Lynette Eason - Justice Mission

The car roared to life and spun out of the lot.

* * *

Luke stared in horror as he realized he’d just witnessed Sophie being kidnapped. He pressed the gas and the SUV shot after the fleeing sedan.

Bruno, his K-9 partner seated safely in his spot in the back, barked. “I know, boy,” Luke murmured to the German shepherd. “I’m going after her.” Luke grabbed his radio. “Officer needs backup. I have 207 in progress. Repeat, kidnapping in progress. Sophie Walters, Chief Jameson’s assistant, is the victim. In pursuit of a brown Buick sedan, license plate Eddie-Larry-Peter-four-seven-five-eight. Closing in on pursuit position.” He gave his location and kept a watch for other cars and innocent bystanders.

Unfortunately, Sophie’s kidnapper didn’t have any such concern. The man swerved to the right and around a parked car, then up on the sidewalk. People scattered like ants. A trash can bounced off the windshield and Luke yanked the wheel to the left to avoid it. Two police cruisers fell in behind him.

Bruno barked again. Luke knew how the dog felt. “Going as fast as I can, buddy.” He lifted the radio once again. “Just hit Ninety-Fourth, heading straight for Roosevelt Avenue. Need someone to head him off.” Luke wanted to gun the engine, but he didn’t dare. The streets weren’t packed, but enough innocent people were there to keep him careful.

In and out of traffic, the man drove, even in the wrong lane several times. Luke stayed with him. Backup stayed behind Luke. “He just took a right on Broadway. I’m guessing he’s heading for the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway. Repeat, he’s heading toward the BQE.”

Luke received confirmation that officers were en route to that area. “Come on, come on. Slow down. Run out of gas. Anything.”

But the man kept going. Fortunately, Luke’s siren caught people’s attention so that they moved out of the way. Sure enough, the man merged from Broadway onto the BQE. “Heading in the direction of the Triborough Bridge. Somebody stop this guy, but be careful, he’s got a kidnapping victim with him. Sophie Walters. Civilian employee of the NYPD.”

“Copy that,” came the response.

The driver continued his game of dodge and somehow managed to avoid crashing into anything.

Luke followed, staying far enough behind so as not to miss a sudden turn, but close enough not to lose the guy. With each turn, Luke gave the directions, knowing backup would try to cut the guy off. Unfortunately, with no clear destination, he couldn’t give them clear enough direction.

Where was this guy going? How much longer could he drive like this without killing someone? Tension threaded Luke’s shoulders with knots. The kidnapper took another left, heading for one of the more crowded areas of Astoria. The potential for someone to get hurt had just jumped astronomically. Luke requested the area be cleared immediately but knew it wouldn’t be in time.

The fleeing suspect missed a city bus by a fraction of an inch and Luke barely squeaked past it himself. A young man on a delivery bike slammed into the side of a parked car in his desperate attempt to keep from barreling in front of the speeding sedan. Briefly, Luke hoped the poor cyclist hadn’t broken anything.

Luke braked hard when the sedan swerved. Tires squealing, it headed straight for a fruit stand on the corner. Screams echoed. People ran. The vehicle rammed into the stand, sending produce flying and the owner diving out of the way. Luke screeched to a stop and threw the car into Park. He bolted from the driver’s seat and hit the remote button that opened Bruno’s area. Bruno leaped out to follow as Luke raced toward the wrecked vehicle in time to see the driver grab Sophie by the arm and pull her from the car.

“Stop! NYPD!” Luke dodged the fleeing crowd and fought his way toward Sophie. “Sophie!”

“Luke!” Her terrified scream spurred him faster. Bruno stayed with him. Backup was right behind him, adding their commands to stop.

Sophie struggled against her captor, and he yanked her hard. She stumbled. Luke closed in, reaching for her. And then the man shoved her away from him. Sophie let out another scream as she flew toward Luke, barreling into him, knocking him off balance.

He fell back, tripping over Bruno, who yelped and scrambled to move out of the way. Luke’s back hit the sidewalk with a breath-stealing thud. Sophie landed on top of him and the last of his air left his lungs. From the corner of his eye, he caught sight of the man disappearing into the nearest building. Officers pounded after him.

Gasping, Luke rolled. “You okay?” he wheezed to Sophie.

She groaned and pressed a hand to her head.

Luke staggered to his feet, then helped her up as other officers rushed past them, going after the kidnapper. Two more slowed as though to check on them and Luke waved them on. They took off and Sophie leaned heavily against him. Bystanders crowded around, asking if they were okay while he held her, trying to discern where she was hurt.

Her usually neat bun had fallen, and her long brown hair lay in disarray across her shoulders. He brushed the strands from her eyes and she blinked up at him. “Talk to me, Sophie. You’re okay, right?”

“Yes. I... Yes,” she whispered. “I...I think so.”

He caught sight of the blood on the side of her head. “Wait a minute. You’re not okay. We need to get you checked out.”

“No, it’s all right. Just give me a minute to catch my breath and let my head stop spinning.”

“You’re hurt. You need a hospital.”

She touched her head with a wince. “No, what I need is to get back to the auditorium. We’ve got a graduation that needs to go on.”

“Sophie—”

“I’m serious. That guy was only after me because I saw him messing with Chief Jameson’s folder on the podium. I want to know what he was doing and if he left something behind that would tell us who he is.” She grimaced. “Then you can go after him again.”

For a moment Luke could only stare at her. She’d been kidnapped, knocked in the head, driven through the city at breakneck speed, and all she could think about was getting back to see what the guy had been up to? “You’re amazing.”

She blinked. “No. I’m mad.”

“All right. Let’s head back to the auditorium, then. While we’re riding, you can fill me in on the details.”

“Thank you.”

Luke caught Bruno’s leash, and Sophie followed him—limping slightly—back to his Tahoe, where she climbed into the front seat and fastened her seat belt. Luke settled behind the driver’s seat and held the radio to his mouth. “Any sign of the guy who kidnapped Sophie?”

“That’s a negative.” The voice came back at him through the speaker. “He disappeared after officers chased him through the store. We’re still canvassing the area.”

“Ten-four.”

By the time Luke pulled into the parking lot at the auditorium, Sophie had filled him in on everything that had led to her kidnapping. And Luke was inclined to agree with her. This wasn’t just some random snatching. The man at the podium had had a goal—and Luke was itching to figure out what it was.

Another car pulled into the lot.

“Everyone is arriving,” she said. “We need to make this fast so we can stay on schedule.”

“Sophie—”

But she was already out of the car and hurrying—limping—toward the door she’d been forced from about thirty minutes ago.

“The ceremony can start late, you know,” he murmured to her back. With a sigh, he let Bruno out and they followed after Sophie. Inside, he found her surrounded by other officers concerned with her safety. She repeated all of her “I’m shaken up but fine” reassurances until they accepted the answer even if they didn’t fully believe it.