Three Days to Forever (A Mac Faraday Mystery Book 9)

by Lauren Carr

“I’m not into that Christian Grey stuff,” he said.

  “Glad to hear that,” Mac said.

  “To make it work, you need to go ballistic,” she whispered into his ear while caressing his neck. Abruptly, she pushed him away. “No! Not so fast!” She rolled out from under him and moved around so that he would have a clearer angle on the guards lurking in the trees.

  “Oh, so that’s the way you play it, bitch!” Murphy followed her. “Well, let me show you how we play that game where I come from.”

  He backhanded her across the cheek. She fell backwards onto the hood of the car. Grabbing her, he rolled her around so that she was bent over the car hood. She let out a loud whimper when he pressed up against her buttocks as if to pin her there.

  “You want some excitement, sweetheart! How’s this for excitement?” Murphy reached both of his hands down into his pants and yanked out a gun in each hand. Instantly, he aimed both guns, which were equipped with silencers, toward the silhouettes of the two guards in the trees and pulled the triggers simultaneously. The quiet of the woods was broken by muffled shots.

  As soon as they went down, Murphy grabbed Jessica roughly by the back of her coat and yanked her down behind the car. “Stay here while I check to make sure the targets were terminated.”

  Wide eyed, she nodded her head.

  “Don’t move,” he ordered in a harsh tone. “Wait for my report.” Gripping both of his guns, he slipped around the back of the car and disappeared into the woods.

  Alone, crouching in the dark next to her car, Jessica felt enveloped in fear. Even though she had known that Murphy was going to yank the guns out of his pants, when she heard the two men drop in the shadows behind the trees, the reality of the danger she was in—the danger they were all in—hit home. She had felt so safe when Murphy was there. Alone, staring into the darkness surrounding her, trying to distinguish each noise to determine if it was friend or foe, she felt her heart quicken, but not with passion—with fear.

  “Targets terminated,” she heard Murphy announce in a business-like tone across the earbud that she had stuck into her ear. “Jessica, release the geek and return to base. Frost, you’re up.”

  “Roger that, Thornton,” Frost replied.

  Releasing the trunk release on her key ring, Jessica scurried around to the front of the Ferrari to help Ethan climb out of the trunk and put on his backpack. “About time,” Ethan said. “the way you two were going at it, I had flashbacks to when I was nine and I was hiding behind the sofa while my babysitter and her boyfriend—”

  “TMI, Ethan,” Jessica said with a jerk of her head. “Barn is that way.”

  Ethan took off at a jog down the road toward the barn where David was waiting.

  In the distance, she heard what sounded like another muffled shot.

  “Last guard terminated,” Colonel Frost announced. “Ethan, it’s now up to you. You have eight minutes.”

  With one last longing look into the woods in hope of catching a glimpse of Murphy, she climbed back into the Ferrari and tore back down the lane to return to the Spencer police station and await word on the success or failure of their plan.

  Glancing at the clock on her car console, she let out a sigh. The time was eleven fifty-three. Her father was due to meet Neal Black at twelve midnight—in seven minutes.

  In a less than thirty minutes, it would all be over … for better or worse.

  Part Three: One Day to Forever

  Saturday, December 31

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Having seen a picture of David O’Callaghan during the briefing at the police station, Ethan knew the description of the man he was to make contact with at the barn. However, David had never seen Ethan before. Plus, it was dark. With terrorists lurking all over the heavily wooded farm in the late hours of the wintry night, Ethan was hoping that David didn’t mistake him for the enemy and shoot him.

  Each member of the rescue team was equipped with a wireless earbud, which fit deep into the ear. Until Ethan located the police chief and gave him one, David was unaware of the location and identity of his rescuers.

  Bogie had sent David a text stating that an IT agent would meet him at the barn close to midnight and to be watching for him. Even so, Ethan feared that one of the dozen terrorists would notice the tall, skinny Westerner, clutching a laptop case, stumbling through the thick woods in the deep snow in the dark.

  If captured, how would he explain his presence? Would they even give him a chance to come up with a believable lie before torturing him to death like they did to his mentor Reginald Crane?

  Clutching the handgun he had secured in the rear waistband of his slacks, Ethan hid behind a tree when he neared the front door of the barn to find a man clad in a heavy winter coat pacing in front of the door. Seeing no one else in sight, Ethan uttered a stage whisper as loud as he dared. “Major?”

  The man stopped and stood frozen still.

  “Bogie sent me.”

  The man in the heavy coat with the hood backed up to the corner of the barn. “Ethan?”

  “O’Callaghan?”

  David hurried up the incline in the direction of the trees. “Follow me.” He took off at a run around the back of the barn, which faced the tree line and was out of view of the farmhouse and the pond. With the full moon concealed by the barn’s roof, they were in total darkness. Ethan broke out his LED flashlight to light their way to where David had found a window high up in the back of the barn. It was six feet from the ground. Using a stick, David propped it open.

  “That’s it?” Ethan asked.

  “Climb on up,” David said. “There’s a table inside once you get in the window.”

  “Didn’t you find a door that was unlocked?”

  “The only two doors are in clear view of the guards.” David bent over and clasped his hands together. “I’ll give you a boost.”

  Ethan hesitated. “But—”

  “You’re a federal agent—”

  “No, I’m not,” Ethan said. “I’m an MIT graduate. I learned how to break through firewalls and bring government cybersecurity systems to a screeching halt with the stroke of a key. But nowhere did anyone ever tell me that I’d have to scale walls and climb through broken windows during a full moon.”

  Rising to his full height, David chuckled. “How about if you and I go back to the jet and ask for a key to unlock the padlock on the barn door—after which they will behead both of us?”

  Grasping the side of the building with both hands, Ethan raised his foot for David to clasp. “Give me a boost, and I don’t want to hear you laugh.”

  After receiving the signal from Ethan that he had tapped into the Internet connection at the farm and had control of their system, Mac muttered to the German shepherd sitting in the back seat of his SUV, “Okay, Gnarly, it’s up to you and me now.” He reached back to scratch the German shepherd behind the ears. “Remember, wait for my signal.”

  After reaching into his coat pocket to make sure he had the flash drive, even though he knew for certain that he had it, Mac turned back around and started the engine.

  Oh, God, I know You’re on our side, but please, oh please, really be with us tonight. Please have everyone who’s working to help David … and David especially … come out safely.

  Mac eased the SUV across the bridge and turned toward Oakland. Once he came into view of the lane, he turned right to take the rural road through the wooded area. A short distance later, the SUV emerged from the trees and the road dipped down to go around a pond and back up to a farmhouse. On the other side of the farmyard was a barn that was almost twice the size of the house.

  “I see you, Mac,” he heard Murphy’s voice coming through the earbud. “There’s a black SUV parked on this side of the farmhouse. Stay on the lane and round the farmhouse past the barn. You’ll go around the farmhouse to the backyard. They’re parked on
the road between the backyard and an old garden.”

  “How many are there?”

  “One SUV and four men,” Murphy said. “They’re all heavily armed with what appears to be assault rifles. I’m sure they have handguns, too. Ra’ees Sims is the leader—massive African-American.”

  “I remember his picture in the briefing,” Mac said. “Owns a security firm under Bauman and is the leader of an extremist mosque in Texas.”

  “Exactly.”

  “He’s extremely violent,” David’s voice came through the earbud to warn Mac.

  “David …” Mac breathed. “You’re okay.”

  “Of course, I’m okay,” David replied. “They’re planning to kill you as soon as they get the flash drive.”

  “Don’t worry, I have my secret weapon with me.”

  When Mac rounded the corner of the farmhouse, the SUV came into view. The only reason he could see it was because the back door was open and the interior light was on.

  Gnarly growled.

  “Wait for my signal,” Mac reminded him in a low voice.

  Gnarly turned around in circles three times before plopping down in the backseat with a “humph” noise that signaled his impatience.

  As soon as they saw Mac’s vehicle approaching, two men emerged from the SUV and stood with their arms crossed. When the headlights hit them, Mac could see that they were dark skinned.

  He brought the SUV to a halt several feet away. As he climbed out, they grabbed the door out of Mac’s hand, yanked him out of the vehicle, and shoved him against the front fender of the SUV, where they patted him down for weapons.

  Instantly, one found the flash drive in his pocket. With a grin like a child finding the prize in a box of cereal, he held it up to show the other man and turned around to wave it to the huge man waiting at the back of their SUV.

  With his tall ears laid back flat against the top of his head, Gnarly sat up in the back seat to watch.

  Mac slightly shook his head at the dog.

  Even in the shadows, the dark-skinned African-American, who stepped into view from the rear of the SUV, looked menacing. “I told you to come alone, Faraday,” Ra’ees Sims said in a low tone.

  Grabbing Mac by each arm, the two men whirled him around and shoved him in the direction of their leader.

  “I did,” Mac replied after regaining his footing in the deep snow.

  “Who’s that?” Ra’ees pointed at the dog in the rear seat watching them.

  “My dog,” Mac said. “Your people wrecked my house, so I couldn’t leave him there.”

  “He’s a German shepherd.”

  “An untrained German shepherd,” Mac said.

  “Like he’s not going to attack me and my men?” Ra’ees sounded doubtful.

  “He’s a certified coward,” Mac said. “Let me show you.” He turned to the SUV. “Hey, stupid! Come here!”

  With a whine, Gnarly laid his ears flat back on his head, stood up, tucked his tail between his legs, and laid down in the backseat.

  With a chuckle, Mac turned back to Ra’ees. “I’d get better protection from a cat.”

  “Or a woman.” Ra’ees and his men laughed.

  “He’s clean.” One of the gunman handed the thumb drive to Ra’ees.

  “Close the doors to his car and lock it,” he ordered. “I don’t want Fido joining in our negotiations.”

  “Speaking of negotiations,” Mac said while one of the men went back to the SUV. He heard the locks activate in his SUV, locking Gnarly inside. “Where’s David O’Callaghan?”

  “He’s nearby.”

  “Where nearby? I want to see him and know he’s alive,” Mac argued while Ra’ees went around to the rear of their SUV. “The deal was the thumb drive for David O’Callaghan. You have what you wanted, now hand over O’Callaghan.”

  “You’ll be with your friend soon enough.” Ra’ees handed the flash drive to a young black man who was sitting cross-legged in the rear compartment of the SUV. “Make sure this has what we want.”

  Mac held his breath while the young man inserted the thumb drive into a small laptop. He heard the familiar ding of the flash drive connecting to the hard drive of the laptop.

  Uncomfortably, Mac noted that he was sitting right on top of the SUV’s fuel tank. Boxes next to him contained guns, rifles, hand grenades, and other ammunition. The kid was sitting among an arsenal.

  This SUV is going to go up like a rocket.

  “We’ve now got a connection,” Mac heard Ethan announce in his ear through the wireless earbud. “We have liftoff, folks.”

  And some liftoff it is going to be.

  Back at the jet, Neal Black was pacing up and down the aisle. There were three guards around the jet, a pilot sitting in the cockpit ready to start the engines on Ra’ees’s command, and a co-pilot napping in the passenger compartment.

  On one hand, Black wanted to go to the payoff, but his prisoner was such a valuable commodity that he didn’t want to take the chance of letting David O’Callghan out of his sight—even if he was unconscious.

  To arrive in Baghdad with the man who had killed Jassem al-Baghdadi would be a personal, as well as a professional, achievement.

  Jassem had been like a father to him. He owed it to Jassem to capture his killer and personally administer justice.

  Jassem’s murder had been a great setback for Islam. Now, by capturing his assassin within the very borders of the United States and taking him back to Iraq for a public execution, they could hold their heads high.

  Islam would surely thank Neal Black for this triumph by quickly promoting him to powerful positions within the ranks of ISIS. To get paid a quarter of a million dollars for capturing O’Callaghan, who had killed the closest thing he had ever had to a father, was only frosting on the cake.

  But I should be there to collect the thumb drive as well. After all, I am the one who tracked it down to Deep Creek Lake.

  Periodically, Black would stop to peer out the jet’s windows. Even though he could not see the drop-off point in the garden on the other side of the trees, he strained to see what Ra’ees and his men were doing.

  How’s it going with Mac Faraday? Did he indeed bring the thumb drive with the Ebola virus on it? Do they have it yet?

  As a special agent with the FBI, Black had extensive training in negotiating with criminals—plus he was one himself. The victims always bartered, but a successful criminal never gives up control. Still, the victim and police would try to take control away by bartering. Okay, you want food and water? Then release one of your hostages. You want a helicopter? Well, we’re working on it. We need time. How about a pizza while you’re waiting?

  Such did not seem to be the case here. When Neal had called with the drop-off time and place, Mac had taken the directions without question. Didn’t ask where Sander’s Farm was, nor had he asked to speak to David O’Callaghan again. He had the first time Black called …

  Neal Black stood up straight and replayed his conversations with Mac Faraday, a retired homicide detective with a reputation for brilliance. He surely had training in hostage negotiations.

  Yet, when Black had called to arrange the drop-off of the flash drive, Mac didn’t ask for confirmation that David O’Callaghan was alive. He had during their second conversation, but not this last time, which was several hours later.

  It doesn’t matter. If Faraday had, he wouldn’t have been able to talk to O’Callaghan, because he’s in a deep drugged sleep … or is he?

  Neal Black turned around and shoved the pilot out of his way in his rush to the rear compartment of the jet where they had David O’Callaghan strapped down and drugged on the gurney. Black’s pace quickened when he tore into the back room and saw the gurney up against the wall. The blanket was pulled up almost to his face, which was turned to face the wall. The straps held their prized pris
oner down onto the gurney.

  Neal Black ran across the room and yanked the blanket back to reveal José’s dark-skinned face.

  “Augh!” Neal Black screamed. Snatching the radio from off his belt, he shouted into it, “O’Callaghan has escaped! Repeat! It’s a trap! O’Callaghan has escaped!”

  Grabbing his gun from his holster, Neal Black, enraged at the escape, aimed his gun at the unconscious man’s head and pulled the trigger.

  “Damn it!” Murphy cursed and shouted into his earbud. “We’re blown! They discovered David’s gone! Mac, get out of there! Now!”

  Colonel Frost responded, “We’re taking the jet now! Go! Go! Go!” he ordered his team. “Don’t let them take off! Move it!”

  Hearing the announcement of David’s escape, Ra’ees turned around to find Mac backing up from the rear of the SUV. The terrorist yanked his gun out his holster.

  Grasping the remote on his belt, Mac plunged down to the ground. Burying his face in the snow, he covered his head with his arms just as the thumb drive exploded inside the laptop.

  The blast ignited the explosives in the rear of the SUV, which went off in a series of blasts as each item ignited. Seconds later, the explosion hit the gas tank, which caused another great explosion to take out each of the men gathered around the back of the SUV.

  Mac felt the heat wash over his body.

  Beyond the explosion, he could hear Gnarly barking up a storm in the SUV.

  “Infidel!”

  Looking up, Mac squinted through the bright flames to see Ra’ees Sims stumbling toward him. He could see yellow and white-hot flames shooting up behind the black man who was flailing both of his arms.

  As his vision cleared, Mac scrambled to his feet when he realized that the flames were moving toward him with Sims. Engulfed in flames, Ra’ees Sims was so enraged that he either didn’t notice or didn’t care.

  Standing over Mac, Ra’ees aimed his gun down at him. Mac could make out the silhouette of the gun he had been holding when the explosion went off. “Allah!”