Chapter 35
Hatching a Plan
"How's he doing?" Adam asked, up on his feet as soon as he saw Winona walk back into the waiting area. He was holding Willa, who wildly waved the monkey at the sight of her mama.
"Evidently, he's well enough to go to Harlan," she snipped, obviously upset. She caught herself, momentarily losing focus on him, and then, reached out to place her hand supportively on his arm. "But the most important thing for you to know is that he said Anna is alive. He saw her."
Relief poured onto his face, followed by a look of gratitude for the information. He nervously shifted his weight back and forth, rocking Willa. "I still don't understand. If he saw her, why isn't she here? Why is Raylan here, and she's not?"
"I don't know," she sympathetically answered. "I couldn't get anything out of him. Believe me. I tried." She continued. "They took him away for an MRI. As long as his ankle isn't broken, or even if it is, they'll fix him up and release him. And then, he'll go to Harlan."
"Maybe he'll be home by tonight," Adam tried to be optimistic, for both of their sakes.
"Yeah. Maybe." She didn't sound convinced.
"Ma-ma-ma-ma," Willa waved the monkey again, trying to gain her mama's attention.
"Here. Let me take her," Winona said, and Adam passed her daughter to her. She took the baby's hand and brought it to her lips and gave it a kiss.
"Do you think Anna is in Harlan?" he asked. His mind was racing in many directions, thinking of possibilities.
The weight of her suspicions became even heavier with Adam involved. "He didn't actually say he was going to Harlan," she backtracked a little. "I played one of those 'yes/no' guessing games I have to play with him when he's on a case. That way, he can't get in trouble for saying anything he's not supposed to say. I asked him directly if he was going to Harlan, and he said nothing. It left me with nothing else to believe."
Rachel found the two talking in the waiting room and approached them. She smiled and waved at Willa. "Where are you going to be for next several hours?" she asked.
"Well, Daddy's here, for tests," Winona explained. "I'll be here."
"I'll be here, too," Adam echoed.
"Where's Raylan?" Rachel asked.
"MRI," Winona succinctly answered. She figured Rachel knew why Raylan would be soon heading back to work, knew more than she did.
"Art's assigned me to stay with you. Both of you and Willa, too," Rachel went on.
Winona's eyes narrowed. "Oh, no." She'd been through this so many times before, but never with Willa.
"It's just a precaution," Rachel assured her.
Willa held out the monkey to show Rachel. The marshal smiled at the babe and waved the monkey's arm, bringing a big smile to Willa's face.
"For how long?" Winona asked, very cool.
"Through the night," Rachel answered. "And then, we'll see."
So much for Raylan coming home tonight, Winona thought to herself.
"Do we three have to stay together all the time?" Adam asked. This was a new one on him.
"No. But we should leave the hospital together when you're ready to leave. And I'll follow you over to your sister's and stay with you there," Rachel explained and then, looked at Winona. "Art already talked to your sister."
Winona rolled her eyes. This was just what her sister and her family needed. Her phone vibrated. It was a text from Raylan that said, "I'm done. On my way back." She read the message and immediately clicked the phone to off.
-o-o-o-O-o-o-o
"Absolutely not. The United States Government does not negotiate with terrorists." Weston smacked his hand against the tile wall to emphasize his point. "Agent Rulé knows this better than anyone."
"What if it only appeared as if we were negotiatin'?" Raylan asked. He shifted his weight in the chair, already uncomfortable in the tight wrap and boot that incased his lower leg.
Weston shook his head. "You aren't hearing me, Marshal. I know this is your sister, but . . ."
"Wait," Karen Goodall interrupted. "Let's at least let Marshal Givens tell us his idea."
Art nodded in agreement and leaned back against the wall, arms folded over his chest. "Go ahead, Raylan."
"Let me go down to Harlan and talk to Ellstin, see if we can get him on board. Meanwhile, you guys need to pick up that veterinarian who treated me and Anna. See if you can get him to talk enough to get yourselves a warrant for Arndt's compound. Do it here in Louisville. He might have the judges in his pocket down there." He took a breath, anxious to get out his plan before Weston shot him down again. "If Ellstin agrees, I'll take him in, act like we're makin' the trade, and then you guys come in."
Weston didn't say no.
It was Tim who shot him down this time. "Don't you think Arndt'll be expectin' something like that?" He sighed. "Unfortunately, he seems like a pretty smart guy."
"What do we have to hold over the veterinarian's head?" Karen asked. "Practicing medicine without a license?"
"He treated Anna," Raylan suggested. "He saw she was in handcuffs. He had to know she was bein' held against her will."
"True," Karen nodded. "Aiding and abetting the kidnapping of a Federal Law Enforcement Officer carries a mandatory sentence."
"He didn't look like the type who'd do well in prison," Raylan said.
"Okay, Tim interrupted, changing the subject. "How are you going to get Limehouse to cooperate? I've met the man. He's pretty much a control freak."
"I dunno," Raylan answered, sounding irritated. "I gotta think of a way to persuade him."
Tim continued to play Devil's advocate. "Let's say all this works. We get our warrant and you get Limehouse to cooperate. Arndt is gonna be on high alert. He'll be ready to take Anna, Ellstin, and probably you, out at the first sign of trouble."
"You got an idea?" Art said, sensing the wheels turning in his young Marshals mind.
"Isn't it about time to bring the field corn in?"
"What does corn have to do with anything?" Raylan couldn't follow Tim's line of thinking.
"Have you ever seen one of those big combines? What if we took down part of his fence that borders the field? Is there any way we can get some heat sensors - find out how many guys he's got in there?"
Weston nodded. "I'll see what I can do."
"So, his fence is down. Then, we cause another distraction. Tim looked at Karen and grinned. "Maybe a pretty lady in distress?"
-o-o-o-O-o-o-o
It took the better part of the day for Weston and Goodall to set things in motion. While they took care of governmental logistics, Raylan and Tim headed to Harlan with Tim at the wheel of Raylan's roomier Lincoln, allowing Raylan to stretch out in the backseat and keep his foot elevated with an ice pack.
Raylan was surprised he had been able to make contact with Ellstin Limehouse. Isolated in Noble's Holler with no bridge, no electricity after the explosion . . . he was at a loss as to how Ellstin was able to keep his cell phone battery charged. The man's skills were impressive. Raylan wished he was as sure about his compassion.
When he and Tim arrived at the river, across the entrance to the holler where the old bridge used to stand, they were surprised to see some a couple of Ellstin's men waiting for them on the Harlan side of the river.
Raylan pushed the tips of the new, lighter weight crutches he was given at the hospital to the ground and pushed himself up and out of the car. He decided to leave the Stetson. The hat and the crutches didn't seem to work too well together.
"That's quite a set up ya' have there," Raylan commented when he approached the men at the riverbank and saw a brand new, inflatable raft with a motor attached.
The men didn't respond, but they never did talk much. Tim and one of the men helped Raylan aboard and he got himself situated. When they were all seated, the taller of the two men pulled the power cord on the boat motor, and it started right up. In less than three minutes, they were on the other side. The two men secured the raft onshore and helped Raylan off the raft, still silent. Tim followed behind and handed Raylan his crutches.
The party of four hiked into the holler. Before the group was even halfway, the muscles in Raylan's hands and arms were screaming in protest from the crutches, and he had to stop and rest several times. Despite the foam-padded rollers on the handles, he could feel blisters forming on his hands from repetitious rubbing during the long hike.
When they finally reached the site of the old restaurant, both marshals were shocked to see how much progress had been made on framing out the new restaurant. In less than a week, the walls were almost up.
"Well, well, well. Look what the cat drug in," Ellstin said, upon seeing the two marshals arrive.
"It's amazin' what you've done in such a short period of time," Raylan squinted in the sun without his hat.
"Insurance money came in fast," Ellstin explained.
"And the motorized raft?" Raylan asked. "That was impressive. And not cheap. The Harlan County Emergency Rescue Squad don't even have anything like that."
"Who? Them buncha' crackers? We never rely on the likes of them." Looking the marshal up and down, he said, "No offense. But you look like you seen better days." Ellstin raised his arm, encased in a sling. "We make a pair, don't we?"
"Yeah. That's the truth." Raylan grinned and then, looked up at the man. "I need to have a word. In private."
Ellstin looked over at Tim. "Alright," he said. "Follow me." He led the hobbling marshal away from the construction and over to a bench under a nearby shade tree. "Have a seat, Marshal. Before ya' fall over."
"Thanks," Raylan said. It felt good to sit.
"Can I bring ya' somethin' cold to drink?" Ellstin thought he looked like he was out of gas.
"Naw," Raylan answered. "I'm good." Then, he said. "Look. I'm gonna cut right to the chase. Ya' remember when I first came here, askin' you about my sister? My half-sister?"
"I sure does," Ellstin nodded and took a seat on the other end of the bench.
"Well, I found her. Tami Jo Givens. Her name is now Anna Rulé. Formerly Anna Dumoir. Adopted by André and Marguerite Dumoir in Orleans Parish."
"Rulé. Why dat name sound familiar?" Ellstin stroked his chin, and looked for all the world like he already knew the answer.
Raylan answered, anyway. "Because that was the name of the FBI Agent I had with me when I saw you the last time I was here at Nobles Holler."
"That gal? She's yo' sister?"
Raylan pulled out his cell and showed Ellstin the genetic test results.
"Well, I be," Ellstin said while reading numbers he couldn't understand. "I thought d'ere was somethin' 'bout her."
"Yeah. You're not the first to say that."
"Well, congratulations." Ellstin did not sound all that sincere. "What's dat gots to do with why you is here?"
"Anna's been kidnapped," Raylan shifted his weight on the bench. "By one Leon Arndt."
"Arndt?" Again, Ellstin acted as if he was surprised, but then again, not.
"Yeah," Raylan gave a nod. "And he's holdin' her hostage in exchange for a meetin' . . . with you."
"Wif me?" Ellstin asked, emphatically.
"Ya' do have some bad blood with him," Raylan stated.
"Yes, we do."
"Now, ya' won't have anything to worry about because you won't go in alone," Raylan explained. "I'll be with ya'. And we'll have the place surrounded. We've already cut the power to Arndt's place. We have 'Eyes and Ears' on them. Their phones are tapped."
Raylan used the silence to try and think of anything else to convince Ellstin to go along with this half-baked plan. He also thought to himself: Why would he do it? There's nothing in it for him or his people. But before he could open his mouth, he was yet again surprised when Ellstin, never a man of many words, simply said, "I'll do it."
-o-o-o-O-o-o-o
"I should probably get Willa home," Winona said. "She really ought to have a bath before I put her down." She held the baby to her and stood, walking to the side of the bed and leaning in to give her father a kiss.
"Let me see that baby girl," Davis said. He held out his arms and Winona handed the baby over. "G'night, little Willa." He kissed her forehead.
"Gah!" Willa grinned, reaching out with chubby fingers for her grandpa's nose.
"Nuh-uh," he said, shaking his head. "You be good for your mama and sleep tonight." He handed her back.
"You get some sleep, too, Daddy."
"I will if they'll let me." He winked. His test results had pleased the doctors, and he was anxious to get the surgery over with the next morning.
"I think I'm going to head home, too." Gayle yawned. "It's been a long day and it'll be another early one tomorrow."
"Yep, you go on home," Davis said. "I can amuse myself. I bet there's a ball game on."
Margery rolled her eyes. "There's always a ball game on."
"Are you coming, Mom?" Gayle grabbed her sweater from the hook on the wall and slung her purse over her shoulder.
"I thought I'd stay for a bit," Margery said, not meeting her daughter's eyes. "Visiting hours aren't over yet."
"Okay," Gayle fished in her purse and came up with her car keys. "I'll catch a ride with Winona and Adam, and you can drive the van home."
"Thank you, dear, that will save me cab fare." Then, Margery turned to her grandbaby. "Willa? Come give Grandma a goodnight kiss, baby."
Winona smiled and walked over towards her mother who was seated in a chair.
"Give Grandma some sugar," Margery cooed to the baby. Winona leaned in closer to her mother, and Willa smiled and with an open, slobbery mouth, giving Margery a 'fish kiss' on the cheek.
They all laughed which made Willa smile all the more and kick her arms and legs in the air in delight.
"Oh. Wait until your Daddy sees you can give kisses," Margery gushed at her grandbaby.
Winona rolled her eyes at the mention of Raylan. "Goodnight, Mama." Winona gave her mother a peck on the cheek.
"Sore subject, Mom," Gayle explained, following suit with a kiss for her mother and one for her father, and she then herded her sister and niece out of the room. "We'll see you at home."
The sisters walked down to the end of a long corridor where they found Adam and Rachel waiting for them.
"Ready?" Rachel asked.
"Let's go," Winona answered.
They all walked to the front entrance of the hospital and over to the parking garage for the short ride to Gayle's house.
-o-o-o-O-o-o-o
"Clean yourself up. You're stinking up the place," Arndt said, producing a key from his pocket, the one Frank stole from Raylan. He roughly removed the handcuffs. "Try to be presentable in case your brother shows up with Mr. Limehouse."
Anna rubbed at her chafed wrists and glanced around the cement block room, knowing full well that negotiating with a homegrown terrorist was never going to happen. She didn't let it show; however, with each hour that passed closer to the 24-hour deadline, she was becoming more and more resigned to the fact that she was expendable collateral for the U.S. Government.
There was a shower in the corner. No curtain. A single toilet and sink stood against the other wall.
"This door'll be locked. There's no way out so don't even try. There's a clean set of clothes on that bench. Yours smell. But then, all you people smell. We'll have to burn your clothes." He made a disgusted face and shut the door. Anna heard the deadbolt click into place.
She made a quick assessment of the room. It was bare, but clean, and Arndt hadn't lied. There was no way out. The cement blocks went all the way to the ceiling. There were no windows and the door sealed so tight that no light leaked out from underneath. A bare bulb in the corner gave off a dusty glow. Running off an emergency generator, it barely illuminated the room.
Anna spied a camera lens in the corner and assumed it probably wasn't operational on low generator power, but at this point, she didn't really care. She stripped out of her clothes unselfconsciously and stepped into the shower stall. Turning the water on, she wasn't surprised to discover it was cold.
Splashing her face, she got a whiff of metallic odor. Well-water. It reminded her of a camping trip she and Adam took a month or so into their relationship. Adam grew up camping, but for Anna, roughing it was a hotel without Wi-Fi and room service. Still, they'd managed to have a good time. She sucked in a breath. She missed him so and couldn't help but wonder if she'd ever see him again. Shaking it off, she soaped up with the thin bar and rinsed, shivering as she dried herself quickly with the threadbare towel hanging on a hook beside the sink.
The clean clothes were folded neatly; faded cotton underwear, a plain white t-shirt, and a pair of dark blue work pants that were too big around the waist and too short in the legs. Anna made do, wearing her dirty bra, and cinching the pants with the belt she'd been wearing. She put her shoes back on and rolled her clothes up into a ball and tucked them under her arm.
She pounded her fist on the door. "I'm done."
When the door opened, Jase was standing on the other side, ready to slap the cuffs back on Anna's wrists. As he did, she looked around and found Frank and Cannon were now there, too. Arndt was over on the far side of the room, on his cell phone.
Grabbing her by the cuffs, Jase led her over to a chair and pushed her down into it. There was silence, as all ears were on Arndt's side of the conversation.
"You heard the deadline. You've got until 6 a.m. tomorrow morning," Arndt spoke into the receiver, glancing at his watch. "And at 6:01, we'll deposit the body out front of the compound so you or your representatives can come pick it up." After a beat of silence, he added, "And if you folks try to move in on us during the middle of the night? You'll see Waco reenacted, all over again." After an even longer beat, he said, "Well. Good. Any time is fine. No one's going to get any sleep tonight. I can't wait to see the black-son-of-a-bitch. Tell Limehouse I've been waiting a long, long time for this." Arndt then disconnected the call.
"Well," Arndt turned towards his crew, shoving the phone into his shirt pocket. "If the marshal's telling the truth, we'll be having visitors soon." He then turned towards Anna. "And if he's not, I guess you'll be eating your last meal for supper."
Frank laughed and said to Anna, "We gotcha fried chicken and watermelon . . . of course."
The others joined in laughter at his racist remark.
"Take her away," Arndt ordered.
Jase and Cannon took her away. Arndt had noticed Frank had gone a little overboard with the prisoner and wanted her to remain in good shape, in case he did have to make an exchange. So, he put Jase on the task of watching Anna.
Anna was surprised that, instead of being led to the next filthy place they could find, this time she was led to a clean room that had a matching table and chairs. And just like Frank said, there was Kentucky Fried Chicken with all the fixings on the table . . . along with a slice of watermelon.
"We'll leave ya' to your meal," Jase said. "We'll be right outside," he warned, and he and Cannon left her alone to eat.
She scanned the room. No windows and no doors. Just like a bunker. She noticed a camera lens in the corner, same as the one in the bathroom.
Not being one to eat fast food, and never on Adam's watch, she was surprised when her stomach growled and gurgled at the sight and smell of the food. She took a seat and then a sip from the carton of lemonade. It tasted good. She reached inside the bucket and pulled out a leg. Although no longer warm, it tasted unexpectedly, amazingly good. She ate another piece, a thigh, and then opened the containers of beans and cole slaw, along with the package of plastic tableware. Even the cold biscuit was good.
As she continued to eat, her diamond glinted a ray of light so that she noticed its sparkle on her finger. She looked at it, admired it, and thought of Adam. She thought she was fortunate her captives hadn't taken it from her.
And then, she wondered if this really would be her last meal.
(To be continued . . .)