Violence (42 page)

The Ford Expedition’s engine started and its high beams went on and stayed on.

Derek shielded his eyes from the glare, flashed his brights again to signal Anderson to shut his car lights off. But they remained illuminated.

Derek angrily opened his car door and stepped out…
where he was immediately met from behind by Anderson who stuck the nozzle of the Sig Sauer’s gun barrel in the nape of Derek’s neck.

“Hold it right there!” Anderson hissed as he cocked back the hammer.

Derek immediately stiffened, and then sagged, putting his hands in the air. He didn’t know what Anderson was trying to pull by mounting this ambush but Derek wasn’t worried. Anderson had obviously decided to hit him hard and hit him fast, too, but Derek was sure he was still holding the high card, in what would prove to be the winning hand.

“This ain’t gonna help you, man.” Derek sighed, careful not to shake his head too vigorously in his remonstration to Anderson’s actions: lest Anderson had an itchy trigger finger and popped off a pill preemptively.

Anderson dug the gun nozzle in deeper on Derek’s neck, patted about Derek’s midsection and removed the Browning semi-automatic from Derek’s waistband where it was hidden. Anderson took one step back and threw the Browning into the river where the sound of the splash made Derek groan.

The river, or rather its bank, was where Anderson hid waiting for Derek’s arrival. Fortunately, Roman had a remote starter installed in the Expedition and also had the high beam lights wired to turn on when the car was warming up so that he would have illumination walking out to his auto on those cold, dark icy winter mornings and evenings when he left his home or construction office. When Derek rolled up, Anderson immediately ran out of the shadows and moved right in behind the Impala and used the keychain remote on the Expedition to create the needed diversion.

“Turn the car off.” Anderson instructed Derek who carefully leaned into the Impala and turned the key in the ignition, killing the engine. “Take the keys out.” Anderson ordered him.

And Derek complied.

“Now open the trunk. Let’s go.” Anderson pressed the Sig Sauer fast again against Derek’s neck, and pushed him towards the rear of the Impala.

“She’s not here, man.” Derek moaned, irritated. “You think I’m stupid?”

“Yeah, I do.” Anderson answered matter-of-factly as he walked Derek to the trunk. “Open it.”

Derek inserted the key in the lock cylinder and opened the trunk.

Anderson’s hope soared and sank as the trunk lid lifted and the interior light went on but then it was clear that Jeannie was not there. The rear assembly leading to the back seat was dismantled. There were some random bolts around and a dirty blanket lying askew as if someone had possibly been in there awhile. But that was all.

“Where is she?!!” Anderson demanded as he pressed the tip of the gun barrel in hard on Derek making Derek’s whole neck and head go down.

“I told you, you’ll find out where she’s at after you give me the money.” Derek countered evenly.

“You tell me now!!!” Anderson exploded.

Derek was silent.

Anderson was also silent, for a moment, then he brought up the duffel bag which Derek hadn’t noticed yet but which was in Anderson’s other hand. Anderson used the bag to slam down the trunk lid.

Anderson allowed Derek to straighten and dropped the duffel bag on the trunk.

“Go ahead. Money’s inside.” Anderson motioned, keeping the gun pressed against Derek’s head.

Derek opened the bag and gazed hungrily at its contents. He dug into the bundles and brought several up to inspect, fanning through the bills with rapidly escalating excitement. There’s something about cash that gets people crazy. Especially people like Derek. His eyes glowed like a kid at Christmas.

“
Now
tell me!” Anderson commanded him, pushing the gun in firmly on Derek again.

“You know the deal…” Derek explained, dropping the bundles back in the bag. “…you can talk to her, but I’m not saying where she is until after I get away.”

Derek picked the duffel bag up possessively in one hand and raised his other hand non-threateningly as he looked benignly back at Anderson out of the corner of his eye.

Anderson had no intention of letting Derek walk away without leading him to Jeannie’s location, but he did want to confirm she was still alive, as quickly as possible.

“Call her!” Anderson spat, seething.

“Phone’s in the car.” Derek informed him and, keeping his hands up, let Anderson walk him back to his open car door where he flipped the duffel bag in on the front seat and extracted the cell phone from atop the dashboard.

Derek held the phone up and hit the call button, handed the phone back to Anderson who grabbed it urgently from his grip.

It was pitch black. Then the cell phone rang next to Jeannie’s head. The limited light that radiated from underneath the steel plate on the backlit handset keypad display was like a heaven-sent glow of deliverance. Jeannie, her cheeks tear-stained, tapped the answer key with her lone free finger, shaking with fear.

“Hello?!! Hello?!!” Jeannie answered frantically, a flurry of fiberglass insulation particles flying about her face, whipped up by her heavy breathing in the cramped tomblike space.

“Jeannie!” Anderson shouted into the phone, unsure at first if it was even her due to the raggedness of her tone. “Jeannie! Is that you?!!!”

“Oh, Noel, please help me!” Jeannie exclaimed, sighing with relief at the sound of his voice.

“Are you okay? Where are you?” Anderson asked quickly.

“I don’t know! He buried me someplace!” Jeannie breathlessly spoke into the mouthpiece of the phone, letting the words tumble out in a torrent. “I don’t know where I am! I can’t call for help! God, please come get me, please, please…”

“Jeannie! Just calm down!” Anderson carefully instructed her, modulating his voice reassuringly. “Calm down. You’re going to be all right, just stay calm. I’m going to come get you, but right now you have to do something, you have to hang up with me and call 9-1-1 on the phone you have there. The police will be able to-”

Derek sighed and shook his head scornfully while Anderson was saying this, expecting it.

“Noel, I can’t!” Jeannie cut Anderson off. “He taped up the phone, I can only answer it! I can’t call out!”

“What?” Anderson asked.

“I can’t call out on this phone!” Jeannie hysterically reiterated. “I can only answer! I can’t-”

“Jeannie, listen to me!” Anderson stopped her, thinking as fast as he could. “I’m going to hang up and call 9-1-1 myself. I’m going to give the police the number of the phone where you’re at. They’re going to find you. It might take a little longer-”

“Like fuckin’ forever!” Derek butted in, chuckling. “For her.”

Anderson stopped.

“You’re wasting all kinds of fucking time…” Derek complained, adding ominously. “…and she doesn’t have a whole lotta time.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?!!” Anderson confronted Derek, reminding him who was in control as he flicked the gun nozzle up higher against the back of Derek’s skull.

“You can call and give the cops her number and they’re gonna find her, in about an hour.” Derek commented, then revealed. “But I set a timer on a firebomb where your girlfriend is buried.”

Anderson’s expression turned horror-filled at this disclosure. Anderson knew, from his Army training, anyone with a modicum of skill could assemble a cheap detonator. He had feared Derek might have a clever way to make his plan failsafe in order to acquire the ransom. Did he underestimate him?

“It cost me twenty bucks for the alarm clock and other materials, but I’m not gonna charge you for that.” Derek continued. “Yeah, a guy I was locked up with a long time ago, he used to rob liquor stores downstate. You know, farm country shit. He’d blow up somethin’ on one side of town and when the cops responded there, he’d go do a hold up on the other side of town. It gave him a real nice head start to-”

“When did you set the timer for?!!” Anderson shouted after the shock of Derek’s revelation wore off.

“Let’s see…” Derek coolly laid out the details. “…it’s probably a little after ten now. She’s about a mile from here. I set the timer to go off for twenty minutes after ten. That gives you about five minutes to get there and five minutes to find her after you give me a five minutes head start to get away, so you’re cuttin’ it real fuckin’ close-”

“You’re going to tell me where she is or you’re going to go away for the rest of your fucking life!” Anderson dug the nozzle of the gun in further on Derek’s scalp.

“That scares me!” Derek mockingly responded, unwavering.

“I’m going to kill you!” Anderson raged.

“Then stop talking about it and do it!” Derek countered.

Anderson quickly knew he was out of moves to get Derek to relent.

“Jeannie?” Anderson spoke urgently again into the mouthpiece of the phone.

“Yes?” Jeannie answered lifelessly.

“Did he get the engagement ring I got you?” Anderson asked keenly.

Derek’s eyes grew wide as he stiffened in reaction to this bit of information.

Anderson gave him another tap of the gun nozzle on his skull to let Derek know he wasn’t forgetting about him while he spoke to Jeannie.

“Noel, are you-” Jeannie whimpered into the phone, confused.

“The engagement ring…” Anderson continued deliberately. “…did he take it?”

“Engagement ring?” Jeannie asked, wondering if this were a cruelest joke ever played. “What are you…”

“Just calm down!” Anderson shouted into the phone, asking her again. “Did he get the ring?”

“Noel, what are you-” Jeannie cried.

“He didn’t?” Anderson cut her off. “You put it in your pocket when you went to work?” Anderson confirmed, knowing she always wore jeans to her job at Rave. “…The little pocket. So you still have it with you.”

“Noel, please!” Jeannie wept now in frustration. “What are-”

“Good girl!” Anderson shouted with relief as he brought the cell phone down and hit the button to end the call.

Jeannie heard the phone disconnect but she screamed into the mouthpiece in case her mind was playing tricks on her. “Hello!!!?? Hello!!!??” It was soon clear it was no figment of her imagination. She was all alone again.

“Here’s the deal…” Anderson hurriedly laid out his new proposal to Derek. “…you’ll get the hundred thousand dollars you wanted. That ring cost me fifty grand. You take me to her right now and you can have it all, the money, the ring, I’ll even throw in my car.”

“No deal!” Derek came right back at him. “You think I’m fuckin’ trustin’ you!”

Anderson immediately brought the gun down and blasted off a bullet in the side of Derek’s thigh. Anderson had to jump back as Derek howled in pain and went down to the ground fast, smacking his head against the back of the Impala.

“Are you fucking crazy?!” Derek snorted, holding a palm against his bloody thigh wound as he rubbed his head with his other hand. “You want her to fuckin’ die?!!

“You want to fucking die??!!! Anderson snarled right back at him. “That’s a graze wound! The next one is going to go in your fucking head!”

“I still call the shots!” Derek shouted and winced as he gripped the car fender and pulled himself up to a standing position, half-turning away from Anderson.

“You don’t call anything!!!” Anderson seethed as he stepped in close and leveled the gun barrel at the side of Derek’s face.

Derek didn’t waste any time after this. He spun around fast, grabbing Anderson’s gun hand.

Anderson fired a wild shot in the air as they struggled. Anderson tossed away the cell phone to free up his other hand.

Derek slammed Anderson’s gun hand hard against the car hood, and the Sig Sauer fell free on to the cracked concrete and gravel beneath their feet.

Derek shoved Anderson back and tried to reach for the gun but Anderson kicked it away.

Anderson body slammed Derek to the ground.

They struggled in close quarters, punching, clawing, gripping to try and gain an advantage.

Derek stuck a thumb in Anderson’s eye socket.

Anderson howled in pain, released his hold.

Derek rolled away and scooped up the Sig Sauer.

Anderson got to his feet, eyes filled with shock and disbelief.

Derek wasted no time. He fired several rapid shots into Anderson who recoiled violently from the impact and clutched at his bloodied chest as he stumbled backwards, staggered towards the river.

“Yeah, run like a bitch!” Derek yelled, taking no chances as he pumped two more shots at the fleeing Anderson whose body jerked and buckled as he fell headlong into the water.

Derek scooted down to the bank of the river and stared into the black, roiling morass of weeds and smelly toxic waste water. “My brother fucked your wife, too, and that’s for him!” Derek growled with contempt. “Stupid motherfucker!”

Anderson had to be dead. Derek figured Anderson’s body was either floating to the bottom, or floating off down the waterway. Either way it was too dark to see.

The sound of all the shots being fired had caused some dogs to begin to bark in the distance. Derek knew he had to get out of there before an actual live person came by to investigate. Which would be soon.

Derek limped back up the riverbank and hobbled over instantly to the idling Expedition. He jumped in behind the wheel, threw it in gear and hit the gas. And the engine died. And there were no keys in the ignition. The anti-theft motor kill device had kicked in.

Shit!

Thoughts began to race through Derek’s head. Should he go back and look some more for Anderson? The keys would be on him. They’d be wet, but all Derek needed was the ignition key. The drive to Mexico would be a whole lot nicer in the Expedition. But then again, Derek had already swapped plates on the Impala which still might not be discovered for a while. If he didn’t find Anderson, someone else is going to find Anderson’s body quick and put the license plate numbers of any cars he owns on every watch list of every State Trooper between here and the border and that’s going to make it a whole lot harder to make his escape. This was a split decision Derek had to make. And he had to make it
now!
And the simple conclusion was: any working car is better than a “hot” car.