The road leading to Mouse and Lonnie’s farm had been carved through a dense forest of trees, and was barely wide enough for two cars. I drove slow, afraid of hitting one of the many deer that peered out from the shadows.
A Colonial-style house came into view. The paint was peeling and three cars were parked in the front yard. On the front porch sat a woman in a rocker. She was missing her right foot. She looked up from her knitting, and waved to us.
“Wave back,” Seppi said.
“Why?” Linderman asked.
“That’s Travis Bledsoe’s wife, Delia,” Seppi explained.
We lowered our windows, and waved to the widow Bledsoe. Wood, who trailed us in his Audi, did the same, as did the drivers of both SWAT team vans.
“How much farther to the dairy farm?” Linderman asked.
“A couple of miles. It’s the only place around here. You can’t miss it.”
Linderman still had his body armor on, and was cradling a shotgun in his lap. There was no hiding his apprehension. He was ready for his nightmare to be over.
– – The most evil of places looked banal, almost dull. They were never dungeons equipped with torture equipment, or attics where the dead hung from the rafters, but were usually houses or farms that could be found in every community.
Mouse and Lonnie’s dairy farm was such a place. It had several overgrown pastures, a red barn with a weather vane on its roof, and a two-story shingle house with lead-glass windows and hurricane shutters. Had there not been a tall fence with razor wire surrounding the property, it might have passed as a B amp;B.
“That’s it,” Seppi said.
“Anyone home?” I asked.
“That’s their Jeep. It’s parked by the house.”
I slowed down. Mouse and Lonnie’s Jeep Cherokee was parked next to the side door of the house. The backseat was filled with groceries. It made me think that they’d just gotten home, and gone shopping.
I lowered my window and stuck my arm out. I pointed at the farm so that Wood and the drivers of the SWAT team vans would know that we’d arrived.
In my mirror, I saw Wood gesture. Wood wanted me to pull over. I obliged him, and let Wood and the vans pass me.
The vans drove up to the gate in front of the house. The gate had a metal chain and a padlock keeping it closed. Two SWAT team members jumped out of the van. One had a pair of bolt cutters, which he used to cut the chain.
The sound of a clanging bell made me jump in my seat.
“What the hell was that?” Linderman asked.
“There’s a bell on top of the house,” Seppi said. “Mouse used to ring it when there was trouble.”
“They’re on to us,” Linderman said.
The bell stopped ringing. Then a shot rang out. The man with the cutters clutched his arm, and dropped to the ground. I grabbed Seppi and pulled her head down.
“You said all Mouse had was a pistol,” Linderman said to her.
“He’s a good shot,” Seppi replied.
The other members of the SWAT team slipped out of the van, and took up positions behind him. They began to fire back. Wood and his assistant got out of the Audi with their weapons drawn. I heard Wood telling the SWAT team to be selective with their shots because there was a hostage inside the house.
The firing coming from the house suddenly stopped.
“Both of you stay here,” Linderman said.
Linderman got out of my Legend, and took up a position with the SWAT team. The firing from the house resumed, with bullets now hitting the SWAT team vehicle. I was a sitting target. I threw my car into reverse, and floored it.
I kept driving in reverse until I was out of range. Then I sat very still, and clutched the wheel. Seppi was still crouched down, and lifted her head.
“What’s happening?” she asked.
“They’re shooting at each other. Stay down.”
Seppi lowered her head. I continued to grip the wheel. I found myself wondering why Mouse had rung the bell when we’d pulled up. The bell in a farmhouse was used to call to people working outside. Had Mouse rung the bell to alert Lonnie?
“Didn’t you tell me the farm backed up onto a national forest?” I asked.
“Yes. There are several thousand acres,” Seppi said.
“Did Mouse or Lonnie ever go back there?”
“Lonnie did.”
“A lot?”
“Yes. It was his favorite place.”
I threw my car into drive and floored the accelerator.
“Show me where the forest is,” I said.