“What’s going on?”
“Shh!” She waved her hand in Neil’s direction to quiet him.
With her heart beating at a wild pace, Ellie kept her eyes glued to the screen as she listened to what the news anchor was sharing with the public…
“While we don’t have many details at this time, authorities have confirmed that convicted murderer, George Ray Harris, has escaped federal custody and is currently at large. According to our sources within both the Seattle Police Department, as well as the Tacoma Police Force, the fifty-five-year-old prisoner escaped custody at approximately nine-thirty last night while being transported from Washington State Penitentiary to a nearby hospital for emergency medical treatment.”
No.
Ellie’s racing heart flew into her chest. This was a mistake. Ithadto be. If it wasn’t…if that murdering SOB really had escaped…
“According to law enforcement officials, Harvey attacked and disarmed the guard who was riding in the back of the ambulance. Holding both the officer and paramedic who’d beentrying to render medical aid to Harvey at gunpoint, the prisoner then forced the paramedic who’d been driving the ambulance to pull the vehicle over to a stop at the side of the road. Ordering the officer and both paramedics to exit the ambulance, Harvey then stole the ambulance and has been on the run ever since.”
“Holy shit!” Neil exclaimed from his too-close proximity beside her. “Isn’t that the same guy you told me about? The one who tried to—”
“Choke me to death?” she cut him off. “Yeah.” Ellie nodded woodenly. “That’s the guy.”
In an absentminded move, she brought her fingers to her throat. Five years had passed, but sometimes she could still feel his meaty grip tightening around her neck. The pinching and burning. The gasping for air that had refused to come.
Luckily the asshole had been pulled off her before he could do any real damage. But while bruises always faded, some memories cemented themselves deep inside a person’s soul…forever.
“We’re being told the other three occupants were also made to hand over their cell phones and the officer’s department-issued radio,” the news anchor continued, “leaving them stranded on the side of the road with no way to call for help. According to the officer’s statement, a good Samaritan drove by approximately fifteen minutes later, but the prisoner was nowhere to be found.”
Nowhere to be found meant that the monster was just out there, free to kill again.
Dear God.
Neil started to speak once more, but Ellie raised a palm to stop him so she could hear the rest of what the man on the T.V. had to say…
“Police discovered the abandoned ambulance early this morning after receiving a tip from the hotline authorities set up for anyone who may have information on George Ray Harvey’s whereabouts. We’re keeping the hotline number scrolling at the bottom of the screen. Police are asking everyone, especially those within the state of Washington, to please call that number if you or anyone you know has information that could lead to the capture of the prisoner. If you do see someone you believe to be George Ray Harvey, do not approach or try to apprehend him yourself. Harvey is to be considered armed and extremely dangerous. We’ll bring you more as the story unfolds.”
Gut churning, she turned off the television and dropped the remote back down onto her desk. Ellie drew in a long, deep breath. Or tried to, anyway. For some reason, her lungs didn’t seem to want to fill themselves completely.
It’s him. He’s the reason.
“They’ll catch him, Eloise,” Neil stated as if it were fact. “You mark my words. As high-profile as that man’s case was, there’s no way he’ll be able to hide for long. In fact, I bet the cops have him back in custody before dinnertime.”
Harvey’s popularity wasn’t the issue. It was his level of intelligence. Testing out as a literal genius, the guy was as smart as he was dangerous. Add to that his whispered warning all those years ago…
I will get out someday, sweet Eloise. And when I do…I’m coming for you.
Those had been his last spoken words, but that day wasn’t the last time she heard from him. Not even close. Of course, she could never prove Harvey was the one behind the harassing phone calls and messages after he’d been sent away for life. He was, after all, behind bars in one of the state’s most secure prisons.
But it was him. To the very depths of herbeing, Ellie knew Harvey was the one behind it all. Eventually, the calls and letters came less frequently until one day, they finally just…stopped. But the fear…that had never really left.
She’d seen the evil behind those cold, empty eyes. She’d felt the desire to cause pain. The deep-seated urge to kill. But above all else, Ellie had seen the truth in his parting words.
I will get out someday, sweet Eloise. And when I do…I’m coming for you.
For a while, Ellie had lived every day in fear that he’d find a way to escape. That fear had lessened with time, but never fully vanished. And now…
He’s out there somewhere.
George Ray Harvey was on the loose, and the scariest part of all? Not knowing what the murdering asshole had planned.
Are you planning to kill again or simply trying to vanish?
Either was a very real possibility. From her time as a prosecutor, Ellie had learned that reinventing oneself was much easier than people thought. With the right contact and enough cash, a person could buy a new I.D., complete with new name, address, and backstory.