Chasing Victory (The Winters Sisters)

by Joanne Jaytanie

  “Vehicle is registered to Biotec, part of the fleet out of Washington,” Jack said.

  “It wouldn’t be very practical for them to drive her clear back to Washington State, they won’t be able to keep her drugged that long. Where are the guys flying in with the helo?” asked Tristan.

  “They can fly in almost anywhere. I have them coming into a field about three miles from the dog show RV parking. But there is another small airport in addition to the Sacramento Airport located a few miles west of town.”

  “Best guess, Dave is flying Victory out of here and he will be using that small airport, it’s much less conspicuous. I’m heading back to my car. Get into the flight plans for that airport and see what might be flying out in the next couple of hours and where the destinations are.”

  “I’m on it. I’ll get back to you as soon as I have any information,” Jack said.

  Tristan was reaching the pier as he stuck his phone back in his pocket. The man that rented him the boat was already there. “Hey man, back so soon?”

  “Yep, she runs like a dream.” Tristan replied sheepishly.

  “I charged you for a half-day,” the man said handing Tristan back his card and a receipt.

  “No worries. I still used your boat. Thanks.” He grabbed the card and receipt and took off at a run up the docks: He covered the entire length of town and reached his Porsche as his phone rang.

  “Yeah Jack, tell me you have something.”

  “A Cessna 400 registered to the Biotec Corporation took off from that airport eight minutes ago.”

  “And you got the destination?” Tristan asked.

  “It’s a private plane, they didn’t have to file their flight plans because they flew VFR,” Jack said.

  “VFR?” Tristan asked.

  “Visual Flight Rules. Means they are flying by sight. If they flew by Instrument Flight Rules; IFR, we would have a destination. I’m trying to track them now. As soon as I get them I’ll let you know,” Jack said.

  “Okay, I’m heading to the field right now. By my estimation they should be touching down in about ninety minutes. Keep me updated on the Cessna. Transfer me over to Wyatt please.”

  “Will do.” Tristan heard a click as Jack transferred his call.

  “Hey Tristan. Tell me you have a plan.” Wyatt said as he picked up the phone.

  “I’m going to meet the guys when they come in. I want to know where that Cessna is heading. My gut says they are taking her back to their headquarters in Washington. I will leave my Porsche with Noah, Logan and I will head back to Biotec. As soon as Jack locates that Cessna, have him do a search on the layout of Biotec.”

  “I’ll have him get right on it. Good idea for Noah to take care of your Porsche, that way I can leave him with Payton for now. I may have Noah bring Payton in and put her in a safe house.” Wyatt said.

  “Don’t forget. She’s got four Dobermans. She won’t leave them. You will probably have to get them all home and leave the dogs with the housekeeper. She may agree to that, but she won’t leave them behind.” Tristan said.

  “Great, this keeps getting better and better,” Wyatt groaned.

  “Yep, and then there’s Willow.”

  “I almost forgot about Willow. Well, let’s take this one step at a time. Noah will stay with Payton for now. Hold on Tristan, Jack has something. I’m going to put you on speaker phone,” Wyatt said.

  “Hey Tristan, I’ve got their Cessna on radar and tracking it. I’ve also tapped into their communications. They are landing at the small airport outside of Seattle, due to touch down in ninety minutes.” Jack said.

  “Good work Jack. Hope you didn’t have a hot date tonight. The Captain is going to keep you really busy. Call me as you get any updates.” Tristan snapped his phone shut. He pulled up to the field where his team’s chopper would be landing. By his calculations he still had almost forty-five minutes to wait. So he turned off his engine, laid his seat back and closed his eyes. He knew that the next twenty four hours would be non-stop, and his years in the military taught him the art of sleeping anywhere in order to survive and function in the field. This would be his only time for recharging.

  Tristan woke to the whop, whop, whop, sound of helicopter blades getting louder as the team approached. He sat up rubbing the sleep from his eyes, and got out of his car the same time the helicopter touched down. The door to the helicopter opened and Noah jumped from it.

  Seconds later the engine shut down, the blades spooled to a stop, and Logan got out of the pilot seat.

  “Tell me it’s so, Jack said that I would be driving your Porsche.” Noah knew the car was Tristan’s prize possession.

  “That’s right, and if I find one scratch or dent on her you’re a dead man,” Tristan threatened.

  “Don’t worry I’ll take good care of her,” he teased as he patted the hood of the shiny sports car.

  “Okay kids, we’re kind of pressed for time here so let’s get to it,” Logan said.

  “Always the party pooper,” Noah joked. “I know I’m only here to baby sit. At least tell me she’s pretty.”

  “Keep her safe Noah. Remember the Winters are a very prominent and influential family,” Tristan said.

  “Yeah, yeah, I’ll be good. Give me the details.”

  Tristan spent the next ten minutes reviewing the packet of information he put together over the last couple of days pertaining to all three of the Winters women. He included pictures and every detail, right down to the personalities of every Doberman. He pulled out all the information on Payton and put it together.

  “This should be everything you need. I don’t know how much detail Wyatt decided you should give her, but Payton seems pretty together. Naturally she will be shaken at first, but I believe she will be more than willing to work with you to help get her sister back safely.” Tristan said.

  “Alright then, I guess I’m off. Ah, Tristan, keys? I don’t want the bad guys to beat me to her,” Noah said.

  “Remember what I said,” Tristan threatened as he tossed the keys into Noah’s outstretched hand.

  “No problem. Man, I’ve been waiting forever to drive this baby. You guys take care. See you back at the ranch.” Noah grabbed his gear, threw it into the back of the Porsche, jumped into the driver’s seat and started the engine. A huge smile spread across his face as he put the car in gear and peeled out of the field.

  “Jesus, Tristan. You really think you’ll get that car back?” Logan said shaking his head.

  “I damn well better, and in the same shape it left this field, or he’ll be sorry he was ever born. Let me grab my gear and we can head out.”

  As Tristan walked across the field to pick up his packs that he left where the Porsche had been, his phone rang.

  “Hey Jack, I’m ready for your update.”

  “There’s more chatter coming from the Cessna, and it seems that Seattle is not the final destination,” Jack said.

  “Tell me that you know where they are going.”

  “Pretty sure. They have a small helicopter waiting at the airport for them. A few years back Biotec bought one of the smaller San Juan Islands off of the Washington coast. They have since built a satellite compound and lab there. It’s all very top secret and very secure. That is where they are taking Victory and you only have two ways to get in, by water or air,” Jack said.

  “So that means we will have to leave the helicopter on the mainland, get as close as we can by boat, and then scuba in at night,” Tristan said.

  “That’s probably your best alternative. Security will be tight. Employees are ferried over on company owned boats. I’m still trying to pull up blueprints on the lab but so far no luck. I’m confident we will find something, we are digging deeper.”

  “So, it sounds like we are going to get wet,” Logan said.

  “Yup, and there are a few little glitches. I’ll fill you in on the way back,” Tristan said.

  “Alright then, let’s get this party started,” Logan said as he
jumped back into the pilot seat.

  NINE

  Victory felt like she was waking up with a major hangover, but she knew that couldn’t be the case. The last thing she remembered was being on a boat with Dave, and they were on their way to tour a lab. Where was she now and what time was it? Never mind that, what day was it? She sat up ever so slowly and looked around the room. She was on a queen size bed, still made, with night stands on each side of the bed. A desk sat in one corner of the room, an overstuffed chair in the other, next to a book shelf full of novels and adjoining bath. There were no windows and that made it feel like a cell, even with all the homey touches.

  Suddenly she felt like the room was closing in on her. “Get a grip Victory,” she mumbled to herself, “lots of rooms don’t have windows.” She swung her feet off the bed and headed for the door. She tried turning the knob, but it wouldn’t budge. It must be stuck. She tried it again. It wouldn’t open. Now she really did feel like the room was closing in on her. She stepped back from the door and reached into her pocket, but her phone was gone.

  She walked back to the desk, pulled the chair out and sat down. There was a click at the door and it swung open. Dave walked in with that same smile that he had when he met her at the coffee shop. He was one creepy guy, she thought.

  “So glad to see you are up and about,” he said.

  “Thanks, the nap was great, what did you inject me with?” Victory snapped. She was trying to keep herself from springing across the room and ringing his neck.

  “Nothing that will hurt you, but you might feel like you drank all night. Mr. Braxton is waiting to see you. Everything you need to freshen up is in the bathroom. I’ll be back to escort you to your meeting in fifteen minutes.” He turned and left the room. The door shut behind him and she heard the click of the lock snapping back into place.

  Mr. Braxton was here to meet with her, the Mr. Braxton. Lawrence Braxton was the owner and founder of Biotec. Maybe now she could get some answers as to why she had been drugged and locked in a room. Victory went into the bathroom and found everything that she needed and readied herself for her meeting. Unfortunately, she found nothing to use as a weapon.

  Dave promptly returned fifteen minutes later and escorted her from her room. As they walked down the hall she saw no one. They entered the waiting elevator and Dave pushed the button for the tenth and top floor. She noticed as they entered the elevator that they were on basement level. No wonder her room had no windows.

  The doors to the elevator opened, revealing a gleaming black marble floor. The exterior wall was completely glass from floor to ceiling, revealing a breathtaking view of the ocean. Far off in the distance was a tiny outline of land. They stepped out of the elevator and walked down the hall until they reached a desk where a prim woman with red hair, glasses and a smart navy colored suit sat typing away on her computer.

  “Good afternoon Sarah,” Dave greeted her.

  She looked up and nodded at Dave. “Good afternoon, Mr. Anderson. Mr. Braxton is expecting you, go right in.”

  “Thank you,” he answered.

  He headed for the door, opened it and motioned for Victory to enter. The enormous office sat on the top corner of the building, flaunting the same awe-inspiring glass walls on two sides of the room. Even with the afternoon light the room was darker than the hall had been, giving an eerie glow to the interior. Dave turned a knob and the windows lightened letting in the sun’s full force.

  No expense was spared in this office. The floor was teak with cherry inlays trimming the edge. The desk was an antique, probably cherry and looked massive even within the large space. There was a built in bar on one wall, housing a variety of high priced wines and brandies. At the far end of the bar stood a gleaming Waterford water pitcher accompanied with an assortment of glasses. Across the room stood four tapestry wingback chairs, two antique mahogany side tables that Victory estimated were made sometime around the 1800’s and very rare. There were at least eight priceless pieces of art that she saw, including vases, sculptures, and three paintings on the back wall. She had no doubt that this office could rival any museum.

  “Ms. Winters, so good to finally meet you,” Lawrence Braxton said as he turned his desk chair around to face her. He rose from the chair and walked towards her with his arm extended. “My name is Lawrence Braxton; I am the CEO of Biotec.”

  “Yes, I know who you are Mr. Braxton. I’m sure you don’t remember, but we met at the Governor’s Ball a few years back. Tell me, do you drug all of your interviewees?”

  “Drug you?” Braxton said with surprise on his face as he turned to look at Dave.

  “Sorry sir, but you did say to get her here by any means necessary. That seemed to be the best way at the time.” Dave responded sheepishly.

  “I see. I think we have everything under control Dave,” Braxton said with a wave of his hand. Dave turned and left the room.

  “I am truly sorry about you being drugged. Sometimes Dave takes things too literally. Please sit.” He motioned to one of the wing back chairs. “May I offer you a drink, or something to eat?”

  “As long as it isn’t spiked,” Victory responded. She still wasn’t certain about the whole situation, but would play along with it for the time being. She knew that they wanted her expertise, and she intended to find out what they wanted her expertise for.

  Braxton passed his hand over the top of his desk and a panel lit up. “Sarah, please bring two mint juleps and an assortment of fresh fruit and cheese.”

  “Right away sir,” Sarah responded.

  “I hope you like mint juleps, they are so light and freshening, perfect for a late afternoon, don’t you agree?” Braxton asked.

  “That sounds great,” Victory responded. She was sure that Braxton wasn’t the kind of man used to being disagreed with, so she would bide her time.

  Sarah entered the office with a large tray containing two wonderful looking mint juleps, and an assortment of fruits and cheeses that made Victory’s mouth water. She walked over to the large coffee table and set the tray down. Two thoughts came to Victory; first, this woman was good, someone to watch, Victory was sure that she got a glimpse of a gun inside Sarah’s jacket as she bent to put the tray down. Second she couldn’t remember the last time she had eaten.

  “Thank you Sarah,” Braxton smiled at her.

  “You’re welcome sir. Will there be anything else?”

  “Not at the moment,” Braxton said.

  Sarah took her leave. Braxton picked up one of the drinks and held it up towards Victory. “Come, sit, enjoy and let’s have a nice visit. I’m sure you will be very interested in what I have to tell you.”

  Victory took the glass from Braxton, took a napkin from the tray and a few pieces of cheese and fruit. She sat in one of the chairs and began nibbling on her cheese, waiting quietly for Braxton to start talking.

  “I understand you are employed by Claremont Research and you seem to be very loyal to them,” Braxton started.

  “I am not only loyal, but I love my career and the people I work with,” Victory added.

  “That can only take you so far. You are the department head leading the research for a possible genetic link between canines and humans. You have also spent field time out of the lab trying to locate humans that might possess heightened senses. I believe you have started dabbling in incorporating these canine heightened senses, on a purely cellular basis, of course.”

  “Dabbling!” Victory nearly yelled. She was appalled at his cavalier attitude about her work, and besides that how did he know the details? “What I do or don’t do is not dabbling. It is classified, and consequently I will not confirm or deny your description of my employment.”

  “Fair enough,” Braxton responded. “However, Claremont is going about this research all wrong. Biotec is currently working on the same type of project. We have the equipment, the people and the financial backing. All I need now is you, Victory, to take the lead and get this research to the next level. I’m not ask
ing for much; give me three weeks of your time. I’m not asking that you quit your current position. I am positive we can work something out.”

  “What if I say no? Will you let me walk out of here and go home?” Victory asked, testing the water.

  “I guess I would have to. But it would be in your best interest to give me the three weeks. Dave has been keeping close tabs on Payton and Willow. If you are not interested in this position, then I’m sure we could persuade one of your sisters to come work with Biotec.”

  “They don’t have the experience that I have.”

  “Humm, I see. That might be a problem, for them,” Braxton said.

  Victory was indignant. How dare this man threaten her? “Who do you think you are, drugging me, bringing me here against my will, and to top it off you are threatening my family?”

  Braxton sat back in his chair sipping his drink. “My dear, it was no threat, merely a statement of fact. I can prove my point, if you like. Isn’t your sister Payton, in Sacramento at a dog show with her motorhome? It would be a shame if her brakes gave out as she was coming down the Shasta Mountains.”

  Victory fully understood the gist of his statement, and felt a cold shiver run down her back. She set her glass and napkin down on the table. She took a hard look at Lawrence Braxton. The gentleman’s demeanor had slipped for a split second, and she saw the dead cold eyes of a killer, one with no soul. In a flash it was gone, and staring back at her was the business tycoon.

  “Don’t give me your final answer now. I’m on my way off the island for a meeting. I’ll be back in thirty six hours; I’ll expect your answer then.” Braxton walked back to his desk and ran his hand back over the panel. “Dave, Ms. Winters is ready to return to her room.”

  The door to the outer hall opened and Dave walked in. “This way Ms. Winters.”

  Victory felt like she was in a dream, or maybe more like a nightmare. Lawrence Braxton had directly threatened her sisters. She followed Dave in a daze to the elevators; he held the door open for her to get in. The ride back down seemed shorted. The elevator stopped and Dave led Victory down the hall. She was still disoriented but even so, this hallway didn’t look familiar. He stopped at a door, opened it and gestured for her to enter. The room was beautiful, with cherry wood floors sprinkled with plush throw rugs. A king size poster bed, a writing desk, two huge overstuffed chairs and one whole wall of windows containing a balcony complete with table and chairs.