Holding on to the snapshot, Kate set the scrapbook aside. “It tells me the cabin is on the west side of the lake, and it’s somewhere near McGhee.”
“You still don’t know exactly where.”
“When I get to McGhee, I’ll find someone who recognizes the cabin. Then we’ll know exactly where they are.” She counted the remaining hours until the time she was supposed to deliver the diamonds. “I hope.” And pray the Lord will lead me.
“I’ll go with you,” Renee announced. “It’ll just take me a minute to—”
“No, Renee. It might be dangerous. Besides, I may be way off track. You should stay here where the children can find you if they get free of their kidnappers.”
Renee objected, but Kate didn’t have time to argue.
Back in the car, Kate placed a call to Sheriff Roberts and told him what she was doing.
“These characters could be dangerous, Kate.”
“I’ll be careful,” she replied.
“We’ve got a female FBI agent in McGhee. She’s going to impersonate you and drop a bag of fake diamonds in the park’s trash can. We’ll tail whoever picks up the phony diamonds, and he’ll lead us to the children.”
“What if Weller realizes the diamonds are fake or spots your people following him?” she asked. “The children would be at even greater risk.”
“It’s a good plan, Kate. The FBI agents know what they’re doing.”
As Kate headed north on the highway, she hoped Sheriff Roberts was right. But if she was able to locate where the kidnappers were holding the children, the FBI could step in to rescue them that much sooner.
She glanced at her watch. Less than three hours until the diamond drop was scheduled to take place.
Her mouth was dry, her palms sweaty. As she peered through the windshield at the passing scenery, her pulse accelerated. Nerves had her stomach tied in a knot.
Please, Lord...
The wildflowers growing alongside the road were buffeted by the wakes of passing cars, delicate yellow and blue blossoms whipping back and forth, yet they withstood the onslaught. The Maddock children had remained steady despite circumstances that might have broken other youngsters.
A sign appeared for the town of McGhee, and she turned off the highway onto a narrow blacktop road. The intersection boasted a service station, a small diner, and a convenience store that offered fresh bait along with milk and eggs. She decided to make her first stop at the convenience store.
A heavyset woman somewhere between the age of fifty and seventy sat on a stool behind the counter. A small black-and-white TV nearby was tuned to a sports highlights show. A half-eaten candy bar rested on the counter.
“Excuse me,” Kate said. “I wonder if you can help me.”
The woman’s gaze slid from the TV to Kate. “Sure. What kin I do for you?”
“I’m coming to visit a friend at her cabin somewhere near here, but I’m afraid I didn’t get very good directions.” Kate held up the snapshot. “I’m hoping you’ll recognize the place and can tell me how to get there.”
Squinting at the photo, the woman shook her head. “Don’t look familiar to me, but I live over in Sweetwater. Don’t spend much time at the lake. Got work ’n got grandkids to fuss over.”
“I see. Well...is there a road that goes along the shoreline?”
“Sure. You jes’ keep headin’ down this road a piece.” She thumbed toward the lake. “Go through town, and you’ll end up at the boat ramp. Turn jes’ before you get there. That’s Lake Front Road, and it’ll take you along this side of the lake.”
Kate thanked the woman for her time and returned to her car. Even though the clerk hadn’t been able to reduce the size of the haystack Kate was searching, Kate knew she was getting close when she drove by a small park in the middle of town. Some kids were playing on the swings, and a pickup softball game was in progress in a grassy area of the park.
She wondered if one or more of the players were undercover FBI agents or sheriff’s deputies. There was no sign of a white or beige van.
She turned right just before the boat ramp and public parking area. Houses were set back from the street on both sides of the road, some of them hidden by thickets of wild blackberry bushes; the most prominent sign of resi-dents, the mailboxes with rural-route numbers, marked each driveway.
Driving slowly, she checked the driveways for a light-colored van. In her head, the minutes were ticking down one by one, fraying her already strained nerves.
Spotting a mail truck making deliveries, she caught up and parked in front of the truck, leaving the motor running. She hopped out of the car and hurried back to speak to the mail carrier.
“I wonder if you can help me.” She held out the snapshot to the man, who looked to be in his thirties. His short-sleeved uniform shirt was open at the collar, revealing a sparkling white T-shirt. “I’m looking for this particular house. Do you recognize it? I think it’s somewhere nearby.”
He studied the photo. “I’m not sure, ma’am. Some of the houses on the lakeside you can’t even see from the road. Those that are summer places like this one don’t get much mail.”
“Please, it’s important. Does the cabin look at all familiar?”
He scratched his jaw and handed the picture back to Kate. “I can’t be sure, ma’am, but it looks like a place about a mile up the road. ’Course, that picture was taken on the back side of the house, the lakeside. I’ve only seen the front of the place, but it’s got logs like that.”
Kate felt a surge of hope. “Do you remember the number of the house?”
“Oh, gosh, ma’am...” He looked off into the distance. “Could be around 2211 or 2215. I can’t be sure.”
Kate thanked the young man and dashed back to her car. She shifted into gear and sped up the road, catching quick glimpses of the numbers on the mailboxes. As the numbers got closer to what she was looking for, she slowed, peering down each driveway in search of the telltale van.
When she looked back to the road, she saw two children running toward her waving their hands over their heads, trying to attract attention.
Her heart skipped a beat. Gwen and Beck!
Chapter Twenty-Two
Kate slammed on the brakes, jammed the gearshift into Park, and leaped out of the car. She ran toward the children.
“Gwen! Beck! Are you all right? Where’s Megan? I’ve been frantic with worry.” The two youngsters flew into her arms, and she hugged them.
“MizHanlon! MizHanlon!”
“Two bad men took us. I didn’t wanna go,” Beck said.
“Megan helped us climb out a window.” Trembling, Gwen pressed her face against Kate’s shoulder.
“I wasn’t scared. Megan said it’d be all right.” Beck’s chin quivered as he put up a brave front.
Relief and gratitude poured through Kate as she soothed her hand over the child’s blond hair and caught a whiff of little-boy sweat. “I’m sure you were a very brave boy. Where’s Megan now?”
“I think the man caught her before she got out. She told us to run like the wind when we got outside, so we did.”
“Megan boosted us up to a high window in the bedroom.” Visibly frightened, Gwen looked back the way they had come. “We couldn’t reach it on our own. She was ’posed to come right after us.”
“I hurt my knee when I fell.”
A quick glance told Kate that he’d ripped his jeans as well as scraping his knee.
“We’ll get you fixed up when we get home, Beck. Let’s all get into my car now. I need to tell the sheriff you’re all right.”
“Shouldn’t we wait for Megan?” Gwen asked.
“How far down the road is the cabin where those men took you?”
Looking anxious, the child hesitated. “Right up there where that big hangy-down tree is.” Clearly the weeping willow draping over the roadway was too close for Gwen’s comfort.
For Kate’s too.
Urging the children toward the car, Kate said, “We’l
l keep an eye out for Megan while we wait for the police to come help us.”
“Can’t we go get her?” Gwen pleaded.
“Not right now. She’ll be all right.” Kate hoped.
The two youngsters climbed into the backseat of the car and held each other. The sight of the two frightened children trying to comfort one another nearly broke Kate’s heart.
She plucked the cell phone from her handbag and called Sheriff Roberts.
“I’m in McGhee,” Kate announced. “Beck and Gwen managed to get away from the kidnappers, and I have them in the car with me,” Kate told him. “The kidnappers still have Megan, though.”
“Okay, hang on. I’ll try to patch you through to the FBI on the scene in McGhee.”
The phone went silent for a few achingly long moments, then she heard a male voice.
“Mrs. Hanlon? This is Agent Turner.”
“Yes, sir.”
“I understand you have the two younger children with you.”
“Yes, sir. We’re in my car.”
“Exactly what is your current location?”
“I’m on Lake Front Road a few miles north of McGhee.” She gave him the number on the nearest mailbox. “I’m only a few houses from where the kidnappers are still holding Megan, the oldest girl. It’s just up the road, but I can’t see the cabin from where I’m parked.”
“All right. I want you to stay out of sight. It’s almost time for the ransom drop at the park. We’ll close in on whoever shows up and then get some men to that location.”
“But with two of the children escaping, they may forget about the diamonds and make a run for it,” Kate protested. “They could hold Megan hostage.”
“I’ll send a car as soon as I can.” With that, Agent Turner disconnected.
“Can we go get Megan now?” Beck asked.
“The FBI wants us to wait for them to get here.” Kate eyed the driveway just past the weeping willow. “When you got away from the cabin, were there one or two men inside?”
“Just the ugly one,” Beck answered.
“The other man went away and said he’d be back soon.”
“Did he leave in a car?” Kate asked.
“Yeah, a big black car,” Gwen said.
“An old one that rattled,” Beck added.
Still watching the driveway, Kate called Sheriff Roberts again and told him about the car. He said he’d pass the word on to the FBI so they could be on the lookout for the vehicle sent to pick up the diamonds at the park.
When Kate snapped her phone closed, she felt a surge of impatience. She was afraid that with the younger children escaping, the remaining thief would make a break for it before the FBI could get there. He could easily take Megan with him as a shield.
She opened the car door. “I want to see what’s going on at the cabin. You two stay in the car, ducked down and out of sight. And no matter what, keep the doors locked. Do you understand?”
Gwen nodded. “Be careful, MizHanlon.”
Kate glanced down the road back toward town. No sign of the police or the FBI yet.
Turning toward the cabin, she stayed near the edge of the road where she couldn’t be seen. The neighborhood of scattered houses and cabins seemed eerily quiet for a spring day. No children played in the sheltered yards. No bikes had been left abandoned in view of the street. Either these were summer homes not yet open for the season or the occupants were all enjoying their view of the lakefront.
When she reached the driveway, she checked again for oncoming cars, hoping to see flashing red lights. Lake Front Road was as empty as the nearby yards.
She peered down the driveway. A tan van was parked close to the house.
As she stood spying on the cabin, a man shoved Megan out the front door and down the steps to the van. Kate recognized Perry Weller from his booking photo.
“You’re comin’ with me, missy,” he ordered. “Don’t even try to get away, or I’ll knock you senseless.”
Kate’s breath lodged in her lungs. She had to think fast. She couldn’t let Perry drive away with Megan. No telling what he would do to her, or if the FBI would ever be able to find her.
Kate stepped into full view. “Yoo-hoo! Hello there. I wonder if you can help me.” She walked down the middle of the driveway.
Weller’s head snapped around. “We don’t want anything.”
Recognition sparked in Megan’s eyes. She started to say something, then thought better of it and closed her mouth.
Kate kept walking. “I’m looking for Mary Jane Bulenski’s cabin. She invited me to visit for the weekend.”
“She ain’t here.” Perry gave Megan a shove into the van.
“Do you know which cabin is hers?” Kate persisted, praying the FBI would show up soon.
“I don’t know nothin’ about a Bulenski. Now get out of my way, or I’ll run over you.”
Kate held her ground and kept talking. “Could you give me a ride into town? My car broke down a ways back. I’m going to need a tow.”
Ignoring her, Perry climbed into the van. At the same time, the door on the opposite side of the vehicle opened. Megan jumped out and started running.
“Hey, you little—” Perry swung out of the van, shaking his fist at Megan. “Come back here!”
“Run, Megan!” Kate yelled.
She caught up with Megan and grabbed her hand as they both ran for the road. Behind her, Kate heard the van’s engine start. The wheels crunched on the gravel driveway, coming fast. They’d never be able to outrun the van.
“Into the bushes,” Kate ordered.
They moved into the undergrowth. Their feet sank into the soft ground. Whiplike branches flayed at their faces as they ran parallel to the road, angling toward the spot where Kate had parked her car. They ducked under pine trees. Drooping branches without needles seemed to reach out to snare them like witches’ fingers.
“Did you find Gwen and Beck?” Megan asked as they ran.
“They’re in my car. Hurry.”
Kate ventured a look behind her. Perry wasn’t following them on foot. Thank goodness!
Then she heard the van again. On the road. Perry was watching for them to pop out of the woods. He intended to capture Megan again. And Kate.
Worse, Kate was leading Perry directly to Gwen and Beck hiding in her car.
“Stop. Wait.” Kate was breathing heavily. Her lungs burned. She didn’t know which way to turn. Please, Lord...
Then through the trees, she saw the flash of red lights and heard the sudden wail of a siren. A black-and-white police cruiser appeared on the road right in front of the van. Moments later, a second police car arrived from the opposite direction, trapping Perry Weller between them.
Kate sank to her knees on the damp ground in gratitude and thanksgiving.
SEVERAL HOURS LATER, after giving the police their statements, Kate and the three children were at Renee’s house being thoroughly pampered with ice cream and cake served on elegant china at the dining-room table.
Kate chose a nice soothing tea over the soft drinks the youngsters preferred.
“I simply can’t get over how brave you all were,” Renee said.
Caroline, Renee’s mother, firmly tapped her cane on the floor to draw everyone’s attention. “I say Mayor Briddle should give Kate an award for rescuing our dear children.”
Kate sipped a bit of her tea. “I suspect Agent Turner would disagree. He made it clear he thought I was more foolish than brave.”
“Pshaw!” Caroline discounted the FBI agent with a wave of her hand. “Men always want to take the credit when it’s we women who do all the heavy lifting.”
“Well,” Kate said, “I for one was more than grateful when his men showed up to bail us out of a tight spot.”
“You were great, MizHanlon.” Scooping the last of her ice cream out of the bowl, Megan grinned across the table at Kate. “I thought I’d bust something when I saw you walkin’ down that driveway like you were just passing by.”
Looking up from his cake and ice cream, his mouth smeared with chocolate, Beck said, “I think Megan ought to get a medal too.”
“I think we’d all agree with that, Beck.” Looping her arm around his narrow shoulders, Kate gave him a hug. “In fact, I think you all deserve a reward for helping to catch those thieves.”
Megan brightened. “Is there really a reward?”
“Oh, I don’t know, honey. No one has said anything about that.”
“Which reminds me,” Renee said. “Megan, why don’t you show Kate your pretty cornhusk doll? It’s so precious, I may have to buy it myself.”
Kate recalled the doll she’d seen on the dresser in Megan’s room and smiled to herself. She had the feeling the missing diamonds were very close at hand.
Leisurely, Megan got up from the table and went down the hallway to the bedroom. A few moments later, she returned with her doll and placed it in front of Kate.
“Megan, this is beautifully made.”
Megan had fashioned a bonnet out of blue fabric and made a matching dress, accessorizing the outfit with a necklace made of what appeared to be tiny bits of clear glass glued onto a narrow strip of ribbon.
Intrigued, Kate leaned closer. The bits of glass reflected the light from the overhead chandelier, the facets sparkling with color and brightness, just as she had expected.
“Megan, honey, where did you get these little bits?” Kate asked.
“I didn’t take any of your stained glass,” she responded quickly. “They’re just some old glass pieces I found in Beck’s marble bag at the bottom of my cornhusk box. I didn’t think—”
“You found my marbles?” Beck asked. “I’ve been lookin’ everywhere for those.”
“Your marbles weren’t in the bag, squirt. Just the glass pieces. You probably lost your marbles to some kid at school.”
“Didn’t.” Beck stuck his chin out at a stubborn angle. “If you got my marbles, I want ’em back!”
“Hold on.” Kate raised her hand to stop the bickering. “Megan, why don’t you bring the bag in here, and we’ll all take a look at what you’ve found.”
“They’re not worth anything,” Megan protested. “Beck’s just being—”
She looked at Kate, and Kate saw realization spark in the girl’s eyes.
For the Least of These Page 17
