Cal sighed with what sounded like relief at the other end of the line. “Yeah, you’re probably right. We’ll see you in a few.”
* * *
Jim Dupree’s home was crawling with police and Sam stood off in the distance, impatiently eyeing his watch. “No doubt about it,” he said harshly, as Cal, Murphy and Dylan approached. “Jim’s your thief.”
Sam waved his hand through the air as he motioned them on toward the house. Grimly, he spoke to Murphy. “I’ve got something I need for you to see.”
Leading them into the house and up a long, wide staircase, Sam stepped in through the doorway of a magnificent master suite. Strolling to another door located at the opposite end of the room, he hesitated before twisting the knob. “Cal, Dylan—maybe you two should wait out here for now? Come with me Murphy.”
Dylan asked Cal, “How about I go take a look at what’s happening outside?”
Cal nodded. “I’ll wait for Murphy and Sam.”
Rushing back downstairs and out through the front doorway, Dylan walked the property, checking out the contents of the garage first and then the storage shed more carefully. How had Jim unloaded the materials here? There definitely had to be several people at Masterson Construction who were in on this too.
Just then, Murphy came rushing from inside the house with Cal and Sam on his heels. “Cal, Dylan. Come on. We’re going with Sam to the police station. We think that Jim’s got Kate.
* * *
An hour later, the group was seated around a conference table at the police station.
Dylan still couldn’t believe it. For years, Jim had been stalking Kate. Murphy had been stunned to see pictures of him and Kate in various stages of undress as well as pictures of Kate from when she was a kid. Apparently, Jim was an amateur photographer with a darkroom in his house.
For several minutes, Dylan had been in a state of shock. How come he’d never noticed Jim watching Kate when he’d been doing surveillance? He’d try not to beat himself up though. Jim had probably been doing his stalking while Dylan had been on the job. Most of Dylan’s surveillance had taken place at Jim’s house during the evening. With all the hours Jim was spending gambling, the last thing that would’ve occurred to Dylan was that Jim would have time to be stalking someone too.
Kate’s older brother Dan came rushing through the door into the police station. “Dad, Dylan, Murphy? What in the hell is happening? Mom’s nearly hysterical, sitting at home waiting.”
With a shaking hand, Cal reached over patting his son on the shoulder. “Thanks for coming home.”
While Cal, Dylan, Dan and Sam threw out strategy from around the conference table in the office, Murphy sat numbly quiet in a chair.
“Obviously, this had to be a spur of the moment abduction. Where would Jim have taken her?” Sam stood up and stared at a map on the wall. “Since Jim was driving the cruiser, they have to still be in town.”
Dan stepped up to examine the map. “They’re traveling by water you say?” He hesitated. “I hate to bring up the obvious, but what about the tunnels—since that’s where Lucy and the others were held hostage by the traffickers?”
Sam stared at Dan. “The tunnels? But I thought Jake Loughlin closed them off when he redeveloped Dragonfly Pointe?”
“Well, Jim grew up in Crystal Rock.” Dan continued studying the map. “There was always a rumor when I was a teenager that there was some kind of secret cave near Dragonfly Pointe, somewhere near the base of the cliffs. A lot of kids used to go there and party.” Dan rolled his eyes. “You know—to drink and smoke pot? But supposedly you could only access that particular cave by water.”
Sam stared at Cal. “Could it really be that simple?”
“I’ve heard about the place.” Cal shrugged. “My wife’s trouble-making uncle used to hang out there as a kid. You’ve had patrols on the water for hours. Maybe it’s a possibility? If Jim hasn’t been seen since this morning, he might’ve snatched Kate up and now he’s holed up with her inside that cave.”
Murphy finally spoke. “Let’s get moving. We need to contact Jake Loughlin.”
* * *
“Truth is Sam, I could never close it off, even though I told everyone I did.” Years before, a human trafficking ring had been discovered operating from Dragonfly Pointe and using the location as a transfer point as well as a hiding place for those who were abducted, sometimes for long periods of time. “Somehow, it didn’t seem right to do it until after we discovered the identities of all of those who were buried down there,” Jake added grimly.
“Damn, Jake. We’re just relieved that we actually have access. Although, who knows, maybe we’re totally off base trying to search here?”
“It’s a maze down there. My structural engineers recommended adding steel beams for support as opposed to closing it off, in case I ever wanted to build any extra cabins. I’ve been advised to leave this area as it is, if I don’t. I use the underground cellar to store some of the concession stand equipment during the winter months.”
Sam’s deputies followed behind Jake and Sam as they made their way into the concession stand that’d been built to conceal the trap door. Murphy, Cal, Dylan, and Dan had been asked to remain outside.
“I’m going down into the tunnels,” Murphy finally said, staring at Dylan.
“Me too,” Dylan said, nodding decisively.
Silently, Dan and Cal followed behind them as they pushed their way inside the building.
When all four men appeared and stood behind his deputies, Sam broke off his conversation with Jake and sighed in resignation. “Turns out there’re several different tunnels guys. We’ll probably need all of you anyway. But just to play it safe, let’s pair off.”
After they chose partners, the trap door was opened. The men climbed down the long wooden staircase leading into a cellar-like room that’d been partitioned off with stalls.
“This used to be the boathouse belonging to the Dragonfly Inn. The inn was actually located here on the point back in the late eighteen-hundreds,” Jake explained. Once they reached the cellar, he began handing out flashlights along with rolls of twine.
“What’s this?” Dan said, staring down in confusion at the twine.
“Unroll the string as you move through the tunnels.” Jake grimaced. “I stocked up on several rolls after my wife and I got lost down here when we were exploring. It would’ve actually been funny if it hadn’t taken us hours to find our way back out.”
“Listen up guys,” Sam said grimly. “Be sure to come back here for reinforcements if you find them. No one acts alone, unless you have no choice. It’ll be dark soon. Plus, we’ve got thunderstorms coming in. Travel on the lake’s getting kind of rough. The cops patrolling the lake will be meeting up with us shortly.”
Sam pointed out a pair of passageways on the left. They all switched on their flashlights. Dan hastily took off through one of the winding passageways with Cal following closely behind him. Dylan and Murphy immediately began making their way through the other.
Jake and Sam, along with two of the deputies, would be heading toward the right where there was apparently another set of passageways.
Unrolling the string was slowing them down, but Dylan could see why they needed to take the time. He and Murphy had already come across multiple passageways leading away from the wider one that they were travelling along now.
As the tunnel suddenly narrowed, Dylan hesitated. There were three different passageways to choose from. “What do you think?”
Murphy nodded to the tunnel on his left. “Why don’t we try that one first? I think I can make out some sounds coming from outside. How about you?”
Dylan agreed. “We might be getting closer to the lake.”
Five minutes later, when they’d cleared a narrow opening, Dylan knew for sure that they were nearing the lake. The echoes became deafening as the waves crashed repeatedly against the cliffs of Dragonfly Pointe. Thunderstorms were most definitely approaching.
Mu
rphy yanked Dylan back before he could step any closer. “Can you hear that Dylan?” he whispered.
Dylan stilled, hearing the sound of muffled voices. “I think we’ve found them,” he answered softly.
With a finger to his lips, Murphy crept over to the opening and peeked through.
Peering into the cave over Murphy’s shoulder, Dylan could see Jim and Kate inside. But Jim had his hands on Kate, and when Dylan glanced at Murphy, Murphy looked furious.
Dylan yanked Murphy away from the opening. “Stay cool, Murph,” Dylan admonished quietly. “For now, she’s safe.” Pulling his holster off from around his shoulder, he handed it over to Murphy.”
Murphy stared at Dylan’s gun. “What in the hell are you doing?” he hissed.
“I’ve gotta try to talk some sense into him. You’ll have to cover me. Jim has a weapon and he knows how to use it.”
“But...”
Dylan held up his hand. “No arguing, Murph. I’m the law here, and I’m trained. Just be ready to tackle the guy. Once I have his attention, I might be able to get him to turn away from you.”
Before Murphy could utter another word, Dylan slipped silently into the cavern. “Hold it right there, Jim.”
Spinning around, Jim pointed his gun directly at Dylan.
CHAPTER
ELEVEN
“Think sensibly, Jim,” Dylan said calmly. “You’re never going be able to get away now.”
Dylan slowly began edging his way around Jim.
“Cops are crawling all over town and they’re out patrolling the lake.”
Positioned before Kate, Jim wasn’t budging. His gun remained locked on Dylan. “I’ve got Kate—they’ll have to let us go.”
Did Jim really think that Kate would simply go off with him, Dylan thought, and that they’d live happily ever after? Yep, Jim was definitely delusional.
“No one’s ever going to believe that you’d hurt Kate,” Dylan said softly.
Jim suddenly seemed to realize he was trapped. He held his gun higher, taking careful aim. As Murphy came scrambling out from his hiding place deep within the shadows, Jim jerked around and his gun discharged.
Dylan fell to the ground as sharp pain pierced his shoulder. No doubt about it, he’d been hit. But where? Ah, his arm had only been grazed, he finally realized when blood began soaking through his sleeve.
Dylan watched dazedly as Kate managed to pull herself up from her awkward position against the wall and rammed her entire body into Jim. His weapon dropped out from his hand as Kate’s impetus sent him reeling to the ground.
Reaching down and dragging him up by his collar, Murphy made sure Jim was standing and smashed his fist into his face. He kept throwing punches. First a left and then a right, he pummeled his fists into Jim until, bloody and dazed, he finally stumbled back against the stone wall.
“Stop it, Michael, stop!” Dylan heard Kate yell.
Dylan was beginning to feel awfully woozy.
Kate continued frantically, “Forget about Jim. I think Dylan’s been shot! There’s blood all over the place. Please, get over there and check on him. Hurry!”
Murphy rushed toward him through the cavern, and bent over him, staring at his arm.
All the commotion hadn’t gone unnoticed. Sam Danielson, along with his deputies, came scrambling in through the entrance of the cave. After shouting out instructions to his deputies to secure Jim Dupree and cut the duct tape from Kate’s wrists and ankles, Sam bent down beside Murphy and studied Dylan’s wound.
As soon as the duct tape was cut from her wrists, Kate ran over and dropped to the ground next to Dylan, desperate to try and help. “Dylan? How do you feel?”
“It hurts like hell,” Dylan said, gritting his teeth.
Murphy helped Dylan unbutton his shirt, and Kate carefully pulled it down over his shoulder.
“You’re lucky. It looks like the bullet only grazed you,” Sam said, as he fingered the edges of the wound. “But we need to stop the bleeding.”
As Kate began ripping strips from Dylan’s shirt, Sam tightly tied them off over the bloody wound on Dylan’s forearm while Murphy held him steady.
Along with additional reinforcements, Dan Callahan and his father came jogging into the cave.
Cal halted. Relief was etched on his face when he caught sight of his daughter. “Oh, Kate. You’re okay, sweetheart? We could hear you—we just couldn’t figure out where all of you were.”
“I’m fine Dad. But Dylan’s been shot. We need to get an ambulance.”
Dan pulled out his cell phone and punched in numbers, but then turned to them grimly a few seconds later. “There’s no reception.”
Sam nodded. “We’ve already discovered that Dan.”
Kate pointed to the narrow gap leading outside. “There’s actually an opening right there, leading out toward the lake. Why don’t you see if you can squeeze through?”
When Dan returned a few minutes later, he gave them a nod of reassurance. “They’ll be here shortly.”
“Now that we’ve stopped the bleeding,” Sam said. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”
CHAPTER
TWELVE
Julie was working in the office at the Crystal Rock Tap the next day when she opened the paper.
After reading the shocking story about how her best friend had been kidnapped, as well as how she’d been rescued by the local police and game warden who’d also been shot, Julie immediately picked up the phone and called Kate.
Surprisingly, Kate answered right away. “Hello?”
“Kate. How are you? And please tell me Dylan’s okay?”
“Yes, he’s fine Jules. They kept an eye on him last night at the Eau Claire Hospital and Jake Loughlin picked him up and drove him home this morning.”
“God, I wish I’d known,” Julie moaned. “Oh, I’m sorry Kate. After everything you’ve been through…” She sighed. “Some friend I’m being.”
Julie was surprised to hear Kate laugh. “Perfectly understandable. I saw the way Dylan was looking at you at my parents’ party. I can’t believe I never noticed the sparks between you two before. Tell me that I’m right?”
Julie cleared her throat, muttering, “You’re right.”
Kate laughed again. “I’m so glad for you. Dylan’s a really great guy,” Kate said softly. “But I feel surprisingly good today. I guess I’m supposed to be tormented by nightmares or other such psychological drivel, but all I can think about is how mad I am, and was, at being kidnapped by that obnoxious pervert.”
“I hope they put him behind bars for the rest of his life,” Julie avowed firmly.
Kate sighed. “I’d think it’d be pretty darn close to the rest of his life anyway. Michael’s pretty furious about everything still.”
Murphy was very protective of Kate, Julie had noticed, especially since he’d returned. Not to mention jealous of Dylan. “I’m so glad that you and Murphy found each other again Kate. I know we haven’t had much time to talk since I came home.”
“That’s my fault too. Michael’s been taking up a lot of my spare time.”
Julie giggled. “I’ll bet.”
Kate said softly, “I’ll bet Dylan would love to see you.”
Julie was doubtful. “I don’t know. We still don’t know each other very well. And it’s not like he’s called me or asked me out or anything.”
“Well, about that Jules—he told Murphy and me he was keeping Jim under surveillance. He’s been having a lot of trouble at work, and he probably didn’t want to bring you into the middle of it. He’s been exhausted because Jim’s been constantly switching up his schedule. It was getting worse and worse, and that’s how Dylan happened to discover Jim was stealing from Callahan Construction.”
Julie couldn’t help feeling a little disappointed. If Dylan was interested in her, why was he still running to Kate with his problems?
Oh, heck. She was being silly. They didn’t even have a relationship established, and here she was, being jealous. Be
sides, Jim had been stealing from Kate’s family. Of course he would go to Kate with the information.
“He only told me and Murphy because he wanted our help in deciding how to handle the situation with my dad and the cops.”
Kate must’ve read her mind. “I don’t even know where Dylan lives,” Julie muttered, the words spilling out.
“No worries. I’ve actually never been there either, even though Callahan Construction built the house. Cabin, I mean. Do you remember that pretty little inlet on Stone Lake, near the far end? We used to take a break there every once in a while to have a picnic when we were skiing?”
“Sure. It used to be one of my dad’s favorite fishing spots.” Julie became thoughtful. “I’m trying to remember what road leads back there.”
“Go northwest after crossing over the Stone Lake Bridge past town. I think you take access road B. It’s actually not far from Crystal Visions, where you’ll be working,” Kate added, sounding cheerful.
“Gotcha.” Hesitating, Julie laughed nervously, “You sure you don’t think he’ll mind? I mean, you’re his friend and if you’ve never even visited him there, maybe he wants his privacy?”
Kate was quiet at the other end of the line. “Julie, there’s something you should know, even though I’ve never told anyone else before. Dylan has secrets. Not bad secrets—he’s not that kind of a guy. But there’s always been more to him than meets the eye. But you’re really going to like his mom. She’s something else.”
“His...mom?” That’s when Julie became even more uncertain. “I don’t know Kate. Maybe I’d better not go over there.”
“Oh, Julie,” Kate said softly. “Don’t be scared off by that. I know you’ve always been a little timid about meeting your friends’ families.”
Julie laughed nervously. “Yeah, I am. I guess it’s because it’s always been my dad and me, and I can barely remember my mom. Your mom is great.”
“Well, if you do end up meeting Dylan’s mom, you’re really going to love her. She’s a character. And a very pretty lady too.”
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