Chapter 7
Ma Travers was obviously nervous as she hurried into the phone booth behind Jane. The service station was closed, it was a quiet stretch of road, George sat in the car with the motor running, but still she was nervous.
"Look Jane," she hissed, "I still ain't sure we should be doin' this. If you say one word that ain't right, I'm going to drag you back to the car fast and you'll be dead before we get back to the farm."
"Please trust me, Ma. I swear I'll no nothing to hurt you or George or Don. You'll hear every word I say. I'm not going to try to trick you in any way. I swear it."
Nervously, Jane dug into her purse. She felt a restraining hand on her wrist and looked up to see Ma offering her a dime. As she took it from the woman's hand, it fell from her shaking fingers. Oh my God, Jane thought, I've got to be careful. I'm nervous enough, if I get her panicky, the whole deal is off and I'm dead. The booth was too crowded to permit bending to pick up the coin. She began to dig into her purse looking for another one. She heard the door slide open and held her breath. She wondered if her nervous fingers had cost her life itself. With a sigh of relief, she saw the old woman bend outside the booth and reach in to pick up the coin and hand it to her.
Carefully this time, she fitted the coin into the slot and dialled the number. She dialled carefully, she couldn't afford the distraction of a wrong number, not at this stage.
Before the first ring had been completed, she heard the break. The phone had been picked up. She hoped it would be her father on the other end.
"Hello." Jane's heart sank as she recognized Bunny's voice on the other end.
"Hello, Bunny, is Dad there?"
"Jane. Where in hell have you been? What do you mean by just running out like that without telling us anything about it?"
"Shut up Bunny and put Dad on." As soon as the words were out, Jane realized her mistake. If Bunny got mad enough, she would simply hang up the phone and she was dead. There was absolute silence on the other end. Jane listened, knowing that if she heard the buzzing tone of a dead line, it would be her death sentence.
Her father's anxious voice was the most beautiful sound she had ever heard. "Jane," he rasped, "where in hell are you? What in hell are you doing?"
"Oh, Dad," she sighed into the mouthpiece, "it's so good to hear your voice."
"Then why in hell don't you get home and hear it?" he asked.
"Dad, listen, please. I know you'll help me and right now I need help."
"Of course I'll help you. You're my little girl, remember?" His voice reflected concern.
"Dad, I'm in trouble, big trouble. I've got to get fifty thousand dollars fast."
"Jesus, Jane, what's wrong? Tell me, baby. Tell me everything."
"I can't tell you Dad, not right now, but unless I get fifty thousand fast, I'm going to be dead tomorrow."
"Jane, have you been kidnapped? It that it?"
"Please Dad, don't ask questions. I can't say anything. Just promise you'll get fifty thousand for me."
"Jane," the man's voice registered a terror now that approached her own, "just tell me where you are and stay right there until I get to you."
"Dad, please try to understand. Someday, I'll try to tell you all about this, but for now, just listen to me. Unless you can promise to get fifty thousand tomorrow morning, I'll be dead. I'm not fooling Dad, I mean that."
She heard the fear in his breathing as he searched for something to say.
"Jane, I'll have it for you. Do you need it tonight?"
"No, Dad, tomorrow will do. I'll have someone call at the house to pick it up around noon. Will that do?"
"Yes, of course Jane. Before that if you like."
"Now listen, Dad, this is very important. I know you want to help me, so listen carefully and please do what I ask. Make sure the bills are not marked, please don't tell anyone a thing about this and above all, please don't let anyone follow the man who picks up the money. Do you understand?"
"Sure I do baby, but listen. I can call the chief of police at home tonight and arrange to have a quiet tail put on the guy who picks up the money."
"No, Dad, no! You mustn't! Please promise you won't do anything like that. Just give him the money and forget about it. I'll be grateful to you for the rest of my life Dad if you'll please do as I ask. Promise?"
"Okay, promise baby. I won't play any tricks at all. I'll have fifty thousand in cash ready before noon, I'll give it to the man who calls and I won't talk to anyone. Are you okay Jane? Is there something else I can do?"
"No, Dad, thanks. If you do that, I'll be home in a couple of days and everything will be fine. Thanks, Dad, I have to go now. Don't worry about me. If you do as you promised, there's nothing to worry about at all. Good-bye Dad."
"Good-bye baby. I'll worry a lot about you, but I'll do just as you asked."
She hung up the phone and turned to the nervous looking woman who stood beside her.
"It's all right Ma. He'll do just what I asked him to and there won't be any trouble at all."
Ma wanted to be nervous, knew she should be, but somehow, the eager, honest face of the girl in the booth with her convinced her that everything was being played straight. They walked back to the car together.
Jane was surprised that George showed so little concern. It was as if he trusted her. She couldn't explain it, but somehow, it seemed important to her that he trusted her. He was the man who had kidnapped her, and yet, she wanted to please him, wanted him to trust her. Boy, am I mixed up, she thought.
On the drive back to the farm, they talked about the plan to pick up the money. George became a little nervous at the thought of walking up to the door of the house to pick up the money, but Jane tried to reassure him.
"I'll tell you what, George. Before you get there, take the license plates off your car. While you're gone I'll go with Ma to any place you pick. She can take the rifle with her. If anything goes wrong with your call, she can kill me."
There was something about the sincerity with which she said it that put them at ease.
"Lady Jane," Ma spoke for them, "I got to hand it to you. You are a real lady. I really believe we can trust you."
"I suppose I should be mad at you Ma, for what you did to me," Jane's voice was surprisingly calm, "but I'm not really. All I think of is that you could have killed me. Instead of that, you trusted me. It's up to me now to show my thanks for that. I've kept the first part of our bargain; Dad will keep the second part tomorrow."
"I sure hope so, Janie," Ma replied with just a slight edge to the warmth of her tone, "I'd hate to see anything happen to George."
"Nothing will happen to him, Ma. George will walk away from the house tomorrow with fifty grand. There won't be anybody following him. I believe my Dad, I know he will do as I asked him to do."
"I'll try not to worry too much, Jane," the woman looked into her eyes as she answered, "I kind of think you're tellin' the truth."
"I am Ma, and one other thing. I promised you a real treat for Don. I suppose when George gets back with the money, I could ask you to let me go, but I won't. I promised you that Don would have the biggest day in his life and I'm going to keep that promise. What say we go shopping for a trousseau tomorrow afternoon?"
"Let's talk about that tomorrow, Jane girl. I kind of think I'd like to do that."
Jane reached for the gnarled old hand beside her and squeezed it warmly. "I know we will have fun Ma, and I know too that Don is going to have a real celebration. You're going to see a brand new Don after this is over."
"Janie girl, you're the damnest girl I ever knowed."
The three of them laughed as George steered the car over the dusty country road and turned into the rough driveway leading to the shabby old farmhouse.
As they pulled up in front of the house, Ma jumped hurriedly out of the car. George leaned over toward Jane and spoke in what was almost a whisper.
"Jane, will you lay down with me tonight if I chase the rest of them away?"
"Yes George, I'd like that."
"Now wait a minute, Jane. You wouldn't kid me, would you? I wouldn't want you to play no games with me like that."
"George, I knew all along you didn't want me killed. A few hours ago, I was trying to prepare myself to die. Now, it looks as though I am going to live. I'll go to bed with you tonight George and I'll make it real good and I won't be fooling about it."
His eyes told her that he believed even if he couldn't understand completely. They got out of the car and walked into the house.
Inside, they could hear a sound coming from George's bedroom. It was something like a sobbing and moaning combined. It was obvious that Grace had found her way back from the barn. It was equally obvious that she was still feeling the effects of her husband's less than tender ministrations.