“Lucy!”
He couldn’t hear if there was anyone pursuing them.
“Over here!” Lucy was scrambling toward him. “We have to get out of here.”
“When will the Feds arrive?”
“They’ll be staging somewhere nearby.”
“Staging?” Sean understood the necessity of planning, but this was a damn emergency.
“Sean—I’m worried about the boys. Is there any way we can circle around and find
them?”
“We have to get out of here before the truck explodes.”
“But—”
Sean grabbed her by the shoulders. “I looked at the map while I was on the roof. We can get to them from another angle. Trust me. We can’t go back the way we came.”
Lucy shook her head. Of course Sean was right—and Micah promised to stay hidden in the boulders. She hoped he listened to her. She hoped no one had followed them up the cliff trail. “I’ll follow you,” she said.
Sean grabbed her hand and they ran fast, away from the burning trucks. She didn’t see anyone pursuing them but they could have disappeared into the night. The fire was building, casting a bright, orange light around them. At first she didn’t see anyone, then she spotted a lone male running back toward the camp.
“Sean,” she said, “someone is heading back to the camp.”
“Good, they’re not following. We’re going to—”
“FBI! Put your hands behind your head, get down on your knees. Do it!”
Lucy complied immediately as three SWAT team shooters came out of the darkness and spread out in front of her. Sean hesitated.
“Sean!” she shouted.
He dropped to his knees.
She said, “I’m Lucy Kincaid, new agent at Quantico. I’m the one who called this in to my training officer, Noah Armstrong.”
While one cop had his gun on them, the other two came over and handcuffed both Sean and Lucy. Lucy knew it was standard protocol, but it still terrified her. She hated being
restrained, a deep fear, borne out of being held captive seven years ago. In a drill at Quantico they had to get out of a variety of restraints and she was good at it, but she always had to battle the beginnings of a panic attack first. She was grateful she wasn’t in full panic mode now—she’d learned to control it only through hundreds of hours practicing.
Sean was angry but fortunately complied.
“Two young boys are in jeopardy,” Lucy said. “I need to get to them.”
She was thoroughly searched and her hint of panic turned to anger. She had no ID on her; it had been in her backpack. No proof of who she was. There was precious little time.
An explosion not far from them rocked the ground. The pick-up trucks.
Sean said, “The trucks were full of crystal meth.”
The leader spoke into his radio as the three of them put on breathing masks. They’d been prepared, so someone had informed them of the hazard.
“Up,” the other two said, and helped Lucy and Sean stand.
“I need you to take these cuffs off me,” Lucy said. “The boys are in danger. If they blow the lab, they boys won’t be able to get away from the smoke.”
“You can talk to the agent in charge.”
“DEA Agent Alex Johnson, correct?” Lucy said, remembering the name Noah had sent her. “My training agent is Noah Armstrong out of the D.C. office. He sent me a message that he was on his way and that Agent Alex Johnson was in charge of this op.”
The team didn’t say anything, and Lucy wasn’t surprised.
Out of the dark, six SWAT team members with masks passed them, heading toward the camp. Another group of three came and escorted Lucy and Sean to a tactical van and a Hummer with a tac team loading. They had a full contingency of SWAT—both FBI and DEA.
Alex Johnson, a six-foot-tall black man who looked like he was solid muscle, had the air of a man used to being in charge. “Team Delta is getting in place. Team Alpha, on Delta’s command move in.”
A HazMat truck was parked and a team in HazMat suits was getting ready.
“Sir,” the team leader who had captured Lucy and Sean said as he approached Johnson.
After Johnson finished giving orders, he came over. He looked at his phone and then at Lucy. “It’s her. Release them. Report?”
“Micah and Tommy Sanders are hiding up on the cliff in a grouping of rocks southwest of the camp. We need to get to them quickly,” Lucy said.
“Map,” Johnson ordered one of his men.
“I know how to get there,” Sean said.
Sean didn’t sound like himself. He glared at the SWAT team that had handcuffed them. “We’ll take over from here,” Johnson said.
“Time is not on our side,” Sean said. “If they blow their lab, the boys are in immediate danger.”
“Please,” Lucy said, “you need to trust us.”
“This isn’t about trust, this is a tactical operation.” Johnson was listening to something. He said to Lucy, “Do you have confirmation that the boys are at the rocks?”
“I told them to go there.”
“That’s not good enough.”
He said into his com, “Whereabouts of two children unknown.”
“I know where they are!” Lucy said.
Johnson turned his back on them and Lucy was livid. Micah trusted her to get them out,
and he would do what she’d told him. The only reason they would not be there is if they’d been captured.
“Rogan, show me the layout,” Johnson said. He had a satellite map of the valley. The Nelsons had done a good job finding a location that had enough tree cover to make it difficult for air surveillance, but the map was recent and showed two trailers plus the meth lab. Sean pointed to the lab. “That’s where they cooked meth—they just shut down production; the equipment and raw materials are still inside.” He pointed. “This is about fifty yards, from the lab to the trailers. There are three, not two.” He pointed to an empty space. “That’s where the Sanders kids stayed. This trail”—he traced it—“is not as steep as it looks in the picture, it’s how we came down the cliff. There’s also more foliage—what is this, two months old?”
“Ten weeks.”
Sean nodded. “That’s in line with Micah’s statement that he came here in July. Here are the rocks—that’s where Lucy called Noah.”
“Can you confirm four males, two females?”
“One female,” Lucy said. “I shot one.”
“Is she immobile?”
“She’s dead.” Lucy looked at the map. She estimated the location and pointed. “Micah had buried a journal of hers here. I reburied it in case of capture. I wanted the leverage. It’s the only reason Micah’s still alive; he stole it after they killed his mother.”
Sean traced with his finger. “This looks impassable, but we can get to the rocks from here. It puts us close to the meth lab, but it’s the fastest and most direct route. As long as your people know we’re coming through and don’t shoot at us.”
“We don’t randomly shoot at people,” Johnson said.
“Just cuff them?”
Lucy put her hand on Sean’s arm, but said to Johnson, “Sir, we need to go.”
Johnson looked at the map and their location and said, “North, get vests for Kincaid and Rogan. Take them with your team to find the boys. You’d better know what you’re doing. Armstrong is on his way, said you both have good instincts.”
Sean raised his eyebrow. “I’ll have to thank him.”
“Don’t know about that. He also said you both attract trouble like a magnet.”
Lucy and Sean donned Kevlar vests. Sean and North led the way while Lucy stayed close behind with the other two SWAT team members, Montes and Kershaw.
The rocks were over half a mile away. They circled around and heard action at the camp, but Lucy was focused on locating the boys.
The slope was a steady incline, but soon they were at the same elevation as the boulders, and Sean motioned for them to turn north. The truck fire, though half a mile away, was still visible. The camp below was surrounded by SWAT—they’d come in at all angles.
A moment later North held up his hand. His men stopped. North scanned the area through night-vision binoculars.
But Lucy didn’t need binoculars to identify the ATV parked just outside the rock cluster.
North motioned that there was one hostile suspect at their target location. Lucy’s fears were realized. Jeff.
One of the boys cried out, and Jeff shouted, “Shut up!”
Sean whispered to North, “His name is Jeff Nelson. His girlfriend was the boys’ mom.”
North called out, “Mr. Nelson, this is the FBI. Stand down.”
Silence.
Then Jeff made his demand. “I want the woman who killed my sister. Then I will let the boys go.”
North ordered the team to take a secure position. No one had a clear shot of Jeff Nelson since he was holding Micah close to him, a gun to the boy’s head.
Lucy knew, intellectually, that trading herself for the boys was foolhardy. But emotionally, she wanted to. She’d promised them they’d be safe. Micah had trusted her every step of the way, never questioning her, doing exactly what she’d asked of him, all to help his little brother.
Now both of them were in danger.
North called in the report to Alex Johnson.
“Hostage situation at target location.” He gave the exact coordinates.
Lucy watched Jeff closely. He was distraught and his hand was shaking. He didn’t want to hurt the boys. Of that, Lucy was certain. Except that he was grieving and trapped, everything in his life falling apart. He’d had a situation that was working for him, and now his girlfriend was dead, his sister was dead, his brother was likely in custody, and he knew he wouldn’t get out of this situation a free man.
Tommy was huddled on the ground next to a rock, his eyes big and terrified.
“Tell him to let Tommy go,” she told North.
“You’re not in charge, Kincaid,” he said.
“In good faith, tell him to let Tommy go.”
North said, “Mr. Nelson, I’m Lee North, I just want to talk.”
“You heard what I want!”
“Let the younger boy go. I know you don’t want to hurt him.”
“I heard her voice—Kincaid. She killed my sister. It had to have been her.”
North glanced at Lucy and she nodded.
“Let me talk to him,” she said.
“No,” North said. “He’s unpredictable and fixated on you.”
“I know what’s going on with him. I can talk him down.”
“It’s an order, Kincaid. Or haven’t they covered those at Quantico yet?”
She bit back a response. Of course he was right, and he didn’t know her or what she’d done prior to joining the FBI. But she was a criminal psychologist and knew enough about Jeff Nelson and his situation to help fix this mess.
North said to Jeff, “Let Tommy go. Then we will talk.”
Jeff clutched Micah and hunkered down behind a rock, out of their sight. He was saying something to the kid, but Lucy couldn’t make out what it was.
“Jeff, I need to keep communication open between us. Talk to me, buddy.”
Jeff didn’t say anything, and Lucy shifted uncomfortably. Sean put his hand on the small of her back, sharing his strength and confidence, but it didn’t help like it usually did.
North said quietly, “The hostage negotiator is coming up from the tactical truck. ETA fifteen minutes. Team Alpha has the other suspects in custody and is securing the camp.” To Jeff he called out, “Jeff, your brother, Carl, and everyone else is in custody. You don’t want to be the only one who ends up on a slab.”
Lucy winced. That was the wrong thing to say. Ann was already dead, and Jeff knew it.
Jeff laughed. “Right. Then I have nothing to lose and nothing to gain!”
“You can gain our trust by letting Tommy go.”
Lucy wished she could see Jeff and Micah. She could see part of Tommy huddled in the
rocks but not his face.
North motioned for his men to fan out ten feet in either direction and said they were cleared to take a shot if they could get it.
Lucy prayed it didn’t come to that. Tommy and Micah would never forget the sight of Jeff getting his head blown off.
North called, “Jeff, you there?”
“I’ll send Tommy out if you send Lucy Kincaid in.”
“You know I can’t do that,” North said. He glared at Lucy and motioned for her to stay put.
“I can do this,” she whispered. She glanced at Sean. His face was hard and unreadable, but his eyes understood. He didn’t want her to go, but he knew she had to.
North stepped away from them and talked into his com. Lucy couldn’t hear what was being said, but he turned around a half minute later and looked her in the eye. “Are you ready for this? Tell me now if you’re not up to it. That child’s life is at stake.”
“I know.” Her heart pounded, but her mind was clear. “I’m ready.”
North called out to Jeff. “Jeff? I’ll let you talk to Kincaid if you send Tommy out first.”
There was silence, then frantic whispering from inside the rock circle. Tommy started crying, and Micah said, “It’s okay, Tommy. Go. I’ll be there when I can, okay?”
His small voice was so brave and Lucy bit back a cry of rage over what was happening to him right now. He should never have to go through something like this. No child should.
Tommy climbed over the rocks, then stopped and glanced back toward his brother. North motioned for one of his men to grab the boy. It happened fast and Tommy was being carried down off the rocks and away from the scene.
North nodded at Lucy. “You’re on, Kincaid.”
“Micah?” Lucy called out. “Are you okay?”
“Yes.” His voice was so quiet and tentative, she almost didn’t hear him. He spoke up. “I’m okay.”
“I’m glad.” She took a deep breath, forced her heart rate to slow down. “Jeff, Micah told me how good you were to him and Tommy. I know you don’t want to hurt him.”
“You killed Ann. All she wanted was that damn book.”
“Jeff, you’re not going to want to hear this but I’m telling you the truth. Ann was going to kill Micah. I had to protect him. Just like you’ve been doing ever since you came into his life.” She’d pieced together things that Micah had told her and the little she’d learned about the Nelsons from listening to the communications between Alex Johnson and Lee North.
It wasn’t much. Carl was the oldest, Jeff was the youngest. Their parents had been career criminals—the mother was now dead, the father’s whereabouts unknown. Carl had no record, but his sister, Ann, did, and Lucy suspected she’d always taken the blame, but that Carl was the ringleader. Jeff was the only one who’d graduated from a community college and held down a regular job, but the economy hit his industry—construction—hard.
They were still piecing together addresses, financial information, and the like, but according to Johnson, Ann Nelson had been on the DEA radar for years. They’d never caught up with her but had suspected she had a large distribution network in the east.
“You were just trying to provide for Vicky and her boys, weren’t you? Trying to do what their fathers never did. Micah said he never knew his dad, but you were the closest thing he had.”
Jeff wasn’t talking, and Lucy wasn’t sure that was a good sign.
“I would never have shot Ann if Micah’s life wasn’t in immediate danger. But I am
sorry.”
“She wouldn’t have hurt him.”
“I didn’t know her like you did. All I saw was a gun pointed at that little boy and I acted.” That wasn’t the entire truth. Ann had threatened Micah but she’d aimed at Lucy. Judicious lying was warranted here.
As long as Micah didn’t contradict her.
“Jeff, you’ve been protecting Micah for the last two years. You’re the only one who can protect him now.”
“This was all supposed to be easy. Micah, why didn’t you just give Ann the book?” Jeff’s voice cracked.
“She killed my mom,” Micah’s little voice said. “You told Mom you loved her.”
“Ann said she overdosed.” A sob escaped Jeff’s throat. “I wanted to protect you, Micah. God, this is all fucked up.”
North moved as if to speak and Lucy put her hand up. Jeff was going to let Micah go, she was certain of it.
She prayed she was right.
“I’m so, so sorry, Micah. Don’t hate me.”
“I don’t hate you, Dad.”
Silence fell among the boulders. Lucy feared she’d been wrong, that Jeff was going to do something very bad, but then Micah scrambled over the rocks and ran right over to her. He hugged her tightly.
North and Kershaw rushed in and Jeff stood up without resisting.
“He wouldn’t have hurt me,” Micah said. “He was crying.”
Micah was crying, too. Lucy knelt down and hugged him tightly. “You were so brave.”
“Is it over? Can I go see Tommy now?”
“Yes. Tommy is waiting for you.”
North and Kershaw had Jeff cuffed and on the ground. North said, “We have another team coming here to take custody of him so we can secure the rest of the area. Where’s this book?”
Lucy didn’t want to leave Micah. Sean said, “I’ll walk back with him. You need to show them the book and the body.”
“I’ll take you.” She said to Micah, “Stay with Sean, okay? I won’t be long.”
Micah said, “Will they go get my mom, too? Does she get a real grave?”
“Yes. She most certainly does.”
Lucy watched Sean and Micah walk off, and she sat down to catch her breath. Not because she was tired, but from the stress.
North looked down at her and said, “You did good, Kincaid. What’d you do before the FBI?”
“A lot of things,” she said. “But this is where I’m supposed to be.”