Page 59 of No Escape

Valerie picked up the knife on the floor and rushed to Will. She cut the rope around his wrists.

“I… I’m okay,” he said. “The others…”

One by one, Valerie cut the rest of the bonds, and then Charlie, Will, and Valerie pulled the three hostages out of the room. The sound of their ragged breathing filled the air as they stumbled through the burning building, the flames reaching hungrily for them.

Finally, they broke across the threshold into the cool night, pulling the survivors away from the building.

Valerie turned and moved back toward the building.

“Valerie!” Charlie shouted.

“Even he doesn’t deserve a death like that!” she yelled.

She tried to go back into the burning building to rescue John, but the flames had already consumed the structure. The heat was too intense, the smoke too thick, and the walls were beginning to collapse under the weight of their own destruction.

Valerie and the others watched as the power station was engulfed by fire, the heat intense on their faces. Somewhere among the noise a scream ushered up into the smoke and was silenced.

John Murphy was no more.

Valerie sat, Will and Charlie next to her. She turned from the violent scene of the power station in flames and looked to the river.

The dark water passed slowly and gently by, carrying with it the sounds of soft ebbing and flowing.

EPILOGUE

Valerie was blindfolded; she had been for the last fifteen minutes. The sound of the car engine rumbled as she sat in the passenger seat.

“This is ridiculous,” she said, sighing.

“Be patient,” Suzie said from the back seat of the car.

“Patience isn’t your sister’s strong suit,” Tom joked from the driver’s seat.

“This is the strangest birthday I’ve ever had,” Valerie said, the world still hidden from her, out of view.

“It wouldn’t be much of a surprise if you knew where you’re going,” Suzie contended.

“It won’t be long now,” Tom said.

Valerie had goosebumps. As the car gently juddered along an unseen road, she felt a warmth that she hadn’t thought possible before.

She and Tom had a long way to go. She knew that. But it had been a year since John Murphy had been put away, a year since she had resigned from the FBI, too. All charges against her had been dropped.

She missed it. She missed using her detective and profiling skills. She missed the thrill. Most of all, she missed the deep feeling that she was doing something good in the world.

Despite all of that, it had been worth it. She hadn’t had even the hint of a hallucination for twelve months. And, most importantly of all, she had mended her family life.

Valerie stretched her hand out to the side and felt for Tom’s shoulder. She rubbed it gently and then put her hand back on her lap.

“What was that for?” Tom asked.

“I’m just happy,” Valerie said. “For the longest time, I didn’t think that was possible.”

“Oh no,” Suzie said. “She’s gone all sentimental on us.”

“I’m so proud of you, Suzie. How far you’ve come,” Valerie said.

“It’s a long journey,” Suzie answered. “But the therapies are working and I haven’t felt this stable, ever. I feel in the best place I’ve ever been.” She paused, then said, “It seems like I’m not the only one.”

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