The zip-ties cut deep into Julie’s flesh and when he pushed her into a chair the horror of who was standing before her dropped into place with a tsunami of fear. This had to be the bomber she’d heard her dad discussing with Emily. Teeth chattering and frozen with indecision, she stared hopelessly as he pulled two small devices from the backpack and slapped them underneath the kitchen table, one at each end. She looked at him. “What are you sticking under the kitchen table?”
“They’re a surprise for when your cousin comes home.” His voice sounded almost conversational. “They come home, carry the kids up to bed, and then come back down for a nightcap, maybe a snack before bedtime. They follow a pattern like most folks. You on the other hand are a bonus I wasn’t expecting.” He waved his gun at her. “You’re coming with me.”
She had no choice, fighting an armed man was out of the question. If she acted calm, he might not hurt her. “Where are we going?”
“Not out for pizza, that’s for sure.” He dragged her to her feet and shoved her toward the door. “Make one sound and I’ll cave in your skull. I won’t kill you but as long as you’re breathing, we’ll get along fine.”
As he propelled her toward the door, she crunched over broken glass and stumbled down the steps. He urged her along the driveway and as they rounded the first bend an old SUV with its nose parked into the trees came into view. “Does that old white SUV belong to you? It’s older than my ride.”
“I told you to shut your mouth.” He opened the trunk and tossed in his bag.
She looked over one shoulder at him and the interior light shone on eyes devoid of emotion. “Get inside or I’ll kill you right here and enjoy watching you die.” His words cut through her like a voice from a grave.
Images of what might happen to her flashed through her mind. Every muscle twitched and her limbs refused to cooperate. The next moment he’d lifted her and hurled her inside. Once her knees had hit the cargo space, pain shot through the back of her head. Lights flashed in her eyes and she vomited bile. She heard him curse and another blow glanced off her ear. She fell forward onto a carpet smelling of dog, her vision blurred, and everything around her spun into a world of black.
Fifty-Six
The wail of sirens filled the room and Jenna’s heart missed a beat. It was the sound none of them ever wanted to hear; one of Wolfe’s daughters was in danger. She grasped the phone in trembling fingers and met Kane’s gaze across the table. “Julie.”
“I’ll track her, you listen. Wolfe will be trying to contact you on the landline.” Kane stared at his screen. “She’s at Glacial Falls.”
Jenna twisted the tracker ring on her finger, willing her tired mind to act faster. She turned to Jo and Carter, who were looking dumbfounded. “We all have trackers, they’re—”
When Julie’s voice came through loud and clear detailing the situation, she passed her phone to Jo. “Write everything down, she says.” She turned to Carter. “If this is the bomber, there’s a chance he’ll be heading for the forest.”
“I’ll go get the chopper.” Carter stood and pushed on his Stetson. “It’s refueled and ready to go but I’ll need your cruiser to get there fast.”
Jenna threw him the keys. “We’ll meet you on Stanton Road at the turn off to the ski-resort.”
Carter nodded and ran out the door. Jenna headed for her office and waited. No call from Wolfe. She called him and his phone went to a message, so she called the landline, knowing a light would flash in the laboratory. She waited for a time before he picked up. She didn’t give him time to speak. “Where’s Julie? She triggered her tracker.”
“She what? She’s babysitting at Abe Coleman’s house.” She could hear Wolfe running to his office and throwing open a drawer. She could hear the same muffled ringtone that came through her own phone. “Oh, Jesus, I hadn’t realized it was so late.”
“Kane is tracking her, Carter has gone to get the chopper, and Jo is listening in. We have everything covered.” Jenna took a deep breath. “Where did she go?”
When Wolfe rattled off the address, Jenna made a note. So, there are young kids there as well, how many?”
“Two.” Wolfe had dropped into a professional zone. “We need to get there now.”
Jenna nodded. “We’re on our way. I’ll handle the kids. Go and meet the chopper on Stanton at the ski-resort turn off. Carter will need you to track Julie.”
“Copy.” Wolfe disconnected.
Jenna ran back to the others and collided with Kane coming out the door. “What’s happened?”
“He’s set explosives and we’ve just sent our expert to collect a chopper.” Kane grabbed her by the arms. “He’s on the move. The vehicle is moving at speed toward the mountains.”
Jo came out the room, her face pale. “She’s not saying anything, I think he’s knocked her out. She’s in the back of an old white SUV. That was the last I heard apart from a door slamming. The vehicle is still moving north.”
Indecision swept over Jenna. She had two major problems: saving Julie and getting the Coleman kids to safety. The weariness had vanished in a surge of adrenalin. She gave herself a mental shake and looked at Jo. “Where will he take her?”
“Going on the other two, I figure he has a place in the mountains.” Jo looked at Jenna. “What’s the good of the chopper, we can’t land anywhere in the forest?”
“It’s an FBI chopper, it can drop us down on a harness if necessary and there’s a spot to land in a parking lot on a plateau not far from the Whispering Caves. There’s an old trail down the mountainside we can use.” Jenna turned to Kane. “We need to get over to Glacial Heights to get the kids out the house before he detonates the explosives.”
“We should have by midnight, that’s when he expects the family to arrive home.” Jo’s eyes flashed with concern. “He’ll probably secure Julie somewhere and return to detonate and watch the explosion.”
With a plan of action forming inside her head, Jenna grabbed her duty belt from a hook on the wall and abandoned her shoulder holster. “I figure we’ll need everything at our disposal. This guy is very unpredictable and we don’t know what he has in his arsenal. We’ll suit up for a riot. Jo keep listening, Kane come with me, I’ll grab rifles and ammo from my office.”