He held up his cell-phone and extended it for the group to see.
"Is that who I think it is...?" Drake asked, letting his voice trail off.
"The one and only Mayor Maria Sloan," Kade said. "And to think I voted for her ass."
"Voted? Hell, I donated to her campaign," Ajax said.
Drake passed a hand over his face. "No wonder Beth said no police. The whole damn town's in on it."
Behind them, the girls streamed out from the bunkhouse, all still dressed in pajamas and athletic shoes. Most clutched book bags or purses against their chests.
"What are we going to do with them?" Rink asked.
Drake gave a twist of his head. "We've still got the room at the Hawthorne, right?"
The group mulled the suggestion for a moment in silence.
Ajax nodded his approval. "I wouldn't keep them there long-term or nothing, but it could work for the night."
Drake glanced to Rink. "Half in your truck, half in mine?"
Rink nodded. The group turned as one and started to direct the girls where to go.
They were interrupted halfway through by a call to Drake's phone.
Ava.
Chapter Fifty-Five
Drake went rigid.
Everybody, the Crew and the girls, noticed. All of them fell silent. They stood as one and waited for a sign, any sign, from him.
His heart pounded in his chest. By now whoever was on the line had to know he was there. They might even be watching.
"Hello?"
"I take it the new added muscle was no trouble for you?"
Same cold, graveled voice. A tone that insinuated the message wasn't just aimed at him.
Drake thought for a moment and decided not to let Notch dictate the direction of the conversation. Opted for the offensive approach.
"Where's Ava?"
"She's here," Notch said. "Trust me. She's not going anywhere."
Drake balled his off hand into a fist. Squeezed until he could feel his fingernails digging into the palm.
Still, he pushed aside the urge to walk into the trap and fire some stupid threat, something hollow about the man not hurting her.
It was clear he had already hurt her. Whatever Drake did now might determine how much worse it got.
"What do you want?"
Notch laughed. "You're a fast learner. Already you're doing better than the last time we talked."
"What do you want?"
The laughter died away. The same hard edge appeared in Notch's voice. "What do you think I want? I want the damn girl and I want you to disappear."
"And in return?"
"In return, I might not kill you all."
The words dripped with malevolence. Drake could tell Notch believed every last one of them, would go to the ends of the earth to make them a reality.
Deep breath.
With eyes closed, Drake offered a prayer that what he was about to say might not get Ava killed.
"You're going to have to do better than that."
Another harsh crack of laughter bit back into his ear. "I have your girlfriend tied to a table right now. You think you're in any position to negotiate?"
"I have your about-to-burst surrogate stashed nearby," Drake replied. "I'd say that makes for an even trade."
Notch snorted. "I'm about to take back my earlier comment. You got balls kid, but you ain't got a lick of brains."
"Maybe not," Drake said. "Do we have a deal?"
Notch paused and drew in a long breath. "Alright. Yeah, we've got a deal. You load that pregnant cow up and bring her over here. We'll trade."
"And where is here?"
"Shelbourne Road, north of town. You know the place?"
"I've got GPS."
"Alright then, you and your GPS get your ass up here. There's a barn off a dirt lane at the very end. Bring the bitch. Nobody else. You have an hour."
Drake didn't like the idea of a ticking clock over his head. Wanted at least a couple hours so he could devise a plan. Maybe scout the situation a little.
"I don't think I can make it there in an hour," Drake said.
"Then you better drive fast," Notch said. "Otherwise I'll make sure nobody ever sees your girlfriend again."
The line went dead.
Drake kept it pressed to his face for several more seconds before lowering it. He didn't even realize he'd been staring at the group the entire time.
"What's up?" Kade asked and took a slow step forward. Beside him, Ajax did the same.
Drake swallowed hard. Blinked himself out of the phone call. "He gave me an address where they're keeping Ava. Shelbourne Road, in an old barn."
"I know that road," Kade said. "I've hunted up there. I can drive."
Drake shook his head. "He said to load Beth up and come alone."
"There's no way in hell you're going there alone," Ajax said. "It's a trap."
"I know," Drake said.
"And besides, there's no chance at getting Beth there in an hour," Kade said.
Drake turned his head to face him. "How far away is she?"
He didn't ask where. If he needed to know, Kade would have told him already.
Kade twisted his face for a moment. Considered the question. Shook his head from side to side.
There was no way he could have Beth there in time.
"Shit," Drake mumbled and looked around the group once more.
On one side stood the Crew. All three amped up, ready to fight. All ready to do anything he asked of them.
On the other side stood six girls. All but the blonde and the second brunette looked at the ground. Hugged their packs. Avoided eye contact.
Drake pushed out a heavy breath. "Let's start by getting these girls out of here." He looked at the blonde. "Can you drive?"
She didn't answer the question.
What she did say was even more profound.
"I can be Beth."
Chapter Fifty-Six
Her name was Angie.
The brunette, that is.
Drake gave her the keys to his truck and sent her and the other four girls to The Hawthorne. Told them to draw the curtains, lock the doors.
Do not open for anyone until they heard his voice.
The girls resembled a flock of frightened geese as they shuffled into his truck. All remained pressed tight together and continued to avoid eye contact.
The sound of the truck starting and the lights turning on stirred some of the guys tied up on the ground.
At first there was nothing but muffled moans. A few attempts to move. After a minute or two, they began asking to be untied, tossing out excuses about how they'd just been hired that morning and had no idea what was really going on.
The Crew ignored them.
The blonde tried to give them her name too. Drake waved her off. "For the next couple of hours, it's Beth. Better that we only know that and don't mess it up."
"So we're going too?" Ajax asked.
"You don't think for a second he's going alone do you?" Kade countered.
"Not a chance," Rink agreed.
Together all five piled into the truck. Rink, the new Beth, Drake in the front. Ajax and Kade in the bed.
A cold ride for sure, but still better than the five of them squeezed into the cab.
Rink sat behind the wheel and angled them in the direction Kade pointed out before departing. For several long minutes, the cab was silent.
Drake thinking hard. Rink gripping the steering wheel. 'Beth' taking in measured breaths.
"How far along are you?" Drake asked. He kept his eyes on the windshield in front of him, watched as they wheeled through town and headed back out into the country.
"Thirty weeks."
"Will they notice?" Drake asked.
"If they looked maybe," the girl whispered. "Beth is due any day now. She's bigger than all of us."
"Do you have a blanket or anything in here?" Drake asked.
"Got some old drop cloths in the back," Rink said. "How you l
ooking to handle this?"
"I'm thinking we'll stop just before we get there. Wrap her up in one. Let some of her blonde hair hang out. Make it big and baggy on her."
"So they can't see her face or the size of her stomach," Rink said.
Drake continued without acknowledging. "She and I will go in on foot. You guys hang back a few minutes. Make sure nobody's outside. I'll give you the whistle when it's time to enter."
He didn't need to elaborate on the whistle. Everybody that knew him knew it, as did everybody that lived within a two block radius of him.
The plan was thin. At best. They all knew it.
Nobody commented on it.
Drake would have welcomed any feedback they had. He just figured, like him, they knew they were in trouble.
They had a very small window between bringing in the girl and the other side realizing she was a fake Beth. Drake somehow had to get inside, grab Ava, hope that he and The Crew could get everyone out.
It was a pure suicide mission.
Rink nodded behind the wheel and lowered his voice. "You know, I don't have but one gun in here. And it's a .9mm. It was the only thing I could get over the border when I came down from Canada."
He added the last line almost as if an apology.
"If we walk into a shooting gallery..."
"I know," Drake whispered. "I don't expect anybody to get shot over this. You hear any gunfire, get the guys, get Beth, get the hell out of there."
"We won't leave you."
Drake knew they wouldn't. Knew no amount of arguing with them would change it.
"Still, if things go bad, don’t be afraid to cut bait and go."
Rink said nothing.
Outside, the city lights receded behind them. Heavy darkness settled in.
Rink pushed the truck up over seventy miles an hour and followed the directions Kade gave them to the letter.
Forty minutes after leaving the compound, they found Shelbourne Road.
Five minutes after that, they found the dirt lane.
Ahead in the distance, they could see a single light through the woods.
The three of them piled out of the truck cab. Rink grabbed a drop cloth and handed it over to Drake.
Ajax and Kade both stood shivering in the bed of the truck, but said nothing.
Drake wrapped the heavy cloth around the girl. He adjusted it so her face was hidden within the deep folds of the makeshift cloak, just a few strands of blonde hair hanging down.
He gave a single nod to the Crew and hooked an arm around her. Together, they took off walking towards the single light ahead through the woods.
Chapter Fifty-Seven
Notch considered untying the girl.
Decided against it.
Thought about covering her from the waist down.
Decided against that too.
He had broken her leg to teach a lesson to the others in their organization. Nothing wrong with letting this little piss ant get that message too.
Besides, it wasn't like the kid was going to be alive long after he saw her. It didn't matter what he thought of her mangled leg.
Notch did choose to put away his tools though. He loaded them all back into his truck and wrapped the canvas over them.
Kept out an extendable night stick and a meat tenderizer. Slid a flap jack into the butt pocket of his jeans.
He stowed everything else away and pulled the truck to the rear of the barn.
While he worked, the others milled together near the front door. Many whispered amongst themselves. They all avoided eye contact.
Years of practice had taught him the best way to maintain their fear was to act like they weren't even there. Go about his business and let them know their presence was of no consequence to him.
Even without looking, he could tell it was working.
Once he was done, he checked the girl's cell-phone and walked back into the middle of the room. He didn't bother to motion to the others, just launched into talking without warning.
"Here's how it's going to go. I told him to come alone. He knows it's a trap, but he also knows I'll kill the girl unless he does what I say. He'll come alone.
"You four," he motioned to the four men in the room, "I want split on either side of the door. When he walks in, block his exit."
Notch turned away from the group and walked back to the table still positioned in the middle of the room.
"Then what happens?" Bennett asked.
Notch stopped walking, turned, gave a look that was pure venom. "Then one of you grabs the girl and I go to work on him. When it's all over, we take some pictures of him," he motioned to the girl on the table, "and her. Make sure this kind of thing never happens again."
Every one of the men looked like they may vomit. None of them voiced objection.
It was a shame too. Notch was kind of hoping one of them would be dumb enough to.
"What about us?" Yelena asked, motioning to herself, her sister, Harken.
Notch smirked and pointed to the far wall.
"You three just stand over there. Stay out of the way. Try not to do anything stupid."
Harken wilted. Mayor Sloan's jaw dropped open. Yelena's face grew red. She raised a finger to fire back at him.
Notch cut her off before she had a chance to speak. "Shh."
He cocked an ear towards the front door.
"They're coming."
Chapter Fifty-Eight
"You don't have to do this," Drake whispered.
The barn loomed just a few yards away. The closer they got, the more apprehension welled within him. Not for his own well-being, but for the girl beside him.
He couldn't shake the feeling that he wasn't walking out of there alive. He'd been foolish to think anything different.
Flat stupid to lead someone else right into it with him.
"I have to go in,” Drake continued. “They have my friend. It's my fault she's involved at all. You they don't know. You can still walk away."
"I volunteered for this, remember?" the girl replied, a surprising amount of conviction in her voice.
"Why?" Drake said. "Were you friends with Beth?"
"You didn't see what they did to that girl last weekend," she said simply.
Drake nodded. Point taken.
A single bare light bulb hung down from the side of the barn and threw pale yellow light over the entrance. They were just ten yards away and closing.
"Alright, you heard the plan back there," Drake said. "It's weak, we all know it. I can tell you though I will not leave you behind. Neither will any of the others."
"I know," the girl whispered.
Drake's running shoes padded over the dirt driveway. His periphery picked up no less than five cars parked off to the side in the darkness.
There were a lot more people waiting for him inside than anticipated. More adrenaline and apprehension surged through him.
This could get ugly fast.
Their pace picked up as they closed the last few yards to the door and pushed their way inside without pause. They walked several feet out into the middle of the room and stopped.
Drake swung his head from side to side. The fake Beth remained with her head aimed towards the floor, drop cloth draped around her like a Druid's cloak.
If the entrance surprised anyone, they didn't show it.
The putrid smell of something burning hung in the air. It filled Drake's nostrils and tinged his eyes with moisture.
The source of it lay face up on a table in the center of the room.
A cold, searing flame sprang up behind Drake's eyes as he stared at Ava. The mutilation on her foot. Her grotesquely twisted left leg. The bindings that held her unconscious body in place.
A shiny silver mallet with a textured head lay beside her.
His fists balled so tight, the girl let out a whimper beside him. He loosened his grip, stared as a man sauntered into the room and stood beside Ava.
"It's about time we meet, wouldn't you say
Mr. Bell?"
The man was just as the real Beth had described him. Dressed like a local. Someone that knew his way around the mountains, knives, guns. Long ponytail. Bad teeth, hollow eyes.
Basically, he looked like a meth addict. Only his drug was inflicting evil, not ingesting powder.
"What did you do to her?" Drake asked. Nodded his head towards Ava.
Behind him, he heard the shuffling of shoes and turned to see four men slide into place between them and the door.
He recognized three of them. The sheriff. The judge. The attorney.
This was a lot bigger than he realized. Maybe Lauer was right trying to keep them far away from it.
Still, Drake couldn't help but smirk. Despite their numbers, not one of them looked like they could hold their own in a scrap.
The Crew would blow through them in no time flat.
"We just had a little fun," Notch said. "Gave her a couple of reminders what happens when you stick your nose in our business."
"And human trafficking is your business huh?"
Notch just smiled. "Their business is making money. Mine is hurting people that interfere with that."
As Notch spoke, he motioned his head to his left.
Drake glanced over to see three women standing in a cluster. One he recognized as the child services woman from the hearing. Both of the other two looked like the mayor.
He pushed his gaze back forward. Said nothing.
Notch flicked his wrist to the side. The night stick extended from the palm of his hand to over two feet in length.
"Your girlfriend interfered. She got hurt. You and that little bitch there interfered. Now you get hurt."
Adrenaline pumped back into Drake's body. He wished he was carrying some form of weapon. Gym shorts and a t-shirt just didn't offer much opportunity to conceal anything.
He rocked up onto the balls of his feet. There was no real interest in a swap of any kind. The only thing bringing the girl along had accomplished was buying him a few minutes.
He just hoped they were enough for his friends to arrive.
Notch smiled at him. Rolled his neck back. Peered at Drake in a way that displayed how much he relished the moment.
The Zoo Crew (Zoo Crew series Book 1) Page 19
