“Help me up,” Stephanie said.
As Donovan lifted, she put her weight on her good leg, and together they hobbled away from the plane. He stopped and stood as the distant sound of a helicopter’s beating rotor filtered through the trees. To the west he spotted a white dot flying in their direction. He had no idea where the Scimitar or the Galileo were, but he knew he was being watched. He briefly raised both thumbs into the air to indicate that everyone aboard had survived, and then fought an overwhelming sense of loss at the fact that he hadn’t arrived with everyone.
He surveyed the destroyed Cessna, startled by the amount of damage to the top of the wings. Dents ranged from dime-sized dings to divots the size of a saucer. The antennas were all sheared off. Scorch marks from the destroyed engine streaked from underneath the engine cowling. Cessna’s sturdy little airplane had taken a pounding, yet still did all that was asked.
“I hope that’s ours,” Stephanie said, swiveling her head at the sound.
“That should be Janie.” Donovan turned to see if he could spot the helicopter.
“I can’t believe he’s gone.” Stephanie laid her head on his shoulder.
“I can’t even think about it,” Donovan said, knowing that at some level Buck’s death was beyond comprehension, and also aware that if he let it, his grief would be all-consuming.
“Please don’t,” Stephanie whispered. “If you do nothing else with the rest of your life, hold the loss of Buck up to the light of day. Don’t bury it as you’ve done with the others. You need to deal with the past, and the present, or the pain is going to destroy you.”
“I’m not having that discussion now,” Donovan replied.
“It’s coming right toward us,” Eva said with an element of concern in her voice.
Donovan looked up and spotted the helicopter. It was close enough for him to confirm Eco-Watch’s brand new Bell 412. Janie was no doubt being vectored to their position by the Galileo. He waved his arm.
Janie brought the 412 in fast, raised the nose, and slowed dramatically. She then delicately eased the big machine down until the skids kissed the dirt. The side door was open, and Cesar jumped to the ground, keeping his head down he ran toward them.
“We must hurry,” Cesar called out. “The volcano is very unpredictable.”
Once again, Donovan lifted Stephanie; she looped her arms around his neck for support.
Cesar ran back to the chopper, climbed in, and readied himself for Donovan to set Stephanie in the cabin. The moment Stephanie was inside, Cesar secured her in a row of seats that allowed her to lie down. Cesar pulled a first-aid kit from its rack and Donovan helped Marie and Eva up into the cabin. Once they were aboard, he jumped up and went to the cockpit where Janie and Eric sat.
“Are we good to go?” Janie asked as she turned to him. “Where’s Buck?”
Donovan lowered his head. The sound of Janie using his name felt like a physical blow. He shook his head. “Buck didn’t make it.”
Janie looked up, closed her eyes, and let her head drop. She started to shake her head back and forth, as if trying to escape the information.
“He went quickly,” Donovan put his hand on Janie’s shoulder. He knew that she and Buck were close, that he had once saved her life, pulling her out of a burning helicopter. “Are you going to be okay?”
Janie nodded, swallowed hard, and then turned back to the business of getting the helicopter ready to fly.
“I’ll make sure everyone is settled,” Donovan said and then returned to the cabin. Cesar was attending to Stephanie, and Marie, already strapped in, sat close. Donovan looked around. “Where’s Eva?”
Cesar looked up, clearly surprised. “She was right there a minute ago. She helped the girl with her seat belt.”
Donovan looked at Marie. “Did you see where she went?”
Marie pointed in the opposite direction from the crashed Cessna.
Donovan inwardly cursed and went back to the cockpit. “Are there any guns onboard?”
“Yeah.” Eric removed a Glock from a holster tucked under his arm and handed it to Donovan, butt first. “Buck gave it to me this morning. Said we might need some firepower.”
“Thanks.” Donovan took the weapon. “How about a handheld radio?”
“On the bulkhead behind you,” Eric pointed.
“Eva bolted. I’m going after her.” Donovan turned on the radio, finding the battery fully charged. “Get Stephanie to a doctor. I’m going to instruct the Galileo to meet you when you land in Guatemala City. It’s essential that Marie, the young girl onboard, is delivered to Lauren. No one else. Understand?”
“Understood,” Janie nodded.
“Now go, and as soon as you can, come back and get me. I’ll be monitoring 131.85.”
“Will do, skipper,” Janie replied.
Donovan returned to the cabin, still clutching the Glock. He leaned down and squeezed Stephanie’s hand. “I’ll see you later.”
Stephanie nodded. Donovan placed his hand on Marie’s head. “You don’t have to be afraid anymore. There’s someone waiting for you. Her name is Dr. Lauren McKenna. You’ll be safe with her.”
Marie looked up, and the expression in her young eyes was a familiar one to Donovan. In one form or another, he’d seen the same look of fear and doubt in the mirror since he was fourteen years old. He turned away, jumped to the ground, and moved to a position where Janie could see him. Janie spooled up the engines and the blades spun against the air. She adjusted the pitch of the main rotor, and Donovan could feel the power of the blades resonate in his chest. The helicopter lifted off and climbed away. Within moments the chopper vanished behind the trees, and the thudding rotors faded in the morning sky.
Donovan heard another sound, more of a roar than the staccato beating of a helicopter. He turned and looked north. Mt. Atitlán, with renewed energy, expelled tons of ash and lava high into the atmosphere. He was far enough away to be beyond the range of the falling debris, but he knew all of that could change in an instant.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
“Track her!” Lauren said to John, the instant it became evident that Eva was on the run. She watched as Eva’s ghostly infrared image ran down the hill toward what appeared to be a small collection of buildings, an agricultural station of some kind. Another figure jumped from the helicopter and quickly moved away from the machine. Dust began blowing outward, and crops near the helicopter were flattened outward, as the chopper lifted off and accelerated down the hill.
“I’ve got her,” John replied. “I’ve also got a radio transmission from Mr. Nash. I’m going to put him on speaker.”
“Galileo, this is Donovan. How do you read?”
“Donovan, it’s John. We have you on speaker in the back of the Galileo. Is everything okay?”
“Several things I need to pass on. Lauren, are you there?”
“I’m here.”
“Tell William that Stephanie will need medical treatment upon her arrival for what appears to be a broken ankle. Otherwise she’s fine. There’s also the matter of Marie. She’s fairly traumatized, doesn’t want to be very far from Stephanie. Eva gave me a message: Marie’s mother is in California. She said under no circumstances were we to allow Marie to be returned to her grandfather. She said you’d understand.”
“I’m not sure it’s our job to get in the middle of an international custody battle,” Michael said.
“No, Eva’s right,” Lauren said to Donovan. “We’ll meet the helicopter in Guatemala so William can be with Stephanie. I’ll look after Marie, but you need to catch Eva.”
“That’s my plan,” Donovan said. “Which way did she go?”
“She fled downhill toward a collection of buildings.” Lauren studied the infrared image from the Scimitar. “The place is empty, hers is the only heat signature. I think everyone within fifty miles of you has been evacuated.”
“Get to Guatemala City and then come back here. I told Janie the same thing. Hopefully I’ll have Eva, and
the helicopter can pick us up.”
“You’re going to be on your own for a little while,” John said. “I’ll have to take the Scimitar with us when we leave so I don’t lose the link.”
“I understand,” Donovan replied. “She’s not getting far. Call me when you’re back in range.”
Lauren watched as Donovan began running down the road. She could tell from his gait he was hurting.
“What did Eva mean when she said you’d understand about Marie?” Michael asked.
“I need to make some calls before I can fully answer that question. For now, let’s get back to Guatemala City.”
“We’re headed there now,” Michael said. “John, I’m headed up to the cockpit. I’ll fly slowly so we don’t lose the Scimitar. How are you doing on fuel? Can we keep the Scimitar aloft while we’re on the ground?”
“That was my plan,” John replied. “It’ll make for a quicker turnaround so we can get back on station to assist Donovan.”
Lauren had heard enough. They all had jobs to do. She slid into a vacant science station, removed the satellite phone, and punched in a number from memory. She entered her code and skipped through her voice mails until she heard Montero’s voice. She listened to the message, disconnected, and then dialed the phone number Montero gave her.
“Hello,” Montero said.
“It’s Lauren. I’m calling from the back of the Galileo. Where are you? How are you doing? How’s Abigail?”
“We’re good. We’re airborne on the charter headed to San Jose, California. Abigail just dozed off, but she’s great. We’re having a blast.”
“We have Stephanie and Marie.”
“Oh, thank God,” Montero replied. “Is everyone okay?”
“No, not really. Buck didn’t make it, he’s…” Lauren felt her tears threaten to push through at the thought of him. “I can’t even talk about that right now. But I needed to tell you some things. Eva confirmed that her last name is, in fact, Rocha. She also told me that Hector Vargas is la Serpiente.”
“Do we know anything else yet?”
“No, it’s too soon. Did you turn up anything more on Marie’s mother?”
“I did. A contact from the Los Angeles Police Department pulled a file for me. It looks like after Marie’s father was killed, Hector abducted his own granddaughter and took her to Mexico. There’s evidence to suggest that Marie’s mother may have initially reached out to child recovery services, then abruptly stopped.”
“As in she changed her mind?” Lauren asked. “Or she found someone.”
“I managed to get her phone records. Her call pattern suggests she was communicating with someone in Los Angeles, someone using a phone registered to one Eva Rios. I’d say she found someone. Also, I spoke with Director Graham again. He’s seen the security tape from the garage and it corroborated our story. He told me the dead FBI analyst was holding a burner phone. There were five calls made to the Mexican Consulate in Guatemala.”
“Hector Vargas?”
“No proof, but the FBI is going back through all the international phone intercepts for that time period to see what they can find. We may get lucky and hear a conversation.”
“Is there anything else?”
“I don’t think so.”
“Thank you for everything. Tell Abigail that Donovan and I love her, and we’ll see her very soon. Keep me updated and give some thought about what it might take for me to bring Marie straight to California, for her own safety.”
“I’ll look into it. You be careful.”
Lauren hung up and discovered William standing directly behind her.
“I overheard you,” William said. “Rocha, Hector Vargas—how do you know those names?”
“I don’t want to have this conversation with you right now.” Lauren rubbed her temples with her fingers as she collected her thoughts.
“You’ve been digging, and I need to know what you’ve found.”
“I’m not the only one digging. The FBI has a task force looking into you and Huntington Oil for any connection to Stephanie’s kidnapping.”
“To what end?” William asked. “What do they think I may have done?”
“The gist of what I know is that there’s speculation that Stephanie’s kidnapping may have been payback for your past dealings in Central and South America.”
“Precisely what dealings?” William said softly, almost a whisper. “I’m serious. We’re not playing games here.”
“Are you part of the conclave?” Lauren matched his tone. “Are you a part of the organization that eliminated people so their assets could end up as part of Huntington Oil?”
“It sounds like you’ve already decided I’m guilty.”
Lauren refused to back down despite the piercing stare from the depths of William’s considerable intellect. The color had returned to his face, a bright crimson flush that left her no doubt that he was way past being angry. She’d infuriated him, and with the way she felt at the moment, she didn’t really care. “The evidence is damning. Explain it to me.”
“You’re no doubt referring to the FBI report on Meredith Barnes. And I assume you know about Elijah Knight and the others I ruined. Be warned, the risk of asking questions is that you may hear answers you don’t like.”
“I’m listening.”
“Donovan’s father was a member of the conclave. His grandfather was a founding member,” William said quietly. “It was a loose gathering of like-minded oilmen. There was never any price fixing or crimes of any kind committed. Their worst transgression was the occasional bought politician who would help further the business. Much of the same thing happens today, legally, through lobbyists and political action committees. After the death of Donovan’s father, the conclave began to decay, lacking focus and leadership at a time when greed was viewed as good. Once Meredith was gone, and Donovan had left his previous life behind, I was on the outside. I sat on the board of Huntington Oil, the day-to-day operations out of my hands, but I became aware of certain events. I took a keen interest in a set of seemingly unrelated crimes.”
“I spoke with former FBI agent Gordon Butterfield, and he pointed his finger at you as the man behind the scenes. In the last two days, Butterfield was murdered, and Elijah Knight is dead as well, probably murdered.”
“Butterfield was a pompous ass and a bully. Knight wasn’t much different, he just wore better suits. Knight was part of the conclave; he did unspeakable things. I admit I did use my influence on the board of Huntington Oil to arrange the purchase of companies I suspected of using kidnapping and coercion, even murder to gain assets. Then I personally destroyed those men financially. Once under the Huntington banner, I dismantled their wealth and power and left them broken men.”
“You dismantled the conclave?”
“I ground it under the heel of my shoe,” William said, his voice not much more than an angry whisper. “Each one of those bastards deserved worse than they got.”
“For ordering the death of Meredith Barnes?” Lauren found it difficult to draw a breath as William nodded his head in confirmation. “Does Donovan know?”
“Of course. I told him years after the fact. At the time, Donovan was in no shape to retaliate with a measured response. I destroyed those responsible, but I never found the actual killers.”
Lauren looked into William’s eyes. The rage had ebbed, and what she found she might describe as hope. Hope that she believed what he’d just told her. Hope that they could survive this conversation, if not for themselves, then for Donovan. Lauren stood and went to him. She wrapped her arms around him and held him tight as if she could help support the burden he’d been carrying. Then she whispered. “I think I know who killed Meredith.”
William pulled away and looked at her expectantly.
“Hector Vargas is la Serpiente.” Lauren said. “Eva tracked him down.”
“Why?”
“Her last name is Rocha. Vargas kidnapped her and her mother days before Meredith was taken. Her mo
ther was murdered, but somehow Eva escaped.”
“I remember it well. Her father eventually killed himself, and the family property went to Knight Oil. Do you think Eva’s exacting her revenge?”
“Yes, it’s my belief Eva has no intention of returning Marie to her grandfather, in fact, instead of demanding a ransom, Eva’s been blackmailing Vargas into killing all the men responsible for the death of her family.”
“Except right now she’s running from Donovan. How desperate is she?” William asked. “Will she hurt him if she’s cornered?”
“I don’t think so. She saved him once already. She also made sure Stephanie and Marie were safe and treated well the entire time they were being held. But I think there’s a bigger issue at stake here than getting Vargas.”
“What could be bigger than Meredith’s murderer?”
“Twenty-two years ago, a fifteen-year-old Eva was kidnapped by Hector Vargas, who I also believe kidnapped Meredith. It’s possible that Eva and Meredith may have been held prisoner together.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
Donovan, Glock up and ready, entered the small house, rounded the corner, and found Eva sitting at the kitchen table. Thanks to the Scimitar he knew that the cluster of dwellings were empty except for Eva, who hadn’t run very far. She appeared to be trying to reapply a bandage to her arm. In the instant before she turned to face him, Donovan could see that she’d bled through her previous dressing.
“Why didn’t you leave me out here?” Eva said as she looked up into the barrel of the pistol.
“I couldn’t.”
“I’m not worth the trouble.” Eva lowered her head as tears rolled from her eyes and dropped to the table. “I kidnapped Stephanie, I shot you. I’m the reason your friend, Buck, is dead. You should have left me behind, or are you here to take me to the authorities?”
“No authorities.” Donovan put the pistol on the table out of Eva’s reach and gestured to her wounded arm. “Let me see.”
Aftershock: A Donovan Nash Novel (A Donovan Nash Thriller) Page 25
