Джеймс Паттерсон - The 13-Minute Murder

Howard stood there, shocked for a moment.

Then he saw Susan and smiled.

Chapter 44

Beck struggled to get out of the suicide vest. He knew it didn’t really change anything. If Morrison triggered the bomb, he’d still die. But at least he wouldn’t actually be wearing the thing.

But it wasn’t as easy as just taking it off. He was still locked to Pierce, and he had to get his arm out of the raincoat and his jacket.

Pierce wasn’t exactly being cooperative, either.

She pulled against him, reaching for the door handle, as if she could drag him outside of the limo.

He engaged in a useless tug-of-war with her for a few moments before Beck remembered he had a gun. He showed it to her. She stopped struggling.

They both sat back in the limo’s seat, staring daggers at each other.

Then Beck remembered something.

He reached into his pocket. There it was.

The shim, the metal strip that Louis had given him when he’d opened the cuffs before.

It seemed like a lifetime ago. He hadn’t seen the YouTube video that Louis mentioned. But Louis had told him how it worked. He tried to remember the mechanic’s instructions. Louis. He was sure now that they had killed him. He just knew it. And it was all Beck’s fault.

He put the strip of metal into the ratcheting mechanism of the cuffs. Then tightened. It hurt his wrist.

And then, the cuffs slipped on the metal and popped open. Just like magic.

Even Pierce looked impressed.

“What did you just do?” she said.

“Quiet,” Beck snapped. Now for the really tricky part. Taking off the vest.

“Did they booby-trap this?” he asked Pierce.

She just looked at him coldly.

“If they did, you’re going to be the second person who hears the bang,” he reminded her.

“I don’t know,” she spat. “I left the details to them.”

“Right,” Beck said, suddenly even more disgusted. “You don’t get your hands dirty. You let other people do that. You just step over the bodies when they’re done.”

She shrugged. “Sometimes sacrifices have to be made.”

“And people like Kevin Scott and Todd Graham are the ones who make them,” Beck snapped. “And Jennifer Scott and Louis. They were good people.”

Pierce smirked at him. “No such thing, Doctor.”

She didn’t deny that they had killed Jennifer and Louis. So it was true. Beck was suddenly enraged again. He didn’t care what happened next. He just wanted to wipe that smirk off her face.

He tore open the Velcro straps of the vest.

Both he and Pierce froze, waiting for the explosion.

Chapter 45

Susan couldn’t move. Looking like something from a horror movie, Howard began to reach inside the van for her.

No. Not for her. For the laptop.

But before he could put his hands on it, Danielle grabbed it and pulled it back.

Howard wasn’t pleased. “You’re interfering with a federal investigation,” he growled.

“And you’re interfering with my interview,” Danielle shot back.

Howard looked like he’d been slapped. “That woman is a fugitive from justice—” he began.

But Danielle cut him off. “Really? On what charge?”

“That’s classified,” Howard said.

Suddenly he winced and stepped back out of the van as lights blazed in his face. Danielle’s cameraman had turned on his camera, and the light was pointed right at Howard.

“Classified?” Danielle said with a snort of contempt. “Secret charges? Really?” She was thrusting a microphone at him. “That’s even crazier than what she was telling me. Do you want to try again for the viewers at home, sir? What is your name? Who is your superior? Do you have a warrant?”

Howard stepped back, looking like each question was another blow to the head. His hand began to drift toward his holster.

Susan froze. She’d seen Howard kill. She knew he would do it again.

But Danielle had not. She was behind the camera, and she thought it made her invulnerable.

“Why won’t you answer these questions, sir? May I see your badge?”

Howard took another step back. His hand was under his jacket now.

Susan held her breath.

“Again, sir, who are you, and what do you want with this woman? Is it related to the hostage situation inside? You’re live, sir. Please speak up.”

Howard glared at the newswoman, then dropped his hand from under his jacket. He turned, and walked back into the crowd.

Susan let out a deep sigh of relief. Apparently not even Howard was crazy enough to shoot a reporter live on camera.

Danielle leaned forward and slammed the van’s door again, shutting out the noise of the crowd. “Asshole,” she said, not even remotely aware of how close she had just come to getting shot.

She turned back to Susan. “All right,” she said. “That was interesting. Let’s get you on the air.”

Susan thought, for a moment, she hadn’t heard the other woman properly. “You believe me?” she asked.

“Oh, God, who knows?” Danielle said. “But you’ve got a hell of a story, and that’s enough for me.”

Chapter 46

Inside the limo, nothing happened.

The bomb did not go off.

Beck and Pierce both let out a huge sigh of relief.

Beck stashed the vest behind the front seats, as far away as he could manage. Again, it wouldn’t make a difference. But it made him feel better.

Small comforts. Like a kid hiding under a blanket to get away from the monsters. Even psychiatrists aren’t immune from that kind of thinking, Beck realized.

He began to put his jacket and the raincoat back on. He wasn’t sure what he was going to do next, but it would probably be smart if people outside the limo thought he was still wired to explode.

But he wasn’t paying attention to Pierce. He turned his head for a moment, and heard the clunk of the limo’s door opening.

He’d forgotten they were no longer cuffed together. She was trying to get away.

She was his only shield. Without her in the car, Morrison or Howard would be happy to activate the bomb.

Beck couldn’t let that happen.

Pierce was almost out the door when he grabbed her. He got a handful of her suit jacket. His fingers slipped. He snagged her foot. She kicked him, losing one of her expensive shoes.

But she tripped and fell.

Beck scrambled after her. She kicked him again, in the face. It hurt.

They were both wedged in the car door when he got his arm around her throat again. He hauled her to her feet and put the gun at her head once more. She elbowed him viciously in the ribs once, but he managed to hold on.

When he looked up, once again, he was facing a firing squad. And this time, they had reinforcements.

It seemed like an entire army battalion had surrounded the limo while he was inside.

Beck looked around wildly. He saw the same federal agent who’d spoken to him before. She’d apparently taken charge of the whole situation. Again, she looked at him from behind a gun.

“Let her go!” she screamed.

Beck shook his head. He needed the truth to come out.

“I want to talk!” he shouted. “To the president!”

The agent scowled back at him.

“That’s going to take a little time. She’s on her way to a secure location now because of this little stunt you pulled.”

Good, Beck thought. Maybe that will keep her safe from Damocles. But he had to get the whole truth out. That was the only way to make sure this ended.

Then he realized he was speaking live to an audience of millions. He looked at the cameras, just beyond the police barriers.

He could tell the whole world what was really happening right here and right now.

“I want to talk to her on the phone!” Beck shouted. “She needs to know that Senator Pierce and Damocles—”