The Absence of Screams: A Thriller

by Ben Follows

  Charles and Jamie stepped back. Charles met Todd's eyes and mouthed the words, “I’m sorry.”

  Todd nodded, trying to convey that he understood everything in a single gaze, then turned back around and began walking back toward Ricky.

  "Stop," said Ricky, waving the gun.

  Todd froze mid-step.

  “Not you, idiot," said Ricky. "I was talking to them. Come here.”

  Todd turned around and looked at the Shembly's.

  They had begun to walk slowly backwards toward the cars parked in the distance. They froze and seemed to pretend they hadn't been retreating, the wet footprints in the mud told them otherwise.

  Todd hadn't noticed the cars and onlookers in the far parking lot until that moment, but as he peered across the field he noticed two figures. A flash of lightning revealed O'Reilly and Cockerton leaning against the fence. The other cars behind them seemed ready to go at a moment’s notice.

  Ricky pointed the gun at the Shembly's.

  “Come here,” he said, gesturing with his free hand. "I have a message from Danielle I promised I'd give to you."

  The Shembly’s hesitantly took a few steps.

  Ricky pointed the gun at the Shembly’s.

  Charles raised his hands. “We did what you asked.”

  Todd stared at the gun. “Ricky, what are you doing?”

  “Following the plan,” said Ricky, smiling. “The police are going to go berserk. Get ready to run, Todd.”

  “What?”

  Ricky pulled the trigger.

  Todd jumped.

  Blood exploded from Charles's neck.

  Todd turned toward the gun as Ricky pulled the trigger again.

  The second bullet took Jamie in the cheek and went out the back of her head. She gasped as her legs gave out underneath her and her hands went to the wound. Blood flowed between her fingers. She desperately tried to stop the flow.

  Todd lunged for the gun.

  Ricky dodged Todd, shoving him aside as he fired again. Todd looked back as he fell.

  The next bullet hit Charles in the forehead. It was as though a switch flipped inside Charles. He stopped squirming and fighting and in that single moment he gave up.

  Todd hit the ground, his entire body landing in the mud. The mud suctioned around his body.

  Three more bullets were fired as Todd pushed down into the mud, trying to release himself from its grasp.

  By the time he managed to look up through the rain and the mud which coated his face, Charles and Jamie had joined him on the ground.

  Neither moved.

  There was a strike of lightning and Todd looked across the field at the parking lot where O'Reilly and Cockerton were standing.

  O'Reilly was watching through binoculars. She hadn't reacted, even as the people behind her had gone into a flurry of panic.

  The unmarked cars drove out onto the road, coming toward the shopping plaza where the van was parked.

  “Pick up the money and run,” said Ricky, grabbing the hood on Todd's hoodie. He yanked Todd to his feet. "The same will happen to you if you don't move."

  Todd managed to stand and grab the duffel bag off the ground. He couldn't take his eyes off the lifeless bodies of Charles and Jamie.

  Ricky pulled on him again, forcing him into a run. Ricky sprinted faster than Todd was able to keep up with through the mud, forcing Todd to stumble after him. Rain hit his face. The mud that caked his body ran into his eyes and mouth.

  Ricky kept looking back at him to make sure he still had the money.

  Sirens of unmarked cars blared on the road beside them as police converged on the shopping plaza.

  They reached the end of the field and stepped onto the pavement, a welcome change from the mud.

  Danielle threw open the back doors of the truck and waved them in.

  Sirens and cars came towards their location.

  “You won’t get away,” said Todd through his teeth as they ran toward the van. "I'm going to tell Danielle what you did."

  Ricky glanced at him but said nothing.

  They made it to the truck just as the first police car pulled into the lot, coming toward them.

  Ricky threw Todd into the back of van along with the bag of money and slammed the doors shut. Todd scrambled into a seated position and looked around the van.

  Marcus was staring at him, as though trying to figure out what had happened.

  Danielle just smiled.

  Ricky opened and closed the driver’s door and started the engine just as numerous police sirens surrounded them. The red and blue lights reflected through the front windows of the van.

  Ricky began to reverse and then suddenly stopped.

  "The cops are here," said Marcus, turning to Danielle. "I guess you didn't plan this out as well as you thought."

  "Maybe," said Danielle. She reached up and smeared her makeup over her face so that her mascara was running down her face and it appeared as though she had been crying.

  Todd took a deep breath. He thought of what Marcus had said about Danielle not being too far gone to save. Maybe hearing what Ricky had done to her family would make her realize the error of her ways.

  "Danielle," he said, taking a deep breath. "He killed them! He killed the both!"

  61

  The black van with the fake decal came to a stop, blocked in on all sides.

  Police vehicles poured into the parking lot. O'Reilly and Cockerton parked along the perimeter of police cars around the van.

  O'Reilly looked up at the black sky. It was almost midnight and the caffeine was beginning to wear off. She should have been in bed with a cup of tea and a fitness magazine by that time of night.

  It seemed as though the rain was slowing down, at least. O'Reilly brushed her bangs out of her face for the hundredth time that day. She was beginning to think there might be some logic to a short boyish cut.

  She walked a few steps toward the van before realizing that Cockerton wasn't with her.

  She turned back and saw him sitting in the passenger seat, motionless, with his hand on the inside door handle.

  "Are you coming?" she asked.

  Cockerton looked up at her through the front windshield. He looked hesitant for a moment, then nodded and stepped out of the car.

  O'Reilly raised an eyebrow. “Are you okay? You look more nervous than I've ever seen you.”

  Cockerton walked up to her, pulling his coat closer around himself.

  "Fine," he said softly as he walked past her.

  She watched him walk away from her, toward the van, and followed a moment later.

  Detective Peters ran to catch up and slowed to match their pace. He had his gun drawn and held at his side.

  Cockerton glanced at him but said nothing.

  “How are we going to explain the killings?" he said, gesturing toward the field where officers and paramedics were already crouching around the bodies of Charles Shembly and Jamie Kessington.

  “I don't know,” said O'Reilly. "We need to figure out why Ricky killed them first. It was supposed to be a basic swap."

  Peters stretched out his shoulders. "How are we going to approach this?"

  “If we can keep Ricky in the front seat, I think we’re good," said O'Reilly, drawing her gun. "He made the mistake of putting all his hostages in the back."

  Cockerton drew his gun as well. O'Reilly couldn't help but notice that his hands shook as he checked it was loaded.

  They walked up to the police cars surrounding the truck. A dozen cops surrounded the van, crouched behind cars with handguns drawn, aimed at the truck.

  O’Reilly took up a position behind the hood of an unmarked car. Cockerton and Peters joined her a moment later. One of the officers handed her a megaphone.

  “Rick Genaro,” she said into the megaphone. “Come out with your hands up."

  As she spoke, two distinct screams came from the back of the van, one male and one female.

  The driver’s door of the van opened slowly.r />
  The cops tensed up, their fingers on triggers, ready to fire at a moment’s notice.

  Ricky stepped out of the driver’s door with his hands raised.

  “Get on your knees!” shouted O'Reilly.

  Ricky looked at the ground then back up at her.

  "My pants will get wet," he shouted back. His calmness was unnerving.

  "Get the fuck down!" she screamed into the megaphone.

  Ricky fell to his knees.

  "Throw your gun here!" she said.

  "I don't have a gun," said Ricky.

  "Throw your fucking gun or we will shoot you."

  Ricky reached down to his waist, grabbing the gun from his waistband. Every cop in the vicinity tensed up as he grabbed the gun and threw it a dozen feet, then put his hands back up.

  "Are you happy now?" he shouted.

  O'Reilly handed the megaphone back to the officer who had given it to her and approached him slowly. She kicked his gun away, underneath one of the adjacent delivery vans.

  Peters and Cockerton followed a few feet behind.

  She approached Ricky slowly. She cuffed him and pulled him to his feet.

  Cockerton and Peters kept their guns trained on him as she walked him to the nearest patrol car and shoved him inside the back.

  He was still grinning. O'Reilly wanted to smack him.

  “Peters,” she said, “Watch him. Make sure he doesn't try anything. Matt, let's check the truck.

  Peters stood outside the door to the car, keeping an eye and his gun on Ricky.

  O’Reilly and Cockerton walked to the back of the truck. Cockerton stood back with gun raised while O’Reilly grabbed the handle and pulled it open.

  Danielle Shembly leaped out of the van the moment the doors opened, grabbing O'Reilly and making her stumble backwards.

  She was just about to fight her off when she realized that Danielle was hugging her and sobbing violently. She could feel Danielle shaking.

  Danielle looked up at her. Tears streamed down her face. She was covered in scars, parts of her hair were missing, and her arm was in a makeshift sling.

  “Thank god,” said Danielle between her sobs. “Thank god you’re here. I was going to die. Bless you for saving me from that madman. Thank you! I owe you my life."

  O'Reilly returned the hug.

  “You’re safe now," she said in her best reassuring voice. "The ambulances are on their way. We'll get everything sorted out.”

  Two patrol officers came over.

  "Go with these men," said O'Reilly, detaching Danielle from her. " Everything will be okay."

  Danielle wiped away her tears. "Are my parents okay?"

  O'Reilly looked at her, feeling a well of pity coming from deep within her.

  "I'll be over in a few minutes," said O'Reilly. "We can talk about it."

  Danielle looked at her. "Did something happen?"

  O'Reilly swallowed. "Go with these men. You've been through a lot."

  She turned toward the truck before she had to avoid another question she didn't know how to answer. She glanced back as the officer’s lead Danielle to the waiting ambulance.

  “Detective O’Reilly?” said a voice.

  O’Reilly looked inside the truck. Todd Anderson sat against the wall, his knee pulled to his chest. He looked as though he'd been through a war. He was covered in mud from head to toe. He had wiped the mud away from his face, and the blank, shell-shocked expression contrasted so strongly with the mud that O'Reilly wondered if Todd had been through something worse than Danielle.

  She saw movement in her peripherals and looked further into the truck. When she saw the other occupant of the truck, slouched against the wall with his legs awkwardly folded underneath him, she frowned.

  "Are you Marcus Devereaux?" she said.

  Marcus nodded absentmindedly.

  O'Reilly heard whispering behind her and turned to see Cockerton saying something into Peters's ear. She couldn't remember the last time she'd seen him speak to someone other than her or the chief.

  When Cockerton was finished, Peters nodded and raised his gun.

  "Marcus Devereaux," said Peters. "You are under arrest for the murder of Tatiana Shembly."

  Cockerton walked past O'Reilly and stepped into the back of the van before Marcus had the chance to say anything. He lifted him into the air and over his shoulder like a ragdoll. He grabbed the bag of money Todd had carried across the field with his other hand.

  Marcus seemed accepting of his fate as Cockerton carried him out of the truck and back toward the police cars. He put Marcus into the back seat of the same patrol car as Ricky and threw the bag of money into the back.

  Peters stopped beside O'Reilly.

  "Cockerton wants to take Marcus into lockup and get a statement," he said. "Apparently, he has some grudge against Devereaux."

  O'Reilly hesitated for a moment then nodded. "He's the reason all this chaos started. It's a good idea to get a head start. Bring Ricky into the station as well."

  "We will," said Peters. He reached out and put a hand on O'Reilly's shoulder. "You're alright here?"

  She shrugged off his hand. "I'll be fine. I'll meet you at the station."

  O’Reilly sighed as Peters walked off and joined Cockerton.

  The men climbed into the car and drove away. It was odd for Cockerton to be taking the lead like that, but maybe this case was making everyone act a little strangely.

  She turned back to Todd, holding her gun at her waist.

  “Come on, Todd,” she said. “Let’s go somewhere to talk. We can get this whole mess sorted out.”

  Todd pulled his knee closer to his chest, staring at the various weapons on the wall of the van. “Don't believe a word she says.”

  "Who?"

  “Danielle," said Todd. He seemed shell-shocked. "She’s in on it. She has been from the beginning.”

  O’Reilly looked back at Danielle. She was sitting inside the back of an ambulance. One of the paramedics held her as she cried on his shoulder.

  “I told her about Charles and Jamie,” said Todd. “I told her Ricky slaughtered them in cold blood in that field. Do you know what she did, Detective?”

  “No," said O'Reilly.

  Todd looked at her. “She laughed in my face, like it was a big joke. She laughed about her parents being killed. Who does that? What kind of person laughs?”

  O'Reilly looked at the cops around her, then climbed into the truck. She sat against the wall, beside Todd.

  “What happened, Todd?”

  “It's all a lie. Danielle knew all along."

  “Todd,” said O’Reilly. “I need you to tell me everything."

  Todd sighed and looked up at O'Reilly. “I’ve always thought that people tend to live up to your expectations. If you expect people to disappoint you, they will. If you expect them to be honest, they will. I’m beginning to wonder if I'm wrong. Maybe it's all bullshit.”

  “Todd," said O'Reilly sternly. "This can all be over. You can move onto something new. The charges can be dropped if you cooperate and tell me everything you know about Ricky, Marcus, Danielle and anyone else. You can get back to living your life.”

  Todd looked at her for a moment, then his eyes strayed. He was looking toward the ambulance.

  "Danielle was my everything," he said.

  “I know this is hard for you, Todd, but I need you to tell me what happened."

  “I’ll tell you,” said Todd, staring back at the floor of the truck. “I’m done with this bullshit. I’ll tell you everything.”

  62

  It was past midnight by the time O’Reilly and Todd walked into the police station. O'Reilly was tired and had drank an entire cup of gas station coffee in one chug on the way over.

  Todd had removed his sweater and jeans and was instead wearing a t-shirt and baggy sweat pants the police had provided. His face had a thin layer of dirt on it, but it had mostly washed away. A half-burned cigarette hung from his lips, smoke wafting around him.
>
  They were greeted by applause from the officers at the station. The officers had stayed behind late after their shifts had ended to coordinate the swap. Todd awkwardly looked at the floor while O'Reilly raised a hand to thank the gathered crowd for their applause.

  Chief Keith Dryden stood in the middle of the crowd, his shoulders back and his gut sticking out. The light reflected off his bald head.

  The applause died down.

  The Chief walked up to them, his hands in his pockets. “Way to go, Detective O'Reilly. It's over because of you.”

  O’Reilly shrugged. “I wish I could have done it without any deaths."

  The chief turned to Todd. “And this must be Mr. Todd Anderson. I remember you from when you sold my niece those drugs."

  Todd pulled back, making the chief laugh.

  "Emily has informed me you’re willing to talk in exchange for a reduced sentence," said the chief. "How does no sentence sound? I’ll bet it sounds like a hell of a relief. I’m sorry for what happened. Just tell us what happened, and sign the affidavit. You can call a lawyer if you want.”

  Todd took the cigarette from his mouth.

  O'Reilly silently begged him not to lawyer up. The last thing she needed was a confrontation with Kenneth Jameson.

  “I don’t need a lawyer," said Todd.

  “Excellent." Dryden clapped his hands together. "We can get started.”

  “Where’s Danielle Shembly?” said O’Reilly. She was getting antsy and wanted to cover all the loose ends remaining from this case.

  “She’s in the hospital," said the chief. "Officers are watching her room as per the information the Todd provided."

  O'Reilly nodded. “Are Marcus and Ricky in the interrogation rooms?”

  The Chief turned to look at her. “I thought they were coming in with you and Cockerton.”

  “No,” said O’Reilly, frowning. A sense of dread spread over her. “Cockerton brought him in with Peters. He wanted to get a head start on the interrogations.”

  Dryden stared at her for a long moment. Todd fidgeted awkwardly beside her.

  "Give Peters a call," said the chief. "Todd, come with me. We'll get you set up.”

  Todd went with the chief, ignoring the stares of the cops he passed as they walked to the corner office.