Touchdown Tony Crowne and the Mystery of the Missing Cheerleader (18 page)

“I got four bars! I bet I can get more if I stand up. Hey Judd, hold onto the wing so it doesn’t rock when I stand up, okay?”

Judd latched onto the strut with one hand and with the other hand held the wing by its edge. “Go ahead, Tony. I’ll try, but this arrowplane still moves even when I hold her down with all my strength.”

Turning onto his stomach, Tony centered himself on the wing so that he was directly over the windshield area. He figured the boat wouldn’t move as much if he was in the middle. Bringing his knees up underneath him and splaying them out slightly, he seemed to gain a good deal of balance and the seaplane didn’t rock much, probably due to Judd, he thought. Bending over and placing his hands in front of him, Tony stood on his feet, but still kept his hands on the wing and the seaplane bobbed slightly from the shifting of his weight. “Hold it still, if you can, Judd!” Tony half-whispered and half-snapped to him.

“I’m tryin’, I’m tryin’. It’s awkward holdin’ onto this thing!”

Raising himself up from his crouched position, Tony swayed with the seaplane twice then steadied himself to be confident enough to take his phone out of his pocket and look at the display. “I got five bars, Judd!”

“All right! We’re cookin’ with gas now!” laughed Judd.

Tony pressed his Dad’s number, after two rings Anthony Jr. answered and Tony whispered into his phone, “Dad, we found them... Ash and Detective Bouguereau are both being held captive by Tisha and her mother...Yeah, that’s what I said Tisha’s mother, isn’t that weird...You and Officer London need to come quick...We’re over at—”

In the excitement of speaking with his father, Tony forgot for a second that he was standing on an unstable seaplane and shifted his weight slightly by making a gesture with his arm. That and the moisture on the seaplane’s wing was enough to make his legs do the splits and he put his free hand down to break his fall, his other hand he held up so the cell phone would not be damaged. What he didn’t count on was the energy of his fall rocking the seaplane, first toward the dock, then toward the lake. He slid halfway down the wing, grasping the wing’s edge and slowing himself down. The next movement of the seaplane, however, forced him to roll on his back and the hand with the cell phone whipped over and slammed onto the wing. The cell phone launched into the air, bounced once, then slid to the far side of the wing where it stopped, teetered and then plopped into the dark water. He could hear his father calling his name over and over until the cell phone disappeared and sank to the bottom of the lake.

Chapter 29- The Plan

“What’s the matter J.B.? Cat got your tongue? “Tisha’s mother smirked as she walked up to Bouguereau and ran her hand through his hair.

“Do you two know each other?” Tisha asked with a surprised expression on her face.

“Oh, yeah! We go back a long way. Don’t we J.B.? How long has it been? Ten, fifteen, twenty years? I can tell you exactly, J.B. It was twenty-two years ago when you refused to recommend leniency in my trial, even though ol’ J.B. here
knew
I had just given birth to you and he
knew
I would be sentenced to at least five years in jail.” Tisha’s mother bent over and lightly slapped Bouguereau’s cheek several times as she cried out, “Yes, indeed, time really flies when you’re sitting in prison and you miss the first five years of your precious daughter’s life!”

“Madame
, are you quite forgetful of the circumstances or is it just a blind eye, hmm?” Bouguereau said with a cold stare. “How convenient it was for you to steal $25,000 from the Dog & Cat Protection League fund raiser—”

“You stole from puppies and kittens? You ought to be ashamed!” Ash added, “Miss Brady, I’m tired of playing this game. I want to go home!”

“Be quiet, you sniveling, little brat or I’m going to tape your mouth shut!” Tisha’s mother sneered at Ash.

“Oh yes,
Madame
, you already had a criminal record several inches thick when I arrested you. You had conned many charitable organizations throughout the country,” Bouguereau smiled as he said, “And yet, you wonder why I did not recommend leniency?”

“What was that!” Racing to the door, Tisha opened it and said, “I thought I heard something outside.” Her mother joined her and they stood outside the door to listen.

Seizing the opportunity to speak with Ash, Bouguereau leaned toward her and whispered, “Do not be too afraid,
ma chérie
. I will protect you in any possible way I can. However, I am afraid this is no game. Please believe me when I tell you that
Mademoiselle
Brady has hypnotized you. Do not trust her and certainly do not trust her mother, no matter what they tell you. Do you understand?”

Ash smiled nervously and nodded.

“I can only hope my colleagues from the police department will figure out where we are and rescue us.” Warily eyeing the two women standing outside the door, Bouguereau went on, “Are you comfortable? Did she tie you too tightly?”

Jiggling the ropes around her wrists, Ash replied, “I think I can get out of this knot. She didn’t tie it too well. It’s pretty loose.”

“Ah, do not escape just yet. We must wait for the right moment. In the meantime, I shall let you in on a little secret.” Bouguereau lifted his cane slightly. “This is a special cane. Do you see this button? If you press it, there is a sword that will come out. It is a very sharp sword and will cut these ropes like butter. When the time is right, you may have to use it to cut me loose. Do you understand,
Mademoiselle
Richardson?”

“I think so—”

In the distance a dog barked and howled, “W-WOOF! R-RUFF! A-ROO-O-OO!”

Ash giggled, excitedly turned to Bouguereau and whispered, “That’s Curly! Tony and Judd must be out there somewhere!”

Glancing back inside, Tisha’s mother noticed them speaking to each other. With a little “grr” sound, she strode back in and demanded, “You two can cut out the whispers. Whatever little escape plan you’re trying to hatch, it won’t work. We’ll be leaving as soon as possible. That is, the three of us will be leaving.” She poked her finger hard into Bouguereau’s chest and added, “Except for you, you’ll be staying here all by your lonesome.”

Standing with her arms crossed at the top of the outside stairs, Tisha looked inside and with a loud voice informed her mother, “Oh, it’s just a neighbor’s dog.” She raised her arms into the air and asked, “Really, Mother! Look at the fog! How are we going to fly in this weather?”

Her mother turned away from Bouguereau, chuckled and said, “Honey, I’ve been flying for years. I can fly in any weather; I just need to know where to land.” She snapped her fingers, looked about the room and muttered, “That reminds me, did I bring in those charts? I’m going to need them to see how to get to the other lake.”

Tisha glanced around the kitchen and said, “I don’t see them. Let me look in the living room.” She scurried out, searched quickly and yelled back, “They aren’t in here! You must have left them in the plane.”

Her mother let out an audible sigh, unlocked the door, stepped out onto the landing, turned and before closing the door announced, “All right. I’m going to get the charts. I’ll be right back. Make sure everything is packed and ready to go. Also, make sure you do your hypnosis thing with Ash what’s-her-name. I don’t want her having a hissy fit about flying. The last thing I need is a little girl screaming in the plane. And make doubly sure J.B. is tied up tight!”

Walking into the kitchen, Tisha thought about securing Bouguereau’s and Ash’s hands once again, changed her mind and said, “You two look okay. I gotta pack my bag.” She turned and walked out of the kitchen, through the living room and into the bedroom.

Bouguereau watched her enter the bedroom, turned to Ash and whispered, “Now is our time. You must listen very close to what I am about to say. Do you understand?”

Ash looked at Bouguereau, swallowed hard and softly said, “Yes sir.”

He smiled and said, “Good. Here we go.” He glanced toward the bedroom once more then riveted his gaze on Ash. “Dear, when I count to three you will no longer recognize the word
dear
as a command from Miss Brady nor from anyone else, forever. One. Two. Three.”

Giggling, Ash said, “There was nothing to that!”

“Oui
, that was the easy part. Now, for the hard part. You have to make believe, pretend, that you are still hypnotized. When she comes back out, she will undoubtedly give you another command. You must look like this...” Bouguereau tilted his head, opened his mouth and stared vacantly for a second. “But only for a few moments, even better, repeat what she will say. It is very important that they think you are still hypnotized. When they take you down the stairs, as soon as you get to the bottom, kick
Mademoiselle
Brady’s shin as hard as you can and then run fast, fast as your tiny, little legs will carry you, in any direction. They keep saying the fog is heavy, so that will give you cover.”

“But, what about you? I don’t want to go without you!” Ash’s eyes teared up at the thought of leaving her new friend behind.

“Ma chérie
, I shall be all right,” he whispered, smiled and looked at her like she was his granddaughter. “You don’t get as old as me without knowing a few tricks, plus, I still have my trusty cane.” He saw Tisha exiting the bedroom, winked at Ash and said, “Ssh, she is returning. Remember the plan!”

Lugging her suitcase into the living room, Tisha plopped it onto the floor, draped her overcoat onto it and looked for anything else to take with her. Satisfied that she had everything, she bustled into the kitchen, crouched down and untied Ash’s legs from the chair. Staying eye level with Ash, she pointed her finger at her and said, “Dear, you will be so happy about going on a trip. You love flying. You love my mother and you love me.” Tisha looked deep into her eyes.

Ash tilted her head like Bouguereau, let her mouth drop open, stared at Tisha without looking at her and repeated in a monotone voice, “You’re right. You’re right. I love your mother and you. I am happy. I love to fly, really I do.” She closed her eyes for a second, then opened them quickly, bounced on her chair and shouted, “Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go!”

Ah! Bouguereau thought, she is a natural actress.
Que oui
! You betcha!

Bouguereau’s happiness was short-lived, however, as Tisha’s mother stomped up the stairs, threw open the door and slammed it shut several times, yelling and screaming louder with each successive slam.

“Mother! What is wrong!”

“Look! Look at these charts, they’re all wet and probably ruined!” She threw the chart binder on the floor and it made a little squish sound as it bounced off the carpet. She put her hand up to her chin, paced back and forth and glanced at the watch on her wrist. We’ve got to try to dry these charts out. Is there a blow dryer here?”

Tisha thought for a moment and said, “Yes! I saw one in the bathroom.” Her mother cleared the kitchen table and spread out the Hideaway Lake chart while Tisha went to get the blow dryer.

“Oh, this is so soaked! I am furious!” she growled.

Rushing back in, Tisha plugged the blow dryer into the electrical socket, turned it on to ‘High’ and handed it to her mother.

“What is this? A travel dryer? This will take forever!” Her mother yelled above the din of the blowing air. For a good five minutes she passed the blow dryer over and across the chart, checking her watch several times as well. Shaking her head back and forth, she moaned, “I give up. This is not getting dry and I still can’t read it! We have to go, now! Did you pack the money?”

“Yes, it’s in my suitcase.”

“Is the annoying, little brat hypnotized?”

“Yes, she’s all set.”

Ash bounced up and down in her seat, “Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go!”

Tisha’s mother rolled her eyes and said, “Oh, I don’t know what’s worse: the squirt with an attitude or the cheerleader with no brains.” She drew a deep breath, exhaled, turned to Tisha and said, “Okay, we have to get out of here. I’ll grab the suitcase, you grab little Miss Sunshine—”

In an effort to stall and buy time in the hopes the police will arrive soon, Bouguereau interrupted, “
Madame
, surely you realize how dangerous this plan is. How will you find this...this...what was the name of the lake?”

In a voice melting with sarcasm Tisha’s mother set the suitcase down, tapped her finger on the tip of Bouguereau’s nose and said, “Oh, Boogie-Woogie, I never told you the name of the other lake. If, by some miracle you should escape, I’m not going to tell you where we are going!” She smiled wickedly and added, “I will follow up to see if the boys in blue found you in time or not. If they did, oh well. If they didn’t, rest in peace Bouguereau!”

He glared at her with unwavering eyes and said, “You,
Madame
, are one of the most vile creatures I have ever had the displeasure of meeting!”

Tisha grabbed Ash by the elbow, headed for the door and said, “Come on, Mother. We need to leave. Remember the timetable?”

“Yes, yes, yes. I just needed to get one last little jab at my old friend. Ah, I feel so much better now.” Picking up the suitcase and walking out the door, she turned and said, “Turn out the light, Tisha, he won’t need it and we don’t want anyone getting suspicious since Wendell What’s-his-face isn’t in town.”