Adventures of Alexis Davenport Series

by West, Shay

  Neither MP said a word as they escorted him out of his house and into the night, their footsteps echoing as they hit the concrete. His skin tingled in fear when he saw they were escorting him to the brig.

  The MPs led him to an interview room and left without speaking a word. Mark kept his hands flat on the table in front of him, back straight, face impassive. He knew he hadn’t done anything wrong. The minute someone from the Criminal Investigation Division came to begin the questioning, he would demand a lawyer, and buy some time.

  He didn’t have long to wait before the door opened and the CID walked into the room. The man was dressed in a smart looking navy blue suit and matching tie. The man didn’t look happy at being awakened in the middle of the night. The CID set some papers down on the table.

  “Captain Reynolds, you have been placed under arrest for the murder of Lance Corporal Jensen. You have the right to remain silent. Any statement you say may be used against you in trail by court-martial...”

  Mark’s thoughts whirled and his mouth went dry while the CID read him his rights. Although he felt sadness at losing a good soldier like Lance Corporal Jensen, his main concern was for Alex. He had no doubt who was responsible for AJ’s death and his niece’s life was in grave danger.

  “I’d like a lawyer,” Mark said as the CID pushed the paperwork across the table.

  The CID kept silent while Mark filled out the forms. As he checked boxes and filled in his personal information, Mark wondered what he was going to tell his wife. The charges were serious and Mark wondered what evidence there was of his guilt. It had to be pretty convincing for him to have been arrested and brought to the brig. Mark hoped his lawyer would come to visit him soon so he could ask exactly why they thought he had murdered Lance Corporal Jensen.

  Maybe I should use my phone call to contact Alex.

  He couldn’t ask his wife how Alex was. She would be suspicious and Mark didn’t want to be the one who gave away Alex’s secret. Part of him wondered if he should tell Karen what was happening. With him in the brig, there wasn’t anyone else to watch Alex’s back. She would be in danger from Stygian and Max Poder. He had to get word to her somehow.

  The CID took the forms and left the room without saying a word. While he waited, Mark tried to think of a way to contact Alex without letting anyone else know about it. He couldn’t use his one phone call for anyone other than his wife. He wouldn’t be allowed any other contact with the outside world unless the case was brought to trial.

  What if I used Alex as my alibi?

  His hands twitched in excitement. If he told his lawyer that he had been on the phone with Alex during the time of the murder, that would get him off the hook and he would know whether or not Stygian had managed to hurt Alex while killing Lance Corporal Jensen. There was no way to contact Alex to get their stories straight. There was a lot of risk involved in bringing her into it. What if Alex said that she hadn’t been in contact with her uncle? What if the military asked what the conversation had been about? What if they asked to see phone records?

  The more he thought about it, the more he realized that he would have to bring Alex in only as a last resort. For now, he would wait and talk with his lawyer, see what the evidence the CID had against him before he jumped the gun about using his niece as an alibi.

  ***

  “If I didn’t need you to complete my plans, I would kill you where you stand!”

  Drifter stood with his hands behind his back. He crossed a line with the murder of Lance Corporal Jensen, knew it the moment his hands had wrapped around her slender throat, but had been unable to help himself.

  “Nothing to say for yourself?” Poder stood nose-to-nose with Drifter.

  “We need Reynolds out of the way. I made that happen,” Drifter said.

  “I could have sent the man away. It won’t take long for the investigators to figure out that Reynolds didn’t kill that girl. Once they look at the surveillance tape—”

  “Oh, you mean the tape that doesn’t exist?”

  Poder backed up but didn’t break eye contact. “Go on.”

  “The recording devices in several barracks haven’t been working for weeks.”

  “That may be true but the cameras are manned twenty-four-seven. Plan on killing every person in front of the cameras too?”

  “There was only one person on duty tonight and fortunately for us, he was sleeping during the incident.” Drifter smirked.

  “Your doing?”

  “It was easy enough to slip a little something in a cup of coffee. Even if it can be traced back to me, it gives us the time we need to finish the mission.”

  “I will decide when we will complete the mission.”

  “I’m ready. I memorized the papers you required. There’s no better time than now.”

  Poder moved back and sat on the edge of his desk. He watched Drifter for a moment. “If you are ready, then go. If you are successful, the murder won’t matter. Who knows if Mark Reynolds will even exist?”

  “Should I take care of the girl before I go back?” Drifter asked.

  Poder shook his head. “No. It will be too difficult to make an excuse for you to leave at this time. With Captain Reynolds in the brig, you are needed here.”

  “She can make things difficult for us.”

  “I think I may have a plan for that. And if she shows up in the past, deal with her. It doesn’t seem like it should be too difficult for a man of your talents.”

  Drifter clenched his jaw. He had faith in his abilities but this girl was something unlike he had ever encountered when going back in time. She had stopped his every plan thus far and there was no reason to think she wouldn’t prevent his meddling in World War II Germany. His hands tightened into fists. He wanted to find the niece and wrap his hands around her throat, much like he had done to Lance Corporal Jensen.

  ***

  The door opened and Mark stiffened. Max Poder stood in the doorway, in full uniform, a slight smirk on his face.

  “What did poor Lance Corporal Jensen do to you? From what I hear, she must have really made you angry.”

  Mark willed his face to show no emotion and his hands to remain still on the table. “I’m not speaking to anyone without a lawyer present.”

  Poder waved his hand. “That’s quite all right. I’m sure he’ll be along any moment. I hoped he would wait until morning but the seriousness of the charges warrants swifter action. You’ve been a very bad boy.”

  Mark refused to rise to the bait.

  Any further conversation was interrupted by Mark’s lawyer coming into the interview room.

  “My client is not to be questioned without me present,” the man said as he walked up to the table.

  “I’m his commanding officer. Just telling him to keep quiet until we can sort all this out.” Poder turned to face Mark. “And don’t worry about your family. I’ll phone them personally and let them know your situation.” Poder left the room.

  Mark’s skin crawled at the inflection on the word ‘family’. He knew exactly who Poder was referring to. It took all of his will power to focus on his lawyer.

  “My name is Matt Schmidt. The charges against you are serious, Captain Reynolds.”

  “I didn’t kill the girl.”

  “The evidence seems to suggest otherwise.”

  “And what is the evidence against me if I might ask?”

  “There are photos of you leaving Lance Corporal Jensen’s barracks around the time of the murder and a note on a piece of paper shoved into the victim’s mouth that implicates you.”

  Mark blinked slowly. “Photos? Who took them and what were they doing outside the barracks? Doesn’t that mean they were also around at the time of the murder?”

  “The man who took the photos has an alibi for directly before and after the murder. Apparently he found evidence that you meant the Lance Corporal harm and took it upon himself to follow you to find proof.”

  “You can’t seriously believe that load of crap!
Let me guess, the man who took the photos is Lane Stygian and his commanding officer is his alibi.”

  The lawyer’s wide eyes and open mouth told Mark that he was correct.

  “All this can be solved in about ten seconds. Check the security tapes for the barracks.”

  “Already been done. The recording devices in that particular building haven’t been working for weeks.”

  Mark sat back and rubbed his face. He wouldn’t put it past Stygian and Poder to damage the recording devices. Suddenly, he wasn’t so sure about the ease of proving his innocence.

  “What about the guy on watch duty?”

  “Fell asleep and facing demotion because of it.”

  “So what else do we have? Surely they will find someone else’s fingerprints on the scene. And simple handwriting analysis will prove I didn’t write the note.”

  “That is true but that takes time. Until the evidence can be analyzed, you will be stuck in the brig for a while. I tried to get you released to your own home under guard but because of the seriousness of the charges, I was denied.”

  “Thanks for trying.” Mark sighed in frustration. He hoped he could prove his innocence before the night was through but it looked as though he would be here awhile.

  “Would you like to make a phone call now or wait until morning?”

  “I’ll wait. No sense waking Karen in the middle of the night.”

  “I’ll return at 0800. And don’t worry. The evidence against you is flimsy at best. If you are telling the truth, you won’t be here more than a few weeks.” Mr. Schmidt stood and left the room.

  The same MPs who had escorted Mark to the brig entered the interview room a few minutes after the lawyer left. They led Mark to a cell and closed the door. The sound of the metal clanging together sent a shiver down Mark’s spine. He was in serious trouble and the only one who could get him out of it was his lawyer.

  He paced his cell, wondering how he could get a message to Alex without arousing Karen’s suspicions. He grew more worried as he walked until the only thing he wanted to do was rattle the bars and demand to be released. Mark didn’t know what Poder had planned for Alex but the man’s tone left Mark’s skin ice cold with worry.

  CHAPTER 26

  “SO DO YOU THINK your uncle will be able to get information out of Stygian and Poder?”

  Alex turned to face her best friend and sighed. “I don’t know. Part of me hopes he does and yet part of me doesn’t want him to. He could be in real trouble if he gets caught. And yet, if he doesn’t come up with any information, I’m sort of screwed.” Alex flopped down on her bed.

  “Hey, don’t do that while I’m trying to write in the book!” Jenn said as she erased furiously. “Did you email Gavin yet?”

  “No. I am dreading it, actually.”

  “Why?”

  “I’m supposed to be some mystical time traveler or something and yet I can’t figure this out. I don’t want him to be disappointed in me.”

  “Don’t be so hard on yourself, Alex. You’ve done better than anyone else could have. This Stygian sounds very dangerous. I mean, he’s already tried to kill you, more than once. And if your uncle isn’t careful, he might figure out who you are and come after you in the here-and-now.”

  Alex shivered. “Don’t even bring that up. It’s all I can think about. And it’s not easy to focus on midterms when the nightmares keep me up half the night.”

  “Maybe you should get some pepper spray,” Jenn said.

  “And how do I explain that to my mom?”

  “Why does she need to know? Just get it and hide it under your bed.”

  Alex nodded. “Might not be a bad idea. But I’m sure Uncle Mark will warn me if Stygian leaves the base.”

  “That’s true.”

  “Are you almost done with your notes? We really need to get our homework done,” Alex said.

  “You’re going to thank me for this someday.” Jenn finished with a flourish and placed the time travel notebook back in her backpack.

  Alex lost herself in homework for the next few hours. It was soothing to have her mind occupied by something other than time travel and her possible death at the hands of an evil Marine who just happened to be in her uncle’s unit.

  The sound of the front door opening signaled the end of the homework session. Jenn grabbed her backpack and Alex walked her to the door.

  “Busy day today, girls?” Patricia asked.

  “Yeah. The teachers really pile on the homework during midterms,” Jenn said.

  “What is your family doing for Christmas this year?”

  “We’re heading to Oregon this year. My aunt and uncle want to have Christmas in their new house.”

  “That sounds like fun. I’m sure Alex will be miserable without you.”

  Alex forced a smile to her face. “I think I can manage a few weeks on my own.”

  The truth was, she didn’t want Jenn to leave for the holidays. If Stygian managed to find out who Alex really was, she would be forced to deal with him alone.

  Jenn gave Alex a small smile as she walked down the driveway as though she could read Alex’s mind and knew her best friend was scared.

  Alex made her way to the kitchen and helped her mom with dinner. Alex couldn’t help but notice that her mom was unusually chatty and acted nervous.

  “Everything okay mom?” Alex asked after her mom laughed a little too loudly at a lame joke.

  “Fine. Why do you ask?”

  “You’re acting weird. Is it Bruce?” Alex almost hated to ask the question.

  “No, he’s fine, we’re fine.” Her mom chopped salad a little too vigorously.

  “But there’s obviously something bothering you. Did I do something wrong?” Alex wracked her brain trying to think of anything she could have said or done to make her mom mad.

  “Oh, Alex, it’s not you. Something’s happened, Lexi. Something bad.”

  The breath left her in a whoosh. She wanted to leave the kitchen so she wouldn’t have to hear the news. Her instincts told her it had something to do with her uncle.

  “It’s your uncle, honey. He’s in trouble. The Marines think he killed some girl.”

  Alex turned from her mom and put her hand over her mouth, hoping to hold back the vomit making its way from her stomach but it was no use. She bolted from the kitchen and into the bathroom in the hallway.

  As she knelt in front of the toilet, her mind refused to deal with the news of her uncle’s arrest. It’s all my fault! Tears ran down her cheeks as she dry heaved into the toilet.

  Her mother’s frantic knocking broke through the haze.

  “I’m okay. Just give me a minute!” Alex shouted.

  “If I’d known you would be this upset, I never would have told you,” her mom said.

  “I’ll be okay. Maybe it was something I ate.”

  Alex flushed the toilet and stood on shaking legs. She rinsed her mouth out and hung her head, unable to stop the sobs from tearing their way past her tight throat. Alex knew the dead girl would be Lance Corporal Jensen. Guilt made her stomach clench again but Alex fought the dry heaves with every ounce of will power she possessed.

  She left the bathroom and went down the hall to her room. She frantically grabbed her laptop and opened her email account. Her fingers trembled so badly she had to backtrack and correct the spelling on almost every word she typed. She hit send, praying that Gavin would still be awake.

  Alex grabbed her phone and took it to her bathroom. She dialed Jenn’s number and shifted her weight from her left to her right foot as she tried to control her rapid breathing.

  “Didn’t get enough of me when I was there earlier?”

  “Jenn, something awful’s happened,” Alex whispered.

  Alex told Jenn about Mark being arrested for murder and her suspicions about who the dead girl was. Alex couldn’t get through the conversation without the tears flowing and her throat closing, choking off the words.

  “Oh, jeez, Alex, you gotta tell you
r mom about this. Things have gotten way out of hand. This guy could be coming after you.” Jenn’s voice was tight with barely suppressed panic.

  “I can’t tell her. I sent an email to Gavin—”

  “What good will that do? He’s a whole continent away!”

  “Just because my uncle has been arrested doesn’t mean that Stygian knows who I am. Maybe Mark pushed Stygian and Poder too hard and they wanted him out of the way,” Alex said, trying to convince herself as much as Jenn.

  “The only way you’ll know is if the guy shows up on your doorstep.”

  “He would probably use a sniper rifle and shoot me from like five miles away.”

  “Don’t joke around, Alex. You have a highly trained, dangerous individual who probably knows who you are. You are the only thing standing between him and his plan, whatever that is.”

  “Well, we know it involves World War II.”

  Jenn snorted. “That doesn’t help anything.”

  “Look, if I see anyone strange hanging around, I’ll tell my mom. Okay?”

  “I guess.” Jenn didn’t sound convinced.

  Her computer beeped, indicating an incoming email message.

  “Jenn, I gotta go. I have an email and it’s probably from Gavin.”

  “You better text me as soon as you read it. And every five minutes until this whole damn thing is over with.”

  Alex hung up, walked out of her bathroom, and gasped when she nearly ran into her mother who had her hand raised ready to knock on the bathroom door.

  “Who are you talking to? And why were you talking to them in the bathroom?” her mom asked.

  “I was talking to Jenn and I was in the bathroom because I was afraid I was going to be sick again.”

  Her mom nodded. “Are you going to school tomorrow?”

  “That’s what I was talking with Jenn about. She said she would take me home if I get sick again at school.”

  “Are you sure you feel up to going tomorrow?”

  “It’s too close to midterms. I think I’ll be okay.”