So many questions, Beth hardly noticed when he swung onto Main heading in the wrong direction. She glanced around her trying to get her bearings. “Isn’t the ranch in the other direction?”
“Yeah, Rhett asked me to drop by the cabin.” He gave her a smooth smile. “I have a few things in the back he needs for repairs.”
Rhett’s cabin? “Rhett never mentioned having a cabin.” She leaned toward him conspiratorially. “Is it a secret?”
“Yeah.” He gave her a slow smile. “It can be our little secret.” He turned onto a fire road and they bounced along for a time before turning onto a narrow trail.
Beth forced a smile and kept her eyes down. She didn’t want him to see any change in her. He’d recognize the signs, for sure. She could act coy. “I don’t even know your name.”
“That makes it so much more exciting.” The man chuckled. “Not far now.”
Apprehension crawled up Beth’s spine. She recognized every inch of this road. It was like déjà vu. Her mind rushed ahead, offering scenarios of what might happen. If he attacked her, she’d kill him—it was in her DNA. Somehow, she needed to control her basic instinct and allow the situation to play out, but she needed a witness just in case things got out of hand. She wore a tracker ring. Since joining Jenna’s “family” they’d insisted on everyone carrying one. It meant that in Serial Killer Central they all had each other’s backs. It made sense—for them, not her—but this time, she had no choice but to call for assistance. She pressed it once, counted to ten, and pressed it again. One press alerted the team, two sent out an SOS to every member.
The main problem for her would be acting normal. Most women would be terrified at being abducted. Her only problem would be if he tried to remove her clothes—that triggered flashbacks of her time in foster care and she couldn’t control the bouts of uncontrollable rage. She didn’t scare easily, not now, but as a kid hiding in the forest after witnessing her father, Cutthroat Jack, murder her mother she’d been terrified, but that night something snapped. A coldness had crept over her, taking with it all emotion, fear being one of them. She didn’t fear death and had suffered enough pain to ignore most of it too, unless it incapacitated her. The main problem she faced would be not to fight back and hope he didn’t kill her before Jenna came to her rescue.
Forty-Six
Jenna and Kane had just stepped into the hallway and headed toward Wolfe’s office when everyone’s phones sent out a warning. Ten seconds later, the “officer in immediate danger” alarm sounded all through the building. She pulled her phone out of her jacket pocket and stared at the screen. “It’s Beth.” Jenna opened the GPS screen on the tracker. “She’s in the forest and by the speed she’s going, she’s in a vehicle heading toward the cabin where you found Cutter’s body.”
“Listen. I hear her.” Kane put his phone on speaker.
“So how long ago did Rhett buy this cabin?” It was Beth’s voice, but a faint tapping came as she paused and sent a message in Morse code.
“She’s with the serial killer.” Kane looked up as the others came running toward them. “We’ve gotta move—now.”
Jenna looked around at Carter, Styles, and Raven. “We’ll need to go by chopper and rappel down. If he hears us, too bad. It might prevent him from killing her. Raven, you follow in the truck. If he gets away, you’ll need to follow him. Rio and Rowley will be moving now and heading toward the forest. Go, go, go.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Raven took off at a run.
“My chopper is ready to go.” Wolfe walked toward them. “I have all the gear you’ll need. I’ll take you and you’ll have three on the ground. My chopper doesn’t have FBI written all over it either.”
As they rushed back up to the helipad, Jenna kept the phone pressed to her ear. Beth was trying to give a running commentary. They had reached the cabin.
“Oh, so a fishing cabin.” She coughed. “It stinks around here. I’ll just stay in the truck. You won’t be long, will you?”
A thumping sound and a sharp intake of breath raced Jenna’s heart. She climbed into the chopper and threw herself into a seat.
“That was easy.” A man’s confident voice came through the speaker. “You ain’t so tough now, are you? Nice weapon. Don’t you know women should never be in law enforcement. They need to keep their place in society. They’re the cause of evil.”
“Stop raving on and just shoot me. I don’t need preaching to.” Beth’s voice came out in a wheeze. “Men like you are cowards. They need weapons to fight a defenseless woman. You’re a coward—fight me like a man.”
“You don’t have a say and I can do whatever I want.” A thump and a groan came through the speaker. “I own you.”
The chopper’s engine blocked out the conversation. Beside her, Kane leaned over to fasten her seatbelt. He pushed a headset over her ears just as Wolfe took the chopper into the air. She looked at him and pressed the mic on the headset. “He’s attacking her.”
“She’s as tough as nails.” Styles turned to look at her. “She can handle herself and knows we’re coming.”
“The only chance she has that I can see is from what Zoe recalled. She said that he likes to make it last.” Carter turned in his seat beside Wolfe and looked at Styles. “I figure you’ll want to go with Jenna and Dave?”
“She’s my partner.” Styles narrowed his gaze. “My responsibility.”
Jenna looked from one to the other. “Carter, you work the winch. Kane and Styles, with me.”
She hated rappelling from a chopper, and Kane and Styles would be on the ground in seconds; she’d need to suck it up and drop like a stone along with them. The image of Beth being tortured flashed across her mind and she gritted her teeth. I can do this. I must do this. If Beth died, she’d never forgive herself. As the chopper came to the first fire road, they stood and climbed into harnesses. Jenna pulled on gloves. A minute later they were above the second fire road and she could make out the cabin. Carter jumped from his seat and clipped them all to the winch. He slid open the door and a rush of wind almost knocked her off her feet. She glanced at Kane as he took her hand and led her to the door. She didn’t need to say a word. He moved closer and his eyes held a promise to keep her safe.
“Freefall and watch me. I’ll tell you when to brake.” He cupped her cheek and rubbed it gently with his thumb. “We’ll be on the ground in seconds. Are you ready?”
Nodding, she sat beside him, her hands on the rope, and below her feet the wind swirled the tops of the trees. They’d drop safely onto the fire road, but Jenna’s heart raced and her knees trembled. Beside her, Kane gave her an encouraging smile as Carter gave them a countdown on his fingers, and holding her breath, Jenna jumped from the chopper. They dropped at high speed and Jenna’s stomach threatened to leap from her mouth. The rope slipped through her hands as the fire road came up far too quickly. Fear gripped her, and she stared at Kane. Even with the noise of the chopper and the wind rushing past her ears, she heard his voice.
