Chapter Twenty-Eight
“I’m concerned that there might be some kind of security system setup to prevent anyone from approaching along the path,” Rick said, studying the area surrounding them.
“I’m thinking that they’ll wait to set everything up until after they get a head count,” Shanna said grimly. “The fewer people there are, the less likely they’ll leave them here at this location. There are multiple generators that needs to be fired up, according to Wes, and they all use a lot of power. There’s no use having security here if there’s nothing in the caves right now to hide. There’s a locked door at the end of the cave, with a room behind it where they could secure their victims and another tunnel leading into the cabin from there. I’m thinking too that the reason the property has been fenced in is because of my father. He probably didn’t trust Wes anymore and warned the others in the organization.”
“That makes sense,” Jake agreed.
“Here we are,” Shanna said, motioning to a towering outcrop of rocks farther ahead. “I’m not sure how it was done, but those large sheets of rock weren’t originally there to disguise the entrance.”
“Wait a second, guys,” Rick muttered, motioning them back along the pathway. “I think I heard voices.”
Luckily, there was plenty of brush along with several groupings of pines where they could quickly take cover alongside the pathway.
Rick watched as two men stepped out from behind the rocks, appearing to settle in on the wide ledge of the outcrop, appearing to be deeply immersed in their conversation.
“I’m going to see if I can get closer to hear what they’re saying,” Rick said softly.
“We should snap some photos,” Shanna answered. “I can’t make out their faces, although one of them seems familiar.
“Be careful, Rick,” Jake muttered, bringing out an actual camera from his pocket.
They would have trouble getting away if the men remained on the ledge for long, but since one of them was smoking, Rick had a feeling they were probably just taking a break.
It looked like Shanna had probably been right about the location of the trafficking drop off, Rick decided as he got closer and heard what the men had to say.
“Tomorrow, then?” one man was asking.
“Beginning at dusk,” the other man muttered, puffing out a cloud of smoke. “They’ll anchor out there in the deeper part of the inlet and we’ll be driving them here by cruiser. We’ll be setting up a portable dock tomorrow morning where we can park. We can’t afford to make any mistakes like last time, so we’ll only be handling a few at a time.”
“At least we shouldn’t have any trouble from the cops or lake patrol.”
Rick stood still as he listened to everything they had to say, but except for a few lewd comments that made him cringe, they said nothing more about the following day.
He breathed a sigh of relief once the men finished talking and disappeared behind the sheets of rock, apparently heading back into the cave.
At this point, they knew everything they needed to. Now all they had to do was come up with a plan to not only arrest the traffickers, but to rescue the victims who were being trafficked.
Rick moved quietly back to where Jake and Shanna remained out of sight, motioning at the path.
“Let’s get out of here,” he whispered, squeezing Shanna’s shoulder gently as he guided her toward the trail. “She was right, Jake.”
“I never had a doubt,” Jake murmured as they moved quickly, heading back to where the truck was parked.
Shanna just snorted.
* * *
The three of them sat in the truck at the hotel parking lot to discuss their plans after stopping for coffee.
“The most difficult problem will be keeping this sting operation under wraps,” Jake said gruffly. “Besides the fact that it will be Christmas Eve and I’m going to have to pull away a lot of experienced men and women from their homes for the holidays, there’s also the problem of the unknown informant from the FBI who we suspect is feeding information to the organization.”
Rick grimaced.
“Well, let’s break down everything else first, Jake. What are you thinking when it comes to a plan? Maybe we can get divers to board the ship that arrives. That long beach below might be the best place to corner everyone else.”
“I agree. It’ll be frigid, but it should be acceptable as long as our divers don’t have to spend too much time in the water,” Jake observed. “I’ve checked the forecast and thankfully, there’s not supposed to be more snow.”
“I’ll bet you’re bringing in a chopper,” Shanna said, definitely looking excited.
Rick realized suddenly that she seemed to be enjoying this phase of the operation. She’d apparently been paying attention to every single detail of their conversation.
“Now that you mention it,” Jake agreed, suddenly smiling.
“I recognized one of them. I really want to get these guys, Jake,” Shanna growled.
Jake blinked. “Alright, Shanna. Then you should be there too.”
Rick hesitated, but what could he do? He had no right to try and stop her. As worried as he was about her safety, he knew that he’d feel exactly the same way if someone had stolen his life away from him, like Shanna.
“Which reminds me, Rick?” Jake raised a brow. “How rusty are your skills at handling a chopper?”
“It’s been a while, I hate to admit. But as you know, I’ve done some piloting since I was injured. I’m pretty sure I’m up for it. It’s a skill that’s pretty hard to forget.”
“I don’t exactly like sending anyone in without knowing for sure that the clearing Shanna noticed a few years ago is still there and it’s large enough for a chopper to land,” Jake admitted.
“But then again,” Shanna said. “That explains how they seemed to be able to move their victims so quickly. I noticed in the notebook that the clients appeared to be located all over the U.S.”
“I agree.” Jake sighed. “Something tells me I’m going to have a hard enough time getting a hold of a couple choppers, let alone a few pilots and possibly some co-pilots because of the circumstances. I need to somehow bypass my FBI contacts except for the few people I’m certain I can trust.”
“What about the divers?” Rick asked.
“I’ve got an in with a certain General who can probably make the arrangements for me with one of our covert operations teams,” Jake answered. “In fact, he’s already been briefed about what’s been happening.”
“Okay. So I say, let’s eat,” Rick said. “And then we can get this operation moving.”
As they headed inside, Rick gave Shanna a side glance. She’d been relatively silent since she’d been told by Jake that she could take part in the sting.
But when he realized she was smiling, he grinned, wrapping an arm over her shoulders.
“Try not to look so happy,” he scolded, not without humor in his voice. “There’s still a million ways this could go wrong.”
“I understand. But I never thought that I’d ever see the day that something like this was ever going to happen. I’d given up hope, Rick. Promise me you’ll never let me do that again?”
“Oh, Shanna. I promise,” he whispered, kissing her gently before they headed inside the motel toward the restaurant, following Jake.