Moving to embrace Logan as well, they all stood in a circle, and he asked, “Did we lose them here?”
Logan, not mincing words, replied, “They had already landed by the time DHS got the word that they were probably going to come here.”
“Fuck!” he and Chris cursed at the same time.
“There is good news though,” Logan added. “They got a rental. It’s a small car, not good for the weather in this region, but it was the only thing that was left. The rental associate remembers the man, and when presented with a photograph of Robert, she confirmed it was him.”
“And Lydia?” he asked, anxious for the answer.
“Negative. Sorry, man. I know this is hard.”
He watched as Chris stepped to the side and sat cross-legged on the floor of the hangar, his computer in his lap. “Which rental company?” Chris asked.
“Star Rentals,” Logan replied. “They’re a local company. It seems with so many people landing here in Portland because of the storm, all the other major car rental dealers were out of stock.” Logan grinned, adding, “They’ve got GPS on all their cars.”
Chris looked up, and smirked, “Excellent.”
The other men regarded Chris with interest as he began typing rapidly. Eric smiled a little, remembering what he had thought of him when they first met. But he had proven himself to be a priceless asset in all this…and a good friend.
After less than a minute, Chris looked up and held his gaze. “They’re the most expensive car rental business in the area, which is probably why they were the only ones that had a car left. Lucky for us, though, because tracking GPS on vehicles is a piece of cake.”
Eric’s heart leaped for the first time that day. Logan knelt to the floor next to Chris and watched him work. Chris began tapping on his computer again, with Logan staring over his shoulder making suggestions.
“Bingo!” Chris looked up with a large smile on his tired face. “Boss, we’ve got ‘em. Looks like he’s driving to Seattle, but there must’ve been an accident on one of the main highways because he’s taking a back road.”
“What if they leave the car?” Rank asked.
Logan and Chris looked at each other and grinned, then in unison said, “Cell phone.” Chris continued the explanation, saying, “He had to leave his cell number on the rental agreement. We’ve pinged it and, right now, they’re in the same place, so he’s in the car with his phone. But if they dump the car,” he grinned up at Eric, “we’ve still got him.”
He looked at his team, some old and some new, and said, “Number one objective is to get to Lydia and get her out safe. DHS wants Robert, and I do too, but never forget that’s secondary to her.”
He had already looked over and spied the two, large SUVs and knew that his team would have them well-equipped. As they all nodded their agreement, he called out, “Let’s roll!”
“Hell, yeah,” echoed inside the hangar.
Exhaustion threatened to overtake Lydia, but she was terrified of closing her eyes. The small rental car bounced along some of the rough roads as her kidnapper tried to see through the heavy rain. Night had descended, but even if it had been the bright of day, she doubted she would’ve been able to see much. Rain pelted the car so furiously that with the wipers going at full blast, visibility was almost nil.
At first, she was grateful to not be on another airplane, but now she despised the jolting potholes that he seemed to be able to find with ease. Her geography was not strong, but she knew they had landed in Portland and were now trying to drive north to Seattle. She assumed they were surrounded by forests, but it was hard to tell in the powerful rainfall.
She had glanced at the dashboard when they first got in, observing that this car had GPS as part of its package, but he did not seem to know that. He drove with his left hand on the steering wheel and his right hand holding his phone, alternating between cursing at the screen and looking out the window.
Uncertainty filled her, not knowing what to do. Given the weather conditions, it was dangerous for him to keep looking at his phone, driving one handed. Already, more than once, they had almost careened off the road. But if she tried to help him with the GPS, would that simply get her to her unknown destination quicker? Not having any idea why she was being kidnapped or where she was being taken, she had little cause to make things easier for him.
She shivered slightly, having become soaked while getting from the plane to the rental car. Glancing to the side, she knew he shared her predicament. He finally shivered as well, and she was grateful when he turned the knob to allow heat to move through the automobile.
The backend fishtailed as he took a turn too quickly, and she grabbed hold of the door handle for support, her heart racing.
“Get your hand away from there,” he growled. “Trying to jump out of this car now would be stupid. And as a doctor, I can’t imagine you’re stupid.”
“I’m not trying to jump out. I’m just trying to hang on.” She had said very little during her ordeal, and her voice sounded unfamiliar to her—raspy and hoarse. She cleared her throat and considered speaking more, but another fishtail kept her quiet.
He over-corrected, and the car began to lurch sideways, the wheels unable to grab the surface. She screamed as they spun around in a circle, before sliding off into a ditch by the side of the road. The rear of the car went into the ditch first, causing the entire vehicle to tilt upward. They bounced and rumbled downward until finally jolting to a stop with a loud crunch. Unable to see outside, she had no idea if they were near a creek or, God forbid, a river.
The man beside her began cursing unmercifully, his fists pounding the steering wheel.
She continued to shiver but, this time, it was not from the cold, but the fear. Still too afraid to ask him any questions, she remained quiet, thankful when no water began to seep into the vehicle. The sounds of their fast breathing filled the air, and she swung her head to the side to see what he was going to do.
She startled when he began speaking, not having noticed he had dialed someone on his phone.
“I was on Highway Five, but there was an accident this side of Olympia, and I had to get off. I remember seeing a sign for Lambert’s Corner but then turned off on another road. I think we’re near some national forest. I was using my phone to get me to Seattle, but I can’t see shit, and these roads are terrible. We’ve gone into a ditch.”
He must have had the sound turned up on his phone because she could hear the other person clearly.
“I have been waiting at the rendezvous point for two hours. I do not like to be kept waiting.”
“Did you hear me? I said we’ve gone off the road. We’re in a fuckin’ ditch!”
“How is the doctor? Is she all right?”
The inside of the car was so dark, but she could see his face illuminated by the screen on his phone. He turned toward her, his eyes raking over her. “Yeah, she’s fine. It’s not like the car crumpled or anything. We’re just stuck in a fucking ravine.”
“You imbecile—”
“Don’t take that tone with me. I’ve been up and down on goddamn flights, doing everything you told me to do. If we get caught, I’m the one that will hang because I’m the one that took her.”
“You’re being paid very well to do exactly what I tell you to do.”
“That money won’t do me any good if I end up in prison for kidnapping. I’ll let you know right now, if I go down, you go down.”
Laughter was heard coming over the phone line, and the other man said, “I’m outside your laws. I’ll be long gone if anything happens. But enough about this, we’ll come up with a new rendezvous point. Where are you now?”
Mumbling, “Fuck if I know,” he jabbed at his phone’s GPS several more times, and then replied, “Okay, I got it. We’re north of Black Lake, about two miles south of Highway 101.”
A heavy sigh was heard, and she tried to still her heavy breathing so that she could continue to listen.
“I’ve located
a small hotel with cabins not too far from you. You will take her and walk there. It will probably take me close to two hours to drive there.” Chuckling again, the man said, “With you going on foot, I’ll probably get there before you.”
Arguing, her kidnapper groused, “How do you expect me to walk in the dark, in the rain, dragging the doc along with me?”
She listened as the voice from the phone dropped an octave. “That is not my problem. You are to be there and make sure she’s with you. I want her alive and well.”
Her breath left her in a whoosh as she heard that she was not going to be killed, but she still could not understand why anyone wanted her. Before she had a chance to process that further, her arm was grabbed in a tight hold, and she jumped.
“You heard that. We’ve got no fuckin’ choice but to get out in this.”
He squeezed harder, and she whimpered, “Please, you’re hurting me.”
“I’ll do a lot more than that if you give me any problems,” he warned, but loosened his hold slightly.
“So, we’re going to walk? In this storm?” she asked, her voice trembling as her head nodded slightly toward the rain pouring on the outside.
“We’ve got no choice.”
She heard the resignation in his voice as he sighed heavily. He let go of her wrist and twisted around to the back seat, grabbing a bag. Digging into it, he pulled out duct tape.
“No, oh please God, no. Don’t tape me up again,” she begged.
“I can’t take the risk of you running away from me.”
Bravery born out of desperation, she said, “Where am I going to go? We’re in the middle of nowhere, in the pouring rain, in the dark. There are woods all around and God knows what kind of wild animals.”
She observed his jaw tightening and held her breath, terrified that he would grab her and tape her wrists together again. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, he dropped the tape back into the bag.
“Don’t make me regret this,” he threatened. “Now, let’s get going.”
Nodding with gratitude over being able to use her arms and hands, she opened her door and tumbled outside. She immediately slipped on the wet leaves, going down hard on her hands and knees. The rain was pelting down so fiercely, she was drenched within a moment. She heard him coming around the front of the vehicle and scrambled to her feet. Pushing her wet hair away from her eyes, she began the climb up the incline toward the road.
Unable to see, she felt her way through the leaves over the rough rocks, feeling his presence right behind her. Finally touching asphalt, she hauled herself up the final few feet to get to the pavement. Still kneeling on all fours, now on the road, she was not sure her legs would hold her upright, but the kidnapper gave her no choice. He grabbed her roughly by the arm again, this time jerking her upward. She weaved back and forth for a few seconds before gathering the strength in her legs to stand on her own.
“I’ve got it.”
He let go of her arm, mumbling to himself. She looked back and forth in either direction, not remembering ever having been in such blackness before. If it was not for the occasional flash of lightning, she would have no idea of her surroundings.
Her kidnapper looked equally confused, examining first the road and then the pitch-black ravine. “We went over this side, so we must’ve been going in that direction.” He lifted his hand toward the left, and ordered, “Move.”
Stumbling alongside him, having no clue where she was going, she could only pray they would keep her alive long enough for someone to find her. But with each step, she wondered how that could possibly happen.
25
The two upgraded Land Rovers sped down the highway, Rank at the wheel of one, with Bart riding shotgun, and Logan driving the other, with Eric and Chris. The tires handled the wet pavement with no problem, and the Xenon headlights cut through the darkness with ease. The storm had not ceased, but Eric had complete confidence that Rank and Logan would be able to handle the vehicles.
With that thought in mind, he looked over at Logan and said, “I have no idea how you were able to get these vehicles on such short notice, but you always were a logistics genius.”
A man of few words, Logan’s lips curved slightly at the praise, and he gave a quick nod.
From the backseat, Chris called out, “Boss, it’s just as we thought might happen. Robert’s vehicle signal is no longer with his cell phone signal. The vehicle signal is just up ahead.”
“And the cell?” he asked, as he twisted around to look into the backseat at Chris.
“About two miles up the road.”
Logan communicated with Rank and both SUVs slowed. Even in the storm, it was not difficult for this trained group of soldiers to see that a vehicle had gone over the side of the road.
“Fuck,” he yelled, as he threw open his door.
Rank drove his vehicle to the edge, his headlights beaming through the heavy rain, illuminating the area but not down the ravine. Bart and Logan followed Eric over the side, both with their military-grade flashlights revealing the car at the bottom.
Rushing to the car, Eric shined his light inside, but found it empty. As Bart came up behind him, he said, “There’s no blood on the inside. They must’ve slid off and started walking on foot.”
“Where the hell are they going?” Bart asked.
Logan jerked his hat off and swiped at the water streaming down his face, before replacing his hat on his head. “We’re only about two miles away from the next intersection, where there’s a larger road that meets up with this one. If they were heading in that direction, they might be hoping to get to a phone or to shelter.”
Chris called out, “There’s a small hotel there, with cabins for rooms.”
“That would be perfect,” Bart said. “Less chance of someone noticing them.”
He stood silently for a few seconds, gathering his thoughts. “This makes me wonder if they still don’t realize they have the wrong person. If the kidnapper knew that, I would think he would have just left Lydia here, if he would’ve even brought her this far. As long as he doesn’t know that, that gives us more time to get to her and for her to be safe.”
“I agree,” Logan said. “If they’re on foot in this weather, they’re not going very fast.”
Bart looked at his watch, and said, “If we’re estimating the time based on when they got to Portland, we should be coming upon them very soon.”
“We need to rely on Chris to keep track of where we are and the cell phone signal,” Eric said. “We want to get close, but we don’t want them to see our headlights or hear us. If Robert gets desperate enough, who knows what he’ll do.”
The three agreed and began the ascent back up to the road. Quickly reporting to the others, Chris immediately began tapping in the coordinates on his computer.
Looking up, Chris grinned, and said, “Got ‘em. Looks like they’re very close to the intersection. When we get closer, I’ll be able to see where they are.”
Eric shook his head and tried to keep his heartbeat steady as he said, “Robert would never let her get near anyone. My guess is that he’s gonna leave her outside while he checks in.” He looked around at the others. “Ready?”
Once more, ‘Hell, yeahs’ rang out in the storm.
Lydia could not remember ever being so cold. Her clothes were soaked, the scrubs clinging to her skin and making it difficult to walk. Even though her scrubs were of a thick, cotton material, they provided no protection or warmth in the storm. She had thought earlier, on one of the many plane trips, that she was glad she had worn a long sleeve T-shirt underneath her short-sleeved scrub but, at this point in her nightmare, it was only one more article of clothing to be soaked in cold rain.
Occasionally, she would lift a hand to swipe at the rain pounding her face. The first couple of times she did it, she spied her kidnapper watching her carefully. He probably thinks I’m ready to attack him. She choked back a snort, wishing she could attack him. But, right now, she was incapa
ble of defending herself in any way.
As they continued trudging down the road, she observed his footsteps were becoming less sure. He began to stagger more than walk. The black that surrounded them, which had been so frightening earlier, began to feel strangely comforting. Almost like the night was blanketing her. I must be losing my mind…or dying of hypothermia. Slowly. No other thought could enter her mind, other than moving one foot in front of the other.
She staggered, falling to her hands and knees on the pavement. Exhausted, frozen, and emotionally spent, she pleaded, “I can’t. I can’t do this.” All she wanted to do was curl up and not move, preferably in front of a warm fire, but she would take the wet pavement if that was all she had.
“It’s there. It’s fuckin’ over there,” he said through chattering teeth.
Too tired to lift her head, she winced as he grabbed her arm and jerked her upward. Blinking as the rain continued to hit her face, she saw the faint glow of a light up ahead.
“Let’s go. We’re getting closer.”
She heard the renewed fervor in his voice and assumed he was buoyed by the almost completed journey. She wondered if the man they were going to meet was already there and, if so, what would become of her.
They approached the light but before getting too close, he pulled her over to the side of the road. “We’re going to swing around toward the back. I gotta go check things out. I gotta make sure it’s the right place.”
He clamped his hand around her arm and began to drag her through the woods, circling closer toward the building. Staggering even more, she tripped over roots and pushed through small branches. The rain was less punishing underneath the trees, but the terrain was more treacherous than the road.
SEAL Together Page 17
