Race Against Time

by kimberly

  Sean sat, eyes blazing.

  “That car bomb was meant for both of us. Marc had hidden the program and Viper was desperate for it. After Marc was gone, I disappeared for a little while. Tried to dig for myself to get a step ahead of Viper. But he went after Marc’s family.

  “A year after Marc’s death, I met Jenna and Andie in person. We were all on their plane heading back to North Pole when it was sabotaged and we crashed on Sultana.”

  “Next to Denali?” Sean’s eyes were huge. “I hiked the Parks Highway all the way around the park. Good grief, how did you survive?”

  “That’s a story for another time.” Cole wiped a hand down his face. Keep to the facts. “We all worked together to stop Viper, but it wasn’t without its cost. He blew up everything on Jenna’s property and tried to kill both of them. But he died in the blasts and we recovered AMI.”

  “And you and Jenna ended up getting married?”

  “Yep. Best thing that ever happened to me. I came to know the Lord through all this mess and found Jenna and Andie.”

  “Where did you find AMI?”

  “In an underground bunker on their property.” Cole allowed himself to laugh. “My wife, Jenna, is a little paranoid. Likes to be prepared for everything.”

  “With a special needs child, I can understand why.”

  Cole swung his head to Sean. This guy was quick. And paid attention. That would be very useful. “You’re right. I’ve always teased her about it, but I guess it does deserve a little respect. After all she’s been through . . .” Cole cleared his throat. “That’s beside the point. Let me continue. AMI was recovered and is in government hands. But people are trying to steal it. The guy Zoya saw murdered was an undercover FBI agent.”

  “So you think they’re going to come after Zoya?”

  “I hope not. But they probably will.”

  Sean sat very still for several moments. “What do you need me to do?”

  “Keep an eye on everything. Especially Zoya. Anesia too. We don’t want them to panic right now.”

  “You can count on me.” A muscle twitched in Sean’s jaw. “What exactly does AMI do? You mentioned defense weapon, but a missile interceptor is just in defense.”

  “Not much gets past you, does it?”

  “I wouldn’t have survived all these years as a Connolly if anything had, and CROM used to manufacture missile interceptors.”

  Bound to be more to that story as well. “It’s brilliant. Not only is it 99.7 percent accurate in destroying the incoming missile, but it can shoot up to three missiles of its own just before impact to wipe out the point of origin.”

  “Impressive. Any country with that kind of weapon power would rule the world, wouldn’t it?”

  He hadn’t thought of it in those terms, but Sean was correct. AMI in the wrong hands . . . it gave him chills just to think of it. But what if . . .

  Was that the goal of the U.S. government? To rule the world? Or was it just to protect its citizens? Both?

  “I see I’ve made you think.”

  Cole nodded. “There are some things I haven’t considered before. My job’s been to follow orders, serve my country. Protect her.”

  “But you’re worried about intentions?”

  Cole shook his head. “Right now, I need to stay on task. And that is to protect my family and prevent AMI from being stolen. Anesia and Zoya are family.”

  “Understood.”

  “We can’t let anything happen to them.”

  Sean nodded.

  “It would help if we could find the killer. But I think we’re up against more than we know.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  ZOYA

  January 26

  Naltsiine Kennels

  11:20 a.m.

  The house was quiet. Almost too quiet. I hadn’t heard one thing but the sound of pages turning in fifteen minutes. If I had been a commentator, I would lose my job.

  I squirmed in my seat.

  “I’m bored. Let’s do something”—I grabbed the book Andie was reading and shoved it on the top of a bookshelf—“besides read.”

  “But you love to read! And it’s good! And I don’t know wha—”

  “Nope.”

  “Oh, fine.” She crossed her arms again and sighed. “So, what do you want to do?”

  Sean came through the front door and shed his coat. “Wow, it’s cold out there.”

  Perfect timing.

  “Hey, Sean.” Andie waved.

  “Hey.” I gave a half-hearted smile.

  “And what might you two pretty young ladies be doing?” He walked into the living room and sat by me on the couch.

  “I want to read, but Zoya won’t let me. So here I am, stranded on the couch, having to let my mind wonder what happens next.” Andie sighed and stared at the wall.

  “Woe is she.” I nodded.

  “Yes, woe is me.” She wiped a hand across her forehead.

  Drama queen.

  “I shall die with anticipation.”

  Sean smiled. “So I see.”

  “Hey, this is a very serious matter!”

  I could tell she was trying not to smile.

  “Yes, don’t you see that this poor girl is suffering?” I stood and patted her head.

  “Do I detect sarcasm?” Andie looked up and grinned. “Or is that affection? You love me so much that you’ll let me finish reading?”

  “No, that was sarcasm.”

  “I thought you’d say that.”

  Sean chuckled.

  “Why don’t we take the dogs out?” Andie giggled and bounced across the room. “That would be fun!”

  Something in the pit of my stomach curdled. I tried to smile.

  Orange hat . . .

  A shiver raced up my spine.

  Get over it, Zoya. I blinked.

  “Well . . .” Sean looked from Andie to me. “Let’s go ask your mom.”

  “If we do go, will you go with us, Sean? I don’t want to go out alone.” I let out a sigh. Everything in me screamed no. Another shiver raced up, then down, my spine. I didn’t want to be out alone. Not one bit. Not if there were people looking for me out there.

  “You bet. I’d be happy to go. Actually, I was about to offer. But we should check with your mom first, just to make sure she doesn’t need me here.”

  “Okay. Thanks.”

  “Not a problem.”

  Coats on, we walked outside.

  Mom was kneeling next to Eklutna, the lead dog for the Glacier Litter.

  “Hey, Auntie Anesia?” Andie waved and jogged the rest of the distance over.

  I studied her movements. Something wasn’t right. Eklutna whimpered and tried to wiggle out of her grasp.

  “Hold on a minute, girls.”

  “What’s wrong?” I knelt beside the two and rubbed the dog’s neck.

  “I’m not sure. But several of the dogs are acting strange, including Morphine, Chocolate, and Aurora. He”—she pointed to Eklutna—“seems to be the worst.” Mom looked worried. In fact, I hadn’t seen her this worried about the dogs in awhile.

  What’s going on?

  “Do you need my help taking care of them, Anesia?” Sean took a step forward.

  She shook her head. “No, but thank you. I just finished checking all the litters.” She sighed and stood. “We’ll see if anything happens by tomorrow. What’d you guys need?”

  I smiled and patted Eklutna again. Poor thing. I hope you get better, buddy.

  Andie smiled and scooted closer to me. “Can we go out for a run? It’s good weather. And Sean said he’d go with us.” She tilted her head and gave a ‘charm smile.’

  “If you don’t need me.”

  “Well . . .” Mom looked from me to Andie to Sean. “I guess. But be careful.”

  Andie grabbed my hand. “Yes, ma’am. We will.”

  It wasn’t long before we were on the trail, now that Sean knew what to do with the dogs.

  Trail after trail we passed. It was amazing to
see all the snow and trees. Awesome . . .

  Sean took the lead. Making sure there was no one waiting for us, no doubt.

  After several miles the dogs panted, making us pull over to the side.

  “We should stop here.” Sean hopped off his sled and walked over to Percocet, his lead dog. “They need a rest. I guess they’re pooped.”

  I smiled. Loosening up more and more every day, aren’t ya?

  “Okay.” Andie sat, more like fell, onto a boulder. “I’m pooped too!”

  Sean smiled and sat down next to her. I joined.

  We sat in silence. The dogs lay down in the snow, still panting.

  I guess we ran them a little too hard. But we hadn’t gone that fast. Why are they so tired?

  White, puffy clouds sailed by. The gentle breeze did little more than cause me to feel a small tickle on my cheeks. Patches of crisp blue sky shone through the cover of trees. I couldn’t see the sun beyond the thick foliage, but its glow still showed a little.

  “Isn’t God wonderful?” Sean leaned back on the large rock and pointed up. “A century ago, only birds could touch the clouds. Now we’ve got planes and rockets, it’s amazing.” He chuckled.

  “Thank God for technology. However confusing it may get.” Andie smiled. “And look at the sky, it’s so blue today.”

  Sean nodded.

  I sat there, glancing down at my hands.

  “Don’t trust Him, don’t trust Him, don’t trust Him . . .”

  My eyes closed.

  I wanted to believe He was good . . . Or did I?

  Something nagged at the back of my mind. Something in me doubted. Something in me wanted answers to my questions. Like why He let murders happen.

  “You know, the other day I was thinking about creation, and how God created the creatures and the plants, and the stars and moon.”

  Sean’s smile made my insides hurt. Why did he have to look so peaceful?

  “Then I got to thinking about humans, and how, out of all the creatures He made, we’re the only ones He breathed into. He created the planets and stars and such out of nothing. Then He made us out of dust and breathed His breath into us.” He gave a small laugh. “We must be pretty special for Him to love us that much. To give us His own breath. Then to send Jesus.”

  Andie nodded. “Yeah. I was thinking yesterday about how even though I’m a sinner, He died for me. It was like one of those random moments where I felt like crying. I wondered why He loved me. Then I remembered Adam and Eve and how He created us to glorify Him, to love Him. With all our hearts, minds, and souls.”

  Sean nodded. “I remember one time my friend asked me why I believed in God. Why I wanted to follow Him. I spent that whole night thinking about why I had chosen to follow Him, why He loved me. At first, I didn’t know.”

  “That’s a hard question.” Andie looked back up into the sky. I could almost see the wheels turning in her head.

  Again silence took over.

  Did God love me? Why didn’t I believe in Him anymore?

  I caught my breath. That nagging in the back of my mind turned into more questions.

  Why had He dumped me?

  I shook my head. I guess He gave me another chance many times before . . .

  But could I trust Him again? Why even bother?

  Why were they talking about this anyway?

  I sighed on the inside. Life was hard.

  Too many questions. Too many unanswered questions. Too many unanswered questions that hurt to think about.

  “Zoya, you okay?” Sean leaned forward and patted my knee. “You’ve been quiet this whole time.”

  I tried to smile. “Guess I’m just tired. But I’m okay.” That was it. I was tired. Really tired.

  As always.

  He nodded. “You’ve been through a lot lately.”

  Something about the way he said it made my insides tumble ’round and ’round. Why did my stomach keep doing that? Was my conscience trying to tell me something?

  “Andie, why don’t you go check on the dogs.”

  She nodded.

  Once she was out of hearing range, Sean spoke. “Something is wrong with you, Zoya.”

  I shrugged and looked at the clouds. I didn’t have to talk to him. Didn’t want to talk to him.

  Did I?

  “Come on, I may be new around here but I know you better than that.” He smiled and grabbed my hand, which was so small compared to his. “Talk to me. I’m all ears.” He shifted so that he was facing more in my direction.

  “Nothing’s wrong.” I nodded and kept looking at the sky.

  I could feel him staring at me.

  Everything inside me felt discombobulated.

  I wanted to cry. But I didn’t know why.

  I wanted to say I’m sorry. But to who?

  “You know, when I was a boy I doubted God quite a lot. I didn’t know if He wanted me as His child. I didn’t know if I wanted Him as my God, my heavenly Father.” He gave a small laugh.

  I waited. There had to be a “but then I realized” coming.

  But it didn’t.

  He didn’t say anything. No words that were supposed to make everything hunky dunky. Just a small smile. Filled with peace.

  I looked down at my hands. “I guess . . .” My throat closed. I didn’t want to tell him that I doubted God. And that I didn’t know where to turn. Or what to say.

  “Zoya, it’s okay to doubt at times. Everybody does. But don’t keep it bottled up inside. If you ever need to talk, I’m here.”

  My heartbeat quickened. Why?

  He stood, then walked over to Andie. But there was something about Sean. Something that made me want to trust him. To talk to him.

  But could I?

  Either way, I had to admit . . . As weird as he was, Sean Connolly was a really cool guy.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  ANESIA

  January 28

  2:36 p.m.

  Snow swished under the sled as Anesia ran her team down the trail by the creek.

  Another week had flown by, which was good. It didn’t give her time to worry and fret over everything. But alone with her thoughts now, she knew they’d invade.

  She needed this time out on the trail, the wind whipping at her layers, the dogs running all out. If dogs could laugh, she imagined that’s what they’d be doing right now, because they loved to run. Anesia saw their dog smiles and the twinkles in their eyes, but most people couldn’t see it. They weren’t connected to the animals.

  But Anesia was. And with that connection, she knew something wasn’t right. Several of the dogs acted off. They were still eating and running, but she sensed something else. They seemed to fidget under the harnesses. But she’d checked, over and over, and she couldn’t find a problem.

  The value of her dogs couldn’t be measured. She bred them with care to make sure they had good temperament and amazing speed. Observed everything. Journaled each detail of each dog’s life. That’s why people came from places as far away as Iceland to purchase her dogs.

  They were the best.

  She couldn’t afford to make mistakes now. And when there was a problem that she couldn’t solve, that’s what rang true: somewhere, she’d made a mistake.

  “Haw! Thunder, Haw! Haw!” Changing the direction of the dogs helped reinforce their training. They knew these trails well, but they also had to listen to their driver. If any emergency arose, the driver needed to know the dogs would obey and not carry them all to danger.

  Today the Weather Litter was in training with the Bible Litter. Samson, Gideon, Goliath, Moses, Thunder, Lightning, Hurricane, Tornado, and Rain all moved with agility and precision. These were the most experienced of all her dogs. Around six years old, they’d been running with her since they were four to five months old, as soon as they fit in the harnesses. The Weather Litter was born a few weeks before the Bible Litter. Anesia knew she’d found the secret to breeding them. And her instinct proved true. The pups were crazy, but from the firs
t time she’d harnessed them, they were ready to race.

  She remembered their yearling year with a smile. All the energy of a dozen toddlers in each fourteen-month-old puppy. As they grew and progressed through the year, they settled into a bit of maturity.

  But only a bit.

  Anesia laughed aloud, causing a couple of the dogs to dart a quick glance back. She loved this. The memories were good. They kept her mind off all that had happened. The danger to Zoya. The murder. The police informed her the murder victim was homeless. No family. No one to mourn his loss. But that didn’t take away the ache that men had senselessly taken another man’s life. Did that man know God? Was he spending eternity with Jesus?

  Hot anger burned through her chest. Another reason to hate the killers. Not only had they taken her sweet child’s innocence, given her nightmares, and turned her world upside down, but they might’ve condemned a man to hell. That thought spurred her on. She wanted to smack them all. Then of course, as a good little Christian, she would witness to them. Yeah, right. Like she wanted to spend eternity in heaven with them! A bunch of dirty, evil killers!

  “Whoa . . .”

  She slowed the dogs and stopped. Thoughts bounced around in her mind like a pinball machine. Had she really just thought those things? She was no better than them!

  God, forgive me. If she didn’t get a grip on this anger and hatred soon, it would eat her alive. Then who would be there for Zoya?

  Taking a few minutes to check the dogs and give them each some attention, she continued to pray. Would she ever learn? How could she ever be an example to anyone else if she kept losing her temper and hating people?

  Zoya. Her precious, sweet child. Until this incident, Zoya had always been very quiet. Reserved. She and Andie inseparable. But the anger and hate that oozed out of her teen after the murder scared the wits out of Anesia. One minute she’d be fine, and the next . . . well, she’d never seen such mood swings.

  And it was her own fault.

  If only she’d been a better mother.

  A better example.

  Which she’d better start being right now. Or she might lose her daughter to the same vices that threatened her each and every day. She could never forgive herself.