Origins (Remote) (13 page)

Thorne’s men were taking their time. They were arguing over the best way to go about taking the kids. Foster, who’d been off eating when Ronnie and
Cassie showed up, was all for a frontal assault. “Come on, Reed,” he argued, “it’s a couple of kids. We go in the front door. Kick it in if we have to. It’s a piece of cake. We go in, nab them, and get the hell out. We can do it in two minutes.”

Reed wasn’t so sure. He’d been the third man in the Gilmore house and he wasn’t taking any chance this time. He was for calling it in and waiting for backup. One more screwup and he’d be dead meat for Thorne, a thought he didn’t relish at all. Then again, if he could grab them quick and clean, it would go a long way towards making up for the mess last night. They walked on past the driveway and back to their truck. “Let’s just think about it for a few minutes. They don’t look like they’re going anywhere.”

Ronnie and
Cassie were huddled in the bathroom. Ronnie had the pistol out, holding it in his hand. It was giving off a burnt gunpowder smell. He wasn’t anxious to shoot anyone again. If he could avoid it he would. He’d gone back inside and gotten Cassie, expecting her to just grab her stuff and run with him, go out the back or out a window. But she wasn’t having any of that. She was pacing back and forth in the tiny bathroom. She’d take two steps, turn around, take another two steps, and turn around again. She made up her mind. When she did her whole face changed, her eyes looked to Ronnie to grow darker as he watched. Her mouth, which she had kissed him with only hours ago, drew into a thin line.

“We can’t keep running. We’ve got to fight back, Ronnie. We can probably get away if we can get out the back. If we jump fences for a few blocks we can get down by the lake and hide somewhere, by the college or on the lakefront. But they’ll be after us right away and they’ll know we’re in the area. By morning they’ll have people all over the place. We’ve got to do something right now that will show them we’re ready to fight.”

“They probably have people all over the place.” Ronnie said. “The longer we wait the more people they can get in here. We’ve got to go now. It may be too late already.”

Cassie
shook her head. She was thinking now, her mind racing over the possibilities. She’d done her share of crying in the last few days but she wasn’t crying now. She was working it out. If she had been a mystery to him before she was an even bigger mystery now, one he found himself wanting to explore. Every time he turned around Cassie surprised him. She had him dazzled. The kiss on the platform had left him dazed but she’d moved on as if it was the most natural thing in the world. And it was. Ronnie could see that now. While he’d been stumbling around in the dark wondering what to do, Cassie had been making plans. She was taking the lead, taking control. He felt like he was being carried along by some force but in the end he knew he would do whatever she wanted.

“Okay.”
Cassie said. “I don’t think they’re going to bring more people in. They want to get us but they don’t want to make a big deal out of it. This is a small neighborhood. They can’t come in with a bunch of people. It’s just these two. They’re going to wait for a while but not too long. We haven’t been here that long so they haven’t had much time. They’re trying to figure out what to do right now.” She looked at Ronnie. “So what can they do?” she said.

“They’ll probably just kick the front door down and grab us.” said Ronnie.

“Nope.” said Cassie, “They’ve got to be thinking we’ve still got that gun, and we do. They’ll try and sneak in after we go to sleep. They won’t want another mess like they had at your house.”

“So what do we do?”

“We make them think we’re sleeping.”

The lights went out not long after Reed and Foster got back into their truck. There was still no sign of Julie Hoffman. Thorne had been notified and given the situation. Their orders were clear. Get the kids into custody and let him know as soon as it was done. The kids were alone in the house. No sense waiting any longer. After a few minutes of discussion they’d come to a compromise. Reed would go in through the back door. Foster would cover the front in case they tried to run. If they went out the driveway side through a window they wouldn’t get far. Going out the other side would trap them between the Hoffman house and the neighbor’s fence.

Reed got out of the van first and made his way down the street. He reached the driveway and turned up with no hesitation, into the dark. He waited in the shadows and listened. Nothing, not even TV sounds. The house was dark and he could see anything through the curtains. He made his way through the gate, lifting the tongue quietly and positioned himself at the back door. The neighbor had his back porch light on but it did little more than cast lighter shadows among the ones already there. He listened at the door and heard nothing. He gave it another two minutes, enough time for Foster to make his way down the block and position himself under the willow in the front where he couldn’t be seen. He tried the door knob. Unlocked, it turned easily beneath his hand.

Reed opened the door, stopped, and took off his shoes. If they were sleeping he might be able to grab them one at a time. If not, he had his pistol but he wasn’t planning on shooting. If worse came to worse he could keep them under control with it. He pushed the door open with his right hand. In his left was a small penlight and he played it into the room, found the doorway into the hall. He knew it ran the length of the house and the rooms were on the left. He expected to find them in the bedroom or maybe the boy sleeping in the living room. Either way, he had them. With Foster out front they had nowhere to go.

He moved a few steps further in, each step coming down gently to avoid any creaking from the linoleum floor or the wood underneath. The house was quiet. He could hear the hum of an air conditioner from the front and he smiled to himself. He knew it would help cover any sound of his entrance. He moved a little more quickly now. Four steps in Reed stopped. His foot had gone cold. He played the flashlight beam down and found himself standing in a pool of water that spread all across the kitchen floor.

“Now.”
Cassie said in the dark. She’d been standing in the hall just behind the doorway, her face pressed against the wall. Ronnie was crouched at her feet. They had been there for an hour, perfectly still. The figure moving in the door was backlit with outside light. Ronnie had a small bucket of water in his hands and when Cassie spoke he took a single step, splashing the water at the legs of Reed across the length of the kitchen. An hour earlier Cassie had turned out both of the lamps in the kitchen, using the wall switch. She ripped the electrical cord from one and with a small steak knife she’d stripped the plastic down, exposing the bare copper wire underneath. The ends had been taped to the floor and the floor soaked in water. After that she’d gone into the backyard and put pennies behind every fuse in the electrical box. She hadn’t planned on the intruder being barefoot so she’d had Ronnie ready with the pail.

Ronnie stepped back.
Cassie threw the wall switch.

Out front Foster sat waiting, well into the shadows. He was impatient, moving his hand every minute or so to feel the gun in the holster beneath his shoulder. Reed must be taking his sweet time, he thought to himself. There was still no sound from inside the house. When he got the kids secured, Reed would flick the lights on in the living room and he’d go get the van. If there was a problem he could either catch them on the way out or go in through the front and help. Foster shuffled his feet again, wondering what was going on. The night was hot and mosquitos buzzed past his head. He wanted a cigarette. He thought about trying to take a look through the curtains in the front window, decided against it. What could go wrong? He’d just sit and wait a few more minutes. He was thinking again about Reed taking a damn long time when the living room window lit up in a bright blue silent flash.

The voltage hit Reed like a hammer blow. He went completely stiff, lightning coursing through his body. His arms shot out straight and rigid and he began to jitter, convulsing, then toppling to the floor where he jerked and danced and his hair caught fire when his head slammed into the water. Cassie flicked the switch back down, grabbed the bat bag and said “Come on.”

They went out through the back door past Reed lying on the floor and were over the fence in a heartbeat. An entire string of waist high fences lay in front of them and
Cassie was flying over each one in turn. She had enough momentum to grab the top rail and just fling her legs over. Ronnie was keeping up, but barely. Five houses down Cassie stopped and crouched down waiting for him. He caught up with her and they moved forward still hugging the houses and peered out along the street. Nothing. Cassie crawled out onto the lawn on her belly and looked both ways, came back and grabbed Ronnie’s hand pulling him along the front of the houses, working their way around cars and staying off of the sidewalk until they were another three blocks down, before running full tilt through the night.

Foster recovered enough of his sight to find the front door. He tried the knob and found it locked. Taking a step back, he kicked the door underneath the knob and was rewarded with a splintering crash that blew the door wide open. He went in in a low crouch, flashing his light across the room. Nothing. He moved quickly through the empty living room, called for Reed and got no answer. No sound at all. He cleared the bedroom and bathroom and moved toward the kitchen, shining his light around the room. Reed was on the floor face down. No kids. He went to his partner and rolled him over. The room smelled like burned pork. Foster knelt down next to his partner, checking the full length of his body with the light from his flashlight.
What the hell?
Foster thought, and got up, his pants and socks and shoes soaked, and hit the light switch.

Police Investigate Runaways

by

Justin Breed

New Orleans – The New Orleans Police Department is investigating the disappearance of two children from an Eastern New Orleans neighborhood. On Tuesday morning the two 13-year olds, Cassie Reynold and Ronnie Gilmore, were reported missing by their parents.

Police were called to the Gilmore residence in the early morning hours after an apparent break in by unknown persons. At that time the 13-year old, described as 5’ 3” tall and 118 lbs, was discovered missing. During the investigation of acquaintances it was discovered that Reynold, a fellow student at a local private school, was also missing.
Cassie Reynold is described as 5’ 2” tall, brown hair and eyes, weighing approximately 100 lbs. Neither had been seen since Monday evening. The two were known friends and their absence is considered related.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Carl Woods of the New Orleans Police Department.

Breed and Woods met for lunch at a small sandwich shop on Downman Road. The featured sandwich of the day was roast beef, served open faced with a side of fries. Breed had put in the call after hearing of the fire at Julie Hoffman’s. He wasn’t expecting Woods to be all that forthcoming, but after he’d cleaned up his story on the Gilmore bit, he had an edge and he wanted to work it before Woods forgot. The two men rolled up their sleeves and worked their way through half their sandwiches before getting down to talking.

“What are we not seeing here?” Breed finally said, wiping his hands. “Or, what are you not telling me?” He’d been convinced by Woods to leave out major details of the story on Ronnie Gilmore, not mentioning the death and injury of the intruders.

“I’m telling you everything I know at this point. I’m been looking into the two guys at the Gilmore’s and we’ve got nothing. No ID, no match on fingerprints. The men at the Hoffman’s, I don’t think we’ve got a prayer in hell of identifying unless we get a match on dental records.”

“There’s something big going on here and we both know it, Woods. I can’t sit on it too much longer. I’ve got a great story here, especially since whoever is after these kids burned down the girl’s Aunt’s house. What the hell is that all about? What can these kids have that somebody wants that badly?”

“They didn’t burn down the house, you ass. You think they went there to burn down the Aunt’s house and forgot to leave?” Woods shook his head. “They were after something and somebody ambushed them. The Aunt was at her sister’s house and what I think, and don’t quote me on this, is that the kids were there hiding. Someone followed them and got outsmarted. Who? I don’t know. Drugs? Can’t see it. Not these kids. Neither of them has been in any trouble, ever. In fact, they’re supposed to be exceptionally bright kids, up for scholarships or something, working after school with a couple of professors. Professors I can’t get in touch with by the way.”

Breed pulled out his notebook. “Give me names. I’ll see what I can do on my end. At the least I can get background from them.” Woods read off the names of Farrow and Ruff and gave him the information from the school. “No answer yet at the phone numbers. I’m trying to get them traced through the phone company but that takes time.”

“I’ve got a friend at the phone company.” Breed said, “Give me a couple of hours and I’ll see what I can do.” He wrote down the numbers in his notebook, flipped it closed, and put it away. He wasn’t getting much from Woods. Whether that was because Woods didn’t know much or wouldn’t say much he’d find out later. If it was the latter he was going to skewer the department in his next article. He made that clear to Woods before he left.

“Look, this is a major story. If you learn anything I need to know. I’m thinking these kids are in real trouble. I know they’re in real trouble. Hell, they could be dead for all we know. I can hold off for about 48 hours and that’s it, I’ve got to put the whole thing out there.”

Woods shrugged his shoulders. “I’m telling you everything I know. I’d appreciate you keeping things under your hat for right now, at least until I can say something for sure. I just can’t because I don’t know. But I think you’re right. These kids are in a pisspot full of trouble. But I don’t think they’re dead. I think they’re still out there.”

“Why?”

Woods sighed and motioned for Breed to sit down again. He rubbed his chin, where he hadn’t shaved for the last couple of days, mopped his hair with his hands. “This is between you and me only, Okay?” Breed nodded.

“The fire did a hell of a lot of damage to the house. It was an electrical fire that started in the kitchen. But it wasn’t an accident. The fire investigator found what was left of a burned wire on the kitchen floor and a lamp with the plug cut off the end of the cord. It looked to him like someone had taped the wire to the floor. But someone also put pennies behind the fuses so they wouldn’t blow. In other words, someone set a trap by the back door and nailed these two guys coming in.”

“You think these two kids did this?”

“I don’t know who else it could have been. It plays out like that. The kids would run to someplace they felt safe right? Whoever is looking for them probably knew about the Aunt so they had someone watching the house. Only they weren’t smart enough, and these kids suckered them into a trap. That’s the way I see it.”

“Jesus.” Breed said. He thought about it a minute and looked at Woods. “Maybe they are alive after all. If you find them, I’d really like to talk to them.”

“You and me both,” Woods said.

The long run through the night had taken them through yards and across street after street. They ended up at the northernmost portion of Elysian Fields, crossed Leon C. Simon, and headed toward the lake across the open ground of the college. From there they crossed the levee and found themselves at the lakefront adjacent to the amusement park. Ronnie pulled her in that direction. A long fence, lined by tall bushes, separated the park from the rest of the lakefront. Cassie went in first and they found a narrow gap between the bushes and the fence. They stopped there and rested, using their bags as pillows. It wasn’t like sleeping on the platform, but the night was warm and they could hear the low waves in the lake hitting the stone steps that ran down to the water. Exhausted, the talk trailed off and they both slept.

Sometime in the night
Cassie opened her eyes. Ronnie was sleeping alongside her, snoring softly, and she almost laughed but the thought of herself feverishly scraping insulation off of wires stifled the laugh. She got up quietly and crawled out of the hedges. A few yards away was the seawall and she made her way there, moved down a few steps so she couldn’t be seen from the road though there was nothing moving about. Lake Ponchartrain lapped at the bottom edge of the steps, the only sound in the night.

I wonder if he knows, she thought to herself. When Ronnie had come to her after the killing in his house she had offered him comfort, held him and calmed him. He trembled under her hands like a frightened rabbit. Ronnie had been backed into a corner. He had fought bravely, instinctively. It had been forced on him. She had no doubt that given the option to run he would have run. But she was different.

Back in her Aunt’s house it would have been easy enough to grab their bags and try and slip away into the night. Ronnie would have gone along with her willingly. But she’d chosen differently. And it had all come so easily to her. The knowledge that men were waiting outside to harm her and Ronnie had filled here with an icy rage. She hadn’t been frightened. Her thoughts were on striking back, killing them. It was like watching someone else take over and she despaired over a part of her she hadn’t seen in herself. She knew she could do it again.

Ronnie had been filled with remorse.
Cassie felt nothing for the men she’d killed. It was a rigid divide within her. Harm me and mine and you’re dead, was the thought that welled up inside her head. It was frightening. It was strangely liberating. At that moment Cassie came to a decision. She would stop at nothing to protect herself or Ronnie or her family. Given the choice she preferred to live without conflict, left alone to build her future. If that couldn’t be, she would strike. They’ll learn, she thought as she got up, retreating back into the bushes. She lay down and put her arm across Ronnie’s waist as she lay beside him. They’ll learn or they’ll die was the last thing that crossed her mind before she slept.

By nine o’clock in the evening Thorne had enough of waiting. He sent a crew of two off to scope out the house. The call back wasn’t good. Julie Hoffman’s house was still burning in places, the fire department pumping water over the whole mess. The men were nowhere to be found. There was no sign of any kids either. When Thorne’s man had flashed his badge the worn out fireman had told him there were two bodies in the kitchen, both men, both dead and badly burned. Identification would be slow due to the condition of the bodies and the fire wouldn’t be out for a few hours.

Cassie woke up first and stuck her head out from the bushes. Ronnie was till sleeping. She rose and stretched, checked the area again and saw they were alone. She kicked him awake with her toes, nudging his ribs. Ronnie woke up grunting, tried to roll over, and she nudged him again.

“Wake up sleepyhead.”

Cassie was already fixing her hair. She ran the comb through her curls, finally got things straightened out to her satisfaction, then twisted the whole thing up and tucked it under the baseball cap. Ronnie watched the process with fascination and smiled when she was finished.

“Why don’t you just cut it all off?” he said. For all the events of the past nights, he still found it fascinating to be around her. He’d spent his days, like most boys, with other boys or men and the mysteries of the female were a new world to him. Yin and yang had never been explained to him, but without knowing the concept, he understood the idea.
Cassie was a whole new world. There were too many sides for him to understand all at once but he thought he could hang around to figure things out. She’d spent the night on the run, electrocuted a man, kept them both alive probably, and here she was worrying about combing out her hair. Maybe forever wouldn’t be long enough.

“It’s my hair and I like it.”
Cassie said and stood up. “Come on, it’s breakfast time.”

They left the bags stashed in the bushes and headed back over the levee. Across the way they could see the college campus. It was early yet but there were students walking from building to building, from the parking lot, and from the bus stop across the way. Most were headed to a three story brick building, fronted by glass and with stone columns supporting an open porch-like area with tables arranged in groups.

“That’s the Student Center right there,” Cassie said. “They’ve got a cafeteria and a bookstore and some other stuff inside. We need to get something to eat and we need to get a newspaper. They’ve got bathrooms inside too. Come on. Act like you know where you’re going.”

Nobody paid them any attention as they joined the line for breakfast. Trays in hand they picked up milk and cereal,
Cassie taking scrambled eggs and bacon, while Ronnie waited for fried eggs. Cassie paid the woman at the register. Trays full, they made their way to a long row of tables, sitting next to a group of students who gave them a quick glance then returned to an earnest discussion of literature and the pros and cons of their professor.

Thorne had neither the time nor the attitude for breakfast. While Cassie and Ronnie were eating, he was taking stock of his position. It was hardly a situation he could fathom. A pair of kids had now disposed of four of his men, three dead and one as good as dead. Things were unraveling faster than he could hold them together. The newspaper article hadn’t mentioned anything concrete about the intrusion at the Gilmore’s, no reference to his agent’s death. He reasoned that the police were holding information back until they had a handle on things. He knew eventually word would leak out. News like that wouldn’t stay covered up long.

Now his problem was locating the targets. He’d had two chances where they were in his hands and he’d failed, or at least his men had failed, and that was the same thing. Finding them now was going to be almost impossible in a city as spread out as New Orleans. They could be anywhere. For now he had men scouring the Elysian Fields area but his manpower was getting low and a public service bus could already have them miles away.

Even worse was his position with the higher levels of authority. Archer had always supported him in the past. Now he was in uncharted territory. The man had given him direct orders to conduct another session and leave Cassie Reynold and Ronnie Gilmore alone for the time being. And Archer was not a man to be trifled with. His patient manner walled off a deadly iciness that Thorne seen on rare occasions. Finding those kids as soon as possible and keeping them under his control was the only way out. Even that might not save his life. In about 12 hours Archer would be looking for a report on the ordered sessions. And Thorne wouldn’t have them.

While Cassie and Ronnie lazed around the student center after breakfast, Breed was working the phones. His call to the phone company contact had ended with nothing. Or maybe not. The usual forthcoming informant at the other end had been decidedly blunt when he had returned the call. No information on the numbers given by Farrow and Ruff could be found. There was nothing there. Don’t call back about them either.