“There is more to this, Charlie. He might have been trying to sell her to the highest bidder. Someone must have contacted him after we took her away from him and either he wants her back to collect the money, or someone already paid and he needs to get her back.”
Charles looked at him. “Robert, what are you talking about. What do you know that I don’t know?”
“Sorry Charlie. Agent Adams called a while ago, I guess Mack called him and told him what was going on with Jackie. He said that there have been a lot of shifter disappearances lately; mostly female shifters in their late twenties to early thirties. It’s what he’s been working on. I think that’s why he had to leave so suddenly after Mack’s wedding. Anyway, they’re being sold to rich bastards that like to have a novelty. Nothing like having a pet on a leash that can turn into a fuck. Not willingly, mind you. Sorry Jackie.”
“That’s okay, don’t worry about it. So, what do we do now and who is Agent Adams?
“Agent Adams is an FBI agent with a special shifter squad out of Seattle. His team is made up of handpicked shifters. They just solved a case involving the mate of a really good friend of ours.” Charles told her. “Our friend is a cougar shifter and his mate is human.”
Jackie shook her head. “I think I went to sleep and woke up in a parallel world. How long have shifters been around?”
“As long as humans, sweetheart, maybe longer. We’ve spent most of our time keeping a low profile, but things like this happen. Someone comes along and thinks we’re some kind of sideshow or lab rat. The government used to come after us, but now we work together. The government, just recently, classified us top secret. If anything about us pops up in the news, it’s quickly covered up. It gets reported as a figment of one’s imagination or something.”
“When something like this is going on, the perpetrators try to keep it hush, hush, like illegal cock fights.” Robert added. “It’s a new kind of black market sex trade.”
“And you think that trucker sold me to someone else and now that individual has come to collect me?” Both Charles and Robert nodded their heads. “So, what do we do now?”
*****
Before they could answer, there was a knock at the door. Robert held up his hand for them to be quiet and went to the door.
“Agent Adams! How in the hell do you get around so quick? Come on in, anyone with you?” Robert asked.
“My whole crew. They can stay outside; they can hear everything that is said.” He pointed to his collar where there was a small pin. “I’d like Galen to join us, if that’s alright?”
“You’re telling me that little pin is a mic?” Luke nodded. “Of course Galen can come in, they all can if you want.”
“No, that’s alright. You said someone had been around here that didn’t belong?” Luke asked.
“That’s putting it politely, yes there was.”
“You fellows know what to do, come ahead Galen.” Robert realized he was talking to his crew. Galen came up to stand beside Luke.
Robert opened the door and let the two agents in. “Have you had dinner? We were just having ours.”
“Thank you, we’ve eaten. I could use some coffee if you have some?”
Jackie had already started a fresh pot of coffee when she heard them talking. She would make sure who ever was outside would also get some.
Robert showed Luke and Galen into the dining room. Charles got up and shook their hands. “I certainly didn’t expect to see you again so soon. Jackie, this is Agent Luke Adams and his pilot Galen. Sorry Galen, I don’t think anyone ever told me your last name?”
“Galen is fine.” He replied.
“Pleasure to meet you, Jackie.” Luke said as he removed his sunglasses and shook her hand.
“I’ll have coffee ready for you in a few minutes. Nice to meet both of you.” Jackie got up to get cups for the agents and cleared the dinner plates from the table. Luke and Galen sat down.
“So tell me Agent Adams, what is this all about?” Charles asked.
“Call me Luke, please. I think we can work using first names. Let’s start with Jackie’s story. Tell me everything. I want to know about Jackie, the truck driver and all that has happened since then.”
Jackie came back to the table with coffee for them all and a piece of Honey cake for each of them. Charles sniffed the cake. “Is that what I think it is? Honey cake? When in the world did you find time to make this?”
Jackie smile. “I made it one of the days you were gone when I was making homemade ice cream. Do you know how many jars of honey you have in the pantry?”
“Yes, I do. That’s because I’m a bear and I love honey.” Charles chuckled. He reached for her and pulled her to him. “Next to your honey, of course.” That made Jackie blush and slap his hand away. “Luke, I think Jackie should tell you everything she knows and then we’ll take it from there.” Luke agreed.
Jackie sat down and told Luke everything that lead up to her being sold to the trucker. Both Charles and Robert had heard her story, but there were a few little things she remembered that she hadn’t remembered before. Little things about how her uncle behaved. Things he said that might have given Jackie a hint of what was about to happen. Luke and Charles both asked her questions.
“Now tell me about the trucker, try to remember where he went and what stops he made.” Luke asked.
“I was stuck in that truck at least three weeks; I can’t remember all the stops.”
“What if we had a map? You could show me where it was when you were first picked up. We’ll go from there. We’ll mark all the places you can remember and maybe it will give us a pattern.” Luke told Galen to go get a map.
They spent the next hour going over a map, marking all the stops Jackie could remember. When they took a short break, Jackie took Honey cake and coffee out on the porch so the other men could have some. When she came back in, Luke watched her.
“I hope it was alright to take coffee and cake out to your other men, Agent Adams?”
It suddenly dawned on him that she was talking to him. “I’m sorry Jackie, I was thinking of something. What did you say?”
“I hope you don’t mind me taking cake and coffee out to your other men.”
“Not at all, I’m sure they will appreciate it. That cake was wonderful, best I’ve ever had. I don’t recall ever having Honey cake quite like that before. Thank you, it was a real treat.”
“Thank you, it was one of my aunt’s secret recipes.”
Galen and Luke got back to work looking over the map. Jackie showed him all the places she could remember. Galen asked her how often they went to the same stop more than once. It appeared that the driver had a regular route, but there were two stops that seemed to be out of the way and not part of his regular schedule.
“Jackie, do you remember anything different about these two stops?” Luke asked. Galen googled the stops on his computer so she could see what they looked like.
“The first one doesn’t, wait, that’s the stop where he got so mad. The one he said was the end of the line. He came back mad and said they didn’t believe him and wouldn’t pay him.”
“What about the other one?” Luke asked.
“I never made it back to that one. That was the next stop after the one Charles and Robert picked me up at.” She took in a sharp breath. “He was going to sell me there, wasn’t he? Oh, my god, if Charles hadn’t rescued me when he did.” Jackie had to sit down.
Charles brought her a glass of water. “Are you okay?” She shook her head yes.
“Jackie, I can’t start to tell you how helpful you’ve been. We have been working on this case for months. This whole area,” Luke made a circle on the map that took in five states, “is where most of our missing shifter reports have been.”
Charles looked at Luke. “How many?”
“So far, seven young women that we know of, and three young men.” Luke answered. Charles was shocked.
“What can we do to help?” Jackie asked.
“And they fight to the death?” Jackie asked.
“I’m afraid so. Unfortunately, they already know where you are, they’ll be back. My guess is, someone over heard that trucker trying to sell you. The word went out that a trucker had a shifter for sale.”
“But how did they know where to find her, Luke.? That trucker didn’t look smart enough to put a bug on her, he just wanted to turn a quick buck. He never let her out of the truck.” Robert asked.
“Jackie, how many stops were made between those two. From the time he got mad.” Luke asked.
Jackie looked at the map again. “Charles’ stop was the fourth one after he got pissed off because they wouldn’t pay him. Why?”
“That was more than enough time to put out the word and have someone watching for that trucker. Someone witnessed the exchange between Charles and the trucker and then had someone follow you until they could decide how to proceed.” Luke said. “My guess is that someone prepaid for Jackie and the trucker wasn’t aware of it and he was just transporting her. He was just trying to make a quick buck which he did at your expense.”
“I’m not sorry. Saving Jackie was worth it.” Charles said.
“What about my uncle, he must have known someone?”
“We’ll check him out too. Somehow he was able to connect with buyers. I need to go and visit Jackie’s uncle.”
“We’re going with you.” Luke looked at Charles and Jackie and gave a nod.
Chapter 16
The next morning Luke’s crew left for Bend, Oregon. Charles decided that he and Jackie would follow in the Hummer, rather than ride in the helicopter; it was about an eleven-hour drive. Charles and Jackie left later in the day and planned to spend the night in Boise, Idaho. They would leave there early the next morning so they would arrive in Bend before noon.
They planned on collecting all of Jackie’s belongings while they were there and needed the truck to bring her things home. Robert stayed home to keep an eye on things there, just in case the intruder returned looking for Jackie.
The next day, the closer Charles and Jackie got to her uncle’s home, the more nervous she got. She started to get fidgety. “Relax, sweetheart, I won’t let anything happen to you. I promise.” He reached for her to scoot over and snuggle up to him. She changed her seatbelt so they wouldn’t get a ticket.
They stopped a few miles from their destination. They needed to take a break and get something to eat. They stayed away from all the truck stops.
They had just gotten back in the Hummer when Charles phone rang. Caller ID told him it was Agent Adams. “Hey, Luke. We’re just outside of town. We should be there shortly. Are you at her uncle’s house?”
“Not yet. I have some bad news. Her uncle is dead.” Luke told him. Charles didn’t say anything, he just listened. “We checked in with the local sheriff when we got here and he gave us the news. He was found out on the highway, supposedly a hit and run. The report reads that he was drunk, walking on the highway and must have gotten hit by a semi.”
“Imagine that,” was the only thing Charles could say. “Are you at the house or the Sheriff’s office?” Jackie gave him a questioning look.
“We are heading over to the house now. Maybe you should wait until we give you a call.” Luke told him.
Charles thought about it for a second. “No, I think we’ll meet you there. The sooner this is over, the better. Anything about the human traffickers?”
“The sheriff doesn’t know anything about that and I’m not sure he’s up on shifters, but he does have a couple of recent missing person reports, as recent as this past week. This is the closest we have ever gotten. We’ll meet you at the house.” Luke hung up.
Charles didn’t know what to say. He was quiet.
“What is it?” Jackie asked. “Have they talked to my uncle?”
“Sweetheart, your uncle is dead. Sheriff said he was drunk and got hit on the highway. A hit-and-run.” Jackie’s eyes welled up with tears.
“He can’t be dead. He was the only family I had left. I know I said I hated him, but I didn’t want this.” Charles pulled her into his arms and held her while she cried. “Why would they do this. I know it wasn’t a hit-and-run. They were looking for me, weren’t they?”
“I don’t know, but it wouldn’t surprise me. Luke is headed over to your uncle’s house. He wanted us to wait, but I think we should go and get it over with. Then we can head home.”
She wiped her eyes and nodded to agree. She blew her nose and took a deep breath. “I agree, let’s get this over and done. I don’t care what they do with any of his stuff, I just want to get what is mine and get out of this town forever.”
They drove to her uncle’s house. There were FBI agents and sheriffs everywhere. “Jackie, stay here and lock the doors. Let me talk to Luke and the sheriff and then I’ll come and get you.” He gave her a kiss and told her he would be right back. He got out and went to talk to Luke.
Jackie locked the door and watched what was going on. As she sat there, she looked around the area that used to be her home. It had become run down since her aunt passed away. Her uncle didn’t care anymore and stopped taking care of the place. “Well, hopefully they are happily together again,” she thought to herself. “No, she’s in Heaven, the only place he was going was Hell.” She let out a long sigh.
Someone rattled the passenger door handle, it made Jackie jump. When she looked to see who it was, she saw a man crouched down, trying to open the door. She didn’t dare get out, she needed Charles. Jackie hit the horn and held it. Everyone turned to see what was wrong and saw Jackie waving frantically. As Charles ran to the Hummer, the man behind it jumped up and tried to run away. He didn’t get far before he was apprehended by FBI agents and taken into custody.
Charles told Jackie to unlock the door. When he opened it, she jumped into his arms. “Oh my god, Charles. He was trying to get into the truck. He was trying to get to me.”
“I know, baby. You’re safe, I have you. Come on, let’s go get your stuff and get out of here.” As they walked to the house, Jackie looked at the man they had caught. She stopped and took a good look at him.
“I know that man, he used to work with my uncle.”
Charles called Luke over to talk to Jackie. “Luke, Jackie knows that man.”
Luke asked Jackie a few questions, then headed back to interrogate the man, but he stopped. He went to his vehicle and grabbed a folder and walked back to Jackie. “Jackie?” he opened the folder. “Do you know Elizabeth Bower or Franny Cox?
“Yes, I do. I went to school with both of them. In fact, that man you have there is Mr. Cox, Franny’s stepfather.” She looked over at the man. “Why?”
“Well, they have been reported missing by their families. Did you know they were shifters?” Luke asked.
Jackie went weak in the knees and Charles had to catch her. He scooped her up into his arms and carried her into the house. He set her on the sofa in the living room. Luke followed them into the house. Jackie was as white as a sheet.
“Sweetheart, put your head down between your knees, you look like you’re going to pass out.” He sat beside her and rubbed her back. “It’s okay, I’m right here. I won’t leave you.”
Jackie reached her arm around his leg and rested her head against his knee. Luke got her a glass of water. When her color returned, she slowly sat up. Luke handed her the water.
“So, you obviously didn’t know they were shifters.”
“Luke, Jackie didn’t know she was a shifter until a week ago.” He let her rest her head on his lap.
“What?”
“She didn’t even know what a shifter was until she met Robert and me. She thought she was some kind of freak. Not only that, she didn’t know how
to shift. She has only learned in the last few days.”
“Charles, can I speak to you outside for a moment?” Charles let Jackie lean against the back of the sofa.
“Don’t go anywhere, I’ll be right back.” Charles walked outside, but stayed where he could see Jackie.
“I hate to say this, but if you hadn’t found Jackie when you did, she would probably be dead by now. We understand that if any of these young women are unable to shift when they’re told, they are beaten until either they shift or die. I was hoping Jackie could tell me what kind of shifters these other women were.”
“Were? Let’s be a bit more positive, Luke. Wherever these girls are, let’s hope they are still alive. And no matter what, don’t say anything like that in front of Jackie, please.” With that, Charles went back to Jackie and Luke went back to see how far they had gotten with the prisoner.
Charles went in and sat next to Jackie and pulled her into his arms. “Hey, sweetheart, are you okay?” She nodded. “You want to get your stuff and get out of here?”
“Yes.” She said quietly. “The sooner the better.”
They went into her room and Jackie was amazed that it was exactly the way she left it. Nothing had been touched or moved. She was sure her uncle would have torn the room apart looking for money or valuables that he could sell to buy liquor.
“Wow, he didn’t touch a thing.” Tears started to stream down her face as she leaned into Charles and sobbed. “Why, Charles. Why would he care about this if he cared so little about what happened to me?”
“I don’t know, sweetheart, but we’re going to find out. Do you need something to put your stuff in?”
“I’m sure there are some trash bags around here somewhere, I’ll just throw everything into bags. It won’t take me long.” She found a purse in the closet and put what jewelry and valuables she had that her aunt had given her, inside it. She pulled a teddy bear down from the shelf in the closet; it had a zipper in the back. Jackie unzipped it and found all the money she had saved. There was a small box next to the bear on the shelf, but she couldn’t reach it. Just as she was about to give up, Charles reached over her head and got the box and handed it to her.
Bearly Saved My Heart: Quake Lake Bears (Madison Range Shifters Book 1) Page 8