He began to kneel, but Chris grabbed his shoulder. “Gloves,” Chris said, handing rubber gloves to him.
Snapping them on, he said, “Get Paul. Tell them what we’ve got. Tell him to get a team here.”
He carefully looked through the items on the floor, but they all appeared to be from Lydia and not her assailant. Standing, he placed his hands on his hips and forced his mind to visualize what may have happened. Her slim briefcase was still near the front door, so she must have been almost ready to leave, but had not stepped out with everything yet. Since her purse was toward the living room, it may have been in her hand or on the table and was knocked to the side, therefore scattering the contents. Her phone was in it, therefore she had no way to call for help now and they could not track her with the GPS.
And the blood? Fuck!
Chris stepped over. “Paul’s on his way. He’ll have a crew with him. I’m gonna run and see if any of her neighbors saw someone here.”
Jerking his gaze up to Chris, he said, “Thanks, man. Good idea.” As Chris left the house, his eyes dropped back to the blood. It’s not a lot, so she wasn’t stabbed. It’s not splattered, so it’s not as though she was hit. Something scratched or pierced her skin enough to have it bleed just a little.
He moved back to the front door and looked around. The pots of flowers that sat on her front steps were undisturbed. That gave evidence to there not being a struggle outside of her house.
Turning to look back inside, he analyzed what he had observed and drew one conclusion—She was drugged. She struggled, fought back, and then was drugged. If somebody was fighting while having an injection jabbed into them, they would easily bleed a little. Whatever she was given must have taken the fight out of her, making it easier to get her out of here.
Paul and his team arrived, immediately swarming the area. He quickly brought them up to speed on his observations and consusion.
“Why the fuck her?” Paul growled. “This makes no sense. She has a low-level security clearance. She’s in animal care, not research. If this is the work of one of the protesting groups, it doesn’t make any sense. Kidnapping her does not disrupt the function of the NBAF.”
Shaking his head, he fought the gut churning feeling coursing through him. Chris came running back inside, and said, “Only one neighbor saw a car this morning. Said it was a dark SUV, and he saw a man in a brown suit get out. His dog was barking, and his wife yelled at him to deal with it, so he walked away from the window and didn’t see anything else. The next time he looked out, the SUV was gone.”
Paul turned to one of his agents and barked for him to get over to interview the neighbor. Chris looked at Eric, and said, “Whatever you need, man. Just name it.”
Standing with his heart in his throat, he replied, “Thanks, but right now, I don’t have a fuckin’ clue.”
A rocking motion bounced her slightly, but Lydia could not figure out where she was, even as her eyes blinked open. As she slowly regained consciousness, she found herself lying in the back seat of an automobile, her hands taped together in front of her. Reality slowly crept in, as the memory of the man at her front door and the sting of the injection came to mind.
As she continued to blink, her focus slowly cleared, and she could see the back of the man driving the vehicle. Shifting her gaze, she saw no one in the passenger seat. The rocking stopped, but she was too afraid to move, not wanting him to realize she was awake.
That plan was quickly irrelevant, as he jerked around in the seat and saw her staring at him. “Fuck, you’re awake.”
He climbed out of the driver’s seat and walked around to the rear passenger door, throwing it open. He was obviously trying to avoid the possibility of her feet kicking out at him, since he came to where her head was resting on the seat. “Sorry, Doc. I gotta keep you out for a while.”
She wanted to scream, but a gag had been tied around her mouth. She tried to look upward again, but before she could wiggle away, another piercing pain hit her arm. The heavy, weighted blanket of darkness descended once again and, this time, she wondered if she would ever awake.
The man glanced around him for a moment and then pulled out his phone. “I’m here, at the airport. I thought you said someone would meet me.” He listened for a moment, and then said, “Where? Oh, yeah, I see it. When should we get to Denver?” Another pause. “Yeah, it fuckin’ matters, I just had to knock her out again, and I want to know how long this one might last.” Receiving an answer, he disconnected, shoving his phone back into his pocket.
He climbed back into the driver’s seat and drove to the destination in his instructions. Seeing a small private hangar, he drove around to the side. Checking in with the pilot, he said, “You just do what you were paid to do and get us there. I’m going to get the passenger on board.”
Going back to his SUV, he opened the back door once again. Hauling her out, he threw her over his shoulder, hefted her in place, and walked to the small plane. Climbing inside, he dumped her unceremoniously into the seat.
The pilot got into the cockpit and looked over his shoulder. “You gotta buckle her in.”
Grumbling, Robert leaned over and snap the belts around her waist, including the shoulder straps. Her head dangled forward, and he pushed her forhead back and to the side, so that it was resting against the headrest. Settling into his seat, he buckled in and told the pilot, “Now get going. I have no idea how much of a head start I might have, and I want to get us to Denver as soon as possible.”
Eric went back to Paul’s office where the DHS was currently running their investigation, and paced, waiting for Chris to get there.
Paul had given permission for Chris to bring his computer into the facility. Eric looked up as his partner entered the room and walked his way. “You have everything?”
Chris answered, “Yep. We’re all checked out from the hotel, and I’ve got everything we need right here. Have you heard anything yet?”
Eric shook his head in a jerky motion and was grateful when Chris just sat down, not saying anything else, and began working on his computer.
Paul got off the phone, and said, “Immigrations and Customs Enforcement are on the lookout for Ji-Ho, based purely on our wanting to question him. I’ve also got TSA on the lookout for Robert Edger.”
For a man used to controlling his destiny, Eric found pacing Paul’s office to be maddening. Over the next thirty minutes, several others came and went out of the room, either giving information to Paul or taking his orders.
Suddenly, a young woman popped her head in, and said, “A rental car registered to Robert Edger was just found at the Topeka airport.”
Eric shared a look with Paul and read in his eyes that they were on the same page. Robert is trying to get her out of Kansas.
He wanted to rush from the building and get to the airport as soon as he could but knew that would be folly. If Robert was already in Topeka, then he probably had already taken a plane out of there. But how the hell would he have gotten an unconscious Lydia on a plane?
“Have someone look at all the private planes that have left within the last hour,” Eric barked out. The young woman appeared startled, and her gaze shot between him and Paul.
“Just do it!” Paul ordered.
From the side of the room, Chris said, “I’m already on it, boss.”
He shot him a grateful look and moved over to stand behind him. He was amazed at how fast Chris’ fingers flew over his keyboard, moving from one site to another.
“Topeka must not be all that busy,” Chris said. “Only six private planes have taken off so far today and only two of those within the last hour.”
Paul, on the phone again, said to the person on the line, “Where did the last two private planes go and who were the passengers? And I want that information fuckin’ yesterday!” He did not hang up and after less than a minute, finished with, “Check the cameras and send the shot to me.”
In a moment, Paul was sitting back at his desk, staring at his
computer. Eric had moved from behind Chris to standing next to Paul as they stared at the screen together. A man pulled up to a small aircraft and talked with the pilot for a minute before returning to his car and pulling an unconscious woman from the back. Slamming his hand on the desk, he cried out, “That’s him. And, fuck, that’s Lydia!”
Chris called out, “That plane is going to Denver.”
Eric stood for a moment, his fists on his hips, his mind racing in a chaotic manner, so unlike him. He tried to think rationally but all he could see was Lydia’s face. She must be so scared. Anger and panic warred with his instinct to analyze the situation.
He lifted his head and pinned Chris with his stare. “We gotta go.”
Chris was already jumping up, gathering his computer, no questions asked, when Paul argued, “You can’t go running all over the country. Stay and work the problem from here. I can get people at the various destinations to check on what’s going on.”
“Not going to happen, Paul. I may be one step behind them at each destination, but by God I’m going to be a lot closer than I am sitting right here. You keep running the show from here. I’m heading to Denver. Chris is going with me, and I’ve got some other people I can call in. Every bit of information I get, we’ll give to you. I’d appreciate it if you do the same for me.”
Paul held his gaze for a moment, then said, “Fine. I’ll have someone drive you to the Manhattan Municipal Airport. It’s small, but we keep an airplane there. I’ll call ahead and have a pilot ready to get you to Denver.”
He shook Paul’s hand and was just turning to head out of the room, when Paul’s assistant called out, “Sir, Silas Branson is on your secure line.”
He halted in his steps and looked at Paul, who picked up his phone and hit speaker.
“Si? You’re on speaker. I’ve got Eric Lopez here with me.”
“Eric, Paul’s been keeping me briefed, and that includes this morning. I just needed to let both of you know that we’ve intercepted some Asian chatter coming from North Korea. We are uncertain of the exact location it’s coming from, but they indicated that Dr. Linda Hughley, the head of research at NBAF, was abducted.”
The feeling of being punched in the gut hit him hard, but he stood rooted to the floor. His gaze shot from Paul to Chris and then back down to the speakerphone.
“Silas, Dr. Linda Hughley is fine,” Paul explained. “I saw her when I first came in. Who they’ve taken is Dr. Lydia Hughes.”
Eric looked up, wide-eyed, and they locked gazes. “Fuckin’ hell! They’ve taken the wrong person.”
22
Eric was on the phone while Chris drove them to the small, Manhattan, Kansas airport. He had a few calls to make, but Mace was first on his list. Before he was able to get a word out, Mace spoke.
“Eric, we’re here for you. Chris talked to Josh and filled us in on what’s going on. What do you need from us?”
“Chris’ been doing a lot of background work, but right now he’s with me, and we're going to be in the air soon. We’re running into a roadblock with Robert Edger. We know he’s getting money from Hyun-Gi Kwun, and it looks like it’s coming from South Korea, but could actually originate from North Korea. We need that trail followed and we need to find out who the hell Kwun is. I know Robert isn’t calling the shots. With the chatter coming from North Korea about the abduction, my bet is Hyun-Gi is in charge of whatever they’re planning.”
“Josh and Clay are working on the money trail, as well as Kwun. I also wanted to let you know that Rank is currently in Los Angeles, finishing up a job there. I’ve already been in contact with him and he wants to be in on this with you, if you want him.”
Glad for the assistance, he replied, “Abso-fucking-lutely. Rank and I go way back.”
“I know you two were SEALs together. I’ll coordinate with him until you all meet up. You’re on your way to Denver?”
“Yes, but don’t have him meet us in Denver. I’m convinced whoever is behind this is going to try to get her out of the country. If they just wanted to disrupt the NBAF, then they could be anywhere, but I think someone wants Linda Hughley’s expertise.”
“And when they find out they don’t have Linda Hughley, but Lydia instead?”
Mace had just put into words what he was refusing to think about. “I don’t know. But as long as they keep moving, I’ve got to think that they don’t know yet they’ve got the wrong person.”
“I’ll tell Rank to expect your call. He’ll stay in Los Angeles until he hears from you,” Mace agreed. “And I’ll have Josh and Clay in contact with Chris. I’ve also taken the liberty of calling Jack Bryant, of the Saints. He’s got an investigative team based out of Virginia. I know Bart Taggart, another one of your former SEAL team members, works for him. It just so happens that Bart is in Las Vegas for a second honeymoon. Rank made contact with Bart, and he’s in as well.”
“Fuck, Mace, you know I’ll take all the help I can get, especially from some of my former team members, but his second honeymoon? Jesus.”
“I asked the same thing, but today was their last day, and they were going to fly out. Bart is putting his wife on the plane back to Virginia, then he’s heading to Los Angeles to meet up with Rank. They’ll be there together, waiting to hear from you.”
“I can’t thank you enough, Mace.”
“No thanks needed and no markers owed. And Eric? You’ll find her.”
Disconnecting, he hoped Mace was right. Rubbing his hand over his face, he had one more call to make. “Preacher? It’s Eric Lopez. I’m gonna need your help.” As succinctly as possible, he explained the sitution to Logan Bishop. “Bart and Rank are going to meet up in Los Angeles and await my next instructions. You’re a master at logistics. I’m gonna need a little help pulling all this together.”
Receiving Logan’s assurance that he was already mapping out the coordinates of everyone involved and that he would stay in contact with him, they disconnected. He fired off a message to Rank and Bart, letting them know that Logan was working with them as well.
Chris looked over as he finished typing the message, and said, “Sounds like we got a team, boss.”
He nodded, uncertain that his voice would hold as he thought about his former SEAL team members willing to drop everything to help him, and their bosses who had their own businesses to run, giving their assistance as well.
Chris turned onto the road leading to the airport and, looking at the small building, Eric said, “No wonder Paul keeps his own plane here. It’s tiny as fuck and not much traffic.”
“Yeah, I checked. It’s all airline alliances.” A guard waved them through the gate, and Chris drove to one of the small hangars off to the side. While he talked to the guard, Chris grabbed their belongings and hustled to the small plane.
He shook hands with the pilot, who told him, “Don’t worry, I’ll get you to Denver posthaste. Climb aboard and get buckled in. As soon as I get the signal, we’re outta here.”
True to his word, the pilot had them airborne within five minutes. As the plane gained altitude, Eric looked out the window, across the Kansas vista. The rolling hills, prairies, and huge ranches surrounding farmhouses all met his view. He remembered thinking how beautiful it was when he first arrived. And now, all he could think about was getting away from it and getting to Lydia. Closing his eyes for a moment, he vowed that the next time he came back to Kansas, it would be with her.
“It’ll take us about three hours,” the pilot called back. “The winds are favorable, so I’ll see if I can shave some of that time off.”
Chris looked over, and asked, “Tell me what you need, Eric.”
He shook his head slowly, and admitted, “My brain is fuckin’ mush right now. And that pisses me the hell off.”
Leaning closer, Chris held his gaze. “When Silas first came to me with this assignment, he told me that he was picking the best. He said there was nobody better than a former SEAL Commander for this kind of mission. Fast analysis, the ability to p
ull together multi-agencies into a cohesive team… I know, right now, all you can think about is Lydia’s safety. But Eric, you’ve got this. And you’ve got others who are going to be right here for you. I’ll do anything you tell me to do, boss, but I’m gonna need you to let me know what that is.”
Nodding slowly, he allowed Chris’ words to settle deep inside. He was right. He needed to force his emotions to the side and focus on the problem. Sucking in a deep breath, he said, “Okay. I appreciate your vote of confidence.”
Shifting around slightly, he said, “I’ve got two former SEAL team members who now work for security firms. One of them, Rank, works for Mace. He’s a coworker of Josh and Clay, so they’re bringing him up to scratch on everything we’ve got so far. The other one, Bart, works for another security firm, and he’s meeting up with Rank. Those two men have worked together as SEALs under me, and the three of us worked a mission a few months ago when Rank’s girlfriend was also kidnapped.”
Chris’ eyes widened, and his mouth dropped open. “Jesus, does that happen a lot to the women involved with you security types?”
His brow scrunched for a second as he thought, but then he just shrugged. “I have no idea, but I’m not taking the fuckin’ time to call them all up and asked them.”
Blinking, Chris blushed from his neck right up to his red hair. “Sorry, boss,” he mumbled.
For a brief second, he smiled, Chris’ personality once more bringing a moment of mirth to the situation. “Rank and Bart are going to meet in Los Angeles and await my instructions. Paul already has someone in Denver checking into the flights going and coming. Because they have about a four-hour head start, chances are they may have already left Denver. By the time we get there, we should know what the deal is. As soon as we find out their next leg, we’ll get hold of Rank and Bart and they’ll meet us.”
SEAL Together Page 15
