Branches snapped in the distance. I knew I couldn’t be too far behind him, but I had to stay out of the sights of his high-powered rifle. It had a lot more distance than my sidearm. I inched forward, following the sound even though I couldn’t see him in the thick brush. I stopped and listened. Then I turned and saw Maria and Bill coming up behind me.
I motioned them over. With my voice just above a whisper, I told them my thoughts. “He’s probably fifty yards ahead of us in that direction.” I pointed slightly to my right. “Don’t forget, he’s carrying an AK-47. We’re no match against him. If he sees or hears us, he’ll take down this entire woods.”
“The only thing that will work is if we have a direct visual on him,” Bill said.
I nodded. “Keep your heads on a swivel and stay low. Let’s spread out a bit.”
We used the larger trees as cover and stopped every few yards to scan for movement. When nothing caught our eye, we forged ahead.
A sudden round of gunfire lit up the woods. Branches cracked and dirt sprayed around us.
“Get down!” I hit the ground and tried to see where the shots were coming from.
“He’s straight ahead,” Bill yelled as he returned fire.
Maria screamed. “Son of a bitch, I’m hit.”
“Where?” I scrambled to her side as fast as I could.
“I think he got my calf. It burns like hell.”
I called out to Bill. “I hope you’re covering us. How much ammo do you have?”
“Two more magazines. See how bad Maria’s leg is.”
I pulled up her pant leg and took a look. “It’s a hard graze, Maria, but luckily he only caught the outer part of the muscle.” I tore the sleeve off my guard uniform and wrapped it around her leg. “Keep yourself behind this tree and stay small. No exposed body parts. Got enough ammo if you need it?”
She checked her supply and gave me a nod.
“Okay, call for backup. Tell them we’re a quarter mile in and heading due south.” I belly crawled to Bill. “See him?”
“I don’t see shit, and I don’t hear him anymore, either. I have no idea how deep this woods is, so he could be pretty far ahead of us now.”
“Shh… listen.” I cocked my ear to the right. I cupped my hand over my mouth and whispered. “I hear something over there.”
“It could be a squirrel for all we know. Do you want to push ahead?”
“I don’t know. That man is no joke, and Maria needs medical attention. Five more minutes and we’re calling it off.” I crawled another twenty feet forward and stationed myself behind every large tree I could find. I stood and peeked around an enormous prairie oak. Bullets zinged past my head. “Son of a bitch!” I pulled back and took a deep breath.
“Jade, he isn’t worth it. We’ll get the Pirelli brothers to talk. I’m sure between the police force and the FBI, those two are already in custody.”
“You’re right. Let’s back out of here.” I jerked my head toward the sound of a car door and a female voice screaming. I knelt to the ground and cautiously looked over a downed tree. In the distance I saw a clearing and a car speeding away. “That maniac just carjacked someone!” I ran through the woods in that direction and heard Bill yelling at my back. I cleared the tree cover and spotted a woman who looked to be in her fifties lying on the pavement. Her knees were scuffed and bleeding. I spun in every direction to see if I’d get a visual on our suspect, but he was gone. “Ma’am, are you okay? Let me help you up. What is this place?”
She jumped at my voice, but the guard uniform I wore must have calmed her.
“It’s the old Calumet Park. This is the only area where people still go for walks. That man came out of the woods with a huge gun right as I was getting out of my car.”
“Consider yourself lucky he only took the car. Let me help you back to my group. We’re going to walk through the woods. Can you manage that?”
“Yes, I’m just shaken up, that’s all.”
“Understood. What’s your name?”
“Janet Cooper.”
“Okay, Janet, I’m Jade. Take my hand, and I’ll lead you out of here.”
We reached Bill and Maria five minutes later. Spelling and Val were already at their side.
“The coast is clear, sir. He took off in this woman’s car.”
“Are you all right, ma’am?” Spelling asked.
“That maniac ripped me out of my car and tossed me across the pavement. I’m scuffed up, but I’ll be okay.” She held out her hand. “I’m Janet Cooper.”
“And I’m SSA Spelling with the FBI. Let’s get you looked at. Bill, give me a hand with Maria. Jade and Val, help Janet back.”
“You got it, boss. How’s J.T.?” I asked.
“He’ll be okay after a few days of hospital food—Julie too.” Spelling looked over his shoulder and gave me a grin.
“You found Julie? Is she all right? Where was she?”
Val spoke up. “Would you believe in the trunk of her car?”
“Oh my God, and there were bullets flying everywhere. She wasn’t hit?”
“Luckily, no.” Val stepped over a log and reached out to help Janet. “They’re both banged up. J.T. got it the worst. He may have a broken jaw and a few cracked ribs. We aren’t sure yet. The EMTs are getting them ready to transport to St. Mary’s.”
“What about the Pirellis?”
Spelling smirked. “We’ve got them in custody. They aren’t going to see the light of day for a while. Now we need them to start singing about the mystery man.”
“I’d be happy to pit one against the other. We’ll get in their heads, sir, and somebody will tell us what we need to know.”
We reached the turnout and road. Backed into the brush was that dark van we had a BOLO out for. Spelling said Forensics was on their way. Valuable information was likely inside the vehicle. Janet gave us a thorough description of her car as we exited the woods, and Spelling put out an APB for it. Cautious apprehension was advised. The driver was most assuredly armed and dangerous.
I looked out at the people, vehicles, and mayhem that had been spread over that seemingly quiet, pristine road just ninety minutes earlier. A makeshift triage area had been set up to get J.T., Julie, Cam, and Maria stabilized. They were loaded in the ambulances and taken away. The last EMT on site cleaned and bandaged Janet’s scuffed knees before he left.
Spelling, Hopkins, and the rest of the agents were huddled against the hood of Spelling’s cruiser, and I walked over. “So, did the package arrive at Rosemond Diamonds safe and secure?” I managed an exhausted smile.
Hopkins spoke up. “We’re happy to say it did, and without a single problem. All that’s left to do”—he jerked his head at several cruisers where the Pirelli brothers were cuffed in the backseats—“is to get those oversized monkeys to the holding cells and begin the interrogations.”
Spelling waved an officer over. “Jade, have that officer take Janet’s statement, then he can drive her home. We’ll do our best to get her car back to her as soon as possible.”
“Yes, sir, and then is it okay if I head to St. Mary’s to check on J.T. and Julie? I haven’t had a word with him in so long. I need to know how they are.” The gravity of the week was setting in and my eyes teared up.
Spelling squeezed my shoulder. “You bet.” He looked at all of us standing in the road. “I couldn’t be more proud of the group of agents we have here in Milwaukee. You guys go over and above what is expected of you.”
“We’re family, sir.”
Spelling grinned. “Damn straight, Monroe.”