Chapter
Sixteen

“How far do we drive on this road?” Tony asked, holding on to the dashboard, trying not to bounce out of his seat.

Before Bobby could respond, the skies opened up and rain started coming down in torrents. “We’ve got to get up this mountain as soon as we can!” he yelled at Tony, trying to be heard over the sound of rain hitting the roof of the SUV. “When it rains this hard, it runs down the mountain like a flood. It’s dangerous.”

Tony didn’t answer, just prayed silently. The tires slipped and skidded beneath them, but Bobby kept going. He had more guts and determination than Tony had given him credit for.

Both men were quiet as Bobby fought to keep the SUV on the road. Then Tony remembered Bobby saying something about having to walk after the road ran out. That would be suicide. Any confidence he’d had in Bobby’s plan slipped away.

He was just getting ready to question Bobby when he noticed something ahead. Although it was almost impossible to see through the downpour, there was definitely a large object on the side of the road. He squinted through the rain. It was green, but it wasn’t a tree.

“Stop!” he yelled at Bobby.

Bobby applied the brakes tentatively. Tony could tell he was trying to keep them from spinning out. Thankfully, he brought the vehicle to a stop without incident. Tony pushed open his door and got out, running through the mud, his gun in his hand. The green thing was a car, pulled off the road. Someone had tried to park it behind the trees so it wouldn’t be seen, but it looked as if the sliding mud had moved it out a few feet, making it visible. It was a Camry. Tony stayed low as he approached the car. Was Gerard inside? And Kate?

He crept up next to the driver’s-side door and waited a few seconds before standing upright, his gun pointed at the window. With the windows wet and foggy, it was impossible to see inside. He grabbed the door handle. It was unlocked. He yanked it open and braced himself, but no one was in the car.

Tony looked carefully through the front and back seats. Nothing. Then he pulled the trunk release. Praying he wouldn’t find Kate’s body, he walked around to the back of the car. Thankfully, the trunk was empty. Tony saw some shredded gray duct tape lying on the floor next to several spots of blood.

“She was here,” Tony said to himself. “But where is she now?” He shivered, but he wasn’t sure if it was because he’d left his jacket in the SUV or because he was anxious about what might be happening to Kate. He looked carefully through the trunk one more time. Something shiny caught his eye. Stuffed into the corner was a little piece of silver. Tony tugged at it and pulled out a bracelet. Kate’s bracelet. Not only was she alive, she’d left him a message. Now he needed to find her before it was too late.

“Anyone else hear from Tony?” Batterson asked Mark. “I can’t get him to pick up.”

The deputy shook his head. “Not that I know of. I’ve tried and tried to reach him. I don’t think he’s getting our calls.”

“Or he’s ignoring us.”

“Tony wouldn’t do that, Chief. He’s a professional. You know that.”

Batterson emitted a sound that reminded Mark of a growl. It made him uneasy. He’d seen Batterson upset, but this was something new.

“A professional who ignores protocol? No. When I get my hands on him, he’ll be sorry.”

Mark didn’t say anything. Batterson loved his people. He loved Tony. Frankly, right now he was certain Batterson was more worried about Tony’s safety than his commitment to procedure. But he would never admit to that.

“Wanna see the note he left me?” Batterson asked. “Obviously he was afraid to talk to me directly. His cowardly way of letting me and local law enforcement know where he’d gone.” He shook his head. “I contacted the authorities near Shelter Cove. Officials are planning to go after them. They’ve got people who know that area like the back of their hands. They’ll bring them out. I’m sure of it.”

“Are you going out there?”

“Not yet. It’s not my jurisdiction. I don’t want to step on any toes . . . unless I have to.”

Before Mark could respond, the phone rang. Batterson held up one finger, a sign for Mark to stay put. As Batterson listened to whoever was on the other side, his face began to turn red, a sure sign of trouble. Then he stood up.

Mark wished he could just leave. When Batterson got angry, usually whoever was close to him at the time paid the price.

When Batterson finally said something, the words shot out of his mouth like shotgun blasts. “What kind of law enforcement officers can’t pursue a criminal because they might get a little wet? You people better get off your rear ends and find my witness and my agent, or I’m coming down there—and you won’t like it. You understand me?” With that, he slammed down the phone with so much force Mark was pretty sure he heard the casing crack.

Trying to keep a straight face, Mark said, “Problem, Chief?”

After a stream of curse words that could curl a sailor’s hair, Batterson plopped back down in his chair. He took a deep breath, as if trying to cleanse himself from the anger that had seemingly overtaken him. “It’s raining in Arkansas so I guess the pansies out there can’t go up the mountain to look for O’Brien and DeLuca.”

Mark cleared his throat, carefully forming his next words. “I have a friend who lives in the area. He says when it rains hard it causes flash flooding and the mountain roads can become treacherous. Maybe that’s why they’re waiting.”

Batterson’s eyebrows shot up. “I’ve chased bad guys through sewers. A little rain? Really? Is that the kind of people we have to count on now?” He clapped his hands together. “Maybe I will drive down there and show them what law enforcement should be.”

Since it wasn’t really their case, Mark was pretty sure how Batterson would be received, but he kept his mouth shut. With everything going on in St. Louis, he knew Batterson couldn’t afford to be away right now. He took his responsibilities very seriously. He’d stay put no matter how much he wanted to rush down there, straighten everyone out, and make sure Tony was safe.

“So now what, Chief?” he asked.

“I don’t know. I guess we wait. For now.” He shoved the piece of paper he’d been toying with toward Mark. “Read that. Tell me what you think.”

Another land mine. Mark tentatively picked up the note and read it.

Chief,

I’m with the owner of the resort in Shelter Cove. He saw Gerard and Kate head into the mountains. He knows the roads up there. I know I’m supposed to wait for backup, but I’m afraid if I do that, Kate will be lost. I’m going after her. I’ll leave my phone on in case you want to call and yell at me. If you can’t get me, it’s because the service out here is so bad. I’ll contact you when I can.

If you decide I’m done, I can accept that. I just couldn’t stand by and watch Kate die if I thought I could save her.

Serving under you has been one of the greatest honors of my life.

Tony

Mark took a deep breath and put the letter down on Batterson’s desk. “Is he right? Is he done?”

Batterson grabbed the piece of paper and slammed it down in front of himself. “Of course not, and he knows it. Unless this whole thing goes south. Then I might not have much choice.”

“All you can do is the best you can do,” Mark said with a half smile. “You’ve told us that many times.”

“And I was right. If he saves her, it would certainly help his case. Let’s hope things work out for him.”

“And for Kate O’Brien,” Mark said.

Batterson took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Amen,” he said. “Amen.”

Kate ran as fast as she could in her bare feet, but the wet ground caused her to slip time and time again. Her feet were cut and bruised, but she had to keep going. Besides the terrible conditions outside, she couldn’t seem to control her body. Not only was it almost numb with fear, it shook violently, as if it were operating outside of her own impulses and will. The last time she’d fallen, she cut her lip on a broken tree trunk sticking out of the ground. Although she could feel the warm blood oozing from her wound, she didn’t have time to worry about it. She had to get away from Alan Gerard. At least she assumed it was him. She hadn’t seen his face yet. Not in Shelter Cove and not when she’d jumped out of the back of the car.

Even though the rain made progress difficult, Kate was thankful for it. The downpour helped to hide her and wash away her footprints. For now, she just ran blindly, trying to put distance between herself and Gerard. She had no cell phone, no way to reach anyone. All she could do was pray that someone would find her and get her to safety.

It seemed as if she’d run for miles, but there was no way to know for sure. She had no idea how far away she was from Gerard, but her strength finally gave out. She found a massive tree with a large trunk and decided to rest under it for a little while. She needed to come up with some kind of plan. Right now, she was just running blindly. And that wasn’t smart.

Ever since she’d awakened in that trunk, images of Gerard and Kelly on the day Kelly died kept running through her head. The worst one was of the look of betrayal on Kelly’s face. She’d survived a terrible car crash, and now some psychopath was going to rip her future away? Her wedding? Her children? Her career? Kate shook her head as tears flowed down her face, mixing with the rain. It wasn’t fair. Where was God? Why hadn’t He saved them?

She covered her face with her hands and sobbed. When she was done, she actually felt a little better. As she tried to peer through the rain, she couldn’t stop thinking about Tony. Was he out there somewhere trying to find her? She knew she had to trust God, but ever since the attack, it had been hard. If God wasn’t there when she and Kelly needed Him, how could she believe He’d be with her now?

“I’m sorry, God,” she whispered. “Tony said I needed to face the truth. And the truth is, my faith has been shaken. That’s why I . . . why I almost ended everything. If I can’t trust You, who can I trust?”

She didn’t really expect to hear a voice speak to her, but the lack of any kind of response only confirmed her feeling of being alone. Abandoned. She put her hands out in front of her and stared at her wrists. Tony’s voice drifted through her mind. Almost as if he was right there with her. “I would be injured, Kate. If anything happened to you, I would be injured.”

She took a deep breath, stepped away from the tree trunk, and started moving again. She wasn’t alone. Even if no one else cared about her, Tony did.

Kate looked around her, trying to decide which way to go. She wouldn’t give up yet. She decided to head into the thickest part of the woods. It would be hard for Gerard to find her there. She gathered her courage and took off.