The Outsider (James Bishop 4) (7 page)

‘I haven’t got past five thousand lines yet. But, you know, I don’t really care about it too much these days, not after … not after what happened with … you know, Mom.’

Bishop looked over at the boy. His head was down and his shoulders were jerking a little, but if he was crying he was doing it silently.

‘No, I guess you wouldn’t,’ Bishop said. ‘I’m sorry about your mom, Barney. I know what you’re going through, and I know there’s nothing I can say that will—’

‘You
don’t
know,’ Barney said, glaring at Bishop, his red-rimmed eyes flashing angrily. ‘You don’t know
anything
.’

‘You’re wrong, Barney,’ Bishop said calmly. ‘When I was about your age I lost both my parents, so I know exactly what you’re going through.’

Barney paused and gaped at him, his anger gone. ‘You did? What happened?’

‘Auto accident one foggy night on the New Jersey Turnpike. It was rush hour and there was a major pile-up and six people died in the wreckage, including my folks. It was my tenth birthday too.’

‘
Jeez
, your birthday.’ He shook his head. ‘So does it … does it ever stop hurting?’

‘Eventually. Like everything. Your grief’s at its absolute worst right now, but as the weeks and months go by it’ll gradually taper off until it becomes just a dull ache. But that ache’ll always be there and you’ll never want it to completely go away anyway. At least, I don’t. To me, it always acts as a reminder.’

‘Good, ’cause I don’t ever want to forget Mom. She was the greatest mom ever, you know? I really really miss her.’

‘I know you do.’ Bishop suddenly had an idea to take the boy’s mind off the subject for an hour or two. ‘Look, Barney, I’ve been thinking that it might be an idea to run through one or two worst-case scenarios with you, if you’re up for it, that is.’

‘What, you mean like role-playing?’

‘Yeah, kind of. For example, you’ve been taken hostage by unspecified hostiles and somehow you’ve got to find a way of getting word to the outside. Like that.’

Barney nodded, smiling. ‘Yeah, that sounds kind of cool. We could do that.’

‘Good. I’ll work out something for later, then.’

Bishop finally finished connecting the last two fibreglass panels together and stood up and inspected his work. ‘There. So what do you think?’

‘Not bad,’ Barney said, studying all four walls. ‘You do good work, Bishop.’

‘Well, it’s not perfect, but it should hold. Assuming the worst happens. Hopefully, it won’t.’

‘Do you always do that?’ Barney asked.

‘Do what?’

‘Assume the worst.’

Bishop smiled. ‘When I’m on the job. I wouldn’t be much good if I didn’t, would I?’

The boy gave a shrug. ‘I guess.’

‘Well, I’ve got to go now, but I’ll see you later, okay?’

‘’Kay,’ Barney said, and went back to his game.

Out in the hallway, Bishop was shutting the bedroom door behind him when he saw Delaney approaching from the living-room area.

‘All finished?’ she asked.

‘I’ve done as much as I can. Now if it’s all right with you I’d like to borrow the Ford and cruise the surrounding streets while there’s still some light left. I always like to get a feel of the area whenever I’m on the job.’

‘Good idea.’ Lowering her voice, she said, ‘Look, Bishop, we haven’t discussed weapons. I can loan you a backup piece, but I’ll have to deputize you first. As a supervisory deputy marshal I have that authority, although I’ve never had a reason to do it before now.’

‘You mean turn me into a cop? You sure know how to scare a guy, Delaney.’ He shook his head. ‘Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine.’

‘And what does that mean?’

‘It means what you don’t know can’t hurt you.’

Delaney’s eyebrows came together. ‘I’m not sure I like the sound of that. Are you telling me you’re already armed?’

‘You said I’d be assuming an independent role while I was here. Is that true or not?’

‘To a point.’

‘Well, then, this is me being independent. Ask me no questions, I’ll tell you no lies.’

‘I get it. Rules are fine for other people, just not you?’

‘Nothing wrong with rules if they’re sensible. But sometimes even the sensible ones can get in the way.’ He paused. ‘Look, maybe we should talk about something else.’

She studied him for a moment, then shrugged and said, ‘So what do you think of our principals so far?’

‘They’re better than most. Barney’s a smart kid, and Strickland seems reasonably intelligent, although I imagine he’s hard work in large doses. At least he’s not actively working against you, though, like some people I’ve protected.’

‘Yeah, I know what you mean.’ She stared at him quietly for a few moments then said, ‘Look, Bishop, I’ve been thinking …’ She paused.

‘Yeah?’

She gave an embarrassed shrug. ‘Nothing. I’m just glad you changed your mind is all.’

‘Just don’t forget that favour you promised me.’

‘I won’t forget. Just as long as you don’t use it as a licence to get yourself into hot water unnecessarily.’

‘I never do anything unnecessarily, Delaney. You know that.’

‘There’s a first time for everything,’ she said, smiling. Then she turned away back to the living-room area.

Bishop watched her back, faintly curious as to what she’d really wanted to say, but hadn’t. He still liked her a lot, he knew that. And not just for her looks either. She knew when to bend and when not to, which showed very good judgement for somebody in her position. Yeah, Delaney was all right for a cop. Better than all right, in fact.

Smiling absently to himself, Bishop entered the utility room and made for the garage.

The cell phone on the kitchen table started ringing at 22.17, and Bishop took the call. Delaney and Strickland were also sitting at the table, watching Bishop with interest.

Bishop put the phone on speaker and said, ‘Hello?’

‘We’ve got the boy,’ a slightly muffled male voice said. ‘Do what we say and you’ll get him back unharmed, understand?’

‘I understand. But before we do anything else I need to talk to him.’

‘Naturally,’ the voice said. ‘He’s right here. You’ve got thirty seconds, so don’t make any stupid mistakes.’

After a brief pause Barney’s voice came on the line. ‘Bishop, is that you?’

‘It’s me. Are you all right, Barney? How are they treating you?’

‘Not too bad. I, uh … I just wish I could see you, though. I was real scared a while back, but then I remembered those two breathing exercises you taught me and I’m kind of okay now.’

‘That’s good, Barney. Try not to worry too much. We’ll get you back. Best thing for you right now is to keep your mind occupied as much as possible. You still got your pocket games console with you, I hope.’

‘Yeah, I still got it.’

‘That’s something, at least. Got any decent games on it?’

‘Uh … yeah, the same two as before, Tetris and Dragon Ball. I always keep them on there.’

‘That’s fine. Play one of those, then. Now have they given you anything—’

‘All right,’ the male voice from before said, ‘that’s enough. You’ve had more than enough time to get reacquainted.’

‘That wasn’t thirty seconds,’ Bishop said.

‘So sue me. Next time you’ll hear from us will be exactly one hour from now, so keep that phone handy.’

The line went dead.

Bishop put the phone down on the table and nodded at Delaney, who called out, ‘Okay, you guys can come on out now.’

‘Well,
that
was pointless,’ Strickland said. ‘They didn’t give you anything like enough time.’

Bishop watched the door to the utility room open and Barney and two of the marshals, Reiseker and Hammond, came out. Both men were wearing bandanas over the bottom parts of their faces to represent ski masks. They could have been villains in an old Western, although the suits kind of ruined the effect. While they removed their minimal stage gear, Barney came over to the table and said, ‘How did I do?’

‘Not bad at all, Barn,’ Bishop said. ‘I’m impressed.’

‘Huh?’ Strickland was frowning. ‘What conversation were
you
listening to?’

‘The one underneath,’ Bishop said. ‘During those few seconds Barney managed to pass on some useful nuggets of information.’

‘Like what?’

‘Well, first he told me he was being kept in a room with no windows:
I wish I could see you
. When he mentioned the two breathing exercises, he was telling me there were two exits. That’s what we agreed on before. First talk about the windows, then the doors.’

Strickland smiled at his son. ‘There. Told you, didn’t I, Bishop? Smart as a whip.’

Delaney said, ‘And I assume the video game part of the conversation was about more than just playing Tetris.’

‘Correct,’ Bishop said. ‘When he said he had two games on his system, he was telling me that there were two men assigned to him.’

‘And the
I always keep them on there
line?’

‘That meant his two guards are always watching him. He’s never allowed to be on his own.’

Barney was smiling proudly. ‘I was trying to think how to tell you that they were both wearing masks, but Marshal Hammond cut me off before the thirty seconds were up.’

‘Just as a real kidnapper might have done,’ Bishop said. ‘Things don’t always go to plan in real life, but you still did real good with the time you had. You kept the conversation totally natural too, which is the most important thing. Never let them think you’re trying to outsmart them.’

‘All right,’ Delaney said to the two men, ‘you’ve had your fun playing bad guys, now back to your posts.’

The two men left the kitchen and Barney sat down next to Bishop.

‘I still don’t see the point of all this,’ Strickland said. ‘Kidnapping’s not really Hartnell’s style, and even if it did happen, what good’s knowing how many windows Barney’s room has, or how many exits?’

‘It might make all the difference in the world,’ Bishop said. ‘In these kinds of situations all information is useful information, even if it might not seem so at first glance. And I know kidnapping’s not exactly Hartnell’s MO, but if the opportunity presented itself to get at Barney he sure wouldn’t turn it down, would he?’

‘Can’t fault that kind of thinking,’ Delaney said, getting up and taking her coffee cup to the sink. ‘It’s always best to prepare for the worst. That’s why Bishop’s here, after all.’

‘Well, I still don’t know,’ Strickland said. He turned to his son. ‘Not freaking you out at all, is it, Barn? All this talk of kidnapping?’

‘I’m cool, Dad. Really. And it’s good to be prepared if something does happen.’

‘As long as you’re sure.’ Strickland stood up from his seat with a hand against his forehead. ‘Man, this damn headache’s really getting to me. I think I’ll take some more Advil and see if I can grab some sleep.’ He kissed his son on the top of his head. ‘Don’t stay up too late, huh?’

‘Sure, Dad. Hope you feel better.’

Once he and Delaney had both left the kitchen, Barney said, ‘I’m gonna keep my console in my pants pocket from now on, Bishop.
And
an adapter in the other one so I can always charge it.’

Bishop smiled. ‘Good idea. Always be prepared. That’s the key.’

‘So what else have you got for me?’

‘Not much else, Barney, except to emphasize that you should always try and keep your cool in a hostage situation, and always stay positive, no matter how hard it might seem. And don’t ever grovel or beg, either. That kind of behaviour usually works against you, both in the short term and the long term. And while you shouldn’t ever challenge your captor or play the smartass, it’s a good idea to speak your mind occasionally and try and show your captor that you’re a human being worthy of respect.’

Barney made a face. ‘No way would I
ever
cry in front of a stranger. Even if I wanted to, I just couldn’t do it.’

‘Good for you. Well, I think that’s about it. Maybe we should call it a night for now, Barney. You get some rest.’

‘What are
you
gonna do?’

‘Well, I’ve only got the living-room couch to look forward to,’ Bishop said, rising, ‘so I think I’ll take another walk around the neighbourhood before calling it a day.’

Bishop woke up to the sound of muted conversation from somewhere behind him. Or one side of a conversation, at least. He kept his eyes closed and listened. A man’s voice, just above a whisper. Tense-sounding. It seemed like he was on the phone to somebody. Bishop could only make out a few words. One was
Karen
, soon followed by
Forget it
.

He sat up on the couch and turned round to see Lomax sitting at the table at the rear of the living room with a cell phone pressed to his ear. He noticed Bishop watching, then muttered something else before pocketing the phone and disappearing into the connecting hallway.

Bishop remembered how quickly the conversation had turned sour yesterday after he’d commented on the wife’s looks. Presumably, the wife’s name was Karen. If so it sounded like there was some kind of marital strife going on there. Or maybe something else? Delaney had asked him to keep a lookout for any kind of odd behaviour from members of her team. He’d have to mention it to her later.

According to his Seiko it was 06.23. It was still dark outside. Another quarter of an hour before sunrise. Light spill from the central hallway behind him allowed him to spot Sweeney sitting at the window, keeping an eye on the front until Gordon went out to his post on the chaise longue in a couple of hours’ time.

Bishop opened up his knapsack and pulled out the double-pack of boxer shorts and the toothbrush he’d bought yesterday. Then he took them with him to a free bathroom and brought himself to full consciousness with a long cool shower.

It was 06.48 when he emerged, wearing the same shirt and pants he’d slept in. They were a little crumpled, but presentable enough. Back in the living room he saw the dawn light peeking through the shutters at the front windows. Delaney was already up and about, too. Assuming she’d slept. She was sipping from a mug as she spoke with Sweeney. He was also drinking from a cup and glared at Bishop when he saw him approaching. The strong aroma of freshly ground coffee beans filled the room.