Lutz was the first from our department to hear the news just after the lunch hour, and it came directly from MCC Chicago. He was told a passerby driving north out of Beecher saw the carnage on the roadway that morning and called 911. After police and paramedics arrived, it was confirmed that two guards, four convicts, and the driver were found dead inside the overturned bus, and two more guards had lost their lives in the bullet-ridden chase car. An empty set of handcuffs—which should have been secured to the fifth convict, John Vance—dangled from the bar bolted to the seat in front of the one he’d been sitting in. After it leaked that John had escaped, word spread like wildfire.
According to the information relayed to MCC from the scene, the deputies said it appeared that none of the guards had a chance to draw their weapons since every gun was still holstered.
Until the state police arrived, Illinois Highway 1 was closed to through traffic. After a search of the immediate area, a van that had been driven into the brush was discovered on a gravel side road a quarter mile away. The Will County coroner was on site, along with a half dozen deputies and the state forensic team.
Lutz appeared to be rubbing the wrinkles out of his forehead as he told us everything he knew at that point. From the glances shot in my direction, he seemed to be talking directly to me. He jerked his head. “In my office, McCord.”
After pushing back my chair, I gave my fellow detectives a headshake and followed Lutz down the hallway. I knew I was being singled out because of my history with the Vance brothers. Nothing about John’s daring escape was good news, and the only person with the financial means and connections to pull it off was John’s only remaining brother, Curt, who was as cold, cunning, and dangerous as John himself. They made the perfect team.
“Have a seat,” Lutz said as he closed his office door behind me.
I did as told and waited for my commander to share what was on his mind.
“I’m worried about your safety, Jesse.”
I waved off his comment. “Think about it, Bob. John was still running his drug empire from behind prison walls, so he had plenty of pull, whether he was incarcerated or not. He’s had the last three years to send someone after me, if that’s what you were thinking, but he hasn’t. None of his goons, including Curt, have chased me down. Right now, I’m pretty sure the only thing they care about is getting as far away from here as possible. They’re probably already in the air, flying off to a country that doesn’t have extradition laws with the United States.”
Lutz looked concerned as he tapped his fingers against the surface of his desk. “But with John free and the brothers working together, there’s no guessing what could happen.”
“That’s true, and I understand why you’re worried, but I really think they have more important things on their minds. Like I said, John could have had me taken out anytime he wanted with just a few words to his henchmen. I really think I’m going to skate by on this one.”
“You know what they say about payback, don’t you?”
I raised a brow. “That it’s best served cold.”
“Exactly. So watch your surroundings carefully until he’s back in custody. Curt needs to be locked up, too, and with both of them behind bars, their drug cartel could eventually crumble.” Lutz leaned back in his chair and rubbed his temples. “I guess it’s up to the FBI to track them down now. They’ve already committed multiple federal crimes in the last few hours. I imagine Border Patrol will be informed of his escape and all means of transportation out of the United States will be alerted.” Exhaling loudly, he changed the subject. “So, back to our own business. How are we doing on the Morton homicide investigation?”
“Waiting for Forensics to finish with the evidence they’ve collected, and then they have to run the prints they found inside the home. Gruesome scene to say the least, and I told them yesterday to be thorough. The official coroner’s report should be complete soon, but according to what Don told me this morning, Tina Morton had forty-two stab wounds. I imagine any one of them could have been the wound that killed her.”
“A little extreme, don’t you think? Especially if we’re to believe it was a burglary.”
I nodded. “Right, if burglary was the intention. Foreign DNA was found under her fingernails, signs that the perp was scratched.”
“But according to the New York City PD, Mr. Morton didn’t have any marks on his body. They checked hotel footage going back to Saturday, and video shows him coming and going both days.”
“Was he alone?”
“Funny you asked. Suspect cheating to be the cause?”
“Possibly. The wife did file for divorce according to the sister-in-law and the neighbors,” I said.
“Actually, there was a dark-haired woman with him. A very attractive one is what the New York detectives told me.”
I scratched my cheek. “Could have been someone from work that escorted him to New York, or just a local escort he hired. We’ll press him on that when we get him back here.”
Lutz checked the notes in front of him. “His plane is scheduled to arrive at O’Hare tonight. What’s your gut saying, Jesse? You think it was a hired hit?”
I folded my arms over my chest and let out a puff of air. “Wives always seem to get murdered when the husband is out of town, so yeah, that’s what Frank and I think. A divorce means the hubby would be looking at a lot of maintenance payments, child support for two kids, and splitting all the assets. It’s the age-old battle about money, and when somebody coincidentally turns up dead just before a divorce, the spouse is usually responsible.” I shook my head. “People are so damn ignorant. Even with his iron-clad alibi of being out of town, we’re going to assume that Hal Morton hired someone to kill his wife.”
“Okay, get a warrant for his bank records, and then see how much life insurance was on the wife. Talk to everyone the husband knows and see what shakes out. Find out if either of them stepped outside the marital bedroom and check out that woman he was with too. The kids are still with the aunt?”
I stood and walked toward the door. “For now, yes. She said she’d take the week off work if she had to. I’ll keep you updated as we learn more.”
“Sounds good, and Jesse?”
I looked back at Bob. “Yep?”
“Remember what I said earlier about payback. John Vance and his brother are extremely dangerous men.”
“I know, and hopefully that scumbag and all his thugs will be in lockup soon.”
When I walked out of Lutz’s office, my mind was heavy with the weight of a brand-new murder case and a criminal from my past, back when I worked Narcotics. I’d never shared with anyone the final words John Vance had said to me when I made the arrest, and now I wondered if payback was still on his mind.