Suffer (19 page)

36

ABBY, CHIEF, AND GREY STOOD motionless and silent watching the large screen in the War Room. Concealed video cameras and microphones throughout the space gave them front row seats to the drama unfolding inside. Ronnie’s head was hanging low and they could hear his sobs. Tonya was slumped over in her chair. Kate was standing in the corner staring at Ronnie.

When the shots were fired, Ronnie exhausted himself screaming, crying, and fighting to free his restraints. He went back and forth from yelling for Kate to help his wife to yelling at Kate that he was going to kill her. When he was finally overtaken with grief, he hung his head and asked her over and over again why in a weak voice.

“You should probably go get Tonya out of there,” said Chief. “Evan is ready.”

“Yeah, in a second,” said Grey, turning to Abby. “You okay?”

“You know, she’s right,” said Abby, not taking her eyes off the screen. “There’s no way Ronnie ever would’ve understood what he put her through unless she did this. None of us will ever know.”

“That’s why we’re here,’ said Chief. “To show those motherfuckers how it feels to lose everything you love and be helpless to stop it. Even if he confessed and went to prison for the rest of his life, this is the only way to make the punishment fit the crime. If this happened more often, I guarantee you the crime rate would fall into the basement. I’ll tell you both again right now, I’m very okay with this.”

“I am, too,” said Abby, turning to look at Grey. “But it’s time to make him really feel it.”

“All right,” said Grey, walking toward the door leading down to the room. “Tell Evan I’m on my way.”

Grey opened the door to the room and found everyone in the same position. He walked over to Tonya and cut away her restraints. Picking her up from under her arms, he started dragging her body out of the room. Ronnie mustered the strength to raise his head.

“Where are you taking her? What are you going to do with her?” asked Ronnie.

“You really need to be worried about what we’re going to do with
her
,” answered Grey, looking toward the mirror.

The high intensity light hanging in front of Ronnie dimmed. The mirror faded into a clear window. On the other side, Jessica was seated at a small table coloring in a book. She was alone.

“Jessica!” yelled Ronnie. “Run, Jessica! Get out of there!”

“She can’t see or hear you, stupid,” said Grey as he closed the door behind him, leaving a trail of Tonya’s blood.

“You can’t hurt her,” said Ronnie, turning to Kate. “She’s just a child. She had nothing to do with this. None of it. For the love of God, please don’t hurt her.”

“She asked me if Caleb was coming to play with her,” said Kate. “I gather you didn’t tell her you murdered him.”

“I. Didn’t. Murder. Him. That animal did.”

“And who brought him into our lives, Ronnie? And be careful, your daughter’s life may depend on your honesty.”

“I did. Okay, I did. This is all my fault. If I hadn’t made the agreement with Al, none of this would be happening. Caleb and Paul would still be alive, and he wouldn’t have hurt you. I did it all. Now, please let her go. Please. Do what you want to me. I don’t care. Just don’t hurt her, Kate.”

“There you go again, sounding just like I did before that monster you hired butchered Caleb. I was ready to give up my own life for my child’s. He even asked me if I would. I begged and pleaded for him to kill me instead of my baby. The difference between me and him is that I’m going to let you trade your life for hers.”

The mirror faded back into a window, but Jessica was no longer alone. Grey was standing behind her holding a gun. Jessica was oblivious to the danger and continued to work on her drawing. Ronnie began to hyperventilate again as Kate walked in front of him, blocking his view. She placed the pistol on the edge of the table. “Are you paying attention?”

“Yes, yes,” said Ronnie, trying to calm down.

“Good,” said Kate. “There’s one bullet left in this gun. I’m going to free one of your hands. If you try to shoot me, he kills her in front of you. That window is made of ballistic glass. If you waste your bullet trying to shoot him, he kills her in front of you. Are you getting my point?”

“Yes,” moaned Ronnie. “How do I know you won’t kill her after I do this? What’s going to happen to her? Where is she going to go? Who’s going to take care of her?”

“You took my only child from me,” said Kate. “I want to be a mother again, and I will be to Jessica. She’ll live a long and happy life with me. That I can promise you.”

“Please, don’t make me do this, Kate,” cried Ronnie. “I don’t wanna die.”

“Neither did Caleb,” said Kate, walking behind him and freeing one of his arms. “You have thirty seconds to make your choice. Your life for hers. Tick tock.”

Kate left the room and stood listening on the other side of the door. Evan had installed a large countdown clock above the mirror. In bold red numbers, it switched from thirty to twenty-nine.

In the other room, Grey raised the gun to the back of Jessica’s head. With trembling hands, Ronnie picked up the pistol and stared at the clock. When it reached ten seconds, he put the gun under his chin and pulled back the hammer.

“I love you, Tonya. I love you, Jessica. I’m so sorry.”

Three, two, one…click.

The hammer fell onto an empty chamber. Ronnie squeezed the trigger again with the same result. Kate opened the door. “I’m not going to make it that easy for you, asshole. This one you’re really going to feel.”

She closed the door again, but came into view a few seconds later in the opposite room. She took the gun from Grey, pushed him aside, and stood behind Jessica. As Ronnie watched, a mass of blood and pieces of flesh exploded onto the window as it transformed back into a mirror.

Kate rushed back to Ronnie. He was screaming at the top of his lungs and pulling at his hair. He began pounding on the table and crying as she moved in closer to him. He reached out to grab her, but she knew where to stand to avoid his grasp.

“Do you see it, Ronnie?” asked Kate, yelling over his screams. “That black hole you’re falling into – the light disappearing into an abyss. Do you see it?”

“My baby girl! You killed my baby girl!” screamed Ronnie, swinging at Kate with his free hand.

“You killed her,” replied Kate. “Your wife, Caleb, Paul, and everyone else who died; you killed them.”

She looked into his reddening face and eyes. The capillaries were bursting under his skin from the rage and fear. His arm dropped limp by his side and his head fell forward. Ronnie was slipping into shock. It was the moment Kate had been waiting for since she discovered he was behind her son’s death.

“The darkness will be everywhere,” said Kate. “You’ll wake up in the morning and for a brief moment you may actually think this was all a bad dream. But it won’t take you long to figure out that it isn’t. It all really happened. Then you’ll relive every second of agony over and over again. It’ll never go away. This is the rest of your life, Ronnie. This feeling you have right now is the rest of your life. Was it worth the fucking money?”

“Kill me,” whispered Ronnie.

“What? I can’t hear you.”

“Kill me!” yelled Ronnie.

“You are dead,” said Kate. “And you’re going to continue to die for the rest of your life. Just like I’m dying for the rest of mine. What would you do to get them back for just one day? To be able to hug Jessica and kiss your wife, what would you give? What is that worth to you?”

She left him alone in the room and closed the door behind her. Kate walked upstairs to the War Room. Abby and Chief were standing in front of the TV screen watching Ronnie.

“Leave him in there,” said Kate. “If he starts to pass out, throw a bucket of water on him. I want him conscious and thinking about what just happened to him.”

“Are you okay?” asked Abby.

“Very,” answered Kate. “Just don’t let him pass out.”

“I won’t,” said Chief.

“That was intense,” said Abby. “I knew everything that was going to happen, but I was still freaked out.”

“I want him freaked out for as long as possible,” said Kate. “I want all of this to sink in deep before we go back. Where’s Tonya?”

“Grey took her upstairs to the guest room,” said Chief.

Kate went up and found Tonya in the bathroom wiping her face. “How are you doing?”

“I’m fine,” said Tonya, pulling at the rubber covering her nose. “Is it over?”

“Yes. Grey and Evan are with Jessica, helping her finish her picture. Ronnie is still in the room tied to the chair, but he’s okay.”

“I still can’t believe he did this to you,” said Tonya, turning to Kate. “He’s the reason your family is…”

“He did start this, Tonya. That’s why he’s down there suffering. I wanted him to feel what I feel every day, but I believe he didn’t want any of us to get hurt. It’s the only thing that’s saving his life.”

“I’m not making any excuses for him, but he has a good heart,” said Tonya, peeling off her torn lips. “He’s an amazing father, but if he doesn’t learn his lesson after this, Jessica and I are gone for good.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” said Kate. “Not many people get a second chance after what he did. If he gambles again, he deserves all the pain he’s feeling right now.”

“When do we leave?” asked Tonya.

“We’ll give him a little time to recover. A friend of ours, an FBI agent named Carlos Santiago, is taking care of all the arrangements. For your safety, he’s the only one who will know your location and how to reach you. When all of this is finished, you guys can go home and start over.”

“I don’t know how to thank you enough, Kate. I was at my wits’ end with his addiction. I just knew he was going to end up dead or in jail. You had the power and the right to do both.”

“I did this for you and Jessica,” said Kate. “If I find out he places one bet, he’ll disappear. And you’ll know why.”

“I won’t let that happen, I promise you,” said Tonya, hugging Kate.

“I’ll send Evan up here to help you clean up that gunk. I’ll let you know when to come down and see Ronnie.”

“Take your time,” said Tonya as Kate walked away.

She walked past the door where Ronnie was being held and entered Jessica’s room. Grey was leaning over the table, helping her finish the trees she was drawing. Evan was wiping the blood off of the mirror. Kate slid her hand across Grey’s back as she walked past. He looked up to see her smile.

“Evan,” said Kate, getting his attention, “that was amazing. What was that stuff?”

“Oh, a little recipe I concocted while working on a war movie,” said Evan, continuing to clean. “I stuffed a tiny air cannon with colored syrup and pieces of rubber. I added a little chicken to give it more of a fleshy feel.”

“Nice. What did you tell Jessica?”

“I said I was going to shoot a tomato at the window for fun. She just said ‘ew’ and kept coloring. She’s a cutie.” Evan leaned in closer to Kate. “I hope that asshole realizes how close all this came to being real.”

“The next one will be.”

37

EVAN DISCONNECTED THE SMALL SPECIAL effects pack on Tonya’s belt containing the spent CO
2
cartridges and wireless receiver. The remote to release the gas and set off the squibs, which were attached to a chest plate, was located in the trigger mechanism of Kate’s gun. When she squeezed, the CO
2
forced the fake blood and tissue through plastic tubes to the wound after the squibs simulated the bullet’s impact. The effect was flawless and horrific.

After he helped her remove the makeup, they walked downstairs to meet Kate and Abby in the War Room. Chief took over the duty of cleaning the massive amount of material Evan used to create the effect of an explosive head shot against the glass. Tonya was anxious to see her daughter and make sure she was okay. When they arrived in Jessica’s room, Chief was wiping the last remnants off the window.

“That was one heck of a tomato,” said Chief.

“Had to cover the whole window or it wouldn’t have had the same effect, Chief. Sorry.”

“No apologies necessary, son,” said Chief, putting down the rag. “That was f’n magic. It couldn’t have gone any better. Proud of you, Evan. You worked your a…tail off getting all this put together.”

“Well done, Evan,” said Grey, helping Jessica start another drawing. “I’ll ease up with the Disney jokes.”

“You guys are getting me all misty,” said Evan, pretending to wipe away a tear.

“Grey,” said Kate, getting his attention. “Go set up a couple chairs across from Ronnie. Tonya and I need to finish this now. I’ll raise my hand when I want you to flip the mirror so he can see Jessica.”

Grey nodded and gave Evan a pat on the shoulder as he walked by. Kate asked Tonya to meet her in the hall. She had a few rules Tonya needed to follow.

“When we go in, don’t say a word and stay in the chair,” said Kate. “Just sit across from him and look pissed. I’ll let you know when to talk. It’s going to take him a few minutes to figure out what happened, so we’re leaving him restrained. When we know he’s stable, we’ll cut him loose. Are you ready?”

“Very.”

Ronnie didn’t lift his head when Grey walked in and set out the chairs. He was exhausted from the devastating experience. He was semi-catatonic and kept his head down even after Tonya was sitting across from him. Before Kate took her seat, she walked behind him and smacked the back of his head.

“Don’t be rude,” said Kate, signaling Evan to switch the mirror to the window. “You probably want to see this.”

His sagging posture tensed and his eyes shifted between looking at his wife and Jessica. As Kate had described, his brain was once again having problems absorbing the scene. After a few moments of silence, he exhaled and reached out for Tonya.

“Tonya, you’re okay. Jessica’s okay,” said Ronnie, drawing on his last reserves of strength. “Dear God, thank you.”

He noticed her disposition and that she didn’t respond to his reach. He drew back his hand. “Somebody please tell me what’s happening here.”

“How did it feel?” asked Kate, taking a seat beside Tonya.

Ronnie looked at Kate when she asked, but then moved his eyes to Tonya. “Answer her,” said Tonya with clenched teeth.

Under the table, Kate patted Tonya on the knee to remind her of the rules. “How did it feel to helplessly watch your family being murdered in front of you?”

He started shaking his head. “I wanted to die. I’ve never felt pain like that before in my life. Never. Was all this to show me that?”

“I just changed my mind,” said Kate. “It’s probably best that you don’t speak right now. All this, as you say, has nothing to do with you. If you didn’t have a compassionate wife and beautiful baby girl, you’d be dying in a pool of your own blood. And with a smile on my face and Caleb in my thoughts, I’d be standing over you, waiting to hear your last breath.”

Kate turned in her chair and waved Grey and Chief into the room. When they entered, she returned her focus to Ronnie. “You get to fall asleep tonight knowing your family is still alive. I gave you a luxury I don’t have anymore. I couldn’t care less if you live or die. My mercy has nothing to do with you. Gentlemen, let him know a few of the facts.”

“With pleasure,” said Grey, pulling a knife and moving behind Ronnie. “We gave you a glimpse into your future. The men you owe money have done this before and have gotten away with it. They line the pockets of several high ranking cops in Miami who turn their heads when assholes like you don’t pay up. They’ll send a message first by raping your wife and taking your daughter. They’ll dare you to call the cops. Normally, the money magically appears at that point.”

Ronnie jumped when Grey slashed through the tape restraining his other hand. Chief stepped in to continue giving him the message. He sat on the edge of the table and leaned in close to Ronnie’s face.

“After they rape and murder your girls, they’d come get you. Even if they took a loss by not recovering the cash you owe, they’d gain quite a bit with the message. They’d leave all your bodies exposed to nature so somebody would find them. Most of your soft parts would be raccoon shit by the time they did, but enough would be left for a positive ID. Your daughter’s life would be reduced to an example for other sad pricks like you who have no problem gambling with their lives.”

“What really sucks for you is that you’re dead whether you pay Little Al or not,” said Grey, leaning in from the other side. “The man you hired is going to kill you. That we know for sure. As soon as the money hits his account, you were going to hit the floor with a bullet in your head. And he’d take out your family as well. He doesn’t leave anyone behind.”

“And here’s the irony, shitbag,” said Chief, poking Ronnie in his forehead. “The woman whose son and husband you ended up getting killed is the only person who can save your miserable ass. You may want to pay attention to what she has to say. And for the record, I came very close to sneaking a bullet into that gun you had under your chin.”

“I am listening,” said Ronnie. “I know I fucked up and I know I’ll never be able to change what’s happened, but I’ll do whatever you want me to do to keep my family safe. If I knew it would bring your boys back, I’d put a bullet in that gun myself, Kate.”

“How touching,” said Kate, glaring. “The reason we need you alive is to get us close to Little Al. If you make that happen, your family will be safe. I’ll make no guarantees for you. This may be the last time you see them.”

Kate and Tonya stood as Grey cut away the remaining tape, freeing him. As the women went into Jessica’s playroom, Grey and Chief stood fast. They forced Ronnie to walk around them and then followed close behind.

Jessica was thrilled to see her father. She dropped the markers and ran to him. He pulled her up and hugged her with a tight squeeze. Kissing her cheeks and crying, he told her several times how much he loved her.

“What’s wrong, Daddy?” asked Jessica, seeing his tears.

“Nothing is wrong, baby girl. I’m just so glad to see you. Everything is perfect.”

“Don’t jump the gun, Ronnie,” said Kate. “Everything is far from perfect. Abby is going to watch Jessica. You and Tonya need to come upstairs with us.”

He wasn’t ready to leave Jessica, but he followed the group upstairs to the War Room. They took their seats around the table, and Grey and Chief grilled Ronnie about Little Al’s operation. He was very accommodating with the details, but hesitated when they asked about his involvement with Kate’s attack.

“Your wife knows everything,” said Grey, sensing Ronnie’s shame. “You needed to be taught this lesson, but none of us believe you wanted anyone to get hurt – okay, maybe Chief does. But Kate got her pound of flesh from you, so now it’s time to come clean with Tonya. Don’t fuck up this opportunity to start over.”

Ronnie took a moment and a deep breath. “I knew I was about to cash a giant check with the sale of the company. I went to Little Al to extend my credit and do a little celebrating at the casino in Coconut Creek. He almost didn’t give me the money since I was already in the hole for twenty-five grand, but I made him a deal he couldn’t refuse. Then Paul postponed the sale for almost two months. Everything spiraled down from there.

“I took what was left of the loan from Little Al and went back to the casino. I was playing well and had a shot of making the first payment on time. The crazy thing is that at one point I was only $2000 away from making it. Ten hours later, I left with barely enough money for gas home.”

“Jesus, Ronnie,” said Tonya. “You promised me. You promised on our daughter’s life you would quit and get help. All those nights I thought you were going to meetings, you were at the casino?”

“Yes,” said Ronnie, lowering his head. “I don’t know what to say. I don’t deserve you or Jessica. The best thing for both of you would be to get as far away from me as possible.”

“Don’t you dare,” said Tonya. “Don’t you dare try to get an ounce of sympathy from me. This is your last chance, Ronnie. Do you hear me? You swore on Jessica’s life, and now your friends are coming to collect it.”

“You’ll have plenty of time to bust his balls when we finish with him, Tonya,” said Chief. “But right now we need information. We don’t have much time here.”

“Tell them what they need to know and do whatever they tell you to do,” said Tonya, storming out of the War Room.

“You are one sad sack of shit,” said Chief, shaking his head. “Sure you don’t want that bullet?”

“Okay, Chief,” said Grey, bringing them back on course. “He’s right, Ronnie. We don’t have much time. When is Little Al expecting the money?”

“Two days.”

“Two days,” said Grey, rolling his eyes. “That’s plenty of time.”

“Are you sure he knows the identity of our boy?” asked Chief.

“He offered him to me,” said Ronnie. “Like I said, I never met him in person. He first contacted me by a note in my briefcase. I have no idea how he put it in there. Every note after had a new cell number and time I was supposed to make the call.”

“We’re gonna need those notes,” said Chief. “Anything else, Grey?”

“No. We’re done for now.”

“Okay, turd. What are the rules again?”

“No calls; no windows; no leaving the room,” said Ronnie. “The bad guy is always watching.”

“Good boy. Now, get out of my sight.”

Ronnie left the War Room and went straight upstairs. Grey and the team fell silent as he displayed a map of the inside of Little Al’s pawn shop on the monitor. Xs and Os started appearing on the screen, identifying the good guys from the bad as Grey typed on his laptop.

“Reminds me of pre-game when I played football in college,” said Evan, grinning.

Every set of eyes looked away from the monitor and focused on Evan. None of them were accompanied by grins. Evan tapped his fingers on the table and waited.

“You did good today, son,” said Chief, taking the lead. “But all the guns pointed at us tomorrow are gonna have real bullets in them. No more jokes. Now, listen up.”