Split Second

CHAPTER 10

Reston, Virginia

Saturday evening

March 28

R. J. Tully peeled off another ten-dollar bill and slid it under the ticket window. When had movie tickets started costing $8.50 each? He tried to remember the last time he had been to a movie theater on a Saturday night. He tried to remember when he had last been to a movie theater, period. Surely he and Caroline had gone some time during their thirteen-year marriage. Though it would have been early on—before she began preferring her co-workers to him.

He glanced around to find Emma dawdling far behind him, off to the side and at least three moviegoers back. Sometimes he wondered who the hell this person was. This beautiful, tall fourteen-year-old with silky blond hair and the beginnings of a shapely body she blatantly emphasized with tight jeans and a tight knit sweater. She looked more and more like her mother every day. God, he missed the days when this same girl held his hand and jumped into his arms, anxious to go anywhere with him. But just like her mother, that too had changed.

He waited for her at the ticket taker and wondered how she’d be able to sit next to him for two hours. He saw her eyes dart around the crowded lobby. Immediately, his heart sank. She didn’t want any of her new friends to see her on a Saturday night, going to a movie with her dad. Was she really that embarrassed by him? He couldn’t remember ever feeling that way about either of his parents. No wonder he spent so many hours at work. At the moment, understanding serial killers seemed much easier than understanding fourteen-year-old girls.

“How ’bout some popcorn?” he offered.

“Popcorn has, like, tons of fat.”

“I don’t think you have a thing to worry about, Sweet Pea.”

“Oh my God, Dad!”

He stopped abruptly, checking to see if he had stepped on her toes. She sounded so pained.

“Don’t call me that,” she whispered.

He smiled down at her, which seemed to embarrass her more.

“Okay, so no popcorn for you. How about a Pepsi?”

“Diet Pepsi,” she corrected him.

Surprisingly, she waited next to him in line at the concession stand, but her eyes still roamed the crowded lobby. It had been almost two months since Emma had come to live with him full-time. The truth was, he saw even less of her than when they were all back in Cleveland, and he was only a weekend dad. At least then they did things together, trying to make up for lost time.

When they first moved to Virginia he had tried to make sure they had dinner together every night, but he was the first to break that routine. His new job at Quantico had swallowed up much more of his time than he realized. So in addition to he and Emma settling into a new home, a new job, a new school and a new city, she also had to get used to not having her mother.

He still couldn’t believe that Caroline had agreed to the arrangement. Maybe when she got tired of playing CEO by day, and the dating game by night, she would want her daughter back in her life full-time.

He watched Emma’s quick, nervous swipes at the misbehaving strands of her long hair. Her eyes were still casing the theater. He wondered if fighting for full custody had been a mistake. He knew she missed her mother, even if her mother had been less available to her than he was. Damn it! Why did this parenting thing have to be so damn hard?

He almost ordered buttered popcorn, but stopped himself and ordered plain, hoping Emma might change her mind and snitch some.

“And two medium Diet Pepsis.”

He looked to see if she was impressed by her influence on him. Instead, her light complexion paled, as discomfort converted to panic.

“Oh my God! It’s Josh Reynolds.”

Now she stood so close, Tully had to take a step back to collect their sodas and popcorn.

“Oh God! I hope he didn’t see me.”

“Who’s Josh Reynolds?”

“Just one of the coolest kids in the junior class.”

“Let’s say hi.”

“Dad! Oh God, maybe he didn’t see me.”

She stood facing Tully, her back to the young, dark-haired boy who was making his way toward them, his destination definitely Emma. And why shouldn’t it be? His daughter was a knockout. Tully wondered if Emma was really panicked or if this was part of the game. He honestly had no clue. He didn’t understand women, so how could he possibly expect to understand their predecessors?

“Emma? Emma Tully?”

The boy was closing in. Tully watched in amazement as his daughter manufactured a nervous but glowing smile from the twisted panic that had existed just seconds before. She turned just as Josh Reynolds squeezed through the concession line.

“Hi, Josh.”

Tully glanced down to check if some impostor had replaced his obstinate daughter. Because this girl’s voice was much too cheerful.

“What movie you seeing?”

“Ace of Hearts,” she admitted reluctantly though it had been her choice.

“Me too. My mom wants to see it,” he added much too quickly.

Tully found himself sympathizing with the boy, who shoved his hands into his pockets. What Emma called cool visibly took effort. Or was Tully the only one who could see the boy nervously tapping his foot and fidgeting? After an awkward silence and them ignoring his presence, Tully said, “Hi, Josh, I’m R. J. Tully, Emma’s father.”

“Hi, Mr. Tully.”

“I’d offer you a hand, but they’re both filled.”

Out of the corner of his eye he could see Emma roll her eyes. How could that possibly embarrass her? He was being polite. Just then his pager began shrieking. Josh offered to take the sodas before it even occurred to Emma. Tully snapped the noise off, but not before getting several irritated stares. Emma turned a lovely shade of red. At a glance, he recognized the phone number. Of all nights, why tonight?

“I need to make a phone call.”

“Are you a doctor or something, Mr. Tully?”

“No, Josh. I’m an FBI agent.”

“You’re kidding? That is so cool.”

The boy’s face brightened, and Tully saw that Emma noticed. Instead of heading directly for the phone bank, Tully stalled.

“I work at Quantico, in the Investigative Support Unit. I’m what you’d call a criminal profiler.”

“Wow! That is so cool,” Josh repeated.

Without looking at her, Tully saw Emma’s face change as she watched Josh’s reaction.

“So do you track serial killers just like in the movies?”

“I’m afraid the movies make it look more glamorous than it is.”

“Geez! I bet you’ve seen some pretty weird stuff, though, huh?”

“Unfortunately, yes, I have. I really need to make a phone call. Josh, would you mind keeping Emma company for a few minutes?”

“Oh sure. No, problem, Mr. Tully.”

He didn’t look at Emma again until he was safely at the pay phone. Suddenly, his belligerent daughter was full of smiles, genuine this time. He watched the two teenagers talk and laugh while he dialed the number. For the first time in a long time, he felt happy and glad that Emma was with him. For a few minutes, he had almost forgotten that the world could be cruel and violent, then he heard Assistant Director Cunningham’s voice.

“It’s Tully, sir. You paged me?”

“Looks like we may have one of Stucky’s.”

Tully felt instant nausea. He had been anticipating and dreading this call for the last couple of months.

“Where at, sir?”

“Right under our noses. About thirty to forty-five minutes from here. Can you pick me up in about an hour? We can go to the site together.”

Without asking, Tully knew Cunningham meant picking him up at Quantico. He wondered if the man ever went home.

“Sure. I’ll be there.”

“I’ll see you in an hour.”

This was it. After years of sitting behind a desk in Cleveland and profiling killers from afar, this was his chance to prove himself and join the real hunters. So why did he feel sick to his stomach?

Tully made his way back to his daughter and her friend, anticipating her disappointment.

“I’m sorry, Emma, I’ve got to leave.”

Immediately, her eyes grew dark, her smile slid off her face.

“Josh, did you say you were here with your mom?”

“Yeah, she’s getting us popcorn.” He pointed to an attractive redhead in the line. When she noticed Josh pointing, she smiled at him and shrugged at the stagnant line in front of her.

“Josh, Emma, would you mind if I ask Josh’s mom if Emma could join you for the movie?” Tully steeled himself for his daughter’s panic and horror.

“No, that would be cool,” Josh said without hesitating, and Emma immediately seemed pleased.

“Sure, Dad,” she said.

Tully wondered if she knew how cool she was pretending to be right now.

When he introduced himself to Jennifer Reynolds, she also seemed pleased to help him out. He offered to repay her another night by treating all of them to another movie. Then he kicked himself when he noticed her wedding band. But Jennifer Reynolds accepted his offer without hesitation, and with a flirtatious look that even an out-of-practice, newly single guy didn’t need to decipher. Despite his curiosity, he couldn’t help feeling a bit excited.

He smiled all the way to his car, greeting people in the parking lot and jingling his car keys. The evening was still warm and the moon promised to be brilliant despite wisps of clouds. He slid behind the steering wheel and checked his reflection in the rearview mirror, as though he had forgotten the configuration of his face when it was happy. What an unusual feeling, happiness and excitement, and all in the same evening. Two things he hadn’t felt in years, though he knew both would be short-lived. He drove out of the theater’s parking lot feeling he could take on anything and anyone. Maybe even Albert Stucky.