Risky Return (Covert Operatives Book 3)

by Virginia Vaughan

  She touched his arm, her delicate hand sending shivers through him, and he knew he would protect her with his last breath. He may have squandered his opportunity to be with her all those years ago, and maybe after this was all over and Rebecca was out of danger, she would go back to her job with the court and he would take another covert assignment overseas. But for now he couldn’t—he wouldn’t—let anyone hurt her again. “I know I’ve let you down in the past, but I won’t this time. I will keep you safe, Rebecca.”

  “Good. Then you need to know what you’re getting into. It’s time you meet Missy.”

  * * *

  They stopped by the store for more groceries and a few supplies for Missy before heading to the motel. Once they were on their way, Collin wasn’t the least bit surprised when Rebecca directed him toward the south end of town, across the railroad tracks. She mentioned the name of the motel where she’d hidden Missy and he was surprised she even knew about this part of town. She’d grown up on the other side of the tracks, the better side. Yet, he supposed with her work with the court and foster systems, she probably saw clients who lived in this area a lot.

  He checked his mirrors, careful to make certain no one was following them. She was trusting him with this secret and he wasn’t going to let her down by leading the bad guys right to her hiding spot.

  “Maybe you can convince Missy to go to the police,” Rebecca told him. “I can’t believe this is happening right here in our town, Collin. This has always been a good place to live.”

  “Maybe for you it has been, Rebecca, but not for everyone. I grew up on this side of town, remember. I’ve seen the darker side of Moss Creek.”

  “I know you’re right. I work with these families every day. It’s a side of town I never saw when I was growing up.”

  “How did you get involved in this career? I would have expected you to go to law school or work in your father’s manufacturing firm.”

  “I never wanted that. All I’ve ever wanted to do was to help people.”

  “You seem so different than I remember.” But she didn’t really. It was an image he was recalling of the spoiled rich girl he’d tried to latch on to in order to protect his heart. But in truth her kindness toward others was the thing that had attracted him to her. She’d always been quick to act when someone in school needed supplies or money for field trips. She’d been generous to a fault with not only her money, but also herself. That was the girl he’d fallen in love with all those years ago. Never pretentious or snobby despite her privileged past.

  “I can’t imagine your father was very pleased with your career choice.”

  “No, he wasn’t. He expected a lot more from me, I suppose, but I get a lot of satisfaction from my job. Most of these kids have no one else looking out for them. I can make a real difference in their lives.”

  He liked that. He’d seen too many families in need during his time overseas, enough to realize that everyone needed someone to help them. And Rebecca had always had a giving heart. But had it gotten her in over her head this time?

  He pulled into the motel’s parking lot and stopped in front of the door she instructed. It was more like an old motor lodge, where all the rooms faced the outside. Maybe it had been in a good part of town when it had first been built, but Collin knew this area had been on the downslide since he was a kid and the chipped paint and cracks in the pavement only strengthened his certainty. No one would expect a woman like Rebecca Mason to ever come here. He was with her and he couldn’t even believe it.

  He gathered up the bags of groceries then scanned the area, looking for a tail, before Rebecca knocked on the door of room fourteen. It edged open and a petite young girl peered out. When she saw it was Rebecca, she swung open the door, but her expression held worry and panic. “Rebecca, what happened to your face?”

  She hadn’t told Missy about being attacked. It made sense why she hadn’t, but Rebecca should have known the girl would see the gash on her forehead and the bruises on her arms and neck. “I’m fine,” she insisted, then pushed her back inside.

  Collin followed and closed the door as he scanned the room. It was everything he’d expected. A cheap, loud carpet that looked like it was from the seventies and a TV bolted to the dresser. It was cleaner than he’d anticipated, though. He set the bags on a table as the girl’s eyes widened in fear at seeing him.

  “Who is this?” the girl asked, the pitch of her voice rising. “Who is he? Did he do this to you?”

  Rebecca grabbed her arms and held her, trying to calm her. “No, Missy. This is my friend Collin. He’s here to help us.”

  She shook her head and backed away from him. “No, no, no, why did you bring him here? I asked you not to bring the police.”

  “Collin is not the police. He’s just a friend who wants to help us.”

  He let the sting of the friend comment slide off him. What was she supposed to tell this frightened, traumatized girl? This is the man who wasn’t good enough to provide for me and my baby, but he’ll take good care of you? He’d stick with being called a friend.

  And one look at Missy left him little doubt she’d been traumatized. He spotted bruising around her wrists and ankles, probably from restraints, and her face held a pallor of someone who hadn’t gotten much sunlight in a while. Plus, the big oozing, stinking fear flowing off her was a dead giveaway of what she’d endured. But if she didn’t get to the police soon, or was examined by a doctor, those marks would fade and any evidence of what she’d suffered would disappear with them.

  “I won’t hurt you,” he said in his gentlest voice, holding his hands up in a motion of surrender. He’d have to be careful not to make any sudden moves around her. “I’m here to help.”

  Rebecca stepped in. “Missy, someone attacked me yesterday in the parking lot of the grocery store. The people who were holding you captive may know you’re here. Collin rescued me. He won’t let anything happen to either of us.”

  He saw panic rising in the girl’s face. “They know I’m here?”

  “No,” he said. “If they knew where you were, they would be here by now.”

  “What—what do I do? I can’t let them find me. I can’t put you in danger.”

  “We need to get you to the authorities,” Collin said as terror filled her young face.

  “No cops,” she said, her hands trembling at the mere mention.

  He didn’t know what exactly she’d seen, but her fear of the police was unwavering. “Then we at least need to get you checked out by a doctor.”

  Again, she resisted. “No! No doctors. They’ll know and come take me back. The doctors and police are working together.”

  He saw what Rebecca meant about her being too afraid to go to the police, but she couldn’t stay holed up in this room forever and she needed to share her ordeal with someone with the power to investigate. “How about the FBI then? Kidnapping is a federal offense and from what Rebecca has told me, this ring seems to be operating across state lines. It makes more sense for a baby-selling ring to be part of a bigger network. They wouldn’t take the women from the same town where they sell the children.”

  “That’s true,” Rebecca said. “I hadn’t thought about that.” She turned to Missy. “Would you be willing to go to the FBI?”

  She folded her arms against herself in a protective manner and looked at them both like she was getting ready to bolt, but she finally nodded her consent to talk with the FBI.

  Collin pulled up a chair and motioned for Missy to sit down. “Why don’t we try to figure out where you were being held?”

  Missy sat on the edge of the bed and Rebecca took the spot next to her.

  “Let’s start with something easy,” he said. “Do you recall anything about the place they were keeping you?”

  “It was a large basement area. We were underground for sure because I had to go up the stairs to get outside when
I escaped. I ran into the woods and hid. I heard men searching for me but I also heard a highway so I ran toward that sound.”

  “Did you see any road signs or anything that might tell us where you were?”

  “I saw a sign painted on the side of the building. It said Mason Industries.”

  He was shocked to hear that. He looked at Rebecca and saw tears pooling in her eyes. No wonder she had questions about her father’s involvement. But Collin was certain no matter what Bob Mason was involved in, he would never agree to anything that placed a target on his only daughter’s back. However, it was possible he’d gotten into business with people who didn’t care about Rebecca’s safety as much as he did.

  “What did you do next?” he asked, turning back to Missy.

  “I ran toward the highway and I flagged down a big rig. He gave me a ride to a truck stop on the outskirts of Moss Creek. I walked to Rebecca’s house from there.”

  “And you don’t remember how long you were driving?”

  “No, I must have dozed off because the driver had to wake me when we arrived. I don’t know how long I slept.”

  “Do you remember the man’s name or what trucking company was on the side of the truck?”

  She shook her head, looking defeated. “I can’t remember. I was just so scared.”

  The way she clung to Rebecca told him her fear was real, and so was their bond. She was fortunate to have someone like Rebecca in her life, especially knowing that many kids in the foster care system had no one. “What about the police?” he asked her. “You told Rebecca you saw the police talking to your kidnappers.”

  She nodded and scooted closer to Rebecca on the bed.

  “Did you recognize the man you saw? Was he wearing a uniform? How did you know he was the police?”

  “He was wearing a uniform like one that a deputy wore when he came to our school one time when I was younger. He had a gun and one of those starlike badges that said ‘deputy sheriff’ on it.”

  “Had you ever seen him before?”

  She shook her head. “No. He looked at me, though. He stared right at me and then talked about me like I wasn’t even there. Like I was an animal in a cage. He said I would make fine product because of my blond hair and blue eyes.”

  So they were holding the girls to use them again. He would have to remind Rebecca to get a copy of the photo of the dead girl and show it to Missy to see if she recognized her. If they were keeping these girls, then why had that one been found dead of an apparent overdose? Was she a victim of this ring of kidnappers or simply a runaway who had overdosed with no connection at all? It would also tell him for certain what kind of people they were dealing with. They had already tried to kill Rebecca. Were they the type who didn’t care how high the body count went?

  Rebecca hugged her tight. “Thank you, Missy. I’m sorry we had to ask these questions. Collin and I are going to go make the arrangements to meet with the FBI, but you’ll be safe here as long as you stay inside. If you need anything, call me. You have the number.”

  Collin was impressed with how gentle and understanding Rebecca was with the girl and she could see how important Rebecca’s opinion was to her.

  They left, Rebecca ensuring that Missy locked the door before they walked to the car. “What did you think?” she asked him.

  He was still trying to process it all but his overriding thoughts were for Rebecca’s safety. “She’s obviously been through something traumatic and I can see she’s reluctant to go to the police. Where’s the closest FBI office?”

  “I’m not sure. Probably in Jackson. That’s at least ninety miles away.”

  “You said earlier you’ve been collecting evidence on Missy’s abduction?”

  “Yes, as well as three other girls that went missing in the past year from the foster care system. As far as I can tell, they had nothing else in common except that they were all pregnant and their foster families, teachers and case workers didn’t believe they were the type to run away. It’s only notes of people I’ve talked to as well as the newspaper articles I found. They didn’t lead me anywhere, but when the threats started showing up, I got scared and printed off a hard copy just in case I needed it and hid it at my house. I felt silly at the time. But, if Kent has been through my house, don’t you think he found that?”

  “They were looking for evidence of a break-in, not a stash of secret documents. Besides, I think he would have mentioned it.”

  “Unless he’s involved with the kidnappers.”

  Suspicion clouded her expression and he saw she was struggling with who to trust, but he wasn’t ready to write off Kent as one of the bad guys until Missy could give them more information about who or what she saw. “For now, I’m giving him the benefit of the doubt. It’s difficult for me to believe that someone I’ve known since fourth grade could change so much. Let’s go get your files then get back to Missy. I’d like to know if she recognizes any of these other missing girls. I’ll also call the FBI and find out who we need to contact and when we can come in.”

  They got into the car and Collin drove to her house. He felt her stiffen when he pulled into the driveway. She’d been through so much and being attacked in her own home had to be devastating.

  He thought the police would have locked up after they left last night, but as he got out of the car, he saw that the front door was open. He motioned for her to wait as he approached the door and peered inside. Furniture was overturned and papers were scattered everywhere, as if someone had been searching for something. It hadn’t been that way last night. He also noted the lock on the door was busted.

  She gasped but stayed behind him as he checked the house. The bedroom was also in a worse state than it had been last night after her attack. When he entered the room, her dresser drawers were pulled open and clothes were scattered. Someone had been searching for something here. Her notes? Or a clue as to where she was hiding Missy?

  She pushed through the mess to the other side of the bed then gasped and placed her hands over her mouth. Her nightstand was overturned and only pieces of tape remained stuck to the bottom.

  “It’s gone,” she said. “I taped it to the bottom of my nightstand. All my notes are gone.”

  It seemed it hadn’t been silly of her to hide those papers, only unnecessary. He checked the rest of the house but no one was inside. They’d found what they’d come for. They knew she was connecting the dots about the missing girls. But did they also know Missy had run to her after escaping?

  Kent hadn’t mentioned anything about the inside of her house being ransacked and he doubted it was police procedure to do this much searching on a victim’s home. He pulled out his phone and dialed Kent’s number.

  “Did you search Rebecca’s entire house?”

  “I cleared it for intruders, if that’s what you mean.”

  “Her place has been ransacked. Overturned furniture, drawers pulled out and clothes scattered.”

  Kent sucked in a breath. “That wasn’t us and it wasn’t like that when we were there. Her house was in order when we left it. I’ll send a team over there right away.”

  “Do you believe him?” Rebecca asked.

  That was the kicker. He didn’t know what to believe. It made no sense that someone would come back to her house to search for those papers after breaking in to write the threat on her wall. If they knew about them, why hadn’t they taken them when they broke in previously? Unless...

  “You said you printed off a copy of everything you’ve collected? Do you still have it saved on your laptop?”

  “Yes, but it’s in my car at the impound lot.”

  Collin pulled out his phone again and sent Kent a text message. “I’m asking Kent to check your car to see if your laptop is still inside. Someone could have taken it, found the information you had on it and assumed you printed it out. That’s the only thing that makes sense.�
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  “So they know all the information I’ve gathered and everyone I’ve spoken with.”

  His phone dinged with a message and his gut clenched as Kent confirmed what he’d suspected. Her car had been inventoried as part of gathering evidence at the crime scene, but her laptop was not there. Was this the work of Missy’s dirty cop?

  “You’re sure the laptop was in your car?”

  She nodded. “I’m positive. Why?”

  “It was never inventoried as part of the evidence. It’s gone.” He took her arm. “We should go. You can recount whatever you remember to the FBI and they can pick up the trail you started.”

  The sooner they got Missy out of town and to the FBI, the better off they were going to be. If anything happened to her—if anything happened to either of them, before they could get to the FBI to tell their story—the ring would have succeeded in tying up their loose ends and could continue on unscathed.

  He opened the passenger door for Rebecca but before she got in, from the corner of his eye, he spotted a car approaching them, slowly. The window lowered and the barrel of a gun poked out.

  His instincts kicked in and he grabbed Rebecca and threw her to the ground behind the car as gunshots rang out, spraying his car with bullets.

  * * *

  Rebecca screamed as Collin threw her to the ground, but her heart hammered when he covered her with his body as shots rang out. Her pulse roared in her ears, and over the gunfire and screeching of tires, all she heard was the rapid beating of her heart.

  When the car was gone, he released her. “Are you okay?” Collin asked, grabbing her arms and helping her up. “Are you hit?”

  She couldn’t even catch her breath but she managed to shake her head. “I—I’m okay.”

  He pulled out his phone and called the police. The car was long gone but the threat was very real. Someone was determined to kill Rebecca. Had they been hiding as they waited for them to return to her house? Or had they followed them here from the motel?

  She gasped, yanked out her phone and dialed the motel. Relief rushed through her when Missy answered.