Prodigal Son
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"Kermit, didn't you hear me? Sarah Masterson has been killed."
"I heard yeah," Griffin stated, but chose to ignore the statement. "I've got someone I need to see."
Peter observed the direction Kermit headed and knew right away what the ex-mercenary was thinking. "Kermit, you can’t do this," Peter insisted.
"I made a promise to Karen that I would let Annie know about Kelly."
"Mom doesn't know that Kelly is in town. She was going to call her but I found Kelly's phone still in her purse. She hadn't made any calls on her phone yet. If you tell her that Kelly has been kidnapped, it will draw way too much attention. Sandra Mason could get wind of it."
Kermit slammed on the brakes, coming to a screeching halt. Luckily for him, there were no other cars behind him. His green Corvair would have suffered greatly from the impact. "What are you saying Peter, that you want to keep Annie in the dark on this? Annie has a right to know what's happened."
"Do you remember Carolyn's wedding?"
"No, I don't. I wasn't there. I was on a mission."
"The reception was held at the Sutton Place Hotel. Kelly had been kidnapped during that reception by a jewel thief determined to break into the hotel's safe."
"Go on," Kermit stated. "What happened."
"Paul kept it quiet. Only a few of us knew. Mom still doesn't know, and Paul kept it that way for obvious reasons. He didn't want Mom worrying. You know she gets very upset and she paces. Not only that, there were several gunmen who crashed that party. They would have killed every one if people started to panic. Paul made sure the situation was taken care of quietly. He got help not only from me, he got it from Blake, Chief Strenlich, and my father. We got Kelly back and no one was the wiser for it."
"I made a promise to Paul to look after Annie, Peter. What you're asking goes against everything that I was taught by Paul."
"If we can catch this guy we can put him away for the rest of his life," Peter spoke sounding like the former cop. His own thoughts however, weren't. 'Though I would rather see him dead. If given the choice, I'd see that his life-force doesn't continue.'
Kermit, however, voiced what Peter was thinking, "I'd rather see the guy dead. I know you're a priest Peter, but this guy has done more damage to you and your family than Bon Bon Hei ever did. He doesn't deserve to live. If I get him in my sights before you do, he's going down."
"What about that badge you're wearing? What would Karen think if she heard you talking like this?"
Kermit reached into his pocket and pulled out the small thin black wallet that contained his badge and ID and tossed it in the back seat. "What badge?"
"Kermit, you can't do this. You're an officer of the law. You've got to follow procedures."
"Like the way you did at times? May I remind you, I'm only an officer because Blaisdell gave me a badge," Kermit growled. "Masterson is an escaped convict and very dangerous. He's not going to want to go back to prison quietly. This time, he means business. It will be you or him, or haven't you thought of that yourself."
Peter was silent for a moment. "No, I've thought of it. But if I kill him, I'll be the one committing murder."
"Not if it's in self defense, and I'd testify to that."
"You know what you're saying, Kermit."
The ex-mercenary turned his green shaded face toward his long-time friend and former partner on the force. It was serious and hard. "Oh yeah."
"Okay, let's go find Masterson's sister before anyone else does."
"How do you know it's Masterson's sister that died?"
"Believe me, I know," Peter stated with conviction. "You don't forget that face and the terror it exuded."
Convinced, Kermit turned the car around and headed in the opposite direction. "So, where is Ms. Masterson supposed to have died?" he added sarcastically.
"Outside my old apartment building."
"I know a shortcut," Kermit stated then quickly turned the car down a side street.
They sped through the city streets avoiding the heaviest traffic areas as much as possible as well as any patrol cars that might be in the area. It didn't take them long to reach Peter's old apartment building. True to Murphy's Law though, there were several squad cars on the scene, and an area had been roped off.
"Let me do all the talking. You're no longer a cop. If you don't say anything, they might think you're still one," said Kermit after retrieving his ID from the back seat. As they approached Kermit flashed his badge while Peter hung a little further back. "What have you got?"
"A young woman appears to have committed suicide from jumping. We're determining what floor she may have jumped from and to see if she may have left a note. There was no identification."
"Can we look at the body?" Kermit asked the officer on duty.
"Sure."
"Did you call in forensics?"
"They're on their way."
Kermit walked over to where the body lay shrouded in a white sheet. He bent down and lifted one side. His face was a mask as he examined the remains of a woman in her forties.
"That's her," Peter said beside Kermit. "That's Sarah Masterson."
"Yeah, I recognized the face."
At that moment, Peter reacted to something else and his face went pale.
"What is it?"
"That's Kelly's blouse she's wearing."
"Are you sure?"
"She was wearing that the day she came to see me."
Both men went silent. There were no words, but both knew what the other was thinking. Sarah Masterson's death was a warning, and a challenge. The next death that might come could be Kelly's. And there was nothing that Peter could do about it.
Continues with Part 21
Alisa Joaquin Copyright@2006.
This story cannot be reprinted or sold in any other form without strict permission from
the author. It is being distributed here solely for your enjoyment.
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