Dan said aloud. “I’ve got your money.”
Nothing but silence, making him worry their communication system had malfunctioned. He gently pressed the arm of his glasses to his ear.
“Are you there? Look, I did what you wanted. I’ve got your money. You’ve got to release my wife and son, now!”
Silence.
As the shaded boulevards of Roseoak rolled past, Dan’s mind raced with images of what had happened and scenarios of what may be playing out. He pictured Annie at the bank, how he’d shocked her, how he’d hated seeing her grappling with unthinkable events.
I know she’ll come through.
Annie was smart, and she was strong. He trusted and believed she’d know what to do.
She’ll find my message. She has to.
In the bank he’d been careful not to lower his head, pulling the directive close to his chest so it was out of the camera’s view as he wrote. He imagined Annie and Jo finding it, making calls, showing it to police, and people jumping into action to help.
Maybe that’s why no one is answering, he thought hopefully.
Maybe police had raced to his house and rescued Billy and Lori. Maybe they’d arrested Vic and the others. Would it happen that fast? He had no way of knowing. They’d taken his cell phone, and it would be too dangerous to call, anyway.
Still, Dan couldn’t convince himself that he was off the hook. He grew anxious about what he’d done at the bank.
Maybe I shouldn’t have left the note. Maybe they know, maybe they saw and—
“You did good,” Vic said.
“I’ve got your money! Now release my family!”
“We’re not done, Dan. I need you to pull into the Empire Coastal Mall up ahead.”
“Why?”
“Do it, right now!”
Empire was one of the state’s largest malls, and the marquee for the north entrance towered just ahead of the traffic light. Dan got in the turning lane.
“Go to zone fourteen. Park near the lamppost with green flags.”
Fourteen was the outermost zone, far from the congested parking lanes closer to the mall. Not many people had parked here. A few abandoned shopping carts kept a lonely vigil. After Dan parked, Vic told him to turn his car off, leave the keys and grab the duffel bag filled with cash.
“See that green Chevy in the lane directly across from you? It’s unlocked, the key’s inside. Get in.”
Dan remained frozen where he stood.
Alone in the lot with the heavy bag, he considered running into the mall for help. For the hundredth time this morning he wondered if he should end it here. There was always a chance they’d been bluffing the whole time. Maybe they never intended to kill anyone. Maybe the bombs weren’t real. But could he risk it? What if it backfired? Could he live with himself if they killed Lori and Billy because he screwed up?
“Get in the Chevy now, Dan!”
Reaching the car, he opened the front passenger door, dropped the bag on the floor, then walked around and got in behind the wheel.
He noticed the faint hint of men’s cologne and cigarettes. The car’s interior appeared to have been cleaned, as if all traces of the previous user were hastily obliterated. There were gouges and scratches around the ignition switch, some wires were hanging down. A single key had been inserted into the switch.
It’s a stolen car!
Dan’s fear suddenly deepened—Vic and his crew were not planning to end this soon. This meant they wanted something more.
“Start the car, Dan.”
“No. Please... I—I’ve got your money! Just take it, release my family and leave us alone.”
“Start. The. Damn. Car. Now!”
Dan hesitated.
“Don’t test us, Dan!”
The Chevy’s motor came to life.
“That was smart. Now drive back to the street, get on to the Cross Island Parkway north to the Throgs Neck Bridge.”
“Why?”
“We’re not done, yet.”
“Yes, we are! I’ve got your money, and I’m driving home to give it to you!”
“Get on the parkway now!”
“No. I’ve got your money! You’re going to take it and release my family!”
A long moment of silence passed before Dan wheeled back to the street, but he didn’t head to the Cross Island Parkway. Instead, he headed home.
“Where’re Lori and Billy? I want to talk to them!”
“You’re disobeying us, Dan. There’ll be consequences.”
“You already killed them, didn’t you?”
Silence.
“Put them on, or I swear I’ll ram this car into a bus!”
Still nothing from Vic.
Sweating, gasping for air, Dan searched the streets, the strip malls, the corner store, the retirement home, the gas station and the houses as he passed by. People were just going about their daily lives while he was barely hanging on to his, helpless to do anything.
Suddenly his vest vibrated, and his entire body contracted. He gripped the wheel as hard as he could, preparing for the explosion, to be blown to pieces, thinking of Lori, of Billy.
Nothing happened, but the vibration continued.
Like a ringing phone.
He moved a trembling hand from the wheel and felt around the vest until he noticed the spot where a phone had been sewn in.
He was still alive. Nothing had happened. The phone kept humming.
Then it stopped.
“Do we have your attention, Dan?”
“Yes.”
“That was a little test. The next time you feel that vibration, you’ll know your life is about to end. Now, unless you’d like to feel that right away, you’re going to do as we say and get your ass north on the Cross Island Parkway to Throgs Neck.”
Dan’s body was numb as he turned and made his way to Northern Boulevard, merging with the northbound traffic on the expressway. As the parkway hugged the western shore of Little Neck Bay, he searched the
