The Aftermath

41

Tom is at the poker table at 10:37pm when the email comes from coronerkiller@yahoo.com. He is down twelve-hundred dollars. The phone chirps and he excuses himself from the table and goes to a corner to read the message.

She's a live one, I'll give her that. She saved your life. If you find her soon enough, she could live, maybe. She is where it all began. If you hurry, you might even find me as well.

Tom quickly forwards the email to Kemp, and then calls.

"Yeah, just reading it." Kemp tells him and Tom can hear covers being pulled back as the large man gets out of bed. "Do you know where this is?"

Tom was walking quickly out of the casino, "Yeah. The first murder scene. It is a commercial building in Santee, down by the airport."

Kemp sighed and asked, "And you know who this is."

"Charlie. She saved my life in court. He's got Charlie." Tom says as he exits the casino and jogs toward the road.

"What do we do then?" Kemp asked.

"What do we do? We go get her!" Amazed that this wasn't obvious to Kemp.

Kemp's voice was soft but stern. "If you are at the crime scene you are not going to be leaving the country on Monday. They will hold you for at least a week before they let you travel, and that is only if you can find another lawyer. You blow everything if you go. I can call the cops."

Tom reached the other side of the road and headed for his rental car, "Call them. If I get there and the place is surrounded by cops I'll just drive on by, but if there is even a chance of getting to her while she is alive, I got to go Kemp. I have to."

Kemp sighed, "I know. OK. Tell me the address if you remember."

Tom did remember and cited it off to him.

Kemp grunted, "That's a good memory you have doc. I'm on my way, cops are on their way. You are just going to be wasting gas."

"I'm at my car Kemp. I'm leaving now."

"I'm out the door. See you there doc."

#

Tom arrived at the commercial building in fifteen minutes. It looked the same as it did the last time he was here. It was still vacant and available. Having a murder happen in the building probably didn't help the investment value.

It was one of the prime pieces of evidence against him, that he was at each of the murder scenes, and this could be proven by his finger prints being discovered at each building. All of the buildings were like this one; commercial properties which were vacant.

What they didn't tell the jury, and what Charlie hammered into the jury, was that five other people were also at each of the buildings, proven by latent finger prints. That Tom had visited each of the properties over the course of the year, walking through them looking for a real estate investment. That he was also at several other buildings during the same period of time, which his real estate broker verified. That others were also interested in the buildings because they were good investments in prime locations.

There were no cops, no sheriffs no ambulance. The parking lot was empty. Tom pulled up to the front door and got out of the car, leaving it running with the lights on. He tried the front door and found it locked. He also realized at the same time, that he was unarmed.

"Shit! I can remember the address, but can't remember to bring a gun when confronting a lunatic."

Reaching into the car, he found the lever and popped the trunk. A tire iron was beside the spare. He approached the door with it in his hand, as Kemp's Hummer rolled into the parking lot.

Tom didn't stop. He got to the door and swung the iron as hard as he could into glass, which shattered on contact. Tom jumped back as large pieces of glass sliced through the air from the metal frame. Reaching inside he turned the lock lever, and opened the door.

"Fuck doc, where's your gun?" Kemp said coming up behind him.

"Forgot it. I was playing poker." Tom said and darted into the lobby room running in a low crouch, to the door which led into the warehouse area.

"Fucking forgot your gun?" Kemp was close on his heels, his gun out and ready.

Tom put his hand on the door knob and knelt to the side. He met Kemp's eyes. Kemp nodded once and Tom threw the door open.

Kemp took a quick look inside, and then went in, crouched low. Tom followed, running bent over.

He saw her in the middle of the room. "Cover me." Tom rasped and ran to the gurney she was on.

She was strapped down like all the others. Her sternum was sawed asunder. The cage was split and pulled back.

"Do you have a light?" he asked Kemp.

Kemp handed him a small flash light. Tom turned it on and looked at the damage. The first thing he saw was her lungs expand and the contract. "Jesus fucking Christ Kemp, she's alive."

Tom looked around with the flash light and found the standing lamps that were used. He checked them over and then turned them on. The room came sharply into detail. "Kemp! I need a strap and some plastic handcuffs. Improvise!"

Kemp was on the phone with 911 requesting medical assistance and Life Flight. He tossed Tom a nylon strap he found on the table. He then grabbed the electric bone saw left behind, pulled out a knife and cut the power cord. He stripped the black shielding, and pulled out the three inner wires. These he cut off at six inches and handed them to Tom.

Binding the wires through her rib cage he pulled the cage back together, and twisted the wired. He slid the strap under her where the body block raised her spine and then shimmed it up to the middle of her chest. She groaned when Tom brought her body back together. Using the strap he tightened it enough to hold her together. "Where the fuck is the med team!" Tom yelled. Then he heard the choppers coming in.

No, no. No choppers right now. No. Have to concentrate.

Sheriff Deputies, and the paramedics arrived at the same time, rushing into the room. They firmly moved Tom aside and then stopped dead in their tracks.

"Life flight, now." One of them said and the other jumped on the radio.

Kemp came up beside him, "Well, you did it now."

Tom was still hearing the coppers coming in. Always coming, never landing.

"Are you ok Tom?"

"No. I'm not ok. I'm never going to be ok after this." He said in groan. 

#

Mercy Hospital has one of the best trauma units in the country. Life flight arrived and left with a living and breathing Charlie.

They left Tom's car and Kemp drove to the hospital. Tom was shaking so hard he had trouble calling Samantha.

By the time he finished telling his wife what happened, Tom was crying hard. Samantha talked to him in a soothing voice and Tom clung to it like the last lifeline.

When they pulled into Mercy's parking lot Tom was sitting up, and talking coherently with his wife. "They're going to make me stay here. I've risked your life and Angie's, and Charlie might not even live."

"You did what you do Tom and I'm proud of you."

"What are we going to do now?"

Tom, you are the best man I know. We'll figure something out. Right now we are safe, right?"

"Yes."

"Then handle what is in front of you. See to Charlie and call me back later."

"Yeah, what's in front of me. Got it." He murmured, and hung up the phone.

"Kemp? What's in front of me?

Kemp looked over at him as he parked the hummer, "A shit storm doc."

Tom nodded, "I can handle that."