Rowan held her breath, waiting to see if Evan was going to lose his temper. Thankfully, he murmured a thank-you to the chief, took the bread and then he headed for the mobile van which had arrived early that morning from a nearby FBI office. The van was equipped with all the communication equipment necessary to stay in touch with Hendrick and anyone else they might need to bring this to an end. Rowan was even more grateful that the chief didn’t follow Evan, but instead headed back to his squad car.
Chapter Three
Evan had managed to keep his emotions in check and off the fact that Annalise, the woman he had once been deeply in love with, was one of the hostages.
When they had gone in to get the deceased and she’d suddenly appeared, pushing the injured Belinda Baker into their arms, he’d wanted to reach in and grab her out of there, as well.
Then she’d been yanked backward by her hair and out of sight, and Evan had fought against a blinding rage and fear for her. He’d been surprised by the bravery she’d shown to get a fellow teacher help, but he could only hope she was okay now.
In that instant of seeing her again, with her long blond hair loose around her face and her piercing green eyes holding a desperate appeal, he’d wanted to scream to her to run to the safety of his arms.
Annalise had been the second most devastating loss in his life. The first one had forever changed who he was at his core. Losing Annalise, though, had left deep scars on his heart, scars that even after all this time had yet to completely heal.
His mind snapped into sharper focus. He couldn’t think about the past right now. He had a job to do that would need his careful attention if the hostages had any hope of walking out unharmed from the horrible situation they were in.
The Brotherhood of Jacob...the name rang a vague bell in his head, but he couldn’t access why. At least he finally might gain some information to help him negotiate a way out for those inside.
He hurried to the mobile van, and once inside he tapped on the keys of one of the computers and Hendrick appeared on the screen.
“Evan, talk to me, man,” Hendrick said.
“I need you to drop all the other searches you’re doing right now and find out everything you can on the Brotherhood of Jacob,” Evan replied.
“On it,” Hendrick replied, and Evan could hear the immediate clacking of computer keys. He left the van, knowing Hendrick would text him to let him know when he had the information to share.
When they’d gone in to get the deceased, he’d tried to gather as much information as he could. He’d counted six men—maybe seven—and one woman in the lobby, more than enough to guard the two doors in the building. Each one had been armed with either long guns or pistols. They definitely had plenty of firepower.
He returned to his position next to the patrol car and pulled out his phone. At least with Annalise’s number, they now had a way to communicate with somebody on the inside. He punched in the number Annalise had given to the authorities and then texted.
Annalise this is Evan. I know you can’t answer your phone. Whatever information you can get out to us will be helpful. Let us know you are all ok. We have a whole team working to get you all out safely.
He hesitated a moment and then added, Remember the moon.
He hit the send button and then cursed himself. Why had he felt the need to add that last line? He told himself it was because he wanted her to think of something happy, if only for a moment, while being held hostage.
He believed she had been happy on the night they had shared a midnight picnic in his backyard beneath a full moon. He frowned as another image filled his head and he remembered that moment when she’d been pulled by her hair out of the school lobby.
Was she okay? Had she been badly beaten or worse? Before he could continue with these dark thoughts, he picked up the bullhorn. “People in the school...will you tell me why you’re here and what you want so we can bring this situation to a successful end for all of us?”
“People are trying to sleep. I don’t want to hear you yapping all night long,” the familiar deep voice yelled out the window. “We had to listen to the damned phone ringing all last night. I don’t want to hear anything tonight.”
“If you walk out of there right now, we can offer you comfortable beds for the remainder of the night,” Evan replied. Of course those beds would be in a jail cell.
“Nobody is walking out.”
“Can you tell me what you want? I’d really like to work with you,” Evan said.
“If you want to work with me, then leave the area. Get all the police out of here.”
“You know I can’t do that,” Evan replied. “Maybe if you release a hostage or two—or at least the children—we could see about moving some people back.”
“I’m done talking to you for the night.” Gunfire punctuated the words.
Evan cursed. The man was so unpredictable and so uncooperative. He turned and smiled grimly at Daniel as the FBI sniper approached him.
“I’ve got a spot behind that tree over there where I have a perfect visual of the window where the boss man is located. But he’s been very good at staying out of the line of fire,” Daniel said. “He’s obviously savvy enough to expect a sniper.”
“Right now I’m not ready for you to deliver a kill shot,” Evan replied. “I’m still hoping I can negotiate everyone out of there. I now have some information that might move things forward.”
“I just wanted to let you know I’m set up and ready. Sooner or later he’ll make a mistake and I’ll get my shot. All I need from you is the go-ahead.”
Evan clapped Daniel on the back. “Right now I’m waiting to get more information about this group. I’ll let you know if and when I’m ready for you to act.”
When Daniel left, Nick walked over to Evan. “Maybe we should go over the blueprints of the school that Hendrick sent us again. Maybe we missed something...some way for us to get inside and get the hostages out.”
Evan frowned. “I’ve already looked at them half a dozen times. They’re pretty simple...one door in the front and one door in the back, which makes it pretty easy for just a couple of men to guard from the inside. There’s no basement, and right now there is no way to get close enough to the building to get any of our men on the roof. I am thinking that maybe under the cover of night, I might try to get to the van parked by the back door and move it away from the school.”
“That would take away any form of transportation they have out of here, although they’d be stupid to attempt to drive it away with the heavy police presence surrounding the area.”
“Yeah, but desperate people do desperate things,” Evan replied. His phone buzzed with an incoming text message and he read it. “I’ve got to go,” he said to Nick and then hurried toward the mobile van. Hendrick had information.
* * *
HENDRICK LEANED FORWARD in his chair, his hand going to a squishy plastic ball he sometimes used for stress relief. And discovering what he had about the Brotherhood of Jacob had sent his stress level through the ceiling.
He now looked at Evan on his computer screen. “The Brotherhood of Jacob was founded eight years ago by a man named Jacob Noble.”
“What kind of organization are they?”
Hendrick frowned at his fellow agent. “It has all the markings of a cult masquerading as some sort of church and charity.” Old memories slashed through Hendrick’s mind, memories of pain, of endless hunger and never-ending fear.
He shook his head to dispel them and released his grip on the squishy ball. Right now more than anything he needed to stay focused and get as much information to Evan as possible.
“They have a membership of about thirty men, fifteen women and ten children. They all live on an off-the-grid compound in the mountains just outside of Pearson. Several of the men have been arrested for a variety of crimes that include bank robbery, stolen f
irearms, domestic terrorism and murder. But Jacob Noble has no criminal record to date.”
Hendrick drew a deep breath and then continued. “Their mission statement is to end world hunger and return power to the righteous.”
“And let me guess...this Jacob gets to pick who is righteous,” Evan replied dryly. “What can you tell me about Jacob Noble’s background?”
“Not much,” Hendrick replied. “He was born to poor and modest parents on a farm outside of Raleigh. He married Gretchen Owens three years ago, and I haven’t been able to find out much about her. Most of the information I’ve gained is from Jacob speaking in his official capacity as leader of the group. It looks like they recruit new members by taking to the streets to reach out to people.”
“Do you have any more names of the members for me?”
“Only a couple.” He told Evan the few names he’d been able to dig up. “For the most part, there seems to be a lot of secrecy surrounding the members, the group and the compound itself. I’m just now starting to dig into the financials to see what might be there, and I’ll continue to try to dig into Jacob’s background. If I find any other information that will help, I’ll be back in touch.”
“Thanks, Hendrick.”
“Evan, if this man is truly the leader of a cult, then he’s a complete narcissist. He’ll have made many wonderful promises to the members, and he’s probably very charismatic.”
“He’s definitely not showing much of that particular personality trait right now,” Evan replied dryly.
“He’s probably angry that he’s not in control right now and he’s only going to get angrier. Evan, whatever it takes...get those children out of there,” Hendrick said fervently.
“I’m working on it. This info will hopefully help.” With a murmured goodbye, Evan disappeared from view.
Hendrick continued to stare at the screen as the memories he’d fought off earlier washed over him again. He had been born into a cult and for the first ten years of his life had lived in a compound just outside of Little Rock, Arkansas.
His first memory was of the hunger. The rules of the cult were that the men ate first, women second and then the children were fed whatever was left. And there was never enough food.
There had also been very little love. Children lived separately from their parents, the boys in one house and the girls in another. While his father had occasionally sneaked hugs to Hendrick, his mother had followed the strict guidelines set by the leader, Father Timothy, of no personal interaction.
Hendrick would see his mother out working in the gardens, and as a young boy he’d yearn for her. He wanted her to wrap her arms around him and tell him he was loved. He desperately wanted her to smile at him with love in her eyes, but she remained distant and true to the discipline of the cult.
There were rules for every minute of every day. You woke, you worshipped and you worked long hours. There was not supposed to be any idle chatting among the members, and a punishment always involved physical and emotional pain. Rules changed on a whim, and often even the adults were disciplined for breaking the rules. It was a terrifying way to live.
He was also shocked when he was eight to learn that he had a six-year-old little sister named Elizabeth. He’d immediately gotten close to her. They would whisper together whenever they found themselves working side by side. He tried to protect her from the harsh existence that was everyday life. He sneaked her extra food and hugs. He’d loved her, and he’d believed she loved him back.
She’d been so sweet and in trying to protect and take care of her, Hendrick had taken many beatings. It was after a particularly vicious beating when he’d been ten that his father had come to him in the middle of the night with a plan to escape.
Even though Father Timothy assured them all that the armed guards surrounding the compound were to keep people out, in truth they were there to keep people inside. But Hendrick’s father had found a weakness in the security, and that night he intended to exploit it to get his family out.
However, Hendrick’s mother and sister had refused to leave. They had chosen the cult over their family. His mother had chosen the cult over him. Hendrick still had plenty of emotional baggage where his mother’s total abandonment was concerned.
He sucked in a deep breath, realizing he’d been holding it as his dark memories had raced through his mind. He swiped his hands down the sides of his face, shocked by the light sheen of sweat there.
Remembering his childhood always unsettled him. He was twenty-six-years old, and he’d spent much of the past sixteen years not allowing anyone to dictate much of anything about his life. He’d had enough rigid rules and pain in his first ten years of life.
It had taken a long time for his father and him to figure out how to live out in the real world. It had also taken a long time for Hendrick to forgive his father for being in the abusive cult and the two to develop a good relationship.
If the Brotherhood of Jacob was anything like the cult he had endured, then he knew the lives of the hostages weren’t worth anything. They could easily be sacrificed on the altar of the madness that drove the people who held them.
* * *
EVAN STOOD IN the wooded area in the back of the school where dozens of local police officers were stationed. He stared at the black van parked by the back door. Even though Davis and Nick had both volunteered to attempt to move it, Evan knew it was dangerous, and he wasn’t going to let anyone do it but himself.
The lights surrounding the building suddenly went dark, just as Evan had arranged. However, he didn’t intend to make a move for at least another hour or two.
He was making a calculated guess that nothing would happen with the group in the school during the unexpected lights out. He was hoping they were all tired and hungry and not as alert as they had been earlier in the day.
Moving the van away from the building wasn’t an absolute necessity, but with it taken out of the equation it would be one less thing for him to worry about.
From his left he could hear a couple of the police officers talking softly. The clicking and whirring of night insects surrounded him, and a rustle in the brush behind him indicated the presence of a rabbit or other small animal.
Thankfully the moon overhead was mostly hidden by cloud cover, and he’d exchanged his white shirt for a black pullover that Rowan had obtained for him. Even in the dark, Evan could hot-wire a vehicle within minutes.
As he waited for the darkness to deepen, he once again thought about Annalise. It had been almost three years since she’d left him. A job offer took her to a different state, and while he wanted to make the long-distance relationship work, she didn’t. He hadn’t expected to ever see her again. He certainly hadn’t expected to see her being dragged by her long beautiful hair by hostage takers in a school under siege.
The last thing he needed was to let his emotions get hold of him. One of his strengths had always been his complete control over his emotions.
He once again focused on the task at hand. He’d been afraid to raise the bullhorn again after he’d been warned not to, but first thing in the morning he would begin a new approach in an effort to get this situation to a satisfying end. The conversations would be different now that Evan had a little knowledge about the group. Hopefully he would be able to connect better with Jacob Noble and the members of his group.
It was about 2:00 a.m. when he decided to make his move on the van. He used his radio to alert everyone that he was going in, and then drew a slow deep breath that turned him into a machine with a job to do.
He crouched and raced as fast as he could toward a tree that was halfway between the police line at the edge of a wooded area and the van. When he reached it, he slammed his body to the ground and waited and watched.
He saw no movement from the back of the school where there were six broken-out windows. Maybe nobody was manning this back side of the bui
lding during the night.
There was no cover between the tree and the van. Once he left the safety of the tree trunk, he would be completely exposed and vulnerable. He drew another deep breath, resumed a low crouch and then slowly moved toward the van.
He hadn’t gone far when shots rang out. Bullets whizzed by him, and once again he hit the ground. More shots came from the school building, and the police presence behind him returned fire in an attempt to provide him cover.
Hoping he wouldn’t be shot by the hostage takers or friendly fire, he slithered like a snake back behind the police line at the edge of the woods where Davis waited for him.
The broad-shouldered African American frowned at him. “You shouldn’t have taken on that job yourself, man,” he said. “I know you like to control your scene, but if you get hurt, those hostages are screwed. We don’t have another hostage negotiator just hanging around.”
“Right now I’m just frustrated that it was an epic fail,” Evan replied with frustration. “They’re more alert in there than I thought they would be after all this time.”
“Maybe you should see about getting some sleep while you have a chance,” Davis said.
“Yeah, you’re probably right.” Minutes later the lights were back shining on the building, and Evan was back in the passenger seat of the patrol car. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes, fighting off not only weariness, but also a deep frustration.
When they had arrived here earlier in the day, he’d hoped to get the hostages out by nightfall. He was disturbed that hadn’t happened.
He could only hope that when morning came Jacob would be more agreeable to having a conversation that would see the safe release of the hostages.
If that didn’t happen, Evan would need to consider other, more dangerous options. That thought kept him awake for a very long time.
Chapter Four
The gunfire coming from the back of the building jolted Annalise. Thankfully the noise hadn’t awakened the girls, who were likely too emotionally and physically exhausted.
48 Hour Lockdown (Tactical Crime Division Book 1) Page 5