Chapter Twenty
Maggie McQueen punched the off button on her phone and dropped it to her desk. The call had gone directly to Amelia’s voicemail—again. She’d tried for five days to contact her best friend to no avail. At first, she wanted to tattle on Wyatt for skipping out on his physical therapy. It would be fun to watch the fireworks when Amelia tore into him for neglecting his rehab. Now she just wanted to hear her friend’s voice.
She knew Santigo was a poverty-stricken country with limited resources, especially in the rainforest, but it wasn’t like they were on a different planet. The phones worked since Amelia called her once her plane landed and had even sent a photo. That was the last she’d heard from her. It was as if she’d disappeared into thin air.
Spinning to her laptop, she accessed the website for Doctors International and found the number for the headquarters in Atlanta. When a receptionist answered, she explained that she was trying to reach someone at the hospital where Amelia had been stationed. She was connected to a manager.
“This is Mallory. How may I help you?”
“Hi Mallory. I’m trying to reach a friend who’s been assigned to Manos Curativas in Santigo in South America. Can you give me the number for the hospital?”
“I’m sorry, the hospitals don’t have landlines, but the doctors and nurses have cell phones. I can give you the number for the head nurse, Ieshia Dorsey. She’s a permanent resident.” Mallory recited the number and Maggie scribbled it on a notepad. “I can tell you that the cell reception in Santigo isn’t the greatest, especially in the rainforest where Manos Curativas is located.”
So she’d discovered. “Thank you, Mallory. I’ll give Ms. Dorsey a call.”
As soon as she hung up, she dialed the number, but it kicked instantly to voice mail, too. Maybe there was a problem with the cell reception. Towers might be down or something. There had to be a reasonable explanation why she couldn’t contact either Amelia or Ms. Dorsey.
Grant Colton and Sawyer Oldham passed by her door. She called out to the two men and they back pedaled, coming to a stop.
“What’s up, Mags?” Grant asked.
“You spent time in Santigo during your SEAL days, didn’t you?”
“I did,” Grant confirmed. “Why?”
“That’s where Amelia is stationed for her mission with Doctors International. I heard from her when she landed a week ago, so I know she arrived safely, but I haven’t been able to contact her since.”
“Maybe something’s up with cell service around the world,” Sawyer mused. “I haven’t been able to contact Wyatt either. He’s gone dark.”
“When was the last time you spoke with him?”
“The day he left. He said he’d check in but didn’t. I’ve been trying to track him down to no avail.”
Maggie was getting a weird feeling about this. There were definite sparks between Wyatt and Amelia, even if neither one wanted to admit it. What if the friend Wyatt decided to visit was Amelia? Now they were both incommunicado.
“We were headed to the bat cave to see if they could trace his phone,” Grant told her.
“I’ll come with.” Maggie hopped up from her chair. “Maybe they can trace Amelia’s phone, too.”
“Let’s take the elevator.” Grant pushed the down button. “It’ll be quicker.”
“Where did you say Wyatt went?” Maggie asked as the doors swished open and they loaded into the lift.
“I didn’t because he wouldn’t tell me,” Grant said. “I have no idea where he is right now.”
“He was being very cryptic,” Sawyer agreed. “I got the feeling he was headed to hook up with a woman, but he was tight-lipped.”
Maggie’s eyes widened. “Do you think he went to Santigo to see Amelia?”
Both Grant and Sawyer looked skeptical. “Why would he go see her when she’s put him through hell since the accident,” Sawyer asked.
Maggie slammed her hands on her hips. “She did not put him through hell. She was rehabilitating him, so he’d heal and recover.”
Grant chuckled. “Well, her tactics were brutal. I can’t count the times he asked me to lie and say I hadn’t seen him when she asked.”
“He’s better, isn’t he?”
Grant held up his hands. “I’m not questioning her tactics, Mags. I think Amelia’s awesome.”
“I think there’s something going on between them,” she proclaimed. “Even though she flat denied it when I asked,” she added under her breath.
“Why do you think that?” Sawyer asked.
“Because I went looking for her one night and I found her coming out of Wyatt’s room. She said she was checking on him, but she was blushing. I’ve been watching them together since and I’m telling you, there are definite sparks.”
“He’s never said anything to me.” Sawyer looked at Grant. “What about you?”
“No, and he usually tells me about his hookups.” Grant looked thoughtful. “That would explain why he was so evasive about where he was headed.”
The door opened in the sub-level where the cyber experts worked their magic. It was like stepping onto the deck of the Starship Enterprise with all the computers and screens covering the walls and taking up space on every available surface. Normally they’d go straight to Tyler Redmond, but he was away on his honeymoon. He tied the knot with the love of his life, jewelry designer Lyra Kee. Instead, they headed directly to the big boss.
Peter Dennis looked up from a monitor when they approached and turned down the rock music that drifted from surround sound speakers. His high-tech office was a computer expert’s dream space. “Hey guys, what’s up?”
“We’re having trouble getting in touch with both Amelia and Wyatt. Can you trace their phones for us?”
“Isn’t Amelia in Santigo for Doctors International?”
Maggie nodded. “I talked to her when she arrived a few days ago, but I haven’t heard from her since. She hasn’t answered any of my texts and when I try calling, it instantly kicks to voice mail. She hasn’t returned my calls, either.”
Peter swung his chair around to face a monitor. The same images were projected onto one of the several screens on the wall. “Let’s see what’s up.” His fingers flew over the keys as windows popped up and disappeared so quickly, it made Maggie dizzy. “Hum.”
Instantly alert, Maggie peered over Peter’s shoulder. “What does that hum mean?”
“Dr. Howell’s phone has been inactive for eight days.”
“Can you tell if it’s shut off or just out of cell range?”
“Shut off,” Peter confirmed. “The last known location was Santigo, but with it off, it’s untraceable.”
Fear settled in her stomach. “What about Wyatt?” They were together, she could feel it in her bones.
More tapping of buttons and sliding of windows. Peter sat back against his chair. “Wyatt’s phone is inactive, too.”
“Can you pinpoint his last known location?” Grant asked.
“I can. It was six days ago, and…that’s strange.” Peter spun his chair to face them. “It looks like he was in Santigo, too.”
Maggie’s instincts were spot on. Wyatt did go to visit Amelia. But where were they now?
“Wyatt was in Santigo six days ago?” Grant looked at her. “You were right. He did go to see her.”
“I can’t believe he didn’t tell me,” Sawyer groused. He clapped a hand on Peter’s shoulder after he’d spun back around to his screen and started tapping keys. “Pete, I need you to trace his watch.”
“Already on it. I can tell you he hasn’t activated his agent in distress alarm, so he’s probably fine.”
“Maybe they wanted alone time,” Grant supplied.
Maggie shook her head. “No way would Amelia take off when she just arrived on the job. She’s not like that. She takes her responsibilities seriously.”
Peter’s fingers stopped abruptly, and he let out a curse. “That’s not good.”
“What?” the three asked in unison.
“His watch is inactive, too.”
“How’s that possible?” Maggie asked. “I thought the trace was always on, even if the battery died.”
“It is, unless the watch was damaged somehow. The only other reason it would be offline is that someone else has it.”
“What do you mean?”
“It automatically deactivates when someone other than the owner takes possession of it so that it can’t be manipulated. Kind of like a kill switch.”
“Can you trace one more number for me.” Maggie recited the number for Ieshia Dorsey.
“Inactive as of eight days ago,” Peter responded.
“Is there any way to tell if cell reception is down?”
“Let me check the towers in the area.” Tap, tap, tap. “No reported outages anywhere in the country.”
“Amelia leaves for Santigo on a humanitarian mission and disappears eight days ago. Wyatt takes a mysterious trip to Santigo and disappears six days ago. Not a coincidence,” Grant insisted, echoing Maggie’s thoughts exactly.
“But where are they now?” Sawyer asked.
Maggie’s gaze moved from Peter to Grant to Sawyer. “How can two people disappear without a trace?”