Night Fall

by Nancy Mehl

  “Sure it does,” Logan said more harshly than he meant to. “We create profiles so law enforcement can capture criminals. If we have an idea where one might be, based on our training and experience—”

  Monty made a fist and hit the top of the table. “But that’s the problem. This is a guess, nothing more. If we keep pushing this—”

  Logan stood. “I’m calling Harrison. I’ll make sure he knows you’re not in agreement with us.”

  “Don’t do that,” Monty said with a sigh. “I’m in. I just hope this doesn’t go badly.” He pointed a finger at Logan. “My Chinese grandmother will get very upset if I get kicked out of the FBI. If that happens, you will explain it to her. And trust me, you’ve never faced anything as scary as my grandmother when she’s angry.”

  Logan laughed. “Okay, I’ll face her if I have to. So you’re in?”

  “God help me, yes.”

  “Okay, I’m going to ask him once more if we can try to locate the cabin. We’re just spinning our wheels here. If he says no, I’ll tell him we’ve done everything we can for now, and we want the rest of the day off. Then we’ll look for the cabin on our own time. Maybe that will protect us in the end.”

  “Yeah, maybe. But I’ll call Grandmother and set a date for your meeting.”

  “Let’s wait a bit on that,” Logan said with a grin.

  He took his phone from his pocket and called Harrison. His call went straight to voice mail. Should he leave a message? As busy as Harrison was right now, it seemed all right to let him know they were taking off. When he heard the beep, though, he felt a sense of panic. Was he making a mistake?

  “Sorry I missed you,” Logan said. “Hey, I really think Alex is on to something about that cabin. I know you’re super busy, but this actually could be important. Just thought you should know that Monty and I agree with Alex. Well, we’re not accomplishing anything here, Boss, so we’re taking off. I’ll keep my phone with me, so call me if you need to. Anything more we can do, just let us know.”

  Logan quickly hung up. He didn’t actually say they were going to look for the cabin, but Harrison was no fool. He’d figure it out. Was Logan about to throw away his career? This was all he ever wanted to be. But he felt something stirring inside him. Was God telling him to keep going? It sure felt like it. God had protected him many times by telling him to stay away from certain things or particular people. And a few times he’d experienced a tangible sense of peace when he prayed about something in his life he wanted to do. That peace was always right.

  He walked back toward the coffee counter to pray silently. As he finished, that sense of peace enveloped him, and he knew he was supposed to look for the cabin.

  “Okay, let’s go,” he said to Monty. “I guess we’ll search the south side of Lake Lotawana, and maybe we’ll find a silver Honda Accord parked next to a cabin.” He frowned. “This is a great way to spend our time off, huh?”

  Monty didn’t respond to the sarcasm, and his expression was grim.

  “Have you changed your mind?” Logan asked.

  “No, but where is Alex? Unless she has some kind of physical problem, shouldn’t she have been back from the bathroom already?”

  Now it was Logan’s turn to be concerned. He’d started for the restroom when he noticed the keys to their rental car weren’t on the table where he’d left them.

  “Did you pick up my car keys?” he asked Monty.

  “Of course not.”

  “Where’s Alex’s purse?” It was more like a satchel. She carried personal items in it as well as case notes and research documents. He looked next to her chair and was relieved to find it. “It’s here,” he said. Why had both of them jumped to the conclusion that Alex had taken off on her own? He knew the answer before he even asked the question. When Alex made up her mind about something, it was almost impossible to get her to change it.

  Monty stood and grabbed the bag from Logan’s hand. Then he put it on the table and unzipped it.

  “What are you doing?” Logan said. “That’s Alex’s personal property. I don’t think—”

  Monty pushed the bag toward Logan. “Where’s her wallet? You’ve seen it when she pays for anything. It’s purple. She has her credit cards and her driver’s license in it. It’s not here.”

  Even before Monty finished, Logan realized Alex was really gone. She’d taken the car and was headed to Lake Lotawana to find that cabin—and Adam Walker.

  36

  Laura sat in church feeling so grateful she’d found the Lord. Several people came up to talk to her, and just before praise and worship started, Amy plopped down next to her on the pew. She’d asked Laura to save a place for her.

  “Whew. Made it,” she said with a sigh. She plopped her purse onto her lap and set her Bible down. “Hey,” she said, still a little breathless. “I ran by my apartment before coming here.” She removed something from her purse. “I want to give you this. It’s a Bible. Brand-new. My mom gave it to me for my birthday, but I don’t need it.”

  “Oh, Amy. Your Bible is falling apart,” Laura said. “You should use this new one.”

  Amy leaned closer. “I have no intention of getting rid of my Bible. I’ve spent four years making notes and highlighting passages. Besides, it was a gift from my father before he died.” She straightened up. “This beautiful new Bible needs someone who will mark it up and highlight Scriptures important to her.” She handed Laura the lovely blue leather Bible. “Besides, I had your name engraved on it. That means no one else can use it.”

  Laura gasped when she saw her name printed in gold in the lower right corner of the cover. “How . . . I mean . . . where . . .”

  Amy laughed. “I went to the shop where my mom bought the Bible. They were thrilled to engrave it. I told them you were a new believer. Oh, I almost forgot.” She reached into her purse again and pulled out an envelope. She handed it to Laura, who opened it. Inside was a short note congratulating her for her decision to follow Christ. With the note was a twenty-five-dollar gift certificate toward anything in the store.

  Laura couldn’t stop the tears that filled her eyes. “Thank you, Amy,” she said quietly, her voice choked. “I’ve never been treated like this before.”

  Amy gave her a hug. “No matter what life throws at you, you’ll never be alone again, Laura. God loves you. He’s a good Father.”

  When Laura was seventeen, she finally got out of the house, away from her stepmother, Sheila. A cousin let her stay at her place until Laura could get on her feet. Now she had her own small apartment over her landlord’s garage. It might not be much to anyone else, but she loved it. She’d been there for only a couple of weeks when she came home one night and found a sick, scraggly kitten in front of the house. She took it to the vet’s the next day. Thankfully, the kitten was only hungry and flea infested. They cleaned her up, treated her for fleas, and gave her the shots she needed. Then Laura took the little kitten home.

  At first she had to feed the kitten through an eyedropper. She’d considered all kinds of names, but for some reason the name Sabrina seemed to fit the little black kitten the best. Laura had fallen in love with her. It was great to come home to someone who was excited to see her.

  The landlord had a pet policy. When Laura called to tell him about the cat, he thanked her for saving a kitten that would probably have died without her help. He waived the pet deposit and offered to help her if she ever needed it. The landlord was a Christian, and so was her cousin. She’d begun to see a difference between Christians and other people even then. When she met Amy at work . . . Well, all these people had shown such compassion and kindness that Laura had decided she wanted what they had. And now she did.

  Laura was filled with joy. God was a good Father, and who knew what He would do in her life from here on? She also felt something else she’d never felt before. Hope. Hope that God really did have a plan for her life. She put the Bible down next to her on the pew as the praise and worship musicians took the stage. She loved worshi
ping God, and tonight it would mean even more. She couldn’t wait to see what the Lord had for her next.

  He drove slowly by Laura’s church. He’d noticed police cars stationed at several other churches, and he knew why they were there. He gave them credit for figuring out that the virgin would come from a church. But they were still a day late and a dollar short. He was sure they hadn’t realized she’d be a brand-new convert.

  He laughed to himself. Outfoxing the police was easy. They wouldn’t halt what must happen tonight. No one could halt what was already set in motion. The virgin would be sacrificed tonight, and then the world would be judged.

  Alex wished she’d been able to come out here when it was still light out. Night fell early in November, and the narrow roads leading to Lake Lotawana were more than precarious. No streetlamps. No stoplights. Some stop signs if you saw them in time. Alex had to watch out for other cars coming around steep curves and deer that might suddenly step onto the road. She hated this. Why hadn’t she stayed at the CP? What if she’d just thrown away her career for nothing? It was almost impossible for her to find this cabin—if it was even still standing.

  But she couldn’t just sit around if there was any chance she could stop this man from killing an innocent woman and spreading a deadly disease. Saving thousands of lives was more important than her job . . . or even her life.

  She drove for quite some time, searching for a cabin that might be Walker’s base of operations. Something ramshackle. She wasn’t sure why she was so convinced Walker was here. He could be holed up anywhere. Was she on a wild goose chase like Harrison said this would be? But she kept going back to the passage from The Book that said the sacrifice of the virgin was holy.

  Just before she’d slipped her wallet out of her bag and grabbed the car keys, it had occurred to her again that Adam’s father could have been a killer too. Could he have murdered his wife at this cabin before he and Adam moved to Independence? And if he’d told Adam killing her was somehow holy . . . She shivered, then shook her head. “You might be losing it, Alex,” she said softly. Hearing her own voice gave her some comfort. She felt alone in this darkness.

  She’d passed a small convenience store—the kind that also sold gas—before she’d started her search. Wondering if she could get some help there, she’d turned around and driven back. Before getting out of the car, she slipped off her jacket to make sure nothing identified her as FBI. She could tell this was a small mom-and-pop operation, and she didn’t want to cause a stir.

  Once inside, she saw they had maps of the area, and she bought one. She’d also asked the elderly man working there if he knew anything about the properties on the south side of the lake—especially about any cabins.

  “There’s some smaller places stuck around there.” He’d jabbed at the map she’d opened. “These are real fancy homes. No cabins, so you don’t want to go there.” He moved his finger to an area west of that area. “My guess is what you want is around here somewhere.” He rubbed his stubbly chin. “I think there’s a few cabins there. Some of them’s pretty old, though. Empty too. No folks been there for a long time. Mighta been pulled down by now. I never go down there. But if you do, look for Waywind Road.” He pointed to a spot on the map. “It’s about here, as I recall.”

  Alex had thanked him and left. But now, here she was, pretty much lost despite the map, looking for a cabin with no real clue as to its location.

  She slammed on her brakes when she saw a sign. Backing up a bit, she pointed her headlights at it. It was old and worn and sat crookedly on its splintered wood pole, but it said Cabins and had an arrow pointing to the right. She turned that way, hoping it was the right thing to do.

  It was even darker now, so she switched on her bright lights, frightening a doe and her fawn who ran into some trees. Forming a forest, they lined both sides of the narrow road.

  When the first few raindrops fell, Alex didn’t pay much attention. But when they turned to tiny pellets of ice, she halted the car. This might be the dumbest thing she’d ever done. She picked up her phone to call Logan. She didn’t feel safe going any farther by herself. But as she found his number, she realized he would just tell her to come back, and she wasn’t willing to do that either. Or maybe he would come find her. If he was here, surely he’d understand how important it was to keep going.

  Sweat broke out on her forehead, and she started to breathe faster—as if her body had a will of its own. She hated the dark, and right now she was enveloped by it. She clicked on Logan’s phone number, but nothing happened. No signal. She was in the boonies, surrounded by a forest so dense that she couldn’t see into it. She began to really panic.

  “Stop it, Alex,” she said out loud. “You’re not going to give in to this fear. Nothing will happen to you. Just keep going.”

  The ice pellets, which seemed to taunt her, began falling even faster. She turned on the fan for her windshield and turned up the speed of her windshield wipers. Should she turn around and go back? Or should she keep going? She looked at the clock on her dashboard. Nine thirty. Shoot. Most churches would have let out by now. Hopefully, the police had put a kink in Walker’s plan.

  She put her car in gear and drove slowly down the road that supposedly led to some cabins. She’d come this far. She couldn’t turn back now. She wished she’d been honest with Logan. Maybe if she’d tried harder he would have come with her. She had a strange urge to pray, but she ignored it. People tended to call on God when they were in trouble.

  Suddenly, Nettie’s words played in her mind. “He wants me to tell you that He saw your tears, and He’s been watching over you all this time.”

  “Okay, God,” she said out loud. “If you really exist, which I doubt, help me find Adam Walker and stop him before he kills an innocent girl. One of yours, by the way. And stop him from releasing this virus, which would probably kill more of your people.” As silence filled the car, Alex sighed. “Show me you’re real, God, and I’ll follow you . . . or whatever. Logan believes in you, and he’s pretty smart. Maybe—”

  What was she doing? You really are losing it.

  But what if?

  37

  Laura tried to open her eyes, but it was difficult. She struggled until she was finally able to raise her lids a little. Where was she? What happened? She tried to remember, but her memory was hazy.

  She remembered walking out of church. Amy had asked her if she wanted to get something to eat, but she’d turned her down. She was tired. She wanted nothing more than to go home and cuddle up with Sabrina.

  Laura tried to move but couldn’t. She turned her head and looked around her. Was this a basement? Why couldn’t she move? Then she realized she was tied down. Her arms were raised above her head, and her wrists were bound with rope attached to the legs of a large table. Her own legs were tied to the other end of the tabletop.

  What was going on? Fear coursed through her. How did she get here?

  She searched her mind again, although it was like fighting through a thick fog. Laura remembered driving home. She got out of her car . . . What next? She tried hard to find her memories. There was a voice . . . and nothing after that. She thought about calling out for help, but what if whoever did this heard her? She fought against the terror she felt. She remembered what Amy had said—that she wasn’t alone anymore.

  As tears fell down her cheeks and dripped into her hair, she silently cried out to God to save her. As she prayed, fear turned to hope. Hope that God would get her out of this. She wanted to get married. Have children. Live the kind of life she once thought was impossible. She wasn’t the useless, unwanted girl her parents had rejected. She had a new Father, and He loved her. He’d adopted her. Laura decided to believe He would rescue her.

  As the words from a worship song they’d sung at church began to play in her mind, she sang along in a whisper. And as she thought about the words, the fear dissipated until she was certain God had heard her. That He had a plan for her life, and no one could stop it. No one.


  Logan and Monty had borrowed an SUV from one of the computer analysts trying to track down Adam Walker. He’d checked in a couple of hours earlier and was prepared to work all night. Monty told him someone had borrowed their car and that they needed to follow up on a lead. It wasn’t really a lie—although they didn’t tell him they’d probably be driving in pretty tough terrain.

  When they opened the back door of the CP building, they stepped into a cold rain, then ran to the car. Monty threw himself into the passenger seat.

  “Turn on the heater,” he said as Logan got in. “It will probably take a while to warm up.” Logan started the car and pressed the button for the car’s heating system. Cold air blew out of the vents. Logan turned on the car’s GPS system and put in the address of Lake Lotawana, a small town with the same name as the lake. Finding it would lead them to the lake.

  “It’s going to take about thirty minutes to get there,” he said, putting the car in gear and heading out of the parking lot.

  “I wish we knew what was going on with the churches,” Monty said. “We’re going into this blind. Are we looking for a kidnap victim? Or are we just trying to find Walker?”

  “Just assume we’re looking for a kidnap victim and a man who may be planning to unleash a deadly pathogen.” And Alex. “If we find this guy, we find the virus. And if we find the virus, we’ve saved many, many lives.”

  “And if we don’t, we may be working at McDonald’s.”

  Logan snorted as he looked over at Monty. “Hey, I like McDonald’s. Don’t be a hater.”

  Monty grunted, then looked out the windshield. “Uh . . . is that still rain? It’s looking more like sleet.”

  “I guess we better hurry up and get there, then.” Logan didn’t like driving in ice, but what choice did he have?

  “You didn’t tell Harrison where we were going, right?”