Chapter 117.
THEY CAME TO THE HOUSE on Fifth Street; they came about a week after Jamilla went back to California.Them again.One of the saddest days of my life.Indescribable.Unthinkable.Christine was there with her lawyer and Alex Junior"s law guardian and a case manager from Children"s Protective Services. The case manager wore a plastic ID around her neck, and it was probably her presence that bothered me the most. My children had been raised with so much love and attention, never with abuse or neglect. There was no need for Children"s Services. Gilda Haranzo had gone to court and been granted a declaration of order giving Christine temporary guardianship of Little Alex. She had won custody based on the claim that I was "A lightning rod for danger," putting the child in harm"s way.The irony of what was happening was so deep that I almost couldn"t stand it. I was trying to be the kind of policeman that most people wanted, and this was what I got? A lightning rod for danger? Is that what I was now?And yet, I knew exactly how I had to act this morning on Fifth Street. For Little Alex"s sake. I would abandon all my anger and focus on what was best for him. I would be supportive during the handover. If it was possible, I wouldn"t let anything frighten the Boy or upset him. I even had a long printed list of Alex"s likes and dislikes ready for Christine.Unfortunately, Alex wasn"t buying any of this. He ran behind my legs and hid from Christine and the lawyer. I reached around and gently stroked his head. He was shaking all over, quivering with rage.Gilda Haranzo said, "Maybe you should help Christine take Little Alex to the car. Would you please do that?"I turned and tenderly wrapped my arms around the Big Boy. Then Nana, followed by Damon and Jannie, knelt beside him for a group hug. "We love you, Alex. We"ll visit you, Alex. You"ll come see us, Alex. Don"t be scared."Nana handed Alex his favorite book, which was Whistle for Willie. Jannie gave him his love- worn plush cow, Moo. Damon hugged his brother and tears started down his cheeks."I"ll be talking to you tonight. You and Moo," I whispered, and kissed my son"s darling little face. I could feel his heart going fast. "Every night. Forever and a day, my sweet boy. Forever and a day."And Little Alex said, "Forever, Daddy."Then they took my son away.EpilogueWOLVESPASHA SOROKIN WAS DUE at the courthouse in Miami at nine o"clock on Monday morning. The van he rode in was escorted from the federal prison by half a dozen cars; the route wasn"t known by any of the drivers until the last possible moment before departure.The attack took place at a stoplight just before the cars would have gotten on the Florida Turnpike. They hit with automatic weapons and also rocket launchers, which took out most of the escort cars in under a minute. There were bodies and smoking metal everywhere.The black van that Pasha Sorokin was riding in was quickly surrounded by six men in dark clothes, no masks. The car doors were yanked open and the police guards were beaten and then shot dead.A tall, powerful-looking man strode up to the open door and peered inside. He smiled playfully, as if a small child were in the prison van."Pasha," the Wolf said, "I understand that you were going to turn me in. That"s what my sources say, my very good sources, my incredibly well-paid sources. Talk to me about this.""It"s not true," said Pasha, who meanwhile was cowering in the middle seat of the van. He wore an orange jumpsuit, and his wrists and ankles were bound by chains. He no longer had his Florida tan."Maybe, maybe not," said the Wolf.Then he fired one of the rocket launchers point-blank at Pasha. He didn"t miss."Zamochit," he said, and laughed. "One can"t be too careful these days."About the AuthorJames Patterson"s most recent major international bestseller is The Lake House. He is the author of twenty-three books and lives in Florida.The Alex Cross Dossier and Along Came a Spider ExcerptThe Alex Cross DossierPERSONAL:Alex Cross, born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, is six-three, weighs 200 pounds, athletic, and good-looking. He is a widower, with three children: Damon; Janelle (Jannie); and Alex Jr. (Alex"s son with Christine). His wife, Maria, a social worker, killed in a drive-by shooting when the children were toddlers. Murder never solved. Cross calls himself the Dragon slayer. He and his children live with Regina Hope Cross (Nana Mama), 81. Nana Mama was an English Teacher and a.s.sistant princ.i.p.al of Garfield North Junior High School. Cross"s mother died of lung cancer when he was nine, his father, a heavy drinker, the year before. He was sent to D.C. and raised by his grandmother. Three brothers: 2 deceased, not raised by grandmother.Cross"s best friend, since they were both 10, is John Sampson, senior detective, six-nine, 250 pounds, called Two-John and Man Mountain.Cross"s favorite food: white bean soup. Likes beer, fine wine.Cross"s hobby: the piano. Loves Gershwin, cla.s.sical music. An avid reader of fiction and nonfiction.Favorite vacation spot: Caribbean.Cross is a volunteer in St. Anthony"s soup kitchen, where he is called Peanut b.u.t.ter Man and Black Samaritan and offers free therapy. Cross is a family man, gives the children bi-weekly boxing lessons. He drives a "74 Porsche.Cross, his three children, and Rosie, their cat, live with Nana Mama on Fifth Street, Washington, D.C., Southeast.PROFESSIONAL:Education: Ph.D. in psychology from Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD. Special concentration in the field of abnormal psychology and forensic psychology.Upon graduation Cross worked as a migrant farm worker for a year. He then had a private practice in D.C. for three years. Cross joined the Washington, D.C., police department as a psychologist and homicide detective. He"s been on the force eight years. He works in an unofficial capacity with VICAP (Violent Criminal Apprehension Program) as a liason between the FBI andD.C. police. Cross is a profiler.A Washington Post article in its Sunday magazine section published a piece about Cross called "The Last Southern Gentleman." The article praised the psychologist-detective for his work in Homicide and Major Crimes.Cross"s articles about the criminal mind were published in Psychiatric Archives and American Journal Psychiatry. He wrote a diagnostic profile of the pyschopathic serial killer Gary Soneji.