Raven: A political thriller (9 page)

“Where’s your car?” he whispered.

“Down the block,” she said.

“Good girl.”

Don raised his finger indicating Raven to stay put
while he slowly moved to the door. He stood there and waited. The door knob
slowly turned. When the door swung open, Don grabbed the arm and pulled the
intruder in. Don had him up against the far wall, spread eagled, and the gun
pointed up at the base of the man’s neck. It was then Don realized it was Fred
whom he had pinned.

“Christ, what’s with you? You could have gotten yourself
killed with that move,” Don snapped.

It took a long time for Don to relax his hand and
holster his gun.

“I knew you’d be here,” Fred snapped.

The gunfire rang in Don’s ear. He quickly glanced
around and then felt Fred go limp and collapse to the floor. Don turned and
looked out the door. It was dark out there and nothing could be seen.

Don yelled into the living room. “Call 911, I’ll be
back.”

Don ran to his squad and backed out of the driveway.
He turned off the engine and listened. When he heard an engine start up in the
distance, he quickly pulled out of the dead-end street but once he got there,
he saw nothing. Don turned around and got out of the car, then ran back into
the house.

Raven was bending over Fred with her hand pressed
tightly on the wound to stop the bleeding. The blood was pumping steadily
through her fingers, though.

In the distance all that could be heard was a dog
barking. The neighbors’ lights were coming on to see what all the commotions
was all about. Don hurried over to Raven and Fred and took over, putting his
hands on the wound. Fred’s breathing became shallow. By then Raven was somewhat
in shock.

Don was relieved when he heard the sirens, as they
were getting closer. He knew Fred’s wound was serious and he had lost a lot of
blood in that short time. What bothered him was that they were outside and how
lucky Raven was because it could have been her if they would have been a
half-hour earlier.

Once the ambulance arrived Don and Raven were shoved
aside. Don had to answer questions. He was trying to be as helpful as he could
without revealing details of his own investigation. He knew the Chief was not
going to be happy with him, but there was nothing more he could do.

Don sat on the steps of the front porch with Raven
at his side. He watched as Fred was wheeled away on a stretcher and slowly
hoisted into the waiting ambulance. Time was of the essence and doors were
quickly shut. They watched as the sirens came on and the unit disappeared,
followed by a squad. When an officer goes down every police officer on duty at
the time takes a special interest in the case.

Don just shook his head and then turned to Raven. “I
got to get you out of here,” he said, looking concerned.

“I’ll be safe at my parents’,” Raven replied.

Don laughed. “You thought this was a safe haven
here, and look how that turned out.”

“It couldn’t have been me they were after. He’s a
cop. Someone must have followed him here,” Raven snapped and then looked at
Don. “This is expected in your line of work.”

Don just shook his head in disbelief. “You’ve been
watching too may cop shows. We live quiet, mundane lives. People don’t go
around trying to kill us for no reason,” Don said and then paused at he stared
at Raven for the longest time. “Trust me, they were after you.”

Raven glanced around the room. Even in the dark of
night, she could still see the remains of her life on her floor. She knew
nothing, and was angry with Willie now for keeping her in the dark. Because she
wanted this all to stop, she wanted the people who did this to pay for all the
turmoil they’d caused. Raven just looked up at Don and shook her head.

“But I know nothing.”

“They don’t know that. You spent five days with
Senator Maxfield working on God only knows what, they figure you have to know
something?”

“Willie wouldn’t tell me. He said the less I knew,
the better off I was.”

“Well someone thinks you know more than you should,”
Don said and ran his fingers through his hair. “I am not leaving you here.”

“You can’t make me.”

“Unless you come with me, I’ll put you in jail in
protective custody.”

Raven was about to object, but Don looked sternly at
her and pointed an accusing finger.

“You heard me!” he snapped.

Don’s pager went off suddenly, interrupting their
argument. He pulled it out and then stared at the number.

“You going to answer it?” she asked.

“I don’t have to, that’s where we are going.”

Don took Raven by the arm. He let her back into the
house for a few minutes. While she turned off the lights in the living room,
Don stared down at the blood in the foyer. It bothered him that Fred took a
bullet. In his mind, he was trying to relive that moment. He was positive Raven
was in the line of fire and feared the bullet Fred took was meant for Raven. He
didn’t want to tell her what he thought. She was having a hard enough time
dealing with what was happening around her.

Chapter 15

Don slept in that Saturday. After two nights of
little or no sleep, he finally felt refreshed. Slowly, he walked into the
bathroom wearing only his pajama bottoms, stretching as he made his way. He
splashed cold water on his face to take away the sleepy eyes that stared back
at him. He almost felt half human again as he stared at the image before him.
He brushed his teeth as last night started to seep into his memory. It was the
sound of laughter downstairs that caused everything to finally set in. He spit
the toothpaste out, cupped his hands under the faucet and took a sip, and then
spit that out. Don wiped his mouth off quickly and then made his way down the
stairs.

There, sitting on the living room couch, was Raven
next to Maggie going over baby pictures of Don. He stopped in his tracks at the
bottom of the stairs as Bear growled at Don while sitting next to Raven, who
was running her free hand along his neck.

“Ma,” Don said with a tone of annoyance, while
staring at the two sitting on the couch.

Maggie just glanced up and smiled while Bear gave
out a low growl.

“We were waiting for you to get up. I was just
telling Raven what a beautiful baby you were.”

Raven shrugged her shoulders as she stared up at
Don’s bare chest. “I don’t mind. It was good to take my mind off all that’s
going on.”

Maggie patted Raven on the knee. “Now don’t you
fret, dear. Don will make it all better.”

Don glanced at Maggie and rolled his eyes, wishing
she wouldn’t make promises like that. He turned to Raven and stared at her for
the longest time before he regained himself.

“Did the hospital call?” Don asked.

Maggie shrugged. “No news is good news.”

Don just turned and started walking into the kitchen
while Maggie turned to Raven.

“I should show you pictures of Don’s first day in
kindergarten. He cried all the way there.”

Don turned to Maggie quickly and shook his head.
“I’m supposed to be protecting her, not boring her with baby pictures.”

“I don’t mind,” Raven said with a smile.

Maggie chirped with pride in her voice, “All three
of my boys were carbon copies of their father.”

“I’m an only child,” Raven said.

“You’re lucky you didn’t have a brother. Men can be
so difficult growing up.”

Don wasn’t gone long. The call was quick, the news
somewhat good. While in the kitchen he poured a cup of coffee and then walked
back into the living room.

Raven glanced up from the photo album. “What did
they say?”

“Fred made it through surgery. He’s in recovery now.

Maggie quickly got up and walked past Don. “I’ll
make breakfast.”

“You don’t have to on my account. I should be
leaving,” Raven argued.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Don asked.

“I don’t know, but I know I can’t stay here.”

“Why not?” Maggie argued. “I have plenty of room.”

Raven turned to Don. “I have a life, a job that I
need to get back to,” she argued.

Maggie looked over at Raven. “It’s the weekend,” she
said, reminding Raven of what day it was.

“Also, there are people who want you dead.”

“What about my parents?”

“I’ll talk to your father and let him know you’re
safe.”

“Oh he’s going to love hearing from you,” Raven
snapped.

Don laughed to himself because he knew exactly what
she meant. He hadn’t given the doctor a good impression of himself. But he also
knew the doctor was concerned about his daughter and knew he understood the
seriousness of the situation. Two attempts had been made on the Senator’s life.
The fact that they trashed Raven’s house was a clear indication they were
trying to clean up loose ends now.

Don looked sternly at Raven and then continued, “And
no phone calls. I don’t want them coming here looking for you.”

Raven turned to Maggie, who was startled by Don’s
abruptness and the tone of his voice. Raven then glanced at Don with a look
that was sincere.

“I promise.”

“If you have to make any calls, do it on my cell
phone,” Don said as he handed Raven his phone.

Raven just slipped it in her pocket.

“I’ll take Maggie’s. Her number is programmed in so
if you need to call me, go into speed dial.”

Raven quickly went into speed dial and then smiled
when she realized Don had his mother’s phone number as number one in his speed
dial.

“Why would I need to call you?” Raven asked, shaking
her head.

“In case you need help.”

“You’re scaring me,” Raven said, looking up at him.

“I’m just covering all the bases. You may never need
it.”

Don walked out and left Raven in the care of his
mother. He felt she should be safe, as no one knew she was there and there was
only one person who knew she was still alive. That was the person who set the
Mustang on fire, and he wanted to keep it that way for now.

Maggie walked into the kitchen. She sensed there was
something special about Raven. It was in the way Don looked at her and the fact
he brought her home to protect her. There were safe houses around the city to
care for victims of crime. For him to bring Raven here made her special in
Maggie’s eyes. Plus the fact, she liked Raven.

* * *

Don entered the hospital and quickly took the
elevator up to the fifth floor. Although there was no reason to have a security
guard outside Fred’s door, one was placed there until things could be sorted
out. Don wasn’t asked for his ID, and the officer on duty was a rookie cop Don
saw in the station on numerous occasions. As Don got closer to Fred lying
motionless on the bed it scared him at first, but the steady heartbeat on the
monitor was confirmation that the man lying there was still alive. The IV
dripped fluids directly into his bloodstream.

Don stood near the bed as Fred slowly opened his
eyes. He tried to get up but Don stopped him.

“You have to rest,” Don said.

“What happened?”

“All hell broke loose last night,” Don replied and
then paused before continuing. “Did you see anything when you drove up?”

“I almost missed your car parked in the neighbor’s
driveway. Smart move,” Fred said and then laughed. “There was a car parked two
blocks down, but it was empty.”

“That was probably the car Raven was driving.”

“Then I wasn’t dreaming. That was her I saw?” Fred
said as he caught his breath. “Where did the gunfire come from?”

“Near as we can figure, behind the hedge across the
street.”

“I heard a dog barking, then you opened the door.
That’s all I remember.”

“Charlie is checking out the property owner.
Neighbors say they’re out of town, won’t be back until mid-week.”

“This whole mess could be over by then.”

“I wish.”

“Where’s the VanBuren girl?” Fred asked.

“Safe for now. I want to keep it that way, so don’t
say anything about her still being alive, not even to the Chief.”

“How did you know?” Fred asked staring at Don. He
was curious.

“I didn’t know for sure. It was only after Senator
Maxfield was shot again that things started adding up.”

“What was your first tip-off?” Fred asked.

“Her parents.” Don shrugged in a way that irritated
Fred because he passed it off as Don’s obsession with the portrait.

“Yeah, they did act rather strange,” he said, trying
to cover up the fact he had missed their reaction to their daughter’s untimely
death.

“It didn’t make sense.”

“I guess that’s what years on the force will do.”

Don shook his head. He disagreed with Fred. “No,
that’s knowing human nature.”

Suddenly a CODE BLUE came over the hospital intercom
system. A nurse scurried around outside, and then ROOM 542 was broadcasted. Don
turned to Fred quickly with concern on his face.

“That’s the Senator’s room.”

Don rushed out of Fred’s room and followed the nurse
to the room with all the activity. He tried entering but was pushed out by a
nurse. All Don could do was watch as the crash cart was wheeled in. The doctor
frantically tried to get a pulse while a nurse was pumping oxygen into the
Senator. The doctor quickly reached for the paddles. He turned up the dial,
listened for the hum as the machine quickly wound up, and then once the machine
reached the proper frequency, the doctor quickly yelled out.

“Clear,” the doctor ordered.

Once the patient was clear of everyone, the doctor
quickly pressed the paddles to the Senator’s chest. The Senator’s body jumped
as if convulsing. This process was repeated two more times without success.
Finally the doctor flipped the switch on the crash cart. He turned and glanced
at the nurses, who were standing by silently, and then looked at his watch.

“I’m calling it,” he said and then continued. “Time
of death, 8:38 am.”

One of the nurses quickly wheeled the crash cart out
while the other nurse made the notation on the chart. She handed the clipboard
to the doctor, who quickly signed off on it. The doctor walked past Don and
started walked down the hall. Don quickly followed after him.

“What happened?” Don asked.

The doctor stopped and turned to Don. He shrugged.
“I don’t know.”

Don hurried over to the nurse’s station at the end
of the long hall. He waited until the nurse hung up the phone and then quickly
asked what was bothering him. “Where’s the cop that was posted,” he said,
pointing down the hall to the Senator’s room.

The nurse just glanced up at Don, appearing somewhat
puzzled by his insistence. “It wasn’t my day to watch him,” she snapped. Her
sarcasm was clearly noted.

Don’s eyes narrowed as he stared down at the woman
in front of him. There had been too much crap happening lately that he had no
control over. It angered him when lives were at stake, and he didn’t take
kindly to defiance during an investigation. His nostrils flared as he started
barking orders.

“I want all those rooms checked,” he said, pointing
to the rooms down the long hall.” And then he stared down at her. “I don’t want
anyone entering the Senator’s room until the lab boys are done in there.”

No sooner than Don got the words out, a loud scream
that came from the Senator’s room. Don ran back down the hall to the room in
time to see the nurse standing in front of the open bathroom door. He hurried
over there, only to see the uniformed officer sitting up against the vanity with
a third eye in the middle of his forehead. Don just shook his head. He would
have preferred chewing the young officer out rather than going to his funeral.

Don turned to the two nurses nearby. “Anyone see
anything?” Don asked.

The two nurses looked bewildered. Granted, they
dealt with death on a daily basis, but the officer being shot like that was not
something anyone could get used to.

* * *

Don was in Fred’s room. The curtains were closed to
allow Fred to rest. But Don pacing the floor like a caged cat was unnerving
even for Fred, who was still heavily sedated.

“Now what,” was all Fred could muster up to say.

“How in the hell should I know?”

Don shook his head and then stopped and drew the
curtains back. He stared out the window for the longest time.

Fred tried to get up, but the pain was too great. He
reached for the bed controls and raised the back of the bed until he was almost
in a sitting position, then he just stared at Don.

“You’re walking a fine line.”

Don turned to him and then shook his head. “They’re
not after me.”

“They weren’t after me either. I only got in the
way,” he snapped and then after a long silence he continued, “Someone wants her
dead.”

Don felt chills run up his spine. There was nothing
more he could do there. Fred was no longer in danger, but Raven, on the other
hand, was like a sitting duck. Especially if someone followed him last night.
Don hurried out of the door and left the hospital. It was a long drive to his
mother’s house and traffic was heavy for a Saturday morning, making him even
more nervous than he was.