Chapter 12
Bryn kept her gaze on the spot where Micah had disappeared, silently praying he’d be okay and return to the car soon.
Sitting there went against the grain, but she tried to be patient.
Still, the minutes ticked by with excruciating slowness.
She found it impossible to relax, turning in her seat to scan the area behind the car to make sure nobody else had driven around to find her.
There was nothing behind her but open land. The problem was that with the crane on one side and the mound of dirt on the other, she wouldn’t know if anyone came up behind her until it was too late.
After a long five minutes, she decided there was no way she was going to drive away from the data center in the fifteen-minute time frame as agreed upon.
She couldn’t leave Micah behind. While it was tempting to drive to the closest police station to turn herself in, she wouldn’t do that until she knew he was safe.
Micah wouldn’t like that plan, but if this trip turned out to be a bust, that was the only reasonable alternative.
Another five minutes passed. She was beginning to fear the worst, that whoever had driven the SUV to the rear of the building had found Micah. The only thing keeping her in the car was knowing that Micah was armed. She knew he wouldn’t go quietly.
She listened for the telltale sound of gunfire. Hearing nothing was nerve-racking. Could they have somehow disarmed him? If so, she really should drive away from here to get help.
When a face appeared in the driver’s side window, she nearly screamed at the top of her lungs. A nanosecond later, she recognized Micah. Pressing a hand to her thundering heart, she battled back the fear gripping her by the throat.
Micah opened the driver’s side door and slid inside, offering a sheepish look. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“You took ten years off my life.” She was still so rattled she could barely speak. “Next time make a noise or something.”
He reached over to touch her hand. “I was quiet on purpose. I didn’t want whoever had driven the SUV to this location to know I was out there. The building has no doors or windows, remember?”
“Yeah. Okay, fill me in on what you found.” Now that her heart had settled back down, sort of, she turned in her seat to face him. “Did you see anyone? Or recognize the car?”
“No, but I memorized the license plate of the SUV. It’s obviously not the same as the one I disabled.” He picked up the phone from the center console and typed on the screen. Leaning forward, she realized he was texting Rex Grayson.
“How long will it take him to get back to you?” she asked, feeling impatient. “You never heard from your friend Alex either.”
“Not on the weekend, he only works during the week. But Rex may be able to pull some strings.” Micah slid the phone back into his pocket.
“Knowing who registered the vehicle would be nice. In the meantime, I plan to sneak inside the construction site to see if I can get a closer look at the occupants. I would have done that right away, but it’s a huge facility.
I knew it would take longer than our agreed upon fifteen minutes, and I didn’t want you to worry. ”
“Thanks for that, because I was already going crazy sitting out here by myself. But if you’re going back inside, then I’m coming with you.
” She narrowed her gaze when he shook his head before she’d even finished speaking.
“This is my life, Micah. My freedom at stake. Besides, I’m the one who knows Richard and the other employees from the company by sight.
Not to mention Phillip Justin, the spokesperson for the data center.
There’s a good chance I’ll recognize whoever is inside. ”
“There’s no reason for you to risk your life,” Micah said with a frown. “I saw their photos, remember? I can probably identify them. I’d rather you drive out of here to safety.”
“That’s not happening.” She lifted her chin, locking her gaze on his.
“I’m coming too. If we can find something that bolsters my case, then great.
I’ll gladly head back here and drive to the nearest police station to tell them what we learned.
But until then, I think it’s better if we stick together. ”
He raked a frustrated hand over his short hair, glancing out at the dirt pile beside them. She didn’t care if he was upset or angry with her. Sitting there wondering what was going on was far worse than sneaking into the building with Micah.
“I wish you’d reconsider,” he finally said. “I can figure out who the players are and fill you in when I get back.”
“I’m coming with you.” She plucked the key fob out of the center console and held it out to him. “If anything goes wrong, we’ll run back to the vehicle to escape.” She held his gaze for a long moment. “Together.”
“And if that’s not possible?” He scrubbed his hands over his face. “You must realize there’s a chance we’ll get caught.”
“Then we’ll be in trouble together.” She wasn’t budging from this. “Please, Micah. We’ve come this far. Besides, we’re wasting time arguing. Let’s just get in there already to find out what’s going on.”
He sighed heavily and took the key. His unsmiling face was the only sign of his anger, and she decided to ignore it. She wasn’t going to change her mind.
Besides, he’d managed to sneak all the way to the SUV without being seen. She was certain they’d find a way to get close enough to learn something without the gunmen inside being any the wiser.
Her determination to go with him didn’t prevent her from lifting her gaze to the overcast sky and murmuring a silent prayer as she slid out of the rental.
Please, Lord Jesus, keep us safe in Your care!
She cautiously rounded the dirt pile. A tug on her arm stopped her. She glanced back at Micah’s grim features.
“If we’re doing this, you need to stay behind me. And you need to follow orders.”
“Okay.” She swallowed an argument. He was the expert. He pulled his weapon from its holster and stepped in front of her. She frowned, realizing she wouldn’t be able to see much while being stuck behind his broad back.
Micah moved stealthily around the dirt pile toward the next pile of gravel. She stayed close behind him, wishing she could see the SUV that had drawn his attention. After a few minutes, Micah paused behind the gravel pile, which gave her a chance to see the SUV parked near the back of the building.
He glanced at her, then went on the move. He walked quickly, with his upper torso bent over to minimize his height. She didn’t have to worry, as she was almost six inches shorter than he was.
This time, there was nothing to hide their approach.
The open space between the last of the construction piles to the SUV and the building beyond made her feel incredibly vulnerable.
She swallowed her concern. Micah had warned her.
Besides, he must have gotten this close before to see the license plate.
When Bryn realized she was holding her breath, she forced herself to exhale and to breathe normally. The staccato beat of her heart made it difficult. Not for the first time, she wondered how Micah had done this sort of thing while being stationed in Afghanistan.
She’d never have survived.
Micah angled away from the SUV toward the side of the building. While there weren’t windows or doors, the basic structure was complete. Once they reached the wall, Micah stopped and turned to look at her.
“Okay?” he asked in a low whisper.
She nodded and thought to herself, So far, so good.
“We’re going to head to the wall near the opening where the doorway should be,” he said softly. “If the area beyond is clear, we’ll go inside.”
“Sounds good.” She tried to whisper as quietly as he did. “I’m with you.”
He gave a curt nod and proceeded to cross the last bit of open space heading toward the side of the wall. The ground was uneven, littered with rocks and clumps of dirt and the occasional leftover pockets of snow. She focused on not tripping and falling on her face as she followed his lead.
The building was so big she was convinced the owner of the SUV could be just about anywhere inside. What if they didn’t find anyone? Maybe the SUV had been left there on purpose, and the owner had been driven away by someone else?
No, that didn’t make sense. Not when the data center was out in the middle of nowhere. Easier to meet up somewhere else to switch cars. She shoved aside her whirling thoughts, focusing on the present. Even if nobody was inside, she thought it was possible they could find something useful.
The fact that the SUV was there at all, especially parked in the back where it couldn’t be seen from the road, indicated there was something off about the place.
Micah stopped so abruptly she nearly walked into him. Placing her hand on his back, she steadied herself. He quickly peeked around the corner, then took a longer look at the area behind the opening.
A minute later, he glanced back at her. He lifted his hand and pointed at the opening. She guessed he was telling her they were going in.
She nodded in understanding and followed him around the corner of the opening.
As they crossed the threshold, she was glad to see the floor of the building was concrete.
Yet even with the solid footing, the floor was littered with various construction debris—a few bent nails, the occasional length of wood, and a couple of Styrofoam cups that had been left by the workers.
Not a lot of stuff, but enough that they had to step carefully to avoid being heard.
The walls themselves were covered with drywall that wasn’t quite finished. The space they’d entered was large and mostly empty. But she could tell there were sections walled off on the opposite side. It made sense that there would likely be office areas along the front of the building.