And Then She Was Gone(69)
The man stepped in front of Jack. “Stratton? I had a teacher named Stratton. Ted Stratton. Math.”
Chandler looked like a man who’d just been pardoned; his whole body relaxed. “That’s Jack’s dad.”
Jack held his breath. For some reason, the fact that this was an old pupil of his father’s brought no comfort. Please don’t be some crazed ex-student my dad flunked. Please don’t be.
“Really?” The man scanned Jack like a drill instructor looking over a fresh recruit. His eyes looked as cold as the cement, almost lifeless. “You’re the son he adopted. He talked about you.”
Jack exhaled. “He did?”
The man seemed to relax somewhat. “Tell him Alex Hernandez said hi. Third period calculus.”
Alex Hernandez? Jack had heard the name before, and he struggled to remember where.
Alex reached out and took two cans from the stack. “Soda?” When he held the can out, the candlelight flickered off his gold wedding band.
Anne. Jack gasped. Anne Hernandez’s story was infamous in Fairfield. Anne was a new bride who was murdered. Brutally. Jack tried to remember details.
Anne’s husband Alex was a soldier…
Jack’s breath came in strained puffs. He had seen a TV show about it years ago. The details were long forgotten, but the images were still raw in his mind. The show had included a reenactment, and actual pictures… it had given him nightmares for weeks. And right now, in this dark cellar, those nightmares felt all too real.
Alex stepped forward and set the cans on the floor. Jack cautiously picked up one. Chandler looked down at the other can as if it were a grenade. Jack glared at him. Chandler scowled back and picked up the can.
“Your dad brought a picture of you into class,” Alex told Jack. “The day after you came home.” He arranged the cans to fill the gaps. “He put the picture on his desk next to the one of his wife. Wait… was it your mom who locked you in the closet? You only said ‘she.’”
“No. No.” Jack shook both his hands in front of himself. Some of his soda spilled. “Sorry,” he muttered as he wiped at the puddle with his sneaker. “That was my…” He struggled for a word. He never called his birth mother anything close to the word ‘mother.’ “That was a different lady. Before I was adopted.”
Alex nodded. He looked up at the ceiling. “I forgot to lock the door. You two shouldn’t be down here. I could lose my command. You need to return to the Tock.”
Chandler nodded. “You’re right. We should go.” He motioned to Jack. “Come on. Back to the Tock we go.”
Jack waved Chandler off. “Can I ask you a question? A woman was attacked Thursday night near the pond. Did you happen to see anything?”
“I was downrange, but I didn’t get that mission.” Alex put the palms of his hands against his eyes.
Chandler waved frantically and pointed toward the stairs.
Ignoring him, Jack continued, “Did you see anyone near the fountain? Talk to anyone?”
“No. I don’t talk to people. I don’t engage. My mission is strictly FO.”
“So you’re a Forward Observer? Recon? Then you must have seen or heard something? You have a bed over there. We found your lean-to.”
“Outpost. That’s my outpost. I already reported in. That’s my mission: watch and report in. Check my report. I only saw a few messengers.”
Chandler grabbed Jack’s shoulder. “We’ll do that. Let’s go look at his report, Jack.”
“Wait.” Jack pulled his arm free. “Near the fountain? You saw a messenger?”
“It’s in my report. He was fast. They wear civilian clothes but they’re wired to their RO in the Tock. You need to leave now.”
“What did the messenger at the fountain look like?” Jack asked.
“It’s in my report. Blue shorts. Bright-green sneakers. Tall.” Alex stepped forward and snapped to attention. “You need to go.”
Jack held his hand up, palm out. “I just have one more question. Where—”
The veins in Alex’s neck stood out as he drew in a deep breath. “GET OUT NOW!”
In the confined concrete space, the bellow was so loud it caused Jack’s ears to ring. Alex shifted his weight. He looked ready to charge. He was almost Jack’s height, and when he squared his shoulders, he looked strong.
“Sure thing.” Chandler grabbed Jack’s arm and backed up. “Thanks for the soda.”
Jack hesitated, but Chandler pulled again, and finally Jack started to move.
Alex picked up the candle and stared at them as Chandler dragged Jack toward the stairs. In a clear, calm voice he said, “I warned you.” Then he blew the candle out.