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  The kid nodded, then quickly chomped his teeth down hard around Willy’s index finger. Reacting on instinct Willy pulled his hand away, and in that one split second Matt wriggled free of his grasp. He dove to the ground and felt around for the gun.

  Willy had no idea where the gun was and he certainly couldn’t see it in the dark.

  Matt suddenly stopped groping.

  The kid flipped from his stomach to his back, while raising his right arm upwards. The gleam of the gun’s shiny metal flashed in his hand.

  Willy brought his left foot down hard on Matt’s wrist, pinning his gun hand to the ground. Then, he rammed his right knee down into the kid’s gut. He heard the air expel from his lungs.

  Willy was done with this kid now. He’d tried to salvage him, but the risk was obviously too great. Two wonderful lives were at stake—the only people he loved in the entire world—and he decided in that instant that he couldn’t take the chance. This scum’s life wasn’t worth the risk.

  He clenched both fists as tightly as he could and raised them out to each side of Matt’s head. Then, he rammed them inward at lightning speed.

  Willy winced in horror as he watched Matt’s skull collapse under the force. The drug addict’s ugly pockmarked face scrunched together and his ears disappeared from view as the skull imploded under the force of Willy’s powerful, angry fists.

  * * * * *

  Wyatt’s stomach was doing flips as he watched the nervous Aaron pacing back and forth.

  And, Brody just looked scared—this had gone far beyond what he had probably expected.

  Matt had been gone for about five or ten minutes, and Wyatt was relieved that he hadn’t heard any gunshots yet.

  He pictured his dad sitting out in his police cruiser—a sitting duck. He prayed that Willy had heard the earlier shot and left the car for a safer hiding place.

  He shifted in his chair, moving his shoulders as much as the rope would allow, trying his best to loosen the knot that was tied around the back.

  Wyatt glanced over at his mother—tears were running down her cheeks as she watched him trying fruitlessly to get free.

  Suddenly, Aaron stopped pacing. He stomped over to Helen and slapped her across the face. Then, he reached underneath her chair, picked her up, and threw her and the chair back against the wall. Helen screamed as she collapsed helplessly to the floor with the chair on top of her.

  Wyatt felt a sudden fire burn inside his chest, and he yelled, “You fucking bastard!”

  He leaned forward in his chair until his feet were planted firmly on the floor. Then he dove into the air as far as his feet could possibly take him with a damn chair burdened to his back.

  Aaron turned at the last second, but not fast enough to get out of the way. Wyatt found his target, head-butting Aaron with as much force as he could muster.

  They both collapsed to the floor, Wyatt on top. Aaron thrust his hands up against Wyatt’s chest, desperately trying to get him off, but not before Wyatt was able to slam his head downward once again.

  Aaron cursed and managed to shove his way out from under. Blood was dripping from his forehead, and he swore once again while wiping his eyes with a shirt sleeve.

  Now, both Wyatt and Helen were on the floor, lying on their sides with their chairs still attached.

  The thug stood and slammed his fist into the wall. “I’m going to kill both of you!”

  Brody yelled. “What the fuck you talkin bout? We wanna ransom!”

  “Plans change. We’ll just go grab the old man and force him to withdraw the money from the bank. I want to kill these two now. It’ll be fun.”

  “We not killin anyone! You crazy? These two done nothing ta us.”

  “You’re a pussy, Brody. Matt will help me.”

  “Matt’s crazy like you.”

  “Hey, I’ll let you fuck the lady first, before I do her.”

  “You a sick man.”

  Wyatt struggled with the rope. The force of his dive at Aaron had caused it to loosen, and he twisted his body as he lay on the floor, trying frantically to get it loose enough to get the chair off his back.

  The dialogue between the two kidnappers had taken a turn for the worse. Brody was trying his best to stop the direction it was going in, but he wouldn’t be strong enough to fend off Aaron, who was about twice his size.

  And, Aaron sounded just crazy enough to do exactly what he said he wanted to do. Clearly, he wasn’t just a normal thug—he talked like a psychopath. The type of bad seed that seemed normal and intelligent when he was at his best, but explosive and out of control when things didn’t go his way.

  Aaron walked over to Helen, who was still lying on the floor with the chair attached to her back.

  He pointed down at her. “She’s a good looking woman, for an old bag. She’s my gift to you, Brody. But, if you don’t want her, I’ll have her.”

  Suddenly, a new voice invaded the room. “Get away from my wife!”

  Wyatt turned his head in the direction of the voice, a voice he’d cherished his entire life.

  No one had heard the side door open.

  There stood his dad, with Wyatt’s Magnum in his hand. He was standing with his legs spread apart and a look on his face that Wyatt had never seen before.

  Aaron dove to the ground and wrapped an arm around Helen’s neck. He placed his other hand on her forehead. “Drop the gun, old man, or I’ll break her neck!”

  Willy hesitated for just a second, but then he dropped the gun. “Leave her alone. Just go away and we’ll forget this ever happened.”

  Aaron laughed. “You’re not in a strong bargaining position. You owe us some money, and we’re going to get it.”

  He nodded at Brody. “Pick up the gun, Brody, and hold it on him.”

  Brody walked forlornly over to where Willy stood, bent over and picked up the gun. Then, he held it straight out and pointed it at Willy’s chest.

  Aaron sighed and let go of Helen. He stood up and stretched his long arms.

  “Now, isn’t this nice and cozy? All of us in the same room together. Well, except for Matt. I’m guessing you took care of him, old man. That’s okay—more money for Brody and I to split. Now, we’ll have a little chat about how you’re gonna make us rich.”

  He walked up to Brody and held out his hand. “Give me the gun, Brody.”

  Brody turned. But, he didn’t hand it to him. Instead, with a shaky hand, he pointed it at his head.

  Aaron sputtered, “What the fuck are you doing? Give me the gun!”

  Brody shook his head. “Don move, Aaron. This shit over.”

  “Don’t be stupid, Brody. I was just kidding about killing them. I wouldn’t do that. We’re gonna get rich. Don’t blow this.”

  Brody shook his head again, and then turned slightly towards Willy. “Untie them.”

  That one moment of inattention was all Aaron needed. He lunged at Brody and knocked the gun out of his hand. Then, he levelled a fist at Brody’s head that sent him flying backwards against the wall.

  Aaron dove for the gun.

  But, Willy was faster. He covered the width of the room in a split second, kicking the gun off into a corner.

  Aaron jumped to his feet. “Okay, old man. Let’s see what you got.”

  He went into a boxing stance and began circling Willy. Willy just stood there with his hands at his sides…and waited. He turned his body in the same circle as Aaron; waited patiently for him to make his move. Confidence oozed from his eyes.

  The move came, and it was the last one Aaron would ever make.

  His fist came in hard and fast at Willy’s head. Willy stopped it with his open hand and squeezed, crushing the fingers in his grasp. Wyatt could hear the sound of the bones breaking from way over on the other side of the room; a sickening sound only slightly challenged by Aaron’s agonized scream.

  With his other massive hand, Willy grasped Aaron under the chin. He ran forward a few steps to get some momentum and then simply shoved the thug into the
air, across the room, right through the plate glass window. Wyatt estimated that Aaron weighed at least 250 pounds, but his father threw him just as easily as if he were a mere ragdoll.

  Willy opened the front door and walked calmly out onto the porch. Wyatt heard another loud thump, followed by an unearthly gasp.

  Then, just eerie silence.

  Willy came back into the house and, without a single word, proceeded to untie his wife and son.

  Brody was still sitting on the floor in the same spot where Aaron’s punch had sent him.

  Wyatt shed the chair from his back, picked up his gun, and watched as his dad cradled his sobbing wife in his arms. He then walked over to Brody, offered his hand, and lifted him up off the floor.

  The kid looked down. “I so sorry, Mister. I really stupid.”

  Wyatt put his hand on Brody’s shoulder, and squeezed it gently. “You’re not that stupid, Brody. You finally did the right thing, and that took some real courage. You made a bad situation right.”

  Brody looked up and grimaced. “How long I be in jail for?”

  Wyatt shook his head.

  “No jail for you, son. Just leave town, get off the drugs, and don’t come back. I don’t think prison would teach you anything more than what you’ve already learned here tonight. I have a very strong feeling that your life from now on will be a lot different.”

  Chapter 32

  Wyatt smiled as he watched his parents cuddling on the couch like a couple of love-sick teenagers. He’d made dinner for them tonight—not that he was that great a cook, but they both were still too distraught from the ordeal at the farmhouse to bother making meals for themselves. In their current state, Wyatt was pretty sure they wouldn’t criticize his skills, and it was more than likely that their taste buds weren’t even registering anything anyway.

  Willy had his arm around Helen’s shoulder; she had her eyes closed and was resting her head on his chest. Wyatt knew she was awake though—her fingers were gently stroking Willy’s leg.

  “I have to head back to my place. Early day tomorrow. Anything you guys need before I go?”

  Willy shook his head. “No, I think we’re fine. Thanks for dinner, son.”

  Helen opened her eyes. “Yes, thanks. But, there is something I need before you go.”

  “What’s that, mom?”

  “Tell me again why you two kept me in the dark about Willy’s condition?”

  Wyatt sighed. “Mom, I only found out a few weeks ago myself. And, Dad already explained why he didn’t tell us. He didn’t want you and me to worry and treat him differently.”

  Helen lifted her head off Willy’s chest and sat up straight on the couch. “I’m sorry, but I can’t stop thinking about this. It’s been two days now since…it happened…and this is all I think about. Watching your dad throw that man through the window as easily as if he were a rolled up newspaper was the freakiest thing I’ve ever seen. It was like a bad dream.”

  Willy rubbed her knee. “It’s okay, dear. It’s all over with now.”

  Helen jumped to her feet. “No, it’s not! That’s the trouble, here. I knew nothing about this, yet I’ve been married to you for decades!”

  She started pacing the room.

  Her voice jumped an octave. “There are things that I’ve never told you—how I felt about you. It made me feel insecure, so I never told you, but I’ve always admired how good you’ve looked through the ages. You’re twenty-two years older, yet you’ve always looked younger than me. You don’t have any age lines, your hair is thicker than a teenager’s, and your body is incredibly muscular. You’re eighty-seven years old, and you don’t have one wrinkle…or even a saggy ass. You’ve aged, of course, but you’ve aged so slowly. I wondered secretly how that was possible—I wasn’t going to complain, of course, because it was wonderful. I just considered myself one lucky lady.

  “I’ve always admired your strength, too, but little did I know how strong you really were. At parties, I got jealous at how all the young women flirted with you—I was proud, too, but mainly jealous. You had too much respect for me to ever flirt back at them, but it still made me feel a bit insecure. I never wanted to admit that to you, but I’m admitting it to you now.”

  Willy just stared at her, speechless.

  Wyatt got up and wrapped his arms around her. “It’s okay, Mom. Good for you to get this off your chest. Now you know as much as we know, so we’re all on the same level playing field.”

  She pushed herself away from him.

  “Don’t try to soothe me, Wyatt. We’ve all just been through an absolute horror because of this. If those boys hadn’t seen Willy in the state he was in, they never would have tried to extort money from him. And, then, they met this Aaron monster, and the plan was kicked up an even more dangerous notch. If you two hadn’t found me, God only knows what might have happened.”

  “But, we did find you, Mom. Don’t fret about what might have happened.”

  She put her hands on her hips, and cocked her head. “Wait just one minute. You haven’t explained that to me, yet. How did you find me out there in the middle of nowhere? And why was it just you and Willy? Why not a team of officers?”

  Wyatt guided his mother back to the couch. “Sit down, Mom.”

  She sat. “I’m waiting.”

  Wyatt sighed. “The stress of this incident triggered something in me. It’s a phenomenon called ‘Remote Viewing.’ I have it, but I didn’t know I had it. It’s a form of ESP that allows a person to focus in on an event, a time, or a place—past, present, or future—and see it in living technicolor. I basically floated above the vehicle that took you, and followed it all the way out to that farmhouse. We decided that it was best if just Dad and I went to get you. Too hard to explain, and it would have just drawn harmful attention our way.”

  Wyatt could tell that a light bulb had gone off in his mom’s brain. She turned her attention to Willy. “Do you have this skill, too?”

  Willy shook his head.

  “So, when Willy was told his DNA was permanently changed by that incident in Korea, some of that change passed down to you, Wyatt. Didn’t it?”

  Wyatt nodded.

  “I guess there was no way they could predict what changes would take place in you, but some of the new and improved Willy is definitely in you.”

  “That’s what Dad was warned would happen—and it looks like it did. It can’t be just a coincidence that I have this freaky skill.”

  “Do a lot of other people have it, too?”

  “We learned about it down in Quantico when I was with the RCMP, Mom. A few people have it, but not many. It’s a skill that’s utilized in intelligence circles—all in secret, of course.”

  “This thing that beamed into your father, could that have happened to a lot of other people over the last few decades as well? Changing their DNA, too? And passing it down to new generations? Is that where these ‘Remote Viewers’ come from, do you think?”

  Wyatt scratched his head. “It’s possible, I guess. What happened to Dad was never publicized, and he was ordered to keep it under wraps. So, if it happened to others at other times, I guess they would have been given the same orders.”

  “Is our government experimenting on us? Or, do other countries really have weapons like this that we can’t defend against?”

  “You know as much as we do. It’s all just speculation beyond that.”

  Helen stood up and started pacing again. “We can’t forget that this kidnapping happened as a direct result of Willy’s condition. That shows how dangerous this could be if the wrong people find out. We have to be so careful.”

  Willy jumped into the conversation. “That’s why I’ve been so secretive, dear. That’s why I didn’t tell you.”

  “Oh, you hush up! You should have told your own wife! I could have helped you, protected you. And, by the way, is that why your tongue looks like fish skin? It wasn’t due to that lame reason you gave me, was it?”

  “No, I made that up. Yes, t
he beam caused that, too.”

  “I feel like such an idiot.”

  Willy stood now, too. “Okay, that’s enough, Helen. You’re starting to sound like a whiner. It is what it is. Let’s just move forward and put this behind us.”

  “Don’t you dare call me a whiner! After the secrets you’ve kept from me, you have one hell of a nerve!”

  Willy nodded sheepishly. “You’re right. That was insensitive of me. But, I just don’t want to talk about it anymore. For now, at least. Okay?”

  “Alright. For now.”

  Wyatt decided it was time to leave. “I’m gonna go now. Are you guys okay?”

  Willy shook his head. “No. Now that we’re being open about everything, we need to talk about the mess we left behind two days ago. We’ve avoided talking about it. What are we going to do about that? There are two dead men out there, and I killed them both.”

  “Dad, nothing to worry about. I’m the only one whose fingerprints are in databases, and I wiped down everything I touched in there before we left.”

  “But…what about the bodies?”

  “You’ve lived here most of your life. Do you really think those bodies would have survived more than a day in the open like that? This is cougar and wolf country—they would have been devoured in no time flat. And, whatever was left over after the feast would have been stashed in dens for the winter. So, no point worrying about it.”

  Helen started gagging, and put her hands up to her mouth.

  “Sorry, Mom. Dad and I should have talked about this in private.”

  She shook her head and swallowed hard. “No…it’s…okay. It’s a fact, of course. I actually feel better after what you just said. But, it’s the image I have a tough time with.”

  Wyatt nodded and headed towards the door.

  Willy called after him. “Oh, one more thing. They emailed the airline tickets to me today. I fly to Atlanta next Tuesday, back on Thursday. I’ll be at that lab that Allison uses for her company medicals—remember, she said it was located in the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta?”

  “Right. Okay, Dad. Don’t forget—no x-rays.”