Chapter 40

Chapter 40—Jack finally gets his marching orders 

from the kidnapper

4:40 a.m., Monday, December 26

Jack looked at his phone, then back at Reginald.
“Handler here,” Jack said. His voice was strong and direct. He could assume a posture of confidence because, just as he explained to Reginald, he did have a plan to get Kate back. And that plan had nothing to do with his performing any of the deeds his protagonist was about to outline.
“You didn’t return to your hotel like we told you,” the man said.
“Put my daughter on,” Jack said. “I need to talk to her before we go any farther.”
“I’m giving the orders here …,” the man started to say.
“Put her on, or we’re done,” Jack interrupted.
“You will do as I say …”
That was all Jack heard, as he disconnected the call.
“What was that all about?” Reginald asked.
“I just hung up on him,” Jack said. “I’m going to talk to Kate before anything else happens.”
Twenty long seconds passed. Then the kidnapper called back.
“Kate,” Jack said.
“She’s coming, hang on,” the man said.
After about a minute, a weak voice came on the phone. “Dad?”
“Hi Babe,” Jack said. “You okay?”
“Yeah, I’m doing okay,” Kate answered.
Jack could tell by his daughter’s voice that she was actually doing pretty well. She sounded weak, and exhausted. But she did not strike him as being distraught. There followed immediately a rustling noise, as the kidnapper snatched the cell out of Kate’s hand.
“Put her back in the basement, and make sure she is secured,” the kidnapper told his partner. “And use some rope, those wire ties are cutting off circulation.”
That was great information for Jack to have. For one thing, he now knew exactly where in the building they were holding his daughter. And, because the kidnapper made a reference to a basement, that meant there was a pretty good chance that they had her in a house.
Another thing Jack learned was that they were concerned about her welfare. That did not mean that they would not kill her in a second, if doing so would serve their purpose, or if she no longer had value to them. But it did suggest to Jack that she would most likely be strong enough to participate in the escape.
“This is what we need you to do,” the kidnapper told Jack. “We need you to put an end to this assassination nonsense. We know that you and your friend have been contracted to assassinate the President of the United States. We know that. But you must see that this plot is stopped. And if you ever want to see your daughter again, you need to convince us that you have successfully put it to rest.”
“I have no idea what you are talking about,” Jack said.
“Of course you don’t,” the kidnapper said. “But I am going to call you back on Tuesday night, at 10 p.m. You need to give me some assurance, at that time, that you have been successful. Do you understand me?”
“Tuesday’s no good,” Jack said. “I can’t get anything done by then. Hold on.” Jack placed his hand over the mouthpiece, and addressed Reginald. “Reg, I know I’m meeting the group with you on Tuesday, but when will the next meeting be? The one after that?”
“Thursday,” Reginald said. “I can make sure we meet again on the following Thursday.”
Jack then turned his attention back to the kidnapper. “Thursday at 10 p.m.,” he said. “Call me at ten on Thursday. I’ll have something for you then.”
“Why Thursday?” The kidnapper asked.
Jack did not respond to the question. Instead he simply said, “But you need to know ahead of time, we are not going to talk about anything unless you put Kate on first. I will expect to hear from her before anything.”
With that, Jack disconnected the kidnapper, and again looked over at Reginald. He stared at his friend for what seemed an uncomfortable length of time.
Finally he said, “We’re on.”