Tucker
The place was a total mess. Every single piece of glass on the front of my lawyer shelves was shattered, like someone demolished them with a baseball bat. Files, and their contents, were everywhere. They’d even stabbed something into my leather chair and the innards were sticking out like a tongue, mocking me.
But they didn’t touch Jeanie’s desk, and my partners’ offices were pristine. No. Whoever did this had it out for me, and I knew who it was.
As I was explaining this to the two police officers, my phone rang. I thought of letting it go to voicemail, but something told me to answer it.
“Daddy?”
Zoe sounded terrified. She’d no more as finished calling my name when his voice came on.
“Hello, Tucker McCord.” The hair on my neck and along my arms rose. “Nice place you got here.”
He was in my house. With Zoe. And Myles. And Dani. My stomach fell away. He was in my house. This…this disaster around me was a diversion to get me away from my family.
“If you lay one finger on them, I’ll—”
“Oops. Too late for that. I’ve already laid fingers, and other parts, on your women here. You can’t blame me. They’re hot.”
“Get your stupid hands off me!” Zoe screamed in the background. “Leave us alone!”
My little girl….
“Mr. McCord?”
I’d forgotten the officers were even there. I locked gazes with the senior officer. My stomach was pitching, my heart was racing, and tears stung my eyes.
That bastard is in my house!
“Is it this…” the officer checked his notes, “Thomas James?”
I nodded rapidly and covered the receiver. “He’s in my house. He has my family.”
Reaching for his radio, he stepped out into the hall.
“She’s a feisty one, your daughter. I like feisty.”
“Stop!” Zoe sounded like she was crying. I moved toward my car without even thinking. I wasn’t able to help her when Ben attacked her. I needed to be there for her now.
One of the policemen grabbed my arm, and I almost turned around and slugged him. He must have seen it in my eyes, because he released me and held his hands out. “Come with us.” The policemen were moving fast. I struggled to keep up and hold a conversation.
“I swear, James—” But I couldn’t threaten him. He held all of the cards. “What do you want? I’ll get you whatever you want?”
“Oh, but you see, you can’t.”
“Is it—”
The wife. What was the wife’s name? One of the officers put a hand on top of my head and made sure I got in the back of the cruiser okay. They reversed with the lights going, but sirens off.
“Candy? You want me to help you find Candy? I can hire a detective and—”
He laughed. “All a detective is gonna find of Candy is her body in a ditch. I snapped that bitch’s neck.”
I closed my eyes. He’d killed his wife, and now he had mine. And my kids.
“Your boys. You want to see your boys.” And as soon as I said it, I feared he’d say he killed them, too.
“Nah. I don’t want anything from you, McCord. I just want to make you pay for what you did to me.”
“Don’t touch me!” Zoe shrieked.
The nausea hit me so hard I had to put my head between my legs. “Oh, God.” Then it dawned on me. I hadn’t heard anything from Dani. “Where’s Dani?”
“Dani? Oh, you mean the wife.” A chair scraped on the floor. “She’s here, too. One big happy family. Huh, sugar?”
A moan. Was she gagged?
“Leave her alone!” Zoe again.
“You come on home now, McCord. No cops. We’ll have us a little talk. I’m giving you five minutes to get here. If I see any cops, all bets are off.” The steel cold edge to his voice was sinister.
The line went dead. My heart clenched. When I had him on the phone, I at least knew what he was doing. The officer in the driver’s seat switched off the lights. I looked out my window. We were a few blocks from home.
They were still alive, and I was almost to them.
Zack
I couldn’t sleep. It had become a thing since I broke up with Zoe. I missed her more than I thought was possible. Minus the girl I loved, and my best friend. It sucked. But I had to keep her safe. And maybe I did owe her the freedom to enjoy the rest of her high school days. I lay on my back, staring at the ceiling, my arms folded under my head, sleep hours away.
I’m not your problem anymore, Zack.
The words echoed in my mind.
She never was a problem. She was the solution.
I threw my legs over the side of the bed and sat on the edge, raking my fingers through my hair. She was right about one thing. She wasn’t mine anymore, and it was killing me. I glanced at her window. Why? Hoping she’d be up in the middle of the night like I was? Her light was off, but a glow from the McCord’s front window told me someone was awake. Dani with the baby?
Then this feeling crept over me. Something wasn’t right.
Or maybe I’m paranoid, but I’m not going to get any sleep anyway.
I threw some clothes on. What if it was Ben? I grabbed my flashlight and hustled down the stairs.
I wasn’t at all prepared for what I witnessed when I crept onto her porch and peeked into the windows. This guy had Zoe tied to a chair. And Dani seemed unconscious, bound to another seat.
Luckily, I’d brought my phone and dialed 9-1-1. The operator assured me help was on the way.
“Is the suspect armed?”
I peered inside. A gun sat on the table next to a phone, both within his reach.
“Yes.”
A weapon. I looked at the flashlight in my hand. It was pretty solid. Then I got the idea of reassuring Zoe I knew what was going on. But I had to be careful he didn’t see the signal.
I think she noticed it, because she looked toward the window, but tried to cover it when he came over and crouched in front of her. Minutes later, the bastard rubbed Zoe’s leg and lowered his head and licked the inside of her thigh. I wasn’t waiting for any cops. Zoe pushed off the ground and jostled his nose, which I now noticed was bleeding.
That’s my girl.
But I was scared it might aggravate him and cause him to do something to her. I needed to get inside. But what should my strategy be? Hearing a noise behind me, I turned, afraid the man had an accomplice and I had been spotted. Instead, a police car rolled up, it’s engine killed. Before it even came to a full stop, Mr. McCord jumped out. I took one more look in the window, then I backed away as silently as I could. Once I hit the lawn, I ran toward Zoe’s dad.
“Stop! Police!”
I froze, putting my hands in the air. Police officers stood on either side of their cruiser, behind the shelter of their doors, which were flung open, with guns aimed at me, but I looked at Mr. McCord.
“There’s a man—”
“We know. Are they all right?”
I hesitated a half second. “I think Dani’s unconscious.” I didn’t want to say things may be worse than that.
“Shit.” He wiped a hand across his face.
The police approached. They looked at me, then at Mr. McCord.
“He’s…the boy next door,” he said, waving an arm at me.
They nodded. “We’re going to need you gentlemen to get behind the cover of the car.”
We hesitated for a second, exchanging a look, then walked with them. “What are you going to do?” I asked.
“Nothing until backup arrives.”
“But…he could do something to them.”
“Listen, kid. If we alert him to our presence, the hostages are in graver danger. And we’re not doing anything until a S.W.A.T. team arrives.”
Mr. McCord and I locked gazes.
Another cruiser arrived and the officers went to talk to the new arrivals, presumably to bring them up to speed.
“I’m not sitting around here while he messes around with Zoe,” I said out of the corner of my mouth, still trying to figure out some sort of plan.
“Yes, you are.” Mr. McCord glanced over at the cops, and edged toward the outside of the property. I followed. He pointed at me. “Stay there.”
“No.”
His eyes lit up.
“Sir. I’m going in with you. I can help.”
He glanced at the house and licked his lips. “You can’t do that, son. Your mom needs you to be safe.” He jogged away. I gave him a head start then trailed after him.