Page 14 of Fighting for Mallory

CHAPTER FIVE

News helicopters illumined the chaos on the ground. Law enforcement agencies coordinated with each other to comb through the burned husk of the transport van and the Humvee. The two female arrestees who were injured when the van exploded were treated, and, at Cameron’s insistence, the California State Police drove them home. He promised to represent them at their next court appearance.

U.S. Attorney Judd Morgan tramped through the crime scene, gesticulating and conferring with top law enforcement officials. The more he waved his arms, frowned, and raised his voice, the more attention he received from the media.

“How in God’s name did this happen?” he demanded at one point. “Tell me how someone got close enough to a transport van to plant an explosive device on it. I want the names of every officer responsible for keeping the van secure!”

Judd thrust his arm at the corpses of four dead men. “And can someone identify these guys? Any ideas who killed them?”

A crime scene unit technician showed Judd a bullet in a baggie. “We took this out of the Humvee. It’s from a Glock 22.”

Judd swore. He stomped over to Cameron who was speaking quietly with a detective and shouted, “You! You’re responsible for this! You, your sons, your daughter Brielle, every last one of you thinks you’re above the law because of your name. You planned this with Martinelli, didn’t you? Where are they, McAdams? Where are Martinelli and Hayes? You know she’s a fugitive now. I swear if it’s the last thing I do I will hunt her down!”

“Morgan, attacking me is making you sound stupid. Are you stupid? Get down off your pedestal and start thinking like a lawyer. You have two dead guards and three dead women on your hands. They were killed when the van exploded, perpetrated by these four other men. Someone, and I’m not saying it was Luca, intervened to save Mallory’s life, otherwise you’d have a dead D.A., too.” Cameron paused to let that thought sink in. “You should be asking who sold a military Humvee to these men. What do they want with Mallory? And look at their tattoos. You should recognize them.”

“Fanged copperheads. Damn it.” Judd hailed the detectives who’d caught the case. “I want every available officer on this. Set up roadblocks and checkpoints and issue an APB on Detective Luca Martinelli and D.A Mallory Hayes. I want them in custody! Understand?” He whirled on Cameron. “I’ll ask you again. Do you know where they might be headed?”

“No.” He kept his answer short and simple which annoyed Judd.

“I will find them, McAdams. And when I do, I’ll charge Detective Martinelli with obstruction of justice, homicide, and anything else that crosses my mind, and Mrs. Hayes with fleeing. Tell your client she’s in a heap of trouble right now.”

“I think she’s more concerned with staying alive.” Cameron turned away from Judd and asked an officer to give him a lift to his daughter’s house in Laguna Beach.

* * *

Justice and Brielle’s glass and cement home was built in the hills overlooking the Pacific. Cameron let himself in and found Officer Miguel Rivera and Rosie, the young teen being adopted by the McQuaids, entertaining his granddaughter, Noelle. After three long years of unconditional love, patience, and counseling, Rosie finally accepted the events that took the lives of her entire family. Rosie’s hard heart and disillusionment with her hero Justice finally melted, and she’d begun staying with him and Brielle on a trial basis over the weekends.

Cameron greeted Miguel, shook hands with him, and hugged Rosie. He lifted his beautiful granddaughter into his arms and kissed her round apple cheek. Noelle giggled, cupped his face with her chubby hands, and placed butterfly kisses on his face.

“Paw Paw. See!” She pointed toward a page in a coloring book.

“Very pretty, sweet baby girl. Where’s Mama?”

“Down.” Noelle wriggled out of Cameron’s arms. She grabbed his hand and led him to the master bedroom. “Mama! Paw Paw!”

Noelle cuddled with Brielle until she said, “Go play with Rosie, honey, so I can talk to Grandpa.”

Brielle’s thin, pale face concerned Cameron. Instead of gaining weight with this pregnancy, she’d lost it. Though the family expressed optimism, most privately doubted she would carry this baby to term. And Justice, being in Washington, D.C., left Brielle without the loving support of her husband.

“Daddy?”

.Cameron’s fearless daughter, who’d survived being kidnapped by domestic terrorist, Axel Anderson, and resisted Dr. Schou’s brainwashing techniques, which had caused the Anderson kids to go insane and had broken FBI agent Nash Carson, burst into helpless tears. He slid next to her on the bed and held his distraught daughter against him as she bawled.

“I’m scared I’m going to lose this baby!”

There. She’d said it. Now she could deal with it.

“Dr. Carson Williams is the best high-risk pregnancy specialist in the country. He saved your sister-in-law Callie’s life.”

“He’s also treating me long-distance from Maine. What if something happens?”

“Dr. Williams is communicating constantly with your OB/GYN to keep her abreast of your condition. If something happens, Bri, your doctor will know what to do through video conferencing with him, and we’ll fly Dr. Williams here as soon as we can get him on a private jet.”

Brielle raised herself against the headboard. “Is this how you and Mom felt when Trey and Ben were shot? Scared to death?”

“Yes. And not being able to be with both our boys at the same time nearly destroyed us. Our fear that you, Bryant, Brooke, and Brendan would be next took its toll, too.”

“So did Kerry losing her and Trey’s baby. I don’t want you and Mom to suffer through that again.”

---