Roman

by K. J. Dahlen

  Brock crumbled to the floor stunned by the attack. He tried to get the knife back but India stomped on his outstretched hand. He screamed in pain.

  Cade rushed toward him, grabbed the back of his shirt, and kicked the knife out of reach. He pulled his arm back and with a closed fist rammed it right into the other man’s face.

  Brock went down again.

  Cade lifted his foot and kicked the man.

  India had to push him away from the unconscious Brock to stop him. Then she went over to Quinn and helped him back into his chair. “It’s okay, Brock is down,” she called out to the others.

  Soon, they were all standing in the living room.

  Cade was binding Brock’s hands behind his back when the other man came to. Brock struggled to get free but Cade wouldn’t allow him to. Brock looked around and saw the man he’d sent in first laying bound beside him. Then he glared at India. “You bitch. This is all your fault.”

  India smiled slightly but didn’t say anything. Instead, she went over to Briar and was folded into his arms immediately.

  Cade walked around to face his nemesis. “You are going back to prison where you belong.”

  “Why didn’t you just kill me?” Brock asked with a sneer. “I know you wanted to. I could see it in your eyes. You wanted to shoot me.”

  “Yes I did,” Cade admitted. “When I saw India with the knife at her throat I wanted very much to kill you.”

  “Then why didn’t you?” Brock demanded. “I would rather you shoot me than go back to prison.”

  “Because I’m going to be right there in the first row when the state puts a needle in your arm and my face is going to be the last thing on this earth that you’ll ever see. You have been found guilty in the courts and it’s the state that’s going to end your life not me.”

  Brock wanted to scream but he didn’t. “But you were the one that was supposed to end it.”

  “End what?” Cade asked.

  “My life. That’s what this was all about.”

  “Was what was all about?” Cade asked.

  “My escape,” Brock said. “My escape was my last plan. You were supposed to shoot me before the state could execute me. I wanted you to know how killing a man felt. I wanted you to kill me for killing her.”

  Cade realized what he was talking about in that second of time. “You thought I would kill you for Marisa, didn’t you? You came up with this elaborate plan to make me kill you. Why?”

  “Because my death would have made you one of us.”

  “One of us?” Cade questioned.

  “By killing me, you would have become a killer yourself.”

  Cade grunted. “Maybe in your eyes but not in the eyes of the law. Now I get to watch you die anyway.” He turned toward the other man. “Who is this?”

  Brock turned his head and looked at the other man. “He’s my brother, Jared.”

  “Well, you can rest assured he’ll be right there with you in prison.” Cade told Brock. “He’ll live longer than you and every day when he wakes up and looks at where he is, he’ll think of you.” Cade then looked at his father. “Call the police. I want this trash out of my house.”

  “They’re already on their way,” Levi told his son.

  Cade walked over to India and asked, “Are you all right?”

  India nodded from the safety of Briar’s embrace. “I’m glad this is over.”

  “Me too. When I first saw you, I figured he would kill you just to get to me. I must say I was stunned by what you did.”

  “You and me both,” India admitted. “At first I was scared to death, then something flashed into my mind and I couldn’t let him win.”

  “What flashed in your mind?” Cade stared intently at her.

  “The fact that I have my own killer to stop. If I let him win, another killer would walk away free and I wasn’t going to let that happen.”

  T.K. joined them and touched a small cut on India’s neck. “What happened?” she asked.

  India smiled and said, “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”

  The state police arrived and hauled Brock and Jared off to jail. Brock didn’t go quietly. He tried to struggle but the police got him in the car anyway.

  ~* * * *~

  While they were giving the police a statement, Briar began backtracking Brock’s movements to the fence line. He went out the door Brock came in and followed his steps back to the utility box. Using a flash light he saw the box was still open. When he pushed it open further, he saw something attached to the wiring. Following the added wire down to the ground, he saw a backpack sitting there. Kneeling down, he saw the extra wire went down into the backpack. Very carefully, he widened the gap at the top of the backpack.

  His eyes widened and he fell backwards. Getting to his feet, he ran back into the house. “Everybody get out of the house. Now!” he shouted.

  “What’s the matter?” Levi asked his son.

  “Daniels put a bomb on the utility box,” Briar explained. “We don’t have much time.”

  Everyone started for the front door. When they were all standing outside the house Cade went over to the police car that Brock and his brother were sitting in. “You bastard. You came here to kill us one way or another didn’t you?”

  Brock just sneered at him.

  Cade turned to Jared and said, “I hope you’re as willing to die as he is.”

  “Why? I didn’t do anything,” Jared complained.

  “That isn’t the way the law works,” Cade informed him. “If the bomb had gone off and anybody in the house died, you would be sitting on death row, probably in the same cell as your brother, waiting your turn with the needle.”

  Jared turned to his brother and growled, “You really are a bastard.” Then he turned back to Cade and said, “The bomb won’t go off until the power is turned back on from the outside at the source.”

  “Shut up you fool!” Brock screamed at him.

  “You shut up! None of this was my idea in the first damn place. I didn’t want to be involved.”

  “But you came when I needed you,” Brock countered. “That makes you as guilty as I am.”

  “You threatened to kill me if I didn’t,” Jared swore. “I’ve known you long enough to take your threats seriously. I watched you kill before.”

  “Shut up! Damn you,” Brock screamed at him.

  “No I won’t shut up. I’ve kept your dirty little secrets long enough.”

  “What dirty little secret would that be?” Cade asked. He motioned for an officer to come over to the car.

  When they were both standing there, Jared told Cade, “I know where he keeps his souvenirs. When he went to trial, the state couldn’t mention his earlier kills, they couldn’t link him to more than your girlfriend’s murder, but I can.”

  Brock struggled to shut him up. He managed to get his legs up on the seat and was going to kick his brother to shut him up. The officer opened the back door and pulled Jared out of the car before Brock could do anything to hurt him. He slammed the door shut just as Brock’s feet hit the window. Leading Jared over to the other police car, they could still hear Brock shouting at him.

  As the officer shut the door on Jared, he shouted back at his brother, “Go to hell!”

  Levi watched the drama unfold and shook his head. One of the police officers came up to them and said, “The bomb squad is on the way. I suggest we stay out of the house until they have the bomb cleared away.”

  “It isn’t supposed to go off until the power comes back on, but we’ll stay out here anyway,” Cade told them. “Meantime, you might want to get the District Attorney to meet you at the jail. I think Jared is willing to turn state’s evidence against his brother. We can finally nail Brock for each and every murder he committed.”

  Hours later, the bomb squad was gone, the state police were gone, and Aaron had taken his wife home. Claire and Levi had already gone home too. The rest of them were sitting in the living room and each had a drink in their han
ds.

  “Let’s hope the state can finally put him down like the dog he is,” Cade raised his glass. He turned to the picture of Marisa above the mantle and wished she were here to celebrate with him.

  That’s one chapter closed, let’s get another one closed,” Briar said looking down at India and T.K.

  “Let’s all get a good night’s sleep before we tackle that one,” Quinn begged. “I don’t know about the rest of you but I’m exhausted.”

  “I think we could all use a good night’s sleep,” Briar said. He got up, grabbed India’s hand, and led her down the hall to his room.

  T.K. shook her head while smilig and watched as the door closed behind them.

  Chapter Twelve

  T.K. fell asleep that night quickly. Even as she closed her eyes, she slipped into the nightmare that plagued her life. She was back in the abandoned warehouse with India. When they had heard the bang of the door being pulled open, they sneaked closer to the rail on the second floor. From that point, they could see the whole lower floor. When the man first came in, he moved to the far wall. On the other side of the wall were a dock and a boat landing. He set up a folding table. He covered it with a white cloth and dug a hole in the ground with a small shovel. He left briefly and when he came back, he was carrying the body of a woman. He laid her on the table and carefully tied her down. Then he cut the clothes from her body.

  When she was naked, he splashed water in her face. When she came to, they could hear her begging with him to let her go. He ignored her and began chanting in a language India didn’t recognize. Then he held up a long wicked looking dagger. The woman screamed even as it was plunged into her chest. With one smooth movement, he cut her from breastbone to pelvis.

  Her screams finally faded into whimpers and then she was silent. She could see the glazed look in her eyes and she knew the woman was dead. She turned away from the sight below and covered her mouth with her hands. She closed her eyes and began to cry.

  India leaned toward her and whispered, “Be quiet or he’ll hear us.”

  T.K. shook her head but managed to quiet her sobs. She crawled over to the opposite corner and hugged her knees to her chest. She hung her head on her knees and cried.

  India turned back to the scene below. She watched as the man slit her throat and began removing her organs and placing them into the four jars, he placed on the end of the table.

  India watched the blood drain from her throat into the hole he dug. When the man was finished, she watched as he cut off the woman’s head. At that moment, T.K. sat up and screamed.

  Her hands reached for her neck and she was thankful there was no blood on them. She took a deep breath and tried to calm her heart. Sweat poured down the side of her face as she swung her legs over the side of the bed. She needed to stop the insanity of the dream. She got up and opened her door. Walking down the hall, she poured herself a drink from the bottle still sitting on the table from earlier tonight. She lifted the glass to her lips and swallowed the liquor before she had time to think. When the liquor hit her stomach, she gasped for breath. When she finally caught it, she poured another drink and walking over to the sofa, she sat down.

  Slowly sipping the drink, she ran through the dream again. She almost felt she was missing something that should have been important but she couldn’t think of what it could be. She was so intent on her own thoughts she missed seeing Quinn join her. It wasn’t until he stopped his chair next to her that she became aware of his appearance.

  “Oh, my god…” T.K. whispered. “You scared the bejesus out of me.”

  “Are you okay?” Quinn asked. “You don’t look so good.”

  T.K. glanced at him before she looked at her drink. Taking a small sip she said, “I had the nightmare again.”

  “I thought I heard something.”

  “I’ve gotten so used to the nightmare I don’t scream myself awake at the end anymore. You know, right after he cuts off her head and puts it in the jar.” She couldn’t meet his eyes. “I used to wake up the whole house when I had the nightmares. My parents asked me what they were about but I could never tell anyone. I thought if I told them, they might end up dead instead of me.”

  Quinn knew exactly what she was talking about. Before he could say anything she went on, “I keep thinking there is something I’m missing. I’m remembering each and every moment of that horrible night and I feel as if I’m overlooking some small piece of evidence.”

  “How do you keep from going insane?” Quinn asked. “Doesn’t it bother you that you saw a woman being butchered?”

  “Yes it bothers me, but not as much as knowing he’s still out there doing it to someone else,” T.K. admitted. “We need to stop him.”

  They were interrupted when India came down the hall. She looked as if she’d been crying.

  T.K. moved over and India sat down next to her. India leaned into her embrace. “You had the nightmare again too, huh?”

  India nodded. “I didn’t want to wake up Briar.”

  “I don’t think he’d mind,” Quinn said softly.

  Before she could respond they were all startled to hear the phone on the table next to the sofa begin ringing. India reached over and picked it up before the sound disturbed the rest of the house. “Hello?”

  “Hello yourself. Who am I speaking to?” a man’s voice asked.

  “Who were you calling for?” India asked as she got a creepy feeling in her stomach. She looked over at Quinn and T.K.

  “I’d like to speak to India or a woman named Theresa if I may.”

  “What do you want with them?” India asked.

  “I just wanted to tell them that I know they are out there and I will find them. And when I do, I’ll add their heads to my collection.”

  India dropped the phone to her lap and the last thing she heard was his laughter until the line went dead. She felt a coldness deep down to her bones as she turned her head to T.K.

  “Who was that?” T.K. asked, already knowing the answer.

  “I think it was Cooper Hudson,” India whispered.

  “How did he get this number?” T.K. was panicking looking between India and Quinn. “How did he know where we are?”

  “I don’t know,” India replied. Thoughts of running away were going through her head. But then she pushed those thoughts out. She wasn’t going to run, not this time.

  She got up and went down the hall. She opened the door to Briar’s room. India stared at the man sleeping in the bed. She hadn’t turned on the light but instead she went over and sat down next to him. “We have a problem.”

  Briar startled awake then turned his head toward her. “What kind of problem?” The look of fear in her eyes made him sit up and reach for her.

  India leaned into his embrace when she told him, “The phone rang, and when I answered it, the man on the other end asked for me or Theresa. When I asked why he was calling, he said he was coming to add our heads to his collection.”

  “What the hell?” Briar hugged her closer. “Who do you think it was?”

  “I think it was Cooper Hudson. How the hell did he know where we were? Or that we would be here at all?”

  “I don’t know but I’m going to find out.” Briar pushed the covers off and India got off the bed. “I’ll be out in a moment.”

  She left him to get dressed. When she rejoined T.K. and Quinn in the living room, they could plainly see how upset she was. She sat down next to them and pulled T.K. into her arms. They waited for Briar to join them.

  Briar came out a few minutes later buttoning his shirt. His hair was mussed and he wasn’t wearing any shoes or socks. He walked out into the kitchen and began a pot of coffee. When he joined them, he pulled a hassock over and sat across from India. He threw a look of panic at his brother before he said, “Okay, now tell me everything he said.”

  “When I answered the phone he asked to speak to either India or Theresa. When I asked why he wanted them, he said, To tell them he knows we’re out there and that he’
s coming for us. Then he said something about adding our heads to his collection.”

  T.K. sat up and asked, “How did he know where we are?”

  “I don’t know but when everyone else gets up, I’ll ask Cade and see if he knows anything at all,” Briar told her.

  “I think we should leave here now. We aren’t safe anymore,” T.K. said.

  “I think we should wake him up for this.” Quinn turned and rolled down the hall to his brother’s room.

  “No,” India told her. “I’m not running away from this guy anymore. It’s time to stand and fight.”

  “I need a cigarette,” T.K. got up and went to her bedroom. When she returned she went to the courtyard door. Her hands were shaking as she stepped outside and lit up. India and Quinn joined her and she passed the pack to her friend. India led her to a table and sat down beside her. “I know you’re afraid but we have to see this thing through.”

  “Why?” T.K. asked. “He’ll kill us if we stay here.”

  “Because if we don’t, he’ll always be out there somewhere, waiting and watching for us to quit looking over our shoulders. I’m not going to live like a criminal. I haven’t done anything wrong, yet he’s got us living in mortal fear. I’m not going to do it anymore.”

  “You always were tougher than I was.” T.K. glanced over at the silent Quinn but couldn’t look at him long. She didn’t want to know if he thought her a coward or not.

  Briar joined them with a tray of coffee cups and a carafe of hot coffee. He poured each of them a cup and sat down. He looked toward the water’s edge and noted the predawn lightening of the eastern sky. “Cade’s up. He’ll join us when he’s dressed. He’ll want to know about the phone call.”

  “How did he take it?” India asked.

  “Oh, he’s pissed, no doubt about it,” Briar replied. When he saw his brother coming down the hall, he poured another cup of coffee.

  When Cade joined them, he glanced at his brothers, then grabbed the coffee and swallowed half a cup then sat down and faced India. “What did the caller say exactly?”

  “He asked for either India or Theresa and then he said to tell them he was coming after them. He knew about them and he wanted to add our heads to his collection.”