Fourth Day

by Lisa Phillips

  Talia mentioned two names while Neema got up out of her crate where she’d been sleeping. She shook, stretched, and wandered to Josh’s side. He clipped the leash on. “Good.” Then he looked at the rest of them. “Let’s get out of here. We can use the back door in case that drone is waiting for us to hit the street.”

  So whoever controlled it could kill them? There was a pleasant thought.

  Sal had no interest in being in danger when what he should have been doing was finding Allyson. “Get me a location on where she is,” he told Talia. “I want her found.”

  Talia snapped a salute. “Yes, sir.” There was no humor in her eyes, however. She knew he was scared for Allyson. And also for all of the rest of them. “I’ll send what I have to your phone.”

  “Copy that.” He grabbed his gun and badge and headed for the hall.

  “You guys aren’t big on people knowing who you are, are you?”

  Sal shrugged in answer to Daulton’s comment. He knew ATF agents weren’t either. “Fewer questions means we have to make up fewer answers. No one wants anyone curious enough to knock, showing up at the front door to ‘see what we do.’”

  His phone chimed. Sal looked at the screen and read what Talia had sent. “I’ve got an address where one of the guys who works with Peter Tines checked into a motel. He’s there now.”

  Daulton gave him a blank look. Sal said, “The man we think took Allyson and Vanessa. This guy works for him.”

  Carl chimed in, “Do I want to know how on earth she knows who he is, or where he is?”

  “However she does it, that’s not ATF business.” Daulton gave his guys a stare. One nodded and the other smirked. “Our business is Allyson. So call when you get a solid lead. Yeah?”

  “Copy that.” Sal headed for the stairs instead of the elevator. He needed to bleed off the energy and adrenaline that had built up inside of him. The ATF agents followed behind. He didn’t blame them for wanting to be there to get her back, but he hadn’t thought Daulton wanted anything to do with Vanessa. Or Kennowich. Which made him wonder if the guy was a plant.

  Great. This all had him questioning everyone’s loyalty. There was no way a federal agent had been bought off. Not any of these guys. He shouldn’t be so cynical in his old age, but it appeared he was getting jaded. That meant this was likely the time to retire.

  Sal watched for the drone but didn’t see it. The gunshots had stopped now.

  He drove to the motel, assuming the ATF guys were going to go back to their gun store robbery case. Part of him wondered if one of them would show up again before he found Allyson. But to expect betrayal meant he wasn’t focused. He was waiting for something that might never come when he needed to concentrate on what he knew—and what he needed to do.

  When he pulled into the motel parking lot, he spotted the room number Talia had given him along with the guy’s picture.

  Just then, what appeared to be the same man from the picture rushed out of his room and swung a duffel bag into the back of a pickup truck. He had a military haircut but pulled a ball cap on right after he started the engine. Then he backed out of his parking space, one hand holding a cell phone to his ear.

  Sal followed him, praying he would lead the way to Allyson.

  Chapter 13

  Allyson’s leg muscles burned and shook like that time she’d tried spin class. She was in shape because she had to be for her job. This was killing her though. She glanced behind her, back at Vanessa. No, they were going to live.

  The trees around them brushed and swayed. A rustling, kind of like forest music. It had to be midmorning, but the sun was only a dim orb behind a cloudy sky, making the world around them muted.

  “Is he gone?” Vanessa was not quite out of breath, but a sheen of sweat had formed on her hairline. Maybe she liked spin class.

  Allyson walked to her. She put her hand on her friend’s arm and looked over Vanessa’s shoulder. “I don’t see him.”

  But that didn’t mean Peter Tines wouldn’t show up again soon enough. They’d been seeing him every few minutes through the trees, ever since they left the house. Sometimes five, sometimes it was much longer. Every time Allyson thought they were finally free of him, she’d catch a glimpse of him.

  He never approached. It was almost like he was taunting them. Always ahead of them, like wherever they turned, he knew exactly where they were going.

  Allyson hissed out a breath between clenched teeth. “Let’s just keep going.”

  The air turned colder as the sun rose, the sky darkening. The tree branches began to sway with purpose, the wind whipping at their hair and clothes. Allyson reached a fork in the trail. She stood staring at it, no idea which direction to go. They needed to get out of this forest, not spend more time walking around aimlessly. They had nothing: no supplies, no cell phone, no weapons. No flash drive. Disappointment that they weren’t able to look for the flash drive back at the house where they’d been held burned a fiery hole in her stomach.

  Allyson prayed for direction. As though a beam of light would emerge from between the clouds and show her the way. She prayed some more through the silence. Then a wolf howled. Another called back to it. Then another after it. Maybe the whole pack.

  Was that her answer? She wasn’t super clear on the “how” of God speaking to her. Usually it was just a nudge that required she be quiet long enough to notice. Right now she was so tired, her head so full of questions, that she had no idea what to do. Or where to go.

  Vanessa whimpered.

  “We have to keep going.” Allyson took her arm, helping her despite her own aches and pains. As long as they stuck together, they would survive this endless trek through whatever forest this was. Vanessa walked slowly, like the more injured one of them. And maybe physically and mentally she was. But Allyson was having to push hard to get her body to keep moving.

  Allyson’s body said no with every step. But she forced it to keep moving. Eventually one, or both of them, would be unable to continue. And then what would they do? Neither was in the right state to carry the other one.

  Over to her left, between two trees, Allyson spotted a flash of movement again. This time it was gray, unlike the jacket Peter Tines wore. She studied the spot as they continued up the path. Had they taken a wrong turn—were they now being stalked by a wolf?

  “There’s something behind us.” Vanessa’s whisper sounded overtly loud after long minutes of no talking.

  Allyson glanced back. A predator tracking them. On two legs, not four. It was him. Peter had found them again.

  “How does he keep finding us?” She spoke aloud more to herself than to Vanessa. “It’s like he’s got a tracker on us.”

  Everything that was happening made zero sense.

  Vanessa stopped and patted her pockets. “Do you…” She pulled the thumb drive out of her pocket. “Could it be this?”

  “Is that the flash drive we’ve been looking for? The one with Kennowich’s company on it?”

  Vanessa nodded.

  “Yes, that could be the tracker. How did you get it?” So they did have the flash drive. Frustration boiled up in her like water boiling over in a pot. All it did was make a mess everywhere. “You didn’t say anything.”

  “There wasn’t time. We were running.”

  They needed to be running right now. Allyson said, “When did you get it?”

  “Earlier.” Vanessa’s eyes filled with tears. “When he was…in my room. I took it out of his pocket when he was in the bathroom.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me?” She wanted to throw it away and run, but it was a key piece of evidence.

  “Is this how he’s tracking us?” She looked so sad. And sorry, even if she didn’t say it aloud.

  Allyson had to admit it likely was. She sighed and said, “Probably.”

  She fought the feelings of irritation and anger that Vanessa had kept this from her. That they needed to take it with them still. That Peter needed to just show up instead of lurking around. Then sh
e would have someone to vent her frustration on.

  There had been faults in their friendship years ago. Things she’d spent years thinking on. Secrets. Misunderstandings. Assumptions. Allyson had helped Vanessa out of a couple of situations, and now she was back doing the same thing.

  Were some of those old tendencies cropping up into their relationship now? The things they’d never gotten the chance to resolve, or work on—because Vanessa had been taken—seemed to have a similar tune. Allyson hadn’t thought it was necessarily either of their faults, considering they’d both neglected what would have been good boundaries.

  It was a shame their issues were coming up now, so soon after being reunited. Her tendency to help more than she should. Vanessa’s need to control what she could and acting helpless when she couldn’t.

  But what kind of person would she be to argue with Vanessa right now, after everything she’d been through?

  Vanessa sniffed. “We couldn’t find it before, and you were so disappointed. I didn’t want to get your hopes up unless the team was able to get something off it.” Her voice was a high-pitched whimper. “Now it’s probably making it so Peter can track us.”

  “We need the information on that flash drive.”

  “But I can be a witness, remember?”

  Allyson took a second to think. “We could hide it and come back, but they’ll probably take it before then.”

  Vanessa waited for her to make the decision.

  “Let’s just keep going. Maybe we can find a spot to man a defense.” If she could subdue Peter, then she could get his phone. Assuming he was carrying one.

  Where was Sal? She wanted to call him. Desperately. To hear his voice and have him come get them. She was beyond tired. Beat up. Exhausted and in pain. For the first time in…forever, she wanted to sit down and cry about it. Maybe even ugly cry. And when was the last time she’d done that?

  Allyson located a tree branch, thick like a baseball bat. She picked it up. Perfect for swinging. She needed to hole up somewhere; have Vanessa hide as well. Then when he showed up and finally quit toying with them, she would take him down.

  Maybe even hunt him herself.

  “Keep the flash drive and find somewhere to hide.” She set her hand on Vanessa’s shoulder. “I’m going to get him before he can touch you. That’s my promise to you. No matter what, he’s not going to touch you again.”

  Vanessa nodded and headed for a hiding spot. Allyson crept away to hide elsewhere and watch.

  Gun or not, she was going to get Peter’s phone.

  . . .

  Sal eased down on the brake slowly, so it wouldn’t squeak. His fingers gripped the wheel as he stared out the side window through the trees.

  The vehicle he’d been following for almost an hour now pulled into a driveway and parked near the sidewalk at right angles, blocking in a white beater. The pickup’s occupant climbed out and slammed the door.

  The other side of the drive was occupied by a huge truck, lifted up beyond what was legal with huge mud guards.

  Lights were on in the house, though the sun was now high. It glowed orange behind the clouds. He couldn’t use the cover of darkness, but he still needed to get close.

  Was Allyson here? A rush of adrenaline surged through him at the idea he might be close to her, especially after not knowing where she had been all night and into today. There was no time to waste. Waiting for night to fall again would mean even more time spent as a captive. His brain began traveling down that slippery slope trail to all that might be happening to her.

  He shut off the thoughts, pulled his car closer into the trees and got out. No neighbors. These people—whoever they were—didn’t have to worry about people being nosy, or complaining about the noises that came out of the house.

  Another thing he didn’t want to think about.

  The front door slammed, much the same way the guy had shut his car door. Sal heard yelling. More than one person. He made his way around the outside of the house. The back door flung open and two men spilled out.

  “Just get out there and help round them up,” one told the other. “The boss is going to expect a report at check-in so we better have something to tell him, and it better not be that we lost them.”

  Lost?

  As in, Allyson and Vanessa had escaped? That sounded promising.

  Sal felt the corners of his lips curl up. That’s my girl.

  Another thing he wasn’t going to think so much about. He just needed to find her and her friend. That, and possibly locating the flash drive, were his only priorities right now.

  “Is the tracker still active?”

  Sal peered around the back corner of the house and immediately recognized the man. He was one of the FBI agents who had tried to question Vanessa at the hospital. But she hadn’t recognized him as one of the three men in the garage, so he was either a newcomer or maybe he had kept his identity hidden during the stint where she was held captive.

  The man giving orders, the fake FBI agent, answered his friend. “Should be.”

  “Okay.” The man pulled out his phone, then turned, jogging off toward the trees.

  A tracker? They had somehow bugged either of the women and now they were able to locate them. Or “round them up” as that man had said.

  The one who would be reporting in when the boss required him to.

  Allyson was alive, and he would find her. Which meant he needed access to that tracker. For whatever reason he wasn’t going to admit to yet, he was more concerned with Ally’s well being than her friend’s. But wasn’t that understandable? He would work to get them both back, and of course track down the flash drive too, but Allyson was the one he cared about. The one whose fate had caused his gut to be tied up in knots since he helplessly watched that van drive away.

  The back door slammed shut. Sal sprinted full out in the direction the man had gone. He would make more noise going fast but prayed he’d be able to get the drop on the man before he was heard.

  He rushed at the man, dipped his head forward and tackled the guy’s middle. They both went sprawling. The man let out an “oof” as they landed on the ground, then rolled so Sal was on the bottom. Sal kept hold of the guy and kept rolling. When he was on top, he lifted up and punched the man square in the jaw.

  The guy went limp, unconscious.

  Sal grabbed the guy’s phone from the ground where it had dropped and used the man’s thumb to unlock it. He went into settings, changing the length of time before it timed out and locked again.

  From the man’s phone he sent Talia a text. Then he used the guy’s belt to tie him to a tree, so he’d be secure for at least a while. The team, or the local sheriff, could pick this guy up and get him to a holding cell. Or Sal would come back for him. He figured the guy had outstanding warrants. Likely someone in a police station or federal office somewhere was looking for him. Or he owed back child support. He’d learned from experience as a marshal that it was highly unlikely someone involved in a kidnapping had a completely clean record.

  A cop somewhere would want to talk to this guy.

  Sal was more than happy to take someone like him in. Get the local sheriff to process him into the system so he could answer for whatever he’d done.

  He sent another text and told Talia about the guy in the house, and the check-in from the boss that was supposed to be happening soon. He also asked her to find Allyson, using the information found on the phone.

  He saw the second she began to do her thing. The screen turned black, then green text scrolled down it. Like a program initiating.

  Sal started walking in the same direction the man had been going. He’d keep on that path until he was told by Talia of a more specific location.

  A high-pitched scream rolled down the mountain like a flash flood. He paused, assessing what direction it had come from.

  High in the mountains, someone was in distress. Not an animal. A human.

  Sal set off running. Talia came through and the phone vibr
ated. Same general area. Their tracker and the scream. He ran nearly two miles before hearing anything else.

  A lump rose in his throat. Sal swallowed it down. He was not supposed to be having this reaction to the fact Allyson was in danger. Possibly hurt. He’d been determined to walk away from her and start a new life.

  It wasn’t like she would never be in danger with the line of work she was in. He would leave, knowing she could be killed any minute on the job. She was a cop, and it was part of that life. Investigating crimes and her part-time work—as many ATF agents took on—as a member of one of their breach teams. Serving warrants. Getting right up in the faces of violent criminals.

  Sal had to stop just to breathe. Sharp pains rolled through his chest. Just a stitch. Nothing to do with thinking about what he would do if Allyson was killed.

  The phone buzzed.

  Quarter mile, eleven o’clock.

  How Talia knew that he had no idea. But he decided to just go with it. He heard a scuffle then and moved to get a better sight of the area where the noise was coming from.

  Sal found Allyson in a vicious fight with a man. Vanessa stood a few feet away, a look on her face that he couldn’t decipher. He had no time to assess it and understand what her expression even meant.

  Sal drew his weapon and yelled, “Police! Freeze!

  The man twisted to face him. Allyson punched him in the kidney while he wasn’t looking. The man grunted and stumbled to the side.

  “Hands up.”

  Beyond the man, Allyson plunked down, shaking out her hand. Chest heaving with each inhale. “Vanessa, you okay?” She took a step toward her friend and stumbled.

  “I think so.”

  The attacker didn’t back down. He drew his weapon and shifted with intention. Sal squeezed his trigger and put two bullets into the man’s chest before he could kill someone.

  Vanessa screamed.

  Allyson paled and then collapsed on the grass.

  Chapter 14

  “Ally!” She heard Sal call her name.