Tyler immediately got to his feet and paced, rubbing his wrists, but Justin sat on the ground leaning on his knees with his head in his hands.
To Tyler I said, “Where’re Doug and José and the girls?”
He shook his head. “They took them. Well, José and Rosie weren’t with us. But Doug and—” he swallowed hard “—Nikki and Molly. They took them.”
Chris spun around. “Oh god.”
“All right,” I said to Tyler. “Start from the beginning. Tell me every detail.”
“We were on the beach,” he went on. “Turtles everywhere, and men came out of the woods on horses. There was a lot of shouting. They circled us and—”
“The horses stomped right on the turtles. It was awful,” said Justin.
I held up a hand. “Okay, hold on.” I needed to hear their accounts separately, so one didn’t influence the other. “Chris, I’d like you to sit with Justin for a minute, while Tyler shows me where they were. Okay?”
Chris nodded and sat down. “Where’s Doug?”
Justin shook his head and looked like he was fighting back tears.
I motioned for Chris to stop with the questions. Chris gave me a reluctant nod and put his arm around Justin.
Tyler and I walked toward the beach. “Okay, how many men?” I asked.
“Four. On horses. Justin took off into the woods. I tried to protect the girls, but…” His lip quivered.
“It’s all right. Everything’s going to be okay. Where was Doug?”
“I don’t know.” He shook his head, his eyes scanning the ground as he tried to remember. “He came running up to us. He was just there.”
“Okay. Then what happened?”
“One of the men took off after Justin. They pushed Doug and me to the ground. Then they shined their lights on the girls faces, made them turn around. I think they were…but…I don’t know…”
“What, Tyler? Anything might help. What were you going to say?”
“I thought they were, you know, sizing them up, deciding whether they were worth…” His face turned pale and he pursed his lips together. “You know.”
I had to keep him focused. “Try to tell me the events as they happened. Only what you know for sure. Okay? So they shined lights on their faces. Then what happened?”
“Doug said to take him. Like he thought they’d only take one person or something.”
“So they took Doug and the girls and—”
“Not at first,” Tyler continued. “I mean, it all happened so fast. But it was like something was wrong. A couple of them whispered for a while. Then they tied the girls’ wrists, and took them and Doug on the horses.”
“So they left you here?”
“The other one who’d gone after Justin came back. He—” His neck turned red. “He knocked me to the ground, tied me up, and dragged me up there.” He pointed to where Chris and Justin sat. “Justin was already there. Then he rode off. Left us.”
“Okay. I know that was traumatic, and it all happened so fast. It was dark. But do you remember anything specific about the men? Did they carry weapons? Did they have anything distinct about them?”
“Just machetes,” he said, matter-of-fact but I could tell by his eyes that he’d been terrified. “That’s all I can think of.”
“It’s all right. I’m just glad you’re all right. You’re safe now.”
“Hey,” he perked up, looking over my shoulder. “It’s Rosie and José.”
They were headed down the beach toward us.
Justin got to his feet and we all met them half way.
“Are you all right?” I called out to them as we approached.
“Yes, fine. Why? What’s happened?” José said, his brow creased with concern.
We told them what we knew.
“Omigod. We had no idea,” Rosie said, her eyes filled with tears.
“Let’s head back to the camp,” I said. “While I talk to Justin, I’d like for all of you to walk ahead of me, so I can see you. That means you, too,” I told Chris.
He wasn’t listening to me. His focus was on Tyler. “Which way did they go? Which way did they take him?” It was as if he’d been waiting for his chance to interrogate him.
Tyler shook his head. He had no idea.
“Did they hurt him? I mean, was he all right?”
“Let’s get going,” I urged, motioning for them all to move ahead.
Noah lagged behind, watching over his shoulder.
Justin walked alongside me. “I wish I could tell you something, but I don’t know anything. As soon I saw them coming, I ran.” He hung his head. “I assumed everyone else would too.”
I nodded in understanding.
“Then I got knocked down, tied up, and you know the rest.”
“It’s all right. Go on ahead, where I can keep an eye on you.”
He nodded and moved to catch up with Chris and Tyler. Chris was still peppering Tyler with questions.
Noah closed the distance between us and leaned toward me, his voice low. “Chris is going to grill them to death.”
“Can you blame him?” I said. “We’ve got nothing.”
Noah nodded. He knew.
My head felt like it might burst from frustration. We had absolutely nothing. Zilch. Some hoof prints in the sand that went nowhere. Four men on horses, who carry machetes and use zip-ties. Basically nothing.
“We need to get them safely out of here.”
Noah nodded again. “Then what?”
“Then we contact the police.”
“I’m still not sure that’s a good idea.”
“There must be some authorities that aren’t corrupt.”
Noah said nothing.
Through clenched teeth, keeping my voice low, I said, “So if we can’t go to the police, then what the hell should we do?”
Noah’s expression said it all.
I had no idea what to do next. I was supposed to be a trained agent. I was supposed to know how to track down the bad guys. What good was all my training if I couldn’t help my friends?
I had to figure something out. And fast.
Chapter Seven
As we approached the camp, an overwhelming feeling came over me, like we were being watched. Lucky was yowling and barking her head off. José took off running toward the cabin. The others followed.
“Hey, wait!” I hollered, but they didn’t look back. Noah and I sprinted after them. Then we saw what they had seen. Nikki and Molly sat on the steps of the cabin, their hands tied behind their backs, bandanas stuck in their mouths.
I rushed forward and noticed the note pinned to Nikki’s shirt. “Okay, everyone step back. Let me handle this. Just get back.”
Someone gasped. Everyone shuffled backwards.
“Get the dog,” I said, as I untied the bandana from Nikki’s mouth. She drew in a deep breath.
As I untied Molly’s bandana, I asked Nikki, “Is there anything else I should know about?” I looked under her legs. “Any wires? Explosives?”
She shook her head. “Just the note.”
Molly had a bloody scratch on her forehead. Both had dusty tear trails down their cheeks.
I checked their wrists. Tied with zip-ties. I turned to Tyler. “Boy Scout. I need your knife.”
He fished around in his front pocket and produced the tiny flip-blade.
I took it and sawed at Molly’s bindings. “Are you all right? Are you hurt?”
They nodded their heads in tandem, then switched to shaking them.
As soon as Molly’s wrists were free, she started shaking, overcome with sobs.
Noah took her in his arms. “It’s all right. They’re gone now,” he soothed.
“Nikki, tell me what happened,” I said, now sawing at her bindings. “Did they threaten you?”
“No. They didn’t say anything. Nothing.” She shook her head, overwhelmed. “I don’t understand.”
“I think I might.”
The note hung from a safety pin o
n her shirt. I gently unclipped it and opened it. It read: For Doug, you pay $500,000. Talk policia, he die. You have two days.
I handed the note to Noah.
“That’s a ransom note, isn’t it?” said Chris. He wobbled.
I took hold of his shoulders, and forced him to sit down on the ground.
“Oh my god. Oh my god!”
I gave him a little shake, made him look into my eyes. “It’s a good sign. It means he’s alive.”
Chris dropped his head in his hands.
Noah and Molly pulled him into their hug.
Focus, Poppy. I turned back to Nikki. “Tell me everything you remember.”
She described the encounter on the beach, just as Tyler had, but with no more information. “Once they had us on the horses, they took Doug in one direction and us another way. Then we waited. A man came on a horse without Doug, talked with them. Then they brought us back here.”
“And did you hear anything they said?”
She shook her head. “They were speaking in Spanish.”
“And you don’t speak Spanish?”
Molly piped up. “I do. Some.”
I spun back around. “Did you hear anything specific? Names, names of places? Anything you can think of?”
She shook her head. “Not really.” She paused. “Except one. Rojo. I think it was the horse’s name though. Or maybe he meant a red horse.” Her lip quivered. “I don’t know. Doug kept saying, just take me. Just take me.”
Chris gnawed on his knuckles, fighting with his feelings.
“All right.” To José I said, “I think it would be best if you would take the students in the car, back north to the city. Get them safe, headed home. And you stay away until we can get this straightened out.”
José looked at Noah, then back to me. “It’s not safe for you either.”
“She’s got a gun,” Justin offered.
“I’m a federal agent,” I said. “We’ll be fine.”
José nodded, as though he expected this. “Quickly, get your things together,” he told the students, and they moved in a clump toward the sleeping area.
I turned to Chris. “I want you to go with them.”
He got to his feet. “Oh no. No way. I’m not leaving Doug. I’m gonna help find him.”
“Chris, listen to me. There’s nothing you can do here to help him. I want you to get yourself safe. Noah and I will go to the authorities and report the kidnapping.”
“But they’ll kill him! It says right there.” He held up the note and smacked it with the back of his other hand. “We need to go after him.”
“I know you’re angry and upset, but we have no idea what we’re dealing with here and—”
“You’d go after Dalton. You wouldn’t think twice about it. You’d already be out there, charging through the jungle after him.” He looked to Noah, then back to me. “You’re a federal agent.” He pointed at my waist. “You’ve got a gun. You’ve got all those”—he flung his hands in the air—“ninja skills. You need to go get him. Now.”
I drew in a breath. “That’s different. If I were on a job, I’d already have more intel. I’d have backup. I’d have—”
“Backup. Yes. Good idea.” He was pacing back and forth, erratically now. “Call Dalton. Call Dalton right now. He’ll get my Doug back. That’s what we need right now. Dalton.”
I exhaled, trying to stay calm. “If Dalton were here, he’d be saying the same thing. We’re not going to go off half-cocked with our guns blazing. That wouldn’t be prudent.”
I gave Noah the help-me-out-here look.
“Poppy’s right,” Noah said. “We need to be cautious here and—”
“Isn’t this what you do?” He stared at me with pleading eyes. “Aren’t you a blackbelt in some zitzu shitzu? Didn’t you have all that tactical, counter punch training? Can’t you just—”
Noah intervened. “Chris, I know you’re upset. But you can’t expect Poppy—”
Chris turned his attention to Noah. “And you. I know you could, you could, you could do something.”
“Chris, I know you’re upset. I can’t imagine what you’re feeling right now. But you have to listen to me,” I said. “The best thing you can do for Doug right now is—”
A switch flipped in his brain. He crossed his arms. His eyes turned stone-like. “I’m not leaving.”
Dammit!
“We’re ready,” José said, back with a bag slung over his shoulder. His eyes moved back and forth, from me to Noah. “Are you sure you can handle this?”
“We’ll take care of it,” Noah said. “Just get yourself, and the kids, to safety.”
He nodded, and the group headed down the path together.
Noah tugged me aside and whispered, “What’s your plan? I know you’re not really going to the police. You know that’s not an option. They threatened to kill him if we do.” He stepped closer to me, keeping his back to Chris. “Have you ever dealt with a kidnapping before?”
“Well, no, but—”
“But nothing. You said it yourself, about ten seconds ago, we have no idea what we’re dealing with here.”
“Well, what do you think we should do?”
“I don’t know. But—I don’t know. Don’t you know someone who knows…something? What about your partner, like Chris said, that Dalton?”
He might know what to do, but—I shook my head. “I can’t ask him to get involved.”
“Why not?”
“We’re talking about action without the authorities. I could lose my job. He could lose his job. No way can I ask him that.”
I had to do this on my own.
I looked at Chris, slumped over in the sand, holding his head in his hands. I had to help. I had to do something. And we did have a satellite phone. “Give me the phone.”
Noah rushed into the cabin, and came back, and handed it to me. “Who’re you going to call?”
“There is someone I could ask.”
“I feel a but in that sentence.”
“But I’m not sure he can help, and…”
“And?”
I glanced at Chris again. And it will probably get me in a whole heap of trouble. “I’ll just be a minute.” I fired it up, and punched in the numbers. After three rings, his secretary answered. “This is Poppy McVie. Would you please tell Mr. Strix it’s urgent?” Mr. Strix had been my mentor back in training.
The line was silent while I waited. Finally, he came onto the line. “Poppy! How are you?”
“Not so great. I wish I could chat, but I need your help. Information actually, and honestly, some good advice.”
“Shoot,” he said.
I explained that a friend of a friend had been kidnapped, the poaching connection, the location—all but the fact that I was actually here, in the middle of it all.
“Well,” he said after I’d finished. “That is a fine kettle of fish.”
Okay…
“There have been many reports of exactly what you’ve described, right down to the men on horseback. They’re called Caballeros.”
Hadn’t the boy on the dirt bike warned me about them?
“These crimes are becoming more common, all the result of breaking up the drug cartels. The deterioration of the organized crime structures has caused smaller splinter groups to form. They no longer have the international contacts, nor the logistical systems, to carry out major drug trafficking operations. What they do have is weapons and men with a predisposition for violence. So they’ve diversified, turning to kidnapping and extortion to support themselves. The poaching is an added bonus, a regular stream of income with little to no risk.
“I’m not going to sugar-coat it, Poppy. The odds aren’t good. Kidnapping is a difficult crime to fight. First of all, we don’t get many details, as many victims believe that a ransom payment without the involvement of the police is the safest way to secure freedom, so they don’t report it. All I can say is, if your friend got a ransom note, that’s a good sign. That
means they’ll contact him again. Honestly, the best option is to do as they demand. Pay the ransom. And the sooner the better.”
“That’s it? Just pay the money? What if he doesn’t have that much?”
“It’s a good idea to get a professional negotiator. The local LEOs should have some insight for him on that.”
“Well, that’s another concern. I’m not sure there’s time to get one. And the note specifically said not to go to the police. Even more problematic is, well, what do you know about the levels of corruption in law enforcement in rural Mexico?”
“Local LEOs are a convenient source of muscle for these thugs. Why hire assassins if you already have the local police in your back pocket? The sad part is, they’re likely good men, stuck with the option of being accomplices or victims.”
“How high do you think it goes?”
“Don’t know.”
“Well, every official in this country can’t be corrupt. There must be someone who can help.”
“Where did you say he is?”
I told him.
“Hold on the line,” he said, and I heard elevator music. I checked the battery on the phone. Half.
Finally, he came back on the line. “There’s a man, a Comandante Garcia. We have him listed as an ally, but there hasn’t been an entry for three years.”
“Right,” I said. Not much help.
“Like I said, your best option here, unfortunately, is to do what the kidnappers want. I’m sorry I don’t have better advice.”
“I understand. Thank you, Mr. Strix.”
“Your friend is lucky to have you there.”
“Oh, I’m not—”
“Be safe, Poppy. Watch your back. Even if you do everything right, your friend’s chances are fifty-fifty.”
“What are we going to do?” Chris asked before I had the phone set down.
“I think the best thing to do right now is to wait for the next contact from the kidnappers.”
“Wait? And do nothing? Are you serious? They’re going to kill him. We need to do something now. Every minute counts.” He turned to Noah. “Isn’t that what they always say with kidnappings? Every minute counts?”
How could I tell him? “Chris, you don’t understand. With a kidnapping—”
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