Amy Lynn, Into the Fire

by Jack July

  “Aye, but I still want to kill him.”

  Athos smiled and nodded. “I understand, but you cannot, and you will not because it is my job to protect you; that is my honor. Okay?”

  “Aye. I’m going to exercise the horses.”

  “And you will stay on the property?”

  “Aye, I will.”

  “Okay.” Athos shook his finger at Micky as he smiled. “I will be watching, always watching.”

  Amy hustled the big truck down the back roads, headed for Lewistown and stop number three: a conversation with Sheriff Carter. Her phone rang. She picked it up and checked the caller ID. It was Kelly. She figured it could wait. Then it rang again, Kelly 911. She shook her head. Moments later it rang again, Kelly 911911911911. She thought about the last time they spoke. It wasn’t very pleasant, but still... Okay, here goes.

  “Hi Kelly.”

  “Hey, um, we need to talk.”

  “Yeah, but I’m a little busy right now.”

  “No, not about that. Bogus and this famous English doctor gave me a drug to give to Carla Jo. You know anything about that?”

  “No. I know Bogus was talking to other doctors, but I don’t know anything about a drug.”

  “It’s not approved by the government. It’s illegal and it could kill her.”

  “What do you mean, kill her?”

  “I mean there is a twenty percent chance that the drug will kill her.” Amy went quiet for a moment. “Hey, Amy? You still there?”

  “Yeah, um, what do you want from me? You want my permission?”

  “Well, yeah. I mean, will the family hold me responsible if she dies? It’s no secret what you people are capable of.”

  “She’s not doing well, is she?”

  “No, Amy, no she’s not.”

  Amy made a decision. In a strong voice meant to give Kelly confidence, she said, “If Bogus said do it, his words are mine, my words are his. Who all knows about this?”

  “You, Bogus and that doctor.”

  “Well then, I reckon no one else need know. I’m not tellin’ you to and I’m not tellin’ you not to. We support whatever decision you make. I know you, Kelly. I know you love her, too.”

  “Thank you Amy. I, um, I’m sorry about that whole thing—”

  Amy stopped her. “No, I’m sorry I didn’t mind my own damn business.”

  Kelly’s voice trembled. “I still, ah, love you.”

  “Dang it Kelly, you’re making me cry and I’m gonna wreck the truck. I love you, too. I miss not having you around.”

  She heard Kelly choke up a bit as she said, “So we’re good?”

  “You know it.”

  “Are we still going Christmas shopping in Paris?”

  Amy laughed. “Yeah, we’re still goin’. Let’s get this family straightened out first.”

  “Okay. Ah, Amy?”

  “Yeah?”

  “I’m scared of losing her.”

  “Me too. Just know, if she knew this situation had to happen, you would be the one she would want there. She trusts you, and so do I.”

  “Thank you for that. I gotta go.”

  “Okay, bye.”

  Amy had never allowed herself to consider that Carla Jo could die. As she pulled into the parking lot of the Sheriff’s department, it hit her, hard. She took a few minutes to get her emotions together. The best way to do that was to call on Fenian.

  “Sheriff’s Department.”

  “Hi, Miss Kitty, Amy Zielinski. Could you quietly tell the sheriff I’m in my truck in the parking lot? He needs to come talk to me.”

  “I will, but he is really busy.”

  “Susan, he needs to talk to me.”

  “All right Miss Amy, I’ll let him know.”

  A few minutes later, Carter appeared from the backside of the parking lot. He’d left from the front door and sneaked around back where no one could see him. He opened the door and climbed into her truck.

  She gave him a little smile. “Sheriff Teddy Bear.”

  “Hi honey.” She leaned over and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

  Her demeanor changed. “Sheriff? I need to know what the hell is goin’ on.”

  “We’re lookin’ for Jack.”

  “Where is he?”

  “I just said we’re lookin’ for him.”

  “If anybody knows, you do. Now, where is he?”

  “Amy, I really do not know.” She watched him carefully. He was telling the truth.

  “Was Aunt Carla Jo’s car wreck an accident?”

  “Young lady, that is police business. Now I suggest—”

  “No, sir,” she growled. “This involves my Uncle Jack and yesterday two of Stone’s boys kidnapped and beat my son. So you see, this is now my business.”

  He was incredulous. “What? Why didn’t you call? I’ll get—”

  “It’s been handled; he’s home.”

  He leaned back in the seat. “Oh, oh shit. Sheriff Johnson found two headless bodies in a burned out shack, that was—”

  He stopped when he saw the face of the assassin. She said, “It’s a bad day when you mess with Boguslaw Zielinski’s children. Now I will ask you again, was Aunt Carla Jo’s wreck an accident?”

  He regained composure and dropped his voice an octave. “Young lady, I am the sheriff of this town. I control what goes on here. I suggest you go home and I’ll let you know when I know something.”

  “I think we should take a few moments and share some truths.” She reached in her pocket, pulled out her phone and set it on the center console. Then she reached in her back pocket, pulled out her ID and held it close enough where he could see it. “On that phone is the direct line to the Director of the CIA and the President of the United States. On their authority, I can have a major impact on much of the world. I know he’s your friend, I know you love him too, and as far as I am concerned, you are family. But know this: I can and will bring hell down on this town to protect him. Now, you need to tell me what in the hell, is going on.”

  His eyes went wide and his mouth fell open. “Sweet Jesus, you’re just like him.”

  She locked eyes with him. “No, sir, he’s nothing like me. I have more training and resources. Last chance, Sheriff, what’s it gonna be?”

  “Okay, start it up. Let’s take a ride.”

  Fifteen minutes later they parked in the driveway of Sheriff Carter’s home. She watched him as he scanned the neighborhood, looking for anyone that might see them together. He typed the code into his garage door opener and stood nervously as it opened. After they entered the garage, he shut the door, locked the door from the house to the garage and pushed the lock button on the inside controls. After pulling a stepladder off the wall, he climbed up and reached into the rafters to pull down a bumper cover.

  “This is the bumper from Carla Jo’s car. You see this red paint smear? It matches the scuffmark on the front bumper of Paul Sitzberger’s car. I don’t know if he tried to kill her, but I can safely assume he caused the accident.”

  Amy reached out to touch the bumper, running her fingers over the red mark. “So, you decided to hide the evidence and let him go?”

  “No, I let Jack make that decision.”

  She let out a little laugh. “Jesus, you had to know what he would do.”

  “Yeah, I knew. But what if I hadn’t? Think what would have happened had I arrested him. What would Jack have done then? Shoot up a courtroom? Blow up the jail? He’s out of control.”

  Amy shook her head and gave him an understanding smile. “I think you watch too many movies. I can see where you would think that.” She paused, thinking. “But he is very much in control. I wouldn’t doubt that he is taking great pains to minimize collateral damage. He still knows right from wrong. It’s his version of right and wrong which can be difficult to understand.”

  The sheriff leaned up against his son’s four-wheeler, bowed his head and put his hands on his knees. After some brief contemplation he looked up. “Amy Lynn, this shit is out o
f control. If I end up with a pile of dead bodies, I’m done. I tell the truth, I go to jail. I’ve done everything I can do to protect your family.”

  “Hey, our family,” she corrected.

  “Yeah, I guess so.”

  “The two missing men... any evidence that would connect Jack to the disappearances?”

  “No bodies, no crime scenes. But there is something.”

  “What?”

  “One of my deputies, Skeeter, saw Jack staking out the downtown union office. He stopped to chat with him. Jack told him why he was there. Skeeter checked it out and found out he was lying.”

  “Skeeter? Milt Keifer?”

  “Yep.”

  “I went to high school with him. He was a couple years behind me, but I recall he was one of the smartest kids in school. If I remember correctly, he had his heart set on being a lawyer.” She cocked her head and gave him a disbelieving look. “He’s just a deputy?”

  Sheriff let out a little chuckle. “Thanks a lot.”

  Amy gave him the Oh please look. “That’s not what I meant.”

  “I know what you meant. After you left for the military, his mom got sick. He was an only child and his daddy left them when he was young. He worked odd jobs to care for them until she died. I got him a scholarship to the community college and he went to the academy. He’s the smartest deputy I got.”

  “Maybe too smart?”

  “Yeah, he’s pushin’ me to share that info with the FBI. I’m keeping some of our information separate for now, but I’m runnin’ out of excuses.”

  “It’s circumstantial.”

  “Yep, but more than one man has been sent to prison on circumstantial evidence.”

  The expression left Amy’s face, all that was left were a pair of cold eyes. “Well then, seems you might be losing a deputy.”

  His head popped up and his eyes went wide. “What do you mean by that?”

  She gave him a cold half smile. “Just what I said.”

  Chapter 44

  Kelly’s easy going, friendly demeanor had made her quite popular, and as she walked through the hospital toward Carla Jo’s room, she was greeted with comments like, “Can’t stay away?” and, “Ain’t you got nothin’ better to do on your days off?” She smiled politely, hoping it wouldn’t betray the nervousness she felt. She’d decided to do it. She would give the outcome to Jesus, and pray for a miracle.

  What she didn’t count on was Carol Braxton. She talked to the nurse at the nursing station to see when they went on their rounds. She had twenty minutes. The FBI agent recognized her and waved her past. After walking into the room, she turned and closed the door behind her. The surprise of seeing Carol made her jump. “Kelly? Hi honey, how are you?”

  “Hi. Oh, ah, I’m great.”

  “What brings you here?”

  “Just um, just coming to check on her.”

  “Yeah, I talked the doctor a few minutes ago. They wanted to remove her breathing tube but thought it best to leave it in. They really need her to wake up.”

  Kelly pulled up a chair and sat down beside her. “Yeah, that would be ideal.”

  “You know who was here when I got here?”

  “Jack?”

  “No, Brian Chambers. He stayed with her all night. Said he slept in the chair. Learned it in Vietnam. He sure is a fine Christian man. I’m surprised he ain’t married yet.”

  Kelly nodded. “Joseph said he has his ways. He’s a bit stubborn about things.”

  Carol smiled. “Yeah honey, ain’t they all.”

  That sat quietly for a few moments. Then Kelly spoke up. “I know you got family and a little boy to take care of. I can sit with her if you want to go on home.”

  “Yeah, well… to be honest it’s nice to have a little break and let Leon take care of things for awhile.”

  “Oh, yeah, I never thought about that.” Dammit I need to get her out of here.

  Carol glanced over at the clock. “I reckon I can stick around for an hour or so. Maybe we can catch up. When you two getting married?”

  Kelly made small talk with her for about an hour until Carol took a deep breath. “Well, I need to go shoppin’, go to the house and get dinner started. Sunday fried chicken. You an’ Joseph should stop by.”

  Oh damn, I was supposed to get lunch for Joe’s crew. “He’s busy getting the truck ready for testing. That don’t mean I won’t.”

  Carol stood, grabbed her coat and purse. “Well honey, you are always welcome.”

  “Thank you, I appreciate that.”

  Carol took Carla Jo’s hand, leaned in and gave her a kiss on the cheek then whispered, “Ya gotta wake up for us, ya gotta do that. I’ll see you later.” Then she hugged Kelly and walked out the door.

  Kelly watched Carla Jo for a moment then said under her breath, “If this doesn’t work, please forgive me.” She removed the vial from one pocket and a syringe from the other. She pulled the cap from the syringe with her teeth and stuck the needle in the vial. After drawing the prescribed amount, she thumped the syringe with her finger to remove the air bubbles, turned the saline drip on high to move the medicine quicker, stepped to the IV line, took it in her hand then heard behind her, “Kelly? What are you doing?”

  Amy dropped the sheriff back at the station and decided to go to Junior’s hunting cabin. Her mind was working. This is a Charlie Foxtrot. A total Charlie Foxtrot. I need a break. I know damn well he ain’t at that cabin. Take another angle, Amy. What are we missing? Stone? Where is Stone? If he was smart, he would be hiding. But he’s not real smart. Should I go see him? No, cause then Jack wouldn’t have to worry about killin’ him. The radio was playing in the background when she heard, “This is Tara and Lee live from Judge Stone Park and Recreation Center. It’s a beautiful day and we’d like to invite all our listeners to COME ON DOWN! Right now we have Ashley McBryde on the stage entertaining the folks. We have bouncy houses for the kids, food, dancing, and in about an hour, Mayor Early will take the stage to say a few words, followed at one o’clock by the official dedication by Lewistown’s own Congressman Kent Stone.

  Amy checked her mirror, slammed on the brakes and said out loud, “That stupid son of a bitch, oh my God. That’s just great, Uncle Jack. Public figure, public execution; that’s just brilliant.” She checked her watch and spun the truck around to head back toward Lewistown, and then her phone rang. It was Adele. “Hi honey, busy?”

  “Well yeah, trying to keep my uncle out of federal prison, or worse.”

  “Ya know, that congressman of yours, he’s a real piece of shit. The FBI has been investigating him for almost a year. He’s about thirty days away from being arrested for a whole bunch of stuff. RICO, extortion, campaign finance irregularities, that asshole won’t see the sunshine for ten years, at least.”

  “That’s nice, but he’s fixin’ to step up to a podium soon and when he does Hatchet Jack is going to take his head off with an Enfield 42.”

  “Enfield 42? Good choice. But ah, that’s not good.”

  “Yes ma’am, that’s kind of what I was thinking.”

  “You know where he is?”

  “I can figure it out.”

  “You want me to throw a blanket over it?”

  “No, no, I can get there and stop him. We don’t need a bunch of dead LEOs.”

  “Okay honey, keep me posted.”

  “Yes ma’am.”

  By the time Amy made it close to the park, there was a back up on the two lane a half-mile long trying to get in. She glanced at the clock on her dash, 12:37 p.m. Stone was scheduled to take the stage at one o’clock. Traffic wasn’t moving. The local Boy Scout troop was parking cars and it was turning into a traffic nightmare. Ten minutes later she had moved close enough to look down the side of a hill and see the band shell off in the distance. She reached to the dash and hit the four wheel drive button. “Hang on Katherine Claire, we’re takin a short cut.”

  The big Ford turned between two trees and headed down the banking. This earned
her attention from local law enforcement. As they approached the truck, she called the sheriff. “Hey, it’s me, it’s fixin’ to go bad if you don’t get your boys off of me.”

  A deputy she didn’t recognize, along with his partner, ran at the truck shouting, “Just what in the hell do you think you’re doin’!”

  She hopped out and shoved the phone at him. “Talk to the sheriff.”

  He took the phone. “Sheriff? Yes, sir. Yes, sir. Yes, sir.” He handed her back the phone. “What in the hell is going on?”

  “Stand down and take your friend with ya.”

  “Ah, yes, ma’am.”

  They walked away, glancing over their shoulders. Amy moved around the outer edge of the crowd about a hundred yards from the stage. 424 yards, scan 300 out. Think, Amy, think. What would Uncle Jack be concerned with? What? What? Egress, he has to get out. But from where? She made a three hundred and sixty degree turn, studying all ways in and out. Where would you take the shot from, Uncle Jack, tell me, where? She saw it. The back of an old pick-up truck next to a maintenance shed at the top of the hill, about 45 degrees off-center left of the band shell. Yes! That’s my daddy’s truck.

  She looped around to come up behind him while Mayor Early, a former preacher, took his turn at the podium. She knew he would be awhile. Carol joked that Early was like the governor from “The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas;” the man could talk for an hour and not say a damn thing. She crept around the building to the front of the truck and took a peek. She didn’t see him; no doubt he was in the back. She also knew the passenger side door wouldn’t lock. Her daddy broke it trying to get Joseph out of the truck when he was eight because he was scared he was gonna get a whoopin. That memory made her grin.

  She grabbed the handle and opened the door then calmly said, “Don’t shoot, Uncle Jack, it’s me.”

  The rear window of the truck and the window to the cap were missing. A rubber gasket connected the two. She climbed into the cab, through the opening and plopped down beside him with a grunt. “Hi, Uncle Jack.”

  He was leaning back against the cab, dressed in camo. A two by four was sitting across the bed, giving him a perch to rest his rifle for the shot. He didn’t look at her; he was focused, no eye movement, totally still like a statue. She sat down next to him and crossed her arms over her pregnant belly. “Whatcha doin,’ Uncle Jack?”