Freedom Fight: Beginnings Series Book 9 (7 page)

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Henry spun the swivel chair in the communications room where he, Robbie, Joe, and Dean were. “Is this a secret suspect meeting, Joe?”

“No,” Joe sounded perturbed. “Henry, quit playing and fix your eyes on the screen.”

“Why?” Henry asked.

“Just do it,” Joe ordered. “Dean?”

Dean sat in the chair next to Henry. “Yes.”

“Watch the big board behind me.” Joe pointed to the huge electronic map of the United States. He moved to the control panel and typed. The large map of the United States became a map of Montana. “Keep your eyes fixed, both of you. Robbie, call your brother.” As soon as Joe saw Robbie dial, he hit the speaker phone.

There were four rings and Frank answered. “Yeah.”

At that instant, though low volume, a beeping occurred. Dean sprang from his chair when he saw the indicator light go off on the big board. “No.” His eyes widened and his face turned red. He spun to Henry. “Where?”

Henry grinned. “One hundred and twenty-nine miles north of Beginnings. Yes!” Henry clenched his fist. “I was right. I was right. I told you people that . . . Hey!” Henry was silenced when Joe lightly smacked him in the back of the head.

Mouthing the word, “Quiet” Joe nodded to Robbie.

Robbie sounded nervous, like the little snitch brother when he spoke to Frank. “Uh . . . hey Frank.”

“It’s about time you said something. What?”

“There’s something that you . . .”

“Wait.” Frank said strongly. “I hope to God you aren’t calling me up to ask me a stupid fuckin question again. Are you? What the fuck
, Robbie. Can’t you people live in Beginnings without us? You call me constantly. Fuckin Dean can’t find shit without Ellen. And Dad, he’s whining about something that would have bit him in the fuckin nose if he looked.”

It was Joe’s turn. “Frank.”

“Oh uh . . . hey Dad. Am I uh, on the speaker phone?”

“Yes you are, son. Now will please tell me what in God’s name was going through that thick skull of yours when you decided to leave these walls and take Ellen with you.”

“I needed to get away. I got Robbie to fill in.”

“You took Ellen.”

“It’s a mini vacation.”

Henry watched Dean. Dean just stared with an anger filled look in his eye. Henry couldn’t recall when he saw Dean so mad that the veins actually protruded from his neck like they were now. Dean was literally red. Henry sneaked up behind him whispering. “Dean, you better lower your blood pressure. A man your age could have a stroke.”

Dean’s jaw twitched and his nostrils flared as he took a step closer to Joe. “Tell him,” Dean’s voice graveled, “tell him I want her back here now!”

Frank heard him. “Is that Dean? Tell him to shut the fuck up.”

“Bring her back, Frank!” Dean yelled.

“No.”

Dean breathed heavily. “No? What the hell is the matter with you? Huh? You took her! You took her from the safety of these walls. You took her from her kids! What kind of stupid, asshole, arrogant, selfish kind of move was that?”

“Excuse me!” Frank blasted. “I hope you aren’t talking to me like that.”

“Who the hell do you think I’m talking to? You, asshole.” Dean argued back. “You’re a dead man Frank. man. The moment you step through these gates I’m killing you.”

Frank chuckled. “Oh, Dean, stop. I’m scared.”

“You think I’m kidding you? I’m gonna kill you. I swear to almighty God I will kill you. Put her on the phone.”

“No.”

“Put her on, Frank!”

“Fuck you!”

The loudest and strongest voice ever to emerge from Dean’s little body blasted out like a lion’s roar and Dean totally lost it. “Put her on the fuckin phone! Right now! Right now!”

Henry cringed, closed one eye, and held his ear that rang from Dean’s scream. He looked at Dean breathing so heavily. He wondered if he should prepare himself to get Andrea because Henry could have sworn at that moment Dean was sending himself into a heart attack.

Ellen’s voice seemed to immediately change the feel of the room. “Hello?”

Dean snatched the phone that was still in Robbie’s hand and switched off the speaker. “El.”

“Dean,” Ellen said his same with relief.

Dean closed his eyes and walked further from the others. “El, I swear to you I didn’t know he took you from Beginnings. I’m sorry. I am really sorry. I thought he had you somewhere here.”

“That’s all right. How are the kids?”

“They’re fine. How are you?”

“I’m O.K. Things are a little rough right now.”

“El, I know he took you to work through everything. Just tell me . . . is it helping you? I’ll be O.K. with this if it is.”

“It’s supposed to be helping Frank.”

“No, El,” Dean kept his voice soft, “is it helping you?” There was silence. “El?”

“No.”

A lump formed in Dean’s throat. He swallowed. “I want you home. You belong home. You need to be around the kids, Henry, and me. Just know that I miss you and I love you. O.K.?” Dean didn’t get a response, “El?”

Frank’s voice was not what Dean expected. “What the fuck did you say to her, Dean. Huh? She was perfectly fine and now she’s crying . . . Asshole!”

The line hung up.

Dean’s hand clenched the phone so tightly he could have broken it. With rage he handed it back to Robbie and spun around facing Joe. “This is wrong. He’s wrong. He took her Joe. Took her! I want her back here, back home where she belongs.” Dean pointed as he walked backwards. “I will give him until tomorrow to bring her home. If he’s not back tomorrow, I will go after her myself!”

“If he’s not back by tomorrow, I’ll send a chopper for her. I won’t stop you from going.”

Dean gave an angry nod and stormed out of the communications room.

Henry’s eyes shifted to Joe, to Robbie, and then to the door Dean barreled out of. “Boy, is he mad. I told you he’d be mad when he found out. Joe, you don’t really think he’s going to kill Frank, do you?”

Joe raised his eyebrows as he bounced from heel to toe. He didn’t have an answer for Henry on that one.

^^^^

Frank kept his eyes on Ellen who sat on the step of the cabin’s porch. Her head rested against her knees and Frank sat next to her. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to do this to you. This wasn’t supposed to be something bad. I wasn’t thinking.” Frank’s hand hovered over her head in hesitation. “I’m sorry for everything I said.” His hand fell gently to her hair and he moved his lips close to her ear. “Tell me you’ll forgive me. Tell me we’ll use what time we have left out here to work through this . . . together. Please.”

Ellen raised her head slightly then let it drop onto Frank’s lap. He pulled her close and held her.

^^^^

Jason Godrichson whistled a happy tune in the cryo-lab because that was all he could do while watching a totally irate Dean fly about the lab. That and do his lab work. The buzz of the cryo lab door was a welcome relief sound to Jason, Something different rather than grunting, slamming and banging.

Andrea waltzed in with a smile and a wave. Jason shook his head in warning to her. Andrea merely gave Jason a ‘don’t be silly’ look and moved to Dean.

“Morning, Dean.”

Dean looked up from the freezer case he peered into then slammed the lid.

“Joe sent me to talk to you. He said you’re upset.”

“Upset? Upset? Andrea, upset is an understatement.” Dean’s voice was loud. “He took her. He kidnapped her. All because he needed her to himself. I need her! Do you see me snatching her up in the middle of the night and making an escape with her! No!”

Andrea didn’t bat an eyelash at Dean’s ranting. She stayed calm. “Dean, take a breath.”

“No!”

“Dean.” Andrea laid her hands on his shoulder. “Breath
e with me. Ready?”

“Andrea . . .”

“Dean,” her voice still soothing, “breathe with me, cleansing breaths. In and . . .”

“Andrea, I don’t . . .”

“Dean,” she scolded loudly, “knock it off and breathe with me! Sweet Jesus, get it together boy. Now!” She closed her mouth and a startled Dean took in three long breaths with her. “Better?”

“No.”

“Tough.”

Dean grunted and moved about the lab with his work.

“Two things.” She followed him. “No wait three. Stop your little ass right now and face me. I deserve more respect than to speak to your back.”

Dean stopped and looked at her.

“Thank you.” Andrea smiled again. “First, Joe needs you at his office for a meeting about something. He said it would take an hour. Second. Joe spoke to Frank again. Day after tomorrow, first light, he’s bringing Ellen home. Joe said to tell you he spoke to Ellen and she agreed to one more day. So . . .” Andrea pulled up a stool and sat down. “Are we feeling better now?”

“No,” Dean said, “I’m still killing him.” Dean walked back over to his freezer case.

“Oh Dean, I know how upset you are but I really don’t think you’re killing Frank. He’s not worth your soul burning for all eternity in hell. Keep in mind, as a Christian man, you know as well as I do that the thought is as bad as the act, so let’s wipe that . . .” Andrea stopped rambling when Jason laid a clipboard in front of her.

Jason cleared his throat and raised his eyebrows as Andrea read it.

Andrea quickly looked at Dean then back at the clipboard. “Oh my.” She handed the clipboard back to Jason. She whispered, “Perhaps we should start praying for Dean’s soul now.”

^^^^

The Captain stared at the radio in the old police station, listening to Beginnings’ transmissions. He smoked a cigarette, listened to the meshing voices, his face serious. Occasionally he would crack a smile at the antics of a civilization that seemed to have it all together. He tapped a pencil from eraser to tip as he rocked back and forth in the chair, paying attention to every single word as if he were listening for something specific.

^^^^

Dean was the last to enter Joe’s office that afternoon. Joe was in his usual spot, behind his desk. Robbie and Henry sat before it. An empty chair was waiting for Dean. He walked heavily and plopped down hard in his seat.

Henry scooted his chair over some.

“What?” Dean snapped at Henry, “do I smell?”

Henry leaned into him and sniffed. “Not that I can tell. Are you still mad, Dean?”

Dean only stared at him.

“You know
, if you would have just listened to me the other night, you could have been past this pissed off phase and we . . .”

“Henry,” Dean said his name strongly, “don’t.”

“O.K.” Henry held his hands up, hesitated then leaned to Dean again. “Just merely making an observation. You do know Dean, you had me thinking you were gonna . . .”

“Henry.”

“Not another word.” Again Henry held his hand up and looked at Joe; after a few seconds he leaned to Dean again. “Just so you know., for a little guy you can get pretty frightening when you want to be.”

Dean snarled at Henry and gave a glaring look to Robbie who snickered. “Joe, can we just start this, please.”

“You have to calm yourself,” Joe told him.

“I’m calm. I’m calm.” Dean pulled out his notes.

“O.K.” Joe said, “Before we begin, I just need to know from you, Dean, what is this list of ways to kill Frank that Andrea saw in your lab?”

“Exactly what it said,” Dean spoke nonchalantly, looking at his notes. “I’m killing Frank.”

Joe’s head bobbed back and forth. “You plan on doing this . . . how?”

“Very carefully.”

“O.K.” Joe sat back and grabbed his notes. “Now that we have that out of the way, we can proceed.”

Henry’s eyes shifted. “A list of ways to kill Frank? Dean, you do know that’s against the rules here. You could get ousted.”

Dean’s hand slammed down hard on his notes.

Joe intervened, “Henry, if you don’t leave the man alone, I’m going to give him permission to make a up a list of ways to kill you. Now be quiet so we can continue.”

“Oh Joe, I can’t believe you’re condoning this. Frank’s your son. Dean is . . .”

“Henry!” Joe yelled then saw Robbie raising his hand. “What!”

“I think we should let Henry ramble. I personally would like to see Dean kill him instead of Frank.”

Joe just looked at Robbie in silence. “You done being a smart ass?”

“Um . . . yeah.” Robbie answered.

“Good.” Joe pulled out a cigarette. “Let’s start.” Joe gazed down at the paper. “Now before I begin, I’d like to clarify why Dean is invited to participate. He’s not council, nor is he security, but . . . Dean is the only person who is one hundred percent, without a doubt, not a suspect. I think we can all agree on that.” Joe noticed Henry’s disapproval. “We can’t? Why can’t we all agree on that, Henry?”