Chapter 9 #2
Jessie didn’t pull over to the side of the road until they were at least a dozen miles from the encampment.
Kendra’s phone rang once during that interval with a call from Dunne to make certain they were okay and tell them Fitz and his men were on the way to the camp—but not to return until they checked back in with him.
She was glad he was still safe, but she wasn’t tempted to return yet.
The past hour had been a shock and she just wanted to get away somewhere she felt moderately safe before making any plans about next steps.
Evidently Jessie felt close to the same thing, because when she did pull over it wasn’t until after she’d found a nook deep on the other side of the forest. There she switched off the cycle and turned to face Kendra.
“Not a great night. I guess we should probably talk about how to make it better?”
“Why do you say that?” Kendra asked. “Just because that poor Kenneth Bruce has probably been murdered?” She shivered. “And I made a snap decision that might leave us just like Bruce?”
“We didn’t have time for anything but a snap decision,” Jessie said quietly. “And since we were the principal ones at risk, we had to make it. Your decision made sense to me. So stop having second thoughts and tell me what we’re going to do next.”
“So I still have the responsibility? I’m open to suggestions.”
“But you don’t always take them. This is your particular battle, as you’ve often told me. You give the orders. I’ll shoot you down if I think you’re full of crap.” Then she flinched. “Oops, that was particularly bad timing for a threat like that. Sorry.”
Kendra shook her head. “Yes, it was. But I’ll come up with something.” She was frowning. “I don’t know if Cambry is involved in this at all, but I’m not ready to trust him yet. I think we have to find a way to investigate Cambry and any possible association with Vlad Korkil.”
“Do we involve Justice?”
“Not right away. I think we have to finish searching this area first and then go after that man who lost his hand and see if it was Lynch who took it.”
“I like that plan.”
“I thought you would. But if we don’t find any trace of Lynch nearby, we’ll hunt down Palmer Nolan, who created the prosthetic, and give him the third degree. Agreed?”
“Agreed,” Jessie said gloomily. She started the motorcycle. “Let’s go before those commandos get here.”
Kendra and Jessie rode five miles to the south over the uneven terrain, then stashed the motorcycle in the brush so that they could move more quietly.
They spent hours looking for some sign of Lynch, and their calls to Fitz went unanswered.
They were about to give up when they happened upon an abandoned gas station.
The small building they were approaching was almost invisible from the road. Tall weeds grew all around it, and the building itself was stained by mold and mildew.
“Definitely not worth our time,” Jessie said. “I wouldn’t have paid any attention to this place even out of the corner of my eye.”
Jessie took a few more steps forward to get a closer look. “Definitely a gas station,” she said. “Or at least it was a long time ago.” She pointed to a pair of concrete pads in front. “That’s where the pumps were.”
“Get down!” Kendra hissed as she fell to the ground.
Jessie dove next to her. “What?” she whispered as she crawled after Kendra behind a clump of weeds. “See somebody?”
“No. But someone’s been here. Recently. They may still be inside.”
“Squatters?”
“Could be. There are fresh footprints in the mud all around. Do you have your binoculars with you?”
Jessie reached into her knapsack and pulled out a small pair of military-grade binoculars. She handed them to Kendra.
Kendra scanned the area. “There were at least four people here recently. There could be more, but it’s hard to tell since they were all wearing the same type of boots.
Field boots of some kind, the type that paramilitary guys like to wear.
So I don’t think they were squatters.” She suddenly gasped. “I think Lynch was here.”
“Are you sure?”
“Pretty sure. One of the prints is that ridiculously expensive Zamberlan hiking shoe Lynch wears. I always tease him about his billionaire tastes.” She adjusted the binoculars to study the layout of prints.
“But there’s only one set of those. There’s no sign of them on the path leading up to the entrance. ”
“They just . . . appear there?” Jessie asked. “I don’t like the sound of that.”
“Do you think I do?” Kendra asked harshly.
From the instant she’d seen those prints, she’d had only one thought and it was causing her to shake with fear.
But she had to put it into words. “It looks like someone may have been . . . dragged.” She lowered the binoculars and handed them back to Jessie. “I think that could have been Lynch.”
“Don’t jump to conclusions,” Jessie said quietly. “No proof.”
And Lord, Kendra didn’t want to jump to that particular conclusion. It was difficult to imagine Lynch helpless, at anyone’s mercy, dragged anywhere against his will. But at least if Lynch had been a captive here, there was evidence he’d still been alive.
“If we can get Fitz on the phone, I bet he could have a swarm of guys crawling all over this place in no time,” Jessie suggested.
Kendra shook her head. “Fitz is too busy dealing with his own team’s problems right now. Besides, even if Lynch was here, we don’t know if he’s still around. The mud around those footprints is dry and cracking. It’s days old.”
Jessie pointed to a path that would take them to the other side of the building. “Then let’s get closer.”
They ducked low as they moved through the tall grass. They finally hit a tiny parking lot with tufts of weeds sticking up through gaps in the gravel. There was a single rear door, wide open, and a pair of broken windows next to it.
“I don’t think anyone has been here for a while,” Kendra said. She inspected the windows from a vantage point about thirty feet away. “Are you seeing this?”
Jessie was now using her binoculars. “Those window breaks are fresh. There’s almost no dust on the edges.”
Kendra moistened her lips. “That’s not what I was referring to. I was talking about that disturbing splatter on what’s left of the other window.”
Jessie adjusted the focus knob on the binoculars. “Shit. Is that . . . blood?”
Kendra stood. “That’s what it looks like from here. I’m going in.”
Jessie grabbed her arm. “The hell you are.”
“It looks deserted. There probably isn’t anyone in there.”
“Then wait here. Let me go inside.”
“No, don’t be ridiculous. If someone’s waiting to ambush one of us, it’s better for you to be out here. You’re a trained soldier. If it’s left to one of us to mount a counteroffensive or go get help, we both know you stand a much better chance than I would.”
Jessie’s hand slid down to clasp Kendra’s forearm. “Listen to me. Even if there’s no danger . . . you don’t know what you’ll find in there.”
Kendra stared at Jessie for a long moment, finally accepting the truth. Jessie was afraid she might find Lynch’s dead body in the ruins of that building.
“Let me do it,” Jessie whispered.
Kendra shook her head. “If Lynch is in there . . .” She moistened her lips. “No matter what condition he’s in, I need to be the one to find him . . . and be with him. Do you understand?”
Jessie mouthed a silent curse, but finally let go of her arm.
Kendra took a step away. “I’ll be okay. Promise.”
Jessie was obviously still troubled. “After you make your sweep, come get me. Don’t wait. Got it?”
“I will.” Kendra took a deep breath and then started to walk toward the old gas station.