Chapter 33
The humming of the SUV’s engine could have easily lulled her into sleep, had she not been curious about what Judge Norton had found that could exonerate her brother.
It was still dark around them. Another hour and the sun would be up.
Catalina was exhausted, but she forced herself to keep her eyes open, and the hope that Santiago would be free soon filled her with just enough strength to stay awake.
“What did you find?” she asked, turning her gaze away from the street.
Judge Norton kept concentrating on the road.
“It’s difficult to explain, but it will be clear when you see it.”
It had to be something big, or why else would the judge who presided over her brother’s trial go through all this trouble to get her released from jail in the middle of the night?
“Do the police know about it? And the public defender? Has she seen the new evidence?”
“You’re the first to see it,” he said.
His voice was smooth and confident. She glanced at him from the side and noticed a sheen of perspiration on his face and neck.
It wasn’t warm in the car. In fact, she shivered slightly.
So why was the judge sweating? The car turned left into the next street, going slightly too fast. In a different car, the wheels on one side might have lifted at that speed.
“Is everything alright?” she asked. “Why are we speeding?”
“The evidence… we need to get there quickly, or it might get destroyed.”
“Oh.” She felt anxiety settle in her gut. “Maybe we should call the police as backup to send them ahead. Where are we headed?”
“It’s not far now.”
Why wasn’t he answering her question? Something wasn’t right.
The more she thought about it, the more worried she became.
What judge would contact the sister of a man he himself had convicted to show her new evidence in the middle of the night?
If the public defender suddenly showed up, it would make more sense.
Or even a police detective. She wouldn’t question their motives, but the judge? What was his motive?
She felt her palms become damp.
“Can we stop here? I’d feel much better if we got the police involved,” she said, trying to speak as calmly as she could.
“We don’t need the police.” He cast her a quick glance. “They screwed up your brother’s case in the first place. And now you trust them?”
His question sent another warning signal to her brain.
Her sixth sense was finally kicking in at full force.
She had to get out of this car. If she had her cell phone on her, she would call 9-1-1 now, but she didn’t know where she’d left it.
Had the police taken it when she’d been arrested, or had she left it at Delilah’s house?
It didn’t matter now. She had to find another way to alert the authorities.
She stared straight ahead at the traffic light. It was just switching from green to yellow. Ahead of the SUV was an old Toyota.
Please stop, she prayed, hoping for the Toyota driver to stop at the light rather than gun it, which would mean the judge had to stop too.
The Toyota’s brake lights flashed. He was stopping.
She sighed with relief. A moment later, the SUV came to a halt behind the Toyota, the engine idling, the judge impatiently tapping on the steering wheel.
Trying to remain as calm as she could, Catalina slid her right hand off her lap toward the door handle. When she felt the smooth contours of the metal flap, she took a breath, then pulled and pressed outward, but the door didn’t open.
The judge scoffed, and she whipped her head in his direction.
“Child lock. You think I was born yesterday?”
His friendly mask was gone now. He was showing his real face.
“You couldn’t leave well enough alone, could you? No, you had to dig around in things that are none of your business. You think you can drag us all down with you?”
He scoffed. His voice was cold. Plain fear spread inside her. Whatever he’d planned for her, it was nothing good. For all she knew, it would end with her in a ditch.
“Let me go!”
“That’s not my call.”
The light changed to green, and the SUV lurched forward. The car gained speed again.
“Please! I won’t pursue it. I won’t tell anybody about this,” she lied.
“Oh, I’ll make sure you won’t.”
He pulled something from his pocket, and for a second, she thought it was a gun, but then she recognized it as a cell phone. He tapped on it, then brought it to his ear.
“Yeah, I’m two blocks away. Open the garage door.”
He disconnected the call and shoved his cell phone back into his pocket.
She shivered at the thought of what would happen now.
She couldn’t get out of the car, and he wouldn’t make the mistake of stopping the car on the street somewhere.
The SUV would disappear into a garage, and nobody would ever see her again.
She suppressed the urge to cry and lament her fate.
She couldn’t lose hope now. There had to be something she could do to get out of this situation.
She looked around herself. Could she fight the judge before he entered the garage?
She had to try. It was her only chance at escape.
Knowing she had less than a minute before they would arrive at their destination, she looked at the dashboard and center console.
When she spotted the start button that started as well as stopped the engine, she lunged for it and pressed it hard.
Judge Norton tried to shove her hand away, grabbing her wrist, but she fought him. She knew she needed to press the start button for at least three seconds for the engine to stop while the vehicle was in motion. Any less than that and the emergency override function wouldn’t kick in.
“Fucking bitch!” the judge cursed and finally managed to jerk her hand away.
But the engine stopped, and the car lost speed.
Clearly pissed off, Judge Norton slapped her so hard with the back of his hand that her head whipped sideways.
The pain was excruciating. Despite it, she tried to open the door again, but it was still locked.
She pushed the buttons on her door, but the judge had already managed to restart the engine, and they were moving again.
She’d failed. When she turned her head back and looked out the windshield again, she saw the house they had reached.
She recognized it instantly even though they had approached from the side where the large garage was located.
Its door stood open. Two cars were already inside, but there was space for the SUV.
Judge Norton parked the car inside, and a moment later, she heard the door of the garage being lowered. It felt like the lid to her coffin was being closed.
She felt as if she wasn’t inside her own body anymore. She felt detached and knew it was her mind trying to protect her from the reality of the situation. There was no way out of this. She couldn’t turn back time and undo what had led to this point.
The sound of a car door closing made her realize that the judge had gotten out of the SUV. He was at the passenger side in seconds and opened the door for her.
“Get out!”
Her limbs reacted out of habit, and she moved without her mind giving the orders. As if she were a marionette. He grabbed her arm and dragged her toward the door leading into the house. It was unlocked.
The corridor inside was sparsely lit, just sufficient for them to not trip over their own feet. As she looked ahead, she noticed light streaming from an open door into the hallway. Judge Norton steered her in its direction.
He pushed her ahead of him into the salon. The room wasn’t empty.
Like she’d suspected, James and Elizabeth Preston were expecting them. It was their house after all. James Preston was dressed in gray silk pajamas with a robe over it that was open in the front. Elizabeth wore a long white silk nightgown and a matching robe.
James reached for something on a side table, and when he turned to her, she saw that he was pointing a gun at her.
Her breath caught, but no sound came over her lips.
“Thank you, Tylor,” James said.
“Let’s do this right,” the judge replied and released her arm, pushing her farther into the room.
“You can’t do this,” she said, looking at the Prestons.
“Do what?” James asked, scoffing. “Kill a burglar in self-defense? Of course I can. Particularly if that burglar just escaped from jail and is trying to take revenge on me and my wife for pressing charges.”
“That’s a lie!” Catalina cried out and pointed to the judge. “The judge let me out.”
“Oh, and I’m sure you’ve got papers from the jail that say you were released, right?” Judge Norton said in a mocking tone.
She sucked in a breath. “I see. You’re never gonna get away with this.”
“We will,” Elizabeth Preston said coolly. “It’s your own fault, really. Snooping around here instead of accepting that your brother is in prison.”
“Yeah, for a theft you framed him for,” she spat.
“You can’t prove that,” James interrupted.
“But it’s true.”
She looked at the Prestons and saw it in their eyes.
But what she also saw was that they had no scruples.
They would do anything they had to in order to keep their secret.
She knew she didn’t have much time left.
But she wasn’t ready to leave this world.
As for somebody coming to her aid—she knew there was no chance.
Nobody knew where she was. Nobody could track her without her phone.
Not even Benjamin. Not that he would. She’d run away from him, screaming.
There was no reason for him to help her.
Besides, if she died tonight, his secret would die with her.
“My brother will get out of prison in six years, maybe even earlier,” she said, her head held high. “He’ll know what you did. And he won’t give up until you pay for it, one way or another.”
Because her brother loved her just like she loved him. He was as loyal to her as she was to him. He would get justice for her and for himself. She had to believe that.
James scoffed. “He couldn’t prove his own innocence. He’s not gonna be able to ever prove what’s happening here tonight.”
“Do it already, James,” Elizabeth urged. “Enough of all the talk.”
James nodded. “Tylor, it’s best you leave now. Thank you again. You’re a true friend.”
“Alright, just like we discussed. Make sure her prints are on the gun too, so it’s believable that you wrestled it from her when she tried to kill you and Elizabeth,” Judge Norton instructed.
James nodded, and the judge turned on his heel. She could hear his footsteps as he walked back in the same direction from which they’d come.
She was alone with the couple who were responsible for Santiago’s conviction. And in a few moments, they would also be responsible for killing her in cold blood.