There was a half-moon tonight, not enough to illuminate the bridge, but he saw a flashlight beam underneath it. He stole closer, staying in the darkness, and saw that it was Mr. Doug who held the light. He stood under the bridge, pacing back and forth, holding the money in a bag under his arm.
Except for the wind whispering through the trees, the place was quiet. Moe might suspect that people were watching, ready to pounce, but he wouldn’t see anyone.
Aaron moved closer, careful to stay among the trees. By now, he knew that deputies were probably hidden in the trees too, waiting for Doug to leave the money. As soon as Moe showed up, they’d surround and capture him and force him to tell them where Sarah was. He hoped Moe brought her with him.
He stole toward the bridge, staying in the shadows.
His eyes scanned the night, searching for movement. A bead of sweat trickled down his temple. If only he had some of those infrared glasses like they had in the movies.
“Well, well.”
The voice startled him, and Aaron swung around. Before he could make out who it was, a hand closed over his mouth. He tried to scream, but the man wrapped him up tight against him. He heard a gun cock, felt the barrel against his forehead. “This is just about too good to be true.”
Aaron recognized Moe’s voice and knew he’d made a mistake. The man clamped his arm around Aaron’s neck. “Scream and I’ll break your neck,” he whispered.
Aaron stopped fighting, knowing Moe could do it. His breath came in constricted gasps.
“Now we’re gonna walk down under the bridge real slow,” Moe whispered against his ear. “They think I’m a fool, that I don’t know they got cops all over this place. But it don’t matter now, ’cause I got me another hostage.”
Aaron closed his eyes, knowing he’d just ruined everything.
seventy
DOUG HEARD SOMEONE COMING AND TURNED TOWARD THE sound. A flashlight beam blinded him, and he couldn’t see who was behind it.
“That you, Moe?” he asked, squinting into the light as he shone his own light toward him.
As the beam moved closer, he saw that it wasn’t just Moe. He had Aaron with him. The arm that held the flashlight was clamped under Aaron’s chin, and Moe held a gun against the boy’s head. Panic choked Doug.
Moe’s laughter cut through the night. “Thought you’d outsmart me, did you? Thought you’d surround the place with cops and I wouldn’t know.”
How had Moe gotten Aaron? Had he gone to the house? Had he hurt Kay or the kids? He tried to steady his voice. “All we want is Sarah. You can have the money. Just let Aaron go.”
Moe laughed again. “You think I’m insane? Had a hostage dropped into my lap, and you think I’ll just let him go?”
Dropped into his lap. What did he mean? Had Aaron come here on his own?
“So has everybody got it?” Moe yelled out, his voice echoing over the night. “I’ve got a nine-year-old hostage. Try anything, and I’ll kill him. Now toss me the money.”
“Don’t do it!” Aaron choked out. “Get Sarah first.”
Doug’s heart beat in his throat. “Where is she?”
Moe rammed the barrel of the gun into Aaron’s head. “I know it’s dark, but you ain’t blind. I call the shots.”
“If that gun goes off, you’ll be dead before you hit the ground, Moe. There are twelve guns aimed at you right now.”
Moe turned his flashlight off. “Hope they know I won’t go down alone. Turn off your light.”
Doug hesitated.
“I said turn off the light!”
Moe was getting more agitated, and Doug feared the gun would go off. He turned off the flashlight.
“Now the money.”
Doug didn’t know what to do. If he gave Moe the money, maybe he’d let the boy go. But what if he didn’t? What if he took him with him? Then they’d have two children in danger.
He tried to see through the darkness. Where were Scarbrough and his men? The plan had been to surround Moe and capture him, but they hadn’t counted on this new turn of events.
Making the decision, he tossed the bag so that it would fall three feet from Moe’s feet. Holding Aaron, Moe couldn’t reach for it.
“Pick it up!” Moe shouted.
Doug stepped forward and bent down to pick up the bag. As he came up, he swung his fist upward, knocking Moe back. Moe lost his footing, and Doug lunged for the gun.
It fired into the sky.
Aaron threw his head back and struggled against Moe’s grip while Doug fought for the gun.
“Freeze!”
Suddenly they were surrounded, guns pointed at Moe’s head. He stopped fighting. Doug kept his hand clamped around Moe’s wrist, holding the gun pointed at the sky.
Scarbrough moved closer. “Drop the gun, Jenkins.”
Moe’s hand opened, and Doug took the gun and backed away. Sweat drenched his shirt, and he couldn’t catch his breath.
“Let the boy go,” the sheriff said.
Slowly, Moe released Aaron, and the boy stumbled away.
“Get down on the ground, hands over your head.”
Moe slowly bent down, trembling. Doug kept the pistol trained on him as he hesitated before hitting the ground. Alarm bells went off in Doug’s head as Moe jerked up his pant leg, exposing another pistol in a holster around his calf.
Moe grabbed the gun and came up firing.
seventy-one
DARKNESS THREW EVERYTHING INTO CONFUSION, AND DOUG grabbed Aaron and hit the ground. Gunfire rang in the air. When it stopped, he looked up and saw flashlight beams shining on Moe, who lay slumped on the ground.
“Aaron!”
Doug saw Allen running toward them, horror on his face. “You could have been killed!”
Aaron began to scream. “He didn’t tell us where Sarah is! Make him tell us!” He ran to the limp body and pushed the sheriff aside. Grabbing Moe’s bloody shirt, he screamed, “Where’s my sister?”
The sheriff checked his pulse. “Too late now, son. He’s dead.”
Allen pulled him off. “It’s okay,” he said. “We’ll find her!”
“No, we won’t!” Aaron threw himself at the sheriff. “You shouldn’t have killed him before we found her. Where is she? My sister’s still lost! You’ve got to find her!”
“I think we have, son.” Scarbrough pulled a set of keys out of Moe’s pocket. A tag on the keys said U-Store-It.
Doug caught his breath, and Aaron got to his feet.
“Jones, Anderson, and Black,” Scarbrough said, “you three stay here and work the scene. The rest of us are heading to the U-Store-It in my van.”
It was crowded in the van, with seven deputies, who came in case Moe hadn’t been working alone. All the way there, Aaron kept sobbing heart-wrenching, death-grieving sobs, as if he knew they would find his sister too late.
Doug took Aaron’s hands and forced the boy to look at him. “Aaron, let’s pray. God’s listening.”
Aaron nodded and closed his eyes.
Doug started. “Father, we’re begging you — ”
But Aaron cut in. “God, you don’t have to like me, but I know you like Sarah — ”
Doug opened his eyes, surprised that the boy had taken over the prayer. Aaron’s eyes were squeezed shut, and he muttered his prayer through wet, purple lips. “ — because she hasn’t done nothing wrong. I’m sorry I shot my mama, but don’t punish Sarah. Please forgive me and save her. Please don’t let her be hurt.”
Allen wept into the boy’s hair as he held him.
Doug wiped his own eyes. Please God, answer his prayers. Show him that you hear.
They reached the storage buildings and the team piled out. They jogged down the aisle, checking the markings on the front of each garage door. When they found number three, the sheriff unlocked the padlock. Slowly, he raised the door.
“Sarah?”
Doug waited a moment, straining to see in the darkness … then heard a high-pitched scream.
Sarah was a
live!
Scarbrough turned on the flashlight, illuminating the terrified child. Aaron rushed in. “It’s me, Sarah! It’s me! It’s okay, buddy. It’s me.”
Doug reached the opening of the garage as the groggy child threw her arms around her brother’s neck. Her little curls were cropped off close to her head. She looked like a different child.
But she was safe and whole.
Aaron got to his feet and picked her up. She was almost as big as he, but he held her firmly, stroking her short hair. “It’s all right now,” he was saying. “God helped us find you. And Moe can’t hurt you no more.”
seventy-two
THE LITTLE GIRL WAS FRAGILE AND AFRAID TO SLEEP, BUT SHE was also hungry and thirsty and glad to be back with her brothers. Her grandparents got to know her as she slowly came out of her shell, and when dawn broke, Deni felt the need to go into her bedroom closet, get on her knees, and thank God for saving Sarah’s life.
As she prayed, she heard someone coming into her room.
“Deni?” It was Craig’s voice.
“In here!” she called. He opened the door and looked inside. “What are you doing in here?”
She sat back on the floor and wiped the tears off her face. “I was praying. Thanking God for answering our prayers for Sarah.”
“Oh.”
She patted the floor next to her. “Want to pray with me?”
“Nope.”
Disheartened, she got up and came out of the closet. The first light of morning was breaking into her room. Soon she’d have to go get water and help her mother fix something for breakfast. It wouldn’t matter that none of them had slept that night.
Craig dropped into the chair by her window. “Deni, I haven’t wanted to bring this up the last couple of days, because you were all upset. But we’re sticking with the plan, aren’t we?”
“What plan?”
“To leave in a couple of days.”
She just stared at him. “I can’t leave right now. Things are in too much turmoil.”
“They’ve been resolved. The girl’s been rescued. You’re not needed here.” He propped his chin on his hand and gazed at her. “Look, I know this is hard for you. But I have to get back by next week.”
“My parents have been through a lot, Craig. It wouldn’t be fair to take off like that. I want to wait until I have their blessing on our marriage.”
He sighed and took her hands. “Deni, I understand your compassion. It’s one of the reasons I love you. But I have to get back to work or I’ll lose my job.”
“No, you won’t. You’re always telling me how valuable you are to Senator Crawford. He wouldn’t fire you because of this.”
He rubbed his jaw. “Maybe I’ve exaggerated my value to him. But he needs me now. The country is in crisis. And if I don’t come back he’ll have to replace me.”
“Then go back without me, and I’ll come later.”
He got up and looked out the window, shaking his head. “You wouldn’t come.”
“What? Of course I would.”
“No, you wouldn’t. I’d leave here and your parents would talk you out of it. They never have liked me. And then that Mark guy would move in on you — ”
Warmth surged through her at this new vulnerability. She touched his back, kissed his shoulder. “Craig, you have to trust me.”
He turned and looked down at her. “It’s not about trust. You’re just stalling. I’m giving you a week, Deni. That’s all.”
Deni had never liked being told what to do, and she really hated it now. She backed up, staring at him. “Craig, you’re not my father. You can’t lay down the law with me.”
“I will be your husband. What happened to all that Christian submission bunk? Or is that one of the rules you ignore, unlike the one about being unequally yoked — or whatever it is you call it.”
That stung. “Maybe you’re right. Maybe I’m not ready to be married.”
He stared at her with tight lips. “Maybe you’re not. If you don’t come with me, the wedding’s off, because I can’t afford to take time to come back and get you again. I don’t know what grand gesture you’re looking for from me, but I came.”
“Noted,” she said.
He stormed out of her room, and she heard him clomp downstairs. Fuming, she refused to go after him. She heard a door slam and through her open window, heard the garage door coming up. She looked out as he leaped on his bicycle and took off.
Where in the world was he going?
Fury raged within her. She ran down to the garage, jerked the door back down, and hooked the locking mechanism so it couldn’t be opened again.
Her mother came to the door and looked out. “Who’s leaving?”
“Craig,” she said.
Her mother looked confused. “Where did he go?”
“I don’t know.”
“Is he coming back?”
“He must be. He didn’t take anything with him.”
Kay grunted. “Well, did you two have a fight?”
Deni stormed back into the house. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
She went back into the closet and wept her heart out. Getting on her knees, she prayed for her future. She asked God to show her whether she was wrong, whether she should leave her parents and cleave to her husband-to-be. If she was going to marry him, was she supposed to start submitting to him already, when everything seemed so wrong? Could she really submit to someone she couldn’t respect?
She wanted to marry him, but not like this.
And then she thought of being without him again, of him getting on that train and riding off to Washington. Would she ever see him again?
She didn’t know Senator Crawford well, but he seemed like a compassionate person. Surely he would understand.
But it didn’t matter, because he wasn’t going to wait. He had laid down the timetable. She had a week to decide whether she was going to marry him and leave.
She couldn’t get married here, not with her parents feeling the way they did. She would have to get married in Washington, without them to support her. She’d have to learn to be a wife on her own, without having her mother to call for a recipe or to vent about an argument she and Craig had had. Her dad wouldn’t be there to help her move in or repair the things in their new home that would need fixing. And Craig sure wasn’t handy.
She would miss Beth and Jeff and Logan, and the Gatlin boys and little Sarah. And she would miss Mark.
She thought of the way Mark had been with the children, when he’d helped Beth with the backdrop and all the props of the play. He’d been with the volunteers who’d gone out looking for Sarah after she’d been kidnapped. Craig had decided to sleep instead.
But it was Craig’s ring she was wearing. She’d made a promise to him. She just had to decide if she could keep it.
seventy-three
TWO HOURS PASSED WITH NO WORD FROM CRAIG. MOST OF the family had gone to bed after the grueling night, but Deni couldn’t nap. Where had he gone? He’d left his suitcase and taken nothing with him except for his bicycle. She wondered if something had happened to him along the way. New worries crept up inside her. Was he hurt? Maybe he had been mugged or murdered for his wallet or his bike. Why else would he stay gone in a strange town all day?
When he finally returned about midmorning, she almost threw herself at him. “I’m so glad you’re okay. I thought something had happened to you. Where did you go?”
He was drenched with sweat. He looked angry and stepped back from her, pulling two tickets out of his pocket. “I went to the train station. I got us tickets to leave on the train a week from today. Are you going with me?”
Anger flushed her cheeks, but she tried to force it down. “I don’t know,” she said. “I have to pray some more about it. You shouldn’t have spent the money until I told you for sure.”
As she expected, he tried to strong-arm her. “Pray all you want,” he said, “but realize this is a life-altering decision. You go with me, we
get married, we spend our lives together. You don’t go with me and it’s over between us. It’s as simple as that.”
With that, he stormed up the stairs. She let him go and sat there staring into space, too numb to even feel the rage she knew she should feel.
It wasn’t supposed to be like this. When she left home with him, she was supposed to feel giddy, excited, eager to start a new life. She wasn’t supposed to be resentful and sad.
But those were the times she lived in. Leaving and cleaving had taken on new meaning.
Maybe she just had to get used to it.
seventy-four
SARAH WOULD NEED COUNSELING FOR THE THINGS SHE’D experienced with Moe, but thankfully, there seemed to be no physical abuse. Still, her nightmares would continue for some time.
The day after Moe’s death, Sheriff Scarbrough showed up at the door to talk to Aaron. The boy met him with his chin held high, a look of resolve on his face, as if he expected to be arrested for his confession.
“Sit down, son,” Scarbrough said.
Aaron did as he was told. Looking down at his hands, he said, “I know what you’re here for.”
Scarbrough’s expression softened. “Aaron, look at me.”
He looked into the sheriff’s dark eyes.
“You didn’t kill your mama, boy. There were two bullets — one of them in her head.”
“No, I only shot once.”
Scarbrough nodded. “So you said. I assumed both bullets were from the same firearm. I was wrong.”
“What do you mean?” Doug asked.
“I just got the ballistics report back on the second bullet. The one through her head was from Moe Jenkins’s gun.”
Aaron gasped.
“Are you serious?” Deni asked.
“Absolutely. After Aaron shot her in the leg, Moe must have come along and found her. He finished the job.”
Aaron just stared at him for a moment, dumbfounded. “You mean … it wasn’t me?”