Chapter 50

In the end I drove us away from that dreadful barn in the same car that had brought me.

Lisa actually recovered from the ordeal more quickly than I did. Once she absorbed that Estrada and his troops were past tense she turned her attention first to Johnnie, who was beginning to stir a little, and then to me. By then I was shaking uncontrollably from the remnants of the adrenalin rush that had fueled my killing spree.

For a long time she simply held me. Finally the shaking began to subside, and I suddenly felt a great weariness.

"Are you OK now, Jackie?" she asked, stirring me out of torpor.

I nodded against her breast. Then I sat up, taking a huge breath. "Yes."

"I want to see," she said. She picked up John in one arm and stood, holding out her hand to me. Together we walked over to each of the bodies in turn, the Italian, Joe and lastly Estrada.

"How horrible," she said at the last, turning away. "It was Spook, wasn't it? The explosion and the lights."

"Yes," I said again. "Remember I told you Spook and I had a plan if Estrada took me? This was kind of a modified version of what we had in mind."

Pretty radically modified, I didn't tell her; our original thought had entailed a lot more complexity and no need for me to fight impromptu gunbattles, though the exploding laptop had been a key element. I gave silent thanks to my tenacious bodyguards at the resort; if I'd had to deal with all four of Estrada's men around I wouldn't have liked my chances very much.

I also didn't tell her the details of how Estrada had died. There are some things no wife needs to know about her husband.

"Let's go now, before Johnnie wakes up," she said. "I don't want him to see any of this. They had us down at a boathouse a little way away, we can go there. Or are you OK to drive? They have some cars here, I saw them."

The easiest was Joe; I dug through his pockets until I found the keys. I also pulled out his cell phone.

Only when we were sitting in the car did I use the phone to call Spook. It wasn't a familiar phone to him, and it was strange to hear my own voice answering "yes?"

"It's me," I said. "It worked; we're all right, Spike." The last was a code word to let him know I wasn't talking under duress; I'd have called him "Spook," as usual, if it had been otherwise.

"I am very pleased," he said, now in his own simulated voice. "It has been forty-seven minutes from the time I initiated the power surge, and I was concerned that the attempt had been unsuccessful."

"It worked," I repeated. "There were only the three, and they're all dead."

"Ah." That almost murmured comment was itself unusual for Spook, and I thought I detected a wisp of sadness in his usually expressionless voice. "But you and Lisa and your child are well?"

"We're good," I told him. "But we have a car and need to know how to get home. Can you locate us?"

"Yes. This phone is not as the other. You must first drive—"

"Wait," I cut him off. "Tell me as we go. Or tell Lisa, I'll put her on the phone. I'm..."

"You are unsettled," he said. "I hear from your voice. I shall tell Lisa each turn as you near it."

Even so I got lost a couple of times. Johnnie was waking up and, drowsy though he still was, he distracted Lee enough that she relayed directions to me late. But Spook, patient as ever, walked us through the backtracks and detours until I finally reached Savannah Highway. I knew my way from there.

We were far enough away by now. I pulled into a closed gas station and took the phone back from Lisa to tell Spook to call Richard, in my voice as usual, telling him where he'd find Estrada and friends. I was still too shaky to do it myself.

When I got back on the road I held it to a sedate pace, unwilling to trust myself to drive faster despite my almost physical yearning to be home and done with this awful night. Halfway there I passed a cop car, sirens whooping and lights flashing, headed in the opposite direction. Richard? Sent by him? I'd never know. And I didn't care.

I took my little family home.