by Desiree Holt
“I know you’ve got the feds in to help, but is there anything I can do? At the moment, I’m feeling sort of useless.”
“Me, too, if you want to know the truth.” There was anger in every line of his body.
“Damn shame,” he said. “Just a damn shame. Well, if you think of something…”
Cole started to shake his head, then snapped his fingers. “Actually, there is something you can do, if you wouldn’t mind.”
“Name it.”
“I’m very worried about Dana. We’re sure this madman will be after her next, and I can’t get away for hours yet. She’s at my place. I don’t suppose you’d like to invite yourself over there and baby-sit for a while, would you?”
The smile that came to him was genuine, and he gave it without pause. A gift. The boy had given him a damned gift.
“I’m glad you trust me enough to ask this of me.”
Cole snorted. “I’d like to think I can take someone off the list. Certainly you.”
“She doesn’t know me,” he pointed out. “Will she let me in?”
“I’ll call her and tell her you’re coming. Pick up a pizza on the way. That’ll be your excuse if she gives you a hard time.”
“Well, if you think I can help, I’ll be happy to do it.”
“You’ll give me peace of mind, old man. And I’ll be more than grateful.”
“All right.” He could barely contain his glee. “You go on and give her a call and I’ll stop for the pizza. Tell her about half an hour.”
As he walked out, Cole was picking up the phone. No doubt calling Dana to tell her what to expect. Only what she got would be something totally different.
Back in his truck, he almost rubbed his hands he was so delighted. He couldn’t have planned it better himself. Stopping to see Cole had been a brilliant move on his part. Otherwise, he’d still be racking his brain how to pull this off. And if he did it right, he could call and tell Cole that she was already gone when he got there. He’d tell him that her car was still in the drive, so he was going out to look for her.
And off they’d go. Just him and his little blossom.
Oh, yes. He could see it now, and his body grew excited.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Just as Cole pulled his cell out of his pocket someone rapped on the window. Gaby’s boss, probably visiting Stacy. Cole patiently answered questions, but the man seemed to go on forever. Checking his watch, he realized twenty minutes had ticked off while they were talking.
When he finally powered up his cell, it beeped to let him know he had messages but he wanted to call Dana before he checked them. He frowned when he got her voice mail. Maybe she couldn’t get to the phone fast enough. He left her an explicit message, told her that Tate was on his way over and she should be sure to let him in. He described his uncle and his truck.
“Call me,” he said. “I want to make sure you got this.”
He was about to check his messages when his radio squawked.
“I’m patching Agent Clayton through,” the deputy told him.
“Cole?” Scott’s voice.”
“Anything yet?”
“Nada. We’re heading to another sector right now. You on your way back in?”
“Yes. I’ll check with you again when I get there.”
As he drove something niggled at him, an uneasy feeling that made his neck itch. Then he realized she hadn’t called him back yet. And he hadn’t checked his messages. He was only a block from his office so he’d do it when he got there. But the moment he walked in the door Deke Ramirez, the young deputy filling in on dispatch today, came running toward him.
“Someone find something, Deke?” He could only hope.
“No, but Miss Moretti called while you were at the hospital.” The young man handed him a pink message slip. “She said to give this to you right away.”
Cole looked at the slip. This call came in long before his call to her. “I just tried reaching her, but there was no answer. Did she say she was going out?” He ground his teeth. Surely she wouldn’t ignore his warnings. She knew the risks. More than anyone. “I flat told her to stay put.”
“I wrote down the message so I wouldn’t get it wrong. She said she remembered the song. It’s ‘There was a little girl.’ She said you’d know what she meant by that.”
Cole’s blood chilled at the words. He’d heard that song so many times when he was a kid. He actually used to laugh about it and said they should have a song for boys, too. Closing his eyes against the wave of fear that threatened to overtake him he flipped open his cell and punched in Dana’s number. It rang and rang. Fear rolled over him as he punched in another even more familiar number.
“Cole.” The voice he’d heard a thousand times answered. “I was just about to call you. I got here, and Dana doesn’t seem to be in the house. Her car’s still here so I thought I’d take a look around. Did she say anything about visiting anyone in the neighborhood?”
The casual tone made Cole want to reach through the phone and rip the man’s face off. He was sick to his stomach at the realization of the demon masquerading as friend.
“Where is she, Tate? Just tell me she’s okay and we can forget this whole thing happened.”
“She’s fine. Just fine.” He paused. “At least for now. You’ve put a spoke in my wheel, boy. I thought this game would play out successfully to the end, but now you’ve spoiled everything.” He cackled. “Oh, not quite everything. I hope you’ll take good care of your Aunt Adele after I disappear.”
“Damn you, Tate.” He ground his teeth, digging for control. “Put Dana on the phone. Right now. Please.” Cole’s heart was beating so fast he thought it would leap out of his chest. He’d never known such fear or such rage.
“Sorry, she’s a little…how shall I say it? Out of it right now.” And then he began to sing. “There was a little girl, who had a little curl…”
And the call disconnected.
Cole raced to dispatch and grabbed the microphone from a startled Deke.
“Scott, come in. Are you still out there? Where are you? Where’s the chopper?”
At first, all he heard was static. Then Scott Clayton’s voice came crackling back to him. “We’re here, headed back to the office. So is the chopper. What’s up?”
“I know who our killer is, and he’s got Dana.”
“How do you know he’s got her?” Scott asked.
“Because I’m the one who sent the son of a bitch to her.” He explained in choppy sentences.
“Jesus.” Scott’s curse came through even with the static.
“I’m going to give you the description of a truck and my address. Tell the chopper pilot to hover over the area and see if he can spot it. Everyone else hear that?”
Four voices answered affirmatively.
“Here’s where I want you.” He laid out instructions for everyone. “Gaylen?”
“Right here, Cole,” the voice came back.
“I want you there, too. I’m outta here now.”
“On my way.”
Cole handed the microphone back to Deke. “Did you get all that?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Okay, then. You don’t budge from here. You’re our point of contact.” He was already racing for the door.
****
Dana’s eyelids felt so heavy it was an effort to open them. And something was making her dizzy and giving her a headache. She tried to rub her eyes, and when she lifted her hands, they were manacled.
She was in a truck, riding down an unfamiliar road, and wondering how she got here. She rolled her head slowly toward the driver, and everything came slamming back to her. The man who introduced himself as Cole’s uncle, Tate Bishop.
“My nephew sent me to make sure you’re safe.” He had smiled when she cracked the front door. “Did you get his message?”
“Yes. I just played his message back a few minutes ago.” She drew the chain from the lock and opened the door wider. “This was tot
ally unnecessary but please. Come on in.”
She had greeted him warmly. After all, he was a member of Cole’s family. Then the familiar scent from long ago had drifted across her nose, and she stared at him, shocked. Turning away, she had tried to run, but he was on her in seconds and clapping a rag over her face. Just like the man had done twenty-five years ago.
He glanced at her now as she stirred. “I see you’re awake. Good, good. Sorry if my medicine offends you. I’ve had a skin condition all my life, and this is the only thing that keeps it at bay. Just my damn luck that I had to put some on today and you recognized it.”
“Cole,” she croaked, swallowed and tried again. “Cole will look for me.”
“Oh. I’ve already spoken to him. Somebody let the cat out of the bag to him. Too bad. Was it you, my dear?”
She moved her hands sideways, feeling for the door handle. Maybe she could throw herself out of the truck.
Tate Bishop backhanded her without taking his eyes off the road. “I know exactly what you’re trying to do. Forget it. If I have to disappear, I’m going to have my pleasure first. And finish off what I should have twenty-five years ago.”
Dana’s head rocked back against the seat, then fell sideways and hit the window glass. She blinked hard to clear her vision. She couldn’t die now. Not when she had just found Cole and was finally able to start living.
****
Cole skidded his truck to a stop at the intersection of a state road and a farm-to-market road where he’d asked everyone but the chopper and Scott to meet him. They were all standing there waiting for him. He could barely get the words out to tell them that the person they were after was his Uncle Tate.
The man who’d married his mother’s sister.
The man who had been like a second father to him for so many years.
Had talked him into taking this fucking job!
He was barely finished speaking when he heard his radio crackle and picked up the mic to answer.
“This is Scott. The chopper followed him as far as Fandango Road, but there’s no way he didn’t notice it. He pulled off the highway into thick trees and we lost him.”
Cole fingers tightened on the mic. “Tell me exactly where you lost him.”
He listened to the information. What was it that was tickling the back of his mind? Something from when he was a kid. Someplace…
“I’ve got it.” He turned to Andi. “Let me see your copy of those aerial maps.”
Andi reached into her car and pulled it from the dashboard. Cole grabbed it, spread it out on the hood of the SUV, and jammed his finger in one spot.
“Right here in these trees. I remember an old cabin the cowboys used to use when they were riding fence line. It was long before they started using trucks and ATVs.” He smacked his head. “And Jesus. Oh Jesus. It’s got an old well behind it.” He spoke into the mic again. “Scott, remember we talked about…”
But he couldn’t finish. The thought of what they’d probably find in the old well nearly made him lose the coffee he’d just finished.
Andi took the mic from him. “Deke, patch me through to the chopper.” When Gaylen answered, she said, “Give these coordinates to George. We need to get started from where we are right away.”
“I’ve got them,” Gaylen answered. “Tell Cole we’re on our way.”
Cole took the mic back. “It’s dark. Can the chopper do this at night?”
Scott actually allowed himself a chuckle. “Give George a compass and coordinates and he can fly the Alps blindfolded at midnight. Just tell me the best way to approach the place from where I am now.”
Cole gave him the information, then tossed the mic back in his car. He buried his face in his hands, trying to find some semblance of control. “Jesus, Andi, he’s got her…He’s…Oh, God.”
“We’ll get to her in time, boss.” She squeezed his arm. “Come on. Let’s get moving.”
****
Dana’s head ached unbearably. Tate had tired of her cursing him and yanked a foul-smelling cloth out of the console, pressing it against her nose until she passed out again. She’d lifted her manacled hands to grab at his arm, but the anesthetic had worked too quickly.
She didn’t want to open her eyes now, but she had to see where she was. No cedar smell this time, so he wasn’t using the old barn. No doubt that place had been written off after the teenage boys had discovered it. Pushing hard to lift her eyelids, she saw Tate standing in front of her, a frightening grin on his face. Carefully she slid her eyes from left to right. They were in a cabin. An old one from the looks of it.
She tried to sit up and discovered her hands and feet were tied to the bed. Goose bumps stippled her flesh and when she lifted her head to look, she was stark naked.
“That’s right, Dana. Or should I say, Carrie. Oh, yes. I know who you are. One good look and I knew.” He cackled. “Although you aren’t nearly as appealing as when you were a little girl. Still, I can take my pleasure.” He rubbed his hands together. “So. Let the games begin.”
Anger welled up from deep inside her. This was the man who had turned her entire life into a living emotional hell. The rage surged over the fear.
“You don’t scare me anymore,” she taunted. “You’re nothing but an old man who gets off on torturing people. Hell, you don’t even torture people. You torture helpless little girls who can’t fight back. What do you think that makes you? You think that makes you a man? What kind of man gets off hurting helpless little girls?”
His face hardened. “You don’t want to provoke me, Carrie. That makes me very angry.”
“If you’re smart, you’ll just let me go and get the hell out of here. You know Cole’s hot on your trail.”
“Even if he remembers this place, it will take him so long to find it again it won’t much matter by the time he gets here. Now shut up. I don’t want to have to hit you again.”
“Oh, as if you brought me here for a friendly visit.”
“Friendly?” He laughed. “My dear, I can be very, very friendly.”
Tate sat down next to her on the bed and ran his hand over her, from shoulder to knee. It was difficult, but she made herself not flinch.
“Your breasts are certainly much bigger now. And such delightful nipples.” He took the left one in his fingers and twisted it as hard as he could.
Dana clenched her teeth together and swallowed her scream. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction.
“We’ll see just how long you last when the fun really starts.” He licked his lips and began to sing. “There was a little girl, who had a little curl, right in the middle of her forehead…”
****
“We need to do this carefully.” Cole was in the chopper on the radio with Scott, who’d switched places with Gaylen at the rendezvous.
“Of course.” Scott was now riding with Gaylen and one other deputy. “As deranged as this guy is, and knowing the game is up, if we come in with the chopper, he could decide to shoot her and take off into the woods.”
Thanks to Cole’s memory, they were able to spot the cabin from the air, and he was directing the five vehicles from the air since the building was almost completely hidden from sight. But the helo stayed far enough away so if Tate happened to look, they’d just be a speck in the sky.
“Remember,” Cole continued, “I’m pretty sure he’s still got sensors around the cabin. He’s a nut about them. Has them all around the ranch house. The deer are always setting them off and driving my aunt crazy. We need NVGs to be able to spot them.”
“Got ‘em in the bag I brought along,” Scott told him. “Ask and ye shall receive. What’s your idea? I’m up for anything.”
“I’ll tell George where to set me down and give you the spot to meet us. Pass it along to the others. The cabin is two miles in from the road where we’ll land.”
“Got it,” Scott told him.
“We can’t all go at the same time. We’d make too much noise and besides, someone would be sure to
set off the sensors. But I can lead you in with me. When we get Dana out of there, we can call in the troops. Not until then.”
“Are you sure the two of us can do this?”
“You’re the big bad fed, right? Who else do I need?”
“Yeah, right. Okay. You call the shots unless I see it going south.”
“That won’t happen,” Cole assured him.
But the panic still gripped him.
Oh, baby, hang in there. Please don’t let him get to you. Be strong. I know you can do it. Dana. Dana.
Cole repeated her name over and over as he tried to center his mind on what was about to happen.
George set them down in the pasture Cole indicated, and he dropped to the ground. In a moment, the car with Scott and Gaylen bumped along with its headlights off. Scott was out almost before it stopped.
“Here.”
He handed Cole a pair of NVGs, putting on a pair himself, and Gaylen passed out radios and flashlights. Cole ran through the plan he’d formulated, letting Gaylen know he was leaving him in charge of everyone else.
“The others should be here any minute,” he told the senior deputy. “Tell them what’s happening. Remember. Do not head in until I call you. There’s no telling what this maniac will do if there’s a bunch of people thundering through the woods.”
“And if we hear shots?” Gaylen asked.
“If I yell for help, you have my permission to proceed. Not until then. Okay, Scott. Ready?”
The agent checked his gun, made sure a round was chambered, and nodded. “Let’s go.”
Chapter Forty
Dana found her mind drifting back to the barn where Kylie had been killed and she’d barely survived. He’d had all the power back then, but not anymore.
She knew better now. She was no longer a seven-year-old little girl. She was a woman who knew her own mind, and she knew this man was one sick bastard. She wasn’t going to let history repeat itself, and she sure as hell wasn’t going to let him kill her. She was stronger this time. She was even stronger than him. Cole had given her that strength. She’d find a way to hold herself together until he could get here.
