King and Maxwell

CHAPTER 63

EARLIER THAT DAY KATHY BURNETT had stepped out of her house and headed down the street. She had a tennis racket under her arm and a can of balls in her hand. She was planning to hit the balls against the wall in the park three blocks down.

And she wanted to think about Tyler. He had not been at school, and she wondered why. She had gone by his house but there had been no one there, although the Wingos’ truck had been in the driveway.

All the Wingos, it seemed, had disappeared.

She turned the corner and reached a stretch of trees that carried over to the next block. She was so focused she never heard the van pull up next to her, and didn’t hear the door slide open.

The next instant she was off her feet, a hand holding a moistened cloth around her face. She took a deep breath and then fainted. The van door closed and the vehicle drove off. Kathy’s racket and can of balls were all that was left on the sidewalk.

The van drove for well over an hour, winding through back roads and keeping well away from populated areas. Its destination was the little cabin in the woods where nearby Jean Shepherd was buried. The cabin was dark, but there was a car parked outside it.

The van slowed to a stop and a man climbed out, opened the sliding door, lifted out the still-unconscious Kathy, and carried her into the cabin.

She was tied to a chair and blindfolded. Her mouth was not taped shut. They wanted her to talk. And there was no one nearby who would care about her screaming.

The van driver stepped back and put his shoulder against the door into the cabin. Alan Grant drew up a chair and placed it about a foot away from where Kathy sat slumped in her seat. He studied her features, prepared his line of questioning. He was not desperate in his search to find Sam Wingo, at least not yet. But he was running out of time and he hoped Kathy Burnett could provide him a shortcut.

He waited patiently until she came around. Her head flopped from side to side as she regained her senses, and then she held her head up and looked around. Obviously, all she could see was the inside of the cloth covering her face.

Grant touched her on the arm, which made her jump and scream.

He had done that deliberately. He needed her to have a measure of calm, but he also wanted her to feel scared, intimidated, and desperate.

“Who are you?” Kathy said in a quavering voice.

“Someone who just wants to talk, Kathy.”

“Please… please don’t hurt me.”

“No one is going to hurt you, Kathy. I just want to talk. And I need you to do something for me.”

“What?”

“Tyler Wingo. He’s your friend, isn’t he?”

She nodded, her body shaking so badly the legs of the chair were shifting slightly.

“Well, I want to help him.”

“No, you don’t. Why would you kidnap me and tie me up if you want to help him?”

Grant smiled. She was showing some spirit now. But the fear would return. It always did. “It’s complicated, Kathy. Very complicated. These things are. You know what Sam Wingo is accused of doing?”

“I don’t believe it,” she said heatedly. “He’s a good man. He would never steal that money. He was a soldier.”

“I actually believe you, Kathy. I don’t think he did it either. But others do. And those others can harm him and Tyler. I’m here to prevent that.”

“No you’re not!” she snapped. “You want to hurt them.”

“I’m going to take your blindfold off and show you something, okay?”

Grant nodded to the other man, who turned and left the room. Grant moved behind Kathy.

“Do not turn your head around, Kathy. Stare straight ahead. What you’ll see hopefully will convince you of my good intentions.”

He held something out in front of her and with his other hand removed the blindfold. Kathy blinked her eyes rapidly and then focused on what was in front of her.

“You’re with the CIA?” she exclaimed breathlessly as she stared at the cred pack held in front of her.

“Yes. Undercover, which is why I can’t let you see my face. What Sam Wingo is involved in is very serious. We believe he was set up, but we have no proof. Wingo is not going to trust anyone, including us. But we have to communicate with him somehow. Make him come in and work with us.”

“But why do you need me to do that?”

“We tried to reach out to him, but like I said, he’s not trusting anyone. I think he’ll trust you, Kathy.”

“What do you want me to do?”

“Can you contact Tyler and let him know that you want to meet with him? You pick the place. Make it very public so you’ll both feel safe.”

“But what do you want me to tell him?”

“That his father needs to contact us. That he needs to come into Langley. You know about Langley, right?”

“It’s your headquarters.”

“That’s right, Kathy. There are people there who care about what happens to Sam Wingo. They want to make this right. But the longer he’s out there, the worse it’s going to get. You can see that, right?”

She slowly nodded, still staring at the CIA badge he kept holding in front of her. This was a very deliberate action by Grant. He needed her to believe he really was with the CIA and a “good guy.”

“So you’ll do it? You’ll call him?”

“I guess I can. But I can’t guarantee that he’ll meet with me.”

“I know that. But I think he will. I think he likes you and trusts you. I know he wants the best for his father, and so do we. And his father will trust Tyler. I’m sure of it.”

Grant held up her phone, which had been taken from her previously.

“I’m going to hit Tyler’s number.”

“I could just text him.”

“I think he needs to hear your voice. If you text him he can’t be sure it’s from you.”

“Oh, right. I forgot about that. But where should we meet?”

“How about Tysons mall? There’s a Starbucks there, right? I know it’s not that close to where you both live, but it’s a central place with lots of people.”

“Yeah, we’ve actually gone there sometimes.”

“We’ll take you to the mall and drop you there. You meet with him. Deliver the message. And then you go home. And we’ll take it from there. How’s that sound?”

“That sounds really good,” she said, relief in her voice.

Grant smiled. “I thought it would. And your country really appreciates your help.”

He hit the key for Tyler’s speed dial.

He had to call the number twice before Tyler picked up.

“Kathy?”

She delivered the message as calmly as possible.

“I’ll meet you there,” said Tyler. He clicked off.

Kathy looked at Grant.

“You did the right thing,” he said. For me.