Lost Girls: A gripping thriller that will have you hooked (Ben Forrester FBI Thrillers Book 1)

by Jon Mills

  Don’t kill her…. Don’t…

  Ben hurdled over a sun-bleached log and vaulted into the dark forest. He stared intensely ahead trying to make out what direction to go in. The tall pines created a canopy that strained light sporadically on the ground beneath him, making it difficult to navigate over the rough terrain.

  Chapter 54

  Chloe fled through the forest, stumbling over tree roots and hidden rocks.

  Wheezing, she ducked behind a tree, desperate to catch her breath. Her heart was smashing against her chest as she listened to him calling out to her.

  “Chloe, this could have ended differently.”

  He wasn’t going to stop coming after her, and if he caught her she was dead. Her foot stepped on a collection of small dead tree limbs laying nearby. The snap was followed by a crack of a gun as he fired and tree bark exploded near her face.

  Rising, she hit the ground running. Threading in and out of trees, stumbling forward and limping on in excruciating pain, she couldn’t tell if she was going further in or looping back around. Every direction looked the same. Her injured thigh was screaming for her to stop running, but she couldn’t. More difficult than moving forward was trying to control her panic.

  She felt like an animal being hunted.

  Another gunshot.

  Her mind spun into overdrive. He was aiming at her. The thought of being shot again, or worse — being caught by him — chilled her.

  So many thoughts rushed through her mind as she considered these could be her final moments alive. All the things she hadn’t said to her father. The times spent with her mother and Adam. That was all that mattered to her. Not what she wanted to become. Not what she didn’t have in her life; only her family.

  She was so preoccupied by zipping around trees and dodging a flurry of bullets that she wasn’t paying attention to what lay ahead. Acting entirely on the will to survive, she vaulted over a log while casting a glance behind her. It was a huge mistake. The ground disappeared beneath and she let out a cry. Landing, she slipped down a steep, mossy incline, grasping for anything to slow her descent. Head over heels she twisted and turned, flattening thin upright plants, saplings, and brambles until she crashed into a tree trunk. Her face bruised and cut, she gripped her side certain that a rib had broken. Each inhale was as painful as the next.

  I have to hide... I need to catch my breath… just a few seconds… Dazed, she crawled on her belly, clawing at the wet soil until she made it behind a large boulder. Above, further up the slope, she heard him getting closer. The sound of undergrowth rustling, and rage could be heard.

  “There’s nowhere to hide, Chloe. I will find you.”

  In the silence of the forest his voice seemed louder than it should. Wherever she was, there couldn’t have been other homes nearby. It would’ve been a huge risk chasing a woman and yelling. She squeezed her mouth closed trying to stop her hot breath from giving away her location. The heavy rain turned the ground into mush. She waited until his footsteps moved on before she ventured out. Even then she was hesitant to move.

  Frozen, exhausted, and applying pressure to her wound, she knew if she didn’t get out of this forest she would likely bleed to death. Planting her good leg, she pushed on and scrambled up the embankment, crunching underbrush and pulling on tree roots to get her to the top.

  She had only got maybe twenty feet before a hand grabbed her. Her muffled cry was silenced instantly. Her eyes bulged for a few seconds with a sense of dread that he had her.

  “Quiet, Chloe.”

  “Dad?”

  Chapter 55

  For Ben and Chloe, the reunion was short-lived. There was so much that he wanted to say but there was no time. With his back pressed against a trunk he kept a firm grip on her as he risked a glance around the tree.

  “Now listen to me carefully. There is a SWAT team back at the house. In a minute I want you to run.”

  She nodded, understanding the gravity of the situation. Ben could see Danvers in the distance, searching the forest. Once he saw him disappear down an incline he released his grip.

  “Don’t stop. Don’t look back. No matter what, you get to them. Now go. Run!”

  Chloe bolted, partially limping. He saw the wound and felt an uncontrollable anger. He kept his eyes on Danvers, only glancing a couple of times to make sure Chloe was still moving. Satisfied, he stepped out from behind the tree and approached Danvers. When he got within twenty yards and had him fixed within his sights, Danvers wheeled around.

  “Put it down,” Ben said. “It’s over.”

  He chuckled a little, glancing around the forest as though he was checking to see if there were any others. “That kid of yours is strong, Ben. She’d make a good cop.”

  Ben didn’t reply. All he focused on was the gun in his hand.

  “Tell me, how did you find out?”

  “You, Douglas, and Ted were at every crime scene. You were the only ones who could get close to them without campers batting an eye. You abused your position of authority. Covered up, pushed the investigation in the direction you wanted it go. You had Douglas come in. You called in that abduction after you told Ted to grab another. You shot Ted and placed Douglas in that cell knowing full well he would kill himself. Or perhaps you did it?”

  “You are reaching. All circumstantial.”

  “Is it? We’ll let the court decide. I’m certain the partial print from the cell phone will show up as yours. The Hayes girl and my own daughter I’m sure will give them more than enough details to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you were involved. There’s DNA, testimonies, and a hunting photo showing your connection with them. No matter how you look at this, you are going away for a long time, you sick bastard.”

  Danvers snorted before lowering his sidearm. He nodded slowly and got this faraway look in his eyes as if he was taking one final look at freedom.

  “You sanctimonious prick. Don’t tell me that you wouldn’t have done the same in my position,” Danvers said.

  Shifting blame. It was always the same.

  “You want to know why?”

  “No. No, I stopped needing to know a long time ago. You’re all the same. Monsters.”

  Flanking him, several of the SWAT team arrived.

  He smirked and gave a curt bow upon seeing them. He looked up and inhaled deeply. “Back at the station, you said I wasn’t prepared to do what was necessary.”

  “Put the gun down, Danvers,” Ben repeated.

  Brandishing his weapon, he jabbed it at the ground to drive home his point.

  “I’m the only one who is prepared to do what is necessary.”

  Suddenly, in that instant Ben saw his hand wheeling up. Before Danvers could pull the trigger, Ben unloaded three rounds in his chest and one in the head.

  He flew backwards, landing hard. Then there was silence. It was finally over.

  The decision to go out shooting instead of handing himself in might not have been smart, but his life was over. Danvers knew he wouldn’t have survived inside a lockup. Two SWAT guys moved in on him while Ben turned to see Chloe standing nearby with the others. Tears streaked as he rushed over and gripped her tightly.

  She held onto him for dear life, sobbing into his neck. She might have been seventeen, but she was still his little girl. That would never change.

  Epilogue

  Ben sat down on his private dock, sunglasses pushed back and his feet dangling in the cool bay water. He was enjoying the last few days of summer. A warm band of sunshine bathed his face as he breathed in the salty air. The leaves had already begun to change into golden colors. Lobster boats bobbed up and down in the harbor, fishermen occasionally waved to one another.

  He’d grown fond of Eden Falls. The quiet, laid-back community had welcomed him. Though it had been tainted by murder and the shock of a police chief’s involvement, things were starting to return to normal. The media had finally moved on to a new story. Phone calls for interviews had become less frequent and Chloe was begi
nning to smile again.

  He settled back on the palms of his hands, basking in the beauty of Maine’s coast — its rugged shoreline, and the orange sun dipping beyond the horizon.

  He could get used to this if it stayed this way but it wouldn’t.

  It would soon turn cold. A thick blanket of snow and ice would arrive, and with that would come the need to shovel driveways, put on winter tires, and deal with below-zero temperatures. That was something he wasn’t used to, coming from Florida. The very thought gave him a chill.

  Perhaps he would spend his winters in Florida. He still had a place to stay. Instead of selling the small property in the Keys, he’d used it as a timeshare. It was another source of income and it gave them a reason to go back. Something they hadn’t done since the death of his wife and son. Besides, Nate was still hounding him to return to the bureau.

  But for Ben that was behind him. He wanted a slower pace of life and this gave him that.

  Behind him he heard footsteps approaching. He twisted around to see Dakota Woods holding two bottles of beer. He’d invited her over for a BBQ. Janice and a few of Chloe’s friends had shown up. She was dressed in shorts, T-shirt, and flip-flops.

  “That beer I owe you.”

  He removed his shades, giving a small boyish grin.

  “Isn’t that from my fridge?”

  “Yeah. Don’t ever say I’m not resourceful.” She smirked and took a seat beside him. He placed his beer down. Beads of condensation formed a ring on the wooden dock.

  “So you didn’t take Nate up on his offer, I see.”

  “No, I thought I would stick around a while.”

  “And step on the next chief’s toes?”

  “Someone’s got to do it. By the way, has the town manager made a decision yet?”

  “Not so far. I don’t think they are in a rush this time.” She paused to sip from her bottle. “Maybe you should apply.”

  He chuckled. “Me?”

  “Why not? You’ve got experience.”

  “You got to be joking. I’m no one’s whipping boy. Especially a bunch of uptight council members.”

  “Oh, there’s good benefits.”

  He laughed. “I think I’ll stick to teaching.”

  “How’s Chloe?” she asked.

  Ben watched a group of seagulls break from the water. “She’s getting better. Her leg is healing up nicely.”

  “Therapy?” Dakota asked.

  “Yeah, still once a week with Dr. Rose.”

  “You like Emily?”

  He shot her a sideways glance. “Who’s asking?”

  “Oh, enquiring minds. You know how this town is, everyone loves to gossip.”

  He hesitated before replying. “Maybe I’m interested in someone else.”

  “Really? Do tell.”

  “No, a man has to have some secrets. By the way, how’s your shoulder?”

  She sipped her beer. “Oh it’s still giving me a few aches. Next time, you can take the bullet.”

  “There won’t be a next time.”

  She laughed. “Forrester, of course there will. It’s in your blood.”

  “Ben.”

  “I’ll call you that when you stop calling me Woods.”

  “Kind of goes well, don’t you think?” he asked.

  “What?”

  “The whole Woods and Forrester. Has a ring to it.”

  “Yeah, maybe we should start a traveling circus.”

  They both laughed.

  A week later, Ben was reading out in the sunroom when Chloe came in.

  “You’re back early?”

  “Decided I would stay in for the night,” she replied.

  “Yeah? And do what?”

  “Watch a movie with you. Maybe we can pick out an old ’80s flick.”

  She had always loved them. Something about that era suited her. Ben told her she should have grown up in the ’80s.

  “Sounds like a plan. I’ll wrestle us up some popcorn, you find the movie.”

  Ben went out to the kitchen and rooted through the cupboard for the box of popcorn. His eyes fell on a bottle of scotch on the counter. His mouth watered and for a few seconds he considered having a glass. He gave it a rain check. He hadn’t given it up, but he was trying to wean himself off it. At least, to the point of where he wasn’t relying on it to cope.

  He hadn’t heard from Henri Bruns since the calls he’d received while investigating.

  Occasionally the phone would ring in the night but it was usually a telemarketer. It still bothered him to know that he was out there. But some part of him got a feeling that Bruns wouldn’t show his face or come after him or his daughter. Not because he respected Ben or even admired him, but he wouldn’t risk getting caught. That’s what made him different to others. He wasn’t in it for the fame. He wasn’t trying to rack up a body count so he could boast in prison. Had Ben not stumbled across his heinous acts, he would have still been taking women in the Everglades.

  Was it over between them? Only time would tell. Nate had suggested moving again but where would that get him? If Bruns wanted to kill him, he would have done it by now. As it stood, Ben wasn’t going to let him or anyone rob him of enjoying life.

  He poured some ice tea and listened to the popcorn explode inside the microwave like firecrackers. The aroma of butter reaching his nostrils made his stomach grumble. He glanced at the photo of Elizabeth and Adam. He missed them. Both of them did.

  Carrying out the popcorn in a large bowl and juggling two glasses, he heard a knock at the door. Chloe bolted up and answered it.

  “Dad, it’s for you.”

  Ben shuffled out to find Dakota standing in the doorway with a police file in her hand.

  “There’s been a murder, you think you can look this over?”

  “Please tell me it’s not related to the last case?”

  “No, this is something entirely different.”

  He squeezed the bridge of his nose, feeling a headache coming on. “Come on in, Woods.”

  THANK YOU FOR READING

  Lost Girls

  Please take a second to leave a review, it’s really appreciated. Thanks kindly, Jon.

  A Plea

  Thank you for reading Lost Girls. If you enjoyed the book, I would really appreciate it if you would consider leaving a review. I can’t stress how helpful this is in helping other readers decide if they should give it a shot. Reviews from readers like you are the best recommendation a book can have. Without reviews, an author’s books are virtually invisible on the retail sites. It also lets me know what you liked. You can leave a review by visiting the book’s page. I would greatly appreciate it. It only takes a couple of seconds.

  Thank you — Jon Mills

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  Jon Mills

  Jon Mills is originally from England but now resides in Canada. He is the author of The Debt Collector series, The Promise, and the Undisclosed Trilogy. He also writes under many other pen names. To get more information about upcoming books or if you wish to get in touch with Jon, you can do so using the following contact information:

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