CHAPTER 28
THE FBI AGENT POSITIONED at the top of a hill overlooking the two-lane road leading to Mr. Herandez’s compound didn’t want to answer his phone. It was Agent Solterbeck, the mastermind of this plan. He wouldn’t like what he was about to hear.
“Any sign of Cal and Kelly?”
“No, sir.”
“Weren’t they supposed to be back an hour ago?”
“At least. The appointment was for an hour and a half. It’s four-thirty now.”
“Have you seen anything else?”
“Just a few cars here and there. And a small smoke cloud.”
The agent studied the winding road below. No sign of Cal and Kelly’s car. In the distance was a small beat-up blue car rambling along. It was the first vehicle he’d seen on the road for the past forty-five minutes.
“A small smoke cloud?” Solterbeck asked. “Can you tell what’s causing it?”
“No, but this is Mexico, sir. It could be anything. It could be a farmer setting his field on fire, a neighbor burning tires.”
“I don’t like this. Drive around and see if you can see anything else. They should have checked in a long time ago.”
Five minutes later, the agent was driving along the two-lane road, searching for clues to Cal and Kelly’s whereabouts. Two miles down the road, he turned around a bend and saw a small plume of smoke rising from the ravine. He wanted to stop and investigate, but there were several vehicles parked along the road with people trying to determine how they could help.
The agent slowed down to talk to an old man hobbling across the road.
“Que paso?” the agent asked.
The old man explained that there were two people in the car who were dead. The car was burned and the people were burned so badly that they looked all black.
About that time, a police car pulled up and an officer got out and began rambling down the embankment. That was the agent’s cue to leave. He pointed his car in the opposite direction and looked down the ravine. The car wasn’t recognizable any more but he could tell it was an agency-issued vehicle.
He picked up his phone and dialed Solterbeck.
“It looks like Cal and Kelly are dead,” the agent said.
“What?”
“Yeah, I just left the scene. The smoke was coming from a car fire and there are two bodies burned beyond recognition. It looks like our special operatives are dead.”
Solterbeck let out a string of expletives before abruptly hanging up. The plan had failed.
* * *
NOAH GREETED ELLEN at the airport with a kiss and a long embrace. The worst part of this ordeal was the fact that they weren’t together during this time. They figured it would raise fewer questions if they were apart. More than anything, they needed to put on the appearances of normalcy to avoid suspicion.
“Have you heard anything?” she asked.
“Not today,” he answered.
“So we don’t know if they rescued him yet or not?”
“No. I was supposed to get a call from the FBI an hour ago, but nothing.”
Just then Noah’s phone buzzed. It was from an unrecognizable number.
“Noah Larson,” he answered.
“Noah, this is Agent Solterbeck.”
“Have you heard anything?”
“No, we haven’t. And I’m afraid we have some sad news.”
“Oh, no.” Noah crumpled into a seat, awaiting the worst. Ellen put her arms around him as anguish washed over her face.
“Don’t worry. It’s not Jake.”
“What is it then?”
“It’s Cal and Kelly. We believed they were murdered today by Hernandez’s people.”
“Oh, no. That’s horrible.” Ellen begged to know what had happened. He mouthed that Cal and Kelly were dead. She started crying, realizing the implication of their deaths.
“Yes, I’m afraid Mr. Hernandez must have suspected they were working with us and killed them.”
“So, what now? What are you going to do?”
“We’re going to sit tight for now and figure out a plan to rescue your son.”
“Are you kidding me? Sit tight? The Super Bowl is 48 hours away.”
“I’m aware of that—and that’s why we want to make sure we have the best plan possible to rescue Jake. I know this is tough, but please be patient with us. We’re all working around the clock to save your son.”
“OK, thanks.”
“I’ll be in touch.”
Noah ended the call. He turned toward Ellen and hugged her again. Then they both started crying softly. Hope that they would ever see Jake alive again began to fade.