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“That’s the only camera shot they have on the front of the store. Let me check the others.”
The television is active, showing each shot he shuffles through. The one that catches the doors of the bus is the one he pauses on.
“What are you doing?” I snap, feeling as if he’s wasting time.
“Watching to see if she might’ve dropped her phone. It’s possible she got rid of it before getting back on the bus.”
He doesn’t tell me that he suspects she would dump it because I kept calling her, but I sense it in his tone.
“I didn’t call her until we got back last night.”
“Let’s not worry until we have to worry.”
I try and muster every single ounce of faith in his words, but I know better. She disappeared into the darkness and didn’t come back out. Watching the bus confirms it.
“This guy,” he says, the screen pausing on a grainy image of a man. “He didn’t get back on the bus either.”
“What have you found out?”
I spin around to face my boss, but Kincaid’s eyes are on Max, waiting for an update.
“She didn’t get back on the bus after a stop in Santa Fe,” Max tells him. “There’s another guy who didn’t get back on either. I’m going to trace the bus back to see where he got on. The still shot I have of him from Santa Fe is unusable. Give me five.”
“He messaged you?”
Kincaid’s eyes snap to mine. “Max works for me, Oracle. He has a protocol he has to follow just like everyone else.”
His words are simple, an explanation. I don’t sense that he’s pulling rank or even feels like he has to prove anything to me about where I am in comparison to him in the hierarchy. It makes me respect the man that much more.
“He got on with her here in Farmington,” Max says, the screen now flashing to a much better shot of the man.
“I recognize him,” I blurt, but it’s like my brain freezes up.
I know I’ve seen his face, but I can’t pull that information from my head.
“I’m going to run him through facial recognition software,” Max says.
“I’d go ahead and give Blackbridge a call,” Kincaid suggests. “I’m going to work on getting a team together to head to Santa Fe.”
Max doesn’t hesitate to pick up the phone and start dialing, even though the suggestion of Blackbridge means he’ll be talking with Wren. Where Max would be considered an expert on computer programs, Wren could be considered the guy who wrote the programs. They’re both good, but Wren is the absolute best. Cerberus also uses Deacon Black’s team from St. Louis often when we have domestic issues that need a little finer touch than what we normally are able to provide.
For some reason, I wonder at this moment if Blackbridge is going to play a part in the new chapter of Cerberus once it’s up and going. My bet would be yes since they have some amazing guys working for the company.
“You coming or staying?” Kincaid asks, walking toward the door.
“I’m going with you,” I tell him.
With Santa Fe only three hours away, I don’t bother to turn down the hallway to my room. I won’t need an overnight bag this time around.
“Ready?” Hound says, coming through the front door before we can even reach it.
“Ready,” Kincaid tells him.
There are five other guys waiting in the parking lot when we step outside.
I know if there’s a chance of finding her, this team of men will make that happen.
“We really need a fucking helicopter,” I complain once we’re heading out of the property.
“There’s talk of having one in Tennessee,” Kincaid says.
“Yeah,” Hound says, looking down at his phone. “I was doing some research and those Tennessee miles aren’t the same as New Mexico miles. Takes someone twice as long if not longer because of the switch-back curves in the mountains.”
I watch Kincaid’s jaw tighten, but he doesn’t say a word.
I fill my time trying to think of every other possibility than the one I know in my heart to be true.
Chapter 36
Beth
I know without a doubt that the bone-deep chill I have has nothing to do with the weather. If anything, I should be burning up. The dark hood over my head has kept me breathing my recycled breaths. I’ve managed to push the gag out of my mouth, and although they haven’t noticed, I know there’s no sense in alerting them.
Screaming inside of a moving vehicle would be fruitless, and since both men are in the front of the vehicle with me lying over on my side, still tied up, I know it means for now I’m relatively safe. I try not to think about what could happen and the damage that could be done to my body if we get into a car accident, but with all the things they could have planned for me when we stop, I find myself beginning to wish for a crash.
