by Dale Mayer
Amelia Rose looked over at Lorelei and then walked up to the door and turned the knob.
When the door opened easily, Lorelei raced to her side. A guard stood there. He frowned and slammed the door shut.
“So,” Amelia Rose said with a pouting face, “I guess we don’t get to leave.”
“No, of course not,” Lorelei said gently. “But you knew that.”
“I know, but I had to check.”
And, of course, Lorelei should have done that earlier too. She’d already assumed that they were under guard. Just then she stepped around Amelia Rose, opened the door, and smiled at the guard. “Is there any chance we could have some books or a computer or some games to play to fill our time?”
He frowned at her and shrugged.
“If you could ask, that would be lovely.” And then she closed the door herself so that he wasn’t forced to do so to keep them inside. After that, she walked to the bed, sat down, and opened her arms. As Amelia Rose piled onto her lap, Lorelei said, “Now we sit and wait.”
“I’m really glad you’re with me.”
Lorelei’s heart broke, and she held her charge closer. “I am too.”
“Do you think Nurse is in heaven?”
“Absolutely she is,” Lorelei said. “That’s where all the good people go, and Nurse was a very good person.”
“She loved me,” Amelia Rose said, tears once again forming in the corner of her eyes.
“I know she did,” Lorelei said. “And you loved her. And it’s always hard to lose anybody so loved.”
“She shouldn’t have had to die that way,” Amelia Rose said. “She didn’t want to come on this trip in the first place.”
Unfortunately that was all too true. But Amelia Rose’s mother had insisted. As long as Wendy wasn’t here, Amelia Rose was to have all the people who she cared about with her. Especially when she couldn’t have the ones who she really loved with her, like her mother and her father.
It was one thing to look at the compound on satellite, and it was another thing to stand in the shadows and assess the height of the wall. Twelve feet was what they’d measured off, but it was a sheer twelve feet. It looked like a smooth coat of cement on the outside. They could probably do a run and jump up and over it, but doing it quietly and silently in the night might not be quite so easy. Ropes would work though. But grappling hooks were hard to keep silent. They’d need a cover sound to be effective in close quarters like this.
The walls were smooth, but he saw gates every two yards, with small windows cut into each. Could work with that.
Jax tapped Griffin’s shoulder and pointed off to the side.
One guard walked across the top of the wall. No railings were up there, so the wall had to be at least two feet wide for him to make that journey as casually as he did. The fact that he walked with a rifle over his shoulder said a lot about how the community would view the owners of the compound. As nobody to mess with.
Griffin watched as the guard walked around the perimeter wall, timing him. Twelve minutes for a three-quarter turn, where he met up with somebody else climbing the opposite side of the wall. Griffin and Jax had satellite images on their phones to sync with the reality on the ground while they searched the area. Two people were on the wall, two on the ground walking one dog each. Griffin hadn’t seen all three dogs and their handlers patrolling yet.
The two of them moved silently in the night, taking a good assessment of what challenges and weaknesses they faced here. When they slipped back around to the far side, a large clump of trees was close enough to the wall that they could scale the trees and potentially get up on to the wall to take a look inside the compound.
As Griffin assessed the distance to the wall, he noted that the kidnappers had completely missed this weakness. In fact, it was something that, if it were up to him, he’d have fired his man over.
The tree had grown up tall and straight but had also branched out at the top. While maybe the kidnappers had assumed that nobody would cross the wall because no branches were close enough, Griffin was high enough that, from his perch, he could drop down onto the wall. He shook his head at that.
Hearing an owl call in the night, he twisted to look at Jax in another tree, pointing to the north.
Griffin checked it out to see one of the dogs sniffing along the inside edge of the wall.
No handler was with him.
Using his night vision binoculars, Griffin checked to confirm a holding pen for the dogs was here. So this dog wasn’t on duty tonight. He was just checking out the area, minding his own business. That worked for Griffin. But it was also darn close to where he would most likely land on the wall.
Not good.
Using his binoculars again, he carefully assessed the windows on the building closest to him. Several smaller buildings were inside the compound as well, but he had no way of knowing where the girls were being held. Intel said they were here somewhere, but, so far, he and Jax had no proof to back that up.
This closest building in front of Griffin had six windows accessible, where he could see how the people lived and worked inside. In one window a man sat at an office desk, talking on a phone. In another was a guard. At least he looked like a guard since a weapon was over his shoulder. He was having a cup of coffee as he stood and stared out into the night.
Not wanting him to get an instinctive feeling of being watched, Griffin quickly changed his view to check out the other windows. Two of the windows showed nothing, while one revealed a hallway all the way down as far as he could see. The question was, were the girls in this part of the building or in another area of this same huge building, or were they in one of the smaller buildings?
When the owl hoot came again, Griffin glanced once more at Jax to see him holding up his phone with a satellite image on the screen. Griffin quickly pulled out his cell and checked his satellite feed to see several men walking from one of the smaller buildings to the largest one.
He nodded. That would be the guardroom they were leaving. And that likely meant that Amelia Rose and Lorelei were housed in the bigger building.
Griffin sighed. They had at least ten thousand square feet of building to search. That would take time. They needed a way to narrow the search area. Infrared would be lovely. He frowned and sent a text. Need infrared or better to find out where the prisoners are being kept inside the building.
Not the usual request. Not available in that area. Will let you know.
He pocketed his phone and slipped back down, then headed to the north corner. A few trees were over here, not as big or as easy to hide in but strong enough so he could certainly scale them. On his way, he heard a dog bark. He froze, dropped to the ground, and waited. He could hear voices but saw no flashlights or heard any sounds of movement coming toward him.
When it was silent again, he moved quietly in the night and made his way to the other trees. He chose the tree with the most coverage and scaled it to the top. From his new vantage point he checked out the activity on this side of the building. Once again, he found windows that let him into little corners of the compound’s world.
At one, he saw a woman staring out, but it didn’t mean it was the woman he was looking for. Her features were too indistinct due to the many small panes in the window. If it had been daylight, he might have had a better look. But through the binoculars? He was just getting a female shadow.
He studied her features to see long hair and watched as she rubbed her temple. Then, hearing something, she spun quickly and disappeared from his sight. Those were good signs that maybe she was Lorelei. He mapped the location in his head and turned to study the rest of the people on this side of the building. The guards were doing their pass yet again atop the perimeter wall. Griffin stopped, checked on his timing, and nodded. Then he muttered, “At least they’re consistent.”
He waited another ten minutes for them to complete their pass and to see if the woman would return to the window, but she didn’t. If Griffin could make it from t
his tree to the wall, he could quickly jump off the wall and get into the compound from that spot, then use this as a way out again. But that only worked for him doing further recon. He couldn’t expect the woman and the child to make this climb. Plus the trees weren’t close enough on this side to help him get onto the wall, but it would be a good area for somebody to stand guard. With that in mind, he quickly dropped to the ground and headed deeper into the trees and away from the compound.
Jax joined him very quickly. “Thoughts?”
“The best option would be to get in and to get out without waking up or having the guards notice,” Griffin said.
Jax had his hands curled as fists as he glared back at the compound. “Except they’ve got the dogs running free right on the side of the wall that we’re likely to climb.”
“Yes, and chances are those dogs will be trained to not take any gifts from strangers. We can’t drop steaks in there.”
“And a dog’ll hear our every move.”
“True, but will the dogs know us from the guards? Maybe instead of avoiding the guards, we should take out the two on top of the wall, put on their uniforms, and go in that way.”
Jax thought about that and nodded slowly. “We don’t know how they’re getting up and down either.”
“I think I saw a ladder on the inside of one of the walls,” Griffin said. “It would make sense. Fast up and fast down.”
“No railings to help us get up and over otherwise.”
“The trees will give us access from this side, so, if we can use a ladder once inside to climb the wall out again, we’ll be fine. To take out the guards, we’ll need some equipment with us. And if we run into trouble inside …”
“I have a backpack with C-4 and some weapons,” Jax said. “Do we know if the girls are ambulatory?”
“No clue,” Griffin said. “I did see a woman in one of the windows. When somebody made a noise, like it was behind her, she quickly spun and disappeared.”
“That’s promising. What floor?”
“Third.”
“Of course. The building won’t be easy to scale from the outside.”
“No, and I’ve seen no decks on the third floor either. There are some on the second but not above.”
“So where do you want to go in?”
“I was thinking the one side door between the two tree points.”
After that, they spent an hour looking for exits. Not just one but four different ways. By the time they made it back to their hotel rooms, they crashed.
Griffin woke four hours later to hear his phone buzz. He reached over, groggy.
No luck with infrared. Not a problem now that they’re being moved.
“Shit,” he said, sitting up. Where and when?
Now. To an unidentified location.
Time to overtake them?
No. Already leaving compound.
Are we tracking? He wiped the sleep from his eyes, quickly threw on some clothes, and grabbed his laptop.
Yes, satellite.
I’m on it if you’ve got a link.
He was given a link in an instant. He brought it up to see the satellite feed, showing the moving vehicle.
Do we have a destination?
No.
How many?
Woman, child, two men.
Including driver?
Yes.
We need a place to take them out, he said as he studied the feed.
Trying to set it up now. A blockade?
Didn’t a second vehicle go with the gunmen? He hated to think about it but had to consider it.
No. We didn’t see a second vehicle. You must have been seen.
No. He refused to believe that he’d triggered any alarms and that the kidnappers were leaving with their victims because of anything Griffin and Jax did. Must be moving them daily. But, of course, it was possible, so he couldn’t discount it. We need wheels.
Already on the way.
Just then an envelope was shoved under the door. He got up, walked over, and picked it up to find a set of keys. He smiled and muttered, “Kerrick’s good.”
Then back at the chat window, he typed Got the keys.
Good.
You’re damn fast.
And you’ve been sleeping. Otherwise you’d have been on this.
He frowned. Still had to grab some shut-eye. Can’t run all the time.
I know. That’s why we’ve got your back.
At that, Griffin settled back and smiled.
Jax woke up, sat upright, and asked, “What’s up?”
Griffin looked his way. “Looks like we wasted our time earlier doing recon. They’re moving the girls.”
Jax immediately bolted from bed and dressed. “Let’s go.”
“Go where? We’re tracking them but have no clue where they’re heading.”
“Doesn’t matter. As long as they’re on the road, they’re weaker than when they’re in a stronghold.”
Griffin laughed, throwing his duffel over his shoulder. Everything was already packed up and ready to go. Jax groaned and grabbed his bag, then the two men headed outside. Griffin hit the button on the fob with the vehicle keys and turned toward the sound of the beep. A small truck-SUV hybrid. That would work. They tossed their bags in the back and were on the road within minutes. He brought up the satellite on Amelia Rose’s implanted tracker and held his breath until it showed him where the kidnappers were traveling.
“We need to plot an intersection,” Griffin said. “They can’t drive forever. They’ll need gas too, but we want to make sure they’re not heading to an airport. If that’s the case, we want to take them out first.”
With Jax running navigation, Griffin quickly drove as instructed so he could catch up with the kidnappers, who were a good forty minutes ahead, if not an hour. But they weren’t traveling fast. He, on the other hand, was really moving it. He whipped through the streets, grateful that it was still the wee hours of Tuesday morning and that the traffic wasn’t heavy.
“You’re gaining on them,” Jax said. “Looks like they’ve taken a turn up ahead.”
“What kind of a turn?”
“Might be a pit stop.”
“Good. That’ll help us to make up for some lost time.”
“The kidnappers shouldn’t give the girls too long out of the car,” Jax said. “Probably just a bathroom break.”
“They have a child with them.”
“We have to pick up at least twenty miles though,” Jax warned him. “So go faster.”
He snorted. “This bucket won’t go any faster.”
“I’ll find you a faster route.”
“Off-road works for me.” On that note, the two of them focused on moving as fast as possible and catching up with their prey.
Chapter 4
Lorelei stood aside, waiting while Amelia Rose washed her hands. She’d begged for a bathroom break from their two kidnappers, who had only given in after the two females had badgered them. Now their guard stood outside the washroom. When she was done, Amelia Rose reached for a hand towel and looked up at Lorelei. “I don’t want to go out there again,” she muttered.
Lorelei smiled gently. “Neither do I. But I’ve checked here, and there’s no way to get out of this room, so we have to be brave a little longer.”
Amelia Rose nodded. “I know. Do you think anybody in the restaurant would help us?”
“I doubt it,” Lorelei said. “It’s possible, but nobody wants to get involved. Obviously these are very powerful people, and they’ll make things very difficult for anybody who tries to help us.”
Amelia Rose wiped her eyes and said, “All I do is cry.”
“And crying is just fine. There’s no shame in being afraid.”
“Maybe not but you’re not crying.”
“Inside, I am,” Lorelei whispered.
Amelia Rose reached out and clung to her, clasping her hand.
“Let’s go before they come in here.”
As they stepped out, o
ne of the men stood in the hallway, waiting for them. He glanced at them, did a cursory look inside the ladies’ room, and then motioned for them to go ahead.
“May I get a glass of water, please?” Amelia Rose asked.
He frowned and glanced at Lorelei, who nodded and said, “A couple bottles of water would be helpful.”
He shrugged and motioned them back toward the vehicle. But he did say, “I’ll see.”
She smiled and nodded. “Thank you. It’d be appreciated. Oh, and she might need food soon too.”
He nodded but said, “Not yet. We’re arriving at another place soon.”
“Okay,” she said. She led the way to the vehicle, her gaze searching around without making it seem she was looking too much. Dawn’s light came over the horizon. The café was empty except for a couple rough-looking guys. She figured they wouldn’t help her out. As a matter of fact, they were more likely to help out the driver and their guard instead of her. She motioned for Amelia Rose to head to the car. They walked over slowly. The driver waited for them outside, standing by the vehicle, pumping gas it seemed. He opened the car door, and they got inside.
Lorelei smiled at him and thanked him. She figured being polite and friendly couldn’t hurt. It might make the difference between having their faces smashed in or not. Yet this violence could happen whether they liked it or not, whether they were nice or not.
Amelia Rose snuggled up closer. “Why are they doing this?” she whispered.
“Likely because of your father and his businesses,” Lorelei said in a low tone. “He’s very powerful. That means he’s made a lot of enemies.”
“But I haven’t,” Amelia Rose said in a voice that almost broke Lorelei’s heart. “I haven’t done anything mean to anybody.”
“And that’s good,” Lorelei said. “We’ll keep it that way, okay?” Lorelei smiled at her charge and whispered, “It’s all right. We’ll just stay friendly and do what we’re told, and we hopefully will get out of this without anyone else getting hurt.”
The trouble was that, as she stared down at her charge, curled up against her body, she knew avoiding further violence wouldn’t be so easily done as said. This was bad news all around, and she had no clue who or if anybody gave a damn. As she stared out into the rising morning sun, she thought it was Tuesday, but time was hard to track in her mind. She’d never felt lonelier or more terrified.
