Proving Ground

by Stanalei Fletcher

  Mac grinned too. “Affirmative. Over.”

  “Sweet Mother of—” The radio cut out for a moment. “You’d better be on that chopper and back here soon. I’m not going down for this if it goes south. Over.”

  “We’ll be waiting for the ride out. Ranger One. Over and out.”

  “Ranger Home. Out.”

  “I’m glad I’m not in Bob’s shoes, right now. You’d better be right about this, Cait.”

  Their gazes locked. Neither looked away.

  “You wouldn’t have just put your career on the line if you thought I was wrong. Thanks for believing in me, Mac.”

  ****

  An hour later, Caitlin and Mac found a fallen log at the edge of the clearing to rest on while they waited and watched the sky. In a few minutes, she heard the helicopter’s whump-whump-whump on approach. Relief swamped her. Her ordeal was finally coming to an end. Before she could hug Mac and thank him for coming to her rescue, he walked into the clearing and waved to the pilot.

  As the helicopter descended, she noticed it was designed to carry large water buckets from the undercarriage. For this rescue mission, the containers weren’t attached.

  Mac and Caitlin stayed back as the rotor wash flattened the vegetation and blew debris and dust their way. Once the skids settled, Mac grabbed Caitlin’s hand and led her toward the copter, ducking their heads as they climbed inside.

  The pilot helped them buckle in before climbing into his own seat. Mac tapped him on the shoulder and gave him a thumbs-up. The pilot nodded and gave the big engine enough power to lift off. As the helicopter reached altitude, it made a three hundred and sixty degree turn, offering a view of the scorched landscape and billowing smoke on the other side of the mountain. When the wind shifted, Caitlin saw flames under the smoke. The fire had reached the lake area. Mac had been right about getting away from the lake. If they had tried to stay by the water, they would have died of asphyxiation.

  The devastation was horrific and heartbreaking. All that forestland, gone in just a few hours. And for what? Caitlin shivered. If Dunn and Smith weren’t stopped, the human toll would be greater. Not for the first time, Caitlin was grateful Mac had found her. She’d be dead if it wasn’t for his timely and heroic determination to bring her to safety.

  The noise in the helicopter prohibited any conversation, but none was needed when she met Mac’s gaze. She mouthed a thank you. Words would never convey her gratitude for his rescue. What he’d risked, in the dead of night, to find her…she could never repay.

  For a long moment, Mac stared at her lips. A tingle of hope started low in her belly as she stared back. Then the helicopter banked to give the fire clouds a wide berth as the big machine headed toward the station. Mac turned his gaze out the window, and hope crashed to her feet.

  ****

  The landing strip near the ranger station appeared to rise up and meet the helicopter. The drama was over. Caitlin was finally safe. As the skids scraped the ground, the first thing Mac wanted to do was to toss her into his Jeep and take her home. But she was injured, and needed to see a doctor. Besides, he had a promise to keep to Sean. He knew the old man would want to see for himself that his daughter was safe. Sean might bluster and blow when it came to his daughter, but there was no doubt he loved Caitlin.

  Mac climbed out of the helicopter and helped her onto the ground. With her hand in his, they hurried from under the rotors as the helicopter took off again. The fire took priority now.

  “MacAlistair,” came a stern voice behind them.

  Mac turned to see Bob, who’d left the station to meet them.

  “You’d damn well better be right about this manhunt you’ve set up. I’ve been fielding all sorts of phone calls since I talked with Jack.” He stopped short when he saw Caitlin step from behind Mac. “Good to see you safe, Caitlin.”

  Caitlin tried to smile, but she just looked drained. “Thanks for sending the ride.”

  Bob smiled. “Come on in. I’ve got some hot coffee brewing.”

  Mac pulled up short. “Sorry, Bob. Caitlin’s injured. I need to take her to the hospital first.”

  “Understood. Here’s your cell phone.” He handed it to Mac. “You’ve had a half-dozen calls from Jack since your message about Dunn.”

  Caitlin snatched the phone out of Bob’s hands before Mac could take it. “Let me talk to Jack.”

  “I’m sure Jack and the authorities have it under control. You’re not going anywhere except to the doctor.” Mac crossed his arms.

  She frowned at his orders, but nodded as she punched in Jack’s number. “Fine. I’m just going to make sure Jack understands how critical this is. This Smith guy got away once. I can’t let him get away again.”

  “You didn’t let him get away. You’re the one who identified him. Let the authorities do their job.”

  ****

  Caitlin understood what Mac was trying to tell her, but that didn’t stop the feeling that she was losing a second chance to make things right. She was positive Smith was the other man she’d seen in Atlanta meeting her original target. Smith was the one who’d shot Sloan Cartland. She owed it to Sloan, to O’Neal, and everyone at Northstar to get this guy. She owed it to her father to prove she was good enough to be an agent. She owed it to herself to finish what she started.

  Jack answered on the first ring.

  “Jack, it’s me.”

  “Caity? Thank God. Are you home? Are you okay?” Jack’s concern came clearly through the line.

  “I’m fine. The helicopter just dropped us off. Mac’s taking me to the hospital to get looked over by the doctor in a minute.”

  “Looked over? You said you were okay.”

  “I had a tussle with Martin Dunn.”

  “That son-of-a—”

  “Just find him.” Caitlin cut off the tirade. “And the man who was with him.”

  “Working on it now, pipsqueak.”

  “Thanks. Keep me posted. I’ll have Mac’s cell with me, my phone’s almost dead. I’ll join you as soon as I can.”

  “That won’t be necessary.” Jack’s voice was firm.

  “I need to do this.” Caitlin refused to back down. “Please, Jack.”

  There was a long pause. “Okay, Caity. Now hand the phone to that nephew of mine.”

  Caitlin breathed a sigh of relief that Jack wasn’t fighting her on this. “He wants to talk to you.” She handed the phone to Mac.

  Mac held it to his ear. He listened to Jack talk, nodded once, and then looked directly at Caitlin. “You have my word.” With that, he hung up and put the phone in his pocket.

  She held out her hand. “I need to make another call.”

  “No.” He shook his head, frowning.

  “Mac, I need to call Northstar. They’ve been tasked to find these guys. I need to let O’Neal know what we’ve learned.”

  He scowled. “One call, then it’s off to the hospital.” He handed over the phone again.

  Caitlin quickly placed the call, knowing Mac was ready to grab it from her at any moment. Byron O’Neal took her call immediately.

  “Are you safe?” He surprised her that he knew about her ordeal.

  “I’m fine. That’s not why I called.” She recounted the events as succinctly as she could, given her fatigue. “I know this Smith fellow is the one who shot Sloan. We’ve got a lot of people searching for him. I’ll keep you posted as we get more information.”

  “I’ll get the lab started on the photos you took in Atlanta and see if we can get a name on this guy. Can I reach you at this number?”

  She glanced at Mac. “Yes. This is a good number.”

  “Good work, Malone.”

  “Thank you.” The line disconnected. O’Neal’s praise went a long way toward easing all the aches and pains she’d been feeling. Yet, somehow, his praise wasn’t as satisfying as she expected. She was probably just too tired to care right now.

  “Give me the phone.” Mac held out his hand. “You’re done for the day.”
>
  “I need to keep the phone in case Jack calls.” She tried to tuck it into her pocket, but Mac plucked it out of her hands.

  “You’ll be with me. I’m positive we’ll get a call when Jack knows something.”

  Caitlin wanted to argue. She wasn’t sure if it was her own exhaustion or the determination in Mac’s voice that stopped her. All she knew was, she was glad he wasn’t leaving her alone right now.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Dunn wiped sweaty palms down the side of his pants as he and Smith walked through Unified Biotech’s parking lot toward the truck. He could hardly believe they’d pulled off the theft of the pathogens without a hitch. Manned with only the weekend guards, Unified Biotech was ripe for the picking, just as Smith predicted. The excuse of the fire made the guards more than willing to let Dunn do a walk-through on the pretense of securing the facility. Smith’s appearance as a supervisor from the Portland office barely raised an eyebrow. His story about driving to Rockton because of the fire was flawless. The other guards left them alone the entire time.

  Once they were inside, Smith led the way to the lab as though he’d been in the facility before. He’d brought a special metal attaché case for the vials, so leaving with that same metal case wouldn’t raise a flag. The harrowing part for Dunn was the amount of time it took for Smith to go through the procedures of entering the clean room and then decontaminating it after he’d come out again.

  Now the deed was done and they were home free.

  The cell phone attached to Dunn’s belt vibrated again. He’d been ignoring the calls from Jacko for the past hour. The old biker was probably trying to round up the club for a special meeting to address the canceled rally.

  When Dunn and Smith had passed through the doors of the facility to begin the inspection, Dunn turned off his ringer. He’d been so anxious about getting inside the inner levels of the facility he hadn’t given the calls another thought. Now, he glanced at the caller ID, expecting to see another call from Jack. Instead, it was the hospital’s number. He felt as though the blood settled around his ankles. He ignored Smith’s frown as he put the phone to his ear. “Hello.”

  “I tried to reach you sooner, Martin,” Lacey’s doctor said. “I couldn’t get through.”

  At the sound of the doctor’s voice on the other end of the line, a hollow sensation filled Martin’s gut. He paused beside the truck. “What it is, Doc?”

  “You need to come to the hospital as quickly as you can. Lacey’s taken a turn for the worse.”

  “I’m on my way now,” Dunn kept his voice steady even though his heart was pounding like a broken Harley engine at high speed. “Do everything you can for her. No matter what it costs. I’ll be there in thirty minutes.” With a decisive click, he closed the phone. Turing to Smith he said, “We’re heading to the hospital now. Get in, or I’ll leave you here.”

  “You’re not going anywhere,” Smith growled.

  Dunn pulled the semi-automatic pistol that he carried as part of his guard duties from his belt holster and pointed it at Smith. “You got what you came for. Our business is done.”

  “I have the other half of your payment,” Smith said in a low quiet threat. “Our deal included making sure I got out of town undetected.”

  Dunn hesitated for only a moment, then aimed the gun at Smith’s head. “Get in the truck or get out of my way.”

  “As you wish.” Smith’s face seemed impassive as he stared down the barrel of the pistol. Eerie morning light filtered through the smoke still hovering over the canyon, giving the terrorist a menacing look. He didn’t say another word, just blinked twice, then opened the passenger door and slid in, securing the attaché case between the bucket seats of the truck.

  Dunn holstered the pistol, climbed in, and slid the key into the ignition. “I want my money now.”

  “Get me down this mountain in one piece, and I’ll pay you the rest.”

  “No problem.” Dunn gunned the engine, and the truck spun out of Unified Biotech’s parking lot and through the gates. Changing gears, he floored the accelerator, sending the truck down the mountain road like a runaway rollercoaster.

  The trip into Rockton took half as long as the drive up to the lab. Dunn raced toward the hospital using the town’s back roads, ignoring posted speed limits and running stop signs. When he reached the hospital parking lot, he stomped on the brakes, coming inches from colliding with more than two dozen motorcycles rolling into the lot just in front of him.

  “What’s this?” Smith looked around the parking lot. For the first time, Dunn heard a hint of panic in the other man’s voice as he gestured to the big Harleys and even bigger bikers astride them.

  “How the hell should I know?” Dunn growled back. He couldn’t think of a single reason the club would gather at the hospital, unless they’d heard about Lacey’s condition, too, and were there to support him. Was that why Jack had called so many times? If Dunn had just answered, he would have known about Lacey sooner.

  Dunn edged into a parking spot as Jack MacAlistair’s bike rumbled to a stop beside the truck.

  “Get out of the truck, Martin,” Jack demanded.

  Dunn stared at his biker bro. From Jack’s tone, he didn’t think this was about Lacey. He hoped Jack hadn’t learned about the fire. Dunn turned to Smith. “Jacko doesn’t know anything about the lab,” he murmured under his breath. “Let me handle this.”

  Quicker than a snake’s strike, Smith reached across to Dunn’s belt and snagged the pistol from the holster. He pointed the gun low at Dunn’s stomach and clicked off the safety. “Then get rid of him or you’re both dead.”

  How dare this scrawny terrorist threaten him with his own gun! Rage coursed down Dunn’s spine. The longer he was with Smith, the more he realized this deal with the devil had backfired. His forearm twitched with the urge to smash Smith’s face.

  Still keeping the gun out of sight, Smith jabbed it into Dunn’s side. “Don’t try anything.”

  Dunn twitched, curling his fingers into a fist. The muzzle pushed deeper into his side. He saw no options other than to go along with Smith’s demands. Lacey was waiting for him. He couldn’t help her if he was dead.

  Dunn tipped his head in acknowledgment and reached for the door handle. With his other hand, he snatched the attaché case and dragged it with him as he leaped from the truck. Smith might have the gun, but Dunn had something infinitely more valuable. Smith wanted the case filled with pathogens. To get it, he’d have to keep a low profile or the entire biker gang would be all over him.

  As Dunn jumped out of the truck, he saw other club members parking their bikes. In a few moments, they would surround him. He had to move now or they’d block his escape.

  Jack had climbed off his bike and was placing gloves inside the helmet when Dunn ran at him. Jack tried to step out of the way, but Dunn crashed into his shoulder, knocking him backward to the asphalt.

  Jack fell, striking his head against the hot pipes on his bike.

  Dunn heard the harsh thud of flesh and bone. He hated hurting Jack, but Lacy was more important than anything or anyone.

  The other bikers saw what Dunn did to Jack and looked shocked at a fellow club member attacking one of their own. They converged in a semi-circle that cut off Dunn’s route to the hospital. He ignored the sick, hollow feeling that he’d betrayed his brother bikers. Fear for Lacy made him crazy with desperation. He waved the metal case in the air.

  Behind him, Jack stirred. Over his shoulder, Dunn saw his old friend stagger to his feet.

  “Back off,” Jack shouted at the bikers. “What he’s got in that case will kill us all.”

  Dunn glanced over his shoulder, offering a look of apology, then he took off running toward the hospital emergency entrance.

  “Dunn! Stop! You son-of-a—” Jack’s words were cut off by a gunshot ringing out over the parking lot.

  Dunn just kept running. For Lacey. All he had left was Lacey.

  ****

  From inside the
examination room, Caitlin heard a muffled gunshot. Not even a second later, a scream came from the other side of the door. The unexpected sound made her jump just as the doctor taped the bandage over the cut on her head.

  “Sit still,” he said. He looked at Mac. “Why don’t you see what’s going on out there?”

  Mac had been leaning next to the closed door, watching the doctor and making sure Caitlin didn’t bolt before she got all her injuries assessed. He straightened and opened the door to check on the noise.

  Caitlin hopped off the exam table.

  “Wait!” the doctor said. “You need to move slowly. Even though the ribs aren’t broken, you can’t aggravate the bruises.”

  “I’m fine.” She’d been through much worse in the last twenty-four hours. A short walk in the examination room wouldn’t hurt her. Still she held on to the table for a second to steady herself then hobbled to the door. She tried to peek around Mac into the hallway. “What’s going on?”

  Mac ducked back inside the room and closed the door to a crack. “Dunn.”

  “He’s here?” Caitlin automatically reached for her gun at the small of her back, before remembering it was still in Mac’s backpack. “Why would he come here?”

  Mac continued to stare through the crack in the doorway. “I don’t know, but he looks really upset.”

  “Don’t anyone come near me!” Dunn’s shouts carried clearly into the examination room. “Everyone get out.”

  The big biker sounded hysterical. Caitlin already knew he had to be unstable for starting a forest fire. She had to stop him before he harmed anyone else.

  Looking around, she spied Mac’s backpack next to a chair on the floor. Kneeling, she dug through it until she found her 9 mm Glock. The weight and balance gave her hope that she could level the playing field against the desperate man in the other room. She joined Mac at the door, and edged it open a little more. Together they looked out onto utter chaos.

  Dunn was still shouting. In his hands, he waved a metal case. Hospital staff and patients scurried to find cover.

  “Didn’t you hear me?” Dunn shouted at the people cowering around him. “There’s a terrorist outside and he’s got a gun! Get the hell out of here.”