She stumbled forward through the damp sand. She’d come in via a side entrance and took a quick look at the main entrance. Rocks faced the beach, standing as sentries protecting the cave in high tide. Entering from that direction was virtually impossible, and the person would have to risk getting trapped in rocks to make it in. With high tide, they’d crash over the sharp rocks, ending their life.
Velichko pressed his hand on her back, shoving her toward the wall. “Sit.”
As she lowered her body to the cold ground, she noticed thick metal eyebolts secured into the rock. Did he plan to tie her up here and leave her for the tide to come in? Had he somehow discovered her worst fear, or it was just a coincidence?
Either way, she was faced with water that could end her life. Panic assailed her, and she tried to breathe it away. Tried to remember God had her in His hands. She felt lightheaded and made noises to let him know she couldn’t get her breath.
“Tough,” he said. “You’ll need to work it out.”
Work it out? Work it out? How?
The worst thing that would happen was she’d hyperventilate and pass out. Nothing worse.
She could do this. Just breathe. Even. Slow. Pray.
God, please help me! Please!
The sun was fully up by the time they got the SUV loaded with gear and Riley, Gage, and Trey were prepared to go after Eryn. Trey wished Coop and Jackson could join them, but with the security system down, they had to remain at the compound to protect Hannah and the kids plus the team assets.
Trey shook his hands, his injured arm aching, but he needed to get rid of his jitters. He always had them before an op in the Berets—most guys did—but not like this. Nothing like this.
Please keep Eryn safe. I know I should be trusting you. Funny how I told Eryn to seek you with her whole heart and she’d find you, but man, I’m seeking now, and I don’t feel your presence. Are you there? Watching over her?
He had to be. Trey couldn’t lose her. He couldn’t imagine life without her.
Hah! Now he understood how she felt. She’d gone through the searing pain of losing a spouse, and it had to create an anguish a hundred times worse than tightened Trey’s gut. No wonder she didn’t want to get involved again.
His phone rang, and he startled, but recovered to grab it from his pocket.
“It’s Piper,” he told the others and put her on speaker.
“I’ve got the forwarding address Velichko left at the prison.” She shared an apartment address in Rugged Point. By the time she finished, Gage was already looking it up on his phone. “It’s a rental. We didn’t find phone or utilities in his name, but he could be living with someone and not have a landline.”
“Roger that,” Trey said, his mind going to how they would breach this apartment and rescue Eryn.
“Let me know the minute you find her. Or if you need more help.” Trey disconnected and shoved the phone into his pocket.
“I’ve got the address up on my phone, and we’ll make a plan on the way,” Gage said.
They piled into the SUV. Riley drove, Alex rode shotgun, and Gage sat next to Trey in the second row of seats. Trey’s arm and leg ached beyond description, but he shoved down the pain as Riley got them out of the compound and onto the highway. Alex swiveled to look over the seat.
Gage held out his phone. “This is the 3-D map.”
“Eryn would be proud of you for loading the right map.” Riley glanced in the mirror.
A wry smile crossed Gage’s face. “She would, wouldn’t she.”
“So the map,” Trey said, keeping them on task. “Building looks like an eight-plex with two entrances. Velichko is on the south side of the first floor which makes for an easier breach.”
“Problem is, we don’t even know if he’s there or if there are civilians inside,” Alex said.
Gage looked up. “Then we surveil the place until we do.”
Trey shook his head. “We can’t sit there for hours while he could kill Eryn.”
Gage eyed Trey. “I’m not going to authorize a breach until I know my actions won’t endanger her or a civilian.”
He was right. Of course, he was, but Trey couldn’t think straight right now, and he sure couldn’t imagine sitting inside this vehicle for hours, not knowing what was going on in the apartment. He would get nowhere by arguing, though, so he would table it for now. “We’ll play it by ear.”
He turned his attention back to the map and jabbed his finger on a nearby apartment building. “Riley can take overwatch here. It’ll give him a perfect view of the small window on the front of Velichko’s unit. Hopefully the blinds are open. Patio door’s on the south side. We can park in the front lot, and then one of us takes this door.”
“I’ve got it,” Alex volunteered.
Trey took out his phone. “I’ll look online for floor plans for the complex.”
He located the apartment website and found the layouts. He held out his phone. “They have one- and two-bed units. The entrance for all is through the living room. Bedroom one is to the right. Bedroom two is to the left in a two-bedroom unit. If it’s a one-bed, we have a direct line of sight into the bedroom from the front window.”
“Two-bed will pose a problem,” Gage said.
Trey stabbed a finger at the plan. “It has a window facing the courtyard. It’ll be a risk to expose our location to get that close for a good look, but it can’t be helped.”
“Once we’re clear, we can make a simultaneous breach from the front and the patio door,” Alex pointed out.
“Agreed.” Gage glanced at his watch. “At this time of day, we need to be cognizant of neighbors. One look at us in our gear and our weapons, and they could derail our plan to surprise Velichko.”
Trey nodded and stowed his phone. Plan in place, he settled back to close his eyes and calm his nerves enough to be able to follow the plan and not make a deadly mistake.
Eryn wanted to rest back against the wall, but her arms were wrenched behind her back and secured to an eyebolt mounted low in the thick cave wall, preventing that. Velichko had snugged handcuffs around her wrists and run a thick chain through them and the bolt, then secured it with a padlock. If that wasn’t enough, he added a pair of zip ties, too. He wasn’t taking any chances.
He stood and peered down on her, his narrow lips tipped in a snide smile. “I would be remiss if I left without telling you the plan.”
She didn’t want to know how he planned to kill her, but being gagged and bound, she couldn’t do anything to stop him from tormenting her.
“As much fun as it was playing with you at the resort, watching you run around to try to figure out why someone wanted your classes cancelled when I was just messing with you, today is the real deal. First high tide of the day is in a couple of hours, but the water will begin filling the cave before then. You’ll have plenty of time to sit here and watch the water roll in and think about your upcoming death. Just like the hours I had in prison to think about killing you.” He sneered. “You messed with the wrong man.”
He lifted his shoulders. “Maybe I would’ve cut you some slack, but you had to go all righteous that day you arrested me. Spouting some nonsense about floodgates opening. When high tide rolls in, you’ll know all about an open floodgate.” He laughed, but kept his glazed eyes trained on her.
“And don’t think your buddies are going to find you. I gave the prison a bogus address.” He grinned widely. “They’ll be setting up to bust some poor schmuck who happens to live in that apartment. No way they’ll find you here.”
She wished she could ask how he knew about this location.
“Spent hours here as a kid,” he said as if reading her mind. “My old man was pretty free with his fists. He worked nights so I hid out here during the day. He never did figure out where I went and couldn’t find me. Stupid old man. He tried following me so many times, but I lost him every time. Earned me a beating, but I never talked. Never cracked. I learned the hard way how to take a beating, so if your buddies somehow f
ind me, they can pound me to within an inch of my life, and I won’t tell them where you are.”
He turned to leave then looked back. “You can count on that, Calloway. They’ll never find you. Never!”
Panic flared up, and Eryn almost cried out. Almost pleaded through her gag for him to stay. But he wouldn’t remain here because she asked, and he would only get a kick out of her begging. She wasn’t about to let him have that satisfaction.
As he left, she closed her eyes to stop looking at the waves crashing on the shore and to think. Her only hope of getting out of here was to find something to cut the zip ties and also break the cuffs. But what might she find in the cave?
Sure, Velichko would have removed anything she could use to gain freedom, but maybe something washed in on the evening tide that he didn’t notice.
She opened her eyes and searched the space. A small shell and piece of driftwood lay near the mouth of the cave. They seemed too far away, but she stretched her legs out as far as possible. The muscles in her arms cramped from the time in an unnatural position, and she had to sit back to release the tension and cramps. She remained still until the muscles released and then waited a bit longer for good measure. Only then did she stretch out again. Her foot was so close. Maybe if she took off her shoe, she could bend her foot at the needed angle to capture the items.
She pulled in her leg and used her other foot to remove her shoe, then reached out again. She felt the wood through her sock. If she could remove it, she should be able to grasp it with bare toes. She lifted her leg again. Pushed off her other shoe. Used her other foot to remove her sock. She was gasping for breath by the time she got the wet fabric off and took a moment to relax.
Breathing normally again, she reached out. Grasped the wood. Dragged it closer. Dropped it. Picked it up and moved it close. She braced it against her other leg and rolled it closer until it lay in her lap.
But now what?
She couldn’t get her hands around front. Couldn’t bend and use her teeth. She had to maneuver to the side and dump it near the wall. Then maybe she could reach it.
She shifted slowly, making sure not to lose the stick. She inched closer to the wall. Her arms screamed in agony, her wrists threatened to dislocate, the cold metal cuffs biting into her tender skin. But she continued.
When she could move no closer, she paused to catch her breath then heaved her body sideways. The stick launched into the air and hit the wall.
Yes! She’d done it.
She scrambled around, digging her toes into the cold sand and pushing until she faced as far in the other direction as possible. She reached out with her fingers. Felt the tip of the stick. Pressed on it to flip it her way. She felt it move. Waited for it to hit her hands. Nothing.
No. Oh no. Did she send it in the other direction?
She turned to look. It lay by the wall. Out of her reach.
No. No. She’d failed. Big time. And this failure could cost her life.
26
“We’re a go,” Gage said into their comm unit.
Trey took off from the vehicle, assault rifle out, marching straight to the front door. Alex was already in place in the rear of the building, and Gage trailed Trey while Riley had their backs on overwatch. Trey stepped to the side, and Gage inserted the breaching tool in the metal door’s jamb. He lifted then put his shoulder under the tool and pressed up. The door swung free.
Trey shot inside. Alex had picked the patio door lock and he ripped it open to enter. They met in a small living area. The space was clear. Too clear. Not a scrap of furniture in sight.
Still, they continued on. Trey led. Alex fell in second, and Gage took up the rear. They cleared the kitchen. The bathroom. The single bedroom and closet.
Trey sighed out his adrenaline. “You guys thinking what I’m thinking?”
“Not Velichko’s place,” Alex said.
Gage frowned. “He must’ve given a false address at the prison.”
“Early release means he’s still technically serving his sentence, just outside the prison walls,” Trey said. “So he has to know that if he gets caught lying, it’s an immediate return to prison.”
Gage met Trey’s gaze. “Then I’d say he doesn’t plan on getting caught.”
Trey eyed Gage. “You mean he plans to disappear.”
“Sounds like it.”
“Then we need to alert the authorities to be on the lookout for him at transit points.”
Gage got out his phone. “I’ll call Blake. Get him on it, while you two figure out where we go from here.”
“I’m calling Piper.” Trey pulled out his phone and dialed. “Velichko played us.” He explained. “I want to know everything you know about him.”
“Starting where?”
“The beginning.” Trey rested against the counter, but was too antsy to stay in one place, so he started pacing instead.
“Mom took off when he was in grade school,” Piper said. “He lived with a dad who beat him. Spent some time in foster care but was ultimately returned to the dad.”
“Where did he grow up?”
“Rugged Point. Dad was a commercial fisherman until he got hurt then he was a night watchman at one of the fisheries. Dad owned a small house on the beach, and that’s where we located Velichko after he got cocky, made a mistake, and Eryn tracked him.”
“So he lived his whole life in Rugged Point?”
“Yeah. In middle school, a computer teacher took an interest in him, and he got involved in computers. He worked a legit job as a repair tech at a local computer store until it closed. Then he dropped out of sight.”
“Sounds like we need to visit his old house.”
“But he sold it.”
“Was forced to sell it,” Trey clarified. “Doesn’t mean he doesn’t still think the place is his and took it back.”
“You may have a point,” she said and gave him the address on Beach Way in Rugged Point. “While you check the place out, I’ll listen to our old interviews with him. Maybe he said something that’ll help.”
Trey hung up and filled Alex and Gage in on his conversation. “We need to check out the house.”
Gage frowned. “Breaching this door is going to cost me. Maybe the complex will press charges, too, so we’re not going in there guns blazing.”
“Let’s move,” Trey said, without agreeing to Gage’s terms.
If Trey had to breach that place, he would and wouldn’t think twice about it. And when push came to shove, he knew Gage would do the same thing. He was just trying to warn them not to be stupid.
In the car, Gage called the apartment complex management and explained their breach. He held the phone away from his ear, and Trey could hear the man on the other end of the call shouting. When he calmed, Gage said, “I’ll pay to repair the damage and make the trouble worth your while. Perhaps you can tell me who the apartment is registered to.”
He answered but Trey couldn’t make out his response.
“Thank you.” Gage tapped his phone and sighed out a long breath. “That’s gonna cost me.”
“I’ll pay for it,” Trey said. “Was the place leased to Velichko?”
“No. Vacant.”
“He is planning to disappear, then.” Trey didn’t like that thought. Didn’t like it at all. “He could be taking Eryn with him, and we’ll never find her.”
“Hey, man,” Gage said. “Don’t talk like that. We’ll find her. Besides she’s resourceful. She may already be free.”
It was obvious Gage was trying to make Trey feel better, but there was no validity to his claim. Because if Eryn was free, she’d have found a way to contact them.
So Trey didn’t feel better. Not one bit.
Eryn may have bungled the driftwood, but she had to try for the seashell. It wouldn’t help free her from the cuffs, but she might be able to slice through the zip ties and gain more flexibility to go for the stick again.
She twisted and stretched her body until she gripped the ragged she
ll between her toes. The sharp edge bit into her tender flesh, but she held tight. Instead of trying to move it up her leg, which she doubted she could succeed at, she lifted her foot and flicked the shell against the wall. It dropped down next to her.
Yes! Yes! Her first real break.
She picked up the shell, her torn fingertips stinging, but she didn’t care. She turned the jagged edge toward the zip tie and started sawing. The shell was thick and strong and it didn’t crumble.
Thank you, God!
She sawed, her fingers growing tired. Her hand slipped, and she sliced into her arm. Pain radiated through her. She felt the stickiness of blood. Remembered Trey’s blood on her hands.
Please don’t let this be a serious cut. I want to live. Want to be there for Trey. With Trey. Him and Bekah. A family. If You’ll only let me. I’m no longer afraid of losing him. I love him and need him in my life.
Rejuvenated, she concentrated on her hand. The blood flow seemed to be slowing. She would rest for a few minutes and try again. She closed her eyes and heard male voices nearby, coming closer. She opened her eyes, mouthed help, but it was a muffled sound. She kicked her feet to make noise, the sand absorbing every sound.
“Velichko’s not here,” the man said. “Was a long shot.”
Trey. Was that Trey? Had he come to find her?
“And no Eryn,” he added, sounding so sad her heart split.
“Trey. Trey. I’m here,” she called out to no avail. “Right here in the cave. Come look. Please. Please don’t leave.”
“We should get back to the compound and regroup,” Gage said.
“Gage!” she tried to scream. “I’m here.”
“You’re right. Let’s go.” Trey’s voice was so dejected. “I can check in with Piper again, and maybe she’s thought of something else.”
Eryn listened. Heard footsteps. Receding footsteps rustling through grass.
They’d been so close. Now they were gone. Gone!
No. Not this. They would check this place off their list and had no reason to come back here again.
Cold Case Page 24