AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I peered up at the dark gap in the ceiling. “Do you have a flashlight?”
A light was placed in my hand. I clicked it on and lifted it up to peer into the darkness. I was still too short, even on the chair, so I carefully lifted onto my toes, trying to see more. I pulled a pen from my pocket and began gently poking around the inside lip of the hole. I made it halfway around before it hit something that moved. I prodded it with the pen a few more times until I was sure it wasn’t going to bite me or blow up before I carefully reached in and pulled it out.
I held the dusty object between my fingers and grinned. “Jackpot, boys.”
The memory stick was dirty, but intact. I looked it over and saw no visible damage. Jordan held up an evidence bag, and I dropped it inside. He was grinning, too. “You found it.”
I jumped off the chair and quickly filled out the information on the bag and sealed it. “We need to get this to Michelson as soon as possible.”
Abbott walked over and clapped me on the shoulder. “We’ve got it. We could have a name by the end of the day.”
That thought excited me. I glanced around the rest of the room. “Forensics needs to finish processing in here. Let’s get out of the way.”
Karson and Borski both looked up when I emerged from the bedroom. I waved the bag up in the air. “We got it.”
Both smiled and their shoulders relaxed. I stepped out onto the porch and set the bag on the table that also held the computer and some of the weapons. “Let’s wrap this up as fast as we can.”
We spent another hour helping search for any other hiding spots. That was about as much time as I was willing to lend to the search. I almost felt bad for how much more the forensics team still had to do, but I wanted to get the evidence back to the office so Paige could tell us what was on the memory stick.
Jordan approached me, wiping dust off his shirt. “Hey, are you ready to head back? You and I can take the evidence we’ve collected so far. The others can stay and help finish up.”
I nodded. “Yeah, that sounds like a good idea. I’m anxious to know what’s on this thing.”
We loaded up one of the vehicles not blocked in at the rear of the caravan. I scanned all the bags onto the tablet and loaded them into the back of the vehicle, except for the memory stick, which I kept with me. I wasn’t letting it out of my sight.
Jordan and I climbed into the UTV, and he started it up. He swiveled in the seat to look out the back windshield to back around the other vehicles. He was still smiling. “I have a good feeling about the memory stick. I bet the information we need is on it.”
“You’re right. I’m sure of it.” I shifted restlessly in my seat. “I want Michelson to start working on it immediately. This has priority. Speaking of Michelson, I need to let her know we’re on our way.” I pulled out my tablet and typed a message to her.
We bumped along down the trail, and I tried not to stare at the evidence I held. It was hard, though. “Who do you think will be on here?”
Jordan shrugged. “We have our suspects. It could be any one of them, honestly. Barrows had enemies on Novus Terra—people that might have wanted to get him out of the way to get his position.”
I wrinkled my nose. “But no one stepped forward to take over while he was gone. And if that was the plan, then why kidnap him? Why not kill him outright? It seems more like someone just wanted him out of the way for a while. Or maybe someone wanted to frame the Conglomeration. Maybe kidnap him and release him later so he tells everyone that the Conglomeration did it. Peace talks fall through. War ensues. Or someone wanted to hold him to use him as leverage later on. It doesn’t seem like a home world issue to me.”
“The high chancellor certainly has enough enemies that it could be any number of people. I’m just hoping the thing will tell us who and why. Maybe give us some hard proof, too, so we can get a conviction.”
“Me, too. It would be nice to wrap this case up soon and let Ben know he’s safe now. At least from one threat.” I tapped the bag against my leg. “Whoever it was must be powerful. And rich. Santiago’s services aren’t cheap, and he won’t work for just anyone.”
“Agreed. But if someone was going after Barrows, it makes sense that it would be someone with a lot of money. He would need—”
Something slammed into the front of the UTV. The whole vehicle rocked and flipped over. The seatbelt dug into my ribs, and I watched with uncomprehending eyes as the ground rolled around outside the window. The loose items in the cab flew around like tiny missiles, pelting me in the face. I closed my eyes against the onslaught, feeling tiny cuts opening on my skin. I threw my arms up and covered my head as we rolled. The vehicle tipped one last time before settling back on its top.
I lay suspended from the seat, staring blankly at the spider web cracks in the windshield. I gulped in a deep breath, feeling the seat belt cutting into my ribs. I heard noises outside, and it snapped me into action. I craned my neck to look at Jordan. He was also suspended in his seat, but his head was hanging low and there was a large knot on his forehead. Blood dripped down the side of his face and into his hair. I reached for him, panic flooding my veins. “Jordan! Wake up! Jordan!” I touched his arm, but he didn’t stir. I tried to touch his head to check his wound, but I couldn’t reach. It looked like his chest was still moving at least.
Voices approached the vehicle, and my head snapped over to look at the window on my side. I wedged my hand against my waist and managed to pull a knife from my belt. My gun wasn’t in its holster. It must have gotten knocked out in the crash. I hesitated a second before unsnapping my seatbelt.
As I fell, I ducked my head, but the impact against the roof was still painful. I grunted and unfolded my tangled limbs. I tried to assess myself for injuries. Even though I was in pain, nothing felt serious. My body still seemed mobile. I turned to Jordan, pressing my fingers to his throat. He still had a pulse.
“Jordan!” I hissed at him. “Wake up!”
A hand latched onto my ankle and yanked. I yelped and almost lost my grip on the knife. My body scraped across glass and debris while I was dragged out the window. I barely registered that there were three men surrounding me before I lashed out at them with my knife. I managed to take the guy holding my ankle by surprise, and I sliced through his arm. He jerked away from me with a cry, and another man lunged at me. I batted his arms away and planted my foot in his stomach simultaneously. I wedged my arm up, trying to get the knife in a position to stab him.
The third man came at me, grabbing at the arm with the knife. I clenched my teeth and twisted away from him, rolling into the other one. I got enough leverage to knock one off balance, and he landed on his back. I scrambled on top of him while the third guy grasped my shoulder and tried to pull me away, but I was too quick for him. I slammed the knife down, slicing deep into the chest of the man beneath me.
Hands pulled me off him. I swung the knife blindly behind me. The hands released me, and I had a second of freedom. I reached up and slapped my com. “Abbott! We’re under attack!”
Before I could even finish the sentence, a hand ripped the com from my ear and threw it. I turned and slashed at him with the knife, but he stepped out of reach, and I missed. My shoulder throbbed, and I worried I might have torn something.
