Chapter 37
Matt had no time to think.
Lily slipped through the floor and he leapt toward her. He couldn’t see her—dust and smoke swirled around him. He reached
blindly and managed to grasp her limp wrist and pull her from the growing hole in the floor.
The house shook and rumbled as the two stories began to cave into the basement. Only with sheer adrenaline was he able to
pull the woman from the depths of the collapsing structure.
Through it all, he heard Kara calling for him.
Stay out! Stay out! He wanted to scream but dust filled his lungs and he was coughing. He collapsed, Lily next to him. His side ached from where
the table hit him. He crawled, dragging the unconscious woman with him. He wasn’t going to make it.
Kara was in the doorway, trying to keep her balance as the house shook like an earthquake. She looked angelic, the sun glowing
behind her. And Matt feared he was already dead and this was the last vision he’d have.
“Go!” She ran to them. “Go, I have her. Get out!”
She sounded angry and scared at the same time. Matt couldn’t gain his balance, and half crawled to the door. Kara grabbed Lily under the arms and dragged her out. At the threshold, he pulled himself up, then picked up Lily and they stumbled down the stairs and away from the house.
The explosion pushed them all to the ground, but they were far enough away that they weren’t sucked into the smoldering pit.
Nathan was crying. “Mom? Mom!”
Matt couldn’t see much, his eyes blurry from the gas and dust. “Kara—is she—?” He prayed she wasn’t dead. She couldn’t be
dead. The poor woman didn’t deserve that fate.
“She has a pulse. She’s unconscious, and she’s bleeding. So are you.”
“The windows exploded.”
Kara rolled Lily on her back, and Nathan put his mom’s head in his lap. Tears streamed down his face. “Mom, please be okay.”
“She’s breathing,” Kara said. “That’s a good sign.”
The house was on fire, and it was hot. “We need to get to the clearing,” Kara said. “If these trees catch fire, we’re screwed.
Can you make it?”
Matt nodded. “I’ll get her.” He motioned to Lily.
“Like hell you will. Nathan, you pick up her legs, I’ll pick up her shoulders, and we’ll carry her to that willow tree on
the edge of the field, okay? It’s about fifty yards—can you make it?”
Nathan wiped the tears from his face and nodded.
Matt followed Kara and Nathan as they carried Lily. It had been close, too close.
But they were all alive. They were going to make it.
Lily moaned, but didn’t fully regain consciousness. Nathan held her hand as they sat on the ground. Matt leaned against the
tree, and Kara finally sat, put her head on his shoulder. “Dammit, Matt, that was too close. I’m not going to lose you because
of some fucking psycho.”
“You didn’t.” He kissed the top of her head and winced as his side burned with pain. “Don’t let Catherine hear you talk that way.”
“I want that woman’s head on a platter.”
“We’ll find her.”
“I hear sirens,” Nathan said. He started to get up, but Matt motioned for him to stay put.
“Let’s see who comes before we make ourselves known.”
They heard the sirens, but it was several minutes before they saw lights. Then Kara said, “I hear a helicopter.”
Matt heard it, too. He started to get up, but Kara said, “I think you have a broken rib.”
“I doubt it,” he lied. “Just bruises, I’m sure.”
She glared at him, then kissed him. “I don’t believe you. Just sit.”
Kara got up and limped over to where a fire truck and police car pulled up side by side. There was another sheriff’s car behind
them, two more fire trucks, and a paramedic. She held her hands up and said, “I’m Kara Quinn, FBI.” Technically, she was still
LAPD, but figured saying that would elicit too many questions. “We need paramedics over here STAT. A woman, thirties, unconscious.
My boss is injured, likely a broken rib, and he’s bleeding.”
The deputy was on his radio, and as he spoke to someone, Kara watched a helicopter land in the field next to them.
Michael climbed out of it.
“Michael,” she said though no one could hear her over the sirens and rotor blades.
She started crying. Damn, she never cried. But the tears came and wouldn’t stop as she limped toward him.
Michael ran to her, picked her up and squeezed.
“Kara.” He kissed the top of her head and put her down, gently held her face between his large hands. Stared at her as if
he thought she might be a ghost. “Are you okay? My God, you’re here. You’re alive.”
She nodded because she was unable to speak. She hugged him again. His hug hurt her multitude of bruises, but she didn’t want to let go.
“Is Matt—is he okay?” Michael whispered.
She nodded into Michael’s chest. “It was too close, Michael. Too close.”
He held her tight. She was so damn happy that Michael was here. He wrapped his arm around her waist, and she led him to the
tree where Matt was sitting. Three paramedics were there, two working on Lily and one checking Matt.
“Ma’am, you’re bleeding,” the paramedic who was checking Matt’s vitals said.
She looked at her leg. The bandage that Lily had put on was red again. The cut had broken open.
“He’s worse,” she said.
“Kara,” Michael said, and urged her to sit next to Matt. “Just humor me and let them check you out.”
Kara agreed, but looked over at Lily and Nathan. “How is she?” Kara asked.
“She’s coming around, but has a serious concussion and a deep wound in her side. A lifeline chopper has already been called
in. ETA is ten minutes.”
“Can’t you get her to a hospital faster?”
“Closest trauma center is an hour away.”
“She needs to be in protective custody, both her and her son,” Kara said.
A deputy walked over. “Hello, folks. I’m Deputy Aberdeen.”
Michael said, “Agent Michael Harris. We spoke on the phone.”
“Yes, and I also spoke to your boss, Assistant Director Greer. He filled me in on what’s been going on with y’all. But he
didn’t know where you two have been for the last what, fifty-some hours?”
“How about if we write it in a report?” Kara said.
Matt grimaced as the paramedic inspected his ribs.
“Broken?” Kara asked.
“I’d need an X-ray to confirm, and we need to make sure there’s no internal bleeding. You should both be checked out at the
hospital.”
“Did I understand correctly,” Aberdeen said, “that you two were held captive in the Sweetwater?” He gestured with his thumb
across the field toward the cannery.
“Yes,” Matt said. “And no one goes in.”
“Excuse me?” He sounded irritated, as if Matt was giving him an order.
“There are booby traps and dangers all over the place. A net of bowling balls is secured over the main set of doors. If you
go in that way, they’ll fall on you. And that’s just one of many potential dangers.”
Aberdeen nodded and stepped away, already talking rapidly over his radio.
“Damn, there’s already cops over there,” Kara said. “I hope they’re okay.”
Matt took her hand and said, “You’re bleeding again.”
“So I’ve been told.”
“Let me just finish here, then I’ll check your wound,” the paramedic said.
“It’s just a cut,” Kara said.
“You need stitches and antibiotics,” Matt said.
“Michael, what’s happening on your end?” Kara asked.
“When Matt didn’t show up for his meeting with Tony Monday morning, Ryder figured out pretty quickly that something happened
to you both at the resort. We flew down within hours. Reid was released on bail Monday afternoon, and since then we’ve learned
quite a bit about Reid and his partner, Clara Dolan. She has many names, and legally her name is now Audrey Reid.”
“Reid?”
“She is in fact legally married to Garrett. She also went by the name Hope Davidson.”
Matt said, “Davidson works at the resort. In the gym.”
“Yes, sir,” Michael said. “In a nutshell, while Garrett Reid was a willing and able partner, Clara Dolan was the instigator.
The first victim—Emily Masters Henderson—used to work with Clara and married, then divorced, Clara’s ex-boyfriend. I honestly
don’t understand why she was so offended by Masters. And she has control of a multi-million-dollar trust fund. That’s how
we found you. One of her LLCs owns this property, and Jim matched forensics with this area, which helped us narrow it down.
And then Ryder got your message.”
Michael relayed what they’d done over the last twenty-four hours, and how they were clued in to Hope Davidson as Garrett’s
partner.
“Damn, I should have seen that,” Kara said.
“Why?”
“Because she was too attentive at the gym. Asked questions that were all small talk—where are you from, oh you’re newlyweds,
how cute, things like that. I mean, some people are just chatty, but in hindsight, I don’t know. It seemed off, but I didn’t
register that she was involved.”
“Because we weren’t thinking he had a partner,” Michael said.
“I see it now.”
“So you didn’t see her when she grabbed you?” Michael said with a frown.
“Nope,” Kara said. The paramedic told Matt to stay still, and moved over to Kara. She winced as he removed the bandage on
her leg. “I sensed that someone was watching me, but as I was about to check it out, we both felt sick and then she hit us
with tranquilizer darts. I remember nothing after that until we woke up in the factory twenty hours later.”
Another helicopter was landing, this one red with a white cross underneath. Conversation was impossible, but Kara shouted to Michael, “They both need protection. We don’t know where Hope, Clara, Audrey, whoever she is, is going next.”
Matt said, “Nathan can identify her. He saw her before she put on a disguise and kidnapped him and his mother.”
Michael nodded, went over to where Sloane was talking to the deputies, spoke to the group, then pulled out his phone and walked
away from the noise.
Lily had regained consciousness once, then went out again. Kara said to Nathan, “She’s going to make it.”
“Promise?”
What should she say? She couldn’t promise—she had no idea what her injuries were. She didn’t want to give false hope, but
she needed to give him hope.
“She was talking there a minute, right?” Kara said. “That’s a good sign. And honestly, we didn’t make it out of that house
to have her do anything but make a full recovery.”
“Are you coming with us?”
“I don’t know,” Kara said. She didn’t want to go to the hospital, but she knew that someone would make her, and she also knew
she needed to get stitches. Her leg was mostly numb now, with periodic sharp stabs of pain. She hoped she could walk on it
soon. “There isn’t enough room in the helicopter, but I’ll see you soon. That I promise.”
Nathan nodded. The paramedics were ready to transport her, and Sloane came over to Nathan. “I’m FBI Special Agent Sloane Wagner,
you can call me Sloane. I work with Matt and Kara, and I’m going with you and a deputy to the hospital where we’ll meet your
mom, okay? She’ll get there faster and get the medical attention she needs, but it won’t take us long.”
Nathan glanced at Kara as if looking for permission.
“Sloane is the best,” Kara said. “She’ll make sure nothing happens to you or your mom.”
Matt said, “Nathan, you saw the woman. If you see her again, tell Sloane immediately, okay?”
Nathan gave Kara a hug, then hugged Matt. “Thank you both. If I was still in that cage . . .”
Matt glanced at Kara and she could read a lifetime in his eyes. It had been way too close, for all of them.
Nathan left with Sloane. The paramedic said, “You definitely need stitches and maybe surgery.”
Kara groaned.
“I can’t say for sure, but it’s a deep cut. The doctor may be able to wash it out and stitch it, but it’ll hurt. You’ll want
pain killers. And antibiotics, considering you’ve been walking around with an open wound for who knows how long.”
“About seven or eight hours,” Kara said.
Michael came over and pocketed his phone. “That was Catherine.”
“Good news?” Kara said hopefully.
“Garrett Reid isn’t talking, and he left the hotel.”
“Is he in the wind?” Matt asked.
“No, the deputy following him says it appears he’s heading to his apartment.”
“Why didn’t Catherine arrest him?” Matt demanded.
“She thinks he’ll lead us to Clara Dolan. Now she wants to know if Kara feels up to talking to him.”
“She wants me? She never wants me to talk to suspects.”
Michael showed them a photo of a pretty young blonde. “Who’s that?” Matt asked.
“Becca McCarthy. Garrett’s high school girlfriend. Catherine believes that Garrett and Becca were getting back together seven
and a half years ago when Clara killed her. Becca has been missing since then, and Garrett has an ironclad alibi for her disappearance.”
“So that doesn’t tell me why Catherine wants me to take a stab at Reid.”
“Because you look just like her,” Matt said.
Kara didn’t see it. Becca looked . . . sweet. Innocent. Big smile, bright eyes.
“On the surface, but—”
“You do. And things are beginning to make sense. But you need to be checked out first.”
“We’re going to lose her, aren’t we? She’s nowhere. You,” Kara gestured to Michael, “said she’d gone to her house and was
heading up here. When she sees all these cops she’s going to drive on by.”
“If Garrett Reid attempts to flee, Flagler County Sheriff’s will arrest him,” Michael said. “Anson, the DA, isn’t happy about
it because the case is a mess, but we’re not going to let him get away. If we have to, we’ll take him into federal custody
as a material witness.”
“Do you think Reid knows where Clara went?” Matt asked.
“Yes,” Michael said. “Catherine believes they had an escape plan, and that Clara had no intention of returning for Garrett.
But that won’t upset him, according to Catherine. He might have even told her to leave and protect herself. But Catherine
is positive that if we can convince him that Clara killed Becca, he’ll talk.”
“You’ll have to fill me in on all the details,” Kara said, “if I’m going to have a chance to turn Reid against his partner.”
It felt really weird for her to think that they were married.
The paramedic interjected, “And she needs stitches. The longer she delays in getting medical care, the more complications.
It’s pretty serious.”
Matt looked from Kara to Michael. “We’ll fly back on that chopper of yours, go straight to the hospital in Jacksonville. Then
talk to Reid.”
“I have an idea,” the paramedic said. “As long as you sign a consent form, I can work on your leg in the ambulance and drive you down there. It’s a couple hours, and my boss will have my hide, but if it’ll help you get the woman who put that boy in a cage, it’s worth it.”
Kara frowned. “How did you—?”
“I listen,” he said. “Y’all’ve been very chatty.”
“What’s your name?” she asked.
“Billy.”
Kara looked at Matt. She saw what she wanted in his eyes. Love, determination, and most importantly, complete trust.
She nodded. “Okay, Billy, let’s do it.”