As they approached the Grapevine on Highway 5, Ryan pulled off the freeway before dropping into Los Angeles. As he fueled the SUV, Sarah again checked her email. The computer found an Internet connection, and several messages came through from Jarrod with only one word: Louisville.
“Ryan,” Sarah called excitedly, rushing to show him the message on the laptop. “When Jarrod said to head south, he must’ve meant the southern states. It’s Kentucky…he means for us to head to Kentucky.”
“Damnit! We’ve been wasting time. We could’ve been in Colorado by now,” he added, aimlessly kicking the rear tire of the SUV.
“It’s okay, Ryan…it’s okay,” Sarah said soothingly. “At least we know where they’re heading. I’ll call Lieutenant Morris and give him the news. Maybe we should chance taking a plane,” she said as an after-thought. “It’ll take too long to drive to Louisville…don’t you think?”
“Call Morris,” Ryan replied. “Let’s think about the plane. You may be right…that’s probably our best move.”
Sarah made the call to David Morris and left a message on his voice mail. She simply said that they had heard from Jarrod and his latest message mentioned only the word: Louisville.
“Okay, Morris is up to date with the news,” she said as Ryan returned to the car. “What shall I tell Jarrod? We need to let him know we’re still on the trail.”
“Tell him we need more information…that anything he can give us is helpful,” Ryan said.
He paused, and then continued, “the more I think about this, the better I feel about taking a plane to Kentucky. We’re not that far from LA International. I don’t imagine the authorities are looking for you, so your credit cards should still work to purchase tickets. The only dicey part will be getting past security, but if I get through we’ll be in Louisville by early tomorrow morning. I think it’s worth the chance.”
“I’m so glad you agree,” Sarah replied, relaxing her shoulders. “I don’t think we can risk losing any more time. Somethin’s going to happen…soon.”
Sarah composed the next message to Jarrod, reading it aloud before she sent it: “Flying to Louisville. Need 411 on your whereabouts.”
“Okay, let’s see if we can board a plane to Kentucky without ending up in jail,” Ryan said, driving away from the truck stop. The couple stayed silent for the remainder of the trip to Los Angeles Airport, buoyed by the news that they were drawing ever closer to finding their missing family members.
“Have I told you lately how much I love you?” he asked, glancing quickly in her direction. “Because as crazy as everything is, I can’t think of any time in my life I’ve been more grateful. I have a good feeling, honey…everything’s going to come out all right. Trust me,” he said, patting her hand.
“I love you too, Ryan…more than I ever realized,” she said, holding his hand fast. “This will be the most important thing we’ve ever done.”
FIFTY
Stanford University
17:00 hours
Lieutenant David Morris received the call from PAPD dispatch about another incident at the Quantum Building: A car bomb had exploded in the parking lot and the victim was thought to be Niles Penburton.
When Morris arrived at the chaotic scene, scores of bystanders had gathered along the yellow-taped boundary cordoned off by the police. The Stanford Fire Department was still mopping up the incident; they had foamed the area surrounding the burning car, and the water used to extinguish the fire was still pouring into the storm drains. There was little left of the car but the frame, engine, and steering column, which sat in the impact crater caused by the explosion. The county coroner was standing by as paramedics labored to extricate what was left of the body. Morris couldn’t recall ever seeing such a ghastly scene, except maybe on TV when news correspondents showed the aftermath of deadly terrorist suicide bombings. Holy Mother…, he thought.
After a cursory inspection, Morris sought out the chief of security at the Quantum Building, who had responded to the scene. The chief confirmed that several eyewitnesses had seen Professor Penburton getting into his car. One young woman had reported he started the car and proceed to leave when it exploded in a deafening blast that knocked her down, raining down metal and glass all around. The guard couldn’t offer a suggestion about who might be responsible, but presumed it was connected to the break-in of Dr. Conrad’s office from days earlier.
“This job’s always been a piece of cake,” the guard said. “But, Jesus…if this keeps up, I’ve gotta find another gig. First, Santos is killed…and now a car bomb. What next?”
What next, indeed, thought Morris. Every new day brings another set of problems on this case.
Morris decided to call Agent Henry. Hellfire…Jason’ll blow a fuse. Penburton was his primary suspect
“Lieutenant Morris, tell me you’ve heard from the Marshalls,” Jason Henry said tersely, answering the call.
“Sorry, Jason…more bad news. I’m at the Quantum Building. There was a car bomb and security is pretty sure it’s Dr. Penburton. Several eyewitnesses saw the professor loading boxes in his car. I just thought you’d want to know,” Morris said, pausing to give the agent a chance to respond.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Henry moaned, emphasizing his surprise. “I’m on my way back from the San Jose courthouse right now. I just picked up the court order for Penburton’s records. You’re telling me this just happened?”
“I’m on scene right now. The fire department is still tying to remove the body. It’s nasty,” he said, looking over at the blast site again, repulsed by the gruesomeness of the bomb’s aftereffects.
“ Son-of-a-bitch! ” Henry exclaimed, enunciating each word. “Well, at least I know my hunch about this guy was right…he was about to skip out. Hopefully the court order will help us find what he was hiding. Are you going to be there awhile? I’m about fifteen minutes out.”
“Sure, you bet. I’ll wait for you.”
Morris hung up and noticed he had a voicemail message that had come through while he was talking to Agent Henry. He retrieved the message and was elated to hear it was from Sarah Marshall. She had received another message from Dr. Conrad, who was now presumably in Louisville. He returned her call, not expecting an answer, but wanting to confirm he got the news.
“Mrs. Marshall, this is Lieutenant Morris. I got the message about Louisville. That’s good news, ma’am. We’ll shift our investigation. Please, ma’am, take my advice and have Mr. Marshall turn himself in. We’re getting closer to finding your son. It would be much easier if we knew you two were safe. Let us do our jobs, ma’am,” he said, ending the call.
Morris made his next call to headquarters, reporting the news about Penburton to Captain Hawkley. They spoke at length about the investigation and the need for the chief to authorize out-of-state travel to Kentucky. While Captain Hawkley was supportive, he made no guarantee that Morris’s request would be approved. In the meantime he expected a full report on his desk by the end of shift.
As he was finishing his update with Hawkley, he recognized Agent Henry moving toward the blast site. As Henry stopped to look at the smoldering car, Morris could see from the man’s body language that he was demoralized.
“Ain’t this a hell-ov-a-note?” Morris said when he caught up with Henry. As they shook hands, he could see the strain etched deeply on the agent’s face.
Henry was shaking his head in disgust. “Just when you think the tide’s about to turn, another shoe drops. This is flippin’ unbelievable.”
“Well, hang on a minute, hoss…I’ve got news that’s bound to cheer you up some. While we were talking earlier, Sarah Marshall left me a message. Conrad left a one word message: Louisville. They’ve left the state and are heading to Louisville. I don’t know what the devil’s in Kentucky, but this is a big break, man. We’ll catch these bastards,” he said earnestly, trying to bolster Agent Henry’s confidence.