Connor.
Weariness and anxiety oozed from him, and she wished she could offer him some kind of comfort. However, she knew words wouldn’t suffice. “You find anything?”
“No.” He looked around. “I’m going to look outside the crime scene area. Look at the tape. It’s wrapped around convenient stuff. That tree, the pole over there.” He shook his head. “Sometimes you’ve got to think outside the box. Or in this case, look outside the tape.”
“I’ll help.”
He raised a hand to her cheek for a brief moment before turning toward the tape and ducking under it.
Cheek tingling, she followed.
“See this path? It looks worn.”
“True, but it could have been here for ages.”
“I know.” But he had to hope, had to feel like he was doing something to track down his daughter’s kidnapper. “I wish Andrew were here.”
His pain cut her. “He’s here. In your heart. You’re running a conversation about this whole case with him in your head, aren’t you?”
His startled jump and shocked stare made her shrug.
“You’re not so hard to read, Connor.”
The key sounded in the lock. Jenna tensed. Veronica’s eyes went wide with fear and Patty whimpered. Julienna trembled but held firm.
The door swung open. “All four of you where I can see you, now.”
Dutifully, the girls lined up. The woman came down with the tray filled with grilled cheese sandwiches and fruit. The door snapped shut behind her.
Heart in her throat, Jenna waited. And waited.
“Remember, I’ve got someone waiting on me. Back up.”
Jenna’s lips thinned in anticipation. Just a little farther.
One more step.
Then Jenna pulled.
And the bed came crashing down, knocking into the woman. A howl of outrage and pain had Jenna and the other girls scrambling for the stairs.
Freedom. Jenna could practically taste it.
Patty reached the top first, threw open the door, and came face-to-face with a black gun.
The Agent stared at the girl backpedaling down the steps, practically taking the rest of them with her. Anger, fueled by a desperate need not to get caught, had his finger curling around the trigger.
With sheer force of will, he loosened it. Glared at the one he was sure had been in charge of this little escape attempt. Slowly, he made his way down the steps. Stepped over the woman. She was either dead or unconscious. He’d figure that out in a minute.
Wide, fearful eyes stared back at him. Veronica and Julienna looked scared yet resigned. They knew. They’d seen.
But these two. They didn’t know. He’d have to teach them.
Through gritted teeth, he said, “Sit. Down.”
They sat.
Jenna stared up at him, fear and defiance stamped clearly on her pretty face.
The Agent turned the gun to her. “It’s time to teach you some obedience.”
Fear overrode the defiance and she flinched. Then shot him a glare that should have singed him. She lifted her chin. “Fine. Whatever. It’s better than being stuck here with you.”
Sucking in a deep breath, The Agent clamped down on his fury. He’d teach the little brat a lesson if it’s the last thing he did. An idea slowly formed. He’d seen the investigators processing the scene in the warehouse. Fortunately, this little bungalow was hidden away in a grove of trees surrounding it. The underground room perfect for a short-term stay for the girls. Just until he had another place ready. In another state, far away from here.
But for now, he had to take care of this mess. Jenna backed away. The Agent slowly stalked her. He watched her chest rise and fall. Good, she was scared. She should be.
But not for herself.
He placed the gun under her chin.
Patty squealed. Veronica clamped a hand over her mouth.
“Guess what, little girl?” he singsonged. “Daddy’s here.”
Confusion flickered through the fear.
“Oh yeah, that’s right. The big man himself is just about half a block away from here.”
Hope brightened her eyes.
The Agent smiled. Now for the fun part. “And I’m going to sneak through these woods and shoot him in the head. Shoot him dead just like I killed Andrew.”
Nostrils flared as he watched her reaction. Then something happened. The fear dissipated right in front of him. She relaxed, narrowed her eyes, then every muscle in her body went rigid as she clenched her fists and drew in a deep, controlled breath through her nose. He watched her anger build . . . and build.
And wondered if he’d finally met his match in one of the girls. One he couldn’t intimidate or have cowering at his feet.
Huh. Interesting. Intrigued, he backed off a little, but growled, “I’ll be back with Daddy’s head on a platter. Give me about an hour.”
She had to save her dad.
“You’re going to kill us all!” Patty shrieked.
Jenna turned to her friend. “Then you’d better hold that shower curtain a little tighter.” Jaw clenched, Patty held it while Jenna taped it. She’d rummaged in the bathroom and found some painter’s tape, pulled the shower curtain down, and formed another plan. This one she’d thought of after coming up with the “killer bed” idea, but had discarded it because she hadn’t known if anyone would notice and she would’ve been taking the chance of burning the building down around them.
But now she knew her dad was out there. And close by.
“What are you doing?”
“Playing Indian.” She grunted and ripped another strip of tape from the roll. She’d used a ragged edge of metal from one of the bed frames to tear the shower curtain plastic into a square, large enough to cover the air vent. Three sides were now taped up. She’d tape the fourth one after she had everything going.
After his threat to kill her dad, Danny had grabbed the woman on his way up the steps, lifted her head, examined her face, then let it drop. Had he assumed she was dead? The woman hadn’t moved; the cut from her head was bleeding pretty bad. Jenna didn’t care. She hoped she either woke up with the mother of all headaches or didn’t wake up at all.
Wishing for some good old-fashioned gasoline, she twisted the cap on the bathroom cleaner. The label said, “Keep away from open flame.” Hopefully that meant it would burn. She poured some on the sheets she’d ripped up and twisted into a rope.
Then she stood on the chair and stuffed them through the air vent. She’d managed to pull off the covering. It had been loose anyway, so all she’d had to do was grab it and pull. Her shoulder ached where she’d fallen off the chair when it had come loose, but she ignored the pain. If she didn’t get out of here, she’d be feeling more than an aching shoulder, that she was sure of.
Next, she had to see if she had any skills left from her Girl Scout days. The beds were made of wood. Old dry, splintering wood. She stripped off several pieces.
“Now what are you doing?” Julienna asked, scared, but curiously hopeful at the same time.
Veronica just kept her lips pressed in a tight line. But she, too, couldn’t hide the hope that Jenna would get them out of there before Danny came back.
“My dad is out there looking for me. I need to give him something to find.”
“And burning down the building is a good way to do that? So he can find our charred bones after the firemen get through putting out the fire?” Patty asked, sarcasm dripping.
“I’m actually hoping he gets here before all that.”
Patty just groaned. “All right, what do you want me to do?”
“Thank you, Patty. I’m going to start a fire and I need you to hold that piece of sheet that I soaked in cleaner over the flame when I get it started. Then I’m going to burn the sheets in the air vent, praying like crazy some of the smoke makes it out whatever opening is allowing the air to come through to us.”
Patty took up her spot and Jenna sat on the floor to get busy. She
placed a piece of wood about the size of her palm on the floor, then grabbed up one of her longer pieces—a spindle that would hopefully work perfectly. Placing it on the block, she began rubbing it between her hands, creating as much friction as possible.
“How in the world is that going to start a fire?”
“It creates friction which generates heat which will soon give me the spark I need to catch this piece of cloth on fire.” She hoped. “I’m going to need you guys to trade out with me. We need to take turns rubbing this, because it’s going to take a while, and if I get tired, I’m going to slow down. Okay, Patty, put that cloth near the stick.”
Patty did. And Jenna rubbed.
She’d been the only one in her troop to ever start a fire this way.
She just prayed she could do it again.
Connor kicked the brush away, going deeper into the woods. He stooped.
Samantha ran a hand through her hair and sighed. “You think we’re doing any good here?”
“I think she’s around here somewhere, Sam. He definitely brought her here. We tracked her phone pretty fast. He hasn’t had time to move her.”
“We’ve been over the building. The HeatSeeker would have picked them up, but it didn’t, just a few rats.” If Jenna had been anywhere nearby, The AimShot HeatSeeker would have found them. Thermal imaging heat seekers, the latest in firefighting technology.
But nothing. That didn’t bode well for Jenna.
Connor rubbed a hand over his jaw. “I know.”
“Listen, I need to call Jamie. She’s been waiting to discuss something . . .” Samantha stopped. Sniffed the air. “Do you smell that?”
“What?”
“Smoke?”
“Yeah, where’s it coming from?”
“Over there. This isn’t the time of year to build a fire to cozy up to, that’s something else. Come on.”
“Jake!” Connor hollered. The big man stopped what he was doing and looked up. Connor motioned for him to follow. A frown furrowing his brows, Jake said something to the woman with him and took off after Connor.
Finding where the smoke was coming from took a little doing, but he finally located the source. A small cabin set back in the woods.
“Who does this cabin belong to?” Connor demanded.
“I don’t have any idea.”
“I’m going in. There might be someone in there.” Jenna might be in there. But with smoke coming from a house, he had every right to be concerned and enter the premises without waiting on a search warrant. Someone’s life could be in danger.
Like Jenna’s.
“I’m right behind you,” Jake promised.
“I’m calling the fire department guys to get back over here. And then I’m going to see if Dakota can find out who this place belongs to.” Samantha grabbed her phone and started dialing.
Connor kicked the wooden door in and found himself in a kitchen that looked like it had been recently used.
“Police! We’re here to help! Anyone here?”
The Agent wanted to scream, curse, and basically lose control. He wanted to kill them all. But he couldn’t try it here. It was too risky, too many trees. And if he pulled the trigger, he needed the bullet to find its mark the first time.
Because there would be no second chances. Not with this man.
That brat had brought them to her. It wouldn’t be long now and they’d find them and Boss. Should he have gotten her out? Pulled her from the room?
No.
The Agent had lost all respect for Boss. After all, she’d allowed the girls to almost escape. Would she give him away? He fingered the gun and considered whether he actually needed her anymore. He could wait until the police brought her up from the room, then pop her between the eyes.
Maybe.
Maybe not.
They’d figure out who he was shortly. He had no doubt Jenna would describe him down to every last detail. He grimaced. Great.
He gave a last, lingering look at the cops swarming Plan B. He gave in to the curses, beating the steering wheel until he’d bruised his hand. Finally, he calmed, breathing hard, but back in control.
He began to think again.
For now, he needed to find a hotel room. Then maybe he’d call his sister and see if she could put him up for a night or two. Just until he could figure out what to do next.
And then he’d have to figure out how to get Veronica away from the police. She had something that belonged to him, and there was no way he was letting her get away with keeping that baby. No, he’d get his hands on her one way or another.
And take care of Jenna and her dad in the meantime. And if Samantha got in the way, he’d kill her too.
Samantha pocketed her phone and pulled her gun from the holster. Jamie would just have to wait a little longer. Instead of following the gang inside, she walked the perimeter of the house, looking for an alternative entrance. The drive led up to the back of the house.
Empty.
Tire tracks, though, embedded in the mud beside the gravel. Whoever had pulled in had done so carelessly. Good. She pulled a crime scene tag from her pocket and dropped it onto the spot beside the track. Any cop coming this way would see it and avoid trampling the area.
Keeping her eyes open, she panned the wooded area. Nothing moved. Once she’d circled the house, she came back to the kitchen door. Entering, she made her way through to the small attached carport. The door swung open. Left by someone leaving in a hurry?
Smoke swirled, but it wasn’t overwhelming. Recent footprints had stirred the dust on the floor.
The door slammed behind her and she whirled, lifting her weapon.
Connor stood just inside the carport door. He held his hands up, gun pointed toward the ceiling. “It’s just me.”
She lowered the gun, heart pounding. “You could give a girl some warning.”
“Sorry, I didn’t realize you were out here. I couldn’t see you from the door.”
“Did you find the source of the smoke?”
“No, and I didn’t find anyone else either. The house is empty. It’s been cleared. The fire squad’s back going over it with a fine-tooth comb.”
She nodded and pointed to another door sharing the wall with the main one that led back into the kitchen. “Wonder where that door goes? It looks a little out of place. Out of alignment with the house.”
“Let’s find out.”
Sam stepped to the side, raising her gun, mimicking Connor’s previous position right before he’d entered the carport area. Connor stood opposite her. With one hand, he reached out and twisted the knob.
Locked.
Raising a brow, he knocked on it.
Instantly someone banged from the other side.
Hope bloomed on his features.
“Jenna!”
Motioning for Samantha to step back, Connor raised his gun and blew the doorknob off. He punched the remaining part through the hole on the other side. Smoke drifted through the open space.
“Dad?” A faint voice came to them. “Dad!”
“Jenna! Stand back, I’m going to kick the door in.” To Samantha he said, “Hinges are on this side. I don’t know if I’m going to be able to do much damage.”
Samantha heard nothing. “You think it’s soundproofed? Seems like we should be able to hear her a little better.”
“Could be.” He took a breath, then put his mouth to the hole and repeated his instructions. “Stand back!”
Several kicks later, he shook his head. “I need the ram. This is one strong door.”
The battering ram. He called for one, and within seconds, the door was down, smoke billowing out.
“Jenna!”
“Dad!”
The stairs led directly down. Connor started to follow them, but stopped when his daughter appeared from the midst of the smoke and threw herself, coughing and gasping, into his waiting arms.
30
Back at the precinct, Connor watched happy parents gather their girls clo
se. Veronica’s mother and father had been shocked to see her extended belly, but it hadn’t stopped them from yanking her into a never-ending hug.
Julienna’s mom simply held her daughter and wept. Her father was flying in from California so it would take a while for him to get here.
Patty sat in one of the chairs, her legs drawn up tight to her chest. She stared at the commotion with empty eyes. Her parents were taking their own sweet time about getting here. Connor worried about that one.
Jenna seemed relieved. She’d clung to him like a leech for the first few minutes after coming up out of that room, but now seemed to be working through the experience. She was mad, furious, but he knew when that wore off she’d need to have a good cry.
And he’d be there to hold her.
He walked to the room next door and looked through the glass at the woman holding an ice pack to her battered head.
Victoria Abbott.
Who would have thought?
Connor shook his head and returned to the room he’d just vacated. Mrs. Abbott wasn’t going anywhere. He’d let her stew for a bit.
The sketch artist worked with each girl individually.
It was Jenna’s turn. Connor went with her ready to hang over her shoulder and watch the face materialize. He wanted to see this guy the minute the artist was done.
Samantha motioned that she would close up shop here with the families.
Then they would have to make plans how to catch the killer still on the loose.
Samantha sat back and swiped a few tears. She loved happy endings. However, she knew it wasn’t finished yet. And she still had to call Jamie.
And get something to eat. She was starving.
While Connor and Jenna worked with the sketch artist, Samantha pulled her phone out and dialed her sister’s cell phone, assuming she’d still be at the hospital with Tom.
“Hello?”
“Jamie, hi, it’s me. I’m sorry it’s taken me so long to call, but we found the girls.”
A gasp. “You’re kidding!”
“Turn the television on. You and Tom can watch the celebration together.”
Too Close to Home Page 28
