Caged Songbird

by Avery Gale

  Colt was on his feet and moving toward the door when Kyle West stepped in front of him. “You know where she’s taking them?” When Colt nodded, Kyle smiled, “Damn, I love smart women. Let’s go.” They left Kent to listen and relay information by phone and Kyle tossed him the keys to the large truck he’d rented. “You know where you’re going, it’ll be faster if you drive.”

  They’d only driven a couple of miles when Phoenix called, “They’re at the lake. Why would she lead them someplace that secluded?” Colt knew his brother was imagining all of the possible outcomes, but he was fairly sure he knew exactly what Josie was thinking. “Damn, Colt, tell me she isn’t going to try to run from them up there. The wire has already stopped working because they’re out of range. And you know how bad reception is in the mountains, who knows how long the signal from the bracelet will last.”

  Kyle chuckled. “It will last—trust me, it was designed for Tobi so it will broadcast through anything short of a nuclear holocaust.”

  Colt was driving as fast as he could safely, but the narrow road leading to the lake was winding and even though he’d driven it hundreds of time, it was damned treacherous at night if you were driving over forty miles per hour. “I think she’ll try to get to the cave. I told her about it when we were up there.”

  He could hear Phoenix’s sigh of relief. “Damn, talented, beautiful, and smart. Don’t let her go, brother.” Don’t worry little brother, I have no intention of making that mistake again.

  The second Josie slipped behind the evergreen tree at the edge of the small clearing by the lake she’d taken off running. The lack of any moonlight was both a blessing and a curse. It would be easier to hide in the pitch black night, but it made running along the narrow ledge around the small outcropping damned treacherous. She figured she only had a minute or maybe two at the very most before they came after her. The only reason they’d let her go alone was because she’d assured them she was too afraid of bears to run.

  This had to be the most ridiculous kidnapping in history. She’d overheard the men talking about taking out the guy who’d run out the back of the diner and hitting another with the van so she knew they weren’t averse to violence. Yet they’d treated her like they were worried she’d break. Whoever’d hired them had obviously warned them she wasn’t supposed to be hurt. Now that she thought about it, every incident over the past several months seemed carefully orchestrated to frighten her without actually causing her any harm.

  The only person she could think of who would benefit from her fear was Todd. She knew the Morgans believed Maria was the brains behind the operation, but Josie wasn’t convinced. And besides, she knew Maria wouldn’t have any qualms about hurting her. The realization her manager and his girlfriend might well have different agendas caused her to stumble. Her lack of focus almost sent her headlong into the inky depths of the lake. Just thinking about how cold the water would be sent a chill up her spine.

  The night air was cold…really cold, and the light jacket she was wearing wouldn’t be enough to keep her warm through the night. She hoped the cave would provide her with a hiding place and enough shelter from the frigid night air to keep her from turning into a popsicle before Colt found her. Damn, I hope they heard me mention the lake. I’m sure the stupid wire in my purse isn’t working up here. Luckily she’d grabbed it when she got out of the van. If they didn’t find her tonight, she’d try to get up high first thing in the morning so they could hear her again.

  Giving her arm a good shake, Josie let the bracelet Tobi clasped around her wrist at the last minute a spin in hopes its signal was getting through. She activated the panic alarm as soon as she’d remembered in the van. Although after hearing Tweedledee and Tweedledum bragging on taking out the big guy from the diner, there was little doubt the men already knew she was in trouble.

  Josie heard the men yelling for her and they didn’t sound far behind. She’d been so lost in thought she’d slowed down losing precious seconds of lead time. It couldn’t be much further, but speeding up too much would make more noise, and no doubt make her easier to track. It was a good thing she’d been watching carefully, or she’d have missed the opening in the rock wall. Thank God Colt had mentioned their childhood hideaway, now she hoped he had remembered their conversation before some bear decided to take his winter snooze in the cave she planned to claim as her own.

  The longer Brandt Morgan talked to Josie’s manager the more he believed the man was more than a chump in his girlfriend’s schemes. But for the moment, it served his purpose to let Todd Richland think he was the bumbling small town sheriff he’d accused Brandt of being. “So, tell me again why you came all this way to talk to Ms. Alta. Why not just call her?”

  “I have explained this to you already. It was important to speak with her face-to-face, and I had paperwork for her to sign. I can’t imagine why she thought it was okay to leave through the backdoor of that little eatery.” And we all know she left voluntarily, too. You asshat. “She’s probably taken off with the cowboy she talked endlessly about until we all wanted to pull our hair out.” From what Brandt had seen, Josephine Alta wasn’t the type to brag about a man she’d met. Hell, from what he’d learned reading Phoenix’s report, Josie’s social life was nonexistent so he had no idea when she would have had the opportunity to chatter endlessly about meeting his brother.

  “So she told you she’d met someone here? In Pine Creek?”

  “No. She told one of the other backup singers she’d met a hot cowboy—and since she made a bee-line up here after her home was vandalized, is seemed to follow he must live around here.” Todd Richland was an ass. There wasn’t any other way to view it. Richland was talking out of both sides of his mouth as his dad used to say. One thing Brandt had learned from his dad was how to spot what he called a shyster, and the man sitting in front of him was a textbook example.

  Sam McCall leaned back in his chair and watched Maria Randall pace the length of the small waiting room outside Brandt’s office. Despite the enormous bruise on the top of her sandal clad foot, she was making good time and about to drive him fucking batty. The woman was wound tighter than an eight-day clock. Shit, she was making him tired just watching her. “Sit down. Your pacing is annoying, and those shoes make enough noise to raise the dead.” Might as well rattle her cage a little more, maybe she’ll spew out something useful.

  “Shut up, biker boy. The only thing less impressive than you in this town would be the Brothers Grimm.” Sage suspected she was talking about Nate and Taz Ledek because she’d seemed more than a little intimidated by them before they’d stepped out the back. No surprise there, anybody with any survival instinct at all would be leery of the Ledek brothers. Between them, Sage didn’t doubt they could come up with at least a hundred ways to kill you and never break a sweat. But then again, most people with an I. Q. higher than a gnat, were scared of him too—they didn’t call him biker boy either. Thank God Sage wasn’t here to hear that, or I’d never hear the end of it.

  It was as if he’d sensed his brother’s approach because as soon as he thought about him, Sage stepped through the door. And, as usual, Sage looked like he’d just stepped out of some ad in GQ magazine. Sam knew as soon as he saw Sage’s smile he’d already been briefed because he immediately focused his smile on Maria.

  “Well, hello there darlin’, this is a pleasant surprise. I wasn’t expecting to find a beautiful woman in Sheriff Morgan’s waiting room.” Sam wanted to gag. Sage had been honing his skills with women since he was old enough to bat his eyes in their direction, and he’d been melting hearts with that routine since the beginning.

  “Well, now, aren’t you a visual treat? Charming, well-dressed, and gorgeous…definitely my type. What’s your name handsome?” Yep, Sam was going to need a whole role of antacids before this was over.

  Josie couldn’t see her hand in front of her face it was so damned dark. She’d read about cultures using total light and social deprivation as punishment, and now she under
stood how cruel it was. The thought of spending even a few hours alone in this black void terrified her, knowing you would be locked in a place like this, with no vision or human interaction for years would be devastating.

  She finally settled back in a corner on a flat rock not far from the entrance. Now that she was finally out of the cool night air, her body started to warm-up. By the time she’d stopped shivering, fatigue was setting in, and she could barely keep her eyes open.

  She’d heard one of her kidnappers fall into the water not far from the cave’s opening. His colorful cursing probably woke up people for miles around. Serves him right. Once he’d gotten out of the water, he’d evidently returned the way he’d come because it was the last she’d heard from them. Worried they might be trying to wait her out, Josie pulled her legs up against her chest and laid her cheek against the cool rock surface beside her. She closed her eyes vowing to rest until there was enough light she could walk to safety.

  “The GPS location where the signal was lost close to the cave, Colt. I’m guessing she was hugging the rock wall to avoid falling in the water. Hell, without any moonlight it has to be darker than the inside of a cat out there.” Phoenix’s words didn’t do anything to calm his nerves, and he sent up a silent prayer that the signal hadn’t been lost because she’d fallen in the water. Navigating the narrow footpath was tricky in the daylight, and it would be damned difficult for anyone in the dark, especially someone who was in a hurry and didn’t know for sure where they were going.

  Reaching into the back seat, Kyle pulled a large black bag onto the seat between them. Recognizing what Brandt always referred to as a “go bag,” he was relieved to know one of them had the good sense to bring along supplies. Colt had been in such a rush to leave Brandt’s office he hadn’t even taken the time to grab a flashlight.

  “This has everything I think we’ll need.” In his peripheral vision, Colt watched Kyle West lay out several items including several small caliber weapons and a couple of large knives.

  “Damn, bet the TSA cringes when they see you headed their way.”

  Kyle chuckled. “Exactly why we never fly commercial. We flew our own jet into Missoula. Sam and Jen brought up our Dads’ smaller one. Sam’s brother Sage flew straight here from his last mission. I’d like to think he was anxious to pitch in, but I’m sure getting his wife beneath him was the bigger draw.

  “How long was he gone?”

  “Almost three weeks, and he’s been damned cranky for the past two and a half. Sam doesn’t do much better if he’s gone for more than a couple of days either—and he’s usually the reasonable one.” Colt appreciated Kyle’s attempt to distract him from worrying about Josie, even if it wasn’t working as well as it should.

  Rounding the last corner before the small parking area, Colt was suddenly blinded by the lights of an on-coming vehicle. Barely avoiding a head-on collision, he scrambled to recover as red dots danced in his vision. God damn it I hate those fucking halogen lights.

  “Nate, we just met the perps. White van. It’ll be on you in less than a minute. Contain them, but remind Taz we need to be able to interrogate them.” Kyle hung up his phone and shrugged. “Taz is gonna be pissed if they behave. He likes to eat suspects for lunch when they don’t cooperate.”

  “How did you know they were behind us? I haven’t seen lights behind us since we turned off the main road.”

  Kyle laughed. “Good to know. That means they’re doing it right. We work together as a team, so I knew they’d have our six. I also assumed they’d come in dark. Nate loves gadgets so his truck is probably a rolling cache of all the latest spy thingies as my lovely wife would say.” Colt couldn’t even imagine what it would be like living with Tobi, but the brief glimpse he’d gotten today amused the hell out of him. It was easy to see why Coral and Joelle loved her, and it was obvious Josie had taken to her as well.

  “Nate would use night vision goggles once they left the main road because it’s standard operating procedure. That’s one of the reasons I wanted to warn him he had incoming. The twists and turns are such he might have been completely blinded by the van’s lights.”

  “Hell, I was blinded by those damned lights. I hate the damned things, they’re dangerous. Although Kip loves them during calving season because they light up the heifer pasture like it’s fucking noon.”

  “Well, I don’t know about heifers and pastures—contrary to popular opinion, being from Texas does not automatically predispose me to understand livestock beyond my favorite cut of steak. But I can tell you they are great on missions where you want to illuminate something quickly. We used to have to pack in generators, poles and lights—now we grab two or three halogen flashlights, and we’re good to go. Smartphones replaced bulky bag phones, radios, attachés filled with heavy paper maps, and cameras. Hell, the guys coming out of BUDs now don’t know how good they’ve got it.”

  They’d each been filling the pockets of the heavy jackets Kyle pulled from behind the rear seat. Damn, talk about a rolling tool chest of goodies. Colt hoped like hell the driver of the van hadn’t left anybody behind because there were a million and one places to hide out here and he needed to find Josie as quickly as possible. He knew the light weight leather jacket she’d been wearing wouldn’t do a thing to keep her warm with night fully upon them.

  “Be sure you silence and stow your phone. I can’t tell you how many times I found people who thought they were well hidden because their phone rang or lit up.” Kyle nodded after watching Colt shut off the ringer on his phone and tuck it into one of the jacket’s inside pockets. “Lead the way, I’ll be right behind you.”

  Colt took off on a jog, covering the distance quickly. There were a lot of tracks, but it was difficult to tell if Josie’s were among them because most of the top prints appeared to be headed back the way they’d come. Some of the prints were also wet. “Looks like one of the bad guys fell in the lake. What a pity.” It was impossible to miss the sarcasm in Kyle’s tone. “My guess is they abandoned their search for Josephine because cold and wet appears to have outweighed whatever they’d been promised for bringing her in.”

  “And without flashlights, this path is damned treacherous. I hope like hell Josie made it to the cave without taking a swim herself.” Colt was almost shaking with fear for her safety by the time he stepped into the small cave. He was struck by how tight the space was. It always amazed him how much smaller their childhood hideaways seemed now that he was an adult.

  Stepping around the natural rock wall a few feet back from the entrance, Colt let out the breath he hadn’t even realized he was holding when he saw Josie curled into the corner fast asleep.

  Kyle’s voice sounded over his shoulder, “Christ, I’m glad we’re the ones who found her. It scares the hell out of me how vulnerable she is here. She’s trusting like Tobi, and I have to tell you, that trait has its advantages and disadvantages.”

  Kyle unfolded a survival blanket while Colt knelt down to wake her. “Josie, come on sweetheart. Let’s get you someplace warm.” He pushed pale blonde strands of her silky hair behind her ear. Her skin was much too cool against his fingers; she’d have definitely been hypothermic before morning. He knew the combination of fatigue, inadequate clothing, and zero body fat made her particularly vulnerable. Sleeping was the last thing she should have been doing. Damn, jumping jacks in the corner would have been a much better plan. “Come on little songbird, time to rise and shine.”

  This time, she shot to her feet so quickly she almost knocked him on his ass. Kyle grinned at her. “Josephine, the time for quick reactions was before we entered the cave. I swear you and my wife are two peas in a pod. You’re going to give Colt a real run for his money.”

  Colt had to hold back his own smile as Josie blinked rapidly as if trying to bring Kyle West’s face into focus. But of all the things he expected her to say, the first words out of her mouth surprised him. Looking between Colt and Kyle, she asked, “Did you kick their asses? One of them fell in the wa
ter, so he should have been easy to take out. Who was the blonde beauty who followed Tobi into the ladies’ room? And who was the big guy she was with…the one who winked at me? He was helping you, right? The jerks in the van bragged about hurting him. Oh, and they hit another guy, too.”

  Colt was so surprised by her outburst he’d frozen with the heat shield blanket halfway around her shoulders. Kyle burst out laughing as he stepped up beside Colt taking the blanket and pulling it the rest of the way around her slender shoulders. “Yep, two peas in a pod. Amazing.” He tapped his finger against the tip of Josie’s nose and warned her, “You two are not to be unsupervised do you understand? And yes, that blonde beauty works for me, her name is Jen McCall, and the man who winked at you is Sam McCall—one of her two husbands. But, she will not under any circumstances be considered a proper supervisor.”

  Turning to Colt, Kyle nodded. “Get your woman and let’s get out of here. I’ve got a sub to torture.” When Josie gasped, Kyle tapped her nose again. “Don’t worry, little chanteuse, I’ll make sure she loves every minute of it.”

  Josie insisted on walking out on her own and Colt indulged her until she stumbled. Scooping her into his arms, he tightened his hold when she wiggled in a token protest. “Stop or you’ll find yourself in even more trouble.”

  “Hey, I didn’t do anything wrong. I’m the victim here, remember?” Her voice was already fading; her protest didn’t hold any conviction at all.

  “Oh, my little songbird, you most certainly did. You put yourself in danger. You put what I consider mine at risk and that is an egregious mistake.”

  Kyle laughed from behind them. “Yes, Josephine, ask Tobi how many paddlings she’s gotten for making that exact same mistake. I assure you she’ll underestimate the total, but Kent and I have kept careful count.” Colt laughed to himself and in a flash of insight he saw Josie over his knee for the same thing regularly and wondered how soon that particular vision would become a reality.