The Silence (Columbia River #2)(77)

Indecision flickered, but she closed the door and came down, though she didn’t take his other hand. She grabbed her sister’s.

“Let’s go,” said Mason, relief flooding his veins. The girls led him to a gate that blended perfectly into the picket fence, and the three of them quietly sneaked out to the road. “Which house?” he asked.

“Madeline lives there.” The older girl pointed across the street and two houses down. A sedan was in the driveway.

The three of them jogged toward the home. I need to get back to Jayne. “When you get inside, tell them the police are at your house but to stay away, okay? Have Madeline’s mom call 911 again. But do not go back to your house.” He gave his best authoritative-father look. “I’ll come get you when it’s safe. Okay?”

The girls nodded, and he watched impatiently from the road until they rang the doorbell and the door opened. A woman smiled at the girls but glanced up as she realized Mason was in the street. He held up his badge for her to see, pointed at the girls, and ran back to the house, hoping the mother would clue in quickly.

Now to get Jayne and Veronica to safety.





30

Ava ended the 911 call as she sped toward Mosier.

The operator already knew that Reuben Braswell was in his sister’s home and that several units from the sheriff’s department were on the scene. Ava had tried Mason’s number, but it had eventually dumped her into voice mail.

Is his phone on silent? Is he unable to answer?

Praying it was the first, she took the Mosier exit. As she crossed over the highway, she spotted more county patrol units not far behind her.

It’d been ten minutes since she’d talked to Mason. A lot could happen in ten minutes.

She turned onto Veronica Lloyd’s street. A hundred yards in, it was blocked by Wasco County patrol cars.

Good. Where’s Mason?

Ava parked and got out, scanning for him. She put on her ballistic vest, her hands stinking of bleach from the Clorox wipes she’d used to clean off Tony Schroeder’s blood.

Mason’s vehicle was inside the blocked-off zone. He was nowhere to be seen.

She checked her phone. Nothing from him. “Shit.” She approached the deputies standing behind their cars, recognizing a deputy and a sergeant who had responded to the Braswell incident an hour ago. “Have you seen Detective Callahan?”

The men looked at one another.

“OSP detective. Cowboy boots.” She pointed. “That’s his car.”

“We haven’t seen anyone else,” said the sergeant, frowning. “What’s he doing here?”

“The homeowner called him. Reuben Braswell is her brother. Detective Callahan was investigating him in Portland.”

“We understand Braswell is inside with an injured hostage from the shooting in The Dalles,” the sergeant replied.

“I believe so. Who’s your hostage negotiator?”

“She’s on her way. Same with SWAT. We’re trying to get Braswell on a phone to start talking.”

Ava sent a text to Mason asking where he was.

A shot cracked. Ava and the deputies dropped to the ground behind the cars.

Her heartbeat pounding in her head, Ava held her breath, waiting for another shot.

“That was fired in the air to get your attention,” Reuben yelled from the house. “I want safe passage out of here, or next time I will shoot both of these women!”

Jayne’s okay?

“How far out is your negotiator?” she asked the sergeant as they continued to crouch behind the cars.

“Too far.”

Ava considered her options. “I’ve done negotiating in situations like this. I’ve had a lot of training on it, but I’m not one officially.” Will Reuben respond negatively to me? She suspected he could be a loose cannon. Clearly he was angry, and currently he was surrounded by the very people he hated and claimed only existed to control people like him.

She decided it was worth the chance. He’d always had a strong interest in talking to her.

“You think you can reason with him?”

“I can listen to what he has to say. That’s a start.”

Getting hostages to safety is always the priority in negotiations. The fact that Jayne is one won’t make a difference in how I handle this.

The sergeant asked a deputy to get a bullhorn out of his car.

He handed it to Ava. She took a deep breath and stood. No one could be seen in the house. “Reuben,” she started, “is Jayne okay? I know she’s been injured.”

There was a long pause. Will he answer?

“Special Agent McLane,” he yelled. “I thought that was you back at the cabin.”

“You know him?” asked the sergeant.

“I thought I did,” said Ava.

“Are you the right person to be doing this?”

“Yes,” Ava said firmly. She knew more about Reuben than anyone else there.

“Yes, that was me,” she said through the bullhorn. “Is Jayne all right?”

Reuben didn’t answer.

“Who else is in the house with you?” Ava asked.

“My sister.”

The sergeant touched her shoulder. “911 is reporting that his sister’s children are at a neighbor’s. I’ll send a deputy to check on them.”