There's Only Been You (27 page)

As he pulled out onto the street, he switched on the radio and scanned through the stations in search of the Amber Alert message. His phone rang, and he prayed for good news as Sara answered the call.

"He's been spotted!” she cried, the first sign of life shining in her eyes since they'd left the house. “He's headed south on highway forty-one, approximately one mile north of the one-seventy-two exit. He was seen taking the on-ramp off twenty-nine, and there's two squads on his tail. Garrett and Uncle Luke are maybe two miles behind them."

Mike let out a deep, shuddering breath. “Thank God.” He took the phone and told Garrett, “We just left his place and he's definitely gone for good. We're heading north on Velp, so I'll hop on forty-one from here. Nicky, where are you?” He'd never been more grateful for three-way calling than now.

"I'm a couple cars behind him. I'd just hopped on forty-one when Garrett called. And I can see Ethan. The bastard didn't even buckle him in. His head keeps popping up to look out the back window, as if he's watching for us."

Mike had to swallow hard. He cast a quick glance at Sara, grateful she hadn't heard what Nicky had said.

"Let's keep the phone connection going for now. Garrett, I'm assuming you have a radio in your truck?"

"Of course. I just talked to dispatch before I called. The two squads tailing Jason are good guys, and they know Ethan. They won't let him out of their sight or turn their cherries on until they have to. Jason's driving the speed limit and staying in the left lane, so he probably plans on staying on the highway for a while."

Mike flew up the ramp onto forty-one and attempted to make up some ground. He and Sara were the farthest away, and he wished like hell he could put the pedal to the metal. But he couldn't afford to do anything that might alert Thomas to the fact he'd been spotted. Especially since the bastard hadn't even bothered to buckle Ethan in.

The thought of Ethan's small frame being bounced around the cab of the truck caused Mike to break out in a cold sweat. Ethan was big for his age, but still just a boy, and could easily end up with a few broken ribs from being slammed against the dashboard.

Mike shot Sara a brief glance. “We're closing in on him. It's only a matter of time before he's safe in your arms, sweetheart, I promise."

"All I can think about is how scared he must be. Mike, if something happens to him...” She broke off on a choked sob and Mike cursed, frustrated he couldn't offer her the comfort she so desperately needed.

"I let you both down once, sweetheart. And as long as there's breath in my body, it'll never happen again. I swear it."

"Shit, I've got bad news,” Nicky announced. “Jason just tore across three lanes of traffic to take the Oneida Street exit. I don't know if he recognized me or the squads, but he knows something's up."

Mike heard Garrett talking to dispatch before he explained, “They're gonna wait to flip on their cherries. Nicky, how far behind him are you?"

"Not far, just a couple car lengths. But he's weaving through traffic like a madman, and you know how tricky this intersection is. He's heading east, toward the mall."

Garrett cursed. “Just stay calm and keep him in your sights. We're exiting onto Oneida right now, so we're not that far behind."

At that moment, Mike decided to change course, and prayed like hell his rash decision paid off. He moved into the right lane and took the one-seventy-two exit heading east. He knew a short cut through one of the side streets that would bring him right out onto Oneida Street, down by the mall. With any luck, he'd either pull out in front of Thomas, or not that far behind him. The only problem was he hadn't been this way in years, and Lord only knew if the street still went through with the way some of these neighborhoods had been built up.

He breathed a sigh of relief when the road did indeed curve around, and he ended up at Oneida right across the street from Bay Park Square Mall. He sat at the stop sign, unsure whether to turn right or left.

"There he is!” Sara shouted, pointing west, which meant Mike had miraculously ended up in front of him. “Mike, he doesn't even have him belted in!” she cried in outrage.

Mike was grateful to hear the fire back in her voice. “Calm down, honey, we're closing in on him. Ethan's a tough kid. He's hanging in there, don't you worry."

Mike made a left out onto Oneida, and maneuvered until he was directly in front of him.

"Okay, I'm right in front of him,” Mike told the others. “Nicky? How far back are you?"

"There's only three cars between us. And I can see the squads; they're flanking the car behind him. Garrett, where are you and Uncle Luke?"

"We're two vehicles behind you, to the right. We have to be extremely careful now. Lord only knows what he might do to Ethan if he's scared enough. I think we all know why he took him. To draw me out so he can finish the job Jimmy botched."

"Yeah, I came to the same conclusion,” Mike admitted, grateful Sara could only hear his end of the conversation.

"Let's just concentrate on boxing him in and forcing him to surrender,” Nicky said. “He wouldn't dare hurt Ethan now. It would serve no purpose other than to guarantee he dies a slow, agonizing death by our hands."

Without warning, Thomas stepped on the brakes and made a hard right onto a side road. Mike had to make a quick turn into a gas station and cut through the parking lot to stay on his tail.

He glanced in his rearview mirror and breathed a sigh of relief. The two squad cars were coming up fast behind him. Hopefully, Nicky, Garrett and Luke weren't too far behind the squads.

Thomas obviously had no intention of surrendering. He accelerated and made several quick turns—left, right, then left again. The truck skidded around every corner and, at one point, as Thomas drove under a street lamp, Mike saw Ethan slam against the dashboard. Sara cried out, and Mike had to fight with everything he had to keep his hands on the steering wheel and his focus on their son.

Jason couldn't believe he was in the middle of a high-speed chase, and
he
was the one being pursued! Snatching the kid had happened by pure accident. He'd meant to climb through Garrett's window and finish the job Montgomery screwed up. Then he would've headed to the hospital and taken care of Montgomery. But he'd ended up in the kid's room by mistake and, as he'd attempted to slip back out, the kid had opened his eyes and let out a scream. Jason'd had no choice but to jump on top of the little bastard to shut him up.

He'd had no choice but to change plans. He'd use the kid as bait to draw both Jamison and Andrews out, then eliminate all three. Then he'd head down to Mexico, fake his death, and return to the States with a new identity. Sure, it wouldn't be easy taking out a kid, but there was no help for it. The little shit could identify him.

Then Jason had noticed a couple of squad cars follow him onto highway forty-one. He hadn't sweated it at first. Hell, he'd only snatched the kid twenty minutes before. They shouldn't have even noticed him missing yet, for chrissake.

Jason cast a quick glance in his rearview mirror. It would take a miracle to get him out of this one and, frankly, he doubted God was willing to grant him one of those. Not after everything he'd done—and planned to do.

He realized he was coming back up on Oneida Street. Casting the kid one last glance, he made a bold decision. One he hoped would buy him the time he needed to make his escape. He reached over, grasped the passenger-side door handle, and yanked it open. Then he shoved the kid out of the truck.

"Ethan!” Sara screamed her son's name so hard her throat constricted. Nothing in this life could've prepared her for the sight of her precious baby getting shoved out of a moving vehicle.

Mike fish-tailed hard to the right and screeched to a halt less than twenty feet from where Ethan's body lay crumpled and unmoving. They jumped from the truck at the exact same time, but Sara fell to her knees in her haste to get to her son's side. She half ran, half crawled, instinct compelling her to scoop Ethan up into her arms.

Mike grabbed her wrists and hauled her back against his side. “Sara, you can't touch him until I've had a chance to check for—"

A loud crash followed by the distinct crunch of shattering glass and blowing horns was so deafening Sara flew back on her haunches. Mike threw himself in front of her and Ethan, shielding them from any potentially flying debris.

She whipped her head around at the screech of tires behind them and watched as Nicky and Uncle Luke raced across the street toward them. Garrett hobbled behind at a much slower pace. He was stopped in the middle of the street by one of the officers who ran toward him from the site of the crash.

"Is he all right?” Nicky shouted, as he dropped to his knees beside them.

Uncle Luke reached down and helped Sara to her feet while Mike examined Ethan from head to toe. Tears streamed down her face, and it took every bit of energy she had to keep her knees from buckling. “Mike, please, tell me he's-he's—"

"Sweetheart, he's alive,” Mike assured her. “And I can't be sure, but he doesn't appear to have broken anything.” Mike shrugged out of his flannel shirt and carefully tucked it around Ethan's head.

Ethan's eyes fluttered open, and Sara cried out her joy. Uncle Luke gave her a reassuring squeeze.

"Ethan, it's Dad,” Mike said. “Can you hear me, son? I know you're scared, but if you can hear me, it's very important that you let me know."

"I-I want my mom ... Mom?” Ethan croaked out, craning his neck to look for her.

Sara dropped to her knees beside him, laughing and crying at the same time. “I'm right here, sweetheart. Mommy's right here, and I'm not going anywhere.” She nudged in closer and smoothed her hand over his brow, his cheek, his precious face. She looked up as the whining of an ambulance could be heard in the distance. “You're going to be just fine, my brave little man, don't you worry.” She looked up at Mike. “Can I hold him? He needs me, Mike. He needs to feel my arms around him."

Mike had never felt more helpless in his entire life—or more enraged. He was dangerously close to losing the tenuous hold he had on his temper, and it scared the living hell out of him. “Honey, I know, but we have to be cautious. The paramedics will be here any minute. If we move him now and cause an injury, we'll never forgive ourselves."

Garrett finally reached them. He braced himself against the telephone pole and carefully knelt down beside her. He reached out to stroke Ethan's face. “Hey, sport, I want you to try and relax. Take slow, deep breaths. That's it, slowly. Good boy. How do you feel? Man, you're some kind of hero."

Ethan's lip started quivering, but his little face twisted with outrage when he announced, “Uncle Garrett, I-I want you to arrest Jason! He-he pushed me outta the truck!"

Sara's eyes filled with fresh tears. Garrett's jaw hardened as he exchanged a quick glance with Mike. “Don't you worry, sport,” Garrett said. “Jason won't be seeing the outside of a jail cell for a very long time."

For the second time in his life, Mike literally saw red. The urge to murder that bastard with his bare hands drove him to his feet. “The only thing he'll need when I get through with him is a toe tag."

"Mike, please!” Sara begged as he strode off toward the crash site.

"D-Dad?"

Mike stopped cold as the fear in his son's voice tore him to the quick. He turned around and all the anger whooshed from his chest as Ethan held out his arms. Mike's temper had cost him the first seven years of his son's life. No way in hell would he let it cost him another minute. With a deep, shuddering breath, Mike took one last look over his shoulder, then walked back and knelt down beside his son.

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It took the paramedics less than ten minutes to announce Ethan the luckiest little boy alive as he'd suffered nothing worse than a few scrapes on his face, hands, and bare feet. But they insisted on taking him to the hospital so he could be fully examined by a doctor. Ethan begged and pleaded to go straight home, but for once his best puppy dog eyes and lip quiver were useless against Sara.

"I'm sorry, but the only place we're heading is St. Mary's Hospital so a doctor can check you over from head to toe."

It was nearly four o'clock in the morning by the time they made their way home. Ethan, who'd been riding a sugar rush for the past twenty minutes thanks to the chocolate bar Mike snuck him in the emergency room, looked ready to pass out from exhaustion. Sara, somewhat hesitant to put him in his own bed, had Mike lay him on hers.

"I'd like to stay here tonight, if it's okay with everyone else,” he said as he pulled the comforter up to Ethan's chin. “I can sleep in Ethan's room."

"But, Mike—"

"I'll be fine, sweetheart. Thomas has a broken leg and pelvic bone. Believe me, he won't be able to take a piss on his own for a very long time let alone get out of bed and cause any more harm."

Mere seconds after pushing Ethan out of his truck, Thomas had been cut off by a carload of teenagers. He'd swerved to the left and crashed head-on into a parked truck. Luckily, all four kids were fine, and the parked truck had been empty.

And as it turned out, getting shoved out of the truck had very likely saved Ethan's life.

Mike led her out of the bedroom, and they joined the others in the kitchen. In all the excitement, Sara realized they'd completely forgotten to call Danny.

"No point dragging them out of bed now,” Garrett reasoned. “Ethan's home, safe and sound, and that's all that matters. We'll call in the morning."

"I agree,” Uncle Luke said. “Besides, we should all try to get some sleep. The sun'll be up in less than an hour."

"Thank God this is over,” Sara said. “Now will one of you please tell me why Jason went psycho on our family?"

Mike, Nicky and Garrett took turns explaining the entire story to Sara and Uncle Luke, who was just as much in the dark as she was.

"I'm so sorry I brought that nutcase into our lives,” Garrett said, looking as weary as Sara had ever seen him. “If I wasn't so damned set on keeping the two of you apart, this never would've happened."