HEAD GAMES

Chapter Seven

It was a tense few seconds. Every police officer had their fingers on their triggers, ready to shoot in case Manning failed to cooperate. After a moment of consideration, he raised his hands in the air, as ordered.

“On the ground, face down. Keep your hands in the air,” Sykes barked.

Again, he cooperated, struggling a bit to maintain his balance as he knelt. He placed his palms on the floor, then lay face down. His long hair covered his face.

Viciously, his hands were jerked behind him. Handcuffs were slapped brutally around his wrists. He winced in pain.

“You aren’t as clever as you thought you were, Manning,” Sykes gloated.

The tall policeman wrapped his fist in the long hair with the intention of jerking him to his feet. But when he yanked, Sykes ended up with a handful of hair while the handcuffed man stayed on the ground.

“A wig?” Bo sputtered. “What the hell? Get him to his feet.”

Three officers lifted him to his feet. Bo was stunned to find himself looking into a pair of blue eyes instead of hazel.

“Powell Lord?!”

Bo squinted in disbelief at the man who’d been sent to a psychiatric hospital a few years earlier. He grasped the fake scar and ripped it from Powell’s right cheek.

“Why?” the commissioner asked incredulously. “You’ve been doing all this to set Todd up? Why, Powell?”

“Revenge,” was the simple answer.

Bo scoffed and shook his head. He began pacing as he recounted all the steps that had led up to that moment.

“It was you, not Todd, who was stalking RJ, right? You’re the one who shot him. And it was you who stole Todd’s file from Sam, right? What was that for? Research? And the fire in Viki’s office. What was that for? Revenge, as well?”

Realization hit him in an instant.

“The fingerprints on the matchbook were Todd’s.” Bo stopped pacing and looked Powell in the face. “You’ve got him hidden away somewhere, haven’t you? You were planning to set him up, then let him take the fall. And, of course, no one would believe him when he accused you of being the one behind the crimes. Where is he, Powell?”

Todd’s former fraternity brother merely laughed, a crazed maniacal laugh.

The Commissioner ordered his men, “Search this entire house.”

*****

Bo and Sykes were busy looking over Powell’s plans to kidnap Starr. He had her every move cataloged. There were routes taken to school, dance classes, play dates. Everything was meticulously, horrifyingly detailed.

Hodges interrupted the pair. “We’ve searched the entire house. There’s no sign of Manning, Sir.”

“Even the attic?” Bo asked.

“Yes, Sir.”

“Is there a basement here?”

“Yes, Sir. I checked it myself.”

“And what did you see?” Bo was grasping at straws. If Powell hadn’t hidden Todd there, then where?

“It was just a plain, unfinished basement. A hot water heater, a toilet, a sink and a couple of boxes. Where else should we look?” Hodges was eager to please his boss.

“I’m not sure. I guess we’ll need to do some research. Sykes,” he said, turning to the taller man. “Find out if Powell owns any other property in Llantano county. We’ll start there.”

The three of them headed out of the house.

“I guess I’ll head down to the station and start the interrogation,” the Commissioner explained.

Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks in the middle of the yard.

“What is it?” Sykes inquired. “Have you thought of something?”

“Since when does an unfinished basement need a sink and a toilet?” he replied.

They simultaneously sprinted for the house. Bo reached the top of the basement stairs first and flipped on the light. He quickly surveyed the mostly empty space, then hastily made his way down the stairs.

He went to the corner where the hot water heater stood surrounded by four medium sized boxes. He pushed them carefully away.

“Oh, my god,” he whispered.

HEAD GAMES

Chapter 8

“Call an ambulance,” Bo ordered. “You,” he barked at Officer Hodges. “Get a blanket out of the car. Move!”

Hodges ran quickly back up the basement stairs while Sykes peered over Bo’s shoulder. “Is he alive?” he asked callously.

Bo gingerly moved the long, sandy hair off the face of the prone man huddled around the hot water heater. He placed two fingers alongside his neck, checking for a pulse.

“He’s alive, but he appears to be unconscious. Now call that ambulance!” he commanded.

Sykes begrudgingly obeyed. Hodges returned with the standard police issue blanket, which Bo draped over the unconscious victim.

“Is that Manning?” Hodges asked solemnly.

“Yeah, it’s him,” Bo acknowledged.

“He doesn’t look very good,” Hodges observed.

“No, he doesn’t,” Bo agreed. “I wonder how long he’s been kept down here. It’s freezing.”

“An ambulance is on the way,” Sykes interjected.

“Good,” said Bo. “Why don’t you go up and wait for them, John?”

The tall detective rolled his eyes and slowly made his way up the stairs. He was in no hurry to save the life of Todd Manning.

“This isn’t quite the way I thought this would turn out,” Hodges admitted. “Why would that other guy impersonate Manning? Why such an elaborate ruse to set him up? What is it between the two of them?”

“It’s a long story,” he told the younger man. “A very long story.”

*****

Bo followed the ambulance to the hospital. He waited until they reached the emergency room before pulling out his cell phone to call Viki. She needed to know her brother was apparently not responsible for the recent crimes in Llanview, including ransacking her office at the Banner. He waited impatiently for her to answer the phone.

“Hello?” Kevin answered.

“Kevin, I need to speak to Viki. It’s an emergency,” Bo told him.

“Mom’s not here. What’s wrong?”

“When do you expect her?”

“She should be here any minute,” he answered. “What’s going on, Bo?”

“It’s Todd. He’s been taken to the hospital. I’m here with him now.”

Kevin scoffed, “I thought you said it was an emergency. What did you do? Shoot him? Again?”

“No. Look, when Viki gets in tell her to get down to the hospital right away. Okay?”

“Yeah. Sure,” he replied before hanging up the phone in disgust.

“Who was on the phone, sweetheart?” Viki asked him.

Kevin spun around, surprised to see his mother standing in the doorway.

“Mom, I didn’t hear you come in.”

“I didn’t mean to startle you,” she said with a smile. “Who were you talking to?”

“No one.”

*****

Even though he had several errands to run, Kevin hung around Llanfair, hoping to keep his mother away from the clutches of Todd Manning once again. He sat on the couch making small talk with his mother, speaking of inconsequential things. He did not want her taken in by Todd the Monster ever again. He had to protect her from her own brother.

“Kevin?”

Viki broke him from his reverie. “Sorry. What were you saying?” he asked.

“You seemed to be a thousand miles away. Is something bothering you?”

“No, Mom. I’m fine. Really.”

“Why don’t I make us some tea?” Viki suggested.

She headed for the kitchen just as the phone rang.

“I’ll get it,” Kevin stated as he leapt from the couch.

“Don’t be silly. I’m right here,” she replied as she picked up the receiver. “Hello?”

“Viki. I’m so glad you’re home. I need you,” the voice on the other end of the phone said.

“Who is this?” she queried. The voice sounded familiar.

“It’s Powell.”

“Powell!” she gasped.

“Viki, I need you to help me. I’ve only got one phone call. I found out that Nora’s out of town. Probably got scared away by Todd,” he sneered.

“What do you know about Todd?”

“Nothing much. I need you to find a good lawyer for me. Please, Viki,” he begged.

“You’ve been arrested? Why?”

“I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. That’s all. They’re blaming me for Todd’s crimes. Help me, Viki. Don’t let them do this to me.”

“Why would they blame you for what Todd has done? I don’t understand. What exactly is going on, Powell?”

“I’ll explain everything once you come down to the station. Okay?”

Viki pondered for a moment whether or not she should help her cousin. Her curiosity got the better of her, so she agreed. “I’ll be right there.”

“Thank you, Viki.”

She hung up and turned around. She was unaware that Kevin had been standing directly behind her.

“What did Powell want?” he puzzled.

“He’s been arrested, and it has something to do with Todd. I’m going to the police station to try to sort this out.”

“Well, if it has something to do with Todd, then you’d best stay out of it,” he pouted.

“Kevin, let’s not get into this again, shall we?” she commented wearily.

Before he had a chance to reply, the phone rang again. Quickly, she picked it up and answered tersely.

“Viki, it’s Bo. Why aren’t you at the hospital? I’ve been waiting for over an hour for you.”

“What are you talking about, Bo? Why do I need to come to the hospital?”

Kevin sheepishly backed away from his mother, avoiding her wrath.

“Didn’t Kevin tell you? Todd’s been brought to the hospital,” Bo informed her.

“What? Why? Is he okay?”

“No, he’s not doing well.”