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Rowley’s cruiser screamed to a halt and he leapt from behind the wheel and ran toward her with Rio close behind. Jenna handed Cooper to his father. “He’s fine, just a little shaken. Sandy is in the supermarket.”
“Hey.” Wolfe arrived with Dr. Norrell Larson and, from their flushed faces, they’d been running. “Cooper will have evidence all over him. This has to be the same guy who abducted the others.” He stared at Kane. “He’s only five minutes ahead of you, is all. The Beast will catch him. Go for it. I’ll need to make sure Cooper is okay.” He looked at Rowley. “We’ll take a nice quiet walk back to the store. He’ll settle once he sees his sister and mom.” He sighed. “My truck is parked nearby. I’ll grab a forensics kit along the way.”
Jenna turned to Rio. “Drive the cruiser to the supermarket and wait for Rowley.” She turned and followed Kane to the Beast. “Let’s catch this guy.”
THIRTY-FIVE
Kane handed Duke’s leash to Kalo. “Head down to Aunt Betty’s Café. We’ll meet you there later.”
“You can’t come with us. It’s going to be a rough ride.” Jenna smiled at him. “Take care of Duke.” She strapped in and turned to Kane. “Do you think we can catch him?”
Trying to control the rush of anger welling inside, Kane dropped into the zone. He’d need every ounce of concentration to catch this man, and when he did, he’d need every ounce of control not to tear him limb from limb. He started the engine and hit the lights and sirens to get through the traffic. He needed help and turned to Jenna. “Carter is heading this way. He called me just before. Jo asked Wolfe if Jaime could stay with his daughters while we worked this case. As all three of them are at home at the moment with his housekeeper, he was more than happy to have her stay for a few days. Jaime is over the moon to be able to see her friends again.”
“That’s great.” Jenna was gripping the side of the seat. “If you’re trying to talk to me to keep me calm, don’t worry, I’m fine. I’m used to your driving and flying along the highway at incredible speeds.”
The Beast’s engine roared as Kane accelerated along Stanton. Traffic moved to the side of the highway to allow him to pass. As they reached the on-ramp toward Blackwater, he glanced at her. “Contact the airport and ask them to radio Carter. You know his call sign. Tell them to inform him that you are texting Agent Jo Wells. When you get a confirmation, send a message to Jo with the description of the truck we’re chasing down. Carter will be able to get ahead of me faster than I can drive and be able to send us the coordinates. It will be the only chance we have of catching him. He could have taken any of the side roads to parts unknown in the time he’s been gone.”
Minutes later Jenna confirmed that the message had gone through to Carter. As they sped along the highway, the Beast passed vehicles as if they were standing still. Kane kept his gaze on the road ahead, hoping to see the black truck in the distance. They had been traveling for about ten minutes when the FBI chopper flew above them and took off in the distance. Ahead, a line of eighteen-wheelers traveled in a convoy. Kane slowed the Beast but kept a good distance from the last truck. He would need room to accelerate the moment the road ahead became clear enough to overtake the convoy. Beside him he could hear Jenna’s sharp intake of breath as he slammed his foot down on the gas and the front of the Beast lifted. In a roar of precise mechanical engineering, his black truck responded and they pulled out to pass the convoy. In awhoosh, whoosh, whooshas they passed each one, Kane had the sensation of flying. Ahead on their side of the road, vehicles were heading in their direction. Slowing down now would be suicide. He slid his hand down to the nitro switch. In a blast of power, the Beast took off at high speed and seconds later they had passed the trucks and moved back onto the right side of the road.
“The truck has left the highway.” Jenna was staring at her phone. “He’s heading out across the flatlands. Take the next exit.”
This was part of Black Rock Falls that Kane had never visited. He slowed the Beast and they shot down the off-ramp. “What’s out this way?”
“Not much.” Jenna kept her gaze on her phone. “Many years ago there was a prosperous mining town here, but they closed the railroad loop that serviced it and it became a ghost town.”
Kane flicked her a glance. “The railroad is still there. The track runs from Helena and all the way through to Washington.”
“Yeah, it does, but long ago many little offshoots were closed during the Depression. Towns died. Not all of them though. Some of them are doing well.” Jenna read another message. “It looks like he is heading for the ghost town. See the signpost that saysminer’s end. Take that road. It’s straight all the way and crosses the railroad track. He must be holed up in one of the abandoned buildings.”
Kane stared out across the lowlands and in the distance he could make out a small speck moving away from them. “That has to be him. Please tell me that we’re still in our jurisdiction.”
“Yeah, the border is miles away.” Jenna went back to her phone.
Considering the threat, Kane turned to her. “Give me a description of this guy.”
“He’s big and muscular. I didn’t see a weapon but he moved easy.” Jenna looked at him. “He could be any one of our suspects but I’m leaning toward Joshua Sage or Matthew Oakley. Both these men have the right build and are young enough to walk in that smooth way, like the way someone trained to fight walks. Like you do.”
The anger Kane was trying to suppress filtered through again. As Cooper’s godfather, he kept a place in his heart for the little boy, the same as his sister. He doted on Cooper and the thought that someone had snatched him while he was in town made him as mad as heck. “Good, then it will be a fair fight.”
“Dave, this is so not like you.” Jenna squeezed his arm as they tore along the straight road at high speed. “We’ll take him down and find out what he’s done with the other people. If this is him. He might not even be involved in the other abductions. You can’t just beat him up for taking Cooper.”
Kane flicked her a glance. “I have one rule I live by, Jenna. One sacred rule that can never be broken. All the things I’ve done in my life, all the orders I’ve carried out. I’ve killed because it was my job, and I did it for my country or to protect people. I’m a trained killing machine but I know what’s right and what’s wrong, so I obey orders. To be able to do this without a conscience, I live by one simple rule: nobody touches what’s mine.”
A message signaled on Jenna’s phone. She said nothing to him but glanced up, her eyes troubled. “There’s a freight train coming. Jo says he is heading straight for the crossing and not slowing down. She figures he’s going to try and outrun it.”
Kane nodded. “Maybe he’s seen the chopper? I can’t see it now. It must be above us somewhere. Ask them.” He waited for Jenna to send a message and seconds later a reply came back. “What did they say?”
“No, they said since the get-go they’ve been high and just observing so they didn’t spook him.” Jenna stared at her phone. “They said they’ll be right there the moment you need them.”
In the distance the freight train and its endless boxcars went on forever. They’d never make it in time. The only choice they had would be for Carter to follow the other truck and see where it was going. Kane shook his head. “We’ll be stuck on this side of the track. Tell them to watch at a distance. We’ll follow and take them into custody when we can. Then we’ll need his assistance for backup.”
“Copy that.” Jenna blew out a long breath. “I’ll message Rio, he should start heading this way as well. We can’t carry prisoners in the Beast.”
Kane barked a laugh. “Not Wolfe?”
“You won’t kill him.” Jenna leaned back in her seat. “You’ll want to find out about the others just as much as I do.” She sighed. “Believe it or not, I agree with your rule. If anything happened to me, it’s comforting to know you’d avenge me. I sure as heck would avenge you.”
THIRTY-SIX
