CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

Doug Penhall

We didn't even get halfway down the street when Fuller got a call on the radio. We expected the call to be something about other cases that were in progress. You hear everything, you know? But it wasn't about any other case, it was about our case. A man ran out of the hospital with a hostage while a woman was arrested. With a worried glance, I turned to Fuller who immediately made a u-turn and went back to the hospital.

News crews were already there and they were smothering every person of the hospital faculty that entered or left the hospital. Police cars swarmed the area and I could hear sirens of other cars as they sped off in the direction of the fugitive. Then I saw Judy over by a police car. I jumped out as Fuller pulled over and rushed over to her. I saw the sadness in her eyes and I knew this couldn't be good.

"What happened to 'em?" I asked about Tom.

"He got him," Judy explained. "Calvin got him and sped off. Now he has both Ioki and Tom."

"Damn it!" I exclaimed with a harsh kick to the front tire. "We're not getting anywhere with this! It's just a wild goose chase and I'm sick of it."

"Penhall," Judy started.

"If I see one of 'em I swear I'm gonna-"

"We arrested Sandra."

"What?"

"Sandra. She didn't get run fast enough. We got her." Judy moved to the side to show who was inside the cop car. Handcuffed and moping in the backseat was Sandra. She slowly raised her head to meet with my eyes and immediately looked away. She knew what was coming. It wasn't going to be pretty. I was going to make sure of it.

We went to the nearest station immediately. I was waiting for her and I'm sure she wasn't waiting for me. Fuller was a little leery letting me interview her, but I promised to be nice. Well… as nice as a police officer could be while around a fugitive. The rest of the squad was watching me from another room and Fuller was waiting on edge to see if I would do anything that would require me to be restrained. Judy was also in the room, keeping a watchful eye on the monitor.

The room was warm and quiet. Sandra was sitting in a chair and I knew the minute I let her speak she was going to request a lawyer. From that point I couldn't talk to her and I couldn't get any information out of her. But I already had a plan. I entered the room with a sense of determination. This was going to go my way; I was going to see to it. There was no other way out of this. We came so far and I was not going to let everything slip through my fingers. Every time we came close to closing the case something would happen. I was sick of running around and I wanted my summer vacation. I wanted my Tommy. I walked in holding onto her file and I tossed it onto the table.

"I want a lawyer." Sandra said immediately.

"You know, the courts don't like fugitives as parents." I told her.

"What you mean?"

"Think about it. You killed one person, as far as we know, and you have harmed many others along the way. This is your first offense, but they won't go light on ya. They won't go light on your hubby either."

"You leave my son alone," Sandra said. "You leave Mackie alone!"

"Think about this for a minute, Sandra! You go into this thinking you're helping out your family. You're so concerned about getting revenge for what can't be undone that you don't even realize what this will do to Mackie."

"He'll be fine. We ain't guilty of nothin'. Courts will sympathize."

"Maybe they will and maybe they won't. You have to think of what's going to happen to Mackie. Either way you're going to prison. You're going to face 25 to life if anyone dies. If Hanson dies or Ioki… You might even get the death penalty and where will Mackie be? His last memory of you all will be the sight of you in handcuffs. Do you want that?"

"It's too late to go back," Sandra said. "I ain't supposed to say anything. Not until my lawyer gets here."

"Go ahead and get your lawyer. Get your 25 to life but don't say I didn't try to help you!"

"Help me how? You people done nothin' but get in our way!"

"You waive your right to a lawyer, you tell us where Calvin is, where my officers are, and we'll help you out. Lighten up your sentence if we can."

"If you can. That ain't no promise. That's a load of bull."

"Take it or leave it," I said with a shrug. "But Mackie's going to be pretty sad when he hears he has to live in an orphanage downtown."

Sandra looked away as tears filled her eyes and after a moment of hesitation, she nodded her head.

"Okay," she said. "I don't want a lawyer. I want my son."

"Good. Start talkin'."