Jake twitched awake when Rachels’ phone buzzed, the wisps of a tortured dream curling away like fog before a breeze.
The text message said, Resting well? You’re going to bring the money and head north when I tell you. More later.
“Look at this.” He held the phone up for Shivani. “Maybe we can trace him now.”
Shivani took the phone. “Nope. We need the number, and this was sent anonymously.”
“How do you do that?”
“There are several ways.”
An hour later, another text:
I need some shut-eye. Will be in touch tomorrow.
Jake grunted. “I’m going to tear him apart in small pieces.”
Shivani’s response was soothing, matter-of-fact. “Better to channel anger into calculated thought. Becoming hot under the collar will impede good decisions. That’s what he wants. Close your eyes.”
Jake did.
In the clean predawn light, he stirred. Sharon’s phone had buzzed.
Ready to roll? Come by yourself. No monkeying around. Head north and find Florida Highway 60.
Jake texted back. Then what?
Head east and text me.
Forty minutes later, the Camry aimed east, into the bright sun, moving away from Tampa and into suburbia. Jake noticed the battery on Sharon’s phone was down to 5 percent.
He held the phone in front of Shivani, who squinted against the sun. “Do you keep a charger in the car that’ll work with this?” Jake asked.
“No. My phone is an iPhone.”
Jake texted the kidnapper.
Battery running low. Will stop and find charger somewhere.
Where are you?
Just passed a sign saying Brandon 10.
Phone’s not my problem. You’re twenty-five minutes away. Keep going if you want to be here in time. Text when you get to Busby Road.
Jake read the text aloud. “In time for what?”
“Probably nothing. He’s turning up the pressure.”
“Probably, you say.”
Shivani swerved into the lot of a busy convenience store. “Jump out and buy one.”
The line was three deep at each register. Jake fumed while he waited. The sallow cashier kept her eyes down as he stepped up, making notes on a log. When she finally gave him her attention, he tried to keep his voice calm but heard his own shrillness. “Do you have a charger for one of these?”
The cashier held his gaze and shifted her gum to the other side of her open mouth, smacking as she chewed. Finally, she nodded toward a display near the door. “If it’s not on the rack, we don’t have it.”
Jake searched the rack and didn’t find what he was looking for. Exasperated, he forced himself to slow down and search again, knowing he could have missed it, given his state of mind.
He returned to the line, two ahead of him now, everything in slow motion. He heard his heartbeat. He held up the phone. “Please. Aren’t there any in the back?”
Customers turned and stared. The cashier rolled her eyes. “We don’t restock anything, sir. That’s done by the vendors.” She resumed scanning a customer’s purchases, a satisfied smirk on her bovine face.
The other cashier, a black girl, said, “Cassie, the phone guy is out front getting stuff out of his van right now.”
Cassie shot her a look.
Jake rushed out to a van where a slender man bent over, removing an open cardboard box containing assorted items, carded for hanging in the display.
“Sir, I really hate to bother you, but this is a bit of an emergency.”
The man set the box on the edge of the van floor and gave Jake the once-over. “You’d be surprised how often this happens to me. Not with someone looking so messed up, though. You okay?”
“No. I mean, yeah. I just need a charger for this phone really bad.”
The man took the phone, inspected it, and handed him a charger. “You can pay for it inside.”
“Oh, man.” Jake fished two twenties out of a pocket and handed them to him. “Time is short. Would you mind?”
The man hesitated and looked around. “Sure thing, podna. Have a great day.”
“You stink,” Shivani said when Jake climbed back in the car.
“Let’s go.”
The phone buzzed. Where are you? You’re late.
Almost there.
Jake read the messages aloud and said, “Step on it.”
In a few minutes, Shivani slammed the brakes, and the Camry skidded to a stop in the loose gravel at an intersection. “That was Busby Road on the left.” He checked the mirrors and backed up, turned in, and pulled over.
Jake’s fingers tapped the phone. We’re here.
Continue down this road. You’ll come to a gate. It’s padlocked, but the chain has been cut where you can’t see it. Reclose the gate after you drive in. You’ll see where to go.
At the gate, Jake stopped. A mile or so ahead of them across an expanse of scrub and tall grass rose several gray structures, one at least four stories high. It was connected from near the top to another lower structure by a long conveyor. The overgrown road before them snaked left and curved out of sight, toward the buildings.
Shivani opened the door and slid out into a crouch. “You take it from here. I’ll find my way across in this cover.” He duck-walked around the car, opened the gate, and vanished into the vegetation.
“Wait,” Jake said. “What are we going to do when we’re there?”
The grass rustled and moved as Shivani found his way back, remaining in a crouch. He said, “You’re going to have to do what he tells you. We’ll improvise from there.”
“I don’t like that.”
“Do you have a better idea?”
Jake pulled the car in. The gate had fallen out of alignment, and it scraped on the road when he tried to close it. Lifting and holding it up an inch, he shuffled his way back to the gatepost and had to wiggle it until it would close properly. He stopped and squatted to relieve the cramps in his back before he got back in the car and drove ahead on the weedy shell road. From the right, a cloud of dust roiled beyond the grass toward the curve ahead. The silver Tahoe came into view, skidding on the curve and fishtailing before coming under control. In the middle of the road, forty feet away, it accelerated toward him. Jake wrenched the wheel and bounced off the road, underbrush scraping the bottom and sides of the car before it stopped. Behind him, the Tahoe kept going.
Jake got out to inspect the front tires and squatted to determine if they were mired in the sand. He smiled. They rested on a flattened bed of weeds.
“At least it seems we can get out.” Shivani leaned against the car and picked burrs from his clothes.
Chapter 31
Jake and Shivani rode back to the entrance and found the gate knocked off its hinges. At the highway, faint tire tracks led to the left. Shivani gunned the engine, and the Camry’s tires spun in the loose gravel, squealing as they bit into the asphalt.
They passed through the next town at eighty miles an hour, weaving around the few cars on the road and blowing through a red light.
Jake said, “We’re going to be stopped.”
“Keep your eyes open for cops and look at the intersections for the Tahoe.”
Shivani floored the gas once they were beyond the town. The speedometer passed a hundred, and Jake stopped looking at it. Commercial buildings whizzed past on both sides, then open space. A car crossed in front of them. Shivani maintained speed, just missing a collision.
Jake was suddenly thrust forward against the seat belt as Shivani braked hard, saying, “Town ahead, lots of cars.”
“I think I’m going to vomit. You could have killed us.” Jake’s hands shook.
“I can drive. Only risk was getting pulled over, and that didn’t happen.” Shivani stopped in a church
parking lot and checked his phone. “I-4 is coming up. I feel we’d do well to find another truck stop along there and wait. That’s as likely as anywhere else to be near wherever he is when he calls.”
“If he calls.”
Shivani’s brow furrowed. “Do you have a better idea?”
“No. You’re the mystic.”
“He’s trying to wear us out. We don’t need to help him. If he doesn’t call soon, we should find a place to shower and get some rest. Something like a suite hotel. We need to gather our thoughts and ready ourselves.”
“What do you mean?”
“He may take his time deciding what his next move is. If so, we need to use that time.” Shivani paused and, when Jake said nothing, continued. “We mustn’t go around in circles, literally or figuratively. Stay as calm as we can and rest as much as we can. Think about the situation from his point of view. For example, the place he led us to is just about perfect from his standpoint. It’s isolated. If someone were killed there, it could be a long time before anyone knew. He bailed because there were two of us.”
Jake shook his head. “I can’t see it. He won’t use the same spot.”
“I feel strongly he will. Trust me on this. He’ll again demand that you come alone but will have a plan in case you don’t. Did you bring a gun?”
With a sharp intake of breath, Jake closed his eyes and threw his head back. “No. What a fool. We left the house in such a hurry …”
“I expect he’ll be armed.”
“We’re sunk.”
“No, we have the money. Until he has eyes on that, I don’t believe he’ll shoot anyone. This is the kind of thing we need to think about.”
They entered the parking lot of a Big Sky Travel Stop and parked before a fieldstone façade surrounding tall, gleaming windows. Inside the spacious building were kiosks with sandwiches, hot dogs, and burritos, and a counter where you could order a burger or Philly cheesesteak, among other things.
Jake opened his door and set a foot on the pavement. “You notice they’re not ‘truck stops’ anymore? They’re ‘travel stops.’”
“Can’t halt progress.”
They went through the door and stood, ogling like tourists. Shivani said, “I’m hungry. Are you?”
“I might be, once my stomach settles down from your driving. I’ll try a soft drink first.”
Seated at a booth, Shivani lovingly adjusted the arrangement of onions, relish, mustard, and ketchup on two hot dogs. Jake sipped his cola. “You don’t eat like a guru.”
“How do you know what a guru eats?”
“As soon as that truck stop horror is out of sight, I’m going to have a turkey sandwich.”
“Travel stop horror.”
Jake placed his palms on his temples and held his head. “Let’s be serious. What are we going to do? This guy has Sharon and her sister, and I’m afraid he’ll hurt them.”
“Why would he hurt them if he still expects to get the money? The main thing from his point of view is the leverage he has from believable threats. So he’ll try to use that.”
Jake’s voice trembled. “You don’t know. You’re assuming. It must be easy when it’s not someone you care for.”
Shivani sat still, his soft brown eyes focused intently on Jake, devoid of expression.
Jake turned away, fidgeted, and looked back. Shivani hadn’t moved. Jake raised his head and showed his palms. “Sorry.”
“We’re going to bring them back. And I won’t make the mistake of leaving him alive this time.”
“No. I’ll kill him myself.”
“Does it matter?” Shivani got to his feet. “I’ll pay. We need some clean clothes. Want to check out what’s here?” He pointed to the full-size store in the other part of the building.
They passed displays of novelty items, caps, and T-shirts, all imprinted with trucker culture. In a section of clothing on racks, Jake found sweatpants that would fit and picked out a T-shirt extolling diesel power.
Shivani selected similar items, except his shirt emblem was a “Don’t Tread on Me” snake. “I see socks in those shelves by the wall. The underwear must be over there too.”
They both examined boxer shorts with “I (heart) truck stops” emblazoned on the right front. “Sure you wouldn’t rather have these?” Shivani held up a pair imprinted “I (heart) lot lizards.”
“What the hell. Why not?”
In their fourth-floor suite, Shivani relaxed erect in a club chair, cross-legged, in his new sweatpants and T-shirt.
Jake paced before the windows, hair still damp from his shower, wearing his complimentary robe. He turned toward Shivani. “I can’t stand this. Waiting, not knowing. We’ve got to do something.”
“Do you have any suggestions?” Shivani’s tone was neutral, vaguely curious.
Jake flung himself into the matching club chair. “So we sit around doing nothing.”
“Hardly. He’s going to call, I’m guessing not today. He’s counting on you being rattled. Makes it easier for him. We need to be ready.”
Jake sneered. “Like how?”
Shivani uncrossed his legs and moved forward in the chair. “Like agree I’m going with you regardless of what he demands. Okay?”
“Aren’t you worried about a gun?”
“Of course. All we can do is assume he’s armed and be careful.”
Jake stood. “Why don’t you just bail out? Why risk your life?”
“I didn’t have any other plans for this week. Besides, I never quit.”
“Well, I’m too furious to worry.” Jake flashed a wry smile. “We’re a couple of fools, aren’t we?”
After an agonizing all-night wait, Jake padded on bare feet into Shivani’s bedroom and prodded him. Shivani didn’t stir, so he prodded him again, harder. One eye opened. “What?”
“I want to talk. Sitting and waiting like this doesn’t feel right. We should be doing something.”
Shivani sat up and rubbed his face, yawning. “I had an idea last night. I was thinking about it when you poked me.”
“Like hell.”
“No, really, I was concentrating. We’ll go back to that place where he sent us before, which, by the way, is an abandoned phosphate mine. I looked it up last night. We should go in that direction. Even if he chooses another place, we should be closer to it than this hotel is.”
“What will we do when we arrive? Just sit in the car?”
“If nobody’s around, you’ll leave me there and wait somewhere nearby. I’ll check the place out and find a hideout. If it turns out he wants you somewhere else, you can pick me up and we’ll go. Let’s stop at a grocery store, where I can get some food and drink to keep with me in case we don’t hear anything for a while.”
After the grocery store, where Shivani purchased fruit, peanut butter, and bread, along with bottles of water, he drove the Camry back toward the old buildings, the way they had come the day before.
Jake reached into a bag behind the driver’s seat. “You bought plenty of apples. May I have one?”
“Of course.”
Jake bit into the apple, which was both tart and sweet. “This is good. You said that place is an abandoned phosphate mine?”
“Yes. Right now, we’re near the north end of an area called Bone Valley.”
“Bone Valley? Sounds sinister.”
“Some think it is, in a way. It’s an area running from north of here to the south for over a hundred miles. It contains, among other things, phosphate pebbles and fragments of bone. Years ago, phosphate mining began at this end but now has mostly moved south.”
“Phosphate?”
“Think fertilizer. Big industry, big money involved. They’re strip mines. They move the material for processing in a slurry, which is then left in settling ponds. They store unwanted solid material in huge mounds on
the property.”
“I think I’ve seen strip mines from airplanes.”
Shivani nodded. “No doubt. The settling ponds and mounds are radioactive but not highly so. It’s all controversial, but the environmentalists aren’t buying assurances from the industry.”
Jake snorted. “I’ve never heard about any of this. What about abandoned mines? Will they be restored?”
“I don’t think so. Some of them belonged to companies that don’t exist anymore.”
An hour later, Jake reached into the bag for another apple.
“Don’t eat my food. If you’re hungry we can stop for an early lunch.”
“No, I’ll wait until I’ve dropped you off.”
The gate was still broken on the entrance road to the mine, and Shivani drove through, turning his head side to side, checking the mirrors. “If I’m right, he won’t be here now. He’ll come after he calls, whenever that is. This is the last place he’d think we might be. On the safe side, keep your eyes peeled.”
Jake leaned forward and peered at the sky. “Dark clouds coming in. It’s going to rain.”
Shivani stopped the car before the turn in the road and got out. He hopped up on the trunk for a moment and reentered the car. “Can’t see anything up there.”
As they approached the processing facility, they saw no signs of life. Shivani drove to the back and turned around. “I believe we’re alone.” He removed an old blanket and a heavy flashlight from the trunk and retrieved his bag of food. “I’m going to need this in there. Another flashlight is in the trunk. It’s bright, so be careful about using it; it could give away your location.”
Jake watched Shivani trudge to an open doorway, then turn and wave before he disappeared through it. As he drove out, he passed a steel stairway with metal treads and flaking yellow paint. The bottom of the stairs ended in tall weeds.
An old road rose over a small hill and out of sight. Jake drove to the top of the hill and looked down on the mine. Just a gigantic hole surrounded by a wide, spiraling earthen ribbon, a road to accommodate large equipment. From a distance, it had a neat, organized appearance, and the turquoise water that filled the bottom of the hole evoked a feeling of a theme park. When Jake spotted an abandoned rock truck at the edge, it looked small, and he realized how enormous the whole thing was. Nearby, huge spoil piles overlooked a waste pond, also turquoise.
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