Page 6 of Greed

“Sam, what’s your birthday?”

“Umm…” There was a long pause, and she could barely hear him breathing. “555 River Road.”

She started to type and then realized he’d given her an address and quickly switched screens. The address belonged to a Karen Johnson. This made no sense. “Sam, you’re doing well. Just relax. The officer is only a minute out. Now can you give me your birthday this time, Sam?” She tried again.

“I can’t. Oh God, I’m so sorry.”

“Sam. Sam, just listen to my voice and breathe.”

“Shhh, I can hear them coming,” his voice shook. The wavering voice sounds came through the headset making her body involuntarily shudder. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I was a bad person. I’m sorry that I stole and cheated and lied and drank too much, and I’m sorry I hit that girl and ran. I swear I didn’t see her. She just appeared in the middle of the street, but I was so scared I just drove away,” Sam rambled rapidly. “I can hear the sirens, but they’re too far. Those thing they’re going to get me. I don’t want to die, please.”

“Sam, what girl?” she asked, completely confused now at the turn in the conversation. Minetta looked up at Penny and the rest of the dispatchers who’d gravitated to her desk and the odd call as if they could all hear the desperation in Sam’s voice.

“I don’t know…I didn’t know her name. I just hit her and took off.” Sniffling came from the line. “She was so young, but I swear I didn’t mean to do it. Please, you have to believe me, please. Make them leave me alone. I didn’t do it on purpose. I wouldn’t.”

Her hands flew across the keys, digging into the stored banks of calls looking for anything that was a hit-and-run for a young female victim. Sadly, there were over five hundred in the last year. She had no idea how to narrow this down.

As her eyes scanned back and forth over the lines of names and addresses, her hand froze on her mouse as 555 River Road was one of the addresses of a victim. She doubled clicked on the line, her eyes scanning the general occurrence.

Lizzy Johnson, six years old, ran out into the street chasing a ball. Victim was hit by speeding car doing approximately 40miles/hr. Vehicle believed to be a red, two-door was seen speeding away from the scene. No Marker. Officer Jansen performed CPR, but the young girl was pronounced DOA at the hospital.

Minetta wiped away the single tear that was traveling down her cheek. This bright young life narrowed down to a few clinical lines. She swallowed down the mixed emotions as she turned her attention back to Sam. Regardless of what had happened, at this moment, Sam was the individual in need of her help.

“Sam, are you still with me?”

“Yes.” The one word was strangled and ended on a whimper and a sniffle.

A deep rumbling growl traveled through the line, and the hair stood up on her arms as her heart rate picked up. Eyes wide, she sat back in her chair, her own breath unexplainably quickening like the growl had come from inside the room. “Sam, what’s happening? What’s that noise?”

There was no response, just heavy breathing. “No, please!” There was a thumping sound, and then Sam’s voice became distant as the rustling got really loud. “No! Ahh!”

Loud screaming full of terror filled her head-set, her hands covered her mouth. The ear-piercing shriek came again, and she grabbed the headset throwing it off. She didn’t even care as they pulled free of the phone and smashed into the computer. The problem was without the headset on her, the sound of Sam’s screams were louder as the call came through the speakers attached to her computer.

She looked up as those around her stood and looked down at her phone, transfixed by the terrifying sound as she was.

Panic rippled down her spine. The growling that sounded like a pack of really large dogs made her rub over the skin on her arms. She could almost see them in her mind, and they sounded huge, like wolves or worse. The snarling was loud and had a raspy rattling to it like there were thousands of whispering screams riding the growl.

She shivered, wrapping her arms around herself. The sound had her blood running ice cold. The screaming reached a hysterical crescendo as it mixed with the sound of tearing. She closed her eyes and turned her head away from her computer, but her expert listening skills couldn’t block out the sound that was not clothing, and she felt like she was going to be sick.

As quick as the screaming started, it was over, and all was silent.

Hands shaking, Minetta reached for the headset and, with a great deal of effort, managed to plug it in before slipping the head piece back into place, the little microphone in front of her mouth.

“Sam? Sam, are you still there?” Silence was the only noise except for a few frogs and crickets singing in the night. “Sam, please answer me.”

“Hello? This is constable Brown. Who is this?”

“Hi constable, this is nine one one operator, I.D. number three, three, three, seven, seven, seven. I was on the phone with the male party in distress. Is there any sign of a man in the vicinity?”

“No ma’am, I’m sorry, the only thing here is this phone and….” There was the sound of the constable moving around. “I see some claw marks and what may be a small clump of fur. There is no sign of a victim and no blood. I’m sorry, I think I’m too late, but I can’t see any signs of a struggle that looked as if a body had been moved or dragged away. I will keep looking.”

Minetta jotted down all the details of the call and then sat staring blankly at the computer screen until it transformed into little colorful flowers zipping around in its screensaver state. She wasn’t going insane. She had heard the strange growls before Sam disappeared, so how could there have been no trace of him?

“Hey, girl, are you alright?” Penny asked, laying a hand on her shoulder.

“I don’t know,” she answered honestly. “Did you hear that? I mean, you had to of heard all that snarling and growling?”

“It was hard to hear anything else over the screaming. Come on, shifts over, and I’m going your way tonight. I’ll drop you off at home. Seems like a good night not to be roaming around alone in the dark or riding a bus with a bunch of strangers.”