Page 5 of Intangible
“It’s my daughter,” the man in the suit said quietly. “I apologize for how we handled this, but we’re desperate at this point.” When Memphis turned to look at him, he shoved a picture in front of his face.
It was of a beautiful young woman with long blonde hair. Her light blue eyes were full of mischief as she laughed at the camera. There were trees just turning in the fall air behind her, making the picture look like a postcard of some small New England town.
When he looked from the picture to the man in the suit, Memphis could see the pain in the man’s eyes making Memphis falter.
“Guys, give us a few minutes,” the big man they called Knox said, opening the door to the bedroom. Pushing Memphis inside, he closed the door behind the three of them, leaving the other two men in the living room. Finding his dog sprawled on his dog bed, Memphis fell down next to him, checking his vitals. “It was just a light sedative,” Knox added, rolling his eyes.
“He’s a fucking border collie. The most Murphy would have done was herd you into the house.” The dog was out like a light, but his breathing was unobstructed, so Memphis felt a little better. He had been arranged comfortably on his dog bed, which was something at least.
“You named your dog Murphy?” Knox asked.
“He was already named when I got him. He was payment for the surgery that delivered him and his littermates. The family didn’t have any money, so I got Murph in payment later. I don’t know why I’m telling you any of this.”
Memphis stroked a hand down the dog before standing. Facing the two men, he crossed his arms over his chest, waiting for an explanation. He didn’t owe them anything, but he could at least listen to what they had to say.
“I’m James Kent,” the suit told him. So this was Senator Kent from Connecticut. “My daughter, Thayer, was abducted two weeks ago from her college dorm. The FBI has been unable to find any trace of her, even with the information we’ve been sent. Knox mentioned he might know someone who could help us. I’m afraid I used my pull on the SASC, Senate Armed Services Committee to request your file, which was heavily redacted. There were no specifics on how you are able to find people like you can, but you have an extremely high success rate.”
Senator Kent motioned for Knox to hand him a picture. In it, Memphis saw the same girl, only this time she looked filthy. Even though she looked scared in the picture, he could see the slight raise of her chin in defiance. She was sitting in a chair with her hands bound and a newspaper dated two days ago on her lap.
“How much are they asking for?” Memphis asked, looking at the senator.
“They don’t want money. They want information about our military that I won’t give them.” He laid his hand imploringly on Memphis’ forearm crossed over his chest. “I love her more than my own life. I would happily give mine to get her back. But I won’t jeopardize our men overseas for it.”
Memphis was shocked. He never thought he would meet a politician with morals. It was good to know they still existed, but he couldn’t go through this again. He had seen too many dead bodies, watched too many more die in front of his eyes.
“I’m sorry, but I think you’ve been misinformed. I’m not your man,” he said quietly, turning back to his dog.
“Do you want me to tase him again, sir?” Knox asked. “Please let me light this piece of shit up again.”
“No, Knox. We’ll be going. There has to be another way to find her.”
“Sir, we’ve exhausted all of our resources. That’s why we’re here.” Memphis listened as they walked through his house toward the door, arguing.
He thought about the two pictures, the one of the pretty woman laughing at the camera and the one of the scared woman glaring at her captors. They would find another way. He’s a senator for crap’s sake, he had access to the very best resources. But if he did have those resources, why hadn’t they found her yet?
With one more look at his dog to make sure he was okay, Memphis sighed before walking into the living room.
Knox had just reached out to close the front door when Memphis spoke. “If I do this...” There was a pause before he continued. “If I do this, I’m not responsible for what I find.” Looking up, Knox caught Memphis’ eyes staring into his. Knox and Senator Kent stepped back into the cabin.
“You’ll help us?” the senator asked, a slight quaver in his voice. Memphis realized he really was their last option. With another sigh, Memphis looked up at the ceiling before returning his gaze back on them. With a slight nod of his head, the men closed the door behind them.
“First, the fewer people here, the better for me,” Memphis stated, motioning to the extra men Knox had hired to help. Knox crossed to one of the men, speaking quietly to him before they left the cabin.
“I sent them back to the hotel to get the command center set up,” Knox said once they had left the cabin.
“Second, if she is still alive,” Memphis continued, “I can’t bring her back. It’s not likeStar Trek. I can’t just beam someone out.”
Knox and the senator settled onto the small couch, listening. “You have to be prepared that I might find her dead.” Memphis stared at the senator until he nodded his head once.
“I can only give you information on what I find. I can’t physically get that far away from her. I can’t touch her, but I will do my best to talk to her. If I can see anything that will help identify where she is, I’ll let you know when I come back.”
“I understand. We’re not expecting a miracle, but we have to try everything,” the senator answered, nodding anxiously.
“Third,” Memphis said, ignoring the senator’s words. “I can pull myself out, but I can’t see what’s happening here. You can’t leave me. If you need me to come back, you have to get my attention pretty hard. Not with a taser!” he added, looking at a disappointed Knox.
“Whatever,” Knox said, putting his hands up in a gesture of surrender.
“Finally, this stays between us. I’m serious, no one finds out what I do here. Otherwise, I’d have to disappear for good this time and I’ve worked too damn hard making a life here.”
