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Lucas nodded. “Ballistics matched with a gun he used in another murder, but no one has been able to find him.”
She sat at the end of the front row while Lucas went to stand by a dark-haired woman in her early thirties. She wore a gray suit, and Carly assumed it was Siela Chen from the FBI. The woman’s calm, competent manner bolstered Carly’s hope. Maybe she’d know what to do right away.
The woman came to stand in front of Carly, and while she didn’t touch her, the compassion in her gaze warmed Carly. “I’m so sorry, Ms.Harris. May I call you Carly?”
“Yes, please.”
“I’m Siela Chen. I know how hard this is for you. I’ll likely ask you questions during the task force meeting. Time is of utmost importance. May I see the text message you received?”
Carly retrieved her phone and called up the message. “You’ll see where I asked for more time. We have until nine tonight. We should comply with the ransom, right?”
Ms.Chen studied the phone’s messages, then handed it back. “Lieutenant Clark printed out the messages Detective Bennett sent, but I wanted to verify every word.” She shifted her weight on her black pumps. “Every case is different, and in this situation, I’m going to recommend you comply with the ransom demand. We’ll have the drop site surrounded, and hopefully we can apprehend the kidnapper at the pickup.” She turned when Bernard called her name. “We’ll talk more later,” she told Carly.
She went back to the front with Lucas and Bernard. “We’ll have drones deployed that can follow the car after it leaves the pickup.” She focused her attention on Carly. “You’ll likely get instructions an hour or so before the drop on where to take the item. We’ll have time to get our forces in place.”
It sounded so easy, but Carly didn’t feel good about it. The kidnapper had already told her not to call the police or the FBI. What if he got word she’d done just that and disappeared with Isabelle and Caroline?
She had her phone on silent, but it vibrated in her lap, and she glanced down at it as Bernard went over the deployment of teams to interview possible suspects while they waited for the drop to be set up.
You lied. And you didn’t listen. Bring the egg to Hunting Island in one hour. I’m attaching a map of where to go. Leave the egg in the Y of the big tree and leave. Your sister will be released. If you bring the police, you’ll never see her again. Go right now or there won’t be time. Obey or else.
What did it mean that there was no mention of Caroline? Was it possible the kidnapper was related to her? Carly had a choice to make—do exactly as the kidnapper asked or tell Lucas and Chen about the text. Carly desperately wanted Lucas with her, but what if her actions resulted in the death of her sister? How could she take that chance? What was a priceless Fabergé egg worth when compared to Isabelle’s life? Kelly’s baby mattered just as much.
It would be easy enough to get the egg and drive out to Hunting Island, but she had to decide now—right now. She glanced around the room at the assembled team. Good officers, all of them. But with that many people involved, itbecame more likely she’d be seen. The problem was she was stuck without her vehicle. She’d come in Lucas’s truck, and it would eat up some of her time to walk back to the house.
She had to at least tell Lucas and ask him to help her. But would he insist on notifying everyone else? It wasn’t in his nature to go rogue, but she had to risk it.
The meeting was coming to a close, and she rose and went to the door, hoping Lucas would follow. And he did.
He caught up with her in the hall. “You okay? Chen will want to talk to you.”
She took his hand and stared into his eyes. “Lucas, you have to help me. I have to take the egg out to Hunting Island, and it has to be right now. I have only one hour or Isabelle will die. I know you’re going to tell me you have to let the team know, but you can’t. I-I care about you even though I don’t want to. And I think you care about me. If that’s true, I need you to take me to the bank now without saying anything to Bernard or Chen.”
His pupils expanded in his hazel eyes. She revealed how she really felt in her eyes and prayed he could read her expression. And that he cared enough to trust her intuition. Sometimes that was all a person had—their perceptions that couldn’t be explained or analyzed.
He clasped her hand and squeezed it. “Okay, Carly, okay. Let’s go now before anyone else gets here. Do you have your purse with the key to the box?”
The tender expression on his face told her more than mere words ever would. “Yes.”
She let him lead her out the door to where he’d parked his truck. She climbed in and prayed she was right.
Thirty-Six
Taking Carly into the jaws of danger went against all of Lucas’s knowledge and instincts. Yet here he was, doing just that.
He parked in the lot at Hunting Island State Park. “Ready?”
She nodded. “I’m not sure how we’re going to make sure the kidnapper doesn’t see you.”
They’d gotten the egg out faster than expected. “I’m heading to the location first. We’re half an hour early, which should give me enough time to get hidden where I can watch what’s happening.”
“I suspect he might already be there.” Her phone dinged with a picture, and she lifted it to read the message. The picture was of Mr.Schoenwald in front of the bank. “Mr.Schoenwald is at the bank. I forgot to let him know what was happening.”
“Send me his number, and I’ll call him.”
She tapped on her phone. “I sent it. Ask him to get a room and stay put until we resolve this. I want that egg gone.”
He didn’t blame her. It had brought massive trouble into her life. He placed the call while she got out. He told the auctioneer about the situation, and the man agreed to get a hotelroom and wait. The concern in Schoenwald’s voice amped up Lucas’s own unease about what they were doing.
