Chapter 8
T aryn watched, as the handoff of the tracker was completed, plus a radar thing with a cone—another way to amplify sounds, but only under certain conditions, Alex explained. One was with them in the car too, covered by a blanket. Riff once again disappeared into the shadows. She looked over at Alex and asked, “Any reason we can’t get out and walk for a bit?”
He eyed her and shrugged. “Did you have a specific place in mind? And please don’t say back to Jeff’s house, though obviously we’ll need to stay close by in order to keep an eye on them.”
“I know. I just thought it might do us some good to walk around the place and to get some fresh air. According to the map, a little creek is near here.” When he hesitated a moment, she added, “Otherwise I’ll go alone, and you can stand watch.” He glared at her for even suggesting that, and she threw up her hands.
“I just need a few minutes to reorient myself as to what we’re doing and why,” she shared. “And that seems to be a hard thing to do when I’m constantly inundated with fears for those children and told to just wait . We’re waiting for Terkel to get back to us on that FBI sting operation to be set up. I thought agents were already embedded in those sites? So why does any sting op have to be set up? Isn’t it already there, just waiting to push the Go button? We’re in a constant state of waiting. Meanwhile, these children are suffering. That sting-op bullshit is a total fabrication to placate us, in my opinion.”
Alex nodded. “Come on. Let’s get out and walk around a little.”
She gave him a little smile. “Thanks.”
“You’re not a prisoner here. You know that, right?”
“I know, but I need to be careful. I have to keep doing the right thing . Otherwise I’ll mess something up,” she acknowledged. “So, I very much just want to get out for a few minutes.”
“That’s fine. We’ll keep a close eye on the driveway and traffic, so we can race back to the vehicle if we need to.”
“That would mean Riff wasn’t successful in getting his tracker installed,” she stated, “and that would be a whole different story.”
“Oh, I would put my money on Riff any day,” Alex declared.
She frowned at Alex. “I thought you didn’t know him.”
“I hadn’t met him before, but I recognize the type,” he explained, with a wry smile. “Guys like that are worth their weight in gold.”
She shrugged. “Says you, but I can’t get a reading on him at all.”
“He’s blocked anybody from reading him. And that’s what he’s used to. It truly is his nature. He does it on purpose. It keeps him a little more distant from everybody, so he can do the work that he does.”
“That would be a very lonely way to live,” she noted.
He smiled at her and agreed. “It is.”
She frowned, looking back at him. “Is that you too?”
“It has been, in many ways at times. I’m not quite as bad as Riff is, but I can see why he does it. I don’t want to say I approve, but, in his case, it enables him to be such a good operative.” He winced at his choice of wording. “He’s private now though, not military, so that’s not quite the right word.”
“I can’t imagine what anybody doing these kinds of rescues goes through,” she shared. “I’m a complete wreck already, and I’m only on the first job.”
“That’s because you’re coming from the heart,” Alex said in a soft tone. “Most of us doing this work, we have to stop our feelings as much as we can, and yet at times each case seems even worse than the one before. You think you’ve seen the worst thing possible, and then the next case comes along, and guess what? You hadn’t seen the worst thing yet, after all.”
“I can’t even imagine, and I don’t want to.”
“No, you can’t and wouldn’t like it, and that’s a good thing, trust me. But the bottom line is, we need to get these guys off the black market and into prison, hopefully for good, as unlikely as that seems.”
“It’s all just too much to consider,” she muttered. As she got out of the vehicle, she slammed the door out of habit, then winced. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have done that.”
He shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. Let’s go down to the creek and give you a few minutes to regroup.”
Knowing he would keep the house in his rear view, she quickly walked toward the water, then followed a path that ran beside it. She stormed up the trail about one hundred yards and stormed back. Then did it again and again and again. When she finally slowed her steps, she returned to where Alex stood, a smile on his face. Meanwhile she was flushed and sweaty. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t ever be sorry for feeling ,” he replied. “It’s frustrating, heartbreaking, but it makes us who we are, and that allows us to do this. This is new for you, and, because you have a connection with Bruce and these kids, it’s even more personal. We don’t want to minimize what’s happening to these children in any way,” he shared. “However, we must confirm that we not only lock up the players in this network who are profiting from selling children but also get the assholes who are doing the purchasing.”
“I feel like an asshole for even putting in a bid.”
“It’s probably about time for you to respond to that ad. You haven’t, have you?”
She shook her head. “No, you told me to wait.”
“Good, let me check with Levi on it.”
He pulled out his phone and sent some texts, while she sat, her feet in the creek, closing her eyes. For a moment, just a brief moment, it was almost possible to forget about the nightmare going on behind her. When Alex came back and stood behind her, he said, “Levi has a response he wants you to submit.”
“Good enough,” she replied, as she pulled out her phone, and, following Levi’s instructions, she sent out a message, saying she would pay the raised price, but she wanted all three kids and no more craziness. She wanted the deal to be done right and done fast. With the message sent, she sat and waited. “It’ll probably take Jeff a long time to respond, won’t it?”
“It’s hard to say how he’s dealing with the other buyers. So far, from what we have seen, Jeff’s raised the price so many times that…”
“That what?”
“That’s a part of the deal, and it pisses off people. So it depends on what everybody wants in something like this,” he shared. “Think about selling a house, where every person’s needs and wishes are different.”
“Maybe so, but how godawful is it that we can compare selling a child to selling a house?”
He winced. “Sorry, that was crass, and I didn’t mean it that way.”
She held up her hand. “It’s fine. You got your point across. I’m just… You know exactly how I feel.”
“I do,” he whispered. He gently squeezed her shoulder. “And none of us thinks any less of you for it. In fact, we all admire that passionate spitfire mindset you’ve got.”
She snorted. “Nothing to admire me for. Admiration would be if I’d gone in there and scooped up those kids and stolen them away from that asshole.”
“And gotten yourself shot by the uncle—quite justifiably, I might add. That would put all three kids back into danger and add to the risks of Jeff moving them out even faster. He would get sloppy, not wanting to get caught, maybe dealing with any buyer, not waiting for his preferred buyer.”
“Right.” She shook her head and gave a bitter laugh. “I’ll leave all that thinking to you guys. I just want it over with, and I want those kids home. I want them with Bruce, where they belong.” She turned, looked up at Alex. “Do you think Terkel will take them in, while Bruce recovers?”
“Oh, Terkel will most certainly take them in—not that he would choose to do otherwise—but all the women in the castle are pushing for that too.” Alex laughed. “Terk won’t have any other choice in the matter, particularly when they’ve been working so hard to keep Bruce alive.”
Taryn smiled. “I really want to go see him.”
“When this is over, we’ll go.”
She looked up at him and beamed. “You’re coming too?”
“Absolutely. I was hired by Terkel, but I haven’t seen the man in a very long time.”
“Will you do more jobs for him after this?” she asked.
“I don’t know,” he admitted. “I did this for the same reason that Riff got pulled into it, more or less because of Levi and Terk. But, when you think about it, Levi’s team and Terk’s team work together and support each other so well that we consider them all part of the same team.”
“I think it’s wonderful that they can do that,” Taryn replied. “It’s pretty upsetting to think about how many crazy people are in the world that they keep people like Levi and Terk so busy.”
“Plus, Terkel’s got his hands full right now with babies coming. He’s having twins any minute, if he hasn’t already. His brother has twins at Levi and Ice’s place, and the other women at Terk’s castle are due very soon too.” He chuckled. “With all the women pregnant, that just means a steady stream of babies.”
“Good God,” Taryn noted, “they must need lots of help.”
“They’re looking for nannies and nurses and cooks and whatever else to give them a hand. I’ve heard there is one very strange obstetrician who comes and goes. When I say strange , the circumstances around her are strange. She pops in when she is needed, stays for as long as necessary, then moves on. She’s just getting started at Terkel’s place.”
Taryn frowned at that. “So how does she know the babies are due?”
He gave her a ghost of a grin. “Remember how that whole group at Terkel’s place is a little different.”
“So she must have the ability to know when the babies are due?”
“Something like that, and she is also close to Riff—or at least she and Riff have some unfinished business, or so I am told.”
Taryn started to laugh. “Anybody dealing with Riff will have unfinished business,” she declared. “That man is like a sealed canister.”
“What I heard was, definitely some history is between them because he was engaged to her sister.”
“Oh, ouch. So why is there unfinished business?”
“Because her sister, Riff’s fiancée, was murdered,” Alex whispered, “and I know for a fact that part of Riff’s deal with Terk is that they help him find who did it, and they haven’t been able to get very far yet. So, nothing has broken in the case. It just runs cold until something new develops, and then all hands are on deck again,” Alex shared.
“That explains a lot about how closed-off Riff is. He wouldn’t want everybody to know his pain and to receive all those pitying looks.”
Alex nodded.
“And the OB-GYN? That’s bizarre. So she pops in at the castle, whenever a baby is due? Then does her job and leaves again? Where does she go off to?” Taryn frowned at Alex in amazement. “She sounds as secretive as Riff. Plus, can you imagine being so sure of your ability, so sure of what you do, that you time the arrival for each baby’s birth? The conventional Western doctors don’t know when any of those babies are coming.”
He smiled. “I think all of them at Terk’s place have an energy connection, at least among the women while the babies are being born. The men probably don’t have much of a say in it.”
“So, the men aren’t connected?” she asked.
“Oh, sure they are. There are a lot of female healers and energy workers in the castle, so when it’s time to give birth, they take over, for a while at least.”
She nodded slowly. “I can only imagine,” she muttered. “It sounds like a wonderful way to have a family.”
He looked at her in surprise. “How’s that?”
“Because you’re surrounded by people, by family, right from the get-go, something I wouldn’t know about,” she shared, with a wistful smile. “I’ve never really thought that energy workers are out there having kids and families of their own? It seems amazing, and I could really get behind it.”
He studied her and nodded. “One of their most recent challenges is that everybody who goes to work for Terk and who lives in the castle is forewarned about heightened pregnancy possibilities.”
She stared at him in shock. “What?” He laughed and explained further. Taryn was rolling around in a fit of giggles by the time he was done. “Oh my. When you talk about job hazards, that’s hardly one that comes to mind.”
“No,” he agreed, as he grinned down at her. “Apparently that’s definitely something they’re all very aware of—now, after the fact.”
“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean they can stop it though.”
“They’re hoping to get a bit of a handle on it. Several multiple births are happening, including the twin healers at Terkel’s place. They’re both expecting twins.” He shook his head. “I’m not sure who if anyone has delivered yet, but Terkel’s wife is expecting twins. Plus, Terk’s brother’s wife at Levi’s place also gave birth to twins. Several other couples are expecting twins as well. Some don’t want to even know yet if they are having a single birth or twins.”
“That’s pretty amazing, and I’m also incredibly jealous that they’ve all found something special—a special someone, a wonderful place to call home, a loving family, and a different job,” she noted. “That is something I never expected to find. Bruce is the closest thing I’ve ever had to family, and I haven’t seen him in ages.”
“Bruce seems to be a good guy.”
“He’s the best,” she replied. “He’s all heart, and, when he was captured and then held prisoner in Russia, we were all just in shock that it could even happen. But, of course, it was because of the work he did, and that’s just wrong too.”
“I won’t say it’s wrong,” Alex replied carefully, “because that is the work he did and that work does garner that response at times. When you do get captured,… you also know that you’re largely on your own. It’s pretty amazing that Terk’s people were able to get Bruce out of there.”
When a shout came from behind them, Alex turned to see a man racing down the creek bed toward them.
“ Uh-oh ,” Taryn muttered, coming to her feet. “That’s Jeff.” He reached them seconds later, and such fury filled the expression on his face that it was all Taryn could do to stay out of reach of his arms as he tried to grab her. “What is your problem?” she cried out.
He took in several deep breaths, then a step back and pointed. “You! You’re my problem. You’re following me.”
She gazed at him blankly, her mind struggling to process that he was even here or that he was accusing her of following him. The fact that they were down at the creek, some distance away from his house did not matter. She shook her head. “Are you nuts? Look at where we are. I don’t even know where you live,” she snapped, her voice rising by the second, “and I don’t want to.” She was practically shaking with fury by then, glaring at him. “What the hell is wrong with you?”
He stepped back again and looked around, almost as if coming out of a fugue state. “Are you sure?” he asked, his tone harsh. “I don’t like it when people stare at me.”
“What the hell?” she whispered. “We’re not staring at you. Look at us. We’re sitting at the creek on what appears to be public land.”
“Well, my place is across the road,” he roared, stepping forward again and reaching for her arm, which she jerked back. “I don’t want you even looking in that direction.”
At that point, Alex stepped in. “Hey, hey, hey, stop trying to grab her. We’re just sitting here at the creek, enjoying a few minutes of spare time,” he snapped in a warning tone. “That’s got nothing to do with you, so keep your damn hands off my girlfriend and leave us alone.”
Jeff frowned, puzzled and confused.
Taking a different tact, Taryn asked, “Are you all right? You look pale and sweaty.”
He glared at her. “I’m fine. I’m totally fine. Just leave me alone.” And, with that retort, he stumbled his way back up to the road. They followed at a slower pace and watched as he got to the driveway and headed back to his house.
She whispered, “What the hell was that all about?” She looked over at Alex, as if she expected him to have all the answers.
“I’m not sure. Definitely not what I was expecting.”
“Yeah, hell no, me neither. He seems to be losing it,” she stated. “He’s coming apart at the seams at a rate that’s… damn scary. The downside to that is, I don’t know why.”
“No, I don’t know either,” Alex agreed. “The troubling part is that you’re right. He looks to be falling apart, and now I’m afraid of what he’ll do.” He looked at her and pointed. “Let’s get back to the car.”
“Why?” she asked. “It seems even more important to go in there and to get those kids.”
“We really don’t want Jeff to accuse us of anything, and now that we’ve been made for the second time, we have to change our spot.”
“How did he even know we were here?” she asked.
“Maybe he’s been watching us.”
She looked at him, startled, and then nodded. “I guess it’s possible. Plus, he’s obviously paranoid—and with good reason.”
“When you’re involved in doing something shitty like what Jeff’s planning, you start looking around every corner, waiting for the boogeyman to jump out and catch you because you know you’re in the wrong,” Alex explained. “So, let’s get back to the car, and we’ll go find another place.”
“Yeah, I’m okay with that,” she muttered.
They were on high alert as they quietly returned to their car. As Taryn got in the passenger seat, it was hard to tear away her gaze from the house. “God, I hope he doesn’t go after those kids now, especially in the mood he’s in.”
“Let’s not go there,” Alex suggested. “Let’s just stay calm, stay collected. We’ll contact Riff and let him know what’s going on. We’ll also contact both Levi and Terkel and see whether anybody has any suggestions or further intel. Meanwhile, be prepared. Now that we’ve been made, and Jeff’s come out and accused you in particular, they’ll want us to back off.”
She stared at him and snapped, “I am not leaving those kids behind, and that’s that.”
*
Alex worried about Taryn.
Since that latest altercation with Jeff, Taryn couldn’t stop staring in the direction of the house. “You need to let it go,” he said. She looked over at him, and he was so struck by her emotions. “I know. I understand that you don’t want to. You would rip off his head, if you could.”
She gave him half a smile. “Only if I could do it successfully. Otherwise I suspect he’ll rip off mine.”
He gave her a shrug. “That could be true.”
She sighed. “This waiting is deadly.”
“It is,” he murmured. “We’re still waiting for Riff to get back to us too.”
She sighed, visibly starting to relax, which made Alex feel a little easier as well. She must have noticed his reaction because she picked up on it. “I’m not psychotic, you know.”
“I know you’re not,” he replied. “However, you’re connected physically and emotionally, which could turn you into a runaway train, if you don’t keep it under control.”
She stared at him for a long time and nodded. “I guess my connection to Bruce and the kids, especially Cassie, makes it that much worse, that much stronger, doesn’t it?”
“Absolutely it does,” he confirmed. “Not just the telepathic connection to her, but you also have the Bruce connection. You’re desperate to save them all. Yet you don’t care how it happens, and you have all these extra emotions, including Cassie’s, flooding your system, making you that much harder to control.” He faced her as he spoke, watching her shade of embarrassment deepen by the second. “It’s truly a dicey time right now.”
She winced. “That’s the last thing I wanted. While it may not seem that way, I have been trying to maintain some semblance of control.”
He gave her a ghost of a grin. “Yeah? How’s that working out for you?”
She rolled her eyes. “Apparently not very well.”
“No, it sure isn’t,” he agreed, with a big grin, but he kept his gaze on her. “I just need to know that you will listen and not go off half-cocked over this.”
She took several slow, deep breaths, then nodded with the tiniest smile.
“Thank you for that.”
“You mean, for the deep breathing to try and get things back in control?”
“Yes,” he confirmed, “and for not telling me that I’m crazy for thinking you’re running a lot of that little girl’s energy in your system, which is making you even harder to deal with.”
“Well, I hadn’t considered that aspect,” she admitted. “And while it’s a little unnerving to think that Cassie could be affecting my emotions, it’s a relief just to know it might not be all me.”
“Whenever you’re dealing with an overwrought energy system, you’ll have a lot more energy, which can make people very emotional. In this case, you’re also dealing with a little girl who’s grieving. So her emotions are all over the place. We already know that she affects you, so I must consider everything you do and say that seems a little bit abnormal. It may not be you talking, but it may be Cassie.”
She gave a broken laugh at that. “To even hear you say that sounds wild.”
He smiled. “I know. It’s crazy. All of it’s crazy, but it doesn’t change the fact that I must be very aware of it, and you need to be as well.”
“Well, I’m glad you’re aware of it. At least that makes one of us,” she stated.
“Hopefully you can just confirm that whatever is happening is happening because you wanted it to.”
She blinked at him. “So. you’re saying what I’m feeling isn’t necessarily what I’m feeling, and it could be what Cassie is feeling?”
“I don’t know what you’re feeling,” he conceded, with an eyebrow raised, “but I would certainly want to take another look to confirm that you’re assessing it properly.”
“Ah, so the fact that I want to kiss you, are you saying that’s coming from Cassie?”
He sighed and then grinned. “Now, if I thought that was for real”—he was laughing with her now—“I would tell you to fly at it and to lay one on me, so we could check it out more closely. However, I know you’re just teasing.”
“Maybe. Maybe not.”