Free Blood Red by James A. Moore Page B

the woods to watch for him. All it took was listening to the police radio broadcasts to know where the man was.
    Ben smiled when he thought about the desperation in the sick bastard’s voice. He forced the smile to go away. He couldn’t take this as a game. It was serious business.
    He turned off the cell phone and started wiping it clean. That was the second phone he’d used, and it was going into the trash.
    Somewhere across the way, Maggie was probably sound asleep. He was thinking about getting some rest himself, as he had a test to study for later and his eyes were dangerously close to crossing. He wasn’t going to do himself any good if he didn’t catch up with the Sandman at some point.
    And then Maggie walked out of her apartment and he was wide awake again. She was dressed in a simple gray skirt and silk blouse, with a matching jacket, and her hair was pulled back in a ponytail. He watched her as she left, amazed by her as always. It wasn’t something he could define; it went beyond her obvious looks, but whenever he saw her, his day was made more complete.
    “Romantic pabulum.” He sighed and turned on the CD player near his laptop. He had a paper to finish and it wasn’t going to write itself. Norah Jones started singing songs directly into his soul and he let her.
    He wrote, just as he was supposed to, but in the back of his mind he was looking forward to being out near the accident site where he’d called Freemont. There would be packages waiting for him and he intended to go through them meticulously.
    Danni Hopkins was a sweet girl, and he intended to make sure she got her life back. He also intended to make a few phone calls to the other victims of Freemont’s game and let them know that they were free and clear.
    Then, and only then, he’d consider giving the crooked cop back his life.

III
    Kelli walked into the nurse’s station at the elementary school with a frown on her face. Teddy was lying back on the small cot they had in the corner, his hand over his eyes. He was asleep, but it was a fitful slumber at best.
    “Teddy? Sweetie?” She moved over to him and sat on the edge of the cot, careful not to knock them both through the air. It was hardly designed to have a grown-up sitting on its edge.
    He looked as pale as death and for a second, even knowing that he was breathing, she thought he was dead.
    Then Teddy opened his eyes and smiled apologetically at her. “Hi, Kelli. I’m sorry.” His voice was weaker than she’d heard come from him in the past and it bothered her a bit.
    “What for, honey?”
    “You have school today.”
    “It doesn’t matter. You’re way more important.” She ran her fingers through his hair and smiled at him. He closed his eyes and his face relaxed a bit. “Why don’t we see about taking you home, okay?”
    He nodded his head, and closed his eyes as he waited for her to speak with the nurse.
    A few moments later, the portly woman who worked as the school’s medical expert sat down with Kelli and they had a brief discussion. Ellen Cranst was in her late thirties, if Kelli had to guess, and while her face was heavy and her hair was pulled back in a harsh bun, she had a pleasant demeanor that took away from her otherwise harsh appearance.
    “He seemed to be doing just fine this morning, but as soon as the kids went out for recess he just dropped like a stone. I was afraid he’d been stung at first, but I didn’t see any evidence of it.”
    “I don’t think he’s allergic anyway.” She tried to think back to any allergies at all, but Teddy was a strong little kid, and there was nothing to remember.
    “Well, he seems to be doing better now, but it might be best if he took the rest of the day to rest. If he’s bad in the morning, it might be time to see a doctor. You never can trust the flu season to wait.”
    She thanked the woman for her time and bit her tongue on the patronizing tones the nurse employed, and then took Teddy with her toward the