that, his AR-10 proved highly capable, at hundreds of yards... and old habits were hard to forget.
From pockets on the cover he extracted a 20 rd magazine and slammed it into the magazine well of the rifle, before dropping two more loaded magazines into a back pocket on his ruck.
Then, shouldering the pack, he set off up the track at a fast pace.
The map he had, actually showed a small patch of private ground, with the markings that denoted buildings. Ben was betting that was the mine area. When he judged he was about even with that site, he left the track he was on and cut off straight east, cross country, toward the mine. If he was right, and the point he was aiming for was the spot Tyrone had commanded he appear at, it was something a touch over two miles away.
Early on he'd had no fear of being observed. He was also
betting that these townie thugs weren't too awful good in the woods. They might be hell on wheels down in amongst the bricks and pavement, but not up here. Not out under the wide sky. They'd drive to the site, and drive away from it. He entertained little fear that they would exhibit any great amount of field craft.
That said, it wouldn't pay him to behave with that idea in mind. To be careless would be to invite catastrophe. Though you couldn't judge by the last couple of years, in situations such as this, he wasn't known for carelessness. The consequence being, Ben slipped through those woods as a deer hunter. As a ghost. As an Army Scout.
Anyone watching from a far hillside would have seen a wisp, a sliver, a hint that someone had passed, at most. He'd move a few steps and study the ground ahead with binoculars. He studied the slopes above and occasionally, behind.
Then he'd move a few, careful, studied steps from one patch of cover to the next, only to repeat his search with his binoculars.
It took until late afternoon for his careful approach to bring him to a point that he believed put him within a few hundred yards of the mine area, and above it on a mountain slope to the west. Ben sat in a narrow ravine, just around a dogleg from where he thought he should be able to put eyes on the target.
This close he slowed even more. The area he was moving through was thick timber interspersed with open meadows. Either fire or logging or both had cleared out large sections which ended sharply in black timber.
He climbed up out of the ravine, a natural and expected line of approach, and moved into and through the timber along the face of the mountain. When he could see the light of another of the open areas ahead, he bellied down and low crawled to a spot just inside the sheltering tree line.
The open ground in front of him ran, as expected, down the mountainside, all the way to the area surrounding the mine buildings.
