A Firefighter's Ultimate Duty

by Beverly Long

  “You did fine,” Marcus said. “It sounds as if you kept a really good head on your shoulders. And you’ve given us plenty of good information.” He looked at Blade. “We’re going to lock this county down.”

  Blade watched his friend walk over to an officer who was standing by the back door. He used the woman’s radio. Blade could hear him telling somebody on the other end of the line about Posse, and he heard him requesting assistance from the state police.

  “Mom!”

  Blade turned. Sheila had gotten past the cops blocking access to the alley and was running toward Raven. He watched the two of them hug.

  “She’s okay,” he said, wrapping his arms around the both of them. “She’s okay.”

  Sheila turned to look at him. “Daisy?”

  “Gone. A man named Jacob Posse took her.”

  “What are you going to do?” she asked, her eyes kind.

  “I’m going to find her. I need you to take both Raven and Sophie back to your house.”

  “Of course.”

  “The police will need them to make statements. I’ll let Marcus know that they’ll be with you.”

  He leaned in and kissed his daughter’s forehead. “I love you, Raven.”

  “I love you, Daddy.” She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tight. “I’m going to be fine. Don’t worry about me.”

  He could not have been more proud of his girl. He turned to Sophie. “You’ll be safe at Sheila’s house.”

  “I’m not going,” Sophie said. “I’m going to find my mom. I want my mom.”

  He looked the girl in the eyes. “You said that your mom trusted me. I think that’s true. Now I need you to trust me. I’m going to find your mom. And I’m going to bring her home safe.” Please let him not be a liar. Please let him not let Daisy and her daughter down. Please let him not lose Daisy now. “The best way you can help me be able to focus on finding your mom is for me to know that you and Raven are safe. Please, Sophie. Do this for me. For your mom.”

  She threw herself into his arms. “Find her. And make sure Posse never hurts her again.”

  “I intend to.” He gave Raven one more hug and handed both girls off to Sheila. “Thank you,” he said.

  “I’ll take good care of them.” Sheila had an arm around each girl.

  Blade watched the three of them walk off. Think. Think. Where would Posse take Daisy? Someplace where he would feel safe. Back to Denver? Blade didn’t think so. Too obvious. Posse had thought he wasn’t leaving any witnesses behind, but it still felt too risky for him to go back to Denver.

  Iowa. Daisy had said that the police had discovered more commune members near Cedar Rapids. It was a long way. Far enough that Posse might feel safe there.

  He wouldn’t be able to get Daisy onto a commercial aircraft. He could hire a private plane. Marcus and his resources could check for that. If Posse and his accomplices were traveling together, they could drive and spell each other at the wheel. But he didn’t think that was likely. They’d split up in the alley and Blade thought Posse would want to keep it that way in order to have Daisy alone. And Posse would have to sleep at some point. A hotel was risky because people might see Daisy or she might figure out a way to signal her distress. Maybe he’d just pull off the road or use a highway rest stop. But that presented a visibility problem. People walking by the car would be able to see into the vehicle.

  Not if he was in a truck. A big truck. A semitruck. They could eat, sleep, hell, as disgusting as it was, if Posse had a bucket, he wouldn’t even have to let Daisy out to use the restroom.

  Daisy had said that Posse drove a semi. That he didn’t own one, but rather picked up jobs along the way. That meant he would have been able to get access to one. Blade ran over to where Marcus was talking to a group of police officers. He grabbed his arm. “Posse knows how to drive a semi. Focus on trucks headed east.”

  Marcus stared at him for just a second. “You’re thinking Iowa?”

  “Yes.”

  Marcus nodded, then turned back to the group of cops. Blade didn’t wait to hear him pass on the information. He was already running toward his own vehicle.

  Marcus caught up to him when he was six feet from his SUV. “What the hell are you doing?” Marcus asked.

  “Going after them,” Blade said.

  “You don’t have any authority to stop another vehicle. And if you try to force a truck off the road, you’re likely to get shot.”

  Blade shook his head. “On the interstate, where is every truck required to stop?”

  “At the open weigh stations. The state cops will be all over that. Every truck will get searched.”

  “He won’t stop. Not if he has Daisy with him.”

  “If he blows past, they’ll catch him.”

  “I can’t take the chance that they’ll let him slip through. I need to be there.”

  “He’s got at least a half hour’s head start,” Marcus said.

  Blade pulled his phone. Pressed a key. “How’s Gertie?” he asked when it was answered.

  “In surgery. I got her stabilized on the ride to Bigelow Memorial. She’s lost a lot of blood, but I’m cautiously optimistic.”

  Relief flooded Blade’s body. He knew Jamie had likely fought like hell to save the woman. “Does she need you tonight?”

  “Nope. Out of my hands.”

  “Then I need you.”

  “Of course,” Jamie said.

  “I’ll meet you at Rainbow Field. I’ll explain everything there.”

  “On my way. ETA fifteen minutes.”

  “Thank you,” Blade said and hung up.

  “You’re going to do what you did when you chased Sophie cross-country,” Marcus said.

  “It worked once,” Blade said. And then he told him his plan. What he needed Marcus to do.

  “I can make all that happen,” Marcus said when he finished. “But I’m also going with you.”

  “No. I want you here. I could be wrong. Maybe he’s not going to Iowa. I need you here to make sure that nothing gets missed here. I need you here to be close if there should be any more trouble for Raven or Sophie. They’re at Sheila’s. I want somebody parked outside, watching the house.”

  “Consider it done.” Marcus paused. “You don’t want me there because you think I’ll try to stop you.”

  Blade looked him in the eye. “I think you’d try. It likely wouldn’t end well for one of us.”

  Marcus gave Blade a rough hug. “Just don’t be an idiot, okay?”

  Chapter 21

  Daisy was freezing. And her head was pounding. For the last forty minutes, Jacob had lectured her nonstop on her many mistakes, starting with her not being appreciative enough of him while she lived in Denver and ending with all the inconvenience she’d caused him when he’d had to chase her to Knoware. She huddled against the door of the truck cab and stared at the inside temperature indicator, which said fifty-six.

  He was wearing a flannel shirt and an insulated vest. Certainly more than a strapless gown. But she wasn’t asking him for heat. She wasn’t asking him for anything.

  Not that he seemed to care. And not that it seemed to slow his diatribe down.

  “You didn’t really think I’d let you leave me, did you? Nobody leaves Jacob Posse. I leave people. Not the other way around.”

  How could she have ever thought this man was sane? Because he was a consummate actor. But now the play had closed, and backstage, he was letting it all hang out.

  “You know technology is a wonderful thing,” he said. “Your daughter sends a message to her friend. We hack into that kid’s computer, gets your kid’s IP address, and in seconds, we’ve got you within a fifteen-mile radius. From there, it wasn’t hard to find you. Everybody was talking about the woman who started the Remember This campaign.”

  She had known it wou
ld be hard to disappear. Had hoped that he’d just forget about her once she wasn’t so easily within reach.

  “Where we’re going, there aren’t any computers, no technology inviting Big Brother in to snoop on our lives. Off. The. Grid.” He turned to look at her. “I want sons. Three of them. You’re going to give me sons. I’ve always thought you were an excellent mother. I want that for my children.”

  She would die first. She would not be able to bear having any responsibility for bringing more of his madness into the world.

  Maybe it showed on her face because the next thing she knew, he was lunging across the cab and grabbing her by the throat. He choked her. She clawed at his hand, trying to push him away. But he was enraged, and her strength was no match for his.

  It was only when the truck’s tires hit the shoulder rumble strips that he let go and focused on bringing the truck back onto the road. She sucked in air. He was going to kill her. Maybe not today or tomorrow, but at some point, she wouldn’t be able to hide her disgust with him and he would kill her in response.

  He’d been an actor and fooled her. Maybe it was time to reverse the roles. Sophie was a heck of an actress. Maybe she’d gotten some of that talent from her. She licked her lips.

  “I want your children, Jacob. That would be my privilege.”

  He turned his head so fast she was surprised he didn’t hurt himself. “Do you mean that, Daisy?”

  Stay in character. Be a simpering fool. Feed his ego. “I do. I’ve missed you since I left Denver. I was going to call you, but I’ve been so busy at work.”

  “You made a fool out of me,” he said. “My friends laughed at me.”

  “I’m sorry. Were those people with you tonight your friends?”

  “Followers. My stepsister, Michelle, and her husband, Trevor.”

  “I saw them today. Watching me.”

  “They’ve been watching you for weeks. Ever since I figured out you were in that little hole of a town.”

  “Did you do something to my car, that night I was at the ice cream shop? Did you break into my house?”

  “That was Trevor. I told him to shake you up a little.”

  “Did he break into those businesses? Did he steal from them?”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  Maybe it had been Trevor. Maybe someone else. None of that mattered now.

  “He made a mistake today when you saw him,” Jacob said. “I wondered if you’d recognized him. That’s when we decided it had to be tonight.”

  “Where would I have seen him before?”

  “When we went to the theater in Denver. They were there that night, too. They had tickets just down the aisle from us.”

  If only she’d have figured that out earlier. She’d have known it was too much of a coincidence. She could have been watching for Jacob. Could have warned Sophie. Dear sweet Sophie. “My daughter is safe, right?” He’d said she was just going to be detained, but how could she trust that he’d told her the truth. “I’m going to need proof.” Sophie had to be scared to death to see her mom taken that way.

  “I don’t have to give you proof of anything,” Jacob said.

  “I could never raise another child if I didn’t know that Sophie was safe.”

  Jacob sighed. “Fine. I’ll get you your proof.”

  It didn’t mean he hadn’t lied. But she had to stay hopeful, had to believe that Sophie and Raven were both okay. “Where are we headed?” she asked. It was time to start figuring a way out of this.

  “You don’t need to know. Just settle in.”

  “I’m going to need to stop soon to use the restroom.”

  “I’ll tell you when we’re going to stop.” Then he reached for the radio and turned it up.

  She closed her eyes. She just had to outlast him. He’d get tired eventually.

  * * *

  Blade stopped at his apartment on his way to Rainbow Field. He quickly took off his suit and pulled on jeans and a sweater. Dress shoes were replaced with work boots. He grabbed a heavy coat and gloves. Then he unlocked the gun safe that he kept on the top shelf of his closest and removed the weapon. He wasn’t as good with a gun as Marcus, but he regularly went to the shooting range with his friend.

  He wouldn’t shoot his foot off and, if necessary, he wouldn’t hesitate to use it on Posse. The man had intended for his daughter and Sophie to be killed. He’d taken Daisy.

  Marcus had warned him not to be an idiot. He wouldn’t be. But he also wouldn’t be a fool. He was going to take Posse down, one way or another.

  Posse would not kill Daisy. That thought was the only thing keeping him from losing his mind right now. But he could hurt her, scare her, maybe even successfully hide her for a period of time. Blade had waited his whole life for someone like Daisy. He wasn’t going to lose her now or let her suffer in any way if he could help it.

  He left his apartment less than five minutes after arriving. Still, by the time he got to Rainbow Field, he saw that Jamie’s vehicle was parked in the dimly lit lot and that his friend was already getting the plane ready for flight. Before he got out of his SUV, he leaned over to reach his glove compartment. He pulled out a map of Washington State and stuffed it into his coat pocket. Cell phones and GPS were great, but sometimes an old-fashioned paper map was really helpful.

  “How you holding up?” Jamie asked as Blade approached.

  “I’m okay,” he said. “Any change on Gertie?”

  “I got a report from the operating room. The surgeon was about to close. Everything looks good. She needed four units of blood. She’ll be monitored closely for the next twenty-four hours. If she makes it through that, the chances of recovery are excellent.”

  One thing was going right. Actually, two things. Gertie would make it and the girls were safe at Sheila’s house. Now all he had to do was find Daisy. “I think Posse might be driving a semitruck, headed east toward the Midwest. I think he’ll stay off the main highway if he can, but through this stretch,” Blade said, holding up his phone where he’d pulled up a map of the State of Washington, “there really isn’t a good choice. There’s a weigh station right there. Marcus will make contact and let them know that every truck needs to be carefully searched. If any truck blows through, the police will run them down. When they do, I want to be there. That’s where you come in. I need you to get me to the closest airfield to that weigh station. Marcus is going to get me a ride from there.”

  “You’re putting an awful lot of stock into a handful of assumptions. That they’re headed east. That they’ll be in a truck. That this is the route.” Jamie ticked the list off on his fingers.

  “Everything that Daisy told me about Posse leads me down this path. I know I could be wrong. But I have to do something.”

  Jamie took out his own phone and pushed keys. Finally, he looked up. “The closest airfield, a small one, is thirty minutes north.”

  “I guess that will have to do,” Blade said.

  * * *

  They had been driving for almost two hours. Daisy did not know this part of the country well enough to know what road they were on, and if there had been a sign, she’d missed it. It was impossible to tell the direction they were traveling. The only thing she was confident of was that it wasn’t west—they’d have been in the ocean by now. Guessed it was north or east, given that they’d been in the mountains now for at least forty minutes. They’d met just a handful of cars coming from the other direction. No one had passed them.

  She felt very alone.

  Jacob showed no signs of tiring. He had, fortunately, stopped talking.

  She was so cold that her teeth were chattering. She had her jaw clenched, trying to make them stop, not wanting Jacob to hear, not wanting to give him the satisfaction of knowing that she was cold. He was keeping the heat down on purpose, she decided, after she’d seen him put on his g
loves about halfway through the trip. She suspected the steering wheel was cold—everything else in the truck was.

  They’d be looking for her. But the farther she got from Knoware, the less hopeful she felt. She had no cell phone for them to track. Jacob did. Twenty minutes into the trip, he’d pulled a cell phone from his pocket and dialed a number. He said two words. “Well?” at the beginning and “Later,” at the end.

  But he’d seemed satisfied.

  She was less so. His phone was no doubt a burner, certainly not purchased under his real name. If Jacob Posse even was his real name. She wasn’t sure about anything anymore.

  Except that her heart was breaking over losing Blade. She loved him. Had been afraid to say it because it would lead them down a path to a conversation that she hadn’t been ready to have.

  Stupid, stupid, stupid. She’d wasted precious time.

  Her excuse that she couldn’t throw one more change at Sophie had been just that—an excuse. Because she’d been frightened that maybe she was making a mistake again, that Blade wasn’t as wonderful as she thought.

  And now he was out there in the dark somewhere, worrying about her, looking for her. And it felt terrible to admit, but she had a sinking feeling that it wasn’t going to work. Jacob would take her somewhere and make her his prisoner. It could be years before she finally escaped.

  Blade would have moved on. The world would have changed.

  Sophie would grow up. How could one simple sentence bring such immense sadness and joy? Yes, she would miss seeing it. But Sophie would have a life. Daisy would never regret trading herself for Sophie and Raven. She’d brought Jacob into their lives. She should pay the price for that, not her daughter.

  * * *

  Blade got out of the plane. There was a state police car waiting two hundred yards from them, and he hurried toward it.

  “Blade Savick,” he said, from thirty feet.

  “Trooper Hogan.” The man, maybe just a few years older than Blade, extended a hand. “How was the flight?”