Chapter Thirty
Creed
“Sir, let me be clear and straightforward with you. The public knows about Eugene Morrison’s crimes because I made them public.
My fiancé and my brother are retired Marine Raiders.
Their friends were impacted by this crime.
I am a hundred percent behind Eugene being put away for the rest of his life and for every cent going to the causes that he had said he was supporting.
But, sir, right now, I’m worried about his daughter.
Brandy is going to die if she doesn’t get help.
You have to figure out what to do. I suggested you go to the property and lie low.
Let me drive Brandy to the hospital, and you just do what you have to do.
You can catch up with her after she’s healthy again. ”
The lights in the parking lot flashed off.
“What the hell?” Kendal shouted.
“It’s after hours in the park,” Auralia said with a bit of boredom in her voice. “They turn them off so the teenagers don’t come down here and hang out.”
“We’re up,” Creed said.
“How are we playing this?” Gator asked.
“Seat of our pants, brother. Let’s watch for a second and make sure Kendal’s nerves settle from the sudden dark.”
“Turn on the lights in the cab,” Auralia said.
“People can see in.”
“What people? Everyone is over at the pileup. Look, before the lights went out, I noticed Brandy’s lips had turned blue.
Remember, we talked about what happens if she doesn’t get oxygen in her system?
If you don’t want to just jump in your truck and drive off on your own, leaving me to deal with Brandy, then you need to get this pickup on the road.
I’ll sit next to Brandy as you’re driving and can give her mouth-to-mouth when she stops breathing. ”
“When?”
“When.” Auralia insisted as she flashed a thumbs-up in front of Rou’s collar camera.
She knew Creed was there. “Before we can leave, you need to unhook that boat. It’ll just slow us down.
And you need to move your truck out of the way.
How fast do you think you can get that done?
And when we leave, you have to be careful not to drive over Shane’s body. ”
“Body?”
“He never got up. It’s been a while. I mean, you cracked his head open when you stomped on him.”
Kendal was defiant. “Shane came at me. I wasn’t gonna punch him, just wave my gun around.”
“I don’t care about him or you,” Auralia said. “But I put myself in too much danger for too long today not to be invested in Brandy’s survival. Chop. Chop. Let’s go.”
“Woowee, that girl’s got some balls,” Gator said. “Well, looky there, Kendal’s rounding toward the boat. Let’s circle around in front of his truck.
Creed turned his phone off. Gator followed suit. They couldn’t afford to receive an ill-timed text that would give away their position.
In a practiced crouch, Creed and Gator hustled silently along the tree line.
The night was moonless. The clouds were thick. The soot and smoke, mixed with humidity, gave the air a strange, oily feel on their exposed skin. The nostalgic smell of pine and bonfire held the tang of electrical wiring and burned fuel.
While Kendal was working on releasing the boat trailer, Gator reached into the open window on the front pickup and pulled the keys from the ignition.
Creed thrust a boot onto the tire and rounded into the bed of the truck. He reached up and opened the sliding door, then moved to the front left corner, crouching low.
Gator went around to the passenger’s side and slid silently to the ground, tucking his chin so his skin couldn’t be seen.
“That’s off,” Kendal said. “I have to put Shane in the river.”
“Leave him there,” Auralia called. “Every second wasted is a second that could make the difference to Brandy’s survival. Buddy, you know all about the golden hour. We are hours and hours into this hellscape, and it’s at least an hour to the nearest hospital. Just move that truck and let’s go!”
The command and the urgency in her voice pushed him along.
Kendal jogged forward.
When he pulled open the driver’s side door and the interior light flashed on, Gator opened the passenger side with a “Hey there”.
Creed leaped over the side and was at the window, grabbing Kendal’s right hand as he reached for the gun he’d shoved into his kidney holster, trapping his hand.
But Kendal wasn’t going down without a fight.
And he had his own surprises.
With his left hand, he snatched a knife from his belt and flicked it open, twisting and stabbing at Gator. “Aw, come on, man. It’s not like that. I don’t have no quarrel with you,” Gator said as he jumped back out of range.
Creed was having trouble getting control of the gun. The holster had a mechanism that he wasn’t familiar with. And Kendal had a death hold around the grip.
“Who the hell are you?” Kendal flipped the knife in his hand so the blade lay along his inner forearm, and he brought his elbow up, trying to stab Creed behind him.
Creed wrapped his free hand around Kendal’s fist as Gator reached back in and slammed Kendal’s head into the steering wheel. Once. Twice. Three times.
A car was racing up the road toward the parking lot.
“Striker for Creed and Gator.”
Gator pressed the man’s head down with one hand as he tapped his sternal mic. “Gator here.”
“Striker. The car advancing on your position is the police. The FBI is right behind them. Over.”
“Gator. Copy. Kendal will just be hanging out with us until then. Out.”
“Who the hell are you talking to?” Kendal asked, his cheek smooshed into the steering wheel.
“Never you mind,” Gator said. “You’ll see soon enough.”
The single cop who exited the patrol car looked wrung out.
“I’m Creed. This is Gator, sir.”
The officer shone his flashlight on the man lying on the pavement. “Who’s this?”
Auralia climbed out of the pickup and came over.
“He’s Shane. Listen. Could you do me a favor and handcuff or zip tie or whatever restraint you’d like to use on that guy?
” She pointed toward Kendal. “And could you get these two people into your car and take them to an emergency department? Seriously, I don’t know about the guy on the ground, but this woman is going to die without care. ”
“FBI is five minutes out.” He handed Gator two zip ties.
“Creed is it? Sir, could you please lean back a bit? I know you have him constrained. For everyone’s safety, I need this on my camera.
Here we go. Kendal Cowan, I am placing you under arrest for aggravated unlawful restraint.
You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.
You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you.
Do you understand the rights I have just read to you? ”
“Yes.”
“With these rights in mind, do you wish to speak to me?”
“No.”
“Thank you for your assistance, gentlemen.” The officer made his way over to Shane and felt for a pulse. “That’s it? The two of them?”
“Two,” Auralia called out.
“Buddy,” Creed said, “it goes like this. You release your knife and your gun. We zip you up. You get out of the car while we wait for the nice special agents to come get you. And you do it easy, or Gator slams your head into the wheel until you pass out, and it happens anyway.”
“He’s alive,” the cop called from where he stooped next to Shane.
“I can help you get him into your car,” Auralia said. “But he’s the shooter from the dell. So cuffs first.”
Creed took control of the gun and knife.
Kendal cooperated with the zip ties.
He was cowed as he stepped out of the vehicle, his head hanging low.
The police waited for the FBI to show up, even though it put Shane and Brandy in danger. It wasn’t long, though. And they were off to the hospital.
The special agent was reading Kendal’s Miranda rights to him again for good measure.
The day had been long. It had been physically and emotionally exhausting. There were the highs of overcoming terrible odds. There was the joy of seeing Auralia strong and capable, clever, brave. She was everything. Just flat out everything.
She walked over and slipped into his arms. “Today was one for the history books.”
“Well, for the newspaper at least,” she said.
Gator was rocked back on his heels. “The day’s not over, we got us two more hours.”
Auralia, uncurled from Creed’s arms just long enough to smack Gator. “Don’t you dare challenge Fate.” Then she eased her arm around Gator and held all three of them together in a tight hug with Rourou curled up sleeping at their feet.
“All day long, when my spirit was flagging, when I was really scared, the one thing I held tight to was that I trusted you both. I trusted your instincts to be brave, and strong, and good. And most of all,” she whispered, “I knew if I needed you, you’d be there.
And you proved me right time and again. There is no luckier woman in this world.
” She squeezed extra tight. “Thank you both.”
Auralia had no idea, none. How could Creed ever explain how much her love and trust meant to him? How could he show her how deep his love was for her in return?
Standing there in the black of night, he made a pledge to himself that he’d spend the rest of his life living up to her trust.