FlakJacket

by Nichols, A

  Madison was a child again, dancing around the cabin, feeding him cookies that she had baked, smearing him with chocolate, and showing him outfits for their son and decorations for the nursery she would plan when they got home.

  While he was gone from his home, he had ordered that construction begin on the nursery that Madison knew nothing about; the architect was refinishing the interior of the house, and advanced surveillance equipment was being installed. The nursery was off the bedroom where he had first taken her. It would be his son’s room.

  Christmas eve found them sharing a meal with wine for him and water for her and opening presents. Madison planned an open house for Christmas day with presents for all Jordan’s men and a buffet style meal, too, for the FBI protective detail. The only men who were staying were those with no families, but that decimated the staff that Jordan had to protect his wife.

  Madison lay curled in his lap, her new, soft robe wrapping her in comfort as she sat before the burning fire. Jordan held her, and as he did, he noticed the knife wound on his arm. There was no trace of that wound—not even a scar; how in the hell could that happen? It defied medical practice. The marks on his chest and side were also almost gone. He touched her face with some reverence; he was a believer. What other powers lay within her?

  He found his hands slipping beneath her robe to her naked form, his fingers rubbing soft circles on her stomach. The baby bump had become much more than a bump as her due date came closer. He leaned in to kiss the place where his son lay. “I’m going to miss this, but I guess I get a boy to replace it, right?”

  On his right hand was the gift she had given him, a signet ring with his initial and her initials on the inside. He had given her carte blanche on furniture for the baby’s room and had shown her the architect’s designs for the house. It was a blank canvas for her to paint. “I love the nursery. You know that, don’t you, Jordan? It’s going to be a very special place for a very special child.”

  He kissed her temple. “Let’s hope so.”

  “I can tell you this, Jordan. He will be born. I have seen him, and he looks just like you, only a miniature version. I have seen him with you.” Jordan looked surprised.

  “So there is a future for us, then.” She nodded. “I’ve seen us together, so whatever this threat is, it will not prevail. I want you to remember that, no matter what happens.”

  “You did say that things could change though. I don’t want to get overconfident; I just want to eliminate the threat to you and to him.”

  “I know.”

  “I need to formalize our union, Madison. There are issues of inheritance for me.”

  “No. No wedding, no fuss.”

  Jordan was surprised. “You don’t want to marry me.”

  “I am committed to you; you claimed my body, and there will be no one else for me, ever. I don’t need a piece of paper to say that.”

  “What if I do?” She pulled out of his arms and looked down at him. He was clearly taken with the idea of her becoming his wife.

  She put her head back down on his chest. “For you, I will do it. But for now, it will be between us—no announcements until this threat is gone.”

  He nodded. They drove to a Justice of the Peace’s house the next day and recited their vows. She wore her thin, gold wedding band on a chain around her neck. He used his signet ring as his, moving it to his left hand. Nothing outwardly had changed, but everything inwardly had, and he knew it.

  In the first days of the New Year, Jordan left the cabin to drive to a nearby town. He had a client who needed his personal attention on several business acquisitions as to their Internet and building security. He felt comfortable leaving her, as the staff was once again at full strength. The new work on his home would be done for March, right before the baby was due. He planned to leave in the morning and be back early that evening.

  Madison sat reading on the couch; she was surprised to hear a knock at her door. When she opened it, the head of Jordan’s protective detail stood there.

  “Jonathan?”

  “Sorry, to bother you, Ms. Kelly, but Jordan’s been hurt. You’re to come with me.”

  The color ebbed from her cheeks. “Get Tim for me, please. I want him to come, too.”

  “He’s not available right now, Miss. He’s already gone to Jordan. You need to come quickly.”

  She reached out her hand to bring him into the cabin, and he jerked back, fear now in his eyes. Those eyes seemed to cut a path right through him, and a calm came over her. “You’re lying. What do you want with me?”

  He pulled his gun from his side holster and said, “Get in there.” He moved forward, pushing her back through the doorway, closing the door behind him. “You are going to come with me. Look, I don’t want to hurt you. We’re leaving in one half hour so that I can meet my contact.” She continued to look through him, but she didn’t move. “I’ll shoot you in the stomach if you give me any grief and that will be the end of the coming child, won’t it.” His voice had turned hard.

  She still hadn’t moved, and his anxiety level went up. “Why are you doing this? Help me to understand.”

  “Just do as you’re told.” He shoved her then and locked the door behind himself. You’ll need a coat.”

  “Who’s paying you to do this?”

  “It doesn’t matter.” She turned to walk towards the closet, and her hand found her iPhone in her pocket; she hit the Call button to Jordan opening the line.

  He was sitting in a meeting when the vibrations began; noting her name, he picked up. “Madison.” There was no answer on the other end. The line was open as if she wanted that. Shit. Was she in trouble? He decided to message her.

  Madison. Please let me know that you are well. Did you hit the phone by mistake?

  Madison tried to stifle the sound of the message coming in. Her assailant was busy vetting the room.

  Jordan waited for what seemed like hours for her response. Nothing. Then he messaged her again.

  I understand that you need me, Madison, and I’m on my way. Keep the line open to me if you can.

  He grabbed another phone and direct dialed the head of his security protection. Tim answered the phone. “Where’s Jonathan?”

  “I don’t know. He was going to go to the house to check on Madison. I wanted to go with him, but he said he didn’t need me.”

  “That’s odd. There’s something going on. Madison just dialed me here, but she doesn’t answer, and the line is open. I messaged her with no response; she didn’t pick it up either. Circle the house. Under no circumstances can she be allowed to leave the property, even if it means you have to take a chance with her being hit. I’ll let you know if that changes.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “My ETA is about an half an hour. Get as close to the house as you can. I think Jonathan has been taken, but how in the hell could anyone get inside without our knowing?”

  “I’ll review the inside monitoring system.” Only Tim and he knew of the additional monitoring inside; Madison had refused to have it, but Jordan wanted it until the threat to her safety was gone. There were some intimate scenes between them recorded for history there that he had already deleted. There was a silence as Tim saw Jonathan in the room with a gun on Madison. “I’ve got it, Sir. Jonathan is the perpetrator. He’s making her get a coat, and I’m sure he’s planning on moving her.”

  Betrayal. Jordan’s mind spun as to what to do. “Make sure that no other men on the detail are involved.

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Hold your positions until you hear from me.”

  Jordan raced to his car, two phones at his fingertips as he messaged in the hopes she would see it.

  Madison. Try to keep him in the house. Don’t let him take you outside if at all possible. The detail is aware of the situation.

  Madison managed a glance at her phone and knew she had text messages waiting. Jordan heard her garbled voice through the open line, “Jonathan, I need to get my boots and warmer clo
thing if you are going to take me. Can you give me some time to get ready?”

  “You’ve got ten minutes; then we’re going, or your baby is going to be dead.”

  Christ. Jordan hoped that Jonathan had no plans to kill the baby. That’s what this was all about—the baby.

  He notified the FBI on the outside perimeters to look for a boat or get away vehicle and informed them that Madison had been compromised by one of his own staff.

  Within ten minutes, he received a call from the FBI. They had found a suspicious vehicle waiting on a back road, a van with three men in it. Jordan advised them to monitor it and to surround it.

  He was back on the phone to Madison with his text:

  We’re ready, baby. Let him take you. I’ll be with you all the way. Take the phone with you if you can. It will be a backup tracking mechanism. No heroics, baby. Got that? I love you

  She pretended to look for her boots in the closet, hitting the message button and reading what he had written quickly. She was forced to turn it off as she heard Jonathan move behind her, and the line went dead between them. She was on her own.

  “Track the phone. I need to know where she is.” The FBI officials moved to do what Jordan had asked.

  “It’s time to go.” She nodded and pulled out her boots taking a scarf as well. Then she put on her new, long winter coat and a hat. She managed to transfer her iPhone into her coat pocket. It was like having Jordan near.

  “We walk out together.” She nodded. “Any noise, and you’ll be a dead woman. I mean it—don’t tempt me.”

  CHAPTER 26

  Madison felt the baby kick. Jordan was on his way, and her men were all about her. All she had to do was hold it together. She looked placidly at Jonathan, a calmness coming over her. “Whatever you say.”

  “Tell them you’re going for a walk with me.” He handed her his phone, and she relayed the message to the guest cabin.

  She opened the door and called out to the man watching the house, “I’m going for a walk. Jonathan is with me.” He nodded.

  Jonathan relaxed. She could cooperate, and he almost fell sorry for her—her fate didn’t sound all that good from what he had heard discussed among the men who wanted her. He couldn’t meet her eyes, and he didn’t want to touch her, either—she was entirely too calm. He swallowed hard, and his hands began to sweat, but he only had to be with her for an hour or less. He was man enough for that. He put the gun in his pocket and he walked behind her, as he whispered, “I will shoot you; you know that. Thomas is waiting for you.” The name alone made her footsteps halt and her skin crawl and her blood boil. She would not be a victim.

  Her whispering, calm voice came back to him: “Your death will be horrible, Jonathan. I will see to it that you pray to die. I can do it; you know that.” He stumbled a little. Her voice seemed to echo around him seeping into his very bones.

  Tim was on the line to Jordan. “She came out, Sir. He’s behind her with a weapon, although I can’t see it.”

  “Tell the men to stand back and to act as if nothing is wrong. That’s an order. Follow them, Tim. Make sure you have them in your sights at all times; he’ll be taking her to meet the others, and we have the van in sight.

  Tim passed the word along, and one of the outside perimeter men even raised a hand to wave to her. Jonathan could feel himself relax. No one would suspect anything, and by the time they became concerned, she would be gone, and he’d be a rich man.

  They walked into the wooded area as she often did on warmer days. After five minutes, her eyes swept the trees, and they began to blow in a soft wind. She raised one hand to the skies as she adjusted her hat, and snowflakes began to fall as well, seemingly out of nowhere. The weather forecast had predicted none of this. He glanced back to see their footsteps in the thin layer of snow. God. Tracks. He hadn’t expected that, but there was no help for it.

  The wind blew even stronger, swirling the falling snow around them. He would have to grab her shoulder soon to make sure she didn’t get out of his sight and run. She was humming under her breath. God, it unnerved him.

  “Stop humming.” His hand reached out to grab her. As he did so, he felt a burning sensation in his hand that only grew stronger until he had to let her go. Damn, it had to be his imagination. She was freaking him out—first her demeanor, then her threat, and now the humming and the heat radiating from her body like a shock into his. Her eyes swept up to the skies again, and the wind blew hard, swirling the snow into a heavier and blinding blizzard. As he glanced back towards the cabin, it seemed as if it was sitting in sunshine, but he knew freak snow events happened in the woods.

  Her voice caught him as she moved slowly ahead of him: “Are you ready to die, Jonathan?”

  His heart thundered in his chest. “What?

  “I asked if you were ready to die?” She turned and gazed directly at him, her pale eyes piercing. “Are you afraid?”

  “I think you should be asking yourself that question, Ms. Kelly, not me. It’s amazing how much you are worth to some people.”

  “I’m not afraid to die.” She smiled an icy smile. “So you condemn me by handing me over to those who would do me harm. You think your hands will be clean, that you won’t see me again?”

  “Stop taking.” He walked to her, gun drawn, and pushed her hard in her back, pushing her back to the road and almost causing her to stumble and fall. Her hands went to her abdomen and the baby. He was angry now. “Just walk. We’re almost there.” Madison raised her hand to her face, and the snow fell even harder, until Jonathan was having trouble seeing her any more. Where in the hell had she gone?

  Tim had followed them, thankful for their tracks, and he had been in contact with both Jordan and the FBI. Jordan had managed to get to the back road and was moving with the FBI into position. They surrounded the perimeter of the van. Jordan needed only one shot to take Jonathan down.

  The snow miraculously slowed as Madison put her hands in her coat pockets, but it continued to swirl around the two of them; Jonathan was happy to see that Madison was still in front of him by several feet; suddenly, she stopped and stood in the center of the road; then she slowly turned to him.

  “What are you doing?” Jonathan called. She raised her arms high above her head, calling the snow and winds again, and the snow began to blow hard around him, causing him to have to fight to stand up and to falter. He was having difficulty keeping her in his sight, but he could hear her clear voice. The van was close.

  Her voice carried on the wind, and Jordan’s heart was in his throat as he heard her words as he moved into position, his gun locked on his man. “You’ll have to shoot me. I’m not going any further with you.”

  Jordan whispered to himself, “No baby. Don’t tempt him,” He needed to get a clear shot at the man who held her life in his hands.

  “I’ll even back up so you can get a clear shot at me. Look at me.” Her sharp command brought Jonathan’s eyes to her, and as he looked at her, she seemed to have a glow, an energy that flowed around her. She slowly backed down the road, her eyes still locked on his. He yelled to the men in the van to come out.

  The gun wavered as he tried to see through the heavy snow; and still she backed down the road. He would have to shoot her.

  “Remember what I told you. It’s your choice.” Madison’s voice was loud and deadly. She lowered her hands and the snow stopped completely. She stood directly in front of him, some ten feet away, waiting. “How... how did you do that?”

  He panicked. Jonathan pointed the gun directly at her, and there was the sound of a shot. But it was Jonathan that crumpled to the earth, his blood pooling on the white ground. Jordan had taken no chances that Jonathan would get a shot off. His bullet had smashed into Jonathan’s chest pushing him backwards to the ground.

  Three men exited the van, attempting to reach the witch. The FBI agents caught and surrounded them, checking for weapons and restraining them. Madison walked up the road slowly and stood over Jonathan, and there was only
fear on his face. “I will spare your life. Your constant pain from this day forth will remind you to leave me and mine alone. There is nothing any worse than betrayal.”

  He started to scream. “You manipulated the weather and you did a number on me.” He sobbed and babbled about snow and wind and how she commanded the elements and hummed softly as she got ready to kill him. The medical teams that were on standby were called in to treat him; they chalked it up to pain and delirium from his wound. His last shouted words were: “You’re a witch.”

  Jordan reached her, grabbing her and pulling her into his arms. “What in the hell did you think you were doing?” He was furiously angry, but he couldn’t let her go.

  “Practicing witchcraft.” Then her manner changed, and she clung to him as the FBI brought up the three men from the van. Thomas Hull was among them, but the Senator wasn’t.

  Tim came up from behind them.

  Thomas began to sputter. “I have no part of this. I was just sitting in the van.”

  “Are you hurt, Ms. Kelly.” The FBI lead was soft in his approach to her. “Do you want the medical team to take a look at you?”

  “No, thank you. Aside from being scared half to death and being cold, I’m all right.”

  “Let’s get these men booked.” The men were led to the FBI cars, and the van was impounded. “Jordan, we’ll be in touch; I’ll need to talk to her later.”

  Jordan bundled her in the car; his personal detail was notified that all was well.

  He looked down at her, his eyes embraced her, drinking her in, but his temper was about to blow. She looked up at him waiting for the ax to fall. “If you yell at me, I’ll turn you into something nasty,” she said, but her eyes were twinkling. His look didn’t change. “I think you’re simmering.”

  She could see the moment his rational thinking came back, and his fear receded. “You fear nothing, and we need to work on your self-preservation skills.” He shook her lightly, but his arms went around her, and he was kissing her, claiming her mouth. “I just aged twenty years, thanks to you.”