I TRIED CALLING TONY a couple times to see how court went, but the calls went immediately into his voicemail. Serena had texted and said she was home and was going to lie down for a nap, so I thought I’d give her another half hour before I called. Her pregnancy had significantly increased her need for sleep.
My cell phone buzzed, so I retrieved it from the console. “This is Jon Frederick.”
“Jon, it’s Paula.” She was distraught, her voice vibrating with unchecked emotion. “Tony was shot and left for dead.” She managed to choke out, “He isn’t going to make it.”
My brain immediately went into crisis mode. “I’m on my way back from Duluth, about an hour away from the Twin Cities. I promise to get there as fast as I can. Where is he, and what happened?”
It was silent for a moment as Paula gathered her composure. “He was airlifted to Fairview. Tony was shot in his vehicle—a couple shots through the window and four more through the door. It all went down about two hours ago. Al Brennan’s on the run in his pick-up truck, so we’ve issued an APB on it. From what I’ve read in the report, you’d think they’d be able to hear it a mile away,” she sniffed.
Shocked, I asked, “Wait, what? How did Al get out of prison?”
“He was released at the hearing. After reviewing the evidence, the judge determined Jason likely committed perjury. He didn’t feel it was fair,” she said in a mock whine, “to make Al wait in prison for a retrial. After all, with the verdict thrown out, Al isn’t guilty of anything.”
“I thought this was a preliminary hearing!” I was incredulous. My foot automatically pressed down on the accelerator.
Resigned, Paula sighed raggedly. “No one thought he’d get released. You know how Tony can get. He and Al got into it in the parking lot after court,” she sobbed slightly. “And Al came back and found him. I’d love to go after Al, but Tony’s more important right now. I want to spend the last few moments I can with him. I probably won’t call again.” She was choking up.
“I’ll get there as fast as I can.”
First, I was going to call Serena to make sure she was behind the secure doors in my apartment, then I’d pick her up and we would go to the hospital together. My hands strangled the steering wheel in desperation as I sped toward my home.