Stuart Woods - Heat

“Thanks for telling me that,” Jesse replied. “Now, I don’t have much time, and I’d better call Kip.” He went to the wall phone and dialed the office number.

“She would never call us Mommy and Daddy,” Arlene said quietly, and a tear ran down her cheek.

“This is Fuller,” Kip said.

“Kip, it’s Jesse.”

“Did you miss your plane?”

“I’m afraid so; I had another stop to make.”

“Another stop?”

“I’m at your house.”

Kip made a sort of strangling noise before he could speak. “Jesse, if you lay a hand on any of them, I swear I’ll have you back in jail today.”

“Kip, Kip; there’s no need for that. Everything is going to be all right.”

“What do you want, Jesse?”

“It’s very simple; I want my little girl.”

“Jesse, you can’t; we’ve adopted her, and it’s all perfectly legal.”

“Kip, take a couple of deep breaths, and listen to me.”

“Let me speak to Arlene.”

Jesse looked at the phone and saw a speaker button; he pressed it. “Arlene is right here,” he said.

Arlene stepped closer to the phone. “I’m here, Kip; we’re all right. He’s seen Carrie; she knew him.”

“I’m sorry he’s put you through this, honey,” Kip said.

Jesse spoke up. “I’m going to try to make this as easy for everybody as I can, Kip. I’m going to explain this to you and Arlene, so please listen.”

“I’m listening,” Kip said.

“And Kip, it would be a very grave error, bad for everybody, if you called the police.”

“I haven’t called anybody, Jesse; tell me what you want.”

“This is how it’s going to be: Carrie and I are going to leave the house in just a minute. Everything is going to be calm and orderly, and there won’t be any fuss.”

“Jesse, you can’t do this,” Kip said. “You’ll put her in very serious danger.”

“No, I won’t do that, believe me, Kip; she’ll be very safe with me and her new mother.”

“Oh, God,” Kip moaned.

“Arlene is taking this better than you are; now settle down and listen to me.”

“I’m listening.”

“First of all, I’m very grateful to both of you for taking such good care of Carrie. Arlene has explained your reasons for not telling me, and I accept them. Because I’m grateful, I’m going to try and forget that you knew Barker framed me—”

“Jesse, I couldn’t prove it.”

“Kip, listen to me. Barker was the only one who could have done it; you knew that, and Barker knows you know; that’s why he’s letting you run this show. I know you felt badly about it, and that’s why you got me out of prison.”

“I had no evidence, Jesse. If I had, I’d have nailed him.”

“I believe you, Kip.”

Arlene spoke up. “I’m going upstairs and pack some things for Carrie.” She left the room.

“Daddy!” Carrie called from the backyard. “Come and see the baby!”

Jesse cracked the door. “I’ll be there in just a minute, Rabbit!” He picked up the telephone receiver. “Kip, listen very carefully, because this is the last time you and I are going to discuss Carrie. She’s coming with me, now, and you’re going to think up something to tell the neighbors — the adoption went wrong, something like that.”

“Jesse, you can’t go on the run with Carrie,” Kip moaned.

“I’m not going on the run,” Jesse said. “I’m going back to St. Clair with Carrie, and now I’m going to explain to you why you aren’t going to do the slightest thing to stop me or get her back.”

“I’m listening.”

“You remember the threat I made to Barker?”

“Yes.”

“I’m withdrawing that; I’m going back to St. Clair and help you nail Coldwater, even though that exceeds our agreement. But if you make the slightest difficulty for me with regard to Carrie, I’ll blow the whole thing sky high. I’ve already made arrangements to do that, unless I periodically make certain phone calls. If, for any reason, I’m unable to make those calls, half the newspapers in the country will receive a certain information packet containing irrefutable proof of what you’re up to. If you make a move on me, Coldwater will immediately know everything, and you know what that means.”

“I know,” Kip said weakly.

“Even if you take Coldwater cleanly and shut down his operation, you still won’t want the papers to know about me, Kip. You’d never be able to explain to the press why you had a convicted murderer released from prison, unless you exonerated me, and Barker can’t let you do that, because he knows he’d go down. Do you understand me?”

“I understand.”

“There’s more than your career at stake, here, Kip; there’s your life. If you make a move on me or Carrie, I’ll find you, and I’ll kill you, and you know I can do it.”

“I know, Jesse.”

“You still have a chance to be a hero in the department, Kip; arrange for Justice to forget about me, and I’ll help you be a hero.”

“I’ll do as you say, Jesse.”

“When this is over, my family and I are going to disappear.”

“I’ll get you in the witness protection program,” Kip said.

“I don’t want that; I’ll make my own life, but you and the federal government are going to have to forget I ever existed.”

“I’ll see to it,” Kip said.

“I want my fingerprint and criminal records destroyed.”

“I’ll do it.”

“I don’t want any problems from Barker.”

“I can handle Barker.”

“If he gives you a hard time about me, tell him I’ll kill him, too. He understands that sort of threat.”

“Barker won’t be a problem; I won’t let him.”

Arlene came back into the room carrying a small suitcase and a teddy bear.

“Goodbye, Kip; I’ll call you from St. Clair.”

“Goodbye, Jess; don’t let anything happen to Carrie.”

“She’ll be fine, I promise you.”

Arlene set Carrie’s things on the kitchen table. “She won’t go anywhere without the bear,” she said.

Jesse nodded. He’d given her the bear when she was no more than an infant. He stepped out the kitchen door and walked to where Carrie was waiting with the baby.

“Isn’t he beautiful?” Carrie said.

Jesse knelt next to the stroller. “He certainly is,” he said. “And do you know something? You’ve got more than a new cousin; you’ve got a new sister.”

Carrie’s eyes widened. “I have? Where is she?”

“You’re coming home with me, and I’ll tell you all about her on the way,” Jesse said, scooping up his daughter in his arms.

In the kitchen he gave her the teddy bear, picked up her suitcase and turned to Arlene Fuller. “Thank you,” he said, then he walked out of the house with his daughter.

Jesse sweated National airport, even though he had told Kip he was leaving from Dulles. He turned in his rent-a-car and, with Carrie in tow, went to the airline counter and bought her a one-way ticket to Spokane, all the while sweeping the area with his eyes. The ticket bought, he went to a phone and called Jenny.

“Hi, everything’s fine; I’m making the plane all right.”

“Good, I’ll meet you in Spokane.”

“How’s Carey?”

“She’s just fine, and she’s looking forward to... seeing you. No problems at all?”

“Not a one; I think I sold some major plywood this morning.”

“See you tonight.”

Jesse had a few minutes before the flight, so he made a tour of the airport shops with Carrie, checking each window for the reflection of a tail. By the time they reached their gate, Jesse’s heart was pounding. The boarding call asked for people with small children first, so he was able to sit on the plane and scan the face of each person who passed them. Any one of half a dozen businessmen fit the type he was looking for, but none of them showed the slightest interest in a man and a little girl.