Chapter 17 #2
The helo tilts as Memphis makes a slight adjustment.
Then he says, “I’m thinking the best spot to land is about a half mile west of the house.
The ground is level there, not many trees, and it’s far enough to avoid being spotted, but not too far away from the main building. ” He pauses. “What do you think, Webb?”
I pull up a mental image of the landscape in my head. After considering it for a few seconds, I reply, “Yeah. I think that’s best. From there, we’ll head south to the fence line. Tyler, you’ll be able to bypass any security, right?”
Tyler shoots me an offended look. “Of course. Security won’t be an issue.”
“Eight minutes out,” Memphis announces.
All my muscles tense. Adrenaline surges.
“Once we’re inside,” I say, “we should fan out. Ace and I will check the basement. Tyler and Owl, you take the main floor. Whoever finds Noelle first, the other team moves in for backup.”
Ace and Tyler both lift their chins in agreement. “Roger that.”
Owl turns in the co-pilot seat and nods. “Roger.”
Memphis adds, “I’ll stay with the helo, so we’re ready for takeoff. There’s an extensive medi-kit on here, and I’m trained as a medic. If Noelle needs immediate medical care, Owl or Webb can take over as pilot.” He pauses. “But if you need me inside right away, I can be.”
My stomach makes another nauseating lurch, rebelling against the image his words evoke—Noelle unconscious, her bones broken, her heart faltering from traumatic blood loss…
As the roar of the rotors intensifies, Tyler raises his voice to be heard. He holds my gaze as he says, “We’re going to get her out, Spidey. Blade and Arrow hasn’t failed yet, and we’re not starting now.”
I wish his words brought more comfort. But, shit. I’m just too damn scared.
Rather than allowing myself to fall prey to my fear again, I reach into the large duffel at my feet and start going through the stockpile of weapons inside.
I’m already armed with my Sig and a Ka-Bar, but I also grab a taser, a canister of mace, extra zip-ties to add to the bundle I always keep in my pocket, and a coil of reinforced rope.
“Anyone else?” I ask while gesturing at the duffel. “Mace? Taser?”
Ace reaches down to take a taser and a second blade. “This’ll be good for me.”
Tyler shakes his head. “I stocked up before we left.”
“Owl?” I ask. “Need anything?”
He turns and extends his hand out to me. “I’ll take some of those zip ties. Can never have too many of those.”
Once we’re all fully armed, our focus turns to the landscape beneath us.
As we close in on the landing zone, I search for Accetta’s house in the distance, finally spotting the one-story ranch tucked amid a smattering of trees.
A narrow driveway winds to the house, maybe a half mile or so from the main road.
Several outbuildings and a large garage are scattered around it, and what looks like a large barn is set back a short distance behind.
Is Noelle in there still?
I tap the tracking app to open it again, even though I just checked on Noelle’s location only minutes before. But I have to look. It’s a compulsion. I need to see with my own eyes that she hasn’t moved.
Unless—
No. No more what-ifs. Not now.
My body unclenches as soon as I see Noelle’s little red dot on the screen, still in the same place it was before.
Though it’s just a small thing, this tiny flashing red dot, it soothes me.
I touch my finger to the screen, allowing myself a momentary fantasy that it’s her I’m touching instead.
That somehow, she’ll know I’m close, that I’ll be there soon, that she just needs to hang on a little longer.
Turning to Ace, I take a deep breath before saying, “Ace. I want you taking point in there. Depending on what we find inside…”
He stares at me for a second before giving a quick nod. “On it, Spidey.”
“One minute from touch down,” Memphis reports. “Looks like we shaved off ten minutes.”
I glance from Ace, to Tyler, to Owl, and finally, to Memphis. “Thank you for doing this. I can’t say how much—”
“Shut up,” Tyler interrupts. Then he kicks my leg with his prosthetic foot, which hurts a shit-ton worse than a regular one. At my involuntary wince, he adds, “What did I say about this before? We’re a team. There’s no thanks about it.”
I kick him back. “Stop kicking me with that thing. It fucking hurts.”
He smirks. “I know. Silver lining and all.”
Then the helo begins to descend, and we all fall silent.
When emotion threatens to take over again, I ruthlessly shove it back.
Like my dad told me decades before, I visualize our mission succeeding.
I see us breaching the house, one after another. Within minutes of entering, we find Noelle sitting in a room, completely unharmed. While I pull her into my arms, Ace or Tyler reports into our comms that they found Accetta. That he’s neutralized. That he can’t hurt Noelle again.
Then I bring Noelle home—not to her apartment, fuck no, she’s staying with me—and we begin the slow journey towards her recovery together. I’ll set up counseling, or maybe I’ll bring her to Owl’s retreat for a few weeks instead. Then I’ll convince her to move in with me permanently. And we’ll—
The helo touches down with a thunk, snapping me back to the present.
As Memphis powers down the engine, he glances back at us in the rear.
Once we’ve removed our headsets and replaced them with the tiny earpieces we wear during our regular ops, he says, “Soon as you give the signal, I’ll be ready to take off.
” He pauses. “And if you need backup, let me know. I may be older than you guys, but I can still pull my weight.”
I nod at him. “Will do. Thanks.” Then I turn to Ace and lift my chin.
Ace raises his hand in a hold gesture. One by one, he meets each of our gazes. “Ready?”
“Ready,” we echo back.
A moment later, his hand comes down.
One after another, we jump to the ground.
Without discussion, we start sprinting across the grass, first Ace, then me, then Tyler, and finally, Owl.
We stay hunched low, trying to keep as low-profile as possible.
I scan our surroundings as we run, searching for any sign of Noelle or the monster who took her.
Acceta’s house grows larger as we approach. It looks well kept, with tidy landscaping and freshly trimmed grass. From the online sales listing, it last sold twenty years ago just under a million, and the estimate puts it worth close to three million now.
We already knew Dario Accetta is a wealthy guy from Tyler’s research, with money coming from inheritances and a string of successful productions in L.A. and London. And seeing this property just solidifies it. Accetta has the funds to orchestrate a kidnapping and do his absolute best to hide it.
If he’d taken anyone else, he probably could have.
But not Noelle. No one is going to fuck with her without me knowing. And I’m damn sure going to make sure that piece of garbage is punished for what he did.
When we reach the six-foot metal fence that surrounds the house and outbuildings, we stop while waiting for Tyler to hack into the security system. He taps away on his phone for two agonizing minutes while I try not to yell at him to go faster.
Then he slides his phone back into his inside vest pocket and says, “All the exterior cameras have been deactivated. I bypassed the alarm system, so it’ll keep showing footage from ten minutes ago. That’s all I found. So we should be clear to go in.”
Ace casts a quick glance at the three of us again before nodding at the fence. “Up and over, then.”
One by one, we hoist ourselves over the fence, then race to the closest cluster of trees to regroup. From here, it’s a fifty-yard run to the deck that wraps around the house. The sliding patio doors to the kitchen are visible, reflecting brightly in the afternoon sun.
After another shared glance, we take off again, this time in the direction of the house.
We sprint across the expanse of open grass, eager to get out of view as quickly as possible.
Is it likely that Accetta is looking out the kitchen doors right now?
No. But it’s not impossible. If we had more time, we could have arranged for a stealthier approach.
But we can’t risk waiting. I won’t risk waiting.
My heart is racing by the time we reach the exterior of the house, and it’s nothing to do with exertion. While we flatten ourselves to the paneled siding, Tyler pulls out the thermal camera and scans the building.
After several seconds, he frowns. “No heat signatures on the main floor.”
Hope plummets. “What?” I whisper. “No one?” A beat later, another option strikes me. “The basement. The concrete walls…”
Tyler nods. “It’s possible. Unless.” His lips pinch shut.
It feels like a giant fist punched me in the gut. Unless everyone in the house is dead, he didn’t say. But I know it’s possible.
“Same plan,” Ace murmurs. “Webb.” He turns to me. “You want to do the lock? Or one of us—”
“I’ll do it.” Pulling out my lockpicks, I set to work on the patio door. It’s a little more complicated than the typical one, but I still have it unlocked in under a minute. Then, with a deep breath and a silent plea, I slide open the door.
Like the time we broke into Donaldson’s apartment, the kitchen is quiet and empty.
But it doesn’t carry the smell of stillness and death.
I catch a whiff of old coffee and a hint of garlic, slightly masked by the fresh scent of dish soap.
In the sink, a mug and spoon sit unwashed.
On the island, a pile of unopened mail waits.
This house has been lived in. Is still being lived in, if I’d have to bet.
Ace jerks his chin in the direction of a door to our left. There’s a deadbolt on it, which would normally strike me as strange—who deadbolts their basement, after all, unless they have something to hide?
Or someone?
Tyler points in the opposite direction, where a hallway awaits. He doesn’t say anything. He doesn’t have to. I know what he means.
Ace lifts his hand once more. We all take a deep breath in unison, then let it out the same way. We raise our weapons to low ready. Our muscles tense, ready to move.
Please, I pray for the first time since my dad got so sick. Please let her be okay. Please.
Ace gives the signal to move.
The four of us split up, two and two, heading in opposite directions.
My hand tightens on my gun. In my other, I clutch the lockpicks.
I’m coming, I tell Noelle silently. I’m almost there.
Then, just step from the basement door, there’s a muffled shout from below.
My heart stops.
Someone shouts again.
In my terror, it takes a second to realize it’s not a woman’s voice, but a man’s.
A second later, a gunshot sounds.
My muscles go weak, and I have to brace my hand on the door to keep from collapsing.
Shit.
Fuck.
What’s going on down there?
And what is he doing to Noelle?