I fidgeted in the back booth of a carryout place cal ed China Dol while Rodriguez watched images flash across my laptop. Rachel, bruised and beaten, staring into the camera, her eyes tel ing me where she was, her heart wondering when I was going to come get her.
“What are you thinking?” the detective said after he’d finished.
“I told Hubert to lock his doors and sit tight.”
“What about Doherty?”
“Tried his cel and home. No answer.”
“You thinking he’s the target?”
I nodded.
“I can get a squad down there in ten minutes,” Rodriguez said.
“If Jim’s not dead already, anything other than me showing up alone wil likely kil him. And Rachel along with it.” I nodded to the video. “On the other hand, our guy’s not expecting this.”
“What are you talking about?”
I cued up the footage and played it from the top. Rachel’s face came into focus, her hands cupping her chin and partial y obscuring her face.
“See that,” I said and stopped the video.
“See what?”
“She doesn’t start speaking right away.”
“So what?”
“Listen to what’s going on in the background.”
I hit PLAY. First there was nothing but her breathing. Then the echo of a church bel tol ing.
“Now look at her hands,” I said. “She’s showing us the face of her watch.”
Rodriguez took a closer look at the digital readout. “Seven a.m. I’l be damned.”
“Smart girl,” I said. “And that’s not al.”
I hit PLAY again. Rachel started to speak. Underneath her words, a siren ebbed and flowed, sometimes getting closer, then moving away, then coming very close so she had to raise her voice to be heard. Rodriguez glanced across the table.
“That’s a fire engine,” he said. I nodded.
Rodriguez got on his cel phone. Five minutes later, he had a list. And we had some options.
“I took a ten-minute time frame for this morning,” the detective said. “Centered it around seven.” He showed me his list. “There were three firehouse cal s. One in the Loop. One on the Northwest Side and one on the Near North.”
I put my finger on the third address. “This one’s three blocks from Cabrini.”
Rodriguez nodded. “Maria Jackson was grabbed there. Let me see that video again.”
He double-speeded through it until he found the image he wanted. It was a wider shot, revealing a piece of the room behind Rachel.
“The wal behind her.” Rodriguez pointed to a section of crumbling drywal. “At the very edge of the frame, you can just see the hole.”
I looked closely. The detective was right.
“Tunnels,” I said. “You thinking high-rise?”
“If it is, there’s only one left standing in Cabrini.”
I knew we should cal for backup. I knew we should coordinate with the task force. I also knew Rachel was maybe less than a mile away. “Give me an hour before you cal in the troops.”
Rodriguez shook his head. “Fucking Kel y. Let’s go before I change my mind.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah, I’m sure. How do we play it once we get inside?”
“If he’s there, he dies.”
“That’s what I figured.” Rodriguez pul ed out a snub-nosed revolver and laid it on the table. “Just in case.”
I slipped on a pair of leather gloves. Then I picked up the gun and put it in my pocket.
“Let’s go.”