Chapter 12 #2
Micah’s head swiveled from side to side as he swiftly made his way diagonally across the room to the wall along the left side. She quickly joined him, pressing her back against the drywall while realizing that if anyone stepped out from those office areas, they would have easily been seen.
With the wide-open space they were in, there was nowhere to hide.
Swallowing hard, she reminded herself that it was her idea to tag along. So far, there was no sign of anyone else being there.
Micah edged along the wall, then stopped. She huddled beside him, wondering what had caught his attention.
He lifted his hand and gestured to the area around the corner.
They were still several feet away from the presumed office space.
She peeked around the corner and caught her breath when she saw there was a sheet of plywood stretched over two sawhorses.
Sitting on the plywood was a sheet of paper that appeared to be a blueprint of the building.
The curled edges on either side of the blueprint were held in place by a square chunk of wood on one side and a box of nails on the other.
She wondered why it wasn’t set up in the office area but figured the construction guys had kept the document out there for easy access. She was interested to see what the blueprints showed but didn’t move from her spot beside Micah.
He also eyed the blueprint with interest, then turned his attention to the offices beyond. He waited a beat, then took several steps forward for a closer look. She followed, hoping she’d be able to see it too.
When he froze, she stopped as well. She frowned, wondering what had caught his attention this time.
Then she heard it too. The low rumble of voices.
A radio? No, she quickly realized there were two people talking. Straining to listen, she tried to hear what they were saying.
Their voices were too muffled to make out the words.
She tugged Micah down so she could whisper into his ear. “Two people?”
He nodded, his expression grim. She could tell he wanted to tell her to go back to the car, but he didn’t. Instead, he moved even closer to the opening that led into the office where she felt certain the men were standing and talking.
Now the makeshift table with the blueprint was to her right.
She tensed as she followed Micah until they reached the wall near the doorway.
He flattened himself against it, so she did the same.
Her pulse had kicked into high gear as the reality of the danger sank deep.
What if the men in the office came out to see them standing there?
Micah held his gun with the barrel pointed down to the floor, ready to pull it up if needed.
Yet she also knew if those people talking in the office area were the gunmen who’d tried to kill her, they were armed too.
Knowing these guys likely had two weapons against their one wasn’t encouraging. She couldn’t bear to think of Micah being ruthlessly gunned down simply because he’d agreed to help her.
Yet she didn’t pull him back either. Because now that they were closer to the opening, she could make out the words that were being said.
“We need to find her.” The deep voice was familiar.
She frowned trying to place it. It didn’t sound like Richard’s, as his voice had a distinct nasal tone.
Besides, Richard had been in Madison standing beside the police chief imploring her to turn herself in.
Yet she knew she’d heard this voice before.
On the phone? Maybe. She wondered if the voice belonged to Phillip Justin.
She’d only spoken to him a handful of times, so it was hard to be sure.
Were these two gunmen hired by Richard? She wanted to get closer, but Micah stood between her and the doorway.
Maybe it didn’t matter. The only thing she knew for certain was that the two people in the office had not only tried to kill her, but had also murdered Damien, setting her house on fire to destroy the evidence.
And they wouldn’t stop until she exposed their devious plan or until they’d succeeded in silencing her.
Permanently.
Micah’s blood ran cold as the two men in the office discussed the need to find and kill Bryn.
He reached into his phone and pulled it from his pocket.
He noticed there was a new text message from Rex, probably providing information on the SUV license plate.
Yet he didn’t take the time to read it now.
Instead, he hit the record button, intending to capture the conversation between the two men.
“The cops will find and arrest her,” a dismissive voice said. “We need to stay focused on the plan.”
“I still think we need to flush her out into the open,” the deep voice countered. “We can’t risk anyone in the police department buying her side of the story.”
“You worry too much,” the dismissive voice said. “Nobody will believe her with the evidence that’s stacked against her.”
Micah glanced at his phone, praying he was getting this clearly enough to be used as evidence of Bryn’s innocence. The two men hadn’t said anything incriminating yet, but he hoped more information might be forthcoming. He wished they’d refer to Bryn by name, but they didn’t.
The voices fell silent for a moment. He glanced at Bryn, then lowered his head to whisper, “I need you to go back to the car.”
She shook her head and pointed to the opening. “I want to see who’s in there.”
He was anxious to see the gunmen, too, but he didn’t want to risk drawing their attention. As it was, they were so far from the opening leading outside that they’d never manage to escape in time if either of the two men ventured out of the office.
“Please.” He breathed the word near her ear. He showed her the phone where he was recording the conversation, and understanding dawned in her eyes.
Yet she didn’t move.
“You’re an idiot,” the deep voice snapped. “She’s a threat that needs to be eliminated. Without anyone to hear her side of the story, the evidence that has been planted against her will stand without being questioned.”
“Don’t you dare insult me,” the snide voice said. “This was my idea, remember? I’m telling you, the police will pick her up before we get the chance.”
“Not good enough,” the deep-voiced man insisted. “Besides, she’s not the only threat. The guy with her also needs to die.”
“Nobody will believe him either,” the dismissive voice said.
“You don’t know that. It’s too bad we lost them outside the police station. It’s driving me crazy that we have no idea where they are now.”
Closer than you can imagine, Micah thought wryly. He glanced at the phone screen, wondering if that was enough to convince the police that Bryn hadn’t murdered anyone. They referenced the shooting outside the police station, which added credence to the shooting incident that had taken place there.
He glanced out through the open space. This had to be good enough to use against them. He didn’t want to stand out there for much longer.
“I think we should get her friend to help us draw her out. And the boyfriend too,” the deep voice suggested.
Micah decided that the man with the deep voice sounded like the smarter of the two men.
At least he was attempting to problem solve their dilemma rather than sitting back to let the police handle things.
Considering they’d already murdered one man, there was no reason to stop now. In the army, they didn’t stop until the mission was accomplished.
“You just won’t let it rest, will you?” The snide voice sounded annoyed now, and Micah wondered if they always argued like this.
They weren’t teammates the way he, Rex, Di, Mac, and the others were.
“If you think that will work, then go for it. Give her a call along with detailed instructions. She’s not too smart, you don’t want her to mess this up for us. ”
Her? Micah glanced at Bryn. She nodded at the unspoken question in his eyes confirming they were both thinking the same thing.
Gwen or Tabitha. Either one could be involved, but his gut leaned toward Gwen.
It made sense that if these two men were hired by Richard, then they’d know Gwen was on their side.
His gut clenched at the thought of Gwen telling these two that Bryn and Micah had been there to see her.
He had no doubt Gwen would throw Bryn to the wolves to save herself.
Whatever. Micah decided they’d heard enough. They’d gotten what they needed, and they’d already been standing there longer than he’d planned. There was no reason to risk being caught. This audio recording would surely be enough to exonerate Bryn.
Glancing at her, he silently gestured for her to back away from the opening. She took one step along the wall, then another. Soon they were several feet from the doorway leading into the office area.
After getting that far, he gestured toward the opening leading out to the back of the building.
The goal was to retrace their earlier steps, going out the same way they’d entered the structure.
He thought there was probably additional exits out of the data center located on each of the opposite ends of the structure, but there wasn’t enough time to find them now. Better to take the familiar path.
Time was of the essence. Now that they’d found something useful, he was on board with the idea of going to the closest police station. The sooner they were able to get this recording heard by those in law enforcement, the better.
That thought had him realizing he needed to send it to Rex now. He pulled out his phone and ended the audio recording. Then he sent it to Rex via a text message, including the information that there were two men involved and that they were currently at the data center construction site.
After he sent the message, he noticed Rex’s earlier message had been to inform him that the license plate of the SUV belonged to a rental car. Rex added that he was still trying to get the identity of the person who’d secured the rental.
Micah swallowed a groan, knowing he shouldn’t have been surprised. Of course, the two gunmen had rented a car after he’d disabled their original ride.
He glanced at Bryn, then decided to fill her in later. They needed to get out of there. He held her gaze, then gestured toward the opening on the other side of the room. Then he tapped his watch to indicate they were running out of time and needed to move.
She frowned but then reluctantly nodded. He knew how badly she wanted to put a face with the voices they’d heard, but this wasn’t the time.
He waited, hoping that the two men would start talking again. They would be less likely to hear them sneaking out of there if they were busy discussing the planned execution of him and Bryn.
“She’s not picking up the phone,” deep voice said.
“Keep trying,” the other man replied. “She’s probably avoiding you on purpose.”
“She wouldn’t dare,” deep voice said.
This was exactly what he’d wanted. Hoping they stayed engrossed in their task of talking to Gwen about setting a trap for Bryn, Micah stepped forward, taking the lead. He intended to get out of there as swiftly and quietly as possible.
They’d barely gone ten feet when the sound of a nail skittering across the floor had him freezing in place. He turned and glanced back at Bryn whose face had gone pale.
“Did you hear that?” Even though they were farther from the office now, the raised voice was clearly audible. “Someone’s out there!”
He frantically waved at Bryn to run, even as he turned to face the opening, holding his gun up in two hands. But rather than sprinting across the opening and leaving the building, Bryn darted straight for the opening.
No! Micah’s unspoken cry locked in his throat. He stared in horror as she offered herself up like a lamb to the wolves.
“I hear you’re looking for me,” Bryn said loudly. “Here I am. I think I deserve to understand what’s going on here before you kill me.”
What was she doing? He wanted to scream in frustration. Various scenarios spun through his mind, but none were good. He swiftly moved back to the wall. He wanted to call 911 but didn’t want the two men to know he was out there.
He texted Rex with one hand, asking him to notify the police, while holding his weapon in the other.
Their chances of getting out of there alive were slim to none. But he wasn’t going down without a fight.
Micah grimly acknowledged he might die there today, but if that was the case, he would make sure to take at least one of the other gunmen down with him.
And he silently prayed he’d find a way to save Bryn from suffering the same fate.