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Chapter One
"Do you know what this meeting is about?” Detective Warren looked around the FBI conference room expectantly, hoping any of the other officers would know the answer.
"No, but it's got to be big to call an emergency meeting.” Joe leaned back in his chair as he sipped his second cup of coffee of the morning. In the otherwise empty room, a handful of men were grouped together. The walls were a crisp white, the surroundings almost hospital like. But it was far from the clean white sterile environment of a hospital.
"Do you think there was a break with the terrorist ties to Kuli Samid?” George's voice was hopeful. George was the resident International Terrorist specialist. There were at least four of the agents that worked in the office that worked in that specialized field. “I have been trying to make a break in that case for months now. Right now I would be happy to just be able to disrupt their activities, at least that would stop the money flow."
"You will get him, but I don't think this is about Samid. I heard there was a kidnapping in Virginia.” Warren didn't look up as he spoke, continuing to shuffle through some of the files he brought with him to look through during the meeting. Life in the FBI was always full of work, and even when multitasking there was never enough time to do it all.
As soon as Denise stepped into the room, all the conversations dropped to a whisper, and every eye was on her. Any other woman would have felt a little intimidated, become a little withdrawn. Perhaps even felt a little awkward. The only thing the blank stares did for Denise was piss her off even more. Skipping her morning coffee had not put her in a good mood, and this unwelcome feeling she was getting was just making her day so much more fun. She glared at the men defiantly, her blue eyes sparkling with a silent challenge.
Working for the FBI was still primarily a man's world, she knew that, but she had not anticipated the outright unfriendliness. She was petite compared to the average height of the men around her. In a land of six foot giants, she was a dwarf. A mere five-foot-five. In good shape from hours of working out and years of martial arts made her confident that she could take any one of them on in a fight. That knowledge helped her walk with a kick to her step. She knew as many of the moves as they did, if not more. Her body was in excellent shape and she didn't attribute that to her rigorous workout routine.
Her nerves that forced her to keep in shape, when she got nervous or worried, she couldn't sit still. She had to keep moving all the time. Exercising helped to burn up the energy and relax her. Ultimately it kept her sane. It was why she chose such a physical job to begin with.
She hid her nervous nature. She had always been strong and today, with twenty-two pairs of strange men's eyes on her would be no exception. She belonged here as much as anyone of them did. She graduated from the academy with honors at the head of her class, and being only one of two women in her class, she was damned proud of that fact.
Denise looked around the tables before walking up to a seat up front. She refused to go hide in the back of the room and sat down next to a blond gentleman with a military style haircut dressed in a black business suit and tie. She smiled at him briefly before turning her attention to the empty chair at the head of the board room.
How long was this going to take? Long meetings, filing, paperwork, this was the one thing she didn't enjoy about being in the law enforcement field, but it was a necessary part of this world and the foundation of a good prosecution. Nothing had ever given her so much satisfaction as this line of work. It didn't happen everyday, but there were days she knew she made a difference. After six years with the Cincinnati police she finally made the cut for the FBI.
In a whirl of papers, the group of chattering men dispersed to quickly find their seats before their leader took his place behind his desk. Victor De La Cruz was the director in charge of the satellite offices for the Cincinnati field office. He was the one who had interviewed her for the field office here.
The room quickly became silent and attentive waiting for Victor to address the room. He had a commanding manner about him that made everyone look to him for guidance, whether he was officially in charge or not.
"Okay, boys and girls, as you may have heard or not, we have had a kidnapping in the Virginia area.” He began to hand a packet of papers around to the room. “Please take one and pass it on. Inside you will find a complete report on the suspect and the vehicle he was last known to be traveling in. A black Mustang convertible."
Agent Jeff Bryant was the first to comment, “I heard about this guy on the news yesterday."
"Well, he has crossed the state line and he is headed this way. The authorities in Virginia have contacted us for our cooperation. It appears he has family in the area, a mother and an aunt, and may be headed this way. I want our agents to interview the family and possibly the neighbors. I need four volunteers."
Denise was one of the first to raise her hand. This would be a good break from her usual assignment in International Terrorism. If there was anything she could do, she needed to try, and this was the kind of opportunity she could never turn down. This was why she joined the force to begin with. She wouldn't be able to sleep without knowing she tried.
"Larry, George, Shawn, and Jeff. Denise, you will partner with Jeff as a new agent. I will need you to go out this morning and do the interviews.” Victor cleared his throat before continuing. “By the way everyone, Denise is our newest agent and I want you to make her feel at home here. We are lucky to have her. She worked for six years for the Cincinnati police and is trained in hostage negotiations."
There was an eruption of murmured welcomes and hellos, but Denise didn't mistake the sounds for being friendly, even as she smiled back.
* * * *
Denise knocked on the wooden screen door. The paint was peeling, exposing the years of neglect that the old house had gone through. A dog came running to the door barking in excitement, and they could hear the sounds of the occupants stirring. “Hold on, I am coming."
The door opened to reveal a woman in her fifties with wrinkles that aged her far more than her true years. The smell of cheap cigarettes and a musty baseme
nt smell arrived a few seconds ahead of her. Her gray hair was pulled back in a ponytail, she was not a woman who spent a lot of time or money on her appearance. When she smiled, Denise had to stop herself from pulling back, it revealed her yellowed crooked teeth that had not been well cared for in life.
She took one look at the two agents dressed in their black business suits and expelled an irritated and drawn out sigh of frustration. “What do you want?"
"Are you Mrs. Bonnie Hall?"
"Yes.” She replied hesitantly, not trusting either of the two agents.
"We are here to ask you a few questions about your son, ma'am. May we come in?” Agent Bryant was quick to take control of the interview.
The woman was hesitant, but stepped aside holding the door wide for them to enter. “Come on in. I will make you some coffee if you like."
"No, thank you.” Agent Jeff replied curtly.
"I just had some, but thank you for offering. Have you heard from your son lately?” Denise tried to break the ice by using a non-threatening voice.
"No, and my son didn't do anything, and I really don't want to talk about him."
"We think he has been involved with a kidnapping."
"He didn't do it.” Bonnie was shaking her head adamantly refusing to listen to the possibility, “I think the police are mistaken."
Denise opened her folder and skimmed down to Brock Hall's criminal record. It was a lengthy one. The man had been arrested and convicted for multiple crimes, possession of drugs, petty theft, including physical assault on his mother. Denise had to shake her head at that. The man was obviously going down a dark road and with each crime was getting more violent.
"Has your son ever shown an interest in young girls, Mrs. Hall?"
Mrs. Hall looked down, and her nervousness was showing with the impulsive twisting of her hands into her shirt. “No. Never."
Agent Bryant's expression did not change to show that he registered the lie.
She's lying, her body language says she's lying, Denise thought. Why would she be lying to protect him? One of his previous arrests was for assaulting his mother. Surely the mother knows he's getting more violent and not better? That by protecting him she's allowing him to continue? She turned her back on the interview to walk over to the window and look out the back window. A fist clenched around her chest as Denise realized why the suspect's mother was lying to them. A black car parked in the yard had been hastily covered up by a blue tarp, but the plastic cover was too small to cover the car all the way, revealing a potentially damning piece of evidence.
Denise turned back to face Agent Bryant and Mrs. Hall. Neither of them were paying her much attention, until she interrupted their conversation. “Mrs. Hall, I know you are concerned about your son as a mother. But any information you give us can help us to possibly save the life of a little girl."
Denise pulled out the school photo of the eleven-year-old child that had been kidnapped. She was pretty with long brown hair and green eyes, but her personality and happy spirit really came out in her smile. She should have her whole life ahead of her. Instead her life was in jeopardy, and it had been two days, with no sign of ransom. Things did not look good for the child. Statistically her chances of survival were very low at this point.
Bonnie held the photo in her hands and just stared at the picture, her hands began shaking. Denise took that as a sign of weakness and moved in for the kill with a direct question. “I know your son has been here. This child could die because of you. Now tell me honestly, did he have her with him, Bonnie?"
Bonnie Hall paled considerably. Suddenly she drew in a troubled breath and let out a choked cry. “I didn't know.” When Bonnie looked back up at Denise, there were tears in her eyes. “I had no idea. He told me was watching her for the weekend. That it was for a friend of his."
"Is he here now?"
Bonnie shook her head silently, and wiped at her nose, sniffling before answering. “No, he took my car. Said something about his car having trouble and he promised to take her camping."
"So he was here and you saw him with this girl?” Agent Bryant's wispy eyebrows furrowed over his icy blue eyes, he looked surprised and yet perturbed at Denise. His tight-lipped smile suggested he was resentful of her.
"She was so quiet and sweet. I had no idea. Why didn't she say something?” Bonnie went on babbling almost incoherently through her sobbing.
Denise thought about what he probably threatened to do to the little girl if she said something, and didn't doubt that the child was silent for one moment. The child had no idea whether the Bonnie would help or hurt her, or if she was a friend or someone who would protect her son. From what little Denise could guess about the woman, Denise would lay bets that she would not have helped the child, anyway. She would have protected her idiot son first. Denise didn't blame the child at all for being silent about her precarious situation. She may have done the same if the situation were reversed.
"Bonnie, what kind of car did you give him?” Agent Bryant asked controlling the tone of his voice, to not share the excitement he was feeling. This was a big break in the case.
"A Chevy Minivan."
"What year is it?"
"1998."
"And the color?"
"Navy blue."
"Did he happen to say where they would be going camping?"
"Yes, actually. He told me they were going to Big Pine National Forest."
"Does he have any other favorite places to go, or places that he talks about a lot?"
"Actually there is that place the locals call the Devil's Punchbowl in the Rocky Mountains."
Agent Bryant continued to question Bonnie about miscellaneous details, from what Brock Hall was wearing down to what he packed with him and when he left, carefully writing every detail down in his report.
Denise opened up her cell phone to call her boss Victor with the good news and to get an evidence recovery team to check out Brock Hall's car. They might have a half a chance at getting the little girl Elizabeth back alive.
* * * *
"I don't want to play nursemaid to your new agents. She was interfering with my job and I am telling you that I don't want to work with her again.” Jeff's voice was angry and abrupt. “Team her up with someone else next time."
Denise cautiously pushed at the office door, knowing she wasn't meant to hear this. The voices were raised and she knew she shouldn't be interrupting this conversation. What disturbed her was she recognized those voices, and she had a nagging feeling that the conversation was about her.
"What exactly happened, Jeff?” Victor's voice was calm but not exactly patient.
"She took over like she knew everything. I was the senior officer and I should have been in control. I don't need a rookie telling me how to do my job or out on the field screwing things up. And she was doing both."
"Didn't things turn out okay?"
"Yes, but—"
"Don't give me any buts, it doesn't matter who got the credit or did the job. You need to buck up and be a man about this. I expect you to comport yourself with professional behavior towards her and everyone else in this office in the future. We have some substantial leads now that may help us to crack this case.
"I am just asking that next time you team her up with someone else."
"Next time you won't let your ego get in between you and your job or you will be disciplined. Do I make myself clear? This isn't about you or me or her. There is a little girl whose life is on the line. And you arguing with your coworkers could cause us to lose our leads. It will only give this guy a bigger chance to get away if we are not all on the same team. I am not asking you, I am telling you to get off your high horse and work together. Do I make myself perfectly clear?"
"Yes, sir.” His voice shared his resentment and deep desire to not follow that last order. But they both knew he would still obey.
* * * *
Denise silently closed the door and moved to the side, pressing her body behind a cabinet, ju
st in time. She felt a moment of panic at the thought of her possible discovery, but Jeff was in such a huff, that he never looked behind him. He just hurried through the hallways to retreat to his office.
Denise waited for him to disappear from sight and made her way back to her office. She had originally meant to speak to Victor about her case load, but that conversation had shaken her up badly. In her haste to retreat, she bumped into Victor. His hands steadied her as she made to move away.
In that moment her heart stopped, she stopped breathing. She knew she had just been found out. It was bad enough that she now knew how badly she had been received here, but now her boss knew she was listening to a private conversation. How much worse could things get?
She placed her palms flat against his chest. She wanted to push him away but his warmth and the clean scent of his skin and cologne enveloped her. She didn't want to pull away when she felt how good it felt to be in his arms.
She was disappointed when he dropped his hands from her arms, and she dropped her hands in response and stepped away from the powerful male who was setting her senses askew.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to—"
"Eavesdrop?” He mocked her and with her silence he made a move to step away, as if he was dismissing her. Hastily she grabbed his arm to keep him from leaving.
"No,” She shook her head in protest. “Victor? Can I talk to you for a moment?"
"Yeah sure—What's up?” His face turned serious, but there was a mocking glint to his steel blue eyes.
"You know I didn't mean to overhear, but I did. I just want to say, thanks for sticking up for me in there."
"Well, at least you are honest about it. Eavesdropping will get you in trouble and I wouldn't make a habit of it, Denise."
"I said I was sorry. It really was an accident.” She blushed.
"You can't afford accidents."
"I know—that is why I appreciate you putting Jeff in his place, too. I am not here to be anything but part of the team, sir."
