The Return
Chapter 23
Calleigh slowly opened her eyes realizing a dim light was illuminating her surrounds. Puzzled at first about why there would be light, knowing there was no window; she pushed up into a sitting position on the cot. That's when she saw him.
Blinking rapidly a few times, attempting to make sure who she saw was actually real, she found her voice.
"What are you doing here?"
The young man quickly looked down at the floor. He knew the woman would be shocked. He was having difficulty explaining it himself. Then his thoughts traveled back to that fateful night.
I'm here because Kunis roped me in under false pretenses about a year ago. At first, I thought I'd landed the job of a lifetime – the pay was fantastic for being a messenger between the five largest banks in New York City. Then one evening when I returned home after dinner with friends, there was an ominous black limo parked at the curb in front of my walk-up. I'll never forget that car's door opening and a large, muscular man unfolded from the front passenger seat, motioning for me to come as he opened the curbside backdoor. I should have run, but instead did as requested. I had been scared of what would happen if I didn't.
Kunis was in that backseat. I'd never met the man until that fateful night. In my position at work, I had never been privy as to just who I was working for, just the name of the company. But, that night changed everything. He explained in detail what he wanted from me and if I refused, not only would I be 'dealt' with, but my entire family, parents, siblings and their families would die because of my refusal. I had no other choice, but comply.
His attention returned to the woman sitting in front of him, Captain Robinson's wife. Why she was here, he didn't have a clue. He'd just been given the task of delivering the bit of food they allowed her.
Once again, her eyes gave him a piercing look which caused him to stutter attempting to somehow explain his uneasy presence without revealing too much.
"I… I'm… so sorry." He hung his head no longer capable of holding eye contact with the beautiful woman. "I brought you a little something to eat."
"You are on my husband's crew… yet, you're a part of all this? Tell me, are you supposed to get close to my husband to kill him?"
Her accusation caused him to jerk his head and respond in a low growl, "I'd never kill anybody – especially Capt'n Bill. He treats me good."
"Why are you on his crew then? And for what reason are you here now?"
He winced, feeling shame rise up through his body all the way to his face like a strong wave of heat. How could he explain without getting in trouble with Kunis? Maybe he could just give her a general answer.
"I don't have any choice," his voice barely an audible whisper.
Calleigh thought about it for a moment before asking,
"You're being forced to take part in this?"
The young man silently shook his head 'yes'. Calleigh suddenly thought she might convince the man to help her by going to the authorities and telling them where she was being held.
"Would you help me by calling the police and tell them where I am?"
The door opened and a man growled, "No talking to the prisoner! You bring the food, now you go."
Before Peter turned to leave, his eyes locked with Calleigh's for a moment willing her to understand how dangerous her request could be, then turned and walked out past the angry guard at the door, leaving her to wonder if he intended to do what she asked. She closed her eyes, now that she was alone again knowing all she could do was pray that the young man would help her.
Horatio sat on the side of the bed realizing the sleepless few hours he'd had only served to stiffen every muscle in his body. The after effect of the accident was very noticeable; it felt as if every muscle in his body ached. The first light of day crept through the east facing window as he looked over at a picture of him and Calleigh taken the night they celebrated her birthday a few weeks ago. Slowly easing off the bed, he walked over to the chest of drawers and picked up the picture.
Smiling slightly he reflected on how many of those close to him he'd lost. His Mother, Al, Rebecca, Marisol, Ray. I will not lose you too Calleigh, I just can't. I'll find you Sweetheart….
After a quick hot shower that helped his sore muscles, he made his way down the steps to find John making a pot of coffee in the kitchen.
"I hope you slept better than I did," Horatio greeted his friend causing the man to turn his head towards the door. "Heard anything this morning?" Horatio asked as he walked toward a kitchen cabinet.
John noticed that Horatio didn't look like he'd slept at all.
"Nothing yet. A couple of my men thought of an old ski lodge north of Portland and said they were going to check it out with some of the state police," he glanced at his watch and then added, "They should get there in a few minutes. All we can do is wait."
Horatio eased down into a chair and set a couple of mugs on the table. After a minute, he began rubbing his forehead while asking,
"We're not far from the Canadian border… what roads have the state police checked that are away from the main crossing points?"
John brought the carafe of steaming hot coffee and filled both mugs before sitting down in a chair opposite Horatio.
"I assume all of them, or they're being checked, but I don't think they went there. Canadians are a little nosier overall than Americans – they're usually quick to notice strangers and are extremely curious about what they might be up to in their little communities. I think they stayed in the U.S., but not necessarily in Maine, that's why the New Hampshire and Massachusetts authorities were alerted with the information you had on Andrew Kunis. Trouble is we don't have a description on any of the men with him. They'd be the ones people might see."
The two men sat in silence. Looking beyond John while he sipped his coffee, Horatio noticed through the kitchen window that the earlier sunny skies had given way to gloomy cloudiness – a perfect match to his mood. He didn't like sitting around waiting… it gave him too much time to dwell on the fact that they had very little to go on that would help them find Calleigh.
The ringing of John's cell phone cut through the silence that had enveloped the room.
"Rumo," John answered and listened intently.
Horatio studied the man's face not finding even a flicker of hope which caused a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach as he turned his attention to the floor.
Then what John asked next caused Horatio to jerk up his head and look at his friend. Sounds as if they might have found someone who's seen something!
"They're sure about that… ok we're leaving now headed your way."
John gave Horatio a cautioned look, "An elderly couple saw a van matching our description early this morning at a local general store. They said it was parked in a handicapped spot they needed, with no disability tag in view, causing them to have to park further away." John's lips curved up in a slight smile. "The old man was so angry that he called the local police to report the tag number."
"What are we waiting for?" Horatio asked with more determination in his voice than he'd had since the kidnaping.
The little town of Moosehead, where the van was spotted, is located about thirty minutes north of Portland. John used the lights on his car to part traffic on I-95 and they reached the bypass around Portland in record time of eight minutes. Leaving the bypass, John had to take it slower on the two-lane county road, but still going fast enough to cause Horatio to press the 'imaginary brake' on the passenger side floorboard a few times, especially when they rounded a sharp curve and found a moose standing in the middle of the road.
"Damn cow," John growled as he swerved enough to miss the animal, quickly regaining his speed.
It wasn't long before John pulled up along-side the state police vehicle and saw his men and a couple of other officers standing on the porch of the store.
He and Horatio got out of their car and walked toward the men.
"Hey chief, Mr. Robinson," one of John's men called out in greeting, "looks like we might have something here."
Horatio listened as the man gave them a summary of what the store clerk told them.
"The man bought a lot of ready to eat stuff. Said he and a group of buddies were camping.
Horatio asked, knowing the man wouldn't have given anyone the information, but he had to ask, "Did he mention a specific place?"
The deputy shook his head and said, "No unfortunately. But, at least they have to be around in this area to come here for supplies."
John turned to one of the state troopers asking, "How quick can you get a bird in this area?"
"About five minutes… I'll call," he answered as he pulled a phone from his shirt pocket.
John looked at Horatio, his features were tense, but he saw hope. He just prayed that it wouldn't take long to find Calleigh.
"Would you mind if I talked to the clerk?" Horatio asked John as well as the others.
The other officers looked at John, concerned about a civilian getting involved.
"Not at all," John answered.
After Horatio disappeared inside the store, one of his men said, "Chief, we don't normally allow civilians to interview witnesses…"
"This is a special case… trust me, it'll be alright."
The state trooper was right, within five minutes an unmarked helicopter set down in the field next to the store. John requested that they stop and pick up Horatio and himself. They both needed to be on the scene if they found anything.
Horatio ran for the open door and climbed in the back seat beside John. After putting on the headset so they could communicate, Horatio told John what he'd learned.
"We need to go west."
His friend's face crinkled in puzzlement as he replied, "But the guy told the clerk north."
"The clerk happened to go out the front door of the store just in time to see the van drive away to the west. He had just shrugged it off thinking the man wasn't good with directions."
John made the request to the pilot and they lifted off headed west.
Calleigh enjoyed the dim light only for five more minutes after the young man left before being immersed once again in total darkness. She convinced herself the darkness was more pleasant than looking at her dirty, somewhat nasty surroundings. It wasn't the lack of light that bothered her; it was the problem of not knowing what circumstances Horatio faced and not being able to help him. I just have to trust that he will be alright. He's a strong, tough man, he's survived so much danger and heartache in his life – much more than anyone should have to endure. Be safe Handsome.
After two hours of searching, the pilot announced through the headphones,
"We're running low on fuel. I will have to divert to Portland for refueling."
John quickly answered while Horatio continued scanning the area below. "Can we resume the search after that's done?"
"We may not. There's a storm moving closer to land off of the Atlantic. If you've noticed, I've already been battling higher winds than when we started. The window to fly this bird is not like a jet… my craft can only take limited range of high wind."
John saw Horatio visibly sag at the pilot's words.
"You heard him Bill. We don't have a choice."
Horatio turned and looked at John with sad eyes and softly said, "I understand." John felt helpless. He could just imagine how he would feel if it were Suzanne out there.
That evening, Horatio sat on a small couch in the Portland Detective division, staring at the cup of half-drunk coffee in his hand. The storm was raging outside the building. Strong thunder seemed to rattle every window in the place followed by loud cracks of lightning. The forecast had been correct; the crew barely had time to refuel the helicopter before the strong winds hit. He'd sent John home to his wife earlier. No sense in him babysitting, Suzanne hadn't seen her husband since the ordeal began. John had tried to convince Horatio to join him, but with no success. Horatio told him he'd just hang around the department. He sure didn't want to go back to his empty house.
Sometime after mid-night, Horatio awakened to someone shaking his arm. It took him a moment to wake and fully comprehend what the man was saying. It was one of the detectives.
"Mr. Robinson, there's someone here who wants to talk to you."
Horatio quickly sat up, realizing he had dozed off leaning back on the soft couch.
After wiping his face with his hands, Horatio asked the man to repeat just to make sure he heard correctly. The man told him again.
Looking bewildered, Horatio questioningly asked, "Who would want to see me?"
The detective glanced to Horatio's left and nodded his head. Horatio looked in that direction.
Through the dividing glass wall stood the young man, Peter from his crew.
TBC…