Friday Night Frights (Jack and Ashley Detective series Book 1)

by R. D. Sherrill

  “And what is the right thing?” Ashley wondered.

  “Not bringing him in alive,” Randy shot back sincerely. “I know you, Ashley. You’re by-the-book. This guy, he doesn’t deserve to get to hide behind the law. He needs killing and I was following you to make sure that’s what happened.”

  Ashley holstered her gun, doubtful of what she had just heard. Randy’s taste for blood rivaled that of Jack’s hunger for revenge for the loss of his son.

  “Do you hear yourself?” Ashley began despite her deep-seated urge to get revenge for Jana. “You sound like some kind of homicidal lunatic. We are officers of the law. We can’t just go around executing people like some kind of death squad. That’s not how it works.”

  Randy bit his bottom lip, his eyes welling up as he glared back at Ashley.

  “I realize it now. You and Jana were close but that doesn’t give you the right to be judge and jury,” Ashley said, now convinced Randy was not the killer, meaning Jack’s suspicions must have been misplaced.

  “He did more than kill Jana,” Randy said, raising his voice to a shout. “He killed my child. Jana was pregnant with my baby!”

  Ashley felt her jaw drop. Randy’s revelation hit her out of left field. She could barely believe her ears as she stood there staring dumbly back at him.

  “We had just found out a couple of weeks before,” Randy explained. “She was maybe three months along so she wasn’t showing yet.”

  Ashley opened her mouth to say something but nothing came out. She was speechless.

  “She was going to take a leave of absence after she finished with this last case,” Randy continued. “Then, hopefully at some point, we were going to get married and live happily ever after.”

  “I’m so sorry, Randy,” Ashley said, mustering the words.

  “But now that’s never going to happen,” Randy said, clenching his teeth, a possessed look in his eye. “That’s why he’s going to pay for what he did and not by sitting in some cell, living off the taxpayers for years until we get around to frying him. No, it’s payment due when I find him.”

  Until a few days ago Ashley didn’t even know Jana and Randy were an item – and now this. It was all too much to digest on such a traumatic night.

  “Did Jack know?” Ashley wondered aloud, realizing he had again lied to her about other agents being at the game as back up.

  “No, only a few people knew,” Randy confessed. “My dad didn’t want it out because he knew it would stir up things that would make the agency look bad. He was able to get the medical examiner to leave out her pregnancy on the official report. My dad has a lot of stroke, in case you haven’t noticed.”

  Ashley stood taking in what she had just heard. The killer had not only left a trail of death in his wake, but he had also caused collateral damage going further than even the killer likely ever dreamed.

  “I’m heading to the hospital,” Ashley announced, only to realize she didn’t have a car. “Do you mind driving me? It seems I’m without a ride.”

  Randy hesitated for a moment, giving Ashley a quizzical look.

  “What I told you stays between us, right?” he asked timidly as he realized he had placed his career in her hands.

  “I’m getting pretty good at keeping secrets,” Ashley said as she turned to walk out the door. “It seems I’ve been collecting a lot of them lately.”

  The pair walked down the hall, squeezing by the crime scene tape as they passed a team of sheriff’s investigators photographing the blood-splattered tile.

  “It could have been a lot worse,” Dr. Alex Shields explained as he stood outside Jack’s hospital room minutes after the agent was brought in from the emergency room. “Your friend has a hard head.”

  Given the seriousness of the situation, Ashley chose not to make a quip at the remark, thankful that the doctor’s first words were upbeat.

  “That’s not to say he’s out of the woods yet,” Dr. Shields cautioned. “He has a serious concussion and there was some swelling of the brain, but we think we have that stabilized. Other than that, he has some torn ligaments in his left knee which will require surgery, but we can worry about that later. Oh, he also has a broken wrist and an assortment of cuts and bruises as well as a pretty nasty gash on his shin that required twenty stitches.”

  “Is that all?” Ashley asked after hearing the laundry list of injuries.

  “Like I said, Agent Reynolds, he’s lucky to be alive,” the doctor repeated. “If he’d hit any different than the way he did, I’d hazard to guess he wouldn’t be with us.”

  The doctor’s words were sobering. Jack had come within inches of dying. Deputies who recovered the stolen car reported finding a grouping of three bullet holes in the windshield. Jack must have squeezed off the rounds immediately before being hit. However, there was no trace of blood in the car, meaning the driver had avoided being struck by the agent’s volley before taking him out with the speeding car. The fugitive had also avoided apprehension, escaping after abandoning his getaway car. He had slipped away without a trace.

  Ashley resolved to stay the evening at the hospital. It was the least she could do for her partner. Despite his rough edges and often-offensive mouth, Jack had grown on her over the past few days. And, despite his misleading and lying, Ashley understood his motivation, which was driven by the loss of his son. Had Ashley had the ability to strike out at the person who killed her parents in the days after their murders, she may have chosen the same route of seeking vengeance over the rule of law. The question in Ashley’s mind, as she looked through the door at Jack lying unconscious in his hospital bed, was whether his lust for vengeance had almost gotten him killed. Had he failed to get out of the way of the speeding car because he was trying to kill the killer? Had his hatred and need to even the score made him a step slower, causing him to stay in front of the car an instant too long? However, the most intriguing of all the questions swirling in her mind was if her partner had seen the killer before he was struck.

  Only Jack could answer those questions and he wasn’t going to be talking anytime soon. He was being kept asleep as a precautionary measure to make sure the swelling on his brain was stopped. He wouldn’t be brought out of his medically induced slumber for several hours, so she was due to catch a few winks in an uncomfortable hospital chair. Ashley planned to be there at his side when he woke up to both welcome him back to the living and to find out if he had indeed seen the fleeing culprit. He was close enough to shoot a tight group through the windshield so perhaps he was also close enough to have gotten a description of the killer.

  Despite technically being on suspension, Randy agreed to be Ashley’s eyes and ears in Seymour while she sat with Jack at the hospital. He was presently embedded with deputies who were going door to door near where the stolen car was found. Ashley figured if he wanted to be part of the action so much, he could make himself useful.

  Ashley’s meanderings were interrupted by her cellphone. She hurried to fish the ringing phone out of her pocket, the sound echoing down the quiet halls of the hospital.

  “What?” she answered rudely.

  “I love you too,” Buddy retorted from the other end. “It’s not like I got a hot date waiting or anything tonight but if the meter were still running you’d owe me about a thousand bucks.”

  In all the excitement Ashley had forgotten they had left her brother waiting at the airport.

  “Oh Buddy, I’m so sorry,” Ashley began. “Things went bad, very bad. Jack’s in the hospital.”

  “What?” Buddy asked in a surprised voice. “What happened? Is he okay?”

  “Well, he’s not okay but he’s going to live,” Ashley revealed. “He was hit by a car.”

  “I thought you were going to the football game.” Buddy recalled. “How did he get hit by a car there?”

  “It’s a long story, Buddy. I promise I’ll tell you later,” Ashley assured him. “Right now isn’t the time.”

  “Do you want me to come over there?” Bu
ddy offered.

  “No, I’m staying here tonight,” Ashley answered. “Is it clear to fly? If it is, you should go on back because I’ll be here for a while. I’ll get a ride back.”

  “Yeah, the storm cell passed,” Buddy said. “Are you sure? I don’t mind staying if you want me to.”

  “No, head on back and I’ll get with you when I get back to town,” Ashley said, again thanking him for his help.

  Ashley, you’re losing it. She had forgotten all about her brother waiting dutifully at the airport. Maybe she would ask the doctor to give her a dose of what Jack was having since he appeared to be sleeping soundly, despite the array of monitors that were hooked to him.

  “Oh well, let’s try to get comfy in the ugly blue chair,” Ashley muttered to herself as she opened the door to Jack’s room.

  She knew the beeping and buzzing of the monitors would make it nearly impossible for her to sleep.

  ‘Ma’am, are you that ranger from the school tonight,” came a woman’s voice from behind her.

  Ashley turned to see the face of a middle-aged woman, her face flushed as if she’d been crying, her hair all disheveled. The woman looked at her clothes. Ashley realized for the first time there was dried blood still on her t-shirt.

  “Yes, I’m Ranger Ashley Reynolds,” she replied, not immediately realizing who the woman was or what she wanted.

  The woman reached out and embraced Ashley, hugging her tightly.

  “Thank you. Thank you,” the woman said between sobs. “I can’t thank you enough for saving my baby.”

  The woman stepped back, brushing away her tears and put on a smile.

  “I’m Angelica’s mother,” she revealed. “The doctors told me if it hadn’t been for you, Angelica would have bled to death.”

  In her worry about Jack, Ashley had lost track of what had happened to the teen. She almost felt guilty for not seeking out information about the girl’s condition.

  “How is she?” Ashley asked.

  “She’s going to be okay,” the woman replied, biting her lip. “There may be some scars and they’re worried she could have some nerve damage in her hand, but otherwise they think she’ll make a full recovery and I owe that all to you.”

  Ashley accepted the praise gracefully, realizing what she did was not only her job but was also what any decent person would have done.

  “What about your friend in there?” Angelica’s mother asked, looking through the door at Jack. “Is he going to be okay?”

  “The doctors think so,” Ashley said hopefully. “He was hurt pretty bad.”

  The woman patted Ashley on the shoulder, giving her another smile.

  “I won’t hold you up, honey. I just wanted to let you know how grateful we are,” Angelica’s mother said. “We’ll be praying for your friend.”

  Ashley thanked the woman as she turned to walk into Jack’s room.

  “Oh, and one more thing,” the woman said in parting, her face changing from a smile to a snarl in an instant. “Catch the butcher who cut up my little girl.”

  Ashley sat at Jack’s bedside, watching as he slept peacefully, wishing she could do the same. However, instead of sleep came the nightmarish flashbacks to earlier in the evening as she frantically tried to stop Angelica from bleeding to death. There was so much blood. Even now Ashley could look at her own hands and still see the faint stains of the teen’s blood after scrubbing them practically to the bone.

  But, even worse than the blood, was the terrified expression on Angelica’s face that evening. Ashley would never be able to forget it. The look in the girl’s eyes was indelibly burned into Ashley’s mind, sure to manifest itself some evening in her nightmares. It was a look of utter terror. The teen believed she was about to die as she saw her own blood gushing onto the floor. The very recollection made Ashley shudder as she reclined back in the chair next to Jack’s hospital bed. What kind of evil would revel at such an unspeakable act? What kind of monster would take delight at slashing a helpless teenage girl to pieces? Ashley feared she may never sleep again. Those were her last thoughts before she drifted off, the sandman sneaking up on her as she curled up in a ball on the uncomfortable hospital chair.

  “Agent Reynolds, wake up,” came the deep voice of Major Cowell, reeling her in from her deep sleep. “Rise and shine, ranger. It’s almost eight in the morning. Are you planning to sleep all day?”

  Ashley looked up to see Major Cowell and another man, well-dressed in a tell-tale federal agent suit, standing over her.

  “Did you stay here all night?” the major asked as Ashley began to sit up, wiping the sleep from her eyes.

  “Yes sir, I suppose I did,” Ashley said. She looked around to gather her bearings. The events of the night before slowly came back to her like a bad dream.

  She figured she must have been exhausted to have dropped off so suddenly and then slept through the comings and goings of nurses and doctors. She just hoped Jack was joking the morning before when he claimed she snored. A quick look revealed he was still sleeping. There were a few less machines hooked up to him.

  “They’ve taken him off the medication so he should be coming round in a few hours,” Cowell said, anticipating Ashley’s question. “But, he’ll be staying around at least a couple of days, from what I hear.”

  “Have you gotten the report from last night?” Ashley asked.

  She forced herself to sit fully upright in the chair, self-conscious about her hair which she figured was a thing of horror.

  “Yes I have,” Cowell said soberly, looking over to the man who accompanied him. “By the way, this is Agent Carlos Rivera of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.”

  “Yes, we’ve met, well at least over the phone,” she said, reaching out to shake the agent’s hand.

  “That’s why we’re here,” Cowell began as he toyed with his hat, his body language telling Ashley he was already becoming uncomfortable with what he was about to say. “First off, let me say that there’s going to be a commendation for you when you get back to Austin. From what I hear, you saved a young girl’s life last night and the family is singing your praises to anyone who will listen.”

  Ashley smiled to herself. She was happy that she had been able to not only save the girl’s life but also to foil the killer’s plans.

  "Hell, I hear they may erect a statue to you outside the football stadium,” Cowell chuckled before turning serious again. “But, the bottom line is that we’re pulling the plug on this part of the investigation.”

  Ashley gave the major a curious look. How could he pull the plug on a murder investigation?

  “What I mean is, we’re going public,” Cowell explained. “I’ve briefed the governor this morning and as of next week, all prep football games in Texas will be indefinitely suspended.”

  Ashley could feel her eyes growing wide in disbelief.

  “You can’t just stop football in Texas,” Ashley said in astonishment. “Besides if you do, he wins. You can’t give in to this guy.”

  Cowell pulled at his collar, something Ashley had never seen him do before, perhaps indicating a new level of discomfort.

  “We have no choice,” Cowell said. “If we put out a warning there’s a killer stalking the football games in Texas - we’ve talked about this before - then we’ll have vigilantes and gun-toting parents walking around with itchy trigger fingers. They’ll kill more people by accident than our killer has murdered.

  “Plus, Agent Reynolds, neither of our agencies,” Cowell said pointing to both himself and Rivera, “can risk the appearance that we were using these kids for bait. If we keep on our course of keeping things undercover and there are more of these attacks, it may look like we were intentionally using these students to lure the killer.”

  “But that isn’t true!” Ashley declared, jumping up from her seat, her sudden rise leaving her light headed. “We didn’t even know we had a serial killer until last week and even then it was hit or miss if he was going to strike again after what happened
at Lone Star Outfitters.”

  “That may be true but appearances may not bear that out,” Cowell countered. “I have to think of the agency and our reputation.”

  Ashley folded her arms. She didn’t agree with the major’s plans even though she realized the decision had been made.

  “You will remain on the case as the agency’s lead investigator,” Cowell continued. “The FBI will take an even bigger role now, given the injury to Agent Looper. However, as for the undercover work, that’s now at an end. The governor plans to go on television first thing Monday and make the announcement.”

  “But …” Ashley began.

  “Sorry, the decision has been made and isn’t up for negotiation,” Cowell noted. “Once this weekend’s slate of games is completed, the season will be suspended until we are secure that we have this under control.”

  “By that you mean that we’ve caught the killer,” Ashley surmised just as the major’s reference hit her. “Did you say after this weekend’s games are over?”

  “Yes. The weather caused several games to be postponed until this evening,” Cowell replied. “As a matter of fact, they suspended the game you were at in the middle of the third quarter. There were maybe fifteen or twenty games which were reset until tonight, mostly in this area where the storms were the strongest. There were even a couple of reports of tornado touchdowns around this part of the state last night.”

  Ashley’s mind was racing. What were the chances of one of the postponed games being on the killer’s list for next week? If it were, then might he try to strike tonight since it was his final costume? He had to know they were on his heels. If she were in his shoes - Ashley shuttered to think about being so evil - she would certainly take advantage of such a quick turnaround to take her last victim before law enforcement had a chance to adjust. There was also something else. They had cracked the website where the killer had found his victims. The information had come just in time to save Angelica’s life. Had Jack learned the name of the last victim and his or her location? If so, would he wake up in time to tell her?