When Julie came to, there were white spots in her vision. She shook her head, which sent spasms of pain down her spine, trying to remember the last real thing that had happened. But then, a low, calculating voice cleared the fog for her.
"Excellent timing. We've almost reached our destination." Julie looked around, her vision coming back. She was sitting in the same seat, on the same train, with all of her things surrounding her. She was also sitting next to the same man, who had her iPod sitting in his lap. Her voice failed her.
"You have terrible taste in music, by the way." He tossed it into her lap. "So, let's go over the plan, shall we?"
Julie looked out the window, but it only reflected flat darkness back at her.
"We're going to get off at this next stop. There's a Hilton across the street. Once we get up to the room, we'll make a little phone call to your dad, and set up the next steps. Sound good?"
"No."
"Great. Now, let's go over some ground rules. For this short jaunt over to the hotel, you keep your head down, you stay with me. You don't talk to anyone. You might be able to break away, but I promise you won't get far, and I promise you'll pay for it later. If anyone asks you a question I'll give them your answer. Easy enough, right?"
Julie nodded, letting her hand fall to her side. She just needed to see if her phone was still there, she could use it later…
"Looking for this?" Jackson held up the shiny piece of plastic. Julie's heart sank. Then, to her surprise, he handed it to her. She flipped it open, but the screen didn't light up.
"I'm keeping the battery for now, if that's alright."
A muffled voice came over the loudspeaker. "Ladies and gentlemen, we have reached Temple. This is the Temple train depot. If Temple is your final destination-"
"That's us." Jack told her. He stood, slinging his leather bag over his shoulder. Julie sat, dumbfounded.
"I really don't have time for this, Jules." He said, holding out his hand. She stood, ignoring the gesture. She grabbed her purse, and her overnight bag. He moved out into the aisle t give her room. When she made it over to him, he put an unyielding arm over her shoulder.
"My suitcase," she said as they walked awkwardly toward the door.
"She speaks! Don't worry about it." When the two passed the ticket-taker, Jackson nodded at him. The old man smiled kindly back at the two.
Julie felt a surge of adrenaline as they passed. Was this her moment? Should she scream, push her assailant away and go running? Then, just as quickly, the moment had passed. She kept her head down.
Even though it was nighttime, the air was hot and hard to swallow. Just as the man had promised, a bright orange stucco building loomed from across the street. It was a perfect rectangle, with each window evenly spaced, and one entrance. It looked like a middle-class prison.
They crossed the street immediately; there was no traffic. Julie thought she would have another opportunity when they checked in, but when they crossed immediately to the elevator, she saw her opportunity vanish. Jackson pulled a white plastic card out of his pocket. They reached the fourth floor.
Their room was right next to the elevator. Slowly, Julie was realizing how expertly planned this entire thing had been. They were on the fourth floor; even if the window opened it was no help. There was only one door, and her captor was currently fastening each deadbolt. They each clicked with a dull, metallic finality.
"Now what?" she asked, standing in the hallway. He turned to face her.
"Now, I give you your battery back, and you call your dad."
"What am I supposed to say?"
"Don't worry; we'll do it together." He crossed in front of her, his shoulder catching hers slightly. The action made her feel cold all over.
Jackson pulled out one of the overstuffed green chairs facing the desk, before sitting in the one opposite it. Julie hesitated, then walked over to sit in the chair.
"Here you go." He reached inside his coat pocket, and offered her the small black box. She grabbed it out of his hand, careful not to touch his skin, and quickly inserted it into the back of her phone. There was an awkward period of time as they waited for her phone to wake back up. When it finally gained some bars (a weak showing at two), she scrolled through her favorites to find 'Dad-Cell'.
The phone rang and rang. Her pulse raced.
"Julie?" Her father answered lightly. Had he realized what had happened? Should she have arrived by now?
"Hi Daddy," she said, fighting to keep her voice composed. A few feet away, Jackson was smiling at her encouragingly.
"I just sent Brooks to go get you, are you close?"
"No, um" she looked up at Jackson. He grabbed the phone out of her hand. Instinctively, she tried to grab it back. With one quick motion, he slapped her hard across the face. She slumped in the chair.
"Mr. Iverson?" he asked clearly. "I'm afraid Julie won't be arriving as expected."
There was a moment of agitated silence, during which Jackson listened attentively.
"Who I am is not important. Let's just say I'm a facilitator. You should be worried about my client. So here's the deal. You're going to do a few things for me, okay?"
Another moment of silence.
"Why don't you just get a pen and a piece of paper…mmhmm…okay. You're going to tell Antonio Lamposi not to testify tomorrow-" Jackson's patience was visibly growing thin. Julie watched him listening; she could hear the low buzz of her father's voice on the other end.
"Don't lie to me, Mr. Iverson. I know that you are the chief legal advisor for Mr. Lamposi and I know that you've been prepping him to testify in the Nemia case. I need you to prevent that from happening."
More buzzing.
"Good. Now I trust that you are a smart enough guy that you know calling the police would be a bad idea. Am I right?...Great. The second thing I need you to do, as a sign of good faith, is transfer four hundred thousand dollars to the following account-" Jackson was clenching his jaw. Julie could tell he didn't enjoy being interrupted.
He slammed his hand down on the table, making Julie jump in her chair. "You don't make the rules here! I have your daughter, and I have a really big fucking knife, and if you don't want the two to meet each other then you need to do exactly as I say!" he rubbed his hand over his face. "Now, are you ready to listen to the bank information?"
A more subdued buzz from the other end of the line. "Great."Jackson recited a very long, foreign-sounding name, followed by a longer code of numbers. He listened to other end, then rolled his eyes.
"He wants to talk to you again," he explained, offering the phone to Julie. She took it with a shaking hand.
"Julie, baby?" Her father sounded broken. It scared her to hear him so… so out of control.
"Daddy," she answered.
"Are you okay? Have they hurt you?"
"No, he hasn't hurt me." She decided the whole drugging thing wasn't worth bringing up.
"So it's just one guy, then?"
"That's right." Suddenly, she had an idea. "Daddy, will you tell Angie I'm sorry I couldn't make it to her party?"
It was a long shot, but Julie knew her father was an intelligent man. Angie was her father's partner in the Nemia case. She lived in the city, but they had been working together so much lately that Julie had learned nearly everything there was to know about her. Angie had a deep Southern twang, and her recent birthday party had been Texas-themed.
"…Okay, I will," her father answered. She could tell he was thinking, but she didn't know if he got it. However, the city was the only thing she had to go on. She knew Temple was somewhere in Central Texas. Her father spoke again.
"Just answer yes or no; is there something I need to know about Angie?"
"No."
"So there's something about her party?"
"Mhmm-" Jackson ripped the phone from my ear.
"Time's up. I hope you enjoyed your chat. You have your instructions, I'll call you if any further complications arise.
"Oh, and Mr. Iverson? If the money isn't transferred by," he pushed up the sleeve of his jacket to examine his wristwatch, "eleven pm tomorrow night, you'll have to pick up your daughter in pieces."