8
An hour later the phone rang. "Mr. McKenna, bring the animal and meet us at-"
"I don't have it, but I should soon. Or at least I might be able to tell you where to find it," he said quickly.
He heard breathing on the other end of the line. "We're watching you."
"Is Nadean okay?"
"An hour, McKenna." The line went dead.
He had been panicking, pacing, trying to find things he could conceal on himself as weapons, then discarding them in the fear he'd be frisked. He was having trouble thinking straight. He was worried sick over his sister's fate and what his mother would do when she found out what had happened. Then he despised her for being so callous she could leave her own children during the Christmas holiday. He had dressed himself in clothing he thought was comfortable enough to fight in if it should come to it, fretted over whether hiking boots or sneakers were the better footwear. He suspected he would never even see the abductors—just find Nadean bound like a rodeo calf with a coarse sack over her head, a hidden sniper waiting to take them both out.
The phone rang, He answered breathlessly.
"We found your Jeep, Mr. McKenna," the voice said, and Geoff exhaled noisily with relief.
"Oh, that's great! When can I get it?"
"You'll have to come in and get a voucher to claim it."
"Okay. I'll be there soon. Did anyone find a…an aluminum-wrapped parcel in it?"
"I'm sorry?"
"A package? Like, um, well I'm a veterinary student-"
"I know you, Geoff," the caller told him. "This is Shaun Merriman."
"Oh! Shaun. Hey, Shaun."
"Hey, Geoff. Nothing's been touched. You come down here and we'll see about getting your Jeep back to ya immediately."
"Oh, thank you. It wasn't damaged or anything?"
"Well…I'm afraid our suspect tried to make a run for it."
"Ah," Geoff said.
"And he got hit by a Volkswagen Bus."
"A bus? He got hit by a bus?"
"One of those little rectangular van-things all the hippies drive," Shaun clarified.
"Oh."
"It's drivable, but a little messed up. You'll have to get some bodywork done on it."
"Okay. I'll be right there."
"You are pressing charges still, yes?"
"Oh, yeah," he answered.
"Okay, Geoff. See you soon." Officer Merriman hung up.